National Popcorn Day

It is safe to say I have an unhealthy addiction to popcorn. Normally popcorn is considered a healthy snack, however I definitely eat way too much for it to be considered anything near nutritious. As most of you know, it is standard for me to eat popcorn at least once a day. Oftentimes, I have it twice a day or it replaces an entire meal. When I make a trip home, my family usually has a fresh batch waiting for me when I walk in the door, and they get one ready for me to eat while driving back to school. My trips to Target always include a quick stop at the Cafe to buy a bag to eat while I shop, and I don't think I have ever attended a sporting event without buying popcorn from the concession stand. For Lent last year, I gave up eating popcorn. I'm ashamed to say it was a very difficult sacrifice. Waking up Easter morning to an Easter basket full of various kinds of popcorn was amazing! For my birthday this past November, my family bought me a special, giant, popcorn bowl. And on Christmas morning my dad and I received an old fashioned movie theater style popcorn machine. (It was all but 30 minutes and our house was filled with the smell of fresh popped, buttery goodness.)

Well it just so happens that today is National Popcorn Day! Any other year and I would be making endless batches of popcorn with all types of seasonings and eating so much that you would think a corn stalk might begin to grow inside me. But, not this year.

On Tuesday I began my Iodine-Free diet in preparation for my radiation treatment in a couple weeks. Unfortunately, popcorn does not make the cut. The list of foods I can eat is smaller than what I can't. Fresh fruits and vegetables, a little lean protein, a serving or two of whole grains, and unsalted nuts all are allowed. Anything that has sodium or comes out of a package or can is banned, along with all forms of dairy products. I knew living in a sorority house would make it difficult to prepare foods that I could actually eat, so I picked out a couple things from the cookbook I was given that sounded appealing. Monday afternoon my brother and I ventured to HyVee in search of the right ingredients. Needless to say, that was an adventure itself. Both of us had to stop and laugh numerous times because we had no idea where anything was and we were constantly making jokes about my new diet. That night with the help of my amazing mother, we prepared a couple things at home before I returned to school Tuesday morning. My grandmother also brought a couple things over that she had from the health food store to help out. So far it has been going well. But it is so easy to reach for something I can't have without thinking, so I have to slow down and be more aware. I haven't had much of an appetite lately either (shocking--I know), so I guess that has helped.

Another new thing is I attempted going to the gym today for the first time since the day before my surgery. I ordinarily work out 5 or 6 days a week, so going this long has caused me to go stir crazy! Now mom, I know you are shaking your head as you read this and probably aren't happy with me, but I assure you I was extra cautious! I only did a couple lower body machines because I know I still have upper body restrictions from surgery. And I only spent 30 minutes on the cardio equipment. I tried to use my favorite stair stepper machine, but it hardly took a minute to realize I didn't have enough strength to do that yet. Plus, I sanitized every system before and after I was done, used hand sanitizer so many times that I'm sure the people looking at me thought I was crazy, and avoided stretching on the mats that are sure to be full of germs and bacteria. Even though it was a wimpy work out, I can tell I will be sore tomorrow.

I guess I will close with asking you all to do me a big favor:  eat as much popcorn as you want today! If you need an excuse, say you're eating it for me because I obviously can't. (Even though it is very tempting to break the rules a little.) But instead I have decided I will be having my own National Popcorn Day in a month or so to make up for it. Have a wonderful day and pop on!