Beck Diet For Life/Solution – September 2015 – 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 (3FC), 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:

Tuesday - King George refuses Olive Branch Petition (1775)
 

Diet Coaches/Buddies – So I'm off to commune with nature. See you Saturday.

Hi coaches!

Yesterday was a poor eating day at work. There was food flying around for the taking and I didn't resist. I have a better plan for today which includes no eating at work. I get off early and already have a salad made for when I get home. Credit. I forgot to weigh this morning I will do that when I get home.

Hi Coaches,

This is me posting. (Duh!) :dizzy: Things have been going okay, but I don't have the consistency I would like. Today it's a new month and I want to start it off right. So I'm posting now and then heading to Weight Watchers for a weigh-in. I don't expect a huge loss this week, if any, but it's a fresh week and I will stick to my plan.

After this week all the craziness will start up again ... I have a new choir job Monday and Wednesday evenings so it will be even crazier than before. (Hopefully financially more stable, though.) I want to use this week to establish good habits so that they're in place when all the nutso stuff begins.

Happy September, I hope to see more of you all this month!! :)

CREDIT for meeting my exercise goals for August -- at 7 last night!

I'm starting September with these goals for exercise (same as the last several months): 1300 minutes, 21 days of at least 8000 steps, 8 strength-training sessions

And, for weight loss, to do these things every day: weigh, post, eat no more than 5 times (3 meals, 2 snacks)

WI: +0.1 kg, Exercise: +40 1310/1300 minutes for August, Food: 90% op, Read my Advantages and Responses: yes

Lexxiss and eusebius: Looks like a bunch of us are using September 1 as a great day to get things in order for a healthy month!

nationalparker: good for you for supporting the in-laws on a day when they needed company.

maryann: I'm glad you're finding something to do at the gym. I find it so helpful to hold the place for exercise in my life even if all I can do is a little yoga.

howyoulose: great to see you back. For me, what I get from Beck is the ability to get back on track more quickly.

love2garden: I react badly to narcotics. It's harder to stay away from them now that there seems to be a medical principle to make things pain-free. They don't seem to quite understand that patients can experience worse things than pain.

SuzLen: Yay for an OP school day!

curlyjax: glad you got back to us!

Permission by Dentist to eat Ice Cream led to 2 pound overnight gain even tho I ate little. Obviously the Dentist hasn't read Beck's books.

However, I have and should have at least made the serving a small one.

Strange feeling on the different but non-narcotic meds, but less pain. Sure am glad I'm not working - can't think straight. Slept great.

Hello Coaches,

CREDIT for another day on plan!! I even passed up the cafeteria's homemade cinnamon rolls - the best part was it wasn't even a real temptation. Yay! Came home late tonight, so rather than eat and feel full, I chose a protein shake and will head down to exercise as soon as I post. CREDIT

I think some of my bad habits are breaking apart. Last year I ate on the run to school, ate while I worked at lunch, and ate mindlessly why preparing dinner. Just making myself sit and eat at the table is making a huge difference in my mental attitude towards food.

love2garden: had to lol about the thought of being given permission to eat ice cream. I am glad you enjoyed it though. I'm sure the weight gain is fleeting.

gardnerjoy: congrats on meeting your goals!

eusebius: so glad to hear from you again. Good luck with your new job.

Lexxiss: no eating at work, or no eating things you didn't bring to work? I get weak-willed at food flying around - I empathize.

I feel so good when I feel in control - it makes me wonder why I am so easily tempted....

Have a great night, all.

Strange day for me yesterday. Sister traveling across country texted that she'd be in town, could I meeet up for a late lunch? Then another text as they got closer. I debated fairly long on it since we'd had such issues last year, but figured I had my own transportation and could leave at any time. I left work early as I'd already eaten my own lunch (salad and small baked potato) and we met up late afternoon and I ended up ordering a happy hour mini pizza (3") ... delish and only $2.50. Ordered two salads to take home to go with our plans to grill for dinner, then DH said, well, do you just want to save these salads for tomorrow night and go back out there tonight? SO, in a strange twist, we got cleaned up and headed out there and sat on the patio and really enjoyed our evening. I ate lightly but had another salad, and then indulged in the dessert pizza that came with our dinner for two special that many downtown restaurants are offering now. I actually had no remorse, either - rare for me. The pieces were only a few bites each and I left satisfied but not full.

Scale is not really budging but I'm sticking with it all - with the season changing I want to create a new advantages card. I don't keep my old ones. Does anyone else? I thought I kind of wished I had, since it'd be nice to reread some of them. My last one had be more confident in my bathing suit and that's not a motivating factor for me this fall ... I DO want to feel more confident in it but I'll save that again for spring :)

We're aiming to go to another movie tonight - rare for us. I typically jot the titles down and we wait for DVDs to save money but I'd like to see the scenery of "A Walk in the Woods" with Robert Redford and Nick Nolte on the big screen. DH is a roll with the flow guy and is up for anything, so he's in.

