New Blog Update: "Looking for what works ...not just what doesn't..."

Read the new blog:

 

Looking for what works...not just what doesn't....

 

Please change your links and follows. THANKS.

New Blog Updated: I wanted to Dive Into a Bar of Chocolate: I watched THIS Instead...

Read blog entry here.

Please update your links/follows to new blog: Two Years To Happy Weight After

Thanks. Have a healthy Monday!

Denise Austin's Top 5 Tips

Coach Nicole over at SparkPeople interviewed fitness expert Denise Austin. Here's one of the Q&A's:

CN: Share your top 5 tips for staying fit and healthy in your 50s.

1. Body toning. Nothing will droop or sag if muscles are firm and taut. 2. Do cardio to burn fat from the entire body. 3. Stretching to stay flexible and lean. 4. Eat healthy and organic meals (lean protein, fruits and vegetables) and drink 8 glasses of water every day. 5. Be optimistic. Always think and stay positive. Don't beat yourself up. Think and act young with a positive attitude and always keep laughter and humor in your life. It's the best medicine.

Feeling..."Down" :)

Oh, yeah, baby. It's not a fluke. Today's weigh-in:

268.6

One less than yesterday.

The lowest weight I've been since I began this blog in May of 2007. That's right--my lowest weight in 2 1/2 years of blogging. And, better yet, my lowest weight since 2003, when I was 266. So, lowest number in 6 years.

Woohoo!

I'm officially more than 30 lbs below my highest weigh-in at home (299) in May of 2004. (I probably went over 300, just didn't get on the scale to find out back in 2004, the year my mom was in excruciating pain dying and I was eating, eating, eating to stifle the vicious emotional pain. I gained 33 pounds in 8 months.)

Now, to the weird stuff: I had to force myself to eat yesterday.

Let me clarify: this is supremely abnormal. I was hungry and eating even when I had raging, agonizing appendicitis. I was hungry and overate even in the midst of the flu.

Normally, I have to force myself NOT to eat.

But yesterday, around 10:30 pm, I was looking at my SparkPeople Nutrition Tracker (online food journal) and realized I was UNDER the recommended caloric intake. I was at about 1300 when I should be at a minimumish of 1500+. I was low on Calcium, Magnesium, Folate, and some other nutrients and not at the best place protein-wise (despite making a lower fat version of Shepherd's Pie for supper, with extra lean ground beef).

I don't like to eat too little.

Stop guffawing. Really. It's true.

I know, I know. Dieters will think 1300 is fine. But I like the metabolic roll I'm on (I was at 276.8 just 3 weeks ago, and I'm down 8.2 lbs). I don't believe eating too little (and robbing myself of nutrients) is a good idea.

So, I made a protein shake with half a cup of skim milk, a packet of Amazing Grass Chocolate Superfood (great stuff), two teaspoons of raw cocoa powder (organic, healthful), and a scoop of BSN Syntha-6 chocolate protein powder (I use the BSN protein powders in assorted flavors to fuel myself pre-workouts normally). Shake, shake, shake. Drink. Add a Vitamin D and Magnesium supplement. Done for the day. Stayed in my goal calorie range (two days in a row, dang, another miracle). Got in my crucial nutrients.

My energy has been really, really good for a few days now, which I appreciate. The weather is turning magnificent in Miami--winter is paradise down here, so I want to be able to do lots of stuff, go to museums and festivals outdoor with hubby. I want to have the oomph to take advantage of it this year, for a change.

Oh, and yet again, with food journaling, I confirmed my personal theory of what works for me weight loss wise (as it has in the past): When I balance meals and hit 11 fruits and veggies a day, I get movement on the scale. That's a big number, but all my food journals bear it out over the last decade. 11 is my magic produce number. Get below that and I seem to compensate with non-produce eating that is, inevitably, higher in calories.

It's not easy shopping and planning to have enough f/v's on hand to satisfy that target of 11. It's not easy for me to cook (I hate cooking). But when I eat at home and shop religiously, I have a better chance of losing.

For me, it's when I slack off the shopping/cooking/11 f/v's that I regain and regain.

Wish it were easier, but for me, it's not. Dang.

Okay, I've gotta happy dance on a Saturday for a good week of eating and moving. Yay!!

:::shimmy, shake:::::

Happy Saturday!

PS: If you haven't yet taken my wee survey, please help out by letting me know which fat fighting tool works best for you: See this post. Or just...click here to take survey

Changes that Become Habits that Add Up

I very much like Lyn's post today. She clearly shows by her own life's examples how she made changes that added up to weight loss. It's a post I needed to read because I have been so down on myself for losing focus and will.

