Tag Archives | temptation

The Little Things

By on March 5, 2010 in Uncategorized

Have you ever noticed how much difference the little things make? In fact, they’re really not so little after all. Little by little, they add up to a lot.

Today is “tasty pastry Friday” at the office and it was my turn to bring in the treats. Instead of buying donuts as I usually do (because I hate donuts and am not tempted by them), I went to Great Harvest Bread Company and bought an assortment of “healthy” treats, including whole grain muffins and whole wheat challah bread. As an aside, challah bread is so not supposed to be made with whole wheat bread!

I got to the office, portioned out a piece of challah with some butter, a small section of cookie, and a breakfast muffin with eggs and bacon baked right into it.  Ate it and sort of realized I was planning to just go off the rails today.  I’m not sure why, but there you have it.  My subconscious was planning a coup d’etat!  And in the past, I would have struggled with that knowledge for, oh, about 3 seconds flat before “realizing” that it was hopeless and giving in to a day of mindless eating.

Today?

I got on SparkPeople, tracked what I’d eaten and then tracked healthy meals for the rest of the day.  And you know what?  I will still bring it in under 2,000 calories today.  And I will feel so much better for it.

I heard someone say once (or, more likely, I read it on one of your blogs!) that it only takes one split second of resolve to get rid of the thing that’s tempting you.  You don’t have to be strong forever – just for one teeny, tiny moment – long enough to chuck the food that’s tempting you.

By the same token, it only takes one moment of resolve to face up to a poor choice, put it into context, and plan the remainder of your day so that a mistake is just that – a mistake.  One little mistake.

Funny how the little things – both the good and bad – can add up to create monumental outcomes.

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Bloggy Beck Book Club – Week #2

By on March 4, 2010 in Uncategorized

Last week we talked about the homework Beck gives her readers in The Complete Beck Diet for Life.  We talked about how it felt like a lot of work, but also about how we could see the sense in the tasks Beck gave her readers.

This week, I’d like to make the discussion more about you.  What was your favorite part of the homework?  Least favorite part of it?

As a refresher, some of the homework tasks included the following:

  • Making an advantages deck (a list of reasons why you want to lose weight);
  • Making response cards (a list of responses you can use when you are tempted to go off the deep end);
  • Making a distractions list (or box) – things you can do to distract yourself from the temptation to eat off-plan.

If you don’t mind, would you share your three favorites of each of those things?  Here’s my thought: there is strength in numbers.  And, as I posted earlier, there is power in words.  If we can all contribute to this post today, it will become a resource for us all – and maybe for others in the future.  We can refer back to it when we need the reminder.  I might serve as our “mobile” cards or be a great substitute when we’re in a pinch without our cards.  The point is, two (or four, or twenty) are better than one.

So your homework for this week?  Here it is:

  • Review the cards you made for yourself on a daily basis.  This is practice for Stage I, which we’ll get into next week over at Scale Warfare’s blog.
  • Post your three favorite Advantages, Responses, and Distractions.
  • Share with us any challenges (or victories) you had with, or as a result of, the homework in pages 1-49 of the book.

Jump on in!  I’ll post my favorites in the comments with everyone else.

Comments { 11 }

Internal Struggle (aka 5 minutes inside my brain)

By on January 29, 2010 in Uncategorized

For some reason today, I am struggling with cravings more than I have been in weeks.

Every time I stop concentrating on something else, food pops into my mind.

Like chocolate ice cream:

(Unfortunately, my brain does not operate like the brain of the creator of this poster!)

Then I think, maybe just a few of the mini candy bars we have in our blasted tempting evil generous workplace.  Just a small amount, really; totally reasonable.  Say…about…this much:

Now I’m not writing this blog post to tempt you all; there really is a method to my madness here.  I was having a little conversation with myself and thought it would be humorous (and, quite honestly, a diversion from the cravings) to give you a little peek into the games I play with myself thought processes I go through when trying to resist temptation.

For the purposes of this conversation, let’s nickname the obstinate, rebellious teenage me “Temptress” and the adult, rational, reasonable me “SRG.”

Temptress: Oooh, I’m sooo hungry today.  It wouldn’t really hurt if I just had some candy/ice cream/muffins/chocolate, right?  I mean, I’ve been sooo good!

SRG: Exactly!  You have been good!  Wait, why am I talking about myself in the second person?!?  I have been good.  I’ve been super healthy and on target all week.  Why would I want to ruin that now?

Temptress: Well it wouldn’t ruin it, exactly.  I mean, so what if you have a teeny tiny gain tomorrow.  It’s just one little medium-sized big-ass treat!  Don’t be such a Nazi!