I suppose that it was inevitable that as soon as I pledged to eat only two snacks a day, I would have a struggle about the size of the snacks. Sigh. I'll work on making them more reasonable today.

WI: +0.05 kg, Exercise: +40 40/1300 minutes for September, Food: 90% op, Read my Advantages and Responses: yes

SuzLen: I also think that "eat at the table" practice has been hugely helpful for me. If I'm making even that much effort to be mindful, I'm going to curtail the worst of the overeating that I used to do. I've been thinking about this, too: "I feel so good when I feel in control - it makes me wonder why I am so easily tempted...."

nationalparker: I do keep my old advantages and responses cards. I'm not sure it's that helpful but I fear there's some wisdom that I'll lose if I don't. So, I keep them to feel more relaxed about that.

love2garden: Hope you're feeling better today!

GardenerJoy Thanks, I'm off the pain killers and willing to be a bit uncomfortable and still think properly. Thank you for remembering.

National Parker we would like - "A Walk in the Woods" , too. thanks for mentioning it. Enjoy hearing about your couple experiences that give you both pleasure. Sounds as if he is also your best friend, too.

Hot here in the east, but pots are watered so the plants don't suffer even if I was in the heat.

Hopefully September evenings will cool off for walking.

Quickly checking in again. Credit for exercise, staying on plan, going to WW meeting. Credit for planning an 8 pt salad to take with me to a potluck on Saturday. I feel a bit overwhelmed by all the work but I'm not going to let it derail me!!

SuzLen - I think I have an opposite problem as you - I have always eaten at the table, even for a serving of nuts from a small prep bowl. But I don't want the "evening to end" right after dinner and seem to want to linger too long at the table. We don't put the serving bowls on the table unless it's a larger family dinner ... but I need to end the meal without wanting more. Growing up in Europe, we had the table at a restaurant for the whole evening, so lingering and relaxing was common. We carried that back for larger family meals and I find that I still want to do that. In winter, I make a cup of hot tea and sip it at the table and then DONE. Now in the summer, I think I'm missing something some nights when I get up after a quick meal. I need a similar trigger :) You've got me thinking about this - why DO i want to stay at the table even if I'm not eating.

Joy - Interesting realization you noted that with the imposed limits on the number of snacks, that there's a mini mental rebellion that it might need to be larger than you planned. Can it be something like a banana or 100-cal pack of nuts that's portioned and single? Whenever I think of times that I can't eat at will (camping/hiking) I REALLY want more. Great job to realize that early! Nosiness has me asking, how often do you change out your Advantages Card?

Love2Garden - Hope today finds you even more painfree. Ugh on dentists. :) I am really looking forward to the movie now that I saw the trailer... Hope I don't build it up in my mind, which I sometimes do. My summer plants are mostly straggly now and a bit past their prime. I want to bring my gardenias in for the winter - never have they lasted this long. I carried them on the plane home from Florida as they remind me of my mom. I inhale that sickeningly sweet scent and breathe, childhood...

Eusebius - Credits for hitting the ww meeting and for preplanning for the weekend! Great job with the weightloss in only four months. That's awesome!! I want a dancing carrot. Or eight.

Lexxiss - It's a very rare day when you're eating at work, so hope you acknowledged that and released it. You show such restraint - day in and day out. A good role model for me. We have way too much around here and I am a partial culprit when I bake and bring it to work. But then when it's gone, folks come by and ask if I have more stowed at my desk. (Yes, I have two drawers full of biscotti. c'mon folks!)

Hello Coaches,

CREDIT for another day OP - at least until after dinner, but it wasn't bad or totally out of control, so I am okay with it. I looked at my calories and decided I could melt a little bit of dark chocolate for a quick ganache. As I was stirring the melted chocolate my DS asked, "Don't you want some ice cream with that?" (That is the way he likes to eat it.) I replied that I didn't have enough free calories for both, so I opted for the chocolate. He and my DH thought that was hilarious. The struggle is real :D

nationalparker: I have trouble with lingering with we have big family gatherings. EVERYONE gains weight because I have food all the time, and usually things we don't ever eat but I buy as a special treat. The grandkids love it, but the adults pack on the pounds. When we West for my son's wedding in November, I am really trying to think of ways to replicate those feelings without food being involved. I don't know if that is even possible.......

gardenerjoy:
That is some kind of karma - because as soon as I say something like that, the temptation comes.


I am off to exercise. The scales were kind this morning, but then again I haven't eaten chocolate for the last couple of days so tomorrow may be a different story. I can tell I am building muscle, so maybe that will help my metabolism a bit.

Have a good night.

Hi coaches!

Yesterday was a planned off plan dinner and dessert with my husband. We haven't spent time together for quite a while. I did have my morning smoothie and a salad for lunch. Credit. Today is going to be an interesting day as we are headed to Aspen to consult with a doctor regarding my husband's shoulder issue. I have made a plan for healthy food. Credit. I'm on the run this morning as we need to leave here at 6:30 AM.

