Beck Diet For Life/Solution – August 2011 – Support, Discussion, Buddy/Coach
 

Welcome to the discussion group, support group, diet coach group, diet buddy group relating to the two books by Dr. Judith S. Beck:and the first bookThe Beck Diet Solution is a psychological program, not a food plan. It provides a step-by-step program to learn specific techniques to stay on our diet, lose weight, and maintain our weight loss for life. The program is based on Dr. Beck's clinical research in Cognitive Therapy (CT).

The Complete Beck Diet for Life expands the earlier work and includes a food plan with suggested menus. From the cover:This is a place to discuss the Beck strategies and our daily efforts, to receive and provide support, and, for some of us, is where we serve as on-line diet buddy (coach) to each other.

If you’ve arrived from a search engine, you’ve landed at the site of 3 fat chicks, a remarkable place for those interested in a healthy life style, including mindful eating, exercise, and weight loss. More about the site, including how to register so that you can post can be found here.

The books are available on Amazon through the 3FC store by clicking their names above; buying through 3FC helps to cover the costs of running this site.

You can find the list of previous (or more current) monthly Beck threads here on 3 Fat Chicks via:

List of Monthly Beck Threads for Support, Discussion, Buddy/Coach

Welcome rubidoux
 

:welcome: rubidoux :welcome:

And, if you didn't get one of these when you joined 3 weeks ago, :wel3fc:

How did you hear about the books by Dr. Judith Beck?

And how did you find our Beck Forum here on 3 Fat Chicks?

Monday
 

Diet Coaches/Buddies - Food was close enough to plan, CREDIT moi. That included a repeat trip to the Thai restaurant that serves almost as fast as McDonalds. I read a book about carpentry details as I ate curried beef with mango over brown rice. Life is good.

Exercise was painting and other chores. Ouch for getting so involved with my project that I've been skipping gym. My August challenge is to get back to three gym trips per week, NO CHOICE.


onebyone - Ouch for malware with major Kudos for knowing that running its "clean up software" can make it worse. Good luck with sales today.

Debbie (Lexxiss) - Ouch for the reality of family dynamics. Thanks for the image of running to the diving board "to take a big dive into the realm of unplanned and purposely uncontrolled eating" - I'll remember that. Kudos for getting salsa from the Mexican restaurant.

maryann - Yay for progress on your "pantry and freezer challenge." [Re: "You need to apply to Goddard." Why yes, yes I do. Hoping they teach English as a First Language, particularly overcoming creative punctuation - including hyphens just stuck into otherwise sane sentences. Nor sentences beginning with a word that presumes something that isn't there. And fragments; even if split by semi-colons trying to make them look like sentences.]

Alana in Canada - Kudos for the walk, but gotta LOL at "we were brisk so we could outpace the skeeters."

Woodland – Interesting notion to engage the creative half of our brain. I like the idea of seeing pictures to remind us. I'll work on ideas for that.

rubidoux - Sewing must be about the greatest skill there is to help with weight loss. So many oversized clothes could be worn a bit longer with dignity with a nip or tuck. Kudos for the courage to envision making yourself another whole wardrobe. Glad you've joined us.

Readers -

tip toe-ing into One-derland!
 

Morning Coaches, a very busy Monday here – things are crazy at work so I don’t really have time to catch up with personals; I’ll try to do that later…

Credits: weighed in: -2.2lbs this week! May be in part due to the new scales but I’ll take it :D I’ll be sticking with these scales from now on anyway. Up early for a workout, planned meals for today, read ARC. A busy weekend also but plenty of good whole foods and exercise (and a fair amount of house cleaning :lol3:)

I’ve hit my second 5lb target – I just need to find another non-food treat… shouldn’t be too difficult :lol: also just tiptoed my way into onederland… :cb:

Back again, this it's personal! Ha Ha!
 

BBE – yes for fast food that doesn’t involve all the usual nasties :) ‘life is good’ amen to that! Kudos for leaving some food on your plate – I’m eating out tomorrow night so I will get to test this skill again – you are right, it is not an easy one.

Woodland – ha ha, I was thinking just today about trying on some of my old clothes…

Debbie – good work on staring down the spoon! Also, sane eating in the face of emotional distress…

Onebyone – any luck selling any paintings? GJ on making new connections. Ouch for the computer thing…

Alana – ouch for going slightly off-plan, yea for the return of the children. Perhaps you just need to schedule some ‘me’ time even if they are there? You’re worth it (to quote a famous cosmetics ad!) ;)

Pam – I think it’s totally what works for you – I couldn’t survive on one meal and one snack, I’m more of a little and often person… I’m sorry to hear you do not like the water so much; I absolutely love it, I cannot imagine not being near it. Did you say you had to be revived? That is very scary and big credit for even thinking about swimming lessons.

Maryann – go on, get in the water! You’ll be so chuffed when you realise you can still do it :) even if it’s just for a little splash around, I’m not saying jump into the 10 foot waves or anything! To be honest, I am a rubbish body surfer, I just end up floundering around in the shore break flapping my arms around! :lol3:

I didn’t have a plan yesterday. Food wasn’t terrible, but wasn’t great. DH was around, so I had some reinforcements. I took the opportunity to clean my house—counting that as exercise for the day. So I’m feeling better about my living environment.

Nights with lots of screaming was starting to become a trend. DH and I brainstormed and came up with an idea. It worked beautifully last night—there was no wailing from anyone in the house. I’m crossing my fingers that we’ve come up with a solution.

CREDIT for weighing myself on the first of the month even though I knew it meant moving the ticker up. OH WELL on that and on missing my exercise goal for July. It's a new day and a new month and I have renewed commitment and some new ideas.

I realized that I'm not eating enough veggies. Which feels like a rookie mistake. But I know how it happened. This is our 4th year of getting a CSA box as well as having a small garden. The first two years, we had a hard time getting through all those veggies -- it seemed like an overwhelming amount. So, I still have it in my head that I don't need to buy veggies during the peak gardening months. But I eat a lot more veggies, now, and the fact is, I need to supplement if we're going to eat as many veggies as I need to keep my weight where I want. Time to start shopping at the Farmers Markets!

WI: +0.45 kgs, Exercise: +0 1100/1300 minutes and 30/33 miles on treadmill for July, Food: 60%op, Read my Advantages and Responses: yes

Shepherdess: yay for applying the experimental approach to life to baby-rearing -- here's hoping to more peaceful nights!

SuperChick: *whispering* welcome to Onederland!

BillBlueEyes: cool about fast Thai food. Good for you for your gym commitment this week.

Welcome, rubidoux!

woodland: a visual thing that has really helped for me is to pay attention to the colors of vegetables and fruits. I sometimes set goals like "eat 5 different colors of vegetables and fruits a day" and when that gets easy I change it to "eat 5 different colors of vegetables and fruits before supper." I call this game "Eat the Rainbow."

maryann: zucchini and ziti sounds wonderful!

Lexxiss: I know exactly this experience: "then gave a big stare at the spatula after spooning my moms BD cake into the pan. After a long gaze...it went in the sink with the pan. *credit*" Yay for you!

Alana: good job and good luck working out what to do on "no cooking" night. We do carryouts from Whole Foods. I've also been working on easier cooking ideas so I don't get so fed up sometimes.

onebyone: hope your painting went well!