SRG: I’m not a Nazi!  I’m all about flexibility, not depriving myself, and doing this in a healthy, reasonable way I can manage for life!  And I’m not going to let you me you whatever! trick me into caving in on this!  It’s not unreasonable to stick to my plan for today.

Temptress: You don’t seriously think you can resist me, do you?  Come on – you’ve failed every other time you’ve done this!  Just because it’s been longer this time, doesn’t mean you’ve magically cured your inability to stick with a healthy lifestyle!  Why wait and hold out and work so hard when you know that eventually you’re going to fail?  Just give in now; it’ll be so much easier.  Plus, then you can say it was your decision to give up, rather than facing the pitiful truth that you have no control over yourself!

(Yeah, she’s a bitch, ain’t she?!?)

SRG: That’s a load of crap.  I have no doubt very little doubt only a tiny bit of doubt no doubt that this is the last time I am going to lose this weight.  I’m committed to making permanent, lasting changes in my life.  So you might just want to get used to hearing the words “no” and “not right now,” Missy.  Otherwise you’re going to be mighty pissed off for a lot of the next 40 50 60 years!

Temptress: You have got to be kidding me!  Give me one good reason why you can’t just eat a little bit of what you’re we’re I’m craving right now?!?

SRG: One?  I’ll give you three!

1. We are having friends over for dinner tonight and they are bringing a healthier dessert (she just reached goal on WW!). I may want to partake in that, and I won’t be able to  do that without overeating today if I splurge now.

2. My “official” weigh-in is tomorrow and I’d really, REALLY like to get to 249.5 (or below) since that’s my first five pound reward and I REALLY need new running shoes.

3. I am perfectly capable of saying “no” to myself for today, especially since I am planning an indulgence for tomorrow.

*silence*

SRG: I think she’s gone for now, either that or she’s sulking in the corner.  Whatever the reality, I know she’ll be back – today, tomorrow, or sometime soon.  But I’m not scared of her anymore, and I don’t listen to the lies she tells.  I have learned that today, and every day, I have the power over the choices I make.  Not the inner child/teenager in me that wants more more MORE!  Not some food company that markets to my taste buds with their processed foods filled with the evil trifecta of sugar, fat, and salt.  ME.  I choose.  And today, for now, I choose to say “no.”  Or, more accurately, “not now.”

What do you choose today?  Do you choose to give in to internal and external pressures pushing you away from your goals?  Or do you choose, right now, to continue holding tight to those dreams and making the choices, every minute, that will help you acheive those dreams?

I vote for Door #2.

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Sunday Musings

By on January 17, 2010 in Uncategorized

Morning!

I never used to post on the weekends, but I have to say that posting daily (or nearly daily) has been so helpful to me.  I now understand what Sean Anderson means when he says his blog is his therapy.  This blog has been that for me, and is, I think, the real difference between my current determination to lose weight and get healthy and all the attempts I’ve made in the past.

I had an interesting day yesterday, capped off by a HUGE dinner.  Wait, wait, don’t freak out – I planned for it!  I’ll back up a bit and explain.

You know how Beck allows/advocates having a small daily “treat” so that you never feel deprived of the things you love to eat?  I decided to forego my daily treats this week and plan for a decadent meal out on Saturday.  My brother-in-law is in town visiting, and on of my hubby’s favorite restaurants is the Icon Grill in downtown Seattle.  The food there is amazing, but it is also extremely high in calories!  So I budgeted 2,000 calories for dinner.  Yes, you read that correctly – 2,000 calories for one meal!

I knew the meal would mean I’d see a gain this morning, partially from the calories and partially from the sodium that’s present in all restaurant food.  I also knew I would be facing one of my biggest hurdles that I’ve struggled with in life before – getting back on track after a planned indulgence.  Whether the indulgence in the past has been for one meal or a full week (vacation, maybe), I’ve always had such. a. hard. time. getting back to a healthy pattern of eating afterward.  I need to overcome that.  I need to practice getting back on track after an indulgence until it becomes easy.

So Saturday’s meal was a convenient time to indulge and practice, today, immediately getting back to my healthy choices.  The meal was wonderful – we shared two appetizers (there were 4 of us): macaroni and cheese and artichoke gruyere dip.  Mmm.  The mac and cheese at the Icon Grill is one thing it’s famous for; here’s a photo:

I ate about 3/4 cup of the mac & cheese, and 3 tiny pieces of grilled bread with the artichoke/gruyere dip on top.  I also had another piece of bread with a flavored butter from the bread basket.

I ordered filet of sole for dinner, and it came with sweet corn and cilantro mashed potatos and steamed broccoli.  I ate 3/4 cup of the mashers, all the broccoli, and between 1/2 and 2/3 of the fish.  The fish came with a lovely lemon butter sauce with actual chunks of lemon in it – beautiful bursts of flavor on the tongue!