SuzLen, you ask about my eating at work. My situation at work is much different and less predictable than most. I'm a waitress in a busy restaurant and there is no time to sit down for a meal and no place to sit down for a meal. My shift is usually 8 to 10 hours. I've been there six years now, and although we get a daily shift meal I don't usually take it. If I do I make a very careful plan. Many times I have brought my own meal but right now I'm in a situation where I am able to choose healthy if I need to.

Posting again quickly. Sigh ... I really am reading everyone's posts but time is just a rare commodity right now.

Credit - I did yoga yesterday and stayed OP with food. Credit - I bought a healthy grocery load. Credit - I made brownies with my daughter and ate only a few crumbs. Credit - I got up at 6:15 today to get my run and strength training in.

A weekend full of joy is coming up - my brother and nephew are visiting from the east coast. At the same time my mom will be going crazy showing her love with food, so I have to focus on my family members and not on indulging!!

My snacks were slightly smaller yesterday. I'm going to claim a CREDIT for that and aim for smaller again today. The gradual approach often works for me if I take credit and stick with it.

Today's challenge is an awkwardly timed doctor's appointment. But the good part is that I can't eat while I'm there. So, I think I can handle it. I have a plan -- CREDIT!

WI: -0.45 kg, Exercise: +40 80/1300 minutes for September, Food: 90% op, Read my Advantages and Responses: yes

nationalparker: I change my Advantages when they quit working! Mostly it's been because I've lost (or gained) and what's written down doesn't seem applicable at the moment. I also add things sometimes if there's something motivating me. Right now, I have one that says "I want to feel skinny for my Cuba trip."

I have GOT to rescue this day by dinnertime. I took a vacation day, did my volunteer time at the elem school for the first time this school year. Thought I'd do more FUN things today on a vac day from work. Only housecleaning by my own choice - errands, as well. It's about 90 degrees and muggy and I don't even want to do a firepit tonight.

We both thoroughly enjoyed A Walk in the Woods at the movie, and came home and hit the trail in the dark just to get moving after sitting so long.

Today I've not made good choices. Well, breakfast was fine/light. Lunch was late and as i was alone and feeling frustrated that my capris are tight and the scale is not budging. REGARDLESS of the fact that my normal cycles are all a bit out of whack right now, I took it as failure and thought what the heck. So for the first time in a year, I stopped and got an order of Rally's garlic sticks and fries (three skinny mozz sticks and mine was an order of 18 french fries. I counted as I ate bc I said I'd eat 15 fries, not knowing how many would be in there. I ate all 18 since I didn't even THINK to throw the last few away. Apparently it's way easier if I think I'm being very good leaving more for another time (real food) or tossing (junk).

Then came home and had a homemade biscotti. Why stop there is my mind now. Not sure what the issue is. Capris were dried in the dryer by accident so of course they're tighter than normal.

Think I'm just in a spot of why bother - nothing I've done in the past month has moved me any lower on the scale, but I can't see my insides and maybe it's helping for heart health, etc. I should keep that in mind. No one wants to hear more griping and grumbling so I'll hush up :)

A few months ago I bought the book, "Beautiful You" when a forum member here said she was reading it for self-acceptance. I haven't even started it and thought I should kick it off with my birthday next week. DH's mom's birthday is Monday and my 50th is next week as well. I feel about 39. So when DH mentions it's a big one, I recoil. WHY? I am thankful to be alive. Thankful to be able to see, hear, walk, talk, work, love, think, everything that I seem to take for granted on a daily basis. Why do I let the fact that I have extra fat get into my mind so much?

Dinner is planned - finally the bruschetta and turkey sausage. We thought we'd find another movie to splurge and go see since we're not going out of town for the weekend. Nothing is calling, though.

Dear Coaches,

As I thought it might, the scale was up a tad this morning. I took a picture and looked at it throughout the day. That helped until I was stuck at school for a carnival and they brought pizza in for us before it started. I lie not, I was ravenous. Thank goodness it was super thin crust and cut into 16ths. I ate but didn't stuff, then as I decided to throw caution to the wind and go out for chocolate. However, I turned around before I even got to the car and told myself "no!". So CREDIT for that.

I am too tired to exercise tonight, so I am opting for a good night's rest instead. We are headed to Tennessee tomorrow to do some work around the house for my mother. It is an 8 hour drive so we won't get in until the wee hours of the morning, but we will at least have two full days to help her out.

nationalparker: you hit it on the head: we have so much to be grateful for. Do you feel better mentally and physically trying to eat better? I know I do. I don't know why I struggle so much when I do feel so much better when I eat as I should. At our age, I think our bodies just run so slow metabolically. I feel like my body thinks it is being tricked into losing weight and is fighting back. I need to show it I mean business - then maybe it will give in and start shedding a few.

eusebius: good for you for steering clear of the brownie pan, a real temptation in my house. Hope your weekend reunion is a good one!