Coaches,
It is a celebration today. I have been following the Beck Program for exactly 1 year today. Happy Birthday to me!!! I can't believe the change in my life in one year. First and foremost - The peace around food compared with a life of struggle. Although I still must remain diligent everyday, I KNOW I am on a winning team with a plan that works. Before Beck, I could literally not stay on a diet ONE DAY. Not ONE DAY. With age 50 looming before me in the next few years and my weight creeping up every year, I was paralyzed with fear that I would be back over 200 hundred pounds . I felt like I was drowning with my hands tied behind my back. Although I am still not at goal, I have so many skills that are now for me automatic. Writing down food everyday. How did that happen? I could never do that before. Posting everyday with coaches, giving myself credit, eating much more protein that carbs and five servings of veggies a day. It is all a miracle for this binger/gutter food eater. And even beyond the peace I have had, I can't believe the weightloss and a brand new wardrobe.
Thank you to everyone. You are a big part of my success.
For Today: I made my monthly average of 30 mins a day exercise - two months straight now. I have packed all my food since DS is at strings/art camp and we have to commute an hour away. I will use time to finish more writing homework. It feels good to have already made everything I am going to eat today. I have decided to yet again go through pink book from day one which means I am not going to weigh myself everyday. I am starting to get mired down in daily fluctuations. I will weigh in next Monday.

BBE: There is no proper grammar in highbrow Lit anymore. You will fit right in. Just call it stream of consciousness.
Superchick: Congrats on breaking the 200 pound barrier. That is a BIG deal.
Shepardess: Hang in there. Be gentle with yourself. There is no more stressfull event than a crying baby.
gardenerjoy: I think you and I are twins. I am added four pounds to ticker and I am not eating enough veggies. It does just creep up on you. I am limiting grains to one meal a day for this week like in the old days. Hopefully I will see an improvement. Maintenance is tough!!!

[B]What a wonderful welcome, BBE! Thank you! :D I am from the Boston area (mostly Cambridge/Somerville) and dh, kids, and I just got back from visiting family there a little over a week ago. The day we left the bank thermometers were saying 106, though I guess it wasn't actually quite that high. I gained 6.8 pounds while were there. There's no good chinese food in San Diego, and in fact I've lived in quite a few different places in the US since leaving Boston, and nowhere has chinese as good as what you find there.

SuperChick, Congrats on that second five pounds. I'm sure it won't be difficult to find a non-food treat. My first pat-on-the-back gift to myself was a pair of shoes. Now I'm working on trying to give myself fewer treats, since I am always feeling like I deserve them. :dizzy:

Shepherdess, How old are the wailers in your house? I have had very few sleepless nights with my kiddos -- they only seem to want to torment me during my waking hours. :cool: But I so feel for anyone who sleep is interrupted! :hug:

Gardenerjoy, I bet your ticker will go right back down. I'm impressed that you move your ticker once a month. I'm a little obsessed, I'm afraid. And I never move it up! Maybe that is just too much honesty for me. :o Right now I think my ticker and my scale are on the same page.

Maryann, Wow! A year! As I'm getting started is nice to read the thoughts of someone looking back that way. I would be so happy to be saying the same in a year. Congratulations! :carrot:

I found you guys and first learned of the BDS when I was aimlessly wandering around the 3fatchicks forum the other day. I was just wondering what Beck was, and then it turned out that it might be just what I needed at this point in my journey as my initial enthusiasm might not be enough to get me over the hump of having done this for a while and having had to lose this same few pounds 3 or 4 times now. I ordered the book from amazon right away and I'm anxiously waiting for it. :)

I have gotten through days one and two so far. When I first saw the idea of the ARC, I wasn't sure, but now that I've written mine I think it will be a pretty powerful tool. I do feel, though, like it's kinda personal and I don't exactly want to share it with anyone I know IRL, even hubby. So, I wish I could write it in code or something, to be whipped out when I need it -- like sitting across from one of my skinny friends deciding what to order. I have made a copy to keep in my diabetes kit (in theory, I should always have it with me and I do go into it multiple times a day, so it will serve as my reminder) so if I do need it while I'm out, it's there.

Today is day 3 and, I think, the day when I'm going to have to SIT DOWN TO EAT. I think I can handle that, but not so sure if I'm gonna love not reading or being online. I only eat once a day and I think of it as the one time that's MINE (though I did change a poopy diaper in the middle of dinner last night, gah!). I do think I'll at least give it a shot, though. Your quote today, BBE, is timely (since I don't have the book yet). I'll really be thinking tonight about whether it feels different to sit and pay attention to my food/eating.

the day after and the day before
 

Hi Coaches

It's 5:09pm and I am still in my nightie. Man this weekend wore me right out.

I did *credit* weigh in to see +1.1 = 283.3lbs. I looked at my weight graph and for the last two weeks of daily weigh-ins I have not been below 280. Not once. The last time I was below was 15 days ago. I have not managed to get below 278 either in the two months that I have spent focused on weightloss once more. I don't know what to do. Today I feel baffled. And I feel I am losing hope or the willingness to keep trying to figure this out. But I am also tired which makes me not think straight so tomorrow I'll be better with all this.

The Jazz Fest was a bust sales-wise with the exception of the two paintings I made on-site. In the last hour of the silent auction I had three bids on each so they came in at $5 above the minimum bid and I was grateful for it. I covered my costs plus was $25 to the good. A big success given the show I was in. What was great though were the connections I made. I think I have several new avenues open to me now including a place to pursure some poetry. I have thought of writing again. I used to write decades ago but visual art usurped it. So I just found out about a poetry group that meets to read their work every second Tuesday. It's organized by the neighbour I had at the show -- who seems to have her finger in every civic pie around there.

And this was my weekend and now I am resting as I head off to Ottawa tomorrow. I am there from Tuesday to Sunday. That's a long time. I'm planning to take some water aerobic classes at the Y, or if they don't have drop-in classes I'll go swimming there or at my alma mater which has a fantastic pool. This is what I want to do for myself while I am away.

So that's how things are. I'm NOT HAPPY with my weight at all. Meeting boatloads of people in the heat and humidity weighing 280+lbs was not fun for me. I had to fight feeling less-than every hour. It's great I believe in my artwork so much as I can sort of hide behind it. I wish I didn't feel I had to always prove I am ok inspite of my weight. There were several conversations around me about different weight reduction plans too. In one ear and out the other mostly but I was sensitive to the topic. Everyone, of course, looked so much healthier, prettier, stylish to me than I felt. BUT I know I should "never compare my insides to someone else's outsides". You can be thin and ill.

And the summer goes on.

rubidoux Welcome to the group. The Beck stuff sticks. I look forward to reading your posts as you go through the book.


Happy August Becksters :)

Hi coaches - it has been a yo-yo few weeks. First came the meditation retreat which was lovely, but by the end I was exhausted and not eating well. Then a week to myself, which was up and down like a roller coaster, and a week with the in-laws, which was great for about 5 days before I crashed and burned.

I came out of all this with the realization that I need to change my way of eating. I have tried the Eat to Live vegan approach before and I know I feel great when I eat that way, so I am trying once again. I will still be applying Beck principles to this way of eating - I know they work. For example, right now I'm a bit hungry, but I want to wait an hour to eat with my family. Hunger is not an emergency!!

Looking forward to a great August with all of you.
cheers
Erika

:welcome2: rubidoux to the 3FC Beck Diet Discussion Group!!

A Major :woohoo: and :congrat: to you, Superchick, in breaking the 200 lb line and dipping down into Onederland!! :carrot: :broc: :cb:

Gardenerjoy We love you here!! in case you didn't know. Your honesty is to be commended and applauded :cp: We have your back, sweetie! :grouphug:

Another milestone, Maryann, :congrat: on your 1 year anniversary following the Beck priniciples!! Yes, life does change when we change. So simple and yet so sublime.

Lexxiss the best way that I have learned to handle family is to accept them for who they are. For example, my sister, Paula, made a point of telling me she was going to send me my b-day card this year. I called on Friday to ask her if she got my address right since I hadn't seen it. She said, "Oh, you know me, I haven't sent it yet." (weak laugh on other end of phone) She did this the past two years and then reminded me that she hadn't sent it. Multiple times. I say this is P-A behavior. (passive aggressive). Why, I don't know! but to all of this I just said "Oh well".