I stopped to consider that I HAVE made changes and I DO feel better and I am wearing a smaller size and my sugar is in control and I'm exercising regularly and vigorously 3x a week for months and months (after years of total inactivity).

I have made some changes and those have kept me from regaining all the poundage I lost. I need to make more changes to lose MORE, yes. But if I made some changes, I can make others. I can gain groud.

Anyway, I recommend Lyn's practical and inspiring post, which includes this short list of tips:

Instead of seconds at dinner, you just take seconds of vegetables.
Instead of wasting ten minutes circling the parking lot for the closest space, you park far from the store and just WALK there.
Instead of asking your kids/husband/friend to bring the laundry upstairs for you, YOU do it.
Instead of putting whole milk on your cereal, you use skim.
Instead of watching TV all evening, you do some exercise and go to bed early.

~

Tips for Curtailing Take-Out Temptations

I'm a take-out/delivery fiend. It's one of my bad habits. If I prepare food myself, I do so much better than take-out or delivery. Menus have such tempting stuff.

But Chantel Hobbs has this tip for those with a stack of restaurant menus at home:

When ordering take-out, have your favorite menus handy and highlighted with the only selections that fit your nutrition program. When the food arrives, open the containers and take a separate plate and portion out your small meal, put the rest away for later.

I am going to have to take a more radical approach. I'm planning on taking that stack of our fave take-out places and just cutting out or sharpie-ing out all the stuff I MUST NOT HAVE. Leaving only the more healthful options.

If I think that's gonna use up too much of my Sharpie ink-- heh--I may type up a restaurant document in WORD and print it out. It will list the restaurant, address, phone number, and the stuff we SHOULD order (plus my hubby's faves, he of the limited food repertoire, so it's easy). That helps two of my excess problems--eating and clutter.

If you have take-out temptation issues, maybe one of these three options--highlighting the good, blacking out the bad, retyping the take-out info in a document that only gives you sound options--will help.

Happy Tuesday! (She says, still emotional from the inauguration ceremony...)

My Quickie Notes on Oprah's Show 1/5/09

Some quotes and notes I scribbled down (probably imperfectly) while watching Oprah's show yesterday about her regain and her plan to get fit again:

"This is a problem in your life that will remain a problem in your life for the duration of your life."
-- Bob Greene

"Bottom line: you have to plan your meals."
--Oprah

"There's absolutely no way that I'm ever,ever going to maintain my weight without some regular cardio exercise...at least 30 minutes a day"
--Oprah

Oprah's exercise plan:
cardio for 30 mins a day
resistance training 5 days a week

Oprah's tools:
Best Life Diet Book
Posted meal plan in her kitchen
~~sample meals
~~~~Bkfst: egg whites, steel-cut oatmeal, green tea
~~~~Dinner: salmon, sweet potato, green vegetable(s)

She also has set aside time for her health and personal needs in her daily schedule.

Segment with Carnie Wilson: she now weighs 168, down 50 pounds in the last 6 months, and is expecting her second baby. And I must say, she looks absolutely, glowingly beautiful. Carnie said she had to get at the bottom of her own soul, asking "What do I really want?"

Bob also emphasized taking time and effort to get to the true answer to some some questions.

Fundamental Questions asked by Bob Greene in his Best Life Diet:

* Why are you overweight?
* Why do you want to lose weight?
* Why have you been unable to lose weight in the past?

~~

UPDATE: I love these questions--as a response to Bob's questions-- asked by Janice of Our Lady of Weight Loss!

QUEENLY QUOTES: How to Lose Weight in Simple Terms

"Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."

--Michael Pollan, author of IN DEFENSE OF FOOD.

~

Royal Fatfighting Tools-- #5: Managing Thoughts

As if it weren't hard enough to manage food and manage time and manage movement, one thing that can't be left out of the fatfighting arsenal is...managing thoughts.

I don't know about you--I can only guess!--but I know that I can have a slew of pessimistic, defeatist thoughts.

"I never finish anything, I won't finish this."

"I'm weak."

"This is too much to handle."

"I can't resist pizza!"

"I hate exercising."

"I don't have the energy to do this."

"I want X. I want X. I want X. I gotta have X."

But to win at losing, managing thoughts is the only way to manage actions, because all actions begin with a desire, and all desires find form in some thought, no matter how basic. Even if it's only a mental "yes" to something to which we need to give a mental "no."

Ultimately, we are what we think and think and think again. So, to become who we want to become, managing thoughts is essential, whether it's about one's spiritual path, one's marital unity, one's artistic endeavors, one's politics, one's relationships...or one's weight loss success or failure:

Identify self-sabotaging thoughts. Pay attention to your negative thinking. Are you saying to yourself "This is too difficult," "I'll never be able to lose this much weight," or "I'm too tired." Remember, the goal is to MANAGE these thoughts when they pop up.

