Count me in on situational overeating as well. Though sometimes I get into the mindset of "do I want people to see me eating all this?" which actually is helpful at keeping my focus on good choices.
Midwife - could you take a small plate of the catered food, and dump most of it before you eat any, then carry the nearly empty plate aound for a bit? Or is it a sit down thing where you have to deal with having the plate in front of you. Hard I know.
Becky! So fabulous
like, really cool. Super coool. You should be so darned proud of yourself. I am bursting with my own pride for you!!!
Midwife, I will give you some crazy math-
I am about 150% improved in recovery but not quite feeling 100% recovered. Still backache and discomfort in various places. Sneezing and coughing is done with wrapping my arms around my belly. And it is still wow.
In terms of appearance, at worst I look way better and at best, well give me a few more weeks/months and I'll get back to you...
So speaking of situational eating, I had a meeting from 4-5 yesterday afternoon. When I went in, I found out that the admins had bought everyone McFlurries and passed them out one per person. By 4pm I'm already getting hungry for dinner, and I could not pass it up since it was specifically for me and already sitting in front of me. Sigh.
Today, I pledge to NOT eat junk at work.
Tomorrow, meanwhile, we have a company-wide meeting at a local hotel (none of our conference rooms can hold the whole company) which includes continental breakfast. I'm kind of torn -- usually I eat breakfast at home, but then when I get there I end up eating some of their breakfast anyway. I wonder if I end up getting more calories by eating at home AND eating some of the catered food than I would get if I just ate the catered food. I think unless I'm running late I'll plan for breakfast at home and a plate of fruit at the meeting.
Jessica, I used to face these buffets at meetings, also. I compromised slightly by eating most of my breakfast at home, except for fresh fruit. I would take a small plate of sliced strawberries & melon at the buffet. I found they always featured a bowl of this, as a concession to health. The other stuff was always bagels & pastries & etc.
I did better at the salad bar yesterday. The salad was just a tad over $9. I did have some of the vegan curried lentil soup, but I took a small cup, rather than a larger cup. This time, I could taste the salt. And I can press a dent in my ankle this morning. That's a lesson to me: No soup next time, which would be Wednesday, when I next head into the office.
I felt wiped out this morning & didn't get to the gym before office hours. I need to go during lunch or right after work. I have also scribbled down a short Pilates routine to try out on my own, based on what we've been doing in class, and I'm also eager to give that a go. Since I'm going to have a Pilates book open near me, as a prompt, to fresh my memory on the moves, I think I'd rather do that at home on my mat. (I have not yet seen anyone take an exercise book to the gym & prop it open in the studio while they're working.)
Pat, I think that is a good idea that would work for most people. I still struggle with the dual demons of the clean plate club and free food. I've also noted I have some hoarding tendencies, and it's hard for me to throw stuff away...weird, huh? As it was, when I went in, some people pointed out the food to me and I just said that I ate at home and that was it. So there ya go!
Fruit is a safe choice for sure. Good luck, Jessica!
Saef, I work out with a trainer, but a few months ago I considered going it alone and realized I would need to write out a plan and carry it around the free weights with me. I wasn't sure if that's what other people would do or not, but then I realized I didn't really care what it looked like to other people. It would be more important to make sure I was doing my plan. I doubt there are many regular people who are Pilates experts and wouldn't benefit from having a book or written plan at their fingertips. I'd say, go for it if the opportunity arises.
Water weight! Do I know it well. I dropped 3.5 lbs from yesterday morning to this morning just by eating on plan. And, TMI, I got up to pee at 11 and at 4.
Oh, and I made a good choice when I rolled in the door last night around 8:30. I was hungry and I had a greek yogurt instead of leftover pizza. Yay!
Saef, I have carried my New Rules of Lifting for Women book around the gym with me many times! Nobody has ever said anything about it. I sometimes see other people with notepads or binders that they keep their workouts in.
Thanks for the advice guys, I will plan for breakfast at home and fruit at the meeting tomorrow morning. Now I just have to get through today at work without caving in to any junk food. I did my bike ride this morning, so I'm battling the demon of "you worked out today, so you are hungry, so you should eat more." I guess that's one thing to be said for evening workouts -- there's not enough time after them to eat too much!
Definitely back into the losing game again now that the meet is done. I'm freshly inspired - after spending a few days on deck with the Master's swimmers, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I still have a few pounds to remove. What amazed me is that being surrounded by tight, toned, fit people did not make me feel bad about my own shape - I am simply thrilled that the OPTION of looking that good will be open to me, well into my 70's and beyond!
Saef - I ALWAYS carry around a notebook or clipboard with my current routine exercises, and also to record the weight I use. I simply can't remember all that in my head. I don't see why you couldn't do it with pilates - no one knows it all from memory when they start. Even when I go to zumba classes, the instructor has a sheet listing the moves for each song - she refers to it all the time.
Midwife - glad the catered food meeting turned out to be a non-issue! I have a hard time throwing away food as well. I'm getting better at it.
Yesterday was a so-so day eating. Did well until dinner, and then I didn't. I went to a friend's house to pick up something and we ended up sitting in her yard drinking wine (1 glass for me) for about 90 minutes. It was a gorgeous evening - and we don't have a lot of those.
Off to the gym this morning, and then a yoga class at 4:30. I've not done yoga for about 5 years, and never the class at the gym. We'll see how it goes.
Kitty, I am sending you good vibes. : I need them too. I said I wouldn't eat any junk at work and so far I haven't, but there's an hour and a half to go and I'm getting really hungry. I just keep telling myself that as soon as I get home I can snack on pita bread and hummus, but my stomach isn't listening!