Ed Levine's Serious Diet, Week 94: Too Many Chocolate Chip Cookie Taste Tests
[Photograph: Robyn Lee]
Serious eaters, I'm about to stand before you (and on Thinner) a beaten man.
Why? It's been a bad serious diet week. I can cite the usual culprits: stress, bad eating habits, and too much access to seriously delicious food. And oh yeah, too many chocolate chip cookie taste tests. In fact, there's another one coming up this afternoon.
But too many chocolate chip cookie taste tests are not an acceptable excuse. I should try CCCTT abstinence this afternoon: Just say no!
But just saying no to the CCCTT won't rescue my weigh-in this morning.
In the end there's not much more to say about it, and sadly there's not much I can do about it at this point, except get on Thinner and take my lumps.
The Weigh-In
220. Damn. That sucks.
I suppose I can take some solace from having come as far as I have these last 93 weeks. I'm feeling and looking better than I have in a long time, and that won't change because of this one bad week.
I'm just going to have to pick myself up and get right back on the diet horse, even though Thanksgiving is coming. But just as too many CCCTTs are no excuse, Thanksgiving is no excuse either.
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21 Comments:
The things you sacrifice for us Ed. We appreciate all your efforts and stamina. That extra 2 lbs I'm sure is well worth it. Not many people get this opportunity. :) Have a great CCCTT afternoon!
gargupie at 10:04AM on 11/20/09
It's just one of those things, if you want to be lean you have to cut out cookies and other sugar-laden foods.
Either that or exercise 2 1/2 hours a day.
redfish at 10:23AM on 11/20/09
Must be going around this week - I too am dieting and had a pretty lousy week. Well, onwards and upwards (or perhaps I should say downwards!)
Maureen at 10:43AM on 11/20/09
why not just spit out the cookies?
daemon at 10:44AM on 11/20/09
Spit out the cookies?! WTF.
Can we be rational here? Take one small bite from each cookie. (Or actually, break off one small bite of cookie so you don't have to throw the rest away.)
Pupster at 11:13AM on 11/20/09
Oh yes! Chocolate chip cookies! Not being on a diet helps me so much!
I have made a lifestyle change. Instead of the entire pack of cookies, I just eat one. So, you might want to eat enough cookies to make only one from your testings. No, I wouldn't spit out the cookies, either. Once chocolate hits my tongue, I am a goner.
My goal is not to gain any weight over the holidays. Which is going to be
really tough since I love to cook during the holidays.
Keep up the good work. Remember, it isn't all up or down. Goes both ways.
queenbleu at 11:29AM on 11/20/09
@redfish - I exercise between 2 1/2 and 4 hours a day, 3-5 days a week, and have not lost a pound since I started. Actually, I have recently decided to drastically up my calories, because I realized I was under-eating for the amount of activity I get, and thereby lowering my metabolism and inhibiting muscle development.
Anywhoo, exercise alone won't help!
I advocate smaller cookies. And letting others test first so you only eat the best of the bunch. :-)
KarynMC at 11:34AM on 11/20/09
yeah, what's up with this week? i'm up 3 lbs. this week! i keep trying to convince myself that i'll just go hard on eating right and staying active next week. then i remember that it's Thanksgiving. ugh.
_greenbean at 12:12PM on 11/20/09
We're entering the hibernation season. You are programmed, with or without the help of chocolate chip cookies, cornbread stuffing and pumpkin pie, to prepare for winter by building up an extra layer of body fat for insulation during the coming months. As long as you don't overdose on high-fat, high-calorie foods devoid of any redeeming nutritional qualities, this body fat will melt off when you shiver.
Let's hope this winter is a frigid one. Go outside--get your internal combustion going and you'll be fine.
betteirene at 1:37PM on 11/20/09
I forgot--don't beat yourself up about it, Ed. You're coming along fine.
betteirene at 1:40PM on 11/20/09
I second the hibernation comment - all I've been wanting to do these past two weeks are sleep and eat cheese.
marchpane at 2:18PM on 11/20/09
@marchpane - that made me laugh. ed, i so admire you for putting all of this out there, be it a good week or a bad one. i don't think i could do the same. holiday season is, as we all know, tough for everyone - i have thanksgiving immediately followed by my birthday, which amounts to a multitude special meals with loved ones. my main goal is to enjoy life and food while making reasonable sacrifices where i can. for example, having seriously delicious food on only TWO days of "birthday week" instead of four or five. and please keep up the cookie testing - conducting that research is a most valuable service for all new yorkers, and we appreciate it and all that you do!
rebeccadiamond at 3:17PM on 11/20/09
I'm having trouble reading this post. I can't take my eyes off the cookie.
HeartofGlass at 3:22PM on 11/20/09
I'm with Heartofglass!
Foodie,foodie! at 3:34PM on 11/20/09
Ed - "get right back on the diet horse"....the word diet worries me. I am under the belief that the only way you can master the weight thing is to not think in terms of diet. Diet implies restrictions and bad stuff. I don't like the word "lifestyle change", either, though. I am sure you will be back down those few pounds soon...but you may want to rethink your use of the word diet...just a thought. :-)
RJ Foodie at 5:46PM on 11/20/09
I agree with betteirene--it's darn cold outside and all I want to do is crawl in bed with a huge bowl of mashed potatoes...fie on the winter!
And hey, how do you NOT gain weight tasting cookies all week? Jeez!
2 pounds is nothing...you've come so far, and one week can't take that away.
TheKitchenWitch at 7:09PM on 11/20/09
Report from SE World Headquarters: Ed showed admirable restraint in this week's tasting. :)
Carey Jones at 7:14PM on 11/20/09
@Pupster - There's something about biting into a cookie that makes it more enjoyable. Perhaps it's the knowledge there are more bites to come?
@Ed - 2 lbs isn't horrible. If presented with a choice between cookies or 2 less lbs, I'd choose cookies. You can always exercise a little more tomorrow.
Tia Kim at 11:59PM on 11/20/09
Agree with RJ Foodie, the word diet is a 4 letter word to me, just brings up all sorts of bad associations including the word, bad...
Of all the foods, who can blame u for too many C3's........
Go play some squash, drink some water and reset your internal eating barometer....try on some of your old pants and keep Thinner around....
And have a happy T-day!!!!
Jbout at 9:46AM on 11/21/09
I think that maybe this is the right week for this to happen. It's like the team who loses the first game of the season, gets that fire in their bellies, then comes back and blows everyone away. With the holidays coming up, this small slip-up will give you that extra drive to stick to your guns and stay committed like you have for the previous 93 weeks. You've got the one crappy week out of the way, now you have six to show off your new lifestyle decisions!
jojojo at 7:52PM on 11/21/09
On that putting on fat for the winter thing... I'm trying to lose weight too, and I've got a crazy idea to try to help it along.
I'm trying to stay slightly uncomfortably cold most of the time. Given that a warm-blooded creature like me uses a substantial percentage of caloric energy on maintaining a constant body temperature, I'm trying to make it so I'm just a wee bit chilly most of the time. This may also put a dent in heating bills. If I feel too cold, I could always hop on the exercise bike or go for a walk to get my blood pumping.
Or maybe it won't make any difference at all. *shrug* And yes, I'm doing other things too.
Anyway, two pounds is not a big deal. You can lose that in a week or two.
Neohippie at 10:58AM on 11/23/09