--from Life Coach Lorri Molinari

To defeat my fat, I have to defeat my fat thinking.

I'm getting slowly, slowly better at it. I do notice that I talk more positively to myself (a big difference than in times past). And as a result, I feel more positive these days. When I make bad choices, I don't spend the rest of the day in a funk, telling myself off in nasty terms. I forgive myself and say, "I'm not giving up. My next choice will be better."

It's a hard process to change the internal thoughtscape. It's really hard when one is middle-aged and has spent a life with a lot of self-criticism and even self-loathing.

But it's happening. Little by little, I'm thinking differently. I'm befriending my brain and spirit. I'm being kinder to myself, and I'm taking a new perspective as a habit.

It's still not automatic.

I do think I will invest in professional cognitive behavioral therapy. Right now, I'm spending so much on good, organic food and personal exercise training, that there's no moolah for therapy. But it's on my agenda for, I hope, next year. I have to find a good, solid practitioner and have the focus for it, but I do believe it's a necessary next step for my own healing of habits.

I don't want to lose a significant amount of weight only to regain it because I didn't learn the skills necessary for long-term success:

It is widely recognized that the development of behavioral and cognitive skills learned during weight loss is critical to successful maintenance. Indeed, lacking coping and problem-solving skills appear to be important factors in weight regain after a loss.

--from the Weight Watchers article "Mind Skills for Lasting Weight Loss."

One of the thoughts I'm "losing" is the, "Oh, well, I pigged out already today, so might as well have whatever I want. The day is shot."

That's defeatist. That's a bad mental habit.

Another thought I'm working on losing: "I feel low. I feel blue. I need to feel better. Pizza makes me feel better. I deserve a pizza."

That's self-indulgent. That's a bad mental habit.

When I feel blue (as I have had periodic depressions since childhood), I need to replace eating with exercise (which elevates mood) or singing (which gets oxygen in there and can elevate mood) or calling a sister or praying or reading an escapist novel or anything that's not fattening and can help me through the blues.

But the thought must come first: "No, eating will make me feel better for a little while, but going for a walk or doing some Pilates moves will make me feel better all day." or "No, eating will only add to my problems, not solve them. I need to do something creative with my blues. I'm gonna write a poem. I'm gonna write a song. I'm gonna express my feeling with a collage."

It takes time to learn new rituals of thought, healthful ones. It's worth it, no?

Identify your self-sabotaging thoughts and stop them from entering your head. The best way to do this is to stop being overly critical of yourself. When you think you can not do something, you probably will give up before you even try. If you do not think you can do 30 sit-ups, then do 10 and feel good that you did 10. You can probably do one extra sit-up each day until you reach 30. Identifying why something makes you feel bad can help prevent those situations in the future.

--from "7 Methods to Lose Weight by Thinking Yourself Thin"

Pay attention to your thinking today. Have you said unkind things to yourself? Have you been harsh? Have you been self-indulgent? Have you fueled your tempting thoughts? Or have you been positive? Have you used mental strategies to avert overeating today? Have you used mental affirmations to get your body moving? Did you congratulate yourself heartily when you chose well?


How are you managing your thoughts today?

Royal Fatfighting Tournament Tools: #4 The Pause that Empowers

After several good eating days, I had a setback at dinner Monday. I ate decently at breakfast. I ate well at lunch. I went to town at dinner. It was a slowly progressive binge.

So, I started reading A Cyberguide To Stop Overeating and Recover from Eating Disorders by Joanna Poppink, M.F.C.C.

As we all know by now, the only way to successfully lose weight and maintain the loss is to implement strategies from the start that bring new protections and better habits into our lives. Learning these strategies is easy for some, harder for others, but we all have to learn to eat differently and how to behave when we are tempted to return to old habits of overeating or bad eating.

In my case, even though I know I should at minimum STOP and CONSIDER what I am doing or am about to do, I didn't.

And I should have gotten the warning alarm the moment I woke up:

I slept badly. I felt tired from the moment I got up. So tired, so heavy in my bones, that I almost cancelled my Pilates session. I drooped. I ate and felt no pick-me-up from the coffee. I did breathing exercises. I talked positively to myself in the shower about having energy, being energetic, being UP.

It took all my strength to get through the Pilates session, and I couldn't do one of the exercises I had done in previous sessions (the side bend on the barrel). The oomph was gone by the time we got to it. I felt like crying. I was THIS near tears, because I felt like such a failure.

So...

