I have been bad, bad, bad. Dusting myself off and pulling up my big girl panties (literally) and starting over today. I am so sick and disgusted at the waste of money and time. The utter disappointment of not being able to control myself. Wow. Three weeks I have wasted.

I have renewed my determination. I am halfway there. I will not cheat. I am an addict and the little cheat turns into a binge so I WILL NOT CHEAT. Here's to starting fresh!

I know where you are, and how you feel. Great job sucking it up, moving on, and renewing your determination! We can do this, but we have to DO THIS.

OK...thanks, but over the top with the whole master thing (LOL). But what you are welcome to give me is a good yelling at...."just quit the coffee...do what you know works...and suck it up and get this done!"

I appreciate the support of this group so much....it has kept me going all these months.

I just figured out how to still enjoy my coffee...I don't drink it in the morning first thing...I like it mid-morning and afternoon so I will have a shake as my lunch protein and add it to my 10:30 am coffee and my 1 pm coffee and eat my salad at noon. Why didn't I think of that before?


Do NOT think for one second that any time you have spent is wasted...you are learning about yourself, your habits, your triggers, and how to recover. Dust yourself off and get this done. YOu have done wonderful so far.

I forgot when you started IP. You have done so well. Great job.

Had a rough weekend. Went to an out of town wedding to sing and ended up eating some pretty fattening food. Mother's day didn't help either. Here's to "starting" again.

I started Phase III this past Saterday. My coach told me to not worry so much about every little detail. We are trying to ween your selves off a strict diet and eat more normal, this is the type of breakfast you would be having in phase IV. She advised me to try and pick out healthy whole grains, they have higher protein and lower carbs, one serving of dairy (a peice of cheese, greek yogrut, lowfat milk. etc..), on serving of fruit ( berries, apples, banana, etc...) and a little fat (some butter, or something; still working on this part). So far I have not gained any weight back. I hope that helps.

I started a year ago, yesterday. It's a different game when you're in it for the long haul, like us, as opposed to doing it for 20-30 pounds over a couple months. You have to find ways to keep yourself sane and on track. If coffee makes you happy, have the coffee. :-)

You're not having the whole serving of protein, like they say in the docs? I know I'm overthinking, I just need to digest it fully before I can do it second nature. :-)

I *really* appreciate your help!

I use peanut butter as my fat. Oh how I love all natural peanut butter! I spread it on sprouted wheat/ezekiel bread. I am really enjoying Phase 3!

I also just realized that all veggies except potatoes are back on the menu. I am going to run out and get some avocado for my dinner salad and eat tomatoes with every lunch/dinner! I scored a lot of great veggies at the farmer's market on Saturday morning, but alas, I have already eaten them all. Also, my weight is holding steady at goal with Phase 3. Yay so far!

It's not a waste of time OR money. It's just a longer road than you think it's going to be when you start out.

Holidays and special occaisions are really hard. Especially when everyone around you is just eating all day - snacking on things you're not allowed to have. Do the best you can, and then be extra good the next day.

We're human.

I had a rough day after my 3rd weigh in!! Dusting myself off....and back to my routine tomorrow! I just had to give into my cravings..its been 3 1/2 weeks being so good and down 16 pounds & 10 1/2"!! My weight loss is more important to me then any stupid cravings!!! I will NOT give in again!!! ugghhh!

The most important piece of advice I have to give is not to try to be perfect.

I was never able to get rid of my emotional eating binges. There are times when I just want to eat. So, instead of eating ice cream or pasta when that happens now, I find something on the diet I can use to make myself feel indulged.

I'll go out for sushi (well, sashimi) if I need to feel like I'm eating something special or 'real'. I have salmon once a week. I have steak (or burgers!) two or three times. I have NO hesitation in dumping a ton of salt on my food if I want it.

If I'm having a really bad day, I'll 'cheat' and have some extra veggies. (An extra cup of broccoli is not going to throw you off, if that's what you need to do to stay away from the bad stuff.)

I recently discovered salad. I'll eat an entire head of romaine (or two!) after I have my dinner while I'm watching tv. If I've used up my allotment of oil, I'll just put salt and vinegar on it (I like rice vinegar, it's not as sharp as the white or the cider). If I do have a teaspoon of oil left in my day, it seems like a huge treat to add that to my salad and munch away.

I also recently discovered Truvia. It's been saving my sanity the last few weeks. I put it in coffee and I don't need milk. I put it in herbal tea and I don't need dessert. I even put it in seltzer, and I don't need soda.

So, my best piece of advice is, don't try to power through it on willpower alone. You have to live, too - but you can live and enjoy things that are good for you, and won't throw off the diet. Just try not to let it get to the point where you feel like you'll die if you don't have that cookie.

I'm with ya carla. I posted my transgressions on the "cheat" thread. Oh, I was so bad in a 24 hour period I scared myself. I join you in "starting" again. I'm feeling tired. Sugar hangover? I don't know. I'd like to say - we can do it - but no energy...we can do it...we can do it...WE CAN DO IT!!!

I'm back!
 

Wow! Thanks for sharing ladies. I am so hopeful and motivated! I've been MIA the last couple of weeks. Lots of stuff to do around the house and doing the maintenance by myself. Planted flowers, edged, pulled weeds. Busy....
Learning to be a party of one again and so far so good. Some days are tough but I get through them. You gotta just sit and cry and let it all out, then I get back on track and forge ahead.
Today's WI was 3 lbs and last week was 1. I have exactly ten pounds to go to onederland!! Can't wait.
Have a great IP week everyone!

Oh yea reiner - seems this past weekend was bad for a lot of us. I'm "starting fresh" with everyone.