Question:
I do sometimes feel very out of sorts, not wanting to do anything, just want to sit in a nice quiet room all by myself.
The last two items are big red flags. They’re high on the list of indicators for clinical depression. Add the emotional beating you’ve taken, and I really do urge you to follow-up with your dr for an evaluation. Medication may not be the answer, but it never hurts to find out if there’s something else dragging you down besides regular life. Maybe if what you’re feeling has a name, it’ll be easier to tell other people (and yourself!!) that you need some self-time.
Response:
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I hope I’m getting ready. I’m tired of being tired, having no clothes that fit properly and feeling basically yucky! Oh, the other thing is that when I lost 37 lbs. two years ago all my joint and muscle pain went away. It’s back now. I wish the desire for good health was enough to trigger my willingness to lose weight. Unfortunately, that argument falls on deaf ears in my case. Nope, what’s making the difference right now is something that appealed to my vanity, which I didn’t know I possessed until I realized I can’t wear last summer’s clothes nor my bicyling shorts and shirts. Even if only in my own mind, I looked cute last year, an attribute I’ve never associated with myself, and I liked the feeling.
I saw your photo on your website last year and though you looked great! "Feeling basically yucky": Have you considered at all that you might be depressed, and perhaps anti-depression might help? With all the non-stop emotional pain you’ve experienced over the last 24 months, it’s not out of the question that your brain chemistry is out of whack and needs a bit of help getting right.
You know, I’ve thought about that and think it might have something to do with it. One other thing that is happening is DH’s grandmother is clinging to me since my MIL passed away last August. She has no immediate family now as her husband died 7 years ago and my MIL was her only child. She phones our house every night and if we know it’s her and don’t answer, she keeps phoning non-stop until we answer. Then all she does is complains about everyone else in the family and how they don’t phone her or stop by, etc., etc. Reason they don’t is just that – she complains non-stop! She relies on DH’s aunt (sister of DH’s father) and myself to take her shopping, to get her hair done, doctors appointments, everything. She’s tried to recruit me to do her housework, make her bed, vacuum her carpets, etc. I have enough to do so refuse to volunteer (actually DH warned me against doing too much for her as he doesn’t want her to be too dependent on us all as we’ve got our own lives to live). I’ve tried to talk her into some home care services, but she will have nothing to do with it. It’s not as if it costs her anything as it’s covered by her medical plan, but she just won’t have it. As you say, I have had alot going on over the last two years, so I expect that it’s all gotten to me and is making me somewhat depressed. I do sometimes feel very out of sorts, not wanting to do anything, just want to sit in a nice quiet room all by myself. The more I think about what you’ve said, the more I think that maybe that is my problem. I’m going to make an appointment with my doctor and see what he has to say about it all. Thanks for the help…. Just a thought. Whatever is going on, Brenda, I hope you feel better soon. I’m sorry to hear about your other grandmother. You’re so close to all of your family; I can’t imagine how heavy the load of sadness and worry that you carry.
I am close to my family and it will be difficult for us all if they find it’s spread to other parts of her body, but we can just hope and pray that it hasn’t and that they can remove the cancer that is there and she will continue to live a long healthy and happy life. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – — Linda P
Response:
Habit, yes. And others: Boredom, stress, something to occupy the hands… I need a new habit. Do you nibble when you’re biking, hiking, x-country skiing? I don’t nibble when I’m at the computer. But TV? Reading? hoo boy! I should take up knitting to keep my fingers busy while I’m sitting.
Sitting at the computer and watching TV make me want to snack. I can read without feeling the urge to eat though. Knitting is a great idea – I’ve taken it up in the past – not to avoid eating – and enjoyed it. Right now I have DS and a cat who would love to get all tangled up in my wool so won’t be doing any knitting real soon. The only reason snacking is not incessant right now is that it is unavailable. The only finger food in the house are cherry tomatoes, strawberries, oranges, and apples. I don’t even have any popcorn. No yogurt, no skinny cows, no meringues. I just don’t trust myself to have that stuff sitting around. I stopped at the grocery store today and looked for Panda licorice. Even with my renewed determination, I was hunched down, scavenging the bottom shelf. Fortunately, the store was out of licorice, and I had enough sense to leave before anything else attracted my attention.
Good for you having no snack foods in the house. Wish I could get away with that. If I had none it would force DH to the grocery store then there would be worse things here than there are now! Brenda – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Amen, sister! (G) Meals are fine. And if I do go out and splurge it is quite infrequent. Snacking is incessant and available ….. Nervous habit, just habit, boredom, stress….. As important as it is to learn good eating habits in general for our main meals, non-meal nibbling is my downfall. Reaching for a handful of whatever… for me, that’s the deal breaker when it comes to weight loss. My challenge lately has been my neighbors house. She always has lots of junk food. I frequently hit her frittos or other chips while I am there. While it might only be a handfull it still adds up plus I don’t like that I can’t seem to resist them. I suspect that I am feeling deprived and this is my way of getting them without having to buy the whole bag myself. Gotta break this habit for sure. Thanks Laura. Weekends have been my most challenging time period. I was able to stay on program all of last weekend and yesterday. Last night I went out for coffee with a friend and was sorely tempted throughout the evening to purchase a desert square or cookie or biscotti or Something. I went through all the reasons I could have something–I have a whole week’s worth of flex points, I could share it with my friend, I Wanted it–and each and every time I was able to remember that I’m trying to fit into my bike clothes and eating a treat, while a momentary pleasure, would ultimately lead to my feeling worse for a lot longer. I wasn’t hungry. I have fruit at home to satisfy my sweet tooth; in fact, I ate a couple of strawberries as soon as I walked in the door. I wasn’t even thinking about food when I got to the place because I’d enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying and interesting meal shortly before going. No, it was just the sight of all those goodies in the case that made me think I should have something. Did I feel deprived? Yeah, a little. But I was able to tell myself that I’ll feel even more deprived if I can’t fit into my summer shorts. And that seemed to be enough to make me go back to my seat and enjoy the company of my friend. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Great job getting back on track. The right mental attitude goes a long way in this journey. You certainly made the right decsion in coming back. After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
Habit, yes. And others: Boredom, stress, something to occupy the hands… I need a new habit. Do you nibble when you’re biking, hiking, x-country skiing? I don’t nibble when I’m at the computer. But TV? Reading? hoo boy! I should take up knitting to keep my fingers busy while I’m sitting. The only reason snacking is not incessant right now is that it is unavailable. The only finger food in the house are cherry tomatoes, strawberries, oranges, and apples. I don’t even have any popcorn. No yogurt, no skinny cows, no meringues. I just don’t trust myself to have that stuff sitting around. I stopped at the grocery store today and looked for Panda licorice. Even with my renewed determination, I was hunched down, scavenging the bottom shelf. Fortunately, the store was out of licorice, and I had enough sense to leave before anything else attracted my attention. