Those Restaurants.......

So my son and I had a conversation a few days ago about ‘conscious eating’ as a way to loose weight. This style of eating has helped me lose more than thirty pounds. I’m more than pleased with these results, and will never (yes, I know that ‘never’ is a word you should never use, but I’m using it because I feel strongly about this) eat impulsively again.

Back to the conversation.......He mentioned those restaurants. You know, the ones that bring you chips and salsa or a mini loaf of bread and butter, or mouth watering garlic cheese rolls before your meal. You’ve already ordered your meal, and then they immediately bring you something that’s sure to destroy whatever good intentions you had of eating only till you’re full. It’s not at all fair.

My husband and I were at one of those restaurants last week. We were celebrating my birthday. I could have splurged, because, you know, we were celebrating. But I chose not to.  When they brought that freshly baked loaf and butter to our table, I chose to only eat a tiny slice, and then wait for my meal, because I wanted to enjoy my steak and baked potato, which was more important to me than filling up on bread. I was happy with my choice. That steak was great.

Anyway, back to the topic. Choices have to be made. Priorities must be decided and set. We can’t eat it all, and then expect to look like one of those naturally slender people.  Most of the time they don’t eat it all either. How does a thin person handle this kind of situation? Most likely they will eat a few chips or a small amount of bread, to save room for their meal.

But but but what if those garlicy, cheesey rolls just keep ‘calling your name’ while you’re waiting for your food, and you can’t, can’t stop eating them? You know what? If that happens, it’s ok! If you eat too many of those ‘to die for’ rolls, and you’re not hungry when the meal arrives, it’s ok! Just ask for a carry out box and know that your meal will taste great later!

It’s all ok! This is all about enjoying the food that we want, but doing so in a way that will help us become one of those ‘naturally thin’ people.

The New Rule Is........

That was one of my ways of letting my children know that something needed to change as they were growing up.  I would say, "The new rule is...." and I immediately had their attention.  Most of the time whatever needed to change got changed once I made that declaration.

So now I continue to use that phrase with myself (not my husband) when a change needs to be made, and most of the time, I have my immediate attention and whatever needs to be changed gets changed.  Well, not always, you understand, but most of the time.

So to myself and my readers, here is the new rule.......whenever you lose weight......don't allow yourself to gain it back. Period. No reason for overeating is good enough to make you once again face the battle you have just fought.

My desire is to fight this battle, to walk this path, to win this war for the last time.  Never again do I want to have to get out my 'fat' clothes and wear them. Never again do I want to wonder if I'm crowding the poor soul sitting next to me on an airplane. Never again do I want to feel self conscious in a group picture because I'm the heaviest one there.  No way. No how, Once I reach my goal (and I have a loooonnnnng way to go) I'm not going back.

Instead I want to look forward to all the things I will have won by losing all this weight.  I think I will write a few posts about some of the things we can look forward to winning when we have lost our extra weight.

25 Pounds! 25 Pounds! I’ve Lost 25 Pounds!

Yep! Another milestone reached! I’m so excited! It’s been just over a month since I reached my 20 pound loss, 36 days to be exact. About 1 pound/week. That’s ok with me  Because I am now in the senior citizen category, I don’t need this weight loss to be quick.  I want my body to have time to adjust to the changes as my weight goes down.  My blood pressure is improving already. In a few days I’ll have regular blood work done and I’ll let you know if my numbers (cholesterol, triglycerides, A1C, etc) are better.

For today, I’m going to bask in the glory of another milestone reached, and go shopping for clothes. In a smaller size, of course! I love winning when I have lost!

No One. Not One Single Person Has Noticed That I Have Lost Weight!

That's right. I'm almost 23 pounds down now and no one has commented on my weight loss, well, except my wonderful husband.  He's been great.  However, you'd think that someone else might notice!  Is anyone with me on this? Are you having the same experience/frustration?

The truth is though that I'm not frustrated about it. I'm aware of it, of course, but not upset or even surprised.

First of all, people are involved in their own lives. Yes, that makes us sound very self centered and self focused, and it's true.  We're not always quickly aware of changes in the lives of our friends and even family, unless those changes are very noticeable or significant, which brings me to my second point.

Secondly, the more weight you have to lose, the more more you have to lose before it become noticeable to other people. Yes, I wrote that right.  Because I my current weight loss only lost about a third of my goal, it is not great enough right now for friends and family to notice.

Thirdly, That's really ok.  I have decided to not let it bother me, because I know that one day my weight loss will be obvious enough that everyone who knows me, because I'll look great.  You see, the truth is that every five pounds of weight loss will show more that the five pounds before it.  So I'm just weighting (waiting).  In the meantime. I'm feeling better and enjoying wearing clothes that I knew were too tight just a couple of weeks ago.

So take heart, my fellow weight loss travelers.  Our affirmation does not ultimately come from others anyway.  It comes from within ourselves, because we know, we know, we know that we are on the right path and our rewards are personal.  No one else is responsible for them.  Let's keep on traveling!

This War is Not Won in a Day, a Week, or Even a Lifetime, But It Is Worth Fighting

There are some problems that are easily solvable. You can flip a switch, replace a valve, write a letter, make a phone call, or any number of easily done things, and boom; that problem is solved. Some problems/challenges/wars are harder to solve and take longer to get the job done. Those might require a series of battles that have to be met head-on and dealt with on a number of occasions. These might include health issues, relationship issues, as well as work issues or a variety of problems.

