How Cookie Monster Can Help You Lose Fat

When was the last time you watched Sesame Street? If you have a
youngster at home, maybe it was this morning! For most of us,
however, it’s been years since we last viewed Big Bird and the
gang. But, even now as adults, our friends from Sesame Street
still have a lot to teach us.

Everyone loves Cookie Monster, that blue fellow that can never
seem to get enough cookies. Cookie Monster never worried about
calories, fat content or serving size…..he just wanted
cookies! Who can forget the song “C is for cookie – that’s good
enough for me!”?

But in this age of skyrocketing obesity rates and health care
costs, even Cookie Monster has changed his eating habits.
There’s even a new song: “A Cookie Is a Sometimes Food,” where
Cookie Monster learns there are “anytime” foods and “sometimes”
foods. (Source: The Associated Press, 2005; MSNBC)

Cookie Monster still eats cookies. After all, he is the Cookie
Monster! But now he eats cookies in moderation. Rumor has it
that Cookie Monster is even experimenting with new, healthier
types of cookies to sometimes replace his old favorite
chocolate-chip cookies.

So what can we learn from Cookie Monster? First of all, it’s
important to note that Cookie Monster is not ‘on a diet’. Cookie
Monster knows that trying to force yourself to give up your
favorite food is a sure path to failure. When we try to
‘willpower’ our way into giving up our absolute favorite treat,
we inevitably fall off the wagon. It’s a much better plan to
simply cut back on fattening foods, eating them less often and
in smaller portions. That way we won’t feel deprived or even
depressed, which leads to bingeing and a feeling of failure.
Cookie Monster knows that if he tried to give up cookies
altogether he would fail and soon be sneaking cookies late at
night. Cookie Monster even knows that failing this way is very
dangerous because it can lead us to believe that we are
failures…..”I can’t do it, so why even try?”

Instead of giving up cookies altogether, Cookie Monster is doing
the smart thing and just cutting back. That’s a great lesson for
us! If you’ve failed on your last ten diets because you were
trying to give up pepperoni pizza…..and you love pepperoni
pizza as much as Cookie Monster loves cookies…..then why try
to give it up again? Take a lesson from Cookie Monster and
simply cut back instead; eat smaller portions less often.
Remember, cookies are a ‘sometimes food’ now!

The second thing we can learn from Cookie Monster is to
substitute healthier foods for fattening favorites. Cookie
Monster is experimenting with healthier alternatives to his
chocolate-chip cookies. He knows that he can still enjoy his
treat without putting on the pounds. How can we adapt this
lesson? How about trying veggie pizza instead of pepperoni
pizza? If that doesn’t work for you, then how about asking the
pizza place to put on 1/3 less pepperoni? Another alternative
would be to make your own pizza at home and use the reduced fat
or turkey pepperoni that’s available in every supermarket meat
department. How about cutting back on the cheese by 1/3, or
making your own using low-fat cheese? There are a lot of ways to
modify pepperoni pizza to make it healthier!

The third fat-loss tip we can learn from Cookie Monster is that
we need to continue our own health, fitness and nutrition
education. “This season, each episode opens with a ‘health tip’
about nutrition, exercise, hygiene and rest. Sesame Street also
will introduce new characters, such as talking eggplants and
carrots, and offer parodies, such as ‘American Fruit Stand.’
Even guest stars will address healthy activities, such as Alicia
Keys talking and singing about the importance of physical
activity. Politicians have gotten into the act, filming public
service announcements with Sesame Street residents. In one
taping, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist taught Elmo to
exercise — jumping up and down. In another, Sen. Hillary
Clinton and the small red monster discuss the various textures
and tastes of foods.” (Source: The Associated Press, 2005; MSNBC)

We all watched Sesame Street when we were growing up, and I must
confess that Cookie Monster was one of my favorites. While we
may think that we’ve outgrown him and his friends at ’123 Sesame
Street’, they still have a lot to teach us.

Take a moment this week to watch Sesame Street. Take a trip down
memory lane. Remember when the Sesame Street gang helped you
learn your ABC’s and 123′s, and then think about what they can
teach us today.

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