Eating Healthy?

I've been thinking a lot lately about my diet and what I eat. I want to eat healthier but who has time? Classic example: On Monday, I worked an 11 hour day. Yesterday I had to pick up my car from our mechanic, and the drive home took an hour an a half. Thank-you, horrible drivers. Today, I worked ten hours. Granted, all this overtime is rare for me, but doesn't it seem like there is always something that keeps you away from home? And tomorrow will probably be another long day, because I have a project that I need to finish so that I don't have to work on Saturday.

The last thing on my to-do list after an extra long day at work is: dishes and cooking dinner.

And I'm ALWAYS, without failure, hungry when I get home. I go for the sweets. So I stopped keeping them around the house, for the most part. But that hasn't prevented me from picking up a candy bar on the way home or getting cookies at Subway during lunch.

Besides, who has the money to eat organic? Costs are typically 2-4 times what you would normally spend.

All this drama and thinking came to a head this afternoon as I was driving home and debating the merits of picking up a Blizzard from DQ. I mean, come on, its not even real ice cream! And then last night, what did I eat for dinner? I'm ashamed to admit, it was hamburger helper. I told myself it was better for me than just a box of mac'n'cheese because at least the hamburger helper has some semblance of protein.

I decided to shoot for buying more whole foods with real ingredients, instead of going straight-up organic. I can tell it is going to be an ongoing process. So I stopped at Kroger (I wish there was a Whole Foods Grocery near me. The closest one is about half an hour in the wrong direction from work) and bought my snack, paying attention to the ingredients. Here is an interesting comparison chart between what I would normally buy, and what I actually bought.

Cultured pasteurized milk and cream, granulated garlic, salt, white pepper, parsley, chives*. *Dried	Pasteurized Nonfat Milk, and Milkfat, Whey Whey Protein Concentrate, Cheese Culture, Salt, Water, Calcium Phosphate, Stabilizers (Xanthan Gum, and/or Carob Bean Gum, and/or Guar Gum), Chives, (Dried), Lactic Acid, Onions, (Dried), Sorbic Acid, as a preservative Natural Flavor, Vitamin A Palmitate.
PEANUTS, CONTAINS 1% OR LESS OF SALT.	ROASTED PEANUTS AND SUGAR, CONTAINS 2% OR LESS OF: MOLASSES, FULLY HYDROGENATED VEGETABLE OILS (RAPESEED AND SOYBEAN), MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES, SALT.
rice flour, pecan meal, potato starch, salt, expeller pressed safflower oil, salt, natural pecan flavor, natural butter flavor [contains milk].	Whole Wheat, Soybean Oil, Maltodextrin, Salt, Monoglycerides, Rosemary, Monosodium Glutamate (Flavor Enhancer), Onion Powder, Spices, Olive Oil, Spice Extracts, Natural Flavor.

See what a difference in ingredients? Also, things taste different when they have real food in them, so I suspect its going to take some getting used to. I'm trying to avoid soybeans because they've been linked to breast cancer, high fructose corn syrup for the link to diabetes, hydrogenated vegetable oils for the link to cancer,  and stuff I have trouble pronouncing. I also picked up some fruit (nectarines, apples, strawberries, bananas) to sate my sweet tooth and some brie cheese. 

My current goal is to improve the healthiness of my snacking. I've mostly conquered this at work through taking fruit with me and sesame snack mixes with dried fruit. When you don't leave the work campus during the day, snack options are limited. So now its better snacking at home! Wish me luck.