The hardest part, I think, of this weight loss challenge of ours, is changing our mindsets around what's *good* to eat VS what's *good for us*. I have YEARS of diets under my (larger than I'd like) belt. I maintained at my ideal weight for more than seven years on the Atkins plan by convincing myself that I absolutely LOVED red meat, cheese and eggs and HATED fruits, veggies, bread and sweets of any kind. Trouble with that is that I was SO restricted in my eating (I never added back in all the carbs that you're eventually supposed to start eating again on Atkins) that I got just plain BORED with it, and I think my BODY was saying, "Give me a peach! An orange! Give me freaking carrot, ferpetesake!" AND, of course, I ultimately "cheated", and cheated some more...and cheated even MORE until I was eating everything in sight. See, I was STILL of the mindset that candy bars and pastries and cakes and bread - and all that low nutrition/high calorie stuff was the YUMMY stuff, while anything remotely good for me was crappy *diet food*. THIS time around, I'm really beginning to LIKE veggies and fruit....am really not so crazy about red meat anymore, and find that sugary, starchy things just sit uncomfortably on my tongue and coat my mouth with greasy or sweet residue that has me wanting to run for my toothbrush. I don't feel deprived eating nutritionally *good* as opposed to junk *good* stuff anymore. Oh, hey - I don't have all the answers here! Some of you are on maintenance, and I've got more than 20 pounds left to lose! But I AM old...been around the block a NUMBER of times...and really have to conclude that in order to lose weight and KEEP it off, we have to consciously choose to change our relationship with food altogether. Self-talk, meditation, creative visualization...whatever...we need to start to like what's good for us despite the fact that society as a whole inundates us constantly with the opposite message - just as our parents are likely to have done as well. Old habits and perceptions are hard to break, but it really is what works! Okay, sorry for running on, here. I just think that if we could learn to like what's good for us, we'd have a lot less temptation to "cheat" on our "diets". I'm working at it - not always quite as successfully as I'd like, but I THINK it's more about our perceptions than anything else (unless, of course, we're on medications that cause weight gain, or have some sort of medical condition that makes it hard to lose).
Just my ten-cents worth.
Have a great day, y'all!
E!

OK, so when I read the title of your post, I IMMEDIATELY thought:
"Oh my, she has brought back some horrible STD", and
"Or worse, she contracted a terrible disease, like hepatitis or HIV",
and then I recalled a news report about a guy who came back from some tropical country with botflies in his scalp and they started hatching and crawling out of his scalp, which TOTALLY freaked me out and would be a HORRIBLE "souvenier" of your trip,
and finally I thought,
"Maybe she's expecting a baby"!!!!
What RELIEF to read that it was only a few pounds. Something that you can fix!
Hang in there!

You know, my weight fluctuates abut 5 lbs every 2 weeks, so I know it can't be my consistent eating habits. SOmetimes the water just packs up. You'll get it off back in no time!

I'm going away for a week next month. We're going to be staying in a hotel-but spending our days at my brother's house.

I have been trying to plan ahead....but I've gotten so freaked out it isn't worth it. I am going to try & make the best choices I possibly can is what I've decided.

I will have a piece of wedding cake. RASPBERRY CHEESECAKE And I might have a drink......other than that I trying to make sure I bring some healthy choices with me. And purchase more when we get there.

If I gain.......I gain.
But I'm not going to go bonkers.
Gotta go with the flow......and bust my tushie when I come back to get my routine back in order!

I totally identify with this thread right now, and I am so glad it is here.
I just got in from my vacation about two hours ago (my sleeping schedule is wacked out so I'm wasting away hours on the internet until I'm tired) and I have been skulking around on my other "sites" scared to come back to 3FC because I feel guilty about how much I ate. I am scared to weigh myself, tbh, and I'll see how I feel in the morning but I am thinking of having a "detox" day where I go completely back on plan, drink a TON of water, exercise a good amount, and then weigh myself the following morning.
I do have to say that I was really proud of how active I stayed on my vacation - I did something really physical for at least an hour everyday! On the days that I wasn't biking/walking/kayaking I went over to the gym at the place we were staying AND I went in the water at the beach later that day and bodysurfed/fought the current for an hour or so. Hopefully all that counteracted my indulgent dinners (nothing TOO awful, but definitely not really my plan!), but I know from the bloating in my stomach that there is definitely some hanging on. Maybe it is water weight, not sure....
Sorry, this has turned into rambling, but I totally understand where you're coming from and the only thing you can do is get right back on plan, which is what I plan to do!
Good luck to us all...

Ellabella, first off, you are beautiful! Now, secondly, I agree with you that it is difficult to change our mindsets to like healthy foods...I DO like healthier foods (except not crazy about salads, steamed veggies and plain protein...I am a spices kind of girl) but I ALSO like that fattening stuff that sabotages my hard work. Some people can eat badly in moderation, but I am not that girl. I eat a little and then I keep going if it tastes yummy. And unfortunately, I am on meds that caused a substantial amount of weight gain (I'm on several anti-depressants and mood stabilizers), but I can't blame all of my weight problem on those meds, I can thank my overeating for that too. I am still trying to stop liking those bad foods!

You have MADE MY DAY. I had to lol when I read this. Hilarious. Yes, I am lucky that it's just a few extra pounds, thanks for reminding me that it could have been worse!

I have decided that I am not getting on the scale until next Sunday. That should give me time to get back on track with the water etc.

I am having such a freekin' hard time getting back on track. I think that is the worst part of what I did. I have planned my meals for next week and have made sure to include a salad at every dinner, which always helps me be satisfied with one portion of the main entree. Argh! Why oh why??? haha