The Best Time to Make Some Health Decisions Is Before the Moment Arrives

In Issue #001 of Prediabetes Playbook, I alluded to a shit show of a breakfast order I made while dining with my wife in Fort Wayne, Indiana. I wanted to break it down here.

I’d been excited to brunch with her at Ophelia’s for a few years after eating there twice with “the guys” from work. The most recent time was in July 2025 when six of us got together for breakfast on my 49th birthday.

We joked that we were literally the only dudes in there as we snuggled together in a corner booth. I think our hips were touching while we dined.

Fact:

Brooks (to my right in the orange) is left-handed, so our elbows were battling, too.

I think the reason I chose to eat there again that day, besides it being genuinely FAN-tastic, was that the vibe reminded me of my wife and daughter.

Pink booths.
Floral wallpaper.
Pink flowers on the table.
Instagram-ready neon sign.
And a pancake dish they would love.

I mean, Spiced Sweet Potato Pancakes with maple bourbon syrup, apple butter, and brown sugar whipped cream. Truthfully, I was looking forward to a taste, too. But it’s a standard of mine to share pancakes when dining out, if we order them at all.

I love my guy friend co-workers like family, but I’m not going to share pancakes with them. 😂

Well, in early August, the day finally arrived for Katie and me to enjoy Ophelia’s together…and I wasn’t hungry. Kind of a buzzkill after a two-year wait for this exact moment.

Regardless, we were going to eat those Spiced Sweet Potato Pancakes!! Katie ordered those with a side of over-medium eggs. The other egg dishes I was considering for us to share either had meat (which she doesn’t prefer) or seemed “heavier” than I was up for in the moment. In a pinch, I chose the overnight oats, thinking I’d just have a few bites.

The spread:

One more important detail: we also each ordered a seasonal latte: Katie got the Banana Bread latte with almond milk, and I got the Lemon Bar latte.

So…if you’re keeping track better than I did that day, you might be thinking that’s a lot of sweet things. You would not be wrong.

✔️ Spiced Sweet Potato Pancakes with bourbon maple syrup

✔️ Brown sugar and vanilla-soaked overnight oats topped with banana brûlée, honey, and almond butter.

✔️ Banana Bread Latte

✔️ Lemon Bar Latte

This order was NOT Prediabetes Playbook approved.

I should have called an audible.

Fortunately, we can do some Monday-morning quarterbacking with the choices we make. I started during the meal and continued during the six-hour ride home that immediately followed.

Six Lessons From a Breakfast I Regretted

Reflection is important in many areas of our lives, and this was an opportunity for just that. Here’s what was going through my head during and immediately after the meal.

#1 - Learn from it, but get over it.

If I’m being honest, when I realized I’d lowered my standards, I was disappointed in myself to the point that it took away from a moment I’d looked forward to for a few years.

I don’t know if that’s healthy.

I do believe the pursuit of long-term health requires some subtle and gentle awareness when we’ve fucked up, followed by the ability to move on quickly—which we did.

#2 - Make immediate pivots; don’t mail it in.

To our credit, we acted on it. We enjoyed several bites of the pancakes but scooped off most of the brown sugar whipped cream, and we didn’t finish the short stack. They were great BTW.

I ate more of the overnight oats than I should have, but we didn’t finish it.

We shared many sips of the lattes, which were pretty average, so we didn’t finish those either.

Thankfully, Katie ordered and ate the eggs. I made sure to eat every bite of almond butter in the oats. Remember, adding fat and protein to a carbohydrate-heavy meal can help slow the glucose response.

#3 - It was the stack, not the splurge

I will NOT stop enjoying the occasional latte, pancakes, or overnight oats. The problem was eating them all at once.

This one random instance isn’t as big a deal as I’m making it out to be. It 100% would be a problem for my glucose control and metabolic health if I made eating like this a habit repeated over years.

#4 - Sugar is hard to say no to

Man, it’s hard for me, so it’s important that I put myself in situations where I don’t even have to say no.

That means limiting what’s easily accessible in my pantry, freezer, and fridge just as much as being mindful about what I order when eating out.

I mentioned I ate more overnight oats than I should have, and it was because the sugar-shelled brûlée bananas and honey were fire.

#5 - The meal wasn’t my only mistake

I walk after most of my meals because even a relatively short walk after eating can help blunt the normal rise in blood glucose after a meal.

Eating a meal like this and then sitting in the car for six hours with NO movement was a bad, bad combo.

It certainly set me up for an energy crash mid-drive.

#6 - You have standards for a reason

One way to stay on track more often is to decide what your standards are before you’re in the moment.

Then, stick to them most of the time.

That’s much easier than deciding in the moment, when your emotions, environment, and/or peers may influence you.

Here are some example standards we hold ourselves to 90% or more of the time when dining out:

• Hell yes, get dessert with dinner, but split it

• Order pancakes on occasion, but split them

• One drink with dinner is best. Two drinks tops, and not every time

• Say no to a second basket of bread at dinner.

(We have a standard for a second basket of tortilla chips, but we need to be better about that standard. 🫣)

One important point: meals like this are the exception for us. We eat 95% of our meals at home, largely prioritize whole, fresh foods, and regularly move our bodies.

And when choices like these become patterns repeated over years, they can contribute to the same metabolic problems now affecting 115+ million Americans with prediabetes.

In closing…

I’ve had a half dozen or more breakfasts out with Katie since this day, and we’ve stuck to our standards.

I'm 100% certain that we’ll miss the mark again sometime, and we’ll learn from that new experience, too.

My one action item for you today is to consider where you could set a standard before the decision arrives—guardrails that let you stay in the moment but keep you from going off track on the regular.

And when you inevitably miss the mark? Give yourself some grace, spend a lil time figuring out what you can learn, and move on.

Have a good week. ✌🏼

-Chad

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