How I use the holidays to motivate me!
 

During this time of year, FALL/WINTER, it is so easy to slip up and decide that "these treats are only available once a year, it is OK if I have one (or 10)". I personally like this time of year to be dieting because it forces me to take a hard look at if I NEED that chocolate covered pretzel or if I only WANT it.

I am lucky since from about Mid Oct-New Years Eve, my family has things (parties and get togethers) about every 2 weeks. I look at each of those 2 week periods as a chance to drop a couple more pounds before the next group of people see me. Most of them have not seen me since March when I was at my heaviest (this time). I was able to drop 28lbs :carrot: before the first event and the second is coming up this weekend.
It is a BIG ONE, a HUGE party with people I only see 1-2 times a year socially, although we are friends. Most of them are my husbands friends and I dread them thinking that he married someone who has let herself go, especially because when he and I met and got together I was smaller than I was last time I saw them.
So now I sit, 4 days before the first BIG event and I am 8lbs smaller than when DH and I first started dating!!! I plan on buying a new outfit this week for it also.
By Thanksgiving his family will get to see me and we will have a great time visiting and I WILL be 15 lbs lighter than when we first met. I will be 35 lbs lighter than when they saw me at my wedding to their brother/son last September. I am sooo excited. I made it through halloween without eating 1 single candy, and you know I do not have any cravings for it either.
By the time Christmas comes I will be within a few pounds of my goal, and happy as can be, and by New Years Eve, when we see our other group of friends who I havnt seen since 4th of July, I should be just shy of my goal a few pounds, and that will be the lightest anyone has ever seen me here.

Thanks for listening, sorry for rambling!

That is a great motivator!

My holiday motivator is that I've added a bunch of exercise/health books and products to my wish list, and I want it to be believable (not laughable) that the gifts will be useful to me. I also have some nice clothes one size down that I'd like to wear this Christmas/New Year's Eve, and I think it's doable to get into them yet this year.

Thats great Phantastica...I know I am going to buy my outfit today and I am going to get something for Christmas and Thanksgiving get togethers today so I will buy them a little small...wish me luck

My motivation for the holidays is that we are going to have a family picture taken that will go out in our New Years cards this year. We haven't had one taken in 3 years and in the last one I was the heaviest I'd ever been. This holiday I want to be able to wear a cute outfit in the pic and I want it to be noticeable that I have taken off weight. The last pic I was wearing a dress that looked more like a heafty bag than clothes to try and cover the massive thing that I called a body. Since the pic I have taken off about 22 lbs (10 of that since I officially started the new way of eating.) This pic goes out to all of DH's family, most of which we haven't seen in person since our wedding almost 6 years ago. My goal is to drop another 12 pounds before the picture (which will be taken about 2 weeks before Christmas). I don't want his family to think good grief what happened to her? His mom knows I'm trying to lose weight but she also is of the mind well she's tried before and...
Well I want to prove her wrong and show her that yes I can do this! I also want to be able to sit in the floor and open presents with my kids without my body being in pain from getting up and down to the floor. I want to be able to dance with my hubby on New Year's for more than 5 min before I feel like I'm going to pass out. These are my goal for the holidays.

HEATHER, those are awsome goals. I know what you mean about wanting people to not wonder what you did to yourself...

I want my hubbys family and friends to see me and him to be PROUD of how I look, and that he is MINE..lol I know he is already proud of me, but you know I want him to be able to gloat .....lol

wow congrats on your success!!

I know exactly what you mean. I know that my fiance likes me for who I am no matter what I look like, but I want to be (and feel) sexier so that he can be just a little envied :D

Miles, that is exactly it...we had our first party Sat. Night and people looked at me like WOW, I even got a comment that I looked 10 years younger than I am, which is huge since I am not old..lol My hubby's friend said "what are you doing, you look younger everytime I see you...im not hitting on you but you look GREAT, what have you done?" I was sooooo happy about that I beamed all night...lol

Gonnaloseitagain that is so awesome!! I know you must be on cloud 9 after a compliment like that. And you guys are so right about wanting our men to be envied! That is it exactly. I want to be able to go out with DH and have people be like wow they look great together, not ok how did he end up with her. Oh and I had a small success. I tried on a cute little spring dress that's been in the back of my closet for ages because I couldn't even get it much farther than just below my boobs and I can get it all the way on! It is still a little tight around the middle but hey it goes all the way on! By next spring I'll definately be able to wear it comfortably as long as I stick to plan. I'm still stuck in the same place with my holiday goal. Still 12 pounds away. I guess I'll have to step it up a notch if I want to make this happen. I only have 3 weeks till the picture so I don't think I'll be able to take off the full 12 before then but I'll be happy if I can get at least half off. Then I'll work on the other half over the next couple of weeks after that. If I can do 2 pounds a week then I'll be at goal for New Years.

Heather, I agree...I am on a nasty plateau so I wont make my holiday goal (at least not thanksgiving) I am completely discusted about this stall. I want to get moving again!!!