1. I woke up tired from a bad night's sleep.
2. I felt massively disappointed by my exercise performance (despite my trainer's great reassurances that I did great and worked hard.)
3. I came home feeling even more drained.
4. Because I was tired, I burned hubby's dinner, which I let unduly upset me, and then I had to quickly think of an alternative.

I should have said, "Princess, you are having a bad day. What do you do when you have bad, tired, draining days. You eat. And then you eat some more. Time for a strategy, like a big bowl of a lite soup and extra water. Like a fiber drink to make your tummy feel expanded. Like a nap. Ask hubby for a massage. Something..."

I didn't stop and assess my feelings about my day. I just went with every impulse except one initial thought--I shot down the persistent urge to order a pizza. But after that, I went with the impulses, which were to lay on the couch between trips to the kitchen, where I had 2 huge bowls of arugula with tomato and Annie's Goddess dressing, a cup and a half of split pea soup, three ounces of asian pork tenderloin with a cup of fruity rice, a half cup of granola with non-fat milk, a single-serve organic cherry turnover-pie with coffee, and just barely manage to fight off a baked potato chips craving. That was the second time I fought off any eating cue.

Now, a year ago plus, I would have ordered that large pizza and garlic rolls and a Caesar salad, maybe some wings or fried zucchini. The very fact that I mostly had healthful stuff on hand is a testament to better food shopping choices. (That cherry pie, organic and single-serve--was in the freezer since February! I went and dug way in the back to find it.)

But it was still bad day, a setback, because I KNOW, I KNOW, I KNOW that I need to use the strategies, use the tools, and it starts with: SELAH. Pause and consider. Be aware. Self-examine. So I can choose better.

Had I taken 10 to 15 minutes to think and self-talk, I could have stopped after the first bowl of salad, the small piece of roasted pork tenderloin, and the fruited rice, and had a good night. It was the chain reaction, the thoughtless one that got me.

Hence, the tool of the pause for awareness. The tool of the awareness for a better selection of course(s) of action.

The Cyberguide I linked to above has exercises for overeaters (look at the links on that page and scroll to "Exercises to Avoid Overeating" in 10 parts).

I may have to create a chart for my fridge door. I had intended to print out a STOP AND THINK poster for it, and this is something for me to do TOMORROW!

I'm gonna have bad days--little sleep, low energy, depressive episodes. I need to get the tools ingrained to handle them.

Have you used the pause/self-examination to stop binges? Are they habits yet?

I'm working on it.

~~

Royal Fatfighting Tournament Tools: #3 Water, Water Everywhere...So let's DRINK IT!

Confession: I suck about water intake.

I have always sucked about water intake.

I am not a natural water imbiber.

I have to plan for it. I have to force myself. I have to think about it. I have to account for it.

Maybe one day I'll be a natural water-girl, craving the crystalline stuff.

yet.

So, does anyone not believe water helps?

Well, notice this: All those skinny models and actresses tend to get photographed a lot carrying around the liquid sustenance. Every diet plan I've seen says, "drink lots of water." One I saw a couple years ago (a faddish one) says just drinking a lot of water alone will normalize your weight.

I'm gonna admit that on days I drink a lot of water before meals (3 and more glasses), I do get more of a sense of fullness early on in the meal. The problem is I'm NOT consistent. Unless it's to consistently forget to drink water.

So, strategy time: How can we get more water in, besides adding a water harness to every item of clothing we own?

I bought these recently to help in my watery quest:


I use this Netrition shaker bottle for workout class, and I got it for free when I placed a largish order last year:


These things help. Interestingly, the pitcher helps more than the water bottles. I keep it on the counter, taking up very valuable, in-short-supply counter space in my teeny-tiny kitchen. But seeing it there when I prep foods reminds me to drink several glasses while I chop veggies or pound chicken or wash fruit. And if I haven't refilled it at least once a day, it's a warning that I'm slacking.

So, really, having purified water on hand is cheaper than bottled water, more eco-friendly than bottled water, and I can fill my own bottles with it!

I'm still far from perfect, but instilling new habits takes time.

Besides, I like salt. I'm bad, I know, but I do. Love salty foods, especially salty eggs and salty potatoes an salty tomatoes. (I don't use salt on most veggies, though, but meats need it, and soups!) A saltaholic like me needs to keep hydrated and eat potassium-rich foods to balance the sodium. Lots of fruit and water (especially coconut water, you know) keep the bloat down or wash it away (if you're lucky).

Warning: There is such a thing as Water Intoxication. It can be deadly. Don't drink TOO much water, ever. No one needs massive amounts. If you're tempted to drink GALLONS a day: Research it and be smart. Ask a professional for guidelines. Life is about balance, and too much water is definitely not balance.