BBE :congrat: on knowing and following through on "less is more".

onebyone Stop for a moment and think about in the past when you might have totally thrown in the towel and given up then binged for a week or so feeling even worse than you imagine you do now. You ARE moving forward with all of this. Yes, sleep deprivation sucks and it does mess with your ability to use cognitive skills effectively. You got through this past weekend. That is the main thing. Now, focus on that pool swimming. You deserve it!:hug:

eusebius Tomorrow is the Feast Day of St. Eusebius. He lived during the 4th century and brought monastic life to that corner of the Roman Empire. He was fine until he was driven out of town for his religious beliefs. Guess, the worm turned. OY! Anyway, I just came off of a three day weekend of "fun size" Snicker candy bars eaten until I almost puked. I craved chocolate and instead of saying "No Way" I said "Way". TG it gives me diarhea so I am up only a lb. Go figure???

Credit for myself:
*Did my strength weight exercises. Increased the reps (w heavier free weights) as this felt comfortable to do.
*Harvested my sweet potatoes this a.m. Cleaned out the garden in preparation for new organic soil and compost.(worked up a sweat--today was the only day where it was only 83 so it was a good day to pick to do this) Will begin seedlings in the next few days. Daniel, the Master Gardner, was present watering everything and we both came to the conclusion that this heatwave is here to stay for another month or two so why not grow more tomatoes? My sentiments exactly! Ignore the calendar date and go with the heat. It's suppose to be in the mid-90s here all this week. So, I might be able to say I have fresh from the garden ripe tomatoes in October. Who knew?
*Still in that "rewarding myself with food" mode after "accomplishing something. Poop! I suggested that we go to Wendy's afterwards. However, I realized once I sat down and began eating my grilled chicken sandwich with lettuce and tomato that I wasn't really very hungry in spite of smaller breakfast. I finished the sandwich(it would have been better if I would have brought the rest home with me) but it is now 7 hours later and dinner will be much smaller. I am going to try one of your suggestions (Alana?) and I added some pineapple, peach chipolte salsa to the couscous. Here's my opportunity to eat only until I am full which I think will be quicker than I can imagine. What makes me feel nervous is having yet another container of leftovers in the fridge. I am very adamant about not too many accumulating in there. This means I will be having couscous for breakfast tomorrow, which I am going to mix eggs in with. I have a TON of it! What was I thinking???:?:

Morning coaches, a bit early for me here – got up early to go surfing before work, but it was flat! So I am now at work 2 hours early! Oops. Oh well, I’ll just try to leave early. Hopefully I can use this quiet time before everyone arrives to be productive :lol:

Mainly OP yesterday, although I did have a bit of a slip up last night, ate a couple of extra squares of chocolate above my plan and I know it was because I was in a weird mood – even when I was eating it I couldn’t really taste it as much as usual, it was more trying to soothe myself I think… which I know is ridiculous and food cannot provide that for me, but it’s a big step for me to be able to recognise this – hopefully I’ll be able to remember this feeling next time! I’m not dwelling on it though, it wasn’t a major off-plan indulgence and I need to keep going. So, onwards and upwards, today is a new day and all. With my morning exercise plan scuppered (surfing) I still have my ride home but that’s only half an hour, so I might try to pop to the gym if I can finish early. Food is all planned for the day; although me and boyf are off out for a romantic meal tonight… not sure how it will go though as boyf got zero sleep last night so he wasn’t in the best mood this morning… I can only imagine how that will be exacerbated by 7 o’ clock tonight! I am going to work hard at the restaurant tonight not to 1. Overeat or 2. Drink too much. One glass of wine max.

BBE – credit for your renewed commitment to the gym. Is it too hot where you are to exercise outside? I read something that apparently you burn more calories exercising outside (I don’t know if this is the boredom factor or the fact you’re working out on uneven surfaces). P.S. are you a fluent Welsh speaker or did google lend you a hand? ;)

Shepherdess – intrigued by your idea – don’t keep us in suspense!

Gardenerjoy - *whispering back* thanks a lot – I hope I’m going to be a permanent fixture here…

Maryann – Happy Beckday! Massive credit for the commitment to Beck of a whole year – I would love to hear more of how it’s changed your life / way of eating. Well done!

Rubidoux – I’m thinking of getting myself a food processor – it’s a bit indulgent for a 5lb treat but I really want one to make nut butters, houmous and veggie burgers with… it would definitely be well used! I found that I always sit down to eat main meals, but you’ll be so surprised how many times you accept a piece of food from someone else and eat it standing up, or eat in the car (technically sitting down but I don’t think it counts), or pass the fridge, or when you’re cooking dinner… it’s tougher than it sounds! Good luck :)

Onebyone – I’m sorry to hear you’re feeling ‘less than’. Remember to stay strong – we’re all here for you :hug: 1. If all the ‘thin, stylish’ people had to talk about was diets then that’s not so interesting, and 2. They may have been looking at you and thinking ‘wow, what a talented artist, I wish I could paint like her’ – I am inspired everyday by your creativity.

Erika – welcome back :wave:

Pam – thanks a lot :D – you have sweet potatoes growing? Ace! Love them. Not a breakfast suggestion but have you thought of having couscous stuffed peppers? Cut a pepper in half, grill the outside till the skin is blistered then fill with couscous (or a mix of couscous and veg) if you’re allowed a little cheese you could sprinkle this on top, then grill… yummy with salad and dead easy. Probably works with aubergine / courgette too if you scrape the flesh out… or with a roast sweet potato! Mix the flesh and the couscous together! Mmm, I think I’d better stop now, it’s only 8 in the morning here and I’m dreaming of couscous and SP! Ha ha, I get so excited about cooking sometimes :lol:

Everyone seems so positive at the moment, i'm loving it! it's definitely helping me stay on the right track :goodvibes

Tuesday
 

Diet Coaches/Buddies - Tension was high on our house make over as problems were created and had to be solved. Good news is that all problems have acceptable solutions - given that I've accepted that a tad of flexibility is required. I did, however, attempt to use my DW's trail mix to ease the tension. Ouch. And, to my great surprise, it didn't. All it did was make me want to have more trail mix. Otherwise on plan, CREDIT moi.

Exercise was running about solving problems - always running ahead of the sheriff, as it were. Last minute wiring changes had to be completed before the plasterer covered it all over. I got done by 9 pm last night and finally got my shower for the day. CREDIT moi for staying in the game.


onebyone - Congrats for selling your two wet paint paintings, with Kudos for carrying through with your weekend in the hot weather. Ouch that it's temporarily knocked the wind from your sails. You have a great track record for getting back into your grove again.

Joy (gardenerjoy) – Super Congrats for eating more veggies than your CSA and urban garden supply. At the farmers market, you might ask for "aubergine and courgette" as well to make the SuperChick recipes. That'll keep them on their toes.

Shepardess - Re: "no wailing from anyone in the house." OK. Got that. Just curious about how many wailers were silenced.

Erika (eusebius) - Yay for the simple ideas that work, "Hunger is not an emergency!!" Kudos for tending to your need to adjust your food plan.

maryann - Happy First Year Beck Plan Anniversary! May they continue. And Kudos for "so many skills that are now for me automatic."

pamatga - Yay for a sweet potato harvest - you can put them in your cold cellar and have them all winter. Kudos for being aware of your Wendy's experience.

SuperChick - Congrats on that kilo lost - a solid drop into onderland. May you stay there forever. Hope the romantic dinner happens - or gets rescheduled until everyone has enough sleep to enjoy it. [Alas, google did the Welch translation. I have, however, been to Wales - what a beautiful and gracious place.]

rubidoux - Kudos for just charging forth. Yep, the ARC thing sounded like a bit much to me, also. Until I tried it. It took me months to continue to modify mine until they were pointed and meaningful to me. And thus highly personal. When I share them here in the Beck Forum, I redact the personal parts.