Lexxiss: That is a long shift - are you even in the mood for food after working around it all day?

gardenerjoy: When is your trip to Cuba?

No exercise tomorrow since we will be on the road - but at least I know I won't eat a ton at my mom's. Hanging around her is what helped kicked off my weight loss this summer - she rarely eats!!

Have a good night.

Evening
 

Coaches

I'm checking in by phone so will be brief with typos no doubt.

Went to WW and saw scale rises again. Week 3. Up 5lbs over the three weeks. Expected it but felt demoralized. I thought how the heck can I always keep losing weight as my number one focus? It seems when it slips from priority #1 I eat and therefore I gain. 5lbs. 272.8. Credit for weighing though as I didn't get there last week due to being overscheduled.

Finished my second and last residency week today. Did some good work. Now I am facing clearing out the studio so I can work there through the fall and into the winter. I want it close to.empty. I have not succeeded in my decluttering efforts. Like weight loss I feel I always fall back into old.familiar lousy territory. Have I accomplished anything at all is what I have been feeling followed by the why bothers. But that's the saboteur talking. I need to keep on going.

Thanks for reading.

Checking in again. Credit for posting daily. Credit for staying mostly on plan (2 extra ribs at dinner last night - oh well). Credit for getting up and doing yoga this morning. I have such a mix of emotions about this family weekend. I love seeing my nephew, but my mom drags me down. I have to find a way to work with seeing her without losing my positivity.

Tonight: fake "birthday" party for the two kids with pizza and cake. Sigh. I will make sure I'm not ravenous when I go there.

Still working on reduced snack sizes.

WI: +0.2 kg, Exercise: +30 110/1300 minutes for September, Food: 90% op, Read my Advantages and Responses: yes

SuzLen: the Cuba trip is in mid-October -- not very far away now!

Good morning, Coaches.

12 Days OP foods but the portions are stopping me from losing weight. Scale is one pound from ticker. Today I have a written plan and then I ate some dried fruit for no reason particular reason. Baffling. But I restarted the next minute. I love my Fridays off. Hair appt, rings cleaned, library, lots of putter which help me decompress after the ultra busy school life.

Tomorrow we head to the city to see Billy Joel at ATT Park. 13yoDS is super excited. "He is my greatest musical influence," he said. LOL he also downloads Steely Dan and Hall and Oats from iTunes. The kid is nothing if not unique. I am determined to keep to my healthy foods list despite eating out several times.

It is easier to stay OP than to get back OP.

hi coaches-
a quick check in. I have been off the bandwagon again and avoid posting because I don't want to come here and keep admitting only mistakes. I have got to get my motivation back!
I wonder if you can be hypnotized to avoid sugar? some days I think I should look into that!

Happy long weekend. Keep on plugging all!

CREDIT: Food on plan. CREDIT: Over 4 hours Heavy Gardening. CREDIT: lots and lots of water.

NationalParker When you bring them inside do they bloom again indoors? I agree the aroma is bautiful, but if contained in the house could overpower one.

Mom grew roses in Florida as a test garden for Jackson Perkins for years. I'd love to have the beauty she made, but can't get roses to grow here t all.

MaryAnn Bet you will have fun with your son and the invigorating music of Billy Joel.

Oneby one You did go and you did weigh even if the number was a huge disappointment. You can declutter and also dicipline to lose weight now that you'll have a bit more time to concentrate on yourself.

Debbie So glad you and your DH has some real one-on-one time together. No matter how long we've been married, that is so necessary. Hope the doctor is able to help his shoulder problem.

CurlyJax Would you really trust another to hypnotize you and get into your precious brain? I hope not. I have enough trouble with thinking without another "voice" in there!

Bill Hope your weather held up and you had great energy to enjoy your camping trip.

We are going out for our Date Night tonight after so many hours in the garden. Thank goodness they have great Hot Tea because we will need it to stay awake.

My each of you have an enjoyable weekend. Sandy

Aiming to enjoy posting personals in the morning. In the meantime, this was a bust of a day. We went to the town an hour away to pick up snow tires that were ordered, and that turned into HOURS. Got a gorgeous geranium for DH's grandfather's grave and so went by there and cleaned that up ... then back to town and I was getting sick from the tire smell in the car - yuck. Basically errands all day and none were mine. I guess just spending time together on the menial stuff is good, but tomororw I want to tackle MY menial stuff...

Food was in good portions, not the most nutritious since no veggies again, but ate dinner at 8 - homemade pancakes. That's easy for me to control portions as I make them small and when you're full, you're FULL. Saved the $ of dinner out tonight. Both of us wanted to go out while we were out and about.

quick note to Love2Garden in case I forget tomorrow - in the winter, those gardenias will go dormant, if they survive at all ... so unfortunately no super sweet smell to even worry about. I have brought about a dozen back through the years - the only ones that have made it are the ones I brought back after mom passed. Funny, that.