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -Amen, sister! (G) Meals are fine. And if I do go out and splurge it is quite infrequent. Snacking is incessant and available ….. Nervous habit, just habit, boredom, stress….. As important as it is to learn good eating habits in general for our main meals, non-meal nibbling is my downfall. Reaching for a handful of whatever… for me, that’s the deal breaker when it comes to weight loss. My challenge lately has been my neighbors house. She always has lots of junk food. I frequently hit her frittos or other chips while I am there. While it might only be a handfull it still adds up plus I don’t like that I can’t seem to resist them. I suspect that I am feeling deprived and this is my way of getting them without having to buy the whole bag myself. Gotta break this habit for sure. Thanks Laura. Weekends have been my most challenging time period. I was able to stay on program all of last weekend and yesterday. Last night I went out for coffee with a friend and was sorely tempted throughout the evening to purchase a desert square or cookie or biscotti or Something. I went through all the reasons I could have something–I have a whole week’s worth of flex points, I could share it with my friend, I Wanted it–and each and every time I was able to remember that I’m trying to fit into my bike clothes and eating a treat, while a momentary pleasure, would ultimately lead to my feeling worse for a lot longer. I wasn’t hungry. I have fruit at home to satisfy my sweet tooth; in fact, I ate a couple of strawberries as soon as I walked in the door. I wasn’t even thinking about food when I got to the place because I’d enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying and interesting meal shortly before going. No, it was just the sight of all those goodies in the case that made me think I should have something. Did I feel deprived? Yeah, a little. But I was able to tell myself that I’ll feel even more deprived if I can’t fit into my summer shorts. And that seemed to be enough to make me go back to my seat and enjoy the company of my friend. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Great job getting back on track. The right mental attitude goes a long way in this journey. You certainly made the right decsion in coming back. After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
I hope I’m getting ready. I’m tired of being tired, having no clothes that fit properly and feeling basically yucky! Oh, the other thing is that when I lost 37 lbs. two years ago all my joint and muscle pain went away. It’s back now.
I wish the desire for good health was enough to trigger my willingness to lose weight. Unfortunately, that argument falls on deaf ears in my case. Nope, what’s making the difference right now is something that appealed to my vanity, which I didn’t know I possessed until I realized I can’t wear last summer’s clothes nor my bicyling shorts and shirts. Even if only in my own mind, I looked cute last year, an attribute I’ve never associated with myself, and I liked the feeling. "Feeling basically yucky": Have you considered at all that you might be depressed, and perhaps anti-depression might help? With all the non-stop emotional pain you’ve experienced over the last 24 months, it’s not out of the question that your brain chemistry is out of whack and needs a bit of help getting right. Just a thought. Whatever is going on, Brenda, I hope you feel better soon. I’m sorry to hear about your other grandmother. You’re so close to all of your family; I can’t imagine how heavy the load of sadness and worry that you carry. — Linda P
Response:
I’m going to try her sample menus for a few weeks and see what I think, then perhaps I’ll subscribe. Thanks for the suggestions. Brenda
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – What is the menu planner you subscribe to? www.savingdinner.com The site belongs to an associate of Flylady.net. What I like about the menus (main meals only, no breakfasts or lunches, unless you have leftovers) is that they don’t require much preparation time. I’m usually eating within 1/2 hour of getting home from work. One menu a week is slow-cooked. Hardly anything is microwaved. She offers a regular menu available for 6 or 2 people, which includes vegetarian and kosher options for each meal, a vegetarian menu for 6 or 2 people, a low-carb menu for 6 or 2 people, and recently added a frugal menu for 6 people only. I get the regular menu. The weekly menus also come with a shopping list, and nutritional info is provided for the main item in each meal, making it easy to calculate points. You have to point side items yourself. I subscribed about 6 weeks ago. I don’t have one of these meals every night–I still go back to my grilled meat, baked potato, steamed vegetable a couple times a week, especially if I’ve gone out for lunch. But when I prepare one of the menu meals, eating alone somehow feels like a sit-down family meal. As an single empty-nester, I’ve been deprived of that experience for too many years. I find that once I get home from work, which is usually around 5:30 pm that I don’t have alot of time to prepare dinner, so it’s usually something that I can quickly throw together. Breakfast has never been a favorite meal of mine. I usually have something like oatmeal with milk and brown sugar, egg white omelette on dry toast with 1/2 oz. cheddar, or cereal. Lunches are usually soup, salad, or a veggie sandwich – dinners can be almost anything at the moment. Like I said, whatever is quick and easy has been getting my vote lately – and it’s usually not an OP meal. The other thing I haven’t been doing is drinking water. I know it makes a difference though. I hate "diet" food too, so the typical "diet" stuff would not cut it with me – that’s why I joined WW – so I could have everything in moderation – but lately moderation has meant EVERYTHING! Brenda Adding variety to the family meal menu is definitely worth trying. It’ll be worth it if you’re able to satisfy the "exciting" factor. "Diet" food can be boring, or at least we think it is. For me, I knew I couldn’t go back to my simple evening meal plan of grilled meat, baked white or sweet potato, and steamed vegetable. After Months of that as a steady "diet," I thought I’d scream if I had that one more time. Now my evening meals are much more varied. I subscribe to a weekly non-weight loss menu planner, and I haven’t had the same meal for dinner in two months. I’m eating real food, not "diet" food. My taste buds are being introduced to new foods. Grocery shopping isn’t the total chore it used to be. I’m experimenting with new-to-me kitchen gadgets. Pasta’s back in my diet. I vary my breakfast between oatmeal, maple syrup, and milk, and eggbeaters, english muffin, and milk, depending on the points value of the evening meal. Lunch is salad. I make sure I eat my two fruits, take my multivitamins, include a vegetable with dinner, use extra-lean meats in the recipes, and substitute spray oils as appropriate. Touching and smelling and experiencing the foods while I’m preparing my meal seems to make a difference. Hmmm…deprivation. Perhaps that’s my problem. Meals have been kind of boring lately and the snacks, such as crackers, cookies, chocolate have been more exciting. I’m going to try to make our meals more interesting and see what happens. Brenda My challenge lately has been my neighbors house. She always has lots of junk food. I frequently hit her frittos or other chips while I am there. While it might only be a handfull it still adds up plus I don’t like that I can’t seem to resist them. I suspect that I am feeling deprived and this is my way of getting them without having to buy the whole bag myself. Gotta break this habit for sure. Thanks Laura. Weekends have been my most challenging time period. I was able to stay on program all of last weekend and yesterday. Last night I went out for coffee with a friend and was sorely tempted throughout the evening to purchase a desert square or cookie or biscotti or Something. I went through all the reasons I could have something–I have a whole week’s worth of flex points, I could share it with my friend, I Wanted it–and each and every time I was able to remember that I’m trying to fit into my bike clothes and eating a treat, while a momentary pleasure, would ultimately lead to my feeling worse for a lot longer. I wasn’t hungry. I have fruit at home to satisfy my sweet tooth; in fact, I ate a couple of strawberries as soon as I walked in the door. I wasn’t even thinking about food when I got to the place because I’d enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying and interesting meal shortly before going. No, it was just the sight of all those goodies in the case that made me think I should have something. Did I feel deprived? Yeah, a little. But I was able to tell myself that I’ll feel even more deprived if I can’t fit into my summer shorts. And that seemed to be enough to make me go back to my seat and enjoy the company of my friend. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Great job getting back on track. The right mental attitude goes a long way in this journey. You certainly made the right decsion in coming back. After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since
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Response:
Deprivation and boredom may indeed have a role in your current struggles. In her response, Laura also suggests the craving itself might be a problem. That’s worth considering as well. Sugar wants more sugar. Avoiding processed foods for a while might help you get over the craving, though it might take a bit of white-knuckling too.
