Choose Your Own Adventure
Was there a greater thrill for the 80s child than to read a Choose Your Own Adventure book?
With three tv channels and half-day closing, almost certainly not.
But even in today’s world of constant entertainment and the horror of boredom, these stories are surely still pretty great.
My favourite was “The Warlock of Firetop Mountain”, and you’ll know the idea. You are the main character in an exciting adventure, with a decision to make after each chapter that will change your fate for better or worse.
My brother and I read this so often that we knew exactly the “right” options to take to get to the end of it triumphant and in one piece, and this is where my link to diet comes in.
The right food choices
Making food choices is a lot like choosing your own adventure. As in..
“You have had a rubbish day at work and are stopping for petrol on the way home. If you choose to enter the shop, grab armfuls of chocolate, a Costa drink and a multipack of Monster Munch, turn to page 10. If you choose to pay at pump and head home for a nice cup of tea, turn to page 21.”
Page 10: “You eat all the food in the car on the way home. When you arrive, you now feel sick and guilty as well as knackered. You spend the evening even more miserable than you were before and worrying where you’re going to hide the wrappers.”
Page 21: “You get home, put the kettle on, maybe have a nice biscuit (but not loads because it’s nearly dinner time). You enjoy your cup of tea and get on with your evening feeling a little better than you did before.”
See what I mean?
If you could see the consequences written out before making a particular food choice, would you still do it?
Take a moment to think
Next time that urge to overindulge comes along, take a moment to think the story through, thinking of both possible outcomes. Then choose whichever one makes the most sense and helps you to feel good.
By the way, this is one of the things I do with my 1:1 coaching clients. We talk through the options, sometimes even in real-time, letting you make the right choices for you and knowing there’s no judgement, whichever page you end up on.