The kicker was dessert – we split the following: icon’s Hot Fudge Sundae: Olympic Mountain Vanilla Bean ice cream in a cookie
bowl with icon’s cone of hot fudge sauce and your choice of toppings.

This is not like any sundae you have ever seen in your life!  It comes in a huge bowl (slightly larger than a taco salad shell bowl) made of ice cream cone stuff.  Like a huge waffle bowl, I guess.  Easily 6 large scoops of ice cream, with a cone tower full of hot fudge sticking out of it.  The server smothered the ice cream in the hot fudge and then asked us if we wanted slivered almonds, mini m&ms, chocolate chip cookie chunks, and whipped cream.  Of course everyone said “yes!” to all four (nuts on the side please), and we proceeded with our pathetic attempt to eat that puppy.

I had about 1C of ice cream with the assorted toppings.  It was great.  I put my spoon down when I wanted to keep eating, because I knew the next few bites would be the difference between simply feeling full, and feeling nauseatingly full.  And because leaving food you love behind is one of the things Beck asks you to practice.

So my day ended as planned, with a serious calorie splurge, but without me going crazy.  And what’s even better is that I woke up with morning with NO QUESTION that I would go back to life as usual in terms of planning, tracking, and eating my normal healthy foods.  Huh.  That’s a pretty cool feeling, friends.

Here’s how my week ended nutritionally:

As you can see, my totals for 1/16 are extremely high*, and I’m planning a moderately low day (for me) today to compensate somewhat.  I’m also staying away from all processed foods (which I usually do) and drinking plenty of water so I can flush some of the sodium from yesterday out of my system.

What do you all think?  Am I rationalizing a bad choice?  Is this something you might do?  How might you have handled things differently?  Do I suck as a weight loss blogger because I just posted all this information about a crazy, high-calorie meal I ate?  If so, mea culpa and I’m sorry.

*Note: I overestimated on nearly everything I ate at dinner; I wanted to have as accurate as possible an idea of what I ate, and didn’t want to risk underestimating.  It’ll all come out in the wash at the end of the week, I figure.

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Back at it…

By on August 17, 2009 in Uncategorized

I can’t believe how long it’s been since I posted!  I’m so sorry I went all MIA on y’all – it’s been a busy week.  My wedding shower was yesterday, and it was more fun than I could’ve imagined!  It went so fast, though, and felt so surreal that I could almost think it was a dream!  I’m starting to realize that’s how my wedding day is going to feel.  Do you have any strategies I can use to really slow down and enjoy that day?  I want to really experience it and make as many memories as possible.

Over the last week I’ve had family in town, been sleep deprived, and had access to foods I adore.   Foods I generally don’t keep around because (a) I have a hard time eating them in moderation and (b) I don’t have time to cook them!  How’d I do?  If I could use one word for how I behaved this last week, it’s “moderation.”

Who am I?!?

Yes, I’m tooting my own horn.  I am giving myself MAJOR credit for the fact that in a week where I:

  • Had company;
  • Didn’t get enough sleep;
  • Only fit in 4 workouts;
  • Didn’t blog;
  • Didn’t religiously journal my food;
  • Faced all manner of food temptations; and
  • Face all kinds of emotional “triggers” for eating…

I MAINTAINED MY WEIGHT.

This is big, friend.  It’s huge, actually.

But it’s not the real test.  You know what is?  Today.  And the next day.  And the next.  Because my goal here is not to maintain – it’s to lose weight consistently over time.  And there’s this temptation for me right now.  You know the temptress I’m talking about.  The one who whispers in your ear, “But you’ve lost so much weight already!  Remember all those compliments you got yesterday about how great you looked?  And you fit into that dress that was too snug just a while ago!  What more could you want?  Quit working so darned hard and enjoy your success…savor the taste of victory.”

Well I have one thing to say to that evil temptress: “Shut up, b*tch!” LOL

For those of you reading who know me, I’m sure you’re a little shocked and probably giggling right now.  I don’t cuss much and that statement would never come out of my mouth for real!  But THIS situation is life or death.  THIS situation is where the rubber meets the road.  For me, the setbacks don’t come from loosening the standards for a day or two on special occasions.  MY setbacks and challenges come from getting back ON the wagon when those days are over.

It’s always something, friend.  A birthday.  A dinner out with friends.  Celebrating weight loss success (with food – how ironic is that?!?!).  A tough day at work.  A fight with your partner.  A passive-aggressive comment from your great-aunt Millie who thinks you’re a failure since you’re fat AND single.

Those struggles and moments and temptations aren’t going to go away.

So what are you going to do about it?

Me?  I’m getting back on the wagon.  Right now.

Beat the Obstacle

Beat the Obstacle

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