I was just thinking.... which is always a dangerous thing. And, I recognize that this may be not right for everyone's situation. But, reading all that meganbee is dealing with, and knowing all the stuff I'm trying to keep track of, is it more difficult to try and alter your eating habits.... granted bad ones.... than to try and alter how you approach what you are juggling first?

I mean, if the one constant that we have in our lives is food, while the rest of our life is chaotic, wouldn't trying to change the one constant before restoring some semblance of sanity to our daily life be much harder?

Would it be better, and more likely to be a success, if we figured a way to lessen our stressors before altering our bad foods completely out?

I realize that this surely won't work for everyone, or why they are needing to diet, or alter their food choices.... there are lots of issues out there that cause one to have weight issues.

But, for me, and especially while breastfeeding, the chaos around me seems to breed my stress which makes me run for the cookies.... or just have an inability to really do much else.

I don't know if I'm making sense. I was just thinking that if it is really more LIFE that is behind bad food choices, rather than some other issues, would it really be a matter of trying to get that on track ... or closer on track... before thinking you can be perfect about food & eating?

edited to add: Kind of like the notion of adding and getting used to a new constant, before changing an old one....

Like adding in exercise for example. Add in something... consistently, everyday, for a set amount of time... even if I start at only 5 minutes... but, getting another "constant" started and in, before trying to eliminate another... like foods.

BTW... with the exercise thing... I always think of Susan Powder when she was first a big deal. I remember her talking about how she started exercising by just sticking her kids on the front lawn and moving them back and forth .... it was the point of just starting. Even if it was small. But doing it.

Well, I'm just going to put this last post as a sort of record to see if my thoughts will work, and maybe I can come back down the road and say whether I was full of it or I did something that worked for me.

I'm going to be kind to myself like Leeesa said.... give myself a break.

I'm also going to not beat myself up if I eat cookies, if I'm stressing out and go for the chocolate.

Instead, I'm going to focus on the small victories every day. Like yesterday, I was able to vacuum finally because the vacuum was finally fixed... and I wrangled the couch covers back on. Sure, it took me a half hour to pull them on and put the couch back together, but I did it, the room is clean, and I got a mini work out!!!

But, anyway, I'm going to find a small victory instead of focusing on a failure. And maybe, if I add in something for 5 minutes that will eventually turn into a good habit, I can begin to curb my bad ones.

We'll see if it works. Now I've got to check on sick kids and feed the baby... and find what will be my little bit of success for the day.

Sounds like a plan!

I agree! Focus on the positive and forgive the backslides, it's the little victories that will get you through the day