Readers -

ha ha i guess that should be eggplant and zucchini! :lol:

pre-trip bloat or something
 

Hi Coaches

Theoretically, I was supposed to be packed and ready to go so I could start the drive to Ottawa right after I dropped dh off at work.
Well, we still haven't unpacked the car from this weekend's shows.
I'm about to go do that after this check in with you guys.

I *expected* a loss on the scale this morning but saw a rise of 0.4lbs = 283.7 now. Oh boy. NOT WHAT I WANT!!!:mad:

I ate late and ate salty and I am thirsty even now so the great spongey body of mine is hanging onto its water again. I'll have to focus on getting the water in me in order to get it out of me once more. Same old, same old.

I *wish* I was thinner going back for the show but everyone knows what I look like so whatever. This weightloss business will be put on hold and I am striving to come back the same weight as today and not more! My plan to make this happen is to get to the swimming pools daily and to write down my food. I will go back to low carb eating as since I reintroduced the carbs the weight has climbed steadily upward.
Focus on salads when I can. Just try and eat smarter than I have been which will be tough in the face of a stressful week.

I will also check in with my coaches when I can which I hope is daily.

Better go. Have a great Tuesday...

Hi Coaches!

Despite an incredibly long and busy day I managed to stay as close to the principles of my food plan as possible. I blended a green smoothie as soon as we arrived at our East house before I hit the road for the airport. Lunch was at a teahouse in Boulder...I ordered sensibly and left food on my plate. Dinner was at home, OP, until I sneaked an extra piece of coffee cake after dinner. I resisted all snacks at Whole Foods and skipped the afternoon latte, choosing a peach instead.

I've hit the deck running today. I pitched paperwork in a drawer last eve as folks were heading over for dinner. Now it's time to reorganize and ease my frustration which always helps me stay sane with food.

Hello all! I am new to this whole forum/posting thing, but found you all and the Beck Diet Solution a couple weeks ago while rummaging through the 3fatchicks site. Over the years I have followed WW, and when I was actualkly following it, it worked. So I would lose the same 20 pounds, get bored/sidetracked, gain it back, and eventually start over.

All of which is why your discussions here about the Beck plan intrigued me. I bought the pink book (thank you all for your feedback on which book to look into!) and have been reading it for the last nine days. I know the book recommends to read/follow the first couple of weeks before you begin your selected diet, but I just couldn't wait. The book - and all of your good discussions here - has me excited to get back on track! So yesterday I went back to healthy eating.......credit me, right? :)

I am looking forward to continuing to read all of your stories/successes/hints! And I will do my best to chime in as well! :D

Maryann - Congratulations on your one year anniversary! Your post reminded me of why I want to try this - and why it is so important!

:welcome2: missyj -wonderful to see you joined our group. Look forward to having you with us. :grouphug:
lexxiss I just looked down at your ticker! Wow! Lady Lexxiss, you have lost quite a bit of weight. Have you used the Beck skills during all of your downward journey? GJ in managing your meals and schedule.
onebyone do you have access to either of the Beck books? I think now would be a good time to review the sections on Sabotaging Thoughts. Here's the scoop on dieting-everyone and I do mean everyone says they are on a diet. Grandmas,kids, young men, girls, I even had a vet tell me once to put one of my cats on a diet! His name was PeeWee but he was anything but.... So, settle your mind on that one. As for what people think? Well, you can't please everyone all of the time so begin by pleasing yourself first. People secretly admire people who have confidence (real or not). Start by believing in yourself. You can do this, GF! You can! We have your back! :grouphug:
BBE Trail mix is your siren. Maybe, the electricians can hide it before the plasterer comes. So you are having the walls plastered??? Wow! We had a hard time finding one in the Twin City area and he was near 90. It is a lost art although Northern European countries still have many.
rubidoux I find that the ARC cards are about talking back to that sassy voice we all have when it comes to wanting what we can't have and thinking we really know what is in our best interest when most of the time we don't until we know what really is in our best interest. GJ on following through with that. I feel it is the core of the Beck skill set.

Credit:

*over one full week of 8-9 hours of sleep during the night. I am up and down visiting the bathroom but, at least, now I have a fascinating night light in there to view. It has 3-D tropical fish and the LED light changes from blue-green-purple-red-white, etc. Even DH said he stopped to watch it change colors before going to bed. $8 of pure fun!:D (P.S. my bathroom is so beautiful I wish I could live in--it is done in a beach theme and the colors are so soft and soothing--I went for the spa feel and GOT IT!)
*restarting my aerobic part of this journey again. I am crossing my fingers that all the self-knee physical therapy will prove to me "I can do this".
*asked DH to forego his monthly chapter meeting with the PTG and go to a live chamber music performance tonight. "Feeding my soul and not my stomach." That's the way you do it, ah ha, ah ha.:carrot:

Had a plan and stuck to it. It was a good reminder that things are simpler when I have a good plan. I got my weights workout in while DD was napping yesterday and got my run in this AM while DH watched her. We had another good night last night. (BBE, if baby is wailing mom and dad are too.) Crossing my fingers that I’ve stumbled on the answer. I can handle middle of the night feedings if I haven’t endured hours of inconsolable baby crying.

For those who are curious, I’ve started feeding her and putting her to bed at 6 or 6:30 PM, before she starts getting fussy. All feedings and changings after that are done quietly with low lights. It’s probably obvious to veteran parents, but it was a new idea for us. During the day she’s able to doze when she needs to in the middle of the action, but in the evenings it’s too much stimulation. She was getting too worked up to get to sleep and our attempts to soothe her only made things worse. These last two nights she’s gone right to sleep early in the evening and she goes right back to sleep after she wakes up to be fed and changed. There has been almost no crying. I hope this is the solution!

Gardenerjoy, great job weighing in and turning over a new leaf for August. Yay for finding the solution to the new diet problems and it’s great that the new normal is a lot more fruits and veggies!

Maryann, happy Beck birthday! It’s great to take stock and see how far you’ve come. Congrats on all the healthy habits that you’ve acquired over the last year. Great job celebrating by making a food plan and recommitting to work through Beck.

Welcome Rubidoux! I know all about waning commitment to a new diet and constantly battling those same lbs. Kudos for giving Beck a shot. She has some great solutions that helps me stick with a healthy lifestyle over the long haul. My DD is a month old. I came to this without much baby experience and the books could only prepare me so far. It’s a learning process.

Onebyone, ouch for being worn out from a show that was a bust, but it’s great that you got some good contacts out of it. Great job planning for exercise on your trip—wishing you a good one! Hugs while dealing with a disappointing weigh-in and frustration over your weight in general. Good job identifying carbs as the culprit.

Eusebius, ouch for the yo-yos and roller coasters. It sounds like you’ve had a lot going on. Great job getting back in there and making a plan. Yay for the tried-and-true “Hunger is not an emergency!”

Pamatga, congrats on moving your workout to the next level. It’s such a great reward to see that progress. Yay for lots of good sleep! Thanks for “Feeding my soul and not my stomach.” I love the sentiment.

SuperChick, ouch for missing that AM surf, but great job being flexible enough to figure out a different workout, even if it doesn’t sound like as much fun. Yay for realizing that chocolate doesn’t soothe troubling emotions. It’s so hard to remember. Hope your romantic dinner went well and your BF was in a good mood.

BillBE, ouch for house-renovation tension. Great job keeping the food damage to a minimum and for finding solutions to the problems.

Lexiss, great job sticking so closely to your food plan on such a busy day. Yay for reorganizing so you can stay sane with food!

Welcome MissyJ! I think you hit the nail on the head when you noted that WW works great; it’s sticking with it that’s the problem. I found Beck so helpful with the “sticking with it” part. I knew what I should be doing; I just wasn’t doing it. I hope Beck is the answer for you as well.