I’m going to try it. I’m sure there will be many white-knuckle moments! Am I remembering correctly? Didn’t you say once that you would scrub the kitchen floor as one tactic that worked to keep you out of the kitchen? I’d never recommend to anyone that they go to such extremes, but if that’s worked for you in the past, maybe it’s worth trying now.
Nope, wasn’t me! I wash it when it needs doing, but if I were doing it to keep me from eating I would be down there constantly! Don’t like it that much. Don’t forget you’ve been through a lot of emotional upheaval in the period of time you mention. When you’re ready, you’ll be able to find the motivation and incentive you need to stick with weight loss eating. Maybe what you’re going through now is getting ready to get ready. <g
I have and there’s more now too. My grandmother that lives with me had surgery two months ago for a grapefruit sized tumor on her bowel that was cancer. Now my other grandmother has just found out she has a spot of cancer in her stomach and has to go for more testing then surgery or some kind of treatment. She won’t know what will be done until the doctor gets all the test results he wants, so we’ve got a while to wait on that. I’m trying to think about "me", but I’m the type who is constantly worrying about others and all the things that are going on in my life – probably my major problem! I hope I’m getting ready. I’m tired of being tired, having no clothes that fit properly and feeling basically yucky! Oh, the other thing is that when I lost 37 lbs. two years ago all my joint and muscle pain went away. It’s back now. Brenda – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 My weight has been bouncing around like a yoyo lately. For the life of me I cannot figure out why losing 37 lbs two years ago was so easy, yet now I am unable to stay OP for any length of time. Laura mentioned deprivation and I’m wondering if that might be part of my problem. I’m going to try to make meals more interesting and see what happens. Snacks in the evening are also something I have to overcome. It seems that once dinner is finished I crave something sweet, then once I have even one, it eventually leads to more. Brenda Thanks Brenda. Everyone at their pace in their own time. What motivates you doesn’t motivate me, and vice versa. Maybe you just haven’t found the thing that is more important to you than eating. Being healthy Should be more important–we all know that–but sometimes that’s not reason enough. As for me, I’m taking one day at a time, rehearsing my reasons for wanting to get back to my WW goal weight. Today I’m on Day 9. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Congratulations on getting back on track before getting too out of control. I need to take notes on what you’ve said here as I am in a similar situation. Getting back on track is causing me difficulty at the moment. Brenda After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
Thanks for the suggestion. I will limit the sugar and processed foods. If it worked for you perhaps it will work for me as well. Brenda
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Deprivation or boredom could be playing a part in things for you but it also sounds like you are dealing with cravings. Try limiting your sugar and processed foods to see if that helps. I know that when I was doing the Core program the cravings disappeared. Now that I am no longer doing the core program and am allowing the junk back in slowly the cravings seem to have returned. So has the stress but that’s another story. My weight has been bouncing around like a yoyo lately. For the life of me I cannot figure out why losing 37 lbs two years ago was so easy, yet now I am unable to stay OP for any length of time. Laura mentioned deprivation and I’m wondering if that might be part of my problem. I’m going to try to make meals more interesting and see what happens. Snacks in the evening are also something I have to overcome. It seems that once dinner is finished I crave something sweet, then once I have even one, it eventually leads to more. Brenda Thanks Brenda. Everyone at their pace in their own time. What motivates you doesn’t motivate me, and vice versa. Maybe you just haven’t found the thing that is more important to you than eating. Being healthy Should be more important–we all know that–but sometimes that’s not reason enough. As for me, I’m taking one day at a time, rehearsing my reasons for wanting to get back to my WW goal weight. Today I’m on Day 9. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Congratulations on getting back on track before getting too out of control. I need to take notes on what you’ve said here as I am in a similar situation. Getting back on track is causing me difficulty at the moment. Brenda After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
I can see how the lack of menus can mess things up. I deal with that most days here. DH does the dinner cooking. I have tried to suggest meals but he usually vetos the idea. Fortunately we have steaks and chicken breasts in the freezer all the time. He has no problem running to the store at 5pm to grab some fresh veggies to steam for me. There are some nights that he just has not desire to cook nor is there anything in the house that suits him. That’s when we end up calling out. He has learned over time which places I can order safely from so as to not go overboard. We used to plan the menus and shopping list out over the weekend. That helped keep us on track but that was back when we were both working. Now that we don’t work full time we can run to the store whenever we are out of stuff. But since you are working you might try doing a menu and shopping list on Sundays so that the week is covered.
