oh2bethintoo... Now you've got it!! If you look at this as a lifestyle change and just enjoy life WHILE losing weight instead of waiting until the weight is lost to be "you"... it makes it seem so much simpler.
I too got my hair colored and cut and I feel like a million! So many of us have previously dieted and thought "When I get to goal, I'm going to McDonalds first thing..." Now when I think of goal, I think "When I get to goal, I'm not going to change a thing. I'll just keep doing what I'm doing."
I decided this time that I was no longer going to cry over food. I was no longer going to alienate myself from my family for food. I remember many times on a diet sitting at the dinner table eating a salad while my family had spaghetti or fried chicken or one of my other faves... and I would go into my room to cry. When I was on Nutrisystem, I ate alone so I didn't have to look at what they were eating... and I would go into my room to cry.
Then it hit me... I wasn't crying because I was alone or eating differently. I was crying because I couldn't wait to get to goal so I could eat what they were eating and then... I'd just gain the weight back again!! I knew that I couldn't do what I was doing for the rest of my life. I needed something that I could live with permanently. Something that allowed for life, like parties and holidays and something that would allow for some screw ups without making me feel like a failure.
So now I eat breakfast sensibly, granola cereal, fruit and yogurt, a WW smart Ones for lunch with a salad, and afternoon snack of fruit, yogurt or both and dinner with my family. Whatever they eat, I eat. I measure my portions and make sure I log everything into sparkpeople and then have 100 calorie snack bag or a WW ice cream or something.
I don't feel deprived and it seems to be working.
I am so proud of you that you are really doing this this time! Way to go girl!!
If you need support, I'm here! My ID on sparkpeople is poppyseeds too so you can add me as a friend if you want to and we can keep in touch...