Saturday - Google Founded (1998)
 

Diet Coaches/Buddies – We had a marvelous four days camping in western Massachusetts. On yesterday's hike, we saw a Mink - first I've ever seen in the wild. The two beavers we encountered while kayaking each went underwater with a loud splash of their tail so that we got the full beaver-effect. Possibly we saw a Golden Eagle - but I was so tuned to see one that I likely turned a Turkey Vulture into one. We kayaked every day in the nooks and crannies of the lake on which we were camped. The campground had hot showers. It was the best of both worlds.

Eating was on plan rather easily, CREDIT moi - there was only the food that we brought. On the one day that we had driven to climb the small local 'mountain,' we stopped for lunch at the town's breakfast-and-lunch place where I had a vegetarian sandwich. I came home with four days without a bite of meat. My arteries flow so happily.


onebyone – Congrats for finishing your second week in residency. Kudos for continuing with Weight Watchers.

Joy (gardenerjoy) – The notion that we must respond to hunger is so engrained. Kudos for recognizing that you can do Hunger is Not an Emergency instead. And Kudos for beating your August exercise goal by ten minutes. (Thanks for providing the pointer to the September thread.)

Erika (eusebius) – An additional job sounds about par for an uber busy person to take on. Welcome to your September "start it off right."

Debbie (Lexxiss) – LOL at your image of "food flying around for the taking."

maryann - Have a great time at the Billy Joel concert today. Totally agree with "It is easier to stay OP than to get back OP."

nationalparker – Congrats for choosing a DH who will take your comforters to the laundromat - he's a keeper.

curlyjax - Such great words: kayaking, Wegmans, and "kitchen closed now!"

Sandy (love2garden) - Ouch for the ordeal with that tooth; glad that it's only 10 weeks until you can get it fixed.

SuzLen - Super Kudos for staying OP on a school day.

howyoulose - Kudos for recognizing that your work issues are invading your thinking so you can get started again. Let the new September Beck thread be part of your new start.

Readers -

Good morning Coaches,

Just got back from a long run. Credit! 10 WW points torched :) Other credits: said NO CHOICE to myself after dinner last night; stuck to 1 piece of pizza and 1/4 piece of Dairy Queen cake at the unbirthday party; daily meditation every day this week; continuing to read response cards several times a day. It works if you work it!!

Today: potluck brunch at the home of a meditation group friend. I’m bringing a WW-friendly salad so I’ll focus on that. Also going out for dinner with the family, but I’m planning to order salad with grilled chicken at whatever restaurant we end up at, so that should be fine.

maryann - wow your son has unique musical tastes :)

curlyjax - actually there are several weight loss hypnosis programs on the market - maybe some of them do talk about sugar! Hmmm …

love2garden - kudos! Gardening is fantastic exercise and the results are splendid :)

nationalparker - kudos for sticking with your plan and portions!

BillBlueEyes - welcome back :) Glad to hear you had a great trip. Kayaking is so fun and relaxing!

My snack sizes were definitely smaller yesterday -- thanks for being patient while I work this out! It helps to state the goal every day, even if the results aren't instantaneous.

WI: +0.25 kg, Exercise: +70 180/1300 minutes for September, Food: 100% op, Read my Advantages and Responses: yes

BillBlueEyes: welcome home! Sounds like a beautiful time in the woods and on the water.

Well, I putzed around this morning and didn't carve out time to write as I finally slept in after 8 a.m. and just bounced from this to that. All day. Finished a few small projects around here and DH and I finally got out to run errands (he likes to do them together) by 3 p.m. Food today was okay - brunch at home and then early dinner at 5 (Thai). Mine was ordered "hot" on the spicy level and came very mild. I ate more than I typically do - goes down easy when not super spicy. I prefer it hotter.

Not in the best mood tonight, so I'm cutting it short. I told DH I'd look for something to put on Netflix to just sit and relax with - have been on my feet all day. I'm pulling for a BBC show that neither of us have seen for a fresh surprise. We'll see what I come up with.

Feel like my body is just getting bigger and bigger. Stressing myself out. I thought/hoped I'd see even just a little bit of progress. I'll wait until tomorrow to whine a bit ;) Heat continues incessantly. Not Arizona heat but hot for here. No rain.

Glad you're back after a wonderful-sounding trip, Bill. What great experiences!

Goals for tomorrow - journal and post here ... do meal plan for the week (did most of it mentally while marketing); it includes two salads for meals - all veggies for one with homemade parmesan dressing and one from a restaurant at home in Florida we love. Bought mini sweet peppers to do "pepper nachos" by lightly following this recipe but not using a ton of cheese. Love the fresh corn, black beans, fresh pico de gallo, etc. - it all comes together quickly. didn't mean to get into food specifics here. sorry.

Sunday
 

Diet Coaches/Buddies – Walk, CREDIT moi, including picking about five pounds of tomatoes from our community garden - a friend in the adjacent plot had watered it while we were away. Passed a yard sale where I bought two books that I didn't really need but I was hurting that I wasn't buying the 9 volume boxed set of Little House on the Prairie. It's hard to be in a declutter mentality and bring home that many books just because I didn't read them a few decades ago.