Tuesday am
 

Hello fellow Beckites/coaches

I am in an odd place. The excitement of eating fabulous food is wearing off and I am getting bored. I've settled into a rut with my choices. I've planned all of my dinners for the month (I've done this for ages, so it's no big deal--the local Safeway offers 10% off the entire grocery bill the first Tuesday of the month. I like to get all the meat and pantry items we need for the month. I usually spend about $350 (after the specials. Don't judge. Food is very expensive, here.) I am very bored with eating, roughly, the same 30 to 35 dinners over and over again.

My daughter is home...and that's been something of an adjustment, too. My son comes home later today.

I haven't done any excercise for a few days--that is probably contributing to my feeling out of sorts. Could be the loss of my "alone" time. Reading Adler is stirring up thoughts of going to school--or at least reading a few books I haven't got to yet, like Thomas S. Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolution. I'm curious about whether an argument can be made that this whole weight loss (and re-gain) conundrum is enough of a challenge to our current scientific paradigms to cause yet another revolution. It's all a whole lot more slippery than quarks. But when on Earth will I find the time?

OnebyOne--please do not give up. I don't think making decisions when you are discouraged and tired is good idea! (You may remind me of that when I get like that, too, OK?!) You want to stay the same weight this week. That may or may not work out--but can you focus on actions you will take? Like drink 64 ounces of water a day, eat slowly and mindfully, and choose healthy foods the best you can. All those things are within your control--much more than that pesky scale. Hooray for the pool!

I'll do my best to do the rest of the personals later today.
Have a great day everyone.

Welcome MissyJ and Rubidoux: This program works in conjunction with any diet. I have been a war weary veteran of Weight Watchers for years but truth be told I have a history of fighting and cheating on any program I haver ever been on. My favorite example is being alotted 23 points a day for WW and using 20 points for Laughing Cow Ice cream sandwiches (for several days in a row.) That is the thing about addiction- it is insane behavior - no peace. It is playing against the house - you might win a few hands in Vegas but in the end THE HOUSE ALWAYS WINS!. With Beck, you leave the casino and STOP PLAYING. Life away from the game is sometimes painful, sometimes frustrating, sometimes filled with grief BUT YOU CAN PROGRESS and find success. (I am working on an MFA in Creative Writing so I am pretty heavy into analogies currently.)
Anyway for newbies who don't know my story. I was over 200 pounds twenty years ago and through a discovery of a love for exercise went down to around 175 but couldn't budge below it until I looked at my relationship with the food.
Today: Last two days I have weighed and measured just for kicks ( I am on the Zone Diet) and because I have to pack all my food for the day in a cooler because we are at Strings Camp. I can't say it enough, "I am constantly astounded what constitutes a serving. I think I will keep weighing and measuring all week just for practice. OP Yesterday. I did weigh myself (-.8) when I told myself to wait but it has become such a habit it was difficult to not. I think I'll let it go and see what happens tomorrow. Food was also extra veggies (sautee'd zuke, peas, fruit) because I had been slipping in that area. I also had my old evening snack of a Rees' cup and cottage cheese. That was my snack for all the months I lost weight so I an re-initiating it.

Remember a couple of weeks ago I said that I had a sabotaging thought associated with our saltiest meal of the week (a greens dish that I'm not willing to give up because it's so healthy otherwise)? The sabotaging thought was: the scale will go up tomorrow, so I might as well eat what ever I want. After some thought, I discovered that the response that gave me the most pleasure was "What if I'm wrong?"

Turns out, I am! We had the greens dish last night and I had an ever so small down tic on the scale this morning. I credit sticking to my plan at the 90% level and my 50 minutes of exercise. So happy that works!

WI: -0.1kgs, Exercise: +50 50/1300 minutes and 3/33 miles on treadmill for August, Food: 90%op, Read my Advantages and Responses: yes

maryann: I also find it useful to measure everything for awhile to recalibrate my eyeballs for my normal eyeballing of serving sizes. They creep up over time! Yay for extra veggies!

Alana: can you augment your regular menu with seasonal veggies and fruits? That's been a continuing pleasure for me on this journey.

Shepherdess: glad to hear that the great baby sleep experiment worked for a second night

pamatga: hope the chamber music performance is wonderful!

Welcome, missyj!

Lexxiss: yay for staying close to principles!

onebyone: have a great trip and enjoy the pool!

BillBlueEyes: yay for acceptable solutions!

SuperChick: good job recognizing the desire for soothing and that food isn't doing it.

eusebius: glad to see you back with a new plan!

rubidoux: I'm sure you'll find some way to deal with your ARCs. It doesn't have to be physical cards. Some people put them in their smart phones so it will look like they are reading email!

Managed to make it through a drama filled vacation at the lake with my family with only a slight amount of off plan eating. Although my plan right now is to just eat when hungry only and no sugar. I am at the "start your diet" chapter now.
Becky

Hi Coaches/Buddies!

So far so good. The new plan is working splendidly and I am starting to see lower numbers ... woot! It is nice to be home with my family, my cat and my piano :) My stomach is starting to grumble and I am looking forward to a very healthy dinner packed with veggies.

pamatga - happy feast day to me, LOL. I'm hoping no one is going to drive me out of town anytime soon. You are doing awesome with the strength training and gardening sounds like a great workout also! Good to see you are getting back into the aerobic side of things.

SuperChick - congrats on reaching onederland!! Good job not dwelling on minor slip ups and keeping on track. You are definitely finding what works for you!

BillBE - ouch for high reno-related tension but kudos for keeping on track!!

onebyone - (((((hugs))))) Sounds like you have a good plan for the trip. The swimming pools will feel really good in this weather!

Debbie (Lexxiss) - terrific work staying OP while traveling!

missyj - Welcome!! This is a great group. Indeed, big credit for recommitting to your healthy plan!

Shepherdess - Indeed, planning is everything and big kudos to you for using your nap and DH time productively! Sounds like you are figuring out the sleep thing. I hope it's easier for you than it was for me, LOL.

Alana - I can relate big time to the boredom issue and also the adjustment to not having a lot of alone time. LOL that weight loss is more slippery than quarks!!

maryann - wise words about addiction and how Beck helps. You are a shining example of success on this plan!

gardenerjoy - credit for sticking to your guns and your exercise plan!

Becky (anotherchick) - Nice job surviving the drama-filled vacation - I can certainly relate to that scenario!!


Erika



Read ARC: yes
Sat down to eat: yes
Gave myself credit: yes
Walking: will do a bit this evening
Qi Gong: yes (short session)

Hello all! Well, I am very happy with the Beck Diet so far! Yesterday I completed day 6 ( I think that was the day) where I skip lunch and see how my body feels. Well, I ended up not eating for 12 hours. I couldn't believe this for many reasons:
1. It was while I had a 12 hr flight and my flights have been my biggest struggle thus far
2. I really didn't think I was going to last, I think I've only gone 5 or 6 hours without eating before
3. I wasn't STARVING after the 12 hours. Mostly I had a bit of a headache and was really tired.
Well, I'm so so glad I did this exercise. I learned that my food/craving/hunger doesn't control me. I also learned to start realizing when I am truly hungry and that I don't want to eat if I am not truly hungry. I'm so glad I did this exercise, and I think I may try doing it every once and a while if I feel like my food is controlling me. I realize now that I'm in control!!
Thanks for the support!!
Oriana

Hello I'm New!
 

This is day 2 of the Beck diet and I just joined this blog.

Hello!

I'm curious what diet plans people are doing on this?

AND....i'm excited to have a team to do this with!

