3kg (6 1/2 pounds)

May 08th 2007

That’s how much weight I gained in just three weeks in the US! That’s 1kg (2.2 pounds) per week! How did I do it? That’s the surprise. Unlike previous trips to the US, this time we had our toddler. And that meant eating on a more regular schedule (no skipping meals) and eating at “healthy” restaurants (little or no fast food). We ordered meals with vegetables so we could share food with our daughter. Little or no sandwiches. We skipped desert the majority of the time and when we did get one, we split it. Does all that like a good approach for healthy eating without gaining weight?

It did to me, until I got home. On one hand we were eating healthier (no Taco Bell) but on the other it we were fighting to resist huge portions and we were eating more than we would normally eat without the toddler. Sometimes a grilled chicken sandwich is healthier than a huge meal, at least when you’re not that hungry.

My wife was pretty depressed about it, saying we can’t move to the US because we’ll get fat. She’s got a good point there. But when living in the US you have a refrigerator and can take home leftovers, you’re not “obligated” to finish all your meals. We also wouldn’t be eating out 2-3 times a day either. But it is something that we should keep in mind, because it’s easy to fall into the American eating system.

Back in France, our first meals here (lunch & dinner with my wife’s family) didn’t seem to have as much taste. Not sweet enough. Not enough salt. The same curry sauce (Uncle Ben’s) I loved suddenly was bland. I had become accustomed to the American food which contains a lot of sugar & salt.

It will take some time to get used to the French food again. And I’ll be stepping up my exercise program to try and work off those extra pounds as fast as possible.

Hopefully that’s food for thought (I hope my French readers appreciate my lame attempts at humor). I’ll be writing more about our food experiences during our trip, and making comparisons to the food here in France. Stay tuned.

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