Eating was on plan, CREDIT moi. Dinner included chicken as I re-enter the world of the omnivore. DW brought a bowl of walnuts up to the attic for us to nibble as we did an onerous job of searching through old boxes to find an item that should have been labeled, but wasn't. I'm not good at labeling boxes when putting stuff away. I know that. I've done it for years. I'm apparently not good at learning my lesson.


Joy (gardenerjoy) – Smaller snacks sounds good.

Erika (eusebius) – When Beck lists all the justifications for eating she doesn't list an "unbirthday party," LOL. Kudos for limiting yourself to a quarter piece of cake.

nationalparker – Amused myself looking up "putzed around" to feel gratitude, one more time, for the Yiddish that makes English so much fun to read. Kudos for doing your meal plan for the week despite the heat.

Readers -

Hi coaches-
I realized I joined this group just about a year ago, wow! time flies. Sadly I have lost and gained the same 5 pounds a few times! So I'm back at my starting weight but at least it isn't higher.
One thing I really have learned is the "hunger is not an emergency" concept and I have been able to practice that pretty well in the mornings anyhow, which has definitely helped keep me on track.
Okay, THIS year it will take! I always think of September as the start of a new year, its so ingrained with school starting, plus its my favorite season!

Credit for yesterday going on a maybe 7 mile bike ride, which doesn't seem that long in writing! But it felt long:) DH, DS and I went and had lunch in the middle of it at a roadside place where I indulged in a cheeseburger which I never do at lunch! But I resisted the huge milkshakes the boys had, and just had a few sips. I could imagine how much harder the trip home would be with that in my stomach, so credit for that.

Maryann- I hope you guys had a great time at that concert! how awesome that your son likes 80s music!
Nationalparker- I always enjoy your food descriptions so describe away! I get the feeling you really like Mexican type food!
Bill- Possibly we saw a Golden Eagle - but I was so tuned to see one that I likely turned a Turkey Vulture into one. HA! I know what you mean!
Waving to all!

Yesterday's exercise was vacuuming the heavy drapes in the bedroom. There are railroad tracks a block away so we need them to deaden the sound. Cleaning them is a big project and I feel it in my arms, shoulders, and hips this morning.

Snacks a bit large again, yesterday. This experiment of restricting myself to two snacks a day may be a failure. The optional third snack, which I usually skip, seems to have a role in keeping the remaining two snacks smaller. I'm going to keep the experiment going a bit longer. I might be able to get myself to trust that I won't get too hungry with the smaller snacks. The problem with the third snack, even though it's only occasional, is that it sometimes throws me into eat-all-day mode.

WI: -0.15 kg, Exercise: +45 225/1300 minutes for September, Food: 90% op, Read my Advantages and Responses: yes

Checking in
 

Coaches

I'm having difficulty staying on track. I am, credit, tracking but doing it after I eat. I am feeling very rebellious and restricting my food is bringing up feelings of "you can't tell me what to do" sabatoge-y thoughts.

I wish I didn't have to counter my own self. I need a good response to my inner rebel. Any suggestions?

Bye for now.

Hi coaches!

It's been a busy few days. I traveled over to Glenn went last Tuesday after work and my husband came back with me super early Saturday morning. I had to be at work at seven. And now immersed in busy holiday work time which is great. It slows way down here later this week. My husband's daughter drove in from San Francisco and so we went down after work last night to visit. She has leased the apartment above the grandbabies. Their mother is still gone so this will be really nice for the kids. A little progress on my family homefront. My husband and mother came to the restaurant and sat down together for lunch. I believe it's the first time they have talked since the incident in March.

Food wise, I've slacked off a little bit but I am still making effort to be very mindful of my choices AND their implications. Credit. Scale still hovers at maintenance. Credit. I'm prepared to buckle down as I've been acknowledging these few days that once it's slower at work my level of exercise will diminish, two, and I need to compensate with my calorie intake.

onebyone, I still find my best Beck response to be No Choice. When I start slipping and sliding I write a plan and then use my cards to stick with that plan. I remind myself that if there something I feel I need to eat that I can put it into tomorrow's plan and stick with the one I have just for today. Best wishes!

Monday - Labor Day (U.S. Holiday celebrating the 'workingman' since 1882)
 

Diet Coaches/Buddies – Standard Sunday walk, CREDIT moi, in won't-let-go-of-summer warm weather. On the way home we encountered the new Mini-Library being installed by a neighbor just around the corner from our home. On a later walk to water our community garden, I put three books into their Mini-Library; that made me so happy. They were three good books and I relish the thought that they'll go to someone who wants to read them.

