[squiggly]

What is everyone's take on consciously (sp?) having a free day? I am planning on having one today. WHat do I mean? I mean not recording what I eat. Not really paying attention to my eating habits. I'm only doing this for one day. I will get back on track tomorrow. I also will not be eating everything in site. WHy am I doing this? I have not slept in 24 hours. I have no clue as to why but I haven't. I don't have the energy to exercise and I really don't want to fuss with measuring anything out. I have had two perfect days in a row. I just want to not worry about anything today. ON the upside, other than drinking to much pop, i don't think I'll be doing bad food wise because I'm not hungry.

[Rtael]

I wouldn't worry about it dear...we all need a "free" day every once in a while. I had one last week on my birthday and ate a ton of pizza...miraculously the next day my weight had barely moved at all, so it wasn't too bad. Don't stress out about it, because stress causes weight gain!

[lessofsarahtolove]

Originally Posted by squiggly

WHy am I doing this? I have not slept in 24 hours. I have no clue as to why but I haven't. I don't have the energy to exercise and I really don't want to fuss with measuring anything out. I have had two perfect days in a row. I just want to not worry about anything today.

It may already by a moot point since I'm posting this at noon, but I have to say that I do NOT think it's a good idea. Don't get me wrong; I think a planned-for free day (or, preferably, a meal) is a fine and dandy thing. But that's planned-for, as in, you've mentally prepared, you probably already know what you're going to have because you've been craving it, you've already been consistently on plan for weeks and can trust yourself to jump right back on, and you are all set up for success the following day (or meal, as the case may be.) Not that you get up in the morning and don't feel like eating responsibly that day so you call it a free day.

What I'm getting from your post is that you didn't plan for this at ALL, in fact the reason you're not going to eat on plan is that you haven't slept for 24 hours and just don't feel like being on plan. You say that you've had two perfect days in a row. Two's a great start -- but it's not enough to have built a habit and earned you a free day, in my book.

If you'd asked for advice in advance, I'd have asked you about WHY it is that you're feeling like you need a free day already, and why you're feeling so wobbly. Clearly you're feeling something, if you're not sleeping and don't want to stick to your plan! I'd love to be able to try to help you with that!

Sorry if I sound like bad cop , but you did ask! My intentions are purely to support you and help you out. I just honestly don't think it's a very good idea right now. Maybe that's just me, but I don't. (I say that with love! )

That said, it's a foregone conclusion that you're in the midst of your free day right now, so I hope you resolve whatever it is you're feeling, enjoy yourself, and then get back to perfect days tomorrow.

[suunflowrr]

I really don't think it will hurt to have one free day. In the beginning when I first started WW, my free day was Saturdays (the day I weigh in). On that day, I had whatever I wanted. I counted nothing. I eventually quit doing this because I started to plateau so I knew something had to change. Still, I'll have whatever I want for lunch on Saturdays but I now make sure I have my 5 fruits and veggies and the water. So, have your free day. You probably just need it.

[howie6267]

I would have to say I agree with Sarah. I think it's fine if you plan it and you know you can get back on plan afterwards. I know from my experence that I only do a meal now and not a day. A whole day away from my plan makes it to hard to get back on plan. Plus when I read that you have been doing great for 2 days and that is great good for you, I thought the same as Sarah. You really do need to stick to it for a good month, some may take longer and then introduce treats. Some find that they can never do treat meals and just stay on plan all the time. That will have to be decided by you. If you already treated yourself earley today I don't think it would be a bad Idea to get back on plan this afternoon. Unplaned treat days lead to unplaned weeks.

Your doing great and have lost 7 lbs keep up the good work. I know it's hard but you can do it.

[DishyFishy]

I agree with Sarah and Howie.

I'm sorry you're feeling below par, Shelley; lack of sleep is no fun. But allowing your emotions to control what you put into your body may end up being a recipe for disaster.

I won't go on because Sarah's said it all, and it may be too late anyway, but one thing I will advise:
Whatever you decide, still accurately record everything you do eat and drink. It'll take hardly any time to do this and might just stop you from going way OTT. It's also useful to look over later and analyse what you ate and why.

As Howie says, there's no need to wait until the following day to get back OP if you've already indulged yourself.

My two penn'orth, since you asked.

[Rtael]

Well I disagree with some of the people in this thread, but everybody's different I suppose. Anyway, I think binging is good every once in a while...if I've been eating low-cal for a couple of days and then I have a bad day yeah my weight goes up for the next day but then the weight seems to start coming off easier for the next couple of days...I think it gives a jump start to my metabolism. I guess it might just be wishful thinking, but I'm doing fine so far.


Edit: Perhaps binge is a bad word, because of the negative connotation attached to it, but it's really the most fitting word.

