Killing Fast Food Addiction 7 Days Challenge
Yesterday, I woke up at 1 am after what was supposed to be just a 20 minutes nap that turned into a 3-hour coma.
Hungry and too lazy to cook and clean so late, I drove to the motherland of lazy people, Mc Donald’s. Got me a Burger, some fries and a beer.
I could smell the Mc Drive from a mile away and my mouth was already salivating just at the idea of Mc Donald’s.
Once home, I devoured the whole thing in a matter of minutes while watching a YouTube video as per usual.
It felt great at first, but then as per usual feeling of disgust and self-hatred started to settle in.
Why do I feel like this?
I had this question echoing in my head for a while, while staring at the poster from the Terminator behind my desk.
Like an idiot, I started having an imaginary conversation with Arny (Arnold Schwarzenegger, the main character of The Terminator).
Me:
Why do I feel like this Arny? I mean, I know it’s bad for me but just once is alright, right?!
Arnold (in his amazing accent):
Is it really a one-time thing? Didn’t you just have it last week?With that “20 min” nap you just fucked up your night sleep and dinner. That beer is going to ruin your sleep, tomorrow you are going to wake up late and groggy. Then it’s just gonna be rinse and repeat!
Mc Donald’s is trash, you put in trash and trash will come out. Are you trash?!
Yeah, my inner voice dressed as Arnold is no Sissy.
It slapped me in the face and gave me the straight dough.
Just what I needed to snap out of my illusions.
The Eureka Moment
As I was taking in what my inner voice was telling me, I was struck by a sudden realization.
I feel this awful every time I go against my own inner beliefs.
Let me explain that.
I know for a fact that fast food is bad.
just because I’m not fat, doesn’t mean I can keep neglecting my diet.
It sounds obvious and stupid, but until you say it your brain doesn’t process it.
But I keep coming back to it because it’s convenient, fast and tasty.
This created an inner struggle, where your Logical Brain fights your Monkey Brain, which inevitably makes you feel horrible.
This is when I realized I need to address this problem before it gets out of hand.
Understanding the Addiction
I like to think of myself as a very logical and reasonable guy.
I never once thought that I was addicted to Fast Food and Junk food in general, but looking closely it was obvious that my brain was self-deceiving itself.
Growing up poor, we would eat always at home and my mom only cooks traditional Chinese cuisine, which is very healthy.
My dad would take me to Mc Donald’s only once in a while as a special treat.
He would never order it for himself, he knew how hard he worked for my happy meal and seeing me enjoying it was more than enough.
In retrospect, it feels so heartwarming, gosh…
Sometimes we tend to forget how much our parents love us.
Even though as any traditional Asian parent he never told me straight up “I love you son”, it was always implied.
Admitting the Addiction
Now that I’m all grown up and I live alone, I think I never stopped considering it as a treat.
The only problem is that, instead of having it once in a blue moon, I was starting to getting it every week.
When I was working full time, it got to the point that I would get take away multiple times per week and It was always the usual suspects:
- Fast Food
- Kebab
- Pizza
I would get home and be too tired to cook and just go for the easy route.
The Challenge
Now that unfortunately, I don’t work anymore, at least I have the opportunity to address this issue.
It’s time to put on the big boy pants and become the man I aspire to be.
I’ve decided to quit Fast Food and Junk Food for good.
The only question is how?
I took inspiration from all those dumb internet challenges and challenge my self for 7 days.
So for 7 days, I’ll have these items will be off-limits:
- No Soda or carbonated drink of any sort, just plain water
- No Fast Food
- No Chips
- No Beer at home
To keep myself accountable I’ll record and publish a video on YouTube, as per sorta shaming myself into action.
I’ll report back in 7 days and record another video.
If successful I’ll push it to one month.
0 Comments