Onebyone, That sounds incredibly frustrating! :hug: I used to believe that I *could*not*lose*weight*, like it wasn't possible for my body to do it. My endocrinologist even backed me up on that, and said he had never seen a type I lose weight. I had tried *everything*, or at least everything that was recommended. And then, not in the interest of weight loss at all, but for my blood sugar, I decided to try a few days of zero carb. And omg!!! I just started losing. And so here I am four months later and almost 35 pounds down. And my life is so, so different because I know it's possible now. Anyway, I tell you this just to say maybe what everyone else does doesn't work for you, but that doesn't mean you won't figure out something that does. It is a terrible frustrating journey to be on before you figure it out, but I hope you keep trying! I do believe, btw, that you have every right to accept that you can't lose weight and actually, I am kind of happy that I made it to that point myself, though it was painful. But there is real joy in getting past it and I really hope you get to have that.

eusebuis, If you find something that works to get you through a week (that's just about forever, in dieting terms, as far as I'm concerned) with family that would be revolutionary. I wouldn't be too hard on yourself.

Pamatga, Ooooh, I bet fresh sweet potatoes are wonderful. And it sounds glorious to have 3 months worth of fresh tomatoes. I hope that works out. I feel like I haven't had a great tomato for about 30 years, since I was able to eat off of my great-grandfather's farm. And if I was you, I'd be patting myself on the back for just getting a chicken sandwich at wendy's. ;) I hope you enjoyed your chamber music!

SuperChick, I hope you had a good workout and a nice dinner. I'm jealous that you surf! I'd be too scared to try (I'm not even much of a swimmer), but it looks so adventurous. Plus, Eddie Vedder does it, which is just plain cool. :cool: And yay re the food processor. I've been wanting one for ages, but when I started dieting I stopped cooking altogether, like I became allergic to it.

BBE, Yes! That's a great idea about refining your ARC. I think mine can be streamlined a bit so I don't have to spend all day reading it. There are certain words or phrases that are powerful enough that they don't need a whole lot of explanation when I'm the reader. Sorry about that dratted trail mix! Sometimes I feel like there's trail mix lurking around every corner. :dizzy:

Lexxiss, It sounds like you did great in a stressful situation! :carrot:

MissyJ, Welcome! :wave: I know what you mean about wanting to get on it when you feel it. I wouldn't wait the two weeks either. That would probably leave me stressed out for two weeks waiting for the other shoe to drop. I hope you have great success! :carrot:

Shepherdess, It sounds like you are on the right track with the baby-sleep. With my two, I found that they were so different that it was just trial and error all the way through both times. So, no, you don't sound like a newbie at all. ;) One thing that worked really great with both of mine was co-sleeping, which they are both still doing. :o I know that's not for everyone, but it got me a lot of good sleep. Congrats on your new little one!

Alana, Good luck finding new exciting foods. Boredom is no fun.

Ok, I think I have to move to another post to continue. :^: It's hard keeping track of where I am in this thread!

maryann, Thanks for sharing your story. I'm so curious about what exercise you fell in love with. I once lost a good amount of weight on a diet that included a snickers every night. I was like 22, though. lol I don't think it would work now since my issues are all carb-related.

Gardenerjoy, I'm so happy you were wrong! Ya know I'm aways surprised when people malign salt (though I am getting used to it). I actually swell up if I don't get enough, and I need quite a lot. Plus, if you eat a lot of salt *every* day, I don't think you'd gain past that first day, kwim? I suppose I love salt enough that a couple of pounds are worth it to me. Did I say all my issues were carb-related? ;)

anotherchick, Family is about the worst trigger for me. Kudos for getting through in tact!

ovwgirl, Congrats on your progress today! It's kind of liberating to skip that meal, I think.

happygoal, Welcome! :wave: I'm on day four, so we're in this together. I do a kind of crazy diet, which probably would only work for me (as nothing that anyone else does has worked for me, lol). I eat once a day, usually between 6 and 7 and I eat fatty meat and 2-4 cups of whole milk yogurt. During the day I have iced coffee with between 2.5 and 5 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream, depending on how many I have.

I had such a great day! I am trying to transition to only one meal a day every day (I had been doing it just a few times a week) and today was day 4 in a row and I felt just great! I made a lot of good choices for myself and gave myself lots of CREDIT :D. Today was the credit day, after all. I decided to get myself a diet coke at the mcd's drive through because my little guy was asleep in back, which was a safer choice than starbucks since I have no idea how much cream they'll put in, CREDIT!, and I made it through the drive through having purchased nothing but the diet coke, CREDIT! I also decided to go ahead and exercise even though I had plenty of good reasons to back out of it, CREDIT! For dinner I picked up some buffalo wings, and rather than get my favorite strips, which are dredged in flour, I got wings, which are not, CREDIT! And they were VERY yummy, anyway.

In the last hour or so I've realized that I'm getting a cold and I actually kind of wonder if that somehow affected my mood today or made things easier for me, maybe it affected my appetite. It was also really hot, and that can be helpful, too. I'm actually thinking now that I will take a day off and eat twice tomorrow. I don't think I ate enough today, especially if I'm sick. And I don't want to force it.

Oh, and I finally, finally, have made it down to a NEW low weight. It's only .2 pounds below my last one, but still. :D I'll have to fix the ticker tomorrow.

I stayed OP, read my ARC, gave myself a bunch of credit... and now I'm going to look up what tomorrow's work will be.

Goodnight coaches!

In a bit of a funk...
 

Morning Team :grouphug: *long post alert!*
Like Alana, I too feel like I’m falling into a bit of a rut, or more so a bit of a funk. Monday and Tuesday have both been a bit strange, tired, gremlin-y days. By gremlin-y, I mean that little sabotaging voice has been a lot more present this week than any other time so far on my Beck journey. I think it’s mainly because I’m tired, and my house / garden / work desk / mind is cluttered and untidy… Like someone else said recently, it’s much easier to stick to my plan if everything else is in order – I know however that this not a realistic plan for life! It’s always going to be a bit messy at times. What I think I need to do is take some time for myself (luckily DB is away this weekend, although I’m going to miss him) and tidy up, go through Beck, make some new response cards (I’ll get to that in a minute!) and get my head straight.

So last night, food out was lovely, and the restaurant served quite small portions so portion control wasn’t really an issue. I also managed to avoid having any dessert (BBE, this is my demon when it comes to eating out… I always want one even if I’m not hungry… so a small victory!) however I drank way too much. One glass turned to two, then three, then stopping at the pub on the way home… after a rubbish day yesterday (not food wise, just general bleugh) the little sabotaging gremlin was telling me it was ok… even though I knew it wasn’t. I’m trying hard at the minute not to beat myself up for my ‘mistakes’ but to learn from them… so I’m going to spend some time making some response cards (I have only made ARC and ‘no choice’ cards, I haven’t made any others yet as the need / time hasn’t arisen) to try to address this, and I think I need to think carefully about drinking when I’m in that sort of mood as I’m much more likely to drink more than I want to.

I typically only weigh in once or twice a week and I weighed in on Monday but I’m starting to worry about what the scales are going to say (like they can talk!) and I can already sense a feeling of avoidance coming on… I need to step up, banish that voice and get on the scales tomorrow morning.

Thanks for listening guys, it’s crazy how obvious things seem when I write them down, and how much it helps me putting it down in print and telling you all. :thanks:

Credits: bike to work today, planned food, read ARC, putting myself first today (advance credit!), NSV – fitted into two pairs of trousers I haven’t worn since before Christmas :)

Hello to everyone :wave: and welcome to the newbies – stick with Beck, it’s such a good tool and everyone else on this forum is so supportive. I think that support network is what is missing in a lot of people’s life, especially when it comes to weight loss.


Right I’m off to put myself first and work myself out of this funk!

Hi Coaches!

This is a hopping place lately! I will try to get caught up with you all today.

Saying "it was inevitable" is definitely a sabotaging thought. My food choices weren't so great yesterday...not totally off, but I dived into the chocolate almonds for an XXL snack. Dinner was pizza as we were beat from our project but I did order 1/2 with veggies and light cheese. I took time to make a salad for myself and had it before my allotted portion of pizza. *credit* for getting back on track and ordering/eating dinner wisely.