Food was on plan, CREDIT moi, although snacks were at maximum. I did respond to my large morning snack by having a simple tomato sandwich for lunch.


onebyone – Yep, "you can't tell me what to do" is such a powerful feeling. Kudos for recognizing that that's what you're feeling. Perhaps there can be counter-power in, But I can tell me what to do because that's just how I get things done. Good luck.

Joy (gardenerjoy) – First time I've heard of vacuuming drapes for exercise; it does sound like a hefty workout. After you mentioned it, I took Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison on my camping trip last week. It was hard to put down to go kayaking and hiking. I'm so glad that I read it. Thanks for bringing it to my attention - even if I'm 70 years late in getting around to reading it.

Debbie (Lexxiss) – Yay for progress in the family dynamics. Hope you survive a busy holiday crowd.

curlyjax - Happy First Anniversary. May you have many, many more. Learning that "hunger is not an emergency" is such a big step.

Readers -

Good Morning, Coaches.

Don't know what to say about the weekend. In many ways it was a dream - beautiful bay view room, sharing one of my favorite singers with my son and 40,000 people, fancy dinner out with good, old friends. And yet things took an emotional dive after church on Sunday morning. DH and I went into a familiar collapse and I behaved badly, then he went on the attack (defense mechanism) from some distant emotional cave instead of helping me get back to sanity. This is a common theme. I am usually the facilitator. I make people happy, help, smooth rough edges. But when I stumble, nobody, absolutely nobody, helps me out of the hole. Of course, hours later, DH comes out the cave regretful but it is too late. I feel I have ruined the day. I am the wicked witch of the west and yet I was the one who planned the whole weekend and brought everyone together.

On the surface, I saved the day. I swallowed my pain, focused on the most important thing which was keeping the day memorable for my son. So I talked to him privately, apologized, told him it had nothing to do with him, took the helm and drove him to Japantown - mecca for an anime fan. And everybody was happy again except for me who felt desperately alone inside.

The scenario goes back so many years. So many collapses in my childhood from family members who all struggle with crazy biology. And myself so absolutely alone - just me and my food. No wonder I was 205 by 18yo.

So I woke up this morning and I don't even want to try. I don't want to hop back on the food wagon. I don't want to look at DH. I don't want to exercise. I don't want to think about lingering physical pain. I think I want comfort. But there is no comfort in excess food, I know. So I think I will just take this day minute by minute. Scale is a pound above ticker. DS is blissfully reading his anime next to me. I will commit to going to the gym in an hour. That is it. It feels like the blues will overwhelm me but maybe not this minute.

nationalparker: I too feel large and uncomfortable. That is not the truth. I have been much larger. I need to find a way to appreciate this aging body.

I know this post is the downer but it is the best I can do.

Good afternoon Coaches,

Checking in. Skipped my short run today. I did something really dumb yesterday - I tried to get into a yoga headstand. Wow. Pulled a muscle in my neck/shoulder area. I’m okay but it feels like crap.

I had a bad eating evening on Saturday but back OP yesterday and today.

maryann - (((((((HUGS))))))) I have been there. PM me if you want.

MaryAnn Sure is hard when you are the one feeling responsible for keeping everyone else happy and content. Hope you are able to chase away the blues.

Bill Oh, how I relate when I'm around books. My 20015 budget for books was exceeded before summer began and I still have to really struggle to NOT buy more, but did so anyhow. Wish we had that delightful place in walking distance to leave some of my books and exchange.

Tomorrow I sort my books, some to Church Bazaar, some to Library and some I may take to my study group in 2 weeks and just offer them option to take them home.

Debbie Amazing the stories that develop within our families. Makes some of the movies tame by comparison.

We lost our brother-in-law that I've known since high school, talked with each of his grown children and recognize how much he has suffered the past couple of years and how much he just simply wanted to be let go and be at peace. Now he is. We won't go down to funeral, too far and too expensive to fly, and Florida this time of year is not the place to be.

So grateful to our kids being healthy and having good lives. Talked with them and caught up on their activities and families. We are fortunate that family dynamics are calm at this time in our lives. Feels great.

Gardening in this heat is exhausting, but so necessary. I'm grateful for the color that Annuals are supplying in pots in many places of our yard. Lots of work keeping them watered with days in the 90's but satisfying to enjoy. Good exercise, too, as I think about it.

Beck's habits that I've learned have allowed me peace when I choose to eat what I would have felt guilty about eating a few years ago.

Our two University football teams won this weekend and were televised so we could be comfortable as we cheered on each one. Funny that our daughter who graduated from one of them never returns to campus except once 5 years ago when we 3 went to a football game between the two universities. Our last time physically going to football game. She said so, too.

May the rest of Labor Day be good for all of you.

I found I wrote this Sunday evening but didn't post it despite thinking I hit the submit button. I'm going to just post it now and add a little at the end ... hopefully will get caught up here.

Oh No - I didn't know THAT was what that term meant (the vulgar usage) ... I thought it just meant wasted time as I had a professor one semester who would say, "Okay, we've putzed around long enough ... let's get to it" before handing out exams. Yikes.

