Less Than 100 Days Before 2011

Sep 30, 2010

In early September the stores were already stocking the shelves with piles of Halloween candy and Thanksgiving fixings.  In the back of the stores you could find Christmas decorations including all kinds of delicable treats to eat.  These next 3 months are always the most challenging of the year for me.  I've realized that emotional spending for these holidays is much the same as emotional eating during these holidays.  I do it out of habit.  I do it because this is what has been familiar to me for the majority of my life.  I do it because these are holidays and I "deserve" to enjoy them and take a break from my compliance. Whoa....

Much of it is mindless eating & spending.  I go into a store for a particular reason and see these tempting things on the shelves.  Then the emotional reasoning kicks in.  "This is on sale so I might as well get it now."   "I know my kids love Reese PB cups so I'll get these for them."  "These bags of candy are buy one get one free so I can't pass this up."  Before I know it, I come home with much more than I intended to buy.    

These next 3 months we are swamped with parties & get togethers with co-workers,church, friends, & family.  These most always include lots of forbidden food.  I've learned over the last 10 years that this takes a plan of action now with specific goals in place.  Otherwise I will be making that same New Years resolution that everyone else is making in January---I need to lose weight!

Do I want to spend the next 3-6 months of 2011 getting back on track and taking off the extra pounds I put on?

January 2011 we are bombarded with weight loss techniques on TV & New Year's resolutions to take those pounds off that we gained over the last 100 days of 2010.  It can be done but in our maintenance phase my experience has been that I need to do it just like any other normal person, with some exceptions.  I need to burn more calories than I'm eating and do it with exercise.  I'm just eating much smaller portions of food than normies are.  We don't lose 10# in a month anymore. It's really hard work to get back on track and get that sugar out of our system.  Cold turkey is what works best for me.

There are alot of temptations put in front of me in the next 3 months.  It requires lots of will power on my part when the tasty forbidden foods are passed to me during these holiday celebrations.  Family members get upset with me but I will throw food away on my plate rather than eat everything and clean my plate.  #1 because those old habits kick in when I'm at family gatherings with potlucks.  Everybody chattering & filling up our plates at the same time.  A little spoon of this & a little spoon of that & before you know it, I have a whole plate full of food.  I won't eat it out of guilt because I put it there.  Bad habit on my part when there are starving kids in the world but the extra #'s are not going on my hips & butt & I'm not stretching out my pouch. If possible, I can save it for my next meal.  

#2 Don't put any desserts on my plate when I fill it the first time.  Most likely I'll be too full to have room for it then.

#3 I take things I know I can eat.  Some are sugar free too.  Maybe its just my family, friends, & possibly their own issues with obesity, but I've found that they don't appreciate me constantly asking them what ingredients are in the dishes that they bring.  I do it because I'm dairy intolerant, want to keep my sugar intake down, & get an idea of calorie content.  But I do ask anyway.  I have to do what's best for my health.

#4 I can enjoy my family, friends, & the holidays without food being in the center of it.  I've learned that the true "gift" of these holidays is the moments of time I spend with these people--the laughter, the stories, the childhood memories--so I don't have to be gathered around the kitchen table with my mouth full of food to enjoy them. 

#5 I monitor my weight more closely, at least once a week.  If it starts creeping up, I know that I have to cut back.  I don't wait until I've gained 10# and then do something about it.  

#6 I practice delayed gratification.  I was use to instant gratification in my eating habits: as much as I wanted, when I wanted it, and all the wrong foods.  Now I work towards the rewards of tomorrow and my future.  I know from experience that how I choose to live my life today has a direct bearing on what my tomorrow will hold.  I reap what I sow.  I have a mental picture of how I want to see myself when I ring in the New Year January 2011.  

#7 I use the 80/20 rule.  I can't be 100% perfect with my program.  I don't feel deprived of all my favorite forbidden foods if I work really hard on eating responsibly at least 80% of the time throughout the week, especially during these last 100 days.`

#8 I try to exercise at least 3 times a week.  I have a park right next door with a nice walking/jogging track.  I think everyone should own a good pedimeter & wear it everyday. 

I can enjoy these next 3 months if I plan, prepare, & put into place a series of positive steps toward my goal for 2011.  It would be easy for me to fall back into that old habit  of doing what I have always done for most of my life and expecting a different result.  Yeah right!  That makes about as much sense as giving an alcoholic alcohol.  I need a plan, a goal, & accountability too. It will all be worth it when 2011 gets here.

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