Today starts a two day painting marathon...hoping to get this project to a point where we could say it's ok to stop. They are twin/tiny Victorian cottages with a walkway to the outhouse in the middle. I have the gingerbread/fascia left unfinished on one front and once it's finished it will look great from the street although the mountain side will be left undone. Oh, well...it hasn't been painted in my entire lifetime so the back might just wait until next year.

Happygoal, :welcome2: Glad that you're joining us on this journey! I follow South Beach Diet. I'm 53 and want to follow a "whole foods" plan. This plan helps me stay away from white sugar/white flour and I feel very energized. My back up plan is calorie counting WHILE trying to maintain SBD principles. I calorie counted in addition to SBD principles during a slow time in the Spring and was greatly rewarded. I lost my holiday gain, plus a few more, and learned lots about myself. I'm physically active, have lots of ongoing stress and am overjoyed to lose 5 pounds a year at this point so I guess I'd call my plan "maintenance" right now. I am so happy to have incorporated Beck skills into my plan. The sitting down/slow eating mindset makes my eating feel much more sane and controlled, and I've become much better at saying NO CHOICE to unplanned foods (mostly stress snacking).

Back later....hopefully!

Welcome happygoal
 

:welcome: happygoal :welcome:

And, in honor of your first post, :wel3fc:

How did you discover the books by Dr. Judith Beck?

And how did you find this Beck Forum on 3 Fat Chicks?

Wednesday
 

Diet Coaches/Buddies - Tension continued and I had an extra snack. Ouch. It's so counterproductive to eat in response to emotions. Otherwise, food was on plan, CREDIT moi, including a lovely piece of broiled cod with Red Kale and a bowl of tomatoes from our back yard for dinner. Yay for summer.

onebyone - Have a great trip to Ottawa. Keep the faith.

Joy (gardenerjoy) – Thanks for continuing to demonstrate how to deal with creative Sabotaging Thoughts.

Shepardess - Will keep my fingers crossed that you've found the night time solution. Kudos for getting in both your weights and your run. Are you guys still remembering to tend your sheep through all of this?

Erika (eusebius) - Congrats on those scale numbers following your return to a calm, sane life.

Debbie (Lexxiss) - Special Kudos for resisting snacks at Whole Foods.

maryann - LOL, "I am constantly astounded what constitutes a serving." Me too, particularly when a restaurant provides some four servings in an order.

SuperChick - Gotta remember this, "Feeding my soul and not my stomach."

Alana in Canada - Kudos for being so organized that you plan your food for the month and then get that killer 10% off the entire bill. That's real money.

Becky (anotherchick) - Ouch for family drama - always the most dramatic there is. Kudos for staying your path through it.

missyj - Yep, Kudos for starting your healthy eating plan. It's hard not to start right away while the enthusiasm is high. Which I think is fine, provided one also takes it seriously to learn the strategies. Love your reminder - WW works when actually following it.

Oriana (ovwgirl) - Terrific hunger exercise - Kudos for pulling that off. What do you mean by a 10 hour flight? That's a long time in the air. Are you piloting a plane from here to Australia and back?

rubidoux - Congrats on that new low weight! Yep, my ARC has gradually reduced to key phrases that have meaning to me; they started out as near paragraphs each one, LOL. Kudos for the sane choice at the McDonalds drive thru.

happygoal - Kudos for jumping right in on day 2 of the Beck Diet for Life. I'm on a home grown plan centered around portion control. My main challenge is to stick to the three planned meals and three planned snacks each day. Glad you've joined us.

Readers -

Morning Coaches/Buddies!

Starting day 4 of the new plan today. I am experiencing some headaches which apparently are quite common at this phase - detox symptoms. That's what I'm telling myself anyway, LOL. I do feel like I slept better last night and have a bit more energy today. One day at a time ...

Oriana (ovwgirl) - WTG on completing the hunger exercise! It really is educational.

happygoal - Welcome!! Great to have you on our team. I was doing Weight Watchers until recently when I started the Eat to Live plan (Dr. Joel Fuhrman) which is a low-fat vegan diet.

rubidoux - thanks for the kind words about family - it means a lot. Kudos for all of your good choices yesterday!

SuperChick - Love the word gremlin-y - it really describes that pesky little voice well. You are so right about life being messy. I can also relate big time to the drinking issue. I know, for example, that there will be wine tonight at dinner with my parents and I am not sure how to handle it. I am thinking of restricting myself to 1 glass. Anyway you are doing great! Must have felt awesome to zip up those trousers!

Debbie (Lexxiss) - Ouch for the XXL portion of chocolate almonds (they're so good, or as they say in Newfoundland, "more-ish") ... but kudos for getting back on track and ordering salad and going light on the pizza! Would love to see pics of your cottages. I live in a Victorian cottage myself (1875) so I always notice the style when I see it elsewhere.

BillBE - sounds like a great dinner. How did you cook the red kale? Would like to try some.

Time to enjoy some more of my very, very green smoothie :) Have a great day all!

Erika



Read ARC: yes
Sat down to eat: yes
Gave myself credit: yes
Walking: to & from meditation sitting
Qi Gong: yes (short session)

Hello everyone and thank you all for your positive thoughts and greetings!

I have survived the first two days of getting on track with healthy eating - and they both involved eating out/social obligations for lunch AND dinner. I travel a lot for work, and I eat out all the time. So staying the course in restaurants is a huge issue for me. But it is my reality and I have to learn how to handle it. So I am taking a big credit for navigating the first two days successfully! ;)

maryann - Thank you for sharing your story! I have to admit, I was sitting here cracking up about your Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches/points story. I was notorious for the same behaviour - just with 100 calorie packs! :dizzy:

Hope everyone has a great day!

Had a good OP day yesterday. I stopped by my MIL’s yesterday afternoon, shortly after she had baked a strawberry rhubarb pie. I declined a piece right then and there, but took one to go. I’ll work it in for today’s plan.

I didn’t have it in me to run this AM, but will figure out some form of exercise for today.

Alana in Canada, sending supportive thoughts while you are in a diet funk. It seems like you have two options when facing diet boredom: 1) you can pull out the “NO CHOICE” card and live with it or 2) you can start searching for some new and interesting diet recipes to breath some life into your meal repertoire.

Maryann, thanks for the reminder that “THE HOUSE ALWAYS WINS!” Weighing and measuring has been such a powerful tool for me; glad it is working for you.

Gardenerjoy, great job pulling out the “What if I’m wrong?” response and turning out to be wrong. Yay for a drop at the scale.

Anotherchick, kudos for doing so well on vacation. Hope you had a great time in spite of the drama.

Eusebius, congrats on lower numbers at the scale! Yay for looking forward to a veggie-packed meal. Hope the headaches are gone soon.

ovwgirl, great job completing the hunger experiment! It was a real eye-opener for me as well. It’s a great idea to plan some refreshers. I certainly could use them every now and again since it’s easy to forget that hunger is not an emergency.

Welcome happygoal! It’s great to have you here and I look forward to getting to know you. I started with the diet in Beck’s green book, but eventually tailored it to better suit me. It’s basically a calorie counting diet. It was tedious and time-consuming at first to count calories, but it didn’t take long for me to get into a routine. Now I know where most of the foods I eat fit into my plan and if I want to try something new I just need to figure out the calorie contents and plug it into my diet.

Rubidoux, congrats on the new low! Great job making it through the drive through with only your planned item. With only 1 meal, do you have small snacks throughout the day?

SuperChick, yay for fitting into smaller pants! Sending supportive thoughts while your facing the gremlins. Great response to focus on your response cards. My most helpful card when I’m struggling is: “Dieting is supposed to get hard. If I keep practicing my skills it will get easy again.

Lexiss, great job on a quick recovery after off plan chocolate almonds. Best of luck on your painting marathon and kudos for saying the backside can wait.

