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Old 05-16-2011, 02:30 AM   #1  
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Default How to come back from a disasterous weekend!

I finished week 1 of my diet Saturday with my weigh in (lost 5 pounds!) and then it went down hill from there for the whole weekend, now its Monday morning and I feel awful about it, how do you come back from this?? I feel like I've let myself down after just 1 week!
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Old 05-16-2011, 03:00 AM   #2  
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You pick yourself up, and at the very next meal you make better choices. You return to your new & improved normal just like you had been doing the week before.

And then you plan, plan, plan for this coming weekend. Seems like after the weigh-in something happened where you went back to old times. So have your meals set out for all day Saturday. Then there's no wiggle room to slip back!
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Old 05-16-2011, 03:31 AM   #3  
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If you are climbing a mountain and stumble when you're 500 feet up from the valley floor, do you fling yourself down to the bottom again so that you can "start fresh" or do you say, "Whew, glad I caught that slide in time and didn't get badly hurt; I should be more careful the rest of the way"?

Instead of asking how to come back from it, a better question might be, how could you NOT come back from it, since every meal, every hour presents a new opportunity for healthier choices?

They don't have to be massively healthier, either; it's enough to make incrementally better choices if that's where you're comfortable right now. Every time you put a vegetable on your plate instead of another serving of something calorie-dense and nutrition-light, you are taking a step up that mountain.

The phrase "don't beat yourself up" gets used a lot here, and there's a reason for it. It isn't because it's no big deal to wander off your plan--it is a big enough deal that you really need to think hard about why it happened so you can prevent it from happening again--it's that beating yourself up isn't constructive. It pretty much never works.

Can you think of even one time in your life that you were able to punish yourself severely enough to change a behavior you wanted to change? I'm betting you can't. If shame, guilt, and regret caused weight loss, there would be far fewer overweight people.

So give up the shame. It does you no good at all. Instead, focus your energy on why you went off your plan. Punishing yourself is fruitless, but you do need to understand what happened. "Don't beat yourself up" is NOT code for "it's no big deal"; it is a big deal if you're finding your diet unsustainable after only a week.

So what happened, if you don't mind talking about it? Sometimes it helps to get some perspective from others. Do you hate your plan? Did you feel hungry? Were you stressed or sad or bored when you ate? Did you have on-plan stuff available to eat or were you in situations that dictated your food choices (restaurants, friends' houses)?
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Old 05-16-2011, 03:57 AM   #4  
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just keep doing what you did before your slip. it's not permanent -- don't let it impact you like it is!
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Old 05-16-2011, 04:10 AM   #5  
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Thanks all, Nola - Im a recovering binge eater, and i think i slipped up by messing up timings and not making time to eat on saturday lunch time, so i thought 'sod it, I'll wait till 4pm to eat when the BF finishes work', but obviously as I hadnt eaten anything else that day i was ravenous and ended up eating the contents of the chip shop! And then Sunday I just lost it because of what happened on Saturday... I probably could have pulled it back on Sunday but I just didnt!

Lovely - I will take your advice and plan my entire eating schedule in advance for the next few weekends and hopefully eventually the weekend will not be my diet enemy!
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Old 05-16-2011, 05:50 AM   #6  
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Grace - I call totally empathise with you. I also slipped up this weekend by filling up on snack food at a friend's house. I couldn't just have 1 thing and stop, I had to sample one of EVERYTHING on the table.

I often struggle with feelings of guilt and shame, but as Nola so rightly says - shame isn't going to help you move forward, positive thoughts and planning will.

It's a really good idea to plan your food, I'm trying to do that more from today and make it through the weekends too! Good luck to you.
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Old 05-16-2011, 07:03 AM   #7  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Nola Celeste View Post
If you are climbing a mountain and stumble when you're 500 feet up from the valley floor, do you fling yourself down to the bottom again so that you can "start fresh" or do you say, "Whew, glad I caught that slide in time and didn't get badly hurt; I should be more careful the rest of the way"?
The important thing to remember is, IF you keep stumbling in the same spot...it is time to take a different path. If one area in your plan seems to not be working, it is okay to go a different way.

With that said...the best way to get back on track is to DO IT! No if's ands or buts. Day 1. Do everything in your power to "git er done". I'm coming off of an hugely exciting weekend...my oldest child's graduation from HS. There were parties and food galore. I'm up on my weight quite a bit. The buck stops here. I know what I need to do to undo the damage and today is the day. I have NO choice. I will not be a weight loss failure.
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Old 05-16-2011, 07:35 AM   #8  
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It sounds like you need to take a little more time to check in with your body during the day to see if you are hungry, so you don't miss meals and then end up eating way more than is comfortable. Find a place to sit quietly, and check in. See if you are hungry, see what you are hungry for. Same with when you find yourself in the chip shop next time. Sit for a minute with no distractions, or while standing in line just take a few deep breaths and see what you body really wants (and what your mind wants, since they may be different things, and then remind yourself that you are eating food to feed your body and your hunger, not to placate your mind.)

