How do you get through the rough times?

[DonaldDuckFamily]

I admit I love treats!!! Especially when I'm stressed at work I'll reach into my wallet, go to the vending machine and get JUNK food (even when I have something healthy packed). I seem to constantly get myself into a viscious circle of getting healthy and then revert back to old habits.

So, I'm looking for advice on how you get through the rough times of a diet/exercise plan? I seem to lose some of the weight and then get off track and gain it back .

 

[DisneyFan06]

I admit I love treats!!! Especially when I'm stressed at work I'll reach into my wallet, go to the vending machine and get JUNK food (even when I have something healthy packed). I seem to constantly get myself into a viscious circle of getting healthy and then revert back to old habits.

So, I'm looking for advice on how you get through the rough times of a diet/exercise plan? I seem to lose some of the weight and then get off track and gain it back .

You and me both!

Looking for advice!

 

[wezee]

I usually do great all week long. I watch my WW points and do my workouts every day......but when the weekend comes.....yikes!!!

But I make sure to jump on the scale Monday morning, access the damages, and form my plan of action for the week. I write down my meals and points for the day each morning and planning my workout for each night. So far so good......tho I usually spend several days losing the weekend weight.

Luckily I can ignore the sweets........but give me a bag of chips and chip dip and I'm a goner!

Goodluck, just take it one day at a time and makes mini goals for yourself each week!

 

[Raenstoirm]

I method that usually works for me is the "not mine." method. Certain items are "not mine" so i cant eat them. i sort of pretend that I am at a strangers house. Would you go into their kitchen and eat their ice cream or chips? No, because it is not yours. This works well at work. if it did not come with me to work it is not mine and I cant eat it even if it is offered. This also works 99% with my husbands full fat ice cream. My issue is when i am weak in the grocery store and then have naughty foods in the cupboards that "are mine."

 

[IMGONNABE40!]

How about you don't bring your wallet/money to work? Can you leave it in the car? Or, I usually just carry a $10 with me, and I can't stick that into the vending machine. Or, maybe write a note to your self that you will see when you reach into your wallet. Or, figure out smoething else to do to deal with the stress...I hear smoking works wonders! Or, maybe get in the habit of walking the halls of your building a bit instead of buying yourself that treat...

 

[pjlla]

For me, it is all about "talking" to myself and having a mind set. For example.... we had dinner at my parents house on Sunday. We were celebrating my Dad's birthday. My mom told me in advance what we were having for dinner and I "told" myself what I could eat, before I even got to the dinner table. That way I wasn't faced with being hungry and having to make a quick decision. I told myself that I could have all the salad I wanted, one serving of lasagna, NO garlic bread, and a piece of birthday cake. And that is all I had (admittedly, the piece of cake was large!). If I had waited until I sat down, very hungry, at 1pm to decide about the foods and portions, it would have been very difficult to avoid the garlic bread. But it really didn't even occur to me to reach for a piece because I KNEW it was off limits and I was allowing myself a splurge on the cake, so I wasn't feeling deprived. BTW, the cake was DELICIOUS!! Mom tried a new recipe that was terrific and I don't usually like frosting ( a small blessing), but Mom tried a new kind and it was very yummy.

I do the same thing when confronting other food challenges. I am trying now to formulate a plan for Thanksgiving weekend. It is tough because we have two meals... we celebrate with DH's family on Thursday and then with my family on Friday, plus we spend the weekend with my folks because my brother and his family are usually up from the south visiting. It becomes a weekend eat-a-thon!

My Thanksgiving plan will probably involve me making a healthy non-guilty side dish and a low-point dessert (I'm on WW) for both Thursday and Friday and then working the rest of my food around that. The tough part at my SIL's house on Thursday is the large quantity of appetizers (usually 4-8 different types) and the ENORMOUS amount of food she makes... it is nothing for us to have 8+ side dishes in addition to the usual turkey, stuffing, potatoes. And everything is homemade, including things like butternut squash ravioli for a starter!! YIKES!!

Anyhow, you need to talk to yourself EVERY morning on your way to work and determine what you will have that day. If you tell yourself that you will ONLY eat what you bring in your lunch sack, hopefully that will help. Maybe you could start a small fund (piggy bank) on your desk or in your car. Everytime you DON'T spend $$ in the vending machine, put that amount of money in the bank. Try to save up for something fun like a new article of clothing (something really nice you want to buy when you reach your goal weight, like a leather coat), or put it in an account to save for a special vacation. I find that the financial aspect of not hitting the drive-thru or the vending machine actually more motivating than the weight issue! Maybe that is why I am cheap but not thin!!


Good luck jumpstarting your healthy lifestyle !..............................P

 

[Tiger Lily 03]

Great question! I love all the suggestions too.

I like the "not mine" idea. I sometimes can manage that.

When I am logging in everything I eat on sparkpeople, I always think what will eating the not-so-good item do to my counts. Most times that way I can get to myself by this. Only thing is there is always those slippage moments for me and I am with everyone on how to stop once I've started. I WISH it were easy.

I'd love to hear what others do.

 

[heart4pooh]

What has recently helped me a lot is going on the Zone Diet. Everybody has to find what works for them, but I couldn't be happier with the Zone. It controls my insulin levels and I am NOT hungry between meals. Also, I eat a lot of food at the meals and snacks that I know I'm actually eating MORE food than I used to. Freaky, eh?
Otherwise, I always had a hard time controlling myself between meals. I always felt hungry and would grab what seemed most satisfying at the time, usually empty carbs and/or chocolate.

 

[crunkyjens]

I have gotten into the habit of keeping a food journal. I write everything down, no matter how small. So before I eat something I ask myself if it is something I would be ok with writing down in my food journal and still be ok with it looking back on it a week later.

Sure you could always just "not" write it down, it does take some self control to do that...but I've found this helps. It also is great if you are in a rut with your weightloss too. You can go back and look at what you ate the week before and tweak your meals as needed.

Good luck! And great suggestions everyone!

 

[DonaldDuckFamily]

I am going to start journaling my food intake each day again. I need to make myself accountable for what I eat and I think this is the only real way to know exactly what I'm taking in.

I am also going to start having a protein shake each day for either my morning or afternoon break. A co-worker of mine is a fitness instructor and she recommended this. She said they may not taste good now and I'll have to "choke it down", but it will get better and she has seen it help curb that sugar craving some people get. We'll see