So, barring abuse, this third tool for the Royal Fatfighting Tournament is indispensable, and it's one you already have on hand! Straight from the tap, filtered, or, if you must, bottled spring or chichi European brands. Just drink it. Take advantage of the no-calorie, essential aid to your weight loss effort.

I intend to.

Glug, Glug!

~~

Did Ya Have a Perfect Day? If Not, TRY AGAIN!

Lyn posted about working at it one day at a time, aiming for a perfect day.

I decided to take the one-day challenge. One perfect day. Well, okay, nearly perfect. I exercised for 50 minutes and I ate within my self-selected points count (38 pts, which is 1900 calories). It would have been perfect had I had more greens and slept 8 hours. I only slept 5 and a half.

The scale was .6 pounds down.

I'm aiming for another perfect day today. :)

One day at a time...because like it or not, you will have those days, and you can make them good or bad, better or worse, best or worst...or even perfect.

As Lyn said beautifully:

One perfect day, you can do. And if you can do it once, you can do it again. Don't think about the other days. It is ONE day. You only have to do it for ONE day. Then at the end of your perfect day, hug yourself, go to bed, and get back up in the morning committed to doing ONE perfect day. Again.

One day leads to another. Like the momentum of footsteps taking you to a goal, the days carry you forward. They are going to carry you, regardless. In a month you will be a month older. Will you be a month heavier? More miserable? Or will you be a month lighter and happier? Because believe me, the good days string together and create something more masterful and wonderful than weeks and months. They create joy. They become peace and clarity. They lead to a new you.

If you have a hard time visualizing a perfect eating day sort of meal plan, how about some of these to spur you on?--

Women's Health's meal plan for steady blood sugar

Men's Health's meal plan for craving control

High Fiber meal plan

A vegetarian meal plan at 1500 calories

A low-carb meal plan

Vegan meal plan

Oprah's Seven-Day meal plan

High Calcium Meal Plan

A 1200 calorie meal plan with meal replacements

Take 30 to 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise-- a bracing walk, an energizing DVD, some yoga, a refreshing swim, a hike in the woods or desert, a jog through the park, a spell on the trampoline, some focused weight-lifting, a bit of dancing in your living room to salsa music--and add several glasses of water to a good, calorie-controlled meal plan, and, presto, a perfect fatfighting day!

Then utter thanks for being able to breathe, move, and for having food at hand to nourish your body. These are great gifts in a world where many go hungry and many are unable to walk or run or jump or just do one abdominal crunch.

Always be grateful for being able to enjoy a day of becoming that new you.

Have a perfect today!

~

Diet Blog: Why Diets Fail

Good blog entry over at Diet Blog called "Why Do Most Diets Fail?". If you're on a weight-loss quest, I suggest STRONGLY that you drop by and read it. And maybe weep a bit before getting on with the tough work.

Sniff.

Design A Reward Plan: Gaining While Losing

I've seen a few blogs with reward lists--say, a cd for each five pound loss or a mini spa day for a 15 pound loss, etc.

I did one once. I don't even remember what I wrote.

And earlier this year, you probably saw this USA Today article (I remember reading it), which said:

If you're looking for a little extra motivation to lose weight this year, consider this: Would you be more inspired if your boss offered you cash for losing 10 pounds? What if your spouse or best friend promised to give you an iPod or 100 bucks if you drop 20 pounds in three months? Would this motivate you or not?

Money and other rewards can inspire people to trim down, says Eric Finkelstein, one of the nation's top experts on the economic impact of obesity.

The truth is, I have all the books, cds, lipsticks, clothes that I need.

I'm gonna reward myself with hard cash.

Yep. I'm gonna go to the bank within the next week and open a savings account for my fat loss deposits.

In order for it to work, I really need to cut back on things like EATING OUT or TREATS in order to have the money for the rewards.

I'm gonna give myself $40 per pound.

Yep. You read that right. Forty bucks.

I figure for it to really motivate me, it has to be substantial enough that I can buy total self-indulgent luxuries or, if my better angel takes over, use it to fund charities I really believe in. Either way, it'll be a juicy reward.

Now, I have 115 pounds to my goal weight. That's 4600 bucks.

Nice chunk o' change, I say! I could buy a fricken Reformer for that and have enough leftover for a vacation. :)

Or...