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – What is the menu planner you subscribe to? I find that once I get home from work, which is usually around 5:30 pm that I don’t have alot of time to prepare dinner, so it’s usually something that I can quickly throw together. Breakfast has never been a favorite meal of mine. I usually have something like oatmeal with milk and brown sugar, egg white omelette on dry toast with 1/2 oz. cheddar, or cereal. Lunches are usually soup, salad, or a veggie sandwich – dinners can be almost anything at the moment. Like I said, whatever is quick and easy has been getting my vote lately – and it’s usually not an OP meal. The other thing I haven’t been doing is drinking water. I know it makes a difference though. I hate "diet" food too, so the typical "diet" stuff would not cut it with me – that’s why I joined WW – so I could have everything in moderation – but lately moderation has meant EVERYTHING! Brenda Adding variety to the family meal menu is definitely worth trying. It’ll be worth it if you’re able to satisfy the "exciting" factor. "Diet" food can be boring, or at least we think it is. For me, I knew I couldn’t go back to my simple evening meal plan of grilled meat, baked white or sweet potato, and steamed vegetable. After Months of that as a steady "diet," I thought I’d scream if I had that one more time. Now my evening meals are much more varied. I subscribe to a weekly non-weight loss menu planner, and I haven’t had the same meal for dinner in two months. I’m eating real food, not "diet" food. My taste buds are being introduced to new foods. Grocery shopping isn’t the total chore it used to be. I’m experimenting with new-to-me kitchen gadgets. Pasta’s back in my diet. I vary my breakfast between oatmeal, maple syrup, and milk, and eggbeaters, english muffin, and milk, depending on the points value of the evening meal. Lunch is salad. I make sure I eat my two fruits, take my multivitamins, include a vegetable with dinner, use extra-lean meats in the recipes, and substitute spray oils as appropriate. Touching and smelling and experiencing the foods while I’m preparing my meal seems to make a difference. Hmmm…deprivation. Perhaps that’s my problem. Meals have been kind of boring lately and the snacks, such as crackers, cookies, chocolate have been more exciting. I’m going to try to make our meals more interesting and see what happens. Brenda My challenge lately has been my neighbors house. She always has lots of junk food. I frequently hit her frittos or other chips while I am there. While it might only be a handfull it still adds up plus I don’t like that I can’t seem to resist them. I suspect that I am feeling deprived and this is my way of getting them without having to buy the whole bag myself. Gotta break this habit for sure. Thanks Laura. Weekends have been my most challenging time period. I was able to stay on program all of last weekend and yesterday. Last night I went out for coffee with a friend and was sorely tempted throughout the evening to purchase a desert square or cookie or biscotti or Something. I went through all the reasons I could have something–I have a whole week’s worth of flex points, I could share it with my friend, I Wanted it–and each and every time I was able to remember that I’m trying to fit into my bike clothes and eating a treat, while a momentary pleasure, would ultimately lead to my feeling worse for a lot longer. I wasn’t hungry. I have fruit at home to satisfy my sweet tooth; in fact, I ate a couple of strawberries as soon as I walked in the door. I wasn’t even thinking about food when I got to the place because I’d enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying and interesting meal shortly before going. No, it was just the sight of all those goodies in the case that made me think I should have something. Did I feel deprived? Yeah, a little. But I was able to tell myself that I’ll feel even more deprived if I can’t fit into my summer shorts. And that seemed to be enough to make me go back to my seat and enjoy the company of my friend. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Great job getting back on track. The right mental attitude goes a long way in this journey. You certainly made the right decsion in coming back. After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I
… read more »
Response:
Deprivation and boredom may indeed have a role in your current struggles. In her response, Laura also suggests the craving itself might be a problem. That’s worth considering as well. Sugar wants more sugar. Avoiding processed foods for a while might help you get over the craving, though it might take a bit of white-knuckling too. Am I remembering correctly? Didn’t you say once that you would scrub the kitchen floor as one tactic that worked to keep you out of the kitchen? I’d never recommend to anyone that they go to such extremes, but if that’s worked for you in the past, maybe it’s worth trying now. Don’t forget you’ve been through a lot of emotional upheaval in the period of time you mention. When you’re ready, you’ll be able to find the motivation and incentive you need to stick with weight loss eating. Maybe what you’re going through now is getting ready to get ready. <g — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – My weight has been bouncing around like a yoyo lately. For the life of me I cannot figure out why losing 37 lbs two years ago was so easy, yet now I am unable to stay OP for any length of time. Laura mentioned deprivation and I’m wondering if that might be part of my problem. I’m going to try to make meals more interesting and see what happens. Snacks in the evening are also something I have to overcome. It seems that once dinner is finished I crave something sweet, then once I have even one, it eventually leads to more. Brenda Thanks Brenda. Everyone at their pace in their own time. What motivates you doesn’t motivate me, and vice versa. Maybe you just haven’t found the thing that is more important to you than eating. Being healthy Should be more important–we all know that–but sometimes that’s not reason enough. As for me, I’m taking one day at a time, rehearsing my reasons for wanting to get back to my WW goal weight. Today I’m on Day 9. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Congratulations on getting back on track before getting too out of control. I need to take notes on what you’ve said here as I am in a similar situation. Getting back on track is causing me difficulty at the moment. Brenda After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
What is the menu planner you subscribe to?
www.savingdinner.com The site belongs to an associate of Flylady.net. What I like about the menus (main meals only, no breakfasts or lunches, unless you have leftovers) is that they don’t require much preparation time. I’m usually eating within 1/2 hour of getting home from work. One menu a week is slow-cooked. Hardly anything is microwaved. She offers a regular menu available for 6 or 2 people, which includes vegetarian and kosher options for each meal, a vegetarian menu for 6 or 2 people, a low-carb menu for 6 or 2 people, and recently added a frugal menu for 6 people only. I get the regular menu. The weekly menus also come with a shopping list, and nutritional info is provided for the main item in each meal, making it easy to calculate points. You have to point side items yourself. I subscribed about 6 weeks ago. I don’t have one of these meals every night–I still go back to my grilled meat, baked potato, steamed vegetable a couple times a week, especially if I’ve gone out for lunch. But when I prepare one of the menu meals, eating alone somehow feels like a sit-down family meal. As an single empty-nester, I’ve been deprived of that experience for too many years. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -I find that once I get home from work, which is usually around 5:30 pm that I don’t have alot of time to prepare dinner, so it’s usually something that I can quickly throw together. Breakfast has never been a favorite meal of mine. I usually have something like oatmeal with milk and brown sugar, egg white omelette on dry toast with 1/2 oz. cheddar, or cereal. Lunches are usually soup, salad, or a veggie sandwich – dinners can be almost anything at the moment. Like I said, whatever is quick and easy has been getting my vote lately – and it’s usually not an OP meal. The other thing I haven’t been doing is drinking water. I know it makes a difference though. I hate "diet" food too, so the typical "diet" stuff would not cut it with me – that’s why I joined WW – so I could have everything in moderation – but lately moderation has meant EVERYTHING! Brenda Adding variety to the family meal menu is definitely worth trying. It’ll be worth it if you’re able to satisfy the "exciting" factor. "Diet" food can be boring, or at least we think it is. For me, I knew I couldn’t go back to my simple evening meal plan of grilled meat, baked white or sweet potato, and steamed vegetable. After Months of that as a steady "diet," I thought I’d scream if I had that one more time. Now my evening meals are much more varied. I subscribe to a weekly non-weight loss menu planner, and I haven’t had the same meal for dinner in two months. I’m eating real food, not "diet" food. My taste buds are being introduced to new foods. Grocery shopping isn’t the total chore it used to be. I’m experimenting with new-to-me kitchen gadgets. Pasta’s back in my diet. I vary my breakfast between oatmeal, maple syrup, and milk, and eggbeaters, english muffin, and milk, depending on the points value of the evening meal. Lunch is salad. I make sure I eat my two fruits, take my multivitamins, include a vegetable with dinner, use extra-lean meats in the recipes, and substitute spray oils as appropriate. Touching and smelling and experiencing the foods while I’m preparing my meal seems to make a difference. Hmmm…deprivation. Perhaps that’s my problem. Meals have been kind of boring lately and the snacks, such as crackers, cookies, chocolate have been more exciting. I’m going to try to make our meals more interesting and see what happens. Brenda My challenge lately has been my neighbors house. She always has lots of junk food. I frequently hit her frittos or other chips while I am there. While it might only be a handfull it still adds up plus I don’t like that I can’t seem to resist them. I suspect that I am feeling deprived and this is my way of getting them without having to buy the whole bag myself. Gotta break this habit for sure. Thanks Laura. Weekends have been my most challenging time period. I was able to stay on program all of last weekend and yesterday. Last night I went out for coffee with a friend and was sorely tempted throughout the evening to purchase a desert square or cookie or biscotti or Something. I went through all the reasons I could have something–I have a whole week’s worth of flex points, I could share it with my friend, I Wanted it–and each and every time I was able to remember that I’m trying to fit into my bike clothes and eating a treat, while a momentary pleasure, would ultimately lead to my feeling worse for a lot longer. I wasn’t hungry. I have fruit at home to satisfy my sweet tooth; in fact, I ate a couple of strawberries as soon as I walked in the door. I wasn’t even thinking about food when I got to the place because I’d enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying and interesting meal shortly before going. No, it was just the sight of all those goodies in the case that made me think I should have something. Did I feel deprived? Yeah, a little. But I was able to tell myself that I’ll feel even more deprived if I can’t fit into my summer shorts. And that seemed to be enough to make me go back to my seat and enjoy the company of my friend. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Great job getting back on track. The right mental attitude goes a long way in this journey. You certainly made the right decsion in coming back. After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on
… read more »
Response:
What is the menu planner you subscribe to? I find that once I get home from work, which is usually around 5:30 pm that I don’t have alot of time to prepare dinner, so it’s usually something that I can quickly throw together. Breakfast has never been a favorite meal of mine. I usually have something like oatmeal with milk and brown sugar, egg white omelette on dry toast with 1/2 oz. cheddar, or cereal. Lunches are usually soup, salad, or a veggie sandwich – dinners can be almost anything at the moment. Like I said, whatever is quick and easy has been getting my vote lately – and it’s usually not an OP meal. The other thing I haven’t been doing is drinking water. I know it makes a difference though. I hate "diet" food too, so the typical "diet" stuff would not cut it with me – that’s why I joined WW – so I could have everything in moderation – but lately moderation has meant EVERYTHING! Brenda
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Adding variety to the family meal menu is definitely worth trying. It’ll be worth it if you’re able to satisfy the "exciting" factor. "Diet" food can be boring, or at least we think it is. For me, I knew I couldn’t go back to my simple evening meal plan of grilled meat, baked white or sweet potato, and steamed vegetable. After Months of that as a steady "diet," I thought I’d scream if I had that one more time. Now my evening meals are much more varied. I subscribe to a weekly non-weight loss menu planner, and I haven’t had the same meal for dinner in two months. I’m eating real food, not "diet" food. My taste buds are being introduced to new foods. Grocery shopping isn’t the total chore it used to be. I’m experimenting with new-to-me kitchen gadgets. Pasta’s back in my diet. I vary my breakfast between oatmeal, maple syrup, and milk, and eggbeaters, english muffin, and milk, depending on the points value of the evening meal. Lunch is salad. I make sure I eat my two fruits, take my multivitamins, include a vegetable with dinner, use extra-lean meats in the recipes, and substitute spray oils as appropriate. Touching and smelling and experiencing the foods while I’m preparing my meal seems to make a difference. Hmmm…deprivation. Perhaps that’s my problem. Meals have been kind of boring lately and the snacks, such as crackers, cookies, chocolate have been more exciting. I’m going to try to make our meals more interesting and see what happens. Brenda My challenge lately has been my neighbors house. She always has lots of junk food. I frequently hit her frittos or other chips while I am there. While it might only be a handfull it still adds up plus I don’t like that I can’t seem to resist them. I suspect that I am feeling deprived and this is my way of getting them without having to buy the whole bag myself. Gotta break this habit for sure. Thanks Laura. Weekends have been my most challenging time period. I was able to stay on program all of last weekend and yesterday. Last night I went out for coffee with a friend and was sorely tempted throughout the evening to purchase a desert square or cookie or biscotti or Something. I went through all the reasons I could have something–I have a whole week’s worth of flex points, I could share it with my friend, I Wanted it–and each and every time I was able to remember that I’m trying to fit into my bike clothes and eating a treat, while a momentary pleasure, would ultimately lead to my feeling worse for a lot longer. I wasn’t hungry. I have fruit at home to satisfy my sweet tooth; in fact, I ate a couple of strawberries as soon as I walked in the door. I wasn’t even thinking about food when I got to the place because I’d enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying and interesting meal shortly before going. No, it was just the sight of all those goodies in the case that made me think I should have something. Did I feel deprived? Yeah, a little. But I was able to tell myself that I’ll feel even more deprived if I can’t fit into my summer shorts. And that seemed to be enough to make me go back to my seat and enjoy the company of my friend. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Great job getting back on track. The right mental attitude goes a long way in this journey. You certainly made the right decsion in coming back. After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
Deprivation or boredom could be playing a part in things for you but it also sounds like you are dealing with cravings. Try limiting your sugar and processed foods to see if that helps. I know that when I was doing the Core program the cravings disappeared. Now that I am no longer doing the core program and am allowing the junk back in slowly the cravings seem to have returned. So has the stress but that’s another story.