Those of us who have weight issues have a different sort of problem.  This type of challenge is more akin to drug and alcohol addiction than anything else, in my opinion.  This problem/war lasts a lifetime and is never, ever won.  However, please do not be discouraged.  It is a war worth fighting.  Getting control of my eating approximately 3 months ago has made a huge difference in the way I feel, as well as the way I now view food. It has also altered my eating habits.

I realize that eating like a thin person might one day make me a thin person.  Won't that be awesome! I further realize that if I quit eating like a thin person, I will never, ever have a chance of being thin. 

If anyone reading this blog, (and I thank you for being one of my readers) can relate to my food battles, please take heart.  This takes work. No one can force you into anything when it comes to food.  You must decide for yourself and for your own reasons.  Please consider stepping into the eating world of thin people.  Eat what you want, but eat only when you are hungry, and eat only till you feel full.  That's it!

People Who Are Naturally Slender, and Then There's Me.

In my previous post I shared an event from about 8 years ago, the meaning of which has finally begun to influence the way I approach this incredibly difficult issue of gaining weight, losing weight, and maintaining a healthy weight.

In the middle of the night the event I described in my last post came to my mind. I hadn't thought of it in years.  I began to ask myself, "Who can do that?!? Who can say, 'I'm full.', and then just stop eating?!?"  Suddenly I realized the answer, "People who are naturally slender! People who do not have weight issues! That's who."

I realized that 'naturally slender' people have a 'natural', innate skill. They do it without even thinking. They don't have to debate with themselves, or anyone else for that matter, about when to stop eating.  They just know when they are full and they stop! It's just that simple.

I further realized that those of us who have weight issues do not naturally have the above mentioned skill. You know. The skill of knowing when we're full and stopping eating right away.  Yea. That one. We don't have it.

I don't know why.  Those are thoughts for another post.

Yes, there are other reasons why naturally slender people are naturally slender.  Heredity and metabolism have a part to play in their ability to maintain a healthy weight.  Again, those are thoughts for another post.

Ok. Back to the middle of the night.  I will personalize this now.  I don't have it.  I don't naturally have the skill of knowing when I'm full and then stopping eating immediately.  It's not innate with me. Most of the time I don't stop eating until my previously food laden plate is empty.

To be continued.

One more, Lord. Just Help Me Lose One More Pound

It has been 12 days since I began using the weight loss app, iTrackBites. I have been able to stay within my point goals each day with only a few extra points needed. So far I have lost almost 5 pounds.

Yes. That's feathers compared to what I must lose to reach my goal. However, marathons are completed by running one yard at a time, and this weight loss journey is definitely a marathon, not a sprint.

My husband and I have been on a little trip this week. There have been several moments of serious temptation to overeat.  Yes. You know. Just one little bite. Just a taste. That won't hurt anything. How many calories/points could be in one little bite. All these things ran through my mind, but one by one, I said no to each temptation and was stronger for it. 

Each time I say no to something I know I should not eat, I am a little closer to reaching my goal and enjoying all those things I have won by losing weight. Yea!!!!!!!

McKenna's Techniques

Yes, the rules are great, and they are critical to attaining and maintaining a healthy weight and lifestyle. However, those of us who have an 'over sized' size, need help with other issues related to our desire to eat and not stop until there is nothing left to eat. Right?!?!

Many of us are emotional eaters. We eat when we are happy, or sad, or mad, or anxious, or excited, or, well, you know. Sometimes we don't need and excuse to eat. We eat just because it is there and we walked by it, saw it and smelled it. In fact we seldom eat just because we are hungry because we never let ourselves feel that hungry feeling. We eat before we get hungry.

Sometimes we have certain things we crave. Chocolate, diet drinks, peanut butter, etc. We eat or drink those things just because we want to. We think we can't make it through a day without them. These are major contributers to our lack of control.

Another contributing factor to our difficulty in losing weight is that we sometimes have a slow metabolism. This means that our bodies are burning calories at a slow rate and the extra calories we eat are stored as fat in our bodies.

Many of us have self image and self esteem problems. We feel unworthy of being loved or experiencing love. We look in the mirror and hate what we see, but then tell ourselves that we deserve to look this way. Because we think of ourselves as being a person of no merit or having no worth, and that no one should love us even if we were thin, we eat more which makes us larger, once again confirming our unchanging self loathing. Yes. These are strong word. But some of us experience strong emotions when we think about ourselves.

Yes. Paul McKenna does address these issues in his programs and on his website. Tomorrow I will begin to discuss his techniques.

Positive Foods? Negative Foods?

Hmmmmm. I just had a thought. Suppose we divide foods into two groups.....positive foods and negative foods.
Positive foods---those foods which bring good things into our lives. Foods which are part of a healthy lifestyle are positive. Foods which help us reach or maintain a heathy weight are positive. Foods which help us feel better about ourselves because we know we are taking care of our bodies by eating them, are positive foods.

Negative foods---those foods which bring 'bad' things into our lives. Foods which promote a unhealthy lifestyle are negative. Foods which keep us from attaining or maintaining a healthy weight are negative. Foods which help make us feel worse about ourselves because we know we are NOT taking of our bodies by eating them, are negative foods.

I can give specific examples of both types of foods, but you know what they are as well as I do. There are also foods which might be positive, unless we eat toooooooo much, then that very same food becomes negative.

Let's focus on eating positive foods---one meal at a time!!!