~I could go to a writing retreat with that and get back to my novel.
~I could pay off half of my 2-month-old car loan.
~I could go to a real spa! One of those super luxurious ones you read about in women's magazines.
~I could hire a stylist to organize a makeover--hair and outfit and make-up like they do on the TV show HOW DO I LOOK or WHAT NOT TO WEAR.
~I could spend time with a life coach and sets up larger goals.
~I could spend some time at a Benedictine cloister for a spiritual retreat.
~I could sponsor a poor family's groceries for months.
~I could sponsor a native missionary abroad for a year.
~I could open a college fund for my grandnieces and grandnephews.
~I could have a real website designed to my specs.
~I could spend a weekend or a week at the Stanhope and spend those days lost in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Guggenheim, the MOMA, and the Hayden Planetarium in NYC. (Oh, how I have fantasized about THAT.)
~I could redesign my closet for "skinny" clothes. Or use it as a down payment towards a new house for those skinny clothes. :D

$4600 lets you think a bit, dream a scosh, don't it?


But dreams can come from smaller amounts. What could you do if you paid yourself two or five dollars per pound lost? If you have to lose 50 pounds, that's 100 to 250 to spend as you wish. If you have 200 pounds to lose, that would be 400 to 1000 bucks to splurge on fabulosities. Maybe you want to plant a fruit tree in your yard or get a wonderful rug to exercise on. Maybe there's a designer handbag that you've coveted--the way I covet the Prada fairies handbag, cause, well, it's FAIRIES!-- but couldn't bear to spend hundreds of dollars on.

Well, let that handbag motivate you towards a slimmer, healthier body.

Maybe you wanted the whole Buffy the Vampire DVD collection. Well, 200 bucks gets you that. (Less on eBay.)

Maybe you've wanted a romantic getaway with your soulmate, but all your money's being wasted at take-out eateries and dining out on fatty food: Save the calories, take the trip.

So, let me see: If I lose 4 pounds a month (roughly 1 a week), that's 160 bucks in my account. If I lose 10 pounds, I got 400 bucks in my account.

And if I regain weight, the money goes into the checking to pay bills or our joint savings for emergencies/home repairs/taxes, etc. I don't keep it off. I don't keep the moolah.

That's the downside, but it should be considered a motivator, too. I don't wanna lose my splurge kitty!!!

In order to have that money, I'll need to re-examine my food expenses and wasteful spending and improve my budget. Even less restaurant dining, fewer Starbucks visits, more homemade pita pizzas, more exercise out of doors and fewer dvd rentals for sedentary viewing. Fewer "spur of the moment" magazine purchases at the grocery store, which can easily be substituted by FREE web-surfing. It all adds up.

Okay, there we go. Another motivator into the pot.

How would you reward yourself in order to have an incentive for weight loss? It can't be something you'd do anyway (come on, you'd have that manicure anyway, right, or buy that lipstick, or that cd, or that book). What thing you normally wouldn't give yourself would you get as your pounds-loss reward?

$4600. Mmmmmmm.

I think I might wanna use some for a celebration day cruise with my hubby when I'm at the halfway point (ie, have lost 57.5 pounds, which would put me at 218 lbs).

Go on. Dream big. Lose big. Reward yourself along the journey.

~~Create a reward chart

~~Reward Yourself

~~WW Reward Suggestions from $5 to over $50.


~~How to Reward Yourself When You Lose Weight

~~Rewards for Weight Loss Milestones

12 Week Goal-Setting?

Well, I had my lengthy bit of a reality check in my last post, onto something a bit more concrete:

Diana at Scale Junkie has left Denial, FL. She's headed toward a series of 12-week blocks of time during which she makes plans and, at the end of each 12-week block, takes measurements and is bloggily accountable.

Twelve weeks. About 3 months. A quarter-year.

It's a good block of time for short-term, achievable goals. Short enough to focus. Long enough to establish a good habit, or more than one.

If you don't believe me, check out these books that use the 12-week block for changing one's body and life:




More HERE.

I'm gonna sit down with a note pad and see if I can shape up something of a 12-week plan. If I get to it and complete it, and if I decide I want to go with it, I'll post it and, like Diana, become accountable.

Anyone else like the idea of a 12-week goal-setting, weight-tracking, measurements-taking, accountability blogging challenge? :)

And check in at amazon.com for some great deals on weight loss tomes in the Bargain Books section.

The First Step To Stop Overeating --and Four More

Oh, Lawdy! The Overeating Ogre has come by this week after being gone for a while, drat him. He was by for dinner on Thursday (when I had four slices of whole wheat pizza and a big bowl of white bean soup and just about exploded) and Friday lunch (I had TWO entrees from Boston Market, TWO, with four sides, FOUR, and a chocolate cupcake and chocolate almonds). It was bad. It was like a PMS flash fire (only without the PMS, at least, I don't think so.)

But I banished the nasty creature last night and got back to normal. I walked. I did some at-home Pilates leg lifts. I did breathing to calm myself. I feel like I've slid back into Healthy Mindset today after the lunacy of the last two days.