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – My weight has been bouncing around like a yoyo lately. For the life of me I cannot figure out why losing 37 lbs two years ago was so easy, yet now I am unable to stay OP for any length of time. Laura mentioned deprivation and I’m wondering if that might be part of my problem. I’m going to try to make meals more interesting and see what happens. Snacks in the evening are also something I have to overcome. It seems that once dinner is finished I crave something sweet, then once I have even one, it eventually leads to more. Brenda Thanks Brenda. Everyone at their pace in their own time. What motivates you doesn’t motivate me, and vice versa. Maybe you just haven’t found the thing that is more important to you than eating. Being healthy Should be more important–we all know that–but sometimes that’s not reason enough. As for me, I’m taking one day at a time, rehearsing my reasons for wanting to get back to my WW goal weight. Today I’m on Day 9. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Congratulations on getting back on track before getting too out of control. I need to take notes on what you’ve said here as I am in a similar situation. Getting back on track is causing me difficulty at the moment. Brenda After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
Adding variety to the family meal menu is definitely worth trying. It’ll be worth it if you’re able to satisfy the "exciting" factor. "Diet" food can be boring, or at least we think it is. For me, I knew I couldn’t go back to my simple evening meal plan of grilled meat, baked white or sweet potato, and steamed vegetable. After Months of that as a steady "diet," I thought I’d scream if I had that one more time. Now my evening meals are much more varied. I subscribe to a weekly non-weight loss menu planner, and I haven’t had the same meal for dinner in two months. I’m eating real food, not "diet" food. My taste buds are being introduced to new foods. Grocery shopping isn’t the total chore it used to be. I’m experimenting with new-to-me kitchen gadgets. Pasta’s back in my diet. I vary my breakfast between oatmeal, maple syrup, and milk, and eggbeaters, english muffin, and milk, depending on the points value of the evening meal. Lunch is salad. I make sure I eat my two fruits, take my multivitamins, include a vegetable with dinner, use extra-lean meats in the recipes, and substitute spray oils as appropriate. Touching and smelling and experiencing the foods while I’m preparing my meal seems to make a difference. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hmmm…deprivation. Perhaps that’s my problem. Meals have been kind of boring lately and the snacks, such as crackers, cookies, chocolate have been more exciting. I’m going to try to make our meals more interesting and see what happens. Brenda My challenge lately has been my neighbors house. She always has lots of junk food. I frequently hit her frittos or other chips while I am there. While it might only be a handfull it still adds up plus I don’t like that I can’t seem to resist them. I suspect that I am feeling deprived and this is my way of getting them without having to buy the whole bag myself. Gotta break this habit for sure. Thanks Laura. Weekends have been my most challenging time period. I was able to stay on program all of last weekend and yesterday. Last night I went out for coffee with a friend and was sorely tempted throughout the evening to purchase a desert square or cookie or biscotti or Something. I went through all the reasons I could have something–I have a whole week’s worth of flex points, I could share it with my friend, I Wanted it–and each and every time I was able to remember that I’m trying to fit into my bike clothes and eating a treat, while a momentary pleasure, would ultimately lead to my feeling worse for a lot longer. I wasn’t hungry. I have fruit at home to satisfy my sweet tooth; in fact, I ate a couple of strawberries as soon as I walked in the door. I wasn’t even thinking about food when I got to the place because I’d enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying and interesting meal shortly before going. No, it was just the sight of all those goodies in the case that made me think I should have something. Did I feel deprived? Yeah, a little. But I was able to tell myself that I’ll feel even more deprived if I can’t fit into my summer shorts. And that seemed to be enough to make me go back to my seat and enjoy the company of my friend. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Great job getting back on track. The right mental attitude goes a long way in this journey. You certainly made the right decsion in coming back. After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
My weight has been bouncing around like a yoyo lately. For the life of me I cannot figure out why losing 37 lbs two years ago was so easy, yet now I am unable to stay OP for any length of time. Laura mentioned deprivation and I’m wondering if that might be part of my problem. I’m going to try to make meals more interesting and see what happens. Snacks in the evening are also something I have to overcome. It seems that once dinner is finished I crave something sweet, then once I have even one, it eventually leads to more. Brenda
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Thanks Brenda. Everyone at their pace in their own time. What motivates you doesn’t motivate me, and vice versa. Maybe you just haven’t found the thing that is more important to you than eating. Being healthy Should be more important–we all know that–but sometimes that’s not reason enough. As for me, I’m taking one day at a time, rehearsing my reasons for wanting to get back to my WW goal weight. Today I’m on Day 9. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Congratulations on getting back on track before getting too out of control. I need to take notes on what you’ve said here as I am in a similar situation. Getting back on track is causing me difficulty at the moment. Brenda After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
I agree. I think I am doing it in response to some subtle stresses that I am dealing with these days. I have been working hard to clean out the house in anticpation of our moving up near mom in June. Well those plans got cancelled this week as DD is really not ready to make the move. DH wants to stay now too (it was his idea). One of the reasons I quit my job in January was to clean out the house and now we are not moving. arrgghh. I told them we would proceed with cleaning out the house of all of the accumulated junk since I am not working. I just have to figure out what to do for employment now. Its hard to find a job when you are gone July & August every year. Noone wants to hire you under those terms nor are many jobs that are willing to have someone work remotely as a new hire.