[DishyFishy]

Don't get me wrong, Rtael, I think varying intake isn't a bad thing at all. I agree that it keeps the metabolism active and guessing. The thing here though is not "planned variation", but rather an abandonment of conscious eating. I think that can easily spiral out of control. Maybe that's projection on my part because I know I find it difficult to confine that behaviour to just one day. YMMV, of course.

[squiggly]

First, I want to thank everyone for their support. Sarah, you are absolutely right. I didn't really push myself on my eating. I took the advice someone gave me and still wrote what I ate down. My biggest thing today was I drank way to much pop. I will be back OP tomorrow. My resolve is still here. I just didn't measure my portions out and get technical today. I drank the pop for the caffeine because I had to stay up to take care of my son. I do appreciate everyone's thoughts and support. I was down this morning. On the upside though, I didn't plan on getting on my elliptical today at all. I had taken yesterday off after doing it for seven days. I decided that it wasn't a good idea to take a second day off of the exercising. I did do 15 minutes on my elliptical. I was proud of myself for that. I am going to do this. I have to. I have no choice.

[howie6267]

Good for you on getting in your exercise Shelley. Sounds like your doing better and I hope you can get a good nights sleep tonight.

[lessofsarahtolove]

YAY, SHELLEY!!! I'm so happy to hear that you exercised today and that you're jumping right back on your eating plan tomorrow! That's awesome news.

You're doing such a good job building a strong foundation for a healthy life -- just keep it up, girl. None of us got to our top weights by developing healthy, self-loving, disciplined habits. I really believe that in order to make the kind of changes that will get us down to the healthy weights we want and deserve to achieve -- AND TO STAY THERE -- we have to relearn how to eat, what to do with our bodies, the standards we hold ourselves to (and what we let ourselves get away with,) and how we respond to our stressors and triggers. It's kind of like parenting yourself, in a way! And that means that sometimes you make yourself do things that you hate, or that you don't feel like doing, or that you don't even necessarily agree with all the time but still know is supposed to be good for you! (Like, for example, eating 5-6 times a day didn't make sense to me until my research and personal experience bore out that it was the best thing for me.) Do you get what I'm saying? You're in the hardest phase right now, Shelley, but I swear, with consistency it really does get easier. It's the consistency that's so critical for us in the beginning because we're building all these new habits and can't necessarily trust ourselves to make the right decisions until we've logged some time under our belts doing the things we know are right DAY IN and DAY OUT.

Think long term. Think in terms of the rest of your life. I know that I'm not going to keep the weight off when I get down to my goal weight by having binge days. I know also that I'm still going to allow myself an unhealthy food in some reasonable quantity on occasion if I really, really want it and it won't negatively affect my health or trigger me to overeat. Day-long free for alls will negatively affect my health, so they're not worth it to me. I want my heart to be healthy, I want always have great blood sugar and cholesterol and blood pressure and cardiovascular health, and everything else that goes with being "healthy." So putting crap in my body even one day a week just doesn't work for me.

Shelley, you're going to know what will work for you over the long haul -- but right now the most important thing is that you continue to do the awesome job you are in building the healthy habits that will put you on auto-pilot and ultimately make you a lot happier than any food. I'm here for you, girl.

[djs06]

Ah, this thread brings me back to why Sarah is so wonderful! it is so, so, SO great to see you back around here Sarah. I've really missed your wise chief ways! Excellent advice.

Shelley, congrats on a job well done with the exercise and the motivation to get back OP! I can tell you're really serious about this, and I'm proud of you. Let us know how tomorrow goes.

[artist]

Shelley

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experiences with us - its made me think a lot, reading this thread. I am really glad you exercised, that takes some doing when you feel totally exhausted. I really felt for you with the not sleeping and the need to take a break feeling - somehow, when you are exhausted, looking after yourself can feel like its just too much effort.

Hope you are more rested, and feeling better!

[alphabetsoup]

Shelley ~ I'm so glad to see that you bounced right back! You are doing great! Keep up the good work!

[Jillegal]

Glad to hear you haven't lost your resolve, Shelley! I understand how stress and exhaustion can lead to ambivalence. But even though you decided not to be as diligent as usual, you still managed to exercise and didn't go overboard on the eats.

I find on those days when I'm not as conscientious (or anal, as some would say) about my plan, I still keep mental note of what I'm eating and try not to stray too far. This, to my mind, is different from the "planned" off-day (such as Christmas) where I allow myself full "freedom" with the intent of getting right back to business the next day!

It looks like you've made the full realization that you desire to change your lifestyle for good and have already taken measures to ensure success. If you're not "technical" every single day, or occasionally indulge in too much pop, I doubt it'll throw you seriously off track, as long as you always keep in the back of your mind what you've set out to do. Good luck!