Time to get real. I spent over a whole week eating crap, crap and more crap. My conclusion in the end is that it wasn't just stress but it had to be something else. I was going out of my way to eat fast food every day. I reverted to the old Leanne who was nearly 190 pounds, eating pizza and french fries and ice cream. Once last week I ate so much I literally burst. My stomach couldn't hold all the food I had shoved into it. Exercise? Nonexistent.
It was deprivation. Not calorie-deprivation, just not feeling like I was ever going to be "allowed" to eat junk food and all the yummy stuff. Sometimes it seems like it's all or nothing. What a silly thing to think. I know the real truth is that we can eat our favorite foods as long as it's in moderation.
I haven't been to Weight Watchers in over a month so I haven't been holding myself accountable for anything. I stopped stepping on the scale altogether. I have arranged to go to a Weight Watchers meeting on Thursdays that is 10 minutes away. My normal meetings are an hour away (near where I work) so it's like the last place I ever want to go because it means I have to stay late at work and get home hours later. Now it will be way more convenient and I will go every single week. The home scale is going to continue to be stored away unused.
It's not really going back to Square 1 but more like Square 2 because I have the healthy eating habits within me and the experience I need to keep moving forward. I don't plan to start back up with exercise for a while until I can get the eating under control. This week the focus is listening to my stomach and only eating when I am hungry. No more snacking all day long. It will just be eating small meals when hungry and a couple snacks in between. It seems like the right thing to do. Ocasionally a yummy treat in moderation is also part of the plan.
Posted By: Leanne_Nalani
Comments to this post:
05/29/2007 20:26
it is definitely better now than never
leanne - i've been struggling a lot better and as you've probably read on my journal, my goals are pretty similar to yours - basically just NO MORE binging and more listening to my hunger signals without depriving myself of what I want to eat. deprivation for me just leads to disaster.
we can do this. even if it didn't happen last week, this is a new week and a new time to get back to the basics. i'll be thinking of ya and wishing the best!!
Hi there, haven't EP'd for a while. Happy belated birthday! I hope you had a great time! Don't beat yourself up about not going to WW and snacking too much, things will fall into place I assure you. And if you need motivation just look at before pics of you and compare them to after pics of you and say to yourself "I didn't get like this from snacking" maybe. It's just a thought, but I always find when I look at pictures of myself from last year when I was thin it just makes me think to myself "eating this or that isn't going to give me that body again" I don't know if it will help, but it certainly helps me at times when I need a reality check! I hope you're having a good day! The weather here is rubbish and gloomy and wet, and I'm stuck in my room studying so eating healthily is a struggle at the moment but I'm coping I think! Anyway, hope your well, take care x x x
We all get off track and we all deserve another chance. You're so right....it's NOT all or nothing. And you haven't failed at anything.....as long as you don't give up! So, that being said, I'm sure you've been too hard on yourself. Give yourself a break! It sounds like you have a great solution to the WW meetings. You are now holding yourself accountable. And the good news is that you caught it very quickly and didn't let yourself get back to your old weight. Good for you! Now go reward yourself for it!
It's best you aknowledge your behavior now and use the tools in your possession to turn yourself around. I don't doubt you'll go back to your healthy lifestyle once this little setback passes. I wonder if it is a common phenomenon for people who get to their final goal to go a little crazy for awhile?
Anyway, it looks like you've got a great plan for getting back in the game. Best of luck to you!
I wanted to wish you a happy late birthday!! I am so sorry I am late. Like you I have had some real problems lately with food and no exercise but am ready to jump back in there and get back on program. I agree we have to tell ourselves we can have anything we want in moderation. They only way I make it sometimes through the week is knowing that I can have a free day once per week. If I have more than that I don't lose, I stay the same or gain. Plus my tummy starts getting stretched back out. So we are both back on track!! You really motivate me because you have made it to goal and yet still struggle. The reason I say that is sometimes I get scared if I get to goal what would I talk about or do then if I didn't have my weight loss things to keep me busy. But it shows for some of us it is never over but maintainable.. :-)
WW was on to something when they coined this phrase as part of the program.
It definitely takes work to stay in the place you want to be. It is not easy - just because you lost weight doesn't mean everything is cake (pardon the pun) now
You'll be fine - just screw your head on again tight, make some immediate goals and stick to them. Don't stress - just learn from the experience and move on!!! :)
I know you will correct your mistakes get past the eating binge and reset your life. I have been through some tough times these past couple of weeks so I know where you are coming from. I haven't been eating too bad but my exercise has changed considerably since last weekend. It has been almost non-existent. I need to get past some issues and get back on the bike Monday. I may try tomorrow but I have a full schedule through Saturday and Sunday. I will keep you in my prayers to get back on track!
Sorry to hear you have been having a rough time at work and leading to stress, etc eating. Good job getting back on the band wagon. You can do this! I agree though, you need the WW meetings.
Hey there! I was looking around for other people trying to lose/maintain for a wedding and came across your site. When are you getting married? I just got engaged on May 15, and we've set the date for December 8 of this year. EEK! So much to do!
One of my biggest fears is that I'll stress eat my way into a size 200, but I'm trying to focus on staying healthy and reasonable about my eating/exercise. So far, so good...
I occasionally have binging episodes similar to what you described. It's so scary and alarming when they happen--I can just see the old, fat Jen (30 pounds heavier than I am now) trying to reclaim my body. No way! Self-control, self-control, self-control... that's my mantra these days...
You can turn this around today and get back on the wagon. We all fall off sometimes and we EPers are here to help you get back on. Come back and journal here more often. If you can't make it to WW meetings, then journal here where we can held you accountable. You definitely don't want to go back to that 190lbs and ask some advices from EPers here who are on maintenance now. You can do it Leanne!
You've identified and confessed the problem. That's the first step. I'm sorry you've been under such stress! I wish I could help. All I can say is that I'm here for you--we all are! So back to square 2! And going to the meetings again will be so good for you.
Happy belated Birthday!!!! I will have to go back a bit in your blog to see how I missed that! Hope it was great!
Hang in there girl. I don't know what it is about junk food. It's great that your recommitting yourself to WW and found a new meeting. They help me so much. Good luck!