BillBE, ouch for continued tension and eating in response. Great job keeping it to one snack. I’m not doing much sheep tending these days, but DH is keeping it up. I did have the pleasure of hearing the herd come up the creek by the house the other night. I was feeding DD at the time and I got excited thinking about taking her with us to check the sheep.

MissyJ, great job successfully navigating restaurants and accepting that it is something you will have to deal with. What do you do for a living? Sorry if I missed it on an earlier post.

Wednesday am
 

Hey everyone,

Had a great day yesterday--even though we stopped for a hamburger and "Twisted Yogurt" after picking up my son from the airport yesterday. I made some OK choices and the scale rewarded me with a pound and a half loss from yesterday. Crazy stuff.

I also went on a walk with dh--we went further than usual and I had to walk quickly to get home--and I was so annoyed with myself. My hips ached, my thighs were stretched and my back was tender. It was a good motivator to keep going, I guess!

Shepherdess: Glad you can work in the strawberry rhubarb pie.

MissyJ--Congrats on the first two days!

Eusebius: Congrats on getting to Day 4 and being willing to "detox."

BBE: Glad the food was on plan.

Lexxiss--those cottages sound wonderful. Are they rental properties for you? My mom was quite successful with South Beach.

Superchick--I'm sure your time with the response cards will silence that nasty gremlin for a bit!

Rubidoux--congrats on the new lowest weight! Love your attitude. Hope you are feeling well (and not getting a cold. Summer colds are such a nuisance.)

Happygoal--I've been following the Beck principles for about a month now. I feel as though I want to go through the book again once I've finished it. My food plan is laid out for me as a portion control program by the Mayo Clinic. Lots and lots of fruits and veggies--it's been wonderful that way.

ovwgirl--congrats on skipping lunch. I just realised I haven't *really* done that yet--not deliberately. I skipped breakfast one day--but that did not turn out well! I should pick a day this week and do it. Thanks.

anotherchick--well done! "Family drama at the lake" sounds awful. It sounds like you managed really, really well. Fabulous. Kudos to you. Keep with your plan.

Gardenerjoy--thrilled it worked! --You were wrong, lol! Glad you feel confident with your plan! Sounds like the road to wellness....

Maryanne--good for you for going back to weighing and measuring. Pasta based dinners--though allowed on my plan--are a drag becuase I either have to have what seems like a teeny amount--or save up (nearly all) my portions alloted for the day and have a decent bowl. Oh well. Have fun at the Strings workshop.

Got a bigger down tic on the scale today with the salt out of my system. I'm still tickled by how happy I am to be wrong! That's not a common experience for me, being the kind of person who sometimes gets the exasperated response from others "Do you always have to be right?" I think I should apply this more widely. How interesting could life get if I ask myself often "What if I'm wrong?"

WI: -0.55kgs, Exercise: +45 95/1300 minutes and 3/33 miles on treadmill for August, Food: 100%op, Read my Advantages and Responses: yes

Shepherdess: excellent strategy with fresh home-made pie to take it home and work it into your plan

missyj: great job working with your reality of eating out -- it's a challenge but you're proving that it's doable

eusebius: hope the headache improves while still seeing continued improvements in sleep and energy

BillBlueEyes: sorry for continued tension but your backyard dinner sounds awesome!

Welcome, happygoal! I use Richard Simmon's Food Mover which is an exchange plan. That's my fourth plan since I started this journey and I actually found it helpful to change things around now and then to keep my interest up. I started with an exchange plan of my own devising based on the government's food pyramid, then tried the DASH Diet, and then the one in Beck's green book. All worked for me, but the Food Mover seems to be the one that's going to work for the long haul.

Lexxiss: Yay for getting yourself back on track. Wishing you well with the painting project.

SuperChick: hugs back! The drinking question does take some thought and experimentation -- give yourself time and willingness. Have you tried daily weighing? That's what works for me because it gets me past the avoidance thing and, eventually when I'm on a roll with it, the scale quits "talking" to me and becomes a simple data provider like checking the daily weather report.

rubidoux: Yay for all your credits! I get allergies this time of year with an accompanying malaise and I find that if I don't fight it, it can actually be helpful in certain ways. If I say NO CHOICE to medicating it with food, then I'm forced to medicate it with rest and relaxation and that never hurts!

ovwgirl: yay for surviving the hunger experiment and learning exactly what we're supposed to learn! That really brought home for me the "Hunger is Not an Emergency" response which is one of the most useful things I say to myself.

anotherchick: Welcome home and welcome back to our group!

Alana: glad you're seeing improvements in your mood -- and that "a great day" can include exercise with achiness. My great days include that fairly frequently, too. I have a friend who says that we can have pain from not exercising or pain from exercising -- take your pick!
Reading what you wrote to Maryanne, I'm going to put my pasta dish in our recipe thread -- it's really more method than recipe, though. We're happy with only 1 oz of pasta each if the sauce and veggies are flavorful enough.

Good Morning Coaches!
Lots of action on the old blog. July must be a tough month for overeaters because we get spurred into action come August 1. I know that was my story.
OP yesterday and today. Food packed and weighed and measured. I am going to ride this horse as long as I can. It feels great to be so well planned and organized and consistent after a summer of travelling and vacationing. Being out of a routine is so difficult as many of you have said. I remember the old Buddhist (?) saying. "By consenting to be bound, I am truly free." Right now, I feel pleased to be bound to knowing exactly what I will eat today.
Alana: I don't actually eat the pasta in the pasta meals I bake for DS and DH. I always make myself a little side dish without the pasta part. For instance, the boys tonite are having pasta primavera with garden zucchini and chicken. I will have the chicken, veggies and a smaller amount of sauce in my little dish. I don't have the time to make two separate meals and I don't want my slim little DS to eat my "diet meals".
gardenerjoy: credit for "green dish" awakening. So many of the triumphs of changing food addiction is being willing to pay attention to what really is going on and then change perception accordingly. This is a long race.
shepardess: credit for taking the pie home. That is a terrific skill I picked up here. It is not food that is the enemy. It is the resistance to planning.
Eusibius: Congrats on 10 pounds lost. I had a big headache when I first started eating more healthily.
OVWgirl: The biggest gift Beck gave me was learning "Hunger is not an emergency." Who knew?
Happygoal: Welcome. I am on The zone now for a year and I am truly NOT HUNGRY. A miracle.
Rubidoux: I also was a changed woman with the discovery that carbs were my problem. Although I have my little Reese' treat, the rest of my day is carbs only through fruits and veggies. Grains have to be extremely limited. I started loving exercise in a group aerobic class - step class I think. I love the music and the group energy. I also enjoy private walks - especially when I was quitting smoking.
missyj: I started Beck on vacation. It is tough but great because so much of life is unforeseen circumstances. Keep up the good work.
BBE: Emotional eating is so tricky because it DOES work - for about 2 minutes. It is the old joke of the little boy with a pot on his head letting his big brother hit it with a spoon. The mother says'"why do you let him do it?"The little guy answers, "Because it feels so good when he stops."
Lexxiss; Three cheers for getting beyond perfectionism.
Superchick: This is a long race. Last nites' drinks are nothing in the scheme of all your new healthy behaviors.

Shepherdess - Thanks for reminding me that this whole posting thing is new to me, and I never really properly introduced myself! :o

I am 43 years old, single, born and raised in the Detroit Michigan area (with a wonderful stint in Chicago for my 20s!). I work in the environmental field - emergency response work cleaning up oil and chemical spills. I work on the clean-ups (mostly in the Midwest, but could go/have gone anywhere) and train new hires nationwide. So I travel alot, and don't have regular hours. I love my job! But it makes it harder to prioritize healthy eating and exercise.......but I am working on prioritizing me! :)

When I am not working, I enjoy travel, reading, hiking. But mostly spoiling my three nephews and one niece rotten - ensuring I am the best Aunt ever.