My choice last night, starting at 10:30, was BBC's The Great Train Robbery, based on a true story that I wasn't familiar with. We watched the first one last night and will enjoy the second part today. Without cable now, we rarely have the TV on, but when we do, we're trying to choose something legit. Rarely do I look forward to seeing something but I am now. We hunted all over to find CitizenFour and the library looks like my best bet - on the hold list at number 45.

Bill - DID see that Maggie Smith has a movie to be released in November, The Lady in the Van ... I'll put it on a post-it on my calendar since it'll likely only hit the art cinema near me.

Food in check today and activity was steam cleaning our carpeting for hours today. And hours. It's such old carpet and looks really bad. Today is the best its looked in ages. Made a small baked pasta dish that we'll get several servings out of - portions have dropped for both of us. Started with a bowl of bruschetta mix including wonderfully ripe, red tomatoes and Vidalia onion, etc. No bread on hand and instead of heading to the market, I cubed up some stale roasted garlic baguette we tried - when fresh, it was bleh... - cubed and with a bit of parmesan and sprized with olive oil and baked slow, they were ideal with the bruschetta mix on it - my panzanella with very little bread. ANYWAY, sorry - carried away... So often I wish I had more time to be at home instead of the office. I know that's absurd since I need to work, need the health insurance and am very thankful that I have a job. But the days I'm home, I do love it.

CurlyJax - YES, being at the same weight is an achievement - I'm up about 10 from last year and it's driving me bonkers. Keep fighting the good fight :)

Joy - Can you save a bit of one meal and use for another snack - like save the fruit from breakfast and enjoy it later for the mental third snack but still the same portion?

Love2Garden - Sorry to hear about your brother-in-law. Sounds like comforting conversations took place. Are you familar with BookCrssing? You can leave your books in public, with the label and follow them as people pick them up and leave them again. A friend turned me on to this a few years ago. I rarely now buy books, though, since I'm too cheap :) I prefer the library so I don't have to store them, and while I do enjoy my kindle, I prefer mysteries in actual book form. I LOVE buying a new book and savor it and save it and that's not what I should do... I bought War of Art last year when OneByOne suggested it and I STILL haven't dove in. It's the War of OPening War of Art book... apparently, for me.

Today has been another busy day - rearranging two rooms with a minor spat with DH bc he raised his voice and I said stop yelling at me ... a different life than his former marriage. Quick resolution and we went on to accomplish a great deal today - some projects continuing this evening. I cannot stress how I do not want to go to work tomorrow. I could get used to this - got all ironing done, including the plackets on DH's shirts that we never bother with. :)

I'm having a mental battle with myself on just releasing some framed art that I "could" sell on Craigslist - some really nice pieces that I had wonderfully framed years ago. Or I could donate this week and they'd be out of our home/our way. I struggle with I don't need to own something forever. Or that I should earn money from it when I let something big go. Or something that I perceive as valuable (old foreign dolls). I"m reaching a crossroads here that I'm just moving things on after a day of contemplation - then I'm not blindly tossing it all but thinking about it and preparing my mind.

Upping my ticker back up to 175 tomorrow. @#$%^&*( GRR. Scale is jumping there immediately every single time in the morning weigh ins. Doesn't even give the pleasure of a 173.8...174.2...174.8 .. just 175.0.

Maryann - Big hugs to you for your struggle yesterday. I can feel the pain, frustration and sorrow in your note. Honest. Don't torture yourself with rehashing it anymore - Fill that empty hole in you with thoughts of what you did love on the weekend and how your son will remember sharing the concert with you.
Off to get some fresh pico and check my cilantro for the pepper "nachos" or the like for tonight...

Hello Coaches,
Just getting back from a trip to help mom with things around the house. It was a good visit for all of us. Saw my brother, who has been fired, moved back (not with mom, thank goodness), and is supposedly looking for work. It was good to see him, but hard. He has been an alcoholic for many, many years and is wasting away his life with nothing to show for it. Makes us all very sad. He is a genetic replica of my father - alcohol and all. Mom is wary, for good reason. Since my step-father has passed away he is sneaking out valuables and selling them. So we all showed forth our love, but mom let him know that under no circumstances was he to take anything without her permission. My sister and my husband were all there, so he knows we are on to him, but honestly - desperate people do desperate things......Hopefully he will get some work soon.

Anyway......mom always has a ton of food. My sister came with her seven kids and mom loves for us all to eat, eat, eat. And apparently, I forgot to pack my self-will in the suitcase. I ate with abandon for three days. But you know what? The scale will reflect my recklessness tomorrow, no doubt, but I am going to pull myself up by my bootstraps and carry on. I enjoyed the family and won't see them again for months. Maybe next time I will work out a better plan beforehand.

BillBB, it is good to have you back. maryann, I am sending support your way and hope that tomorrow will bring a ray of sunshine into your heart in some way.

Off to exercise while I have the will.

More tomorrow.