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – As important as it is to learn good eating habits in general for our main meals, non-meal nibbling is my downfall. Reaching for a handful of whatever… for me, that’s the deal breaker when it comes to weight loss. My challenge lately has been my neighbors house. She always has lots of junk food. I frequently hit her frittos or other chips while I am there. While it might only be a handfull it still adds up plus I don’t like that I can’t seem to resist them. I suspect that I am feeling deprived and this is my way of getting them without having to buy the whole bag myself. Gotta break this habit for sure. Thanks Laura. Weekends have been my most challenging time period. I was able to stay on program all of last weekend and yesterday. Last night I went out for coffee with a friend and was sorely tempted throughout the evening to purchase a desert square or cookie or biscotti or Something. I went through all the reasons I could have something–I have a whole week’s worth of flex points, I could share it with my friend, I Wanted it–and each and every time I was able to remember that I’m trying to fit into my bike clothes and eating a treat, while a momentary pleasure, would ultimately lead to my feeling worse for a lot longer. I wasn’t hungry. I have fruit at home to satisfy my sweet tooth; in fact, I ate a couple of strawberries as soon as I walked in the door. I wasn’t even thinking about food when I got to the place because I’d enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying and interesting meal shortly before going. No, it was just the sight of all those goodies in the case that made me think I should have something. Did I feel deprived? Yeah, a little. But I was able to tell myself that I’ll feel even more deprived if I can’t fit into my summer shorts. And that seemed to be enough to make me go back to my seat and enjoy the company of my friend. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Great job getting back on track. The right mental attitude goes a long way in this journey. You certainly made the right decsion in coming back. After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
Hmmm…deprivation. Perhaps that’s my problem. Meals have been kind of boring lately and the snacks, such as crackers, cookies, chocolate have been more exciting. I’m going to try to make our meals more interesting and see what happens. Brenda
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – My challenge lately has been my neighbors house. She always has lots of junk food. I frequently hit her frittos or other chips while I am there. While it might only be a handfull it still adds up plus I don’t like that I can’t seem to resist them. I suspect that I am feeling deprived and this is my way of getting them without having to buy the whole bag myself. Gotta break this habit for sure. Thanks Laura. Weekends have been my most challenging time period. I was able to stay on program all of last weekend and yesterday. Last night I went out for coffee with a friend and was sorely tempted throughout the evening to purchase a desert square or cookie or biscotti or Something. I went through all the reasons I could have something–I have a whole week’s worth of flex points, I could share it with my friend, I Wanted it–and each and every time I was able to remember that I’m trying to fit into my bike clothes and eating a treat, while a momentary pleasure, would ultimately lead to my feeling worse for a lot longer. I wasn’t hungry. I have fruit at home to satisfy my sweet tooth; in fact, I ate a couple of strawberries as soon as I walked in the door. I wasn’t even thinking about food when I got to the place because I’d enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying and interesting meal shortly before going. No, it was just the sight of all those goodies in the case that made me think I should have something. Did I feel deprived? Yeah, a little. But I was able to tell myself that I’ll feel even more deprived if I can’t fit into my summer shorts. And that seemed to be enough to make me go back to my seat and enjoy the company of my friend. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Great job getting back on track. The right mental attitude goes a long way in this journey. You certainly made the right decsion in coming back. After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
As important as it is to learn good eating habits in general for our main meals, non-meal nibbling is my downfall. Reaching for a handful of whatever… for me, that’s the deal breaker when it comes to weight loss. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -My challenge lately has been my neighbors house. She always has lots of junk food. I frequently hit her frittos or other chips while I am there. While it might only be a handfull it still adds up plus I don’t like that I can’t seem to resist them. I suspect that I am feeling deprived and this is my way of getting them without having to buy the whole bag myself. Gotta break this habit for sure. Thanks Laura. Weekends have been my most challenging time period. I was able to stay on program all of last weekend and yesterday. Last night I went out for coffee with a friend and was sorely tempted throughout the evening to purchase a desert square or cookie or biscotti or Something. I went through all the reasons I could have something–I have a whole week’s worth of flex points, I could share it with my friend, I Wanted it–and each and every time I was able to remember that I’m trying to fit into my bike clothes and eating a treat, while a momentary pleasure, would ultimately lead to my feeling worse for a lot longer. I wasn’t hungry. I have fruit at home to satisfy my sweet tooth; in fact, I ate a couple of strawberries as soon as I walked in the door. I wasn’t even thinking about food when I got to the place because I’d enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying and interesting meal shortly before going. No, it was just the sight of all those goodies in the case that made me think I should have something. Did I feel deprived? Yeah, a little. But I was able to tell myself that I’ll feel even more deprived if I can’t fit into my summer shorts. And that seemed to be enough to make me go back to my seat and enjoy the company of my friend. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Great job getting back on track. The right mental attitude goes a long way in this journey. You certainly made the right decsion in coming back. After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
Thanks Fred. These days I’m wishing retirement was an option. Rather, I’ve been told again and again that I’m on the executive track. Honestly, I’m not convinced I want that. I’d rather have a life, but it’s so easy for me to get sucked into the demands and drama of the workplace. I will say that present circumstances have me considering counseling to help me sort out how to cope with all of it. I get the schedule for two bicycling clubs, and May is Crazy-Filled with bike rides. There are a couple of Saturdays that have 3 C-Level rides (the level I rode last year) and 2 B-Level rides, all on the same day. Incentive in abundance! Have you been hearing/reading the latest reports in New England Journal of Medicine about the dangers of drinking too much water during endurance sports? It’s been the topic of a very long thread on one of my bicycling club newsgroups. As I’ve read about the symptoms of hyponatremia, I’ve thought about you, especially when you write about the foods you crave post-activity. Apparently, the articles talk about the reduced blood-levels of sodium and potassium, and becoming more dehydrated as a result of drinking water. Here’s one of the responses that made me think about you: "When Mike and I rode across the US in 2000, we recovered noticeably better drinking V-8 juice instead of Gatorade. Maybe it was the sodium? You would think that the sports drink would be better, but apparently not. I also crave Salsa Verde Doritos on long rides and chocolate milk afterwards." USA Track and Field hyponatremia site: http://www.usatf.org/groups/coaches/library/hydration And here’s another bicycling ascii art item. It’s the sig line used by many of the members of one of my bicycling clubs to show it’s a club for everyone. o _~o _~o __o __o __/_ _-<,_ _-<,_<,_ _-<,_ (_) O (_)/ (_) (_)/ / (_) (_)/ (_) — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -I just want to say that you have full support and sympathy. I, too, had those "I want to eat that!" I cannot even attribute it to anything stressful at work although maybe I would like to be retired (G) They just occur and cannot be ignored without risking clothes not fitting and exercise becoming harder. I wish we could bottle the positive resolve and the reasons the resolve finally grabs hold. But since we can’t, we just have to mentally bite the bullet and buckle down. Find other outlets for stress (easy to say). Winter can be a very dull time with less exercise, less sunlight, especially in the northern latitudes. Just keep a grip on that new resolve. Look at those bicycles and those form fitting shorts and get your incentive pumped. You already seem to have taken charge and you clearly know the program. Use that new kitchen and whip up some perfect meals. Good luck. and ….. __o -<, ( )( ) Keep on pedaling. After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year.
Response:
Congratulations on getting back on track before getting too out of control. I need to take notes on what you’ve said here as I am in a similar situation. Getting back on track is causing me difficulty at the moment. Brenda
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
My challenge lately has been my neighbors house. She always has lots of junk food. I frequently hit her frittos or other chips while I am there. While it might only be a handfull it still adds up plus I don’t like that I can’t seem to resist them. I suspect that I am feeling deprived and this is my way of getting them without having to buy the whole bag myself. Gotta break this habit for sure.
