Desserts...

Hi, I'm new and I am a dessert-a-holic.

I love food... love love love love food! Fine dining is one of my favorite past times, I lived in italy for 4 months and just adored all of the fresh food but my one weakness? DESSERT.

Chocolate, cupcakes, brownies, cookies, cakes, fresh fruit, frozen yogurt, ice cream, gelato, pastries... it doesnt matter-- i LOVE THEM!

I also have a great passion for baking from scratch... it is therapy for me... i love baking for other people, trying new recipes, making people happy! but I don't bake toe at the entire batch... no... I do always allow myself to try what I have but as soon as I finish I give a quarter to my family and the rest for the office.

I am so incredibly torn between this notion of living a skinny and healthy life and enjoying the finer things in life... I love to bake in fact i one day want to open up a dessert place... my saying is "there is always room for dessert" but I feel so guilty now.

At my heaviest i was 135 (I am 5'2) and then I got down to 110/112 (2 months ago) but now I am back to 125. Part of it is to blame on the sweets overload and the other part is lack of exercise in the past month (I work 12 hour days and barely have time to shower!) and getting back on birth control.

I just don't know what to do... do I give up everything I love... good food, baking, eating desserts for this strict diet? I know that everyone is going to write back saying that you are able to eat whatever you want within certain portions and such but i dont know... its like either one of the other- all healthy or "i dont care, I just want to be happy and eat"...

I am so sorry for ranting, I just really don't know who to talk to about it. Everyone always jsut says "oh you are crazy, you are so thin"... but I am not! I feel unhealthy, I don't look right for my size... there are plenty of things to take into account other than a number and 125 for 5'2 is not a good weight for me.

Any words of advice?

Mmmm.  I love desserts.  When I have my all dessert buffet for my birthday, will you send me some?  ;)

If you really, really don't want to adjust your diet, you can always exercise more.

Even though I have a major sweet tooth, I try to keep it in line with lots of fruit in my daily diet.  I literally have fruit at every meal.  Then, every once in a great while, I will have a real sweet, but I make sure that it is a very high quality one (If I'm getting those cals, it better be worth it!)

I don't think an $8 truffle will kill your diet every once in a while.  Just priortize what's really important to you, then work around that.

P.S.  Where did you live in Italy?  I lived in Firenze for 4 months, and ate gelato every day (sometimes 2-3 times).  I still lost weight from all the walking though.

As long as you're talking desserts, here's a rant. Blast that Ben and Jerry. C'mon, that is a single serving...not 4 servings. Who are they kidding. And one serving is 280 calories? No, it isn't. It's 1120 calories because one pint is one serving.

Ben and Jerry tried to correct this huge boo boo by coming out with this little tiny cup of their ice cream. It's like maybe 3 spoonfuls. That's a sample that you should get for free in the grocery store.

I'm doing great at sticking to my calorie limit, but I realize the need to fit in some kind of decadent dessert each week. I tried to choose wisely...Like kaffwynn, if I'm getting a whopper calorie dessert, I want a good one. I picked up one of those warm delight things that you mix up and microwave...you know what I mean? It was 400 calories. It was very chocolaty, but I don't think it was worth the 400 calories. Next time, I'll probably get the Ben and Jerrys and force my husband to eat half of it.

--Dessert ho

You CAN enjoy what you eat, and you CAN enjoy what you want to eat. Just in moderation. I bet you have heard this a million times and have been befuddled by the word moderation. Moderation can be so confusing at times, but a way to simplify it is that if it fits into your calorie count, go right ahead! Enjoy that sweet tooth of yours, I do the same! You have to enjoy your life!

Also, if you didn't want to count your calories and just want to enjoy what you eat, keep in mind just the concept of portions. If you want a little of this a little of that, go right ahead! If you wanted to try everything, maybe just keep in mind to have a little of each not a heaping serving of each! We all can do that, calories can be a bit monstrous and so tiring at times. So, if you want to enjoy what you want to do, just make sure you know how much you should be getting. ;-)

I lived in Firenze too! Studied abroad there..

thanks for all of the responses guys. I swear I do know all of this it is just tough... weight has always been my enemy and I have never been overweight but when Iw as younger I became obsessed with how much Iw as eating (anorexia but not complete stravation) and then once I did eat I would work off every last calorie obsessively. I just tred lightly because I dont want to fall back into old habits but i also cant stand the effect of enjoying life and not caring on my body... damn... why can't we all be like europeans and just drink, eat and smoke and look fab!