If you haven't read Geneen Roth's Women, Food and God, you might want to check it out. It's not about God, it's about mindful eating.
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Old 05-16-2011, 07:42 AM   #9  
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Thanks everyone, you are all totally right.

Themilesawaygirl - I completely understand that feeling of not being able to stop yourself, I think planning ahead and refusing to eat anything off plan for a little while will help me with this! Weekends are the enemy at the moment!

Lori Bell- Does it not bother you that the damage is done and it might take an entire week to get back to the previous weeks weight? Thats what makes me feel awful! I sabotage a whole week of good with a couple days of complete rubbish eating!

Seagirl - you're right but sometimes I struggle to get the balance right and I think with my cravings and not with my stomach! Thanks for the reference, I will check out the book!
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Old 05-16-2011, 09:15 AM   #10  
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I like the thoughts Lori shared--especially about changing the path if need be.

Also I wanted to mention--you may want to spend some time thinking or journaling why you THINK this happened...what was it that led you to believe it was OKAY to do this--is self-sabotage in play--denial--what was it?
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Old 05-16-2011, 09:43 AM   #11  
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Lori Bell- Does it not bother you that the damage is done and it might take an entire week to get back to the previous weeks weight? Thats what makes me feel awful! I sabotage a whole week of good with a couple days of complete rubbish eating!
I'm not Lori Bell, but for me, the answer is no. What good is stressing about it if the damage is already done? Just pick yourself up and move on.

Yesterday, my husband and I went to the movies, and rather than give in to the temptations at the concession stand, we brought snacks with us. I got low fat caramel corn rice cakes. So much better than movie popcorn, right? Sure, absolutely right - but not if you eat the ENTIRE bag! I do WW and when I calculated my points afterwards, I mindlessly ate 20 points in rice cakes. SERIOUSLY!?! RICE CAKES?!?! Sheesh, for 20 points I could have had chocolate! Or a stuffed pretzel! Or McDonald's! But instead I ate RICE CAKES?!?!

I realized later I learned a valuable lesson. I MUST PORTION OUT MY FOOD IN ADVANCE. Sure, rice cakes is ultimately better for me (or less bad for me) than a Big Mac and french fries, but to mindlessly eat 20 points of anything is not a good thing. I discovered a weakness in my plan, and now I can address it. Yay me!

I got home after the movie and made a healthy dinner for me and the hubs. I got up this morning and walked the dog for a mile. I ate a healthy breakfast. I packed my lunch and my snacks so I can stay on plan for the day. And I took out a pre-prepared WW friendly casserole from the freezer so we can have a healthy dinner. No guilt for yesterday, no banging my head against the wall. Lesson has been learned and filed away for future reference. Time to move on.

But seriously - RICE CAKES?!?!
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Old 05-16-2011, 09:48 AM   #12  
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I still struggle with getting back on track if I have a few days (or week) of poor eating, over eating, not exercising. I have that all or nothing mentality!

When that happens, what I usually tell myself is "one of two things I can do, either give up and keep gaining, or get back on track and start the losing process again. " For me when I look at it as a choice that's within my control to make, its easier to get back on the horse.
For me there's a sense of being "out of control" when I fall off the wagon. This helps me realize I am in control. Sounds weird, but it works for me!
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Old 05-16-2011, 10:15 AM   #13  
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Quote:
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GraceAWalker View Post
Lori Bell- Does it not bother you that the damage is done and it might take an entire week to get back to the previous weeks weight? Thats what makes me feel awful! I sabotage a whole week of good with a couple days of complete rubbish eating!
I'm not Lori Bell, but for me, the answer is no. What good is stressing about it if the damage is already done? Just pick yourself up and move on.
I totally agree with Lisa here, you can't think of it as sabotaging a whole week of good. You need to look at the week of good and be proud of yourself for it, and then forgive yourself for slipping up and use it as motivation to do even better this week.

I totally understand that fed up feeling when you've slipped up, but if you dwell on the damage and let yourself feel awful, you're only holding yourself back from getting back on the wagon and continuing with even more enthusiasm!

Lisa - I'm not 100% how the ww points system works, but from a nutritional point of view I'd guess that low-fat caramel rice cakes are packed full of sugar to make up the flavour. I used to be really bad at snacking on way too much of a low fat snack, not realising the amount of sugar I was consuming. Try taking a few plain rice cakes with a healthy topping in a freezer bag - it'll help you control your portions. I find that things that are a bit more fiddly to eat stop me losing track of how much I'm eating too, you have to be more aware of the food you're putting in your mouth!
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Old 05-16-2011, 10:24 AM   #14  
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I did terrible damage this weekend also- I've just gotten right back on plan and am doing my best to continue on as if nothing happened- my assumption is SOME of it's water weight at least soooo hopefully in a few days I'll be fine!

No matter what don't give up and when next weekend comes around remember this feeling!
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Old 05-16-2011, 11:03 AM   #15  
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wow thankyou all for being AMAZING!
GlamourGirl - i understand that 'all or nothing' mentatlity, I seem to have that etched in my brain these days and im working on getting rid of it!
Lisa - LOL rice cakes are strangely addictive for something that seems equivilant to dust!
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