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Thanks Laura. Weekends have been my most challenging time period. I was able to stay on program all of last weekend and yesterday. Last night I went out for coffee with a friend and was sorely tempted throughout the evening to purchase a desert square or cookie or biscotti or Something. I went through all the reasons I could have something–I have a whole week’s worth of flex points, I could share it with my friend, I Wanted it–and each and every time I was able to remember that I’m trying to fit into my bike clothes and eating a treat, while a momentary pleasure, would ultimately lead to my feeling worse for a lot longer. I wasn’t hungry. I have fruit at home to satisfy my sweet tooth; in fact, I ate a couple of strawberries as soon as I walked in the door. I wasn’t even thinking about food when I got to the place because I’d enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying and interesting meal shortly before going. No, it was just the sight of all those goodies in the case that made me think I should have something. Did I feel deprived? Yeah, a little. But I was able to tell myself that I’ll feel even more deprived if I can’t fit into my summer shorts. And that seemed to be enough to make me go back to my seat and enjoy the company of my friend. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 Great job getting back on track. The right mental attitude goes a long way in this journey. You certainly made the right decsion in coming back. After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
Thanks Brenda. Everyone at their pace in their own time. What motivates you doesn’t motivate me, and vice versa. Maybe you just haven’t found the thing that is more important to you than eating. Being healthy Should be more important–we all know that–but sometimes that’s not reason enough. As for me, I’m taking one day at a time, rehearsing my reasons for wanting to get back to my WW goal weight. Today I’m on Day 9. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Congratulations on getting back on track before getting too out of control. I need to take notes on what you’ve said here as I am in a similar situation. Getting back on track is causing me difficulty at the moment. Brenda After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
Thanks Laura. Weekends have been my most challenging time period. I was able to stay on program all of last weekend and yesterday. Last night I went out for coffee with a friend and was sorely tempted throughout the evening to purchase a desert square or cookie or biscotti or Something. I went through all the reasons I could have something–I have a whole week’s worth of flex points, I could share it with my friend, I Wanted it–and each and every time I was able to remember that I’m trying to fit into my bike clothes and eating a treat, while a momentary pleasure, would ultimately lead to my feeling worse for a lot longer. I wasn’t hungry. I have fruit at home to satisfy my sweet tooth; in fact, I ate a couple of strawberries as soon as I walked in the door. I wasn’t even thinking about food when I got to the place because I’d enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying and interesting meal shortly before going. No, it was just the sight of all those goodies in the case that made me think I should have something. Did I feel deprived? Yeah, a little. But I was able to tell myself that I’ll feel even more deprived if I can’t fit into my summer shorts. And that seemed to be enough to make me go back to my seat and enjoy the company of my friend. — Linda P 232/168/145 mini-goal: 165 – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -Great job getting back on track. The right mental attitude goes a long way in this journey. You certainly made the right decsion in coming back. After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
Great job getting back on track. The right mental attitude goes a long way in this journey. You certainly made the right decsion in coming back.
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – After weeks, Months, of eating what and when I want to eat, regardless of the effect on the scale, I seem to have gotten my groove back, and I’m now eating for weight loss. I can’t explain what happened that I ceased to care about the correlation between eating large quantities of certain foods and weight gain. It’s as if I needed to prove to myself how quickly I could regain all my weight if I returned to my pre-WW way of eating. Despite my return to program several weeks ago, I knew at the time that I would give it less than my best effort, because deep down, I just didn’t care. Eating what I wanted was simply more important. Work has been very stressful, and I’ve used that as my excuse to overeat and underexercise. As a result, none of the summer clothes I bought last year when I reached my WW goal of 145 fit me this year. All of my size S clothes are staring me in the face, unwearable, and even most of the size Ms have become snug. Last year I was wearing size 6 & 8 clothes; this year I’m in 10s & 12s. Worst of all, none of my bicycling clothes fit. Last Friday, something changed. As I ate my way through X number of pastries after breakfast, and french fries with lunch, and a pint of ice cream and a bag of chips for dinner, I felt myself getting angrier and angrier that I had become so willing to throw away all that hard work of 1-1/2 yrs to lose 87 lbs. By the time I went to bed Friday night, I knew that I had to make a choice. I could continue my out-of-control eating. That would mean I’d weigh more than 200 lbs by next Christmas (if not sooner). I’d be wearing size 20+ clothes. And I’d have to sell my bicycles because I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t ride them if I was obese. OR I could eat sanely, lose weight and fit into the clothes I already have, and keep my bikes. In that moment of decision, something clicked and I made the connection between my eating and my weight. I cannot eat whatever I want whenever I want and expect to be normal weight. For some reason, the present reality of my bike clothes not fitting and the potential reality of giving up my bikes helped me make that connection. Thankfully, when I woke up Saturday morning, my mind was still clear and my resolve to return to a healthy way of eating and a normal weight had not abated. Sadly, after a week of frenzied eating, the scale showed 176.8. On Sunday, after one day of sane and planned eating, the scale had dropped to 170.6, which I think is a truer reflection of my weight gain since Christmas. Since then, I’ve been weighing and measuring my food and avoiding both sugary and high fat foods. In addition, I’ve managed to go to the gym twice and plan to go again later this morning. Now that the morning temps are averaging well above freezing, I’m planning next week to resume bike commuting. The schedules for club bicycle rides are beginning to fill too and so I hope to do at least one club ride next week. This morning the scale read 168 after a couple of days at 167. Oh well. Today, what’s more important to me than the number on the scale is that my head is on straight. For the first time ever, I know in my bones that nothing tastes as good as thin feels. I hope I can still say that tomorrow and next week and next year. — Linda P 168.2/168/10% goal: 151 mini-goal: 165
Response:
It won’t be a scam of the seller, but of the person whose credit card has been stolen and used to pay via BidPay. The seller will get and keep his money. The scammer is after the goods. The scammers’ "own shipper" may be a real carrier paid with the same stolen card or a hijacked business account. The person who picks up the package may instead be the scammer’s accomplice. ha! okay I see now. I always wondered how these nigeria/wu scams worked. had this been done with paypal, if someone used stolen card, the seller would get the funds but they would be taken back from his account (or account suspended until repaid) once it was discovered the card was stolen (usually meaning once the origina cardholder would complain). but if you say WU/bidpay has no way to chargeback the money paid to seller with stolen card, then the only real loser in this whole scam is the original cardholder whose funds are being for the transaction. I hope I got it right. thats no fun to the original cardholder I know,but some more or less honest sellers will/could/may still call it a done and good deal! You got it, my little numpty! The seller needn’t even worry about negative feedback, since the disgruntled cardholder’s eBay account probably wasn’t involved in the transaction. BidPay won’t lose any money, either. Remember, it did not accept a credit card charge, so there’s nothing for the credit card company to charge back against BidPay. BidPay accepted cash from the buyer, which the buyer obtained via a cash advance from his credit card. Western Union has been facilitating illegal money transfers for decades. You can be sure it’s figured out how to protect itself. 
Jill 