Bethenny Frankel On Indulgences

A few weeks ago, I was lucky enough to see Real Housewive's of New York star Bethenny Frankel speak about her new book, "The Skinny Girl Dish" at Barnes and Noble in Boston.

While many fans were there ranting and raving about meeting a "celebrity," I went to hear her speak about healthy living. You see, I have been a big fan of Bethenny for more than a year, because her first novel, "Naturally Thin" helped me get over my fear of food, enabling me to look at it as exciting, energizing, fueling and decadent. That's what Bethenny's motto is all about: shutting out your negative "food noise" and embracing it, because after all that's what a naturally thin person does.

Anyway, at her book signing, Bethenny opened up the floor for questions, and I asked her what her biggest guilty pleasure was, expecting her to say something like chocolate cake or greasy pizza. But rather, I was impressed by her response.

"Well, I don't really have a guilty pleasure, because I feel you can eat whatever you want in moderation. A little of this, a little of that. Although my current obsession is red velvet cake, or even just red velvet frosting. I think you could give me a red velvet shoelace and I'd eat it."

That's amazing to hear a woman say she doesn't have a guilty pleasure, that food doesn't leave her with extreme guilt. After all, it is just food, just an insignificant object really, and yet it leaves so many women obsessing over it, analyzing the caloric content of it, and hating themselves because of it.

I think all of us, including myself, need to try and detach ourselves from all the negative emotions food may bring on, and start looking at it as we did when we were little kids. You know, when the homemade chicken soup your grandma brought to you could cure any cold, and mom's pork chops and mashed potatoes warmed your soul. When a hot dog was just a hot dog, not a fatty piece of lard, and chocolate cake was just chocolate cake or something to enjoy at a birthday party, rather than something that will destroy your waistline.

Sure, it's not the best idea to have Poptarts for breakfast, mac 'n' cheese for lunch, and pizza for dinner, but a slice of pizza or a bite of that gooey brownie that just came out of the oven isn't gonna kill ya. Trust me.