Two bad days. Two bad meals, very bad.

All is forgiven. I'm moving on.

Fortunately for my spirits, I tried on a dress and two tops in my size today and both were HUGE on me. Hubby mentions my waist is nipping in. My butt is rounder (and according to hubby, firmer). Most startling, my abdominal pannus is smaller and a bit HIGHER. This is what makes me happiest of all. I hate that thing hanging there like a laundry bag. It's lifting, looking less bulky.

Two of my neighbors have commented on my "slimmer" physique as I've been out walking in the early evenings this week.

My bra band is looser. :)

I guess my clothing size has changed. :) I'm losing some fat, I know, and gaining muscle, so the scale is the same after a blip up the day after the pizza insanity.

So, instead of getting all happy and calm from this progress due to the Pilates--thank you, Liza--I binge. What up with that?

I notice other fatfighting bloggers and commenters on those blogs are struggling, and struggling a lot. We're having a binge epidemic.

Let's stop it. Now. Okay? No weekend excuses. No "it's Saturday, I need a treat" mantras. It ends now.

For you. For me. Let's get through this bad time and move forward.

I decided to look for something useful to share, something with tips and strategies and a bit of "workbook" exercises.

I found this one at About.com-- FIVE STEPS TO AVOID OVEREATING

I'll let you read it and do the work--Do it! Don't just read it! Do the work!--and I chose it because the first step is so crucial for those of us with chronic, emotional binge-eating:

Step A. Wake Up!

People who use food to feel better often report overeating when they are in a time-out or food trance. This trance provides an escape from inner criticism, difficult emotions, or stressful life situations. The first step is to find some way to wake up from the trance. No matter how intense your food craving, or how much you have already eaten, you have to snap back to reality before anything else can happen. There is no one proven guaranteed way to bring your self back to conscious awareness. You will have to experiment with several different ways to grab your own attention. Below are some suggestions that may work to bring you back into the here and now:

• Walk to the nearest mirror, look yourself deep in the eyes, and say hello to yourself.

• Talk aloud to yourself. Call yourself by name and say, "wake up."

• Shake your head to clear out the cobwebs.

• Take a deep breathe and say to yourself, "I am okay now. I am fine now. I am in control now."

• Plant visual cues in your kitchen. For example, place a special blooming potted plant on your kitchen table. Looking at it might remind you of your potential to bloom and prosper.

• Tape your baby picture on your refrigerator. Look at how pure and happy you are. Decide that you want to feel happy and eating is not the way to get there.

List a few methods you can think of to bring yourself back to living in the present moment:

_____________________________________________

_____________________________________________

_____________________________________________

_____________________________________________

Those are actually some very simple things to stop the binge-trance. It's not easy to get a clear head, but it's necessary. Copy and paste that step, print it out with the lines for you to write in. Do it! Come on!

Let's all try it, those of us having a hard week. Okay?

One of the methods I've thought of is doing a tape-recording or videotape of myself talkig to myself. I need to find a recorder somwhere (I know I have one) and tape myself doing the encouraging talk and the decisive talk and the hopeful, believing talk. I need to keep the recorder and tape handy--in the kitchen (where the table is) or living room, the only two rooms in the house where I eat.

Instead of a baby picture, I think I prefer a picture of myself in my early 20's, when I was a normal weight and very happy (cause I'd met my soulmate--hubby)and wore camis and shorts all the time cause my legs/thighs/belly/upper arms weren't huge.

Let me know if this strategy (and the others in the article) helped you get through to Monday (and beyond.)

Here's to a healthy weekend and a lighter weigh-in next week. If you want more, check out the eHow article on avoiding overeating. Drink water, focus on lots of fiber, slow down at meal times, etc. You've heard this before. So have I. Let's DO IT today adn tomorrow. It's a weekend of change, right?

Yes! We can!

Onward and Downward!

More articles:

Strategies to Avoid Overeating from Nutrition & Fitness Advisors--also focuses on awareness, keeping blood sugar steady, not starving, and finding what works for you.

Canadian Living's 8 Tips to Avoid Overeating

Escaping the Overeating Rut with a chart to help you become aware of your pattern/rut.

Great "Practical" Post from Diet Blog

Ah, just read it. Even if you only apply one or two of the tips, it's gonna help, right?

Motivation From The Pages

My eyes have been healing beautifully. I do need reading glasses now, so I've been experimenting with strengths (one of the lenses poked out of each pair). I have upped the font on the computer screen to 20, too. It's one of the compensations one makes for having presbyopia, even after LASIK.

