Just out of curiosity, wouldn't the bun get mushy in the microwave
with all that chili and stuff?

I didn't really eat anything much before that I don't now, but there
are some things I ate ad libitum before that I now eat much more
sparingly, particularly sweets and high-fat snack foods.  I've always
liked nuts, for example, but now I'll weigh out an ounce (or count the
nuts in a serving size, if eating them other than at home), whereas
before I'd just eat out of the can until I was full.  

There are many things I no longer bring into our home, so that my
consumption of them is limited to restaurants and parties.  Most
dessert foods fall into this category, though I now keep some
chocolates at home and occasionally eat a piece or two (didn't do this
while still losing).  And I don't buy any kind of butter or margarine
other than the "zero calorie" spray stuff.  It just doesn't get used
up in a timely fashion if we do buy it, as we don't cook with it at
all.  The spray stuff works fine to flavor veggies and stuff.  Nor do
I buy full-fat salad dressings or dairy now.  I have always drunk only
skim milk, so no change there.  

I did switch from regular soda to diet.  (As it happens, I much
preferred Coke to Pepsi, but now I much prefer Diet Pepsi to Diet
Coke.)  I no longer like sugary soda.  And I find I've kind of lost my
taste for pizza, which I used to really like.  I'll occasionally eat a
little bit, but it tends to taste too salty to me now.  And I have
less taste for most fried or greasy foods.  Occasionally I'll be
tempted by something like that, but usually one or two bites is
enough.

I still drink wine.  I always drank primarily in social settings
rather than at home, and that's still the case.  The only change in my
consumption is that I can't handle as much any more at half the
bodyweight :-).

Chris
262/130s/130s
started dieting July 2002, maintaining since June 2004

I'd never say never. Having one or two 'bad' foods isn't what made me
fat. It was having lots of bad food all the time. And not exercising.
It was my failing, not that of the food, so I don't blame the food.

The meal you describe is hardly an ideal choice for a person trying to
lose weight, or maintain, but unless you no longer like such food, why
not allow it on a special occasion?

Neil
385/313.5/220

Here's a routine I pulled on many a saturday while working as the assistant
manager of a movie theater:

Breakfast: Egg McMuffin supersized meal w/ a 44oz Coke & an extra sausage
biscuit w 6 packets of ketchup

Lunch: 2 hot dogs w/ lots of onions, ketchup, mustard, & pickles, nachos,
theater size bag of Reese's pieces, large cherry icee

Snack (all day): at least 2 2-liters of cherry coke (via soda fountain), 3-4
bags of popcorn with extra salt & butter flavoring

Dinner: large nacho supreme w/ extra sour cream & salsa, a 2-liter of Dr.
Pepper, & 2 Hostess Cherry Pies

Man, if I had all those dollars I spent on fast food - we'd be debt-free
(except our house) and my wife could've been a stay-at-home mom...

Choices. It all comes down to choices.

I couldn't even think of eating (let alone spend all that money) even half
of that. I get freaked out just trying to calculate the calories I used to
consume...