Which came first, the chicken or the egg?
….we’ve all heard the question…many of us have our answer. (Personally, I believe that God created the chicken who then produced some Southbeach friendly eggs for us. 
) On 3FC today, there was a thread that raised an often discussed issue…..”which comes first…insight or action?” Do we need to understand why we have an issue with overeating before we can hope to be successful at winning the battle? Or, do we win the battle and then understand our whys? This question is one for which I’ve spent a lot of thought…and….my answers have evolved since the beginning of my journey.
Upon the re-start of my weight loss journey in January, I firmly believed that seeking understanding of the whys of my overeating was just a bunch of “touchy feely mumbo jumbo.” All of this yada yada and not enough action! Who cares why?…does it really matter?….just get the job done! Needless to say, this attitude didnt serve me well in the long run. Two months later….you guessed it….I was right back where I started. Granted, I was still 17 pounds lighter, but I gradually drifted off-plan….no more exercise, no more veggies…Hello, sugar! Good-bye weight loss! What happened? Why did the honeymoon end? Maybe, I should have taken just a little time to evaluate my whys? Hmmmmm.
I had a few half-hearted attempts at re-entering the battle, but they never lasted long….a day or two. It took me a while to build up my courage to make the committment again. My self esteem had taken quite a beating. Just how many times can you fail before you never get back up again? But, I am back up and I am trying again. This time, my priority is to figure out the whys. Dr. Phil says ”the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior.” I really do believe he’s right…unless I make a conscentious effort to change my behavior. I have to find out why I overeat…why I stop trying…why I’m afraid to give up my best friends, Sugar and Starch.
Recently, I have begun to find some of my answers…and, I know that I’m just beginning to dig into that mountain. So, do I need to know the whys before I enter the ring again? NO!!!!!! I believe many of my answers will come from the journey itself. I have entered the battle with what I know now and with hopes of knowing a lot more about myself at the end.
July 27th, 2007 at 6:33 pm
Great insight in your post. I think that we sometimes over think things when we just need to get down to actually taking some actions. Will we ever figure out all of the whys? I doubt it. Could some of these whys just be there because the devil is on a mission to take us out of doing what is good for us? I think so.
Good job on getting back in the battle.