I'm reading to motivate myself not to stray from the healthy eating plan. (I do need to go shopping for produce, as not having enough tempting veggies and fruits means I end up having too much processed stuff like canned foods and breads and cheese.)

Last month, I took advantage of some specials amazon.com had on magazines to subscribe to Women's Health & Fitness. I also have a sub to Fitness. My WW magazine sub expired, and I may or may not renew. The resources online are pretty nice, and I belong to WW online already, so I may skip the mag altogether. Really, in an age trying to go green, most mags need to offer an online version so we can skip the paper waste.

Two books I'm ordering sometime in the next few days from amazon.com are these:



Diet Blog recommended the first and Pasta Queen the second.

The following is greatly reduced, and I recommend it:



Yes, that's bargain price right now at amazon (6.99) and is a limited time sale. So, that's a great book at a really cheap price. Get it!

I figure I might invest in one book a month for motivational purposes. Between blogs, online mag sites (like Fitness and Self's and Shape's, etc), my online WW site, the free forums, and the books and mags I already get, I think I have more than enough to read if motivation lags.

And, inspired by Chubby Chick's determination to love herself more (and we already know what a nice gal she is), here's a little book--also an amazon bargain book now--with very short, even repetitive meditations to keep us motivated in the direction of kindness (to self and others):


Here's one of meditations:

Celebrate early
Celebrate often
There is plenty of sadness
There is plenty of disappointment
Celebrate
Celebrate
Celebrate

And let's celebrate with healthful foods, while we're at it, right?

Happy weekend, my fatfighting allies!

Keeping Holiday Stress (and Year-End Weight) Down

Diet Blog has a good article about managing the stress that comes along with the holidays--and we know what stress makes some of us do, don't we?--which I recommend y'all read.

I especially found valuable the part about analyzing self-talk and spotting our own exaggerations. Oh, yeah. I'm prone to that! That particular bit of advice meshes well with the BECK METHOD stuff I've been reading/applying.

Using Dr. Beck's Tools To Cope With Cravings and Emotional Eating

I've just added a new member to my Diet Blog Royalty set of links: Beck Diet Girl. Since some of my blogging pals have struggled--as I have--with cravings, binges, emotional eating and other out of control food uses, I thought it would be good to focus on those psychological tools out there. In this case, Dr. Beck's tools.

Beck Diet Girl posted this back in August, and it will help when cravings hit (if implemented, of course):

Dr. Beck offers two kinds of anti-craving strategies: Mindset Techniques and Behavioral Techniques.

There are 5 Mindset Techniques:

Label It. Tell myself this is only a craving, not a true need.
No problem.


Stand Firm. Tell myself I am absolutely not going to eat the food I'm craving.
Easier said than done.


Don't Give Yourself a Choice. Tell myself NO CHOICE.
How is this different than standing firm? Apparently I'll find out on Day 16.


Imagine the Aftermath of Giving In. Think about giving in to the craving, but focus on what happens after I swallow: feeling weak and out of control and hopeless.
This is a great idea!


Remind Myself Why I Want to Learn to Withstand Cravings. Read my ARC.
Another great idea!

There are 4 Behavioral Techniques:

Distance Myself from the Food I Crave. Leave the room or throw away or give away the food.
This could be difficult since it calls on will power again.


Drink a No- or Low-Calorie Beverage. Satisfying thirst masked as hunger can erase cravings; have a glass of water or another low-calorie drink.
I already do this, drinking almost a gallon of water a day, and it does help.


Relax. Focus on my breathing, in through my nose for 4 counts and out for 4 counts.
This can be helpful in stressful situations of any kind.


Distract Myself. Perform another activity instead of giving in to the craving.
A definite winner!

The idea is to practice these techniques when a craving hits so I'll be able to ignore it until it goes away.

In this other post, she uses the same tools to address emotional eating.

The tools worked for her, cause until this past week, she had not had a weight gain/regain. She's pulling out her Beck set of tools to address it.

I know that weeks when I do better (when I look at my records) are when I instinctively did some of these techniques (remember, I haven't read the book.) The distraction. The water. The distance. The low-cal beverage or snack. The firm self-talk. Thing is, I really have slacked off. Like Beck Diet Girl, it's time to bring the tools back to the forefront. Which means putting the weight loss as priority one. Something's got to give. I let dieting go to the back burner, and as a result, I spent most of the last month not losing. (I wish I could multi-task with greater ease and balance, but I can't. I suck at juggling in my middle age. Did better at it when I was younger.)

If you want to use Dr. Beck's tools, I recommend her book. (I have it, but need to read and implement it!) Also, her blog, with links to bloggers using her method.


More books for those who need to get free from emotional eating: