I Ate Everything in France and Lost Weight
On a recent trip, I allowed myself to enjoy all of the bread, cheese, wine, etc…. and surprisingly found it was exactly what my body needed.
Hi, I’m Reid! I write about my life experiences and how we can all live in brave new ways. Dare You is an entirely reader-supported publication. To receive weekly posts and support my work, please consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
It’s been a week since my return home from a 2-week-long romp in Europe with my friend Jodi, which you can read more about on my recent post Europe in December. The integration phase back into daily life has been quite beautiful... a quirky mix between missing the whimsical lifestyle I led in France, while also feeling immense gratitude for all I have to come home to. It feels as if I have caught what the internet deemed last year as “Lucky girl syndrome.” I’ll ride this wave as long as humanly possible. It has been heartwarming to be back with my partner and reconnect with friends I haven’t seen since before Thanksgiving. I can’t help but notice how differently I have been showing up in the world, and for myself. I feel more confident, more free, like a new page in my book has turned, and the tiny words with small spaces feel less intimidating. Returning home came with a gust of wind at my sails propelling me with excitement into what is next in my story.
There has also been time for reflection. What, in fact, caused this big shift? I’ve been journaling about this and have come to find many reasons for why I am feeling so much better. One, however, seems to stand out as an over arching through line of the entire trip that has caused me to deeply rethink how I move forward. Before embarking on this trip, I made the decision to completely set myself free from any food restrictions or pressure to look a certain way. I have been truthful on this blog in previous posts about my history with eating disorders in my 20’s that I have been so lucky to overcome, but one thing that lingers is the pressure that so many women feel to stay in shape and look a certain way. Personally, I don’t think its wrong to want to feel happy and confident in ones body; it’s just the extreme actions that some might be driven to take in an attempt to look like what society deems as “perfect” I have an issue with and take actions to suppress in my own mental landscape. Just being honest here. By making the decision to not worry about what I ate and not workout at all for 2 weeks straight felt freeing and necessary. I mean.. who wants to be that person saying no to a fresh croissant in the morning? Not this bitch!
I did say yes to that croissant in the morning… sometimes two a day. By allowing myself to enjoy the food I wanted to have, an overall relaxation occurred inside my body and my mind. “It’s because your cortisol levels are balanced!” Jodi would say in response to my astonishment at how good I felt. “It’s all about cortisol levels.” Luckily, Jodi was on the same page as me with wanting to eat our way through France.
Not only did I eat all the croissants, I ate all the cheese, all the bread, and drank wine whenever I wanted. There is something to be said for how differently the food is made in Europe than in the United States. The food there is less processed and contains less additives. We drank wine every day (sometimes copious amounts) and never felt a hangover. If I consumed the same amount of wine in a day here in America as I did in France, you wouldn’t see me for weeks after. But we woke up every morning feeling good and with loads of energy. Apparently, the wine has less sulfites and is just more natural than the wine shipped to the states. Also, I haven’t had real milk in my morning coffee in over 15 years. Usually, I insist on an almond or oat milk. But in France, I enjoyed every single coffee with regular whole milk. In fact, I enjoyed Lattes, Cappuccinos, Cafe Au Les, all with whole milk! I felt absolutely fine.
Even though Jodi and I threw caution to the wind when it came to moderation, it does seem the French know when to stop. Their food is very rich and flavorful which leaves them feeling satisfied sooner. Perhaps, if I allowed myself to enjoy foods that satisfy me more while at home in the states, like croissants, butter, and whole milk, then maybe I too might feel satisfied after a meal rather than always looking for what’s next? Here in America, we live in an extreme consumer culture that had led us to believe we are not good enough until we have this thing or change our diet in some way. What if I just let go of that completely?
One thing that’s also different about France is, I didn’t notice a single gym anywhere. I’m sure there are a few hidden in dark alleyways, but the over all consensus was that the French care far less about working out on a daily basis than Americans. Instead, an active lifestyle is ingrained in their culture. Everyone walks most places. Even though I didn’t work out for 2 weeks, I walked miles and miles each day. So yes, I got exercise, but it wasn’t like I set my sights on busting my ass in the gym which, back to Jodi’s doctrine, raises your cortisol levels. Since coming home a week ago, I have gone for long walks and did a run with my boyfriend around the lake at sunset, but not once have I cracked the proverbial whip to get to the gym and push my limits, which I do think has a time and a place for some people, but if I’m finally being honest with myself, its just not what’s best for me most of the time.
Not only did I have loads of energy and feel great in my body on the trip, but once I returned home I was shocked to see that I had actually lost weight. Never was this something I had set out to do; in fact, I thought I would return home to the opposite result. Never did I think it was possible to lose weight while actually enjoying food, and well… my life. My clothes fit better, I feel confident in my skin, I have more brain space to focus on things that actually matter and move the needle forward in my life rather than wasting any time obsessing about what needs changing
Friday morning, sitting at a local lakeside cafe catching up with a friend, I had my first croissant back in town. It was not nearly as good in form as the ones I consumed every morning in France, but as I pulled the flakes apart I chose to embody my new mindset of pleasure and enjoyment, and I’ll be damned… it was the best croissant I’ve ever had. And so will be the next, and the next, and the next…
-Reid