Welcome, fellow traveler to Thinlandia! Come and join me on my journey to this most beautiful and healthful of places!
I used to live in Thinlandia when I was younger. I rather took it for granted as a kid, as many children do. As I got older, I flirted with the idea of leaving Thinlandia several times, but thankfully, always managed to get my priorities straight and returned to that place where I was the most comfortable. You see, I looked around and saw an alarming trend: as attractive resident couples of Thinlandia would get married, or as people would age, their allegiance to the principles of Thinlandia would fade, and they would start the journey to the highly populated neighboring country, Fatopia. They might stop at the little principality of Plumplee along the way, but eventually, even Plumplee would be but a reflection in their rearview mirror and they would find themselves on the plains of Just Fat, right on the outskirts of Fatopia.
Fatopia has many lovely, lovely people in it, but these people as a rule have a lot more problems with their health than the inhabitants of Thinlandia. Cardiac Disease is very prevalent, Diabetes runs rampant, and many have even found themselves living in the dangerous Twin Cities of Obese and More(bidly) Obese.
Like Fatopia, Thinlandia is also filled with amazing people, but its residents, overall, enjoy much better health than the occupants of Fatopia, Plumplee, and Just Fat. Sadly, fewer and fewer people are living there as the years go by, because there has been such a mass exodus to Fatopia as the whole country has gained weight. On the bright side, “The Law of Caloric Return” is always in effect, and Thinlandia will forever welcome those who make the effort to reach her slender shores.
As I mentioned earlier, I grew up a long-time resident of Thinlandia and vowed never to leave. But the same thing happened to me as happened to so many others – I Got Married! Before Marriage, I was exceedingly careful with what I ate. I made sure that I didn’t eat too much fat or too many calories. I happily fit into my size 6’s and 8’s and figured I’d never change. But After Marriage, things changed. My Handsome Prince, himself a handsome resident of Thinlandia, was not as dedicated to the basic principles of Thinlandia as I was, and in flew Ruffles Potato Chips, Ritz Crackers, Little Debbie Snack Cakes, M&M’s, Pounds and Pounds of Land-O-Lakes Real Butter, and lots of Yummy, Gooey, Sargento Cheese. Not to mention Taco Bell and Tasty Thai. We discovered that eating together was fun! (And watching calories wasn’t.)
Gradually, hands joined and snacks held high, we started meandering down the ever-widening highway toward Plumplee and Fatopia. We glanced back a couple of times, but everything looked just fine where we were, so we kept going. And the pounds continued creeping on.
Eventually, Prince Charming and I were each a good forty to fifty pounds heavier than we had been when we got married. The amazingly depressing realization was too obvious to ignore. “We live in Plumplee, and not just the suburbs!”
After finally facing the truth, we now had two choices: One, we could continue to move down the wide, bouncy paths of Plumplee toward the health-challenged country of Fatopia. Two, we could turn around and commit ourselves to reaching the shining, healthful country at the top of the mountain, Thinlandia. The road was steep and we would not get there overnight. There were no shortcuts; we would just have to, as they say, “Do it!” But the health complications that Fatopia promised scared us, and we made the choice to turn around.
You may be a former resident of Thinlandia, and if so, you long to come home. You remember with longing the smooth thighs, firm skin, and flat stomach you experienced when you lived there, and you want to go back. Or, you may never have lived in Thinlandia at all, but are determined to get there at any cost because you are tired of living in Plumplee or Fatopia. You may even be a current Thinlandian resident now and are seeking additional tips and pointers on how to stay there!
Whoever you are, whichever country you are a resident of, welcome! In this blog you will find tips and recipes of those foods and actions that have helped me get further away from Plumplee and closer to the beautiful land of Thinlandia. I’m determined to get there! How about you?