I am curious as to what you do each and every day to ensure you stay on plan to better health.

I am weak in remaining consistant on things like 8 hours sleep, daily multi vitamin etc. So other than exercise and meal plan what do you do to consider your day a success?

I am working on new goals for each 10 lbs increment lost. But I would like to give myself a gold star for each indivudual successful day!

I find when I do the following the lbs just fall off. But when I deviate from these I go right back up.

Vitamins
8hrs sleep
Stay OP meals
8+ser Water
30/60min Exer
Weight ______ (yes daily WI keeps me on track I dont often get hung up on minor ups besides it warns me when aunt flo is due to arrive!)

For me, Julia, it's all about establishing how I'm going to live the rest of my life. I am really concerned that I won't be able to keep the weight off after I lose it all, plus I have health issues that dictate some of what I have to do each day.

I decided to live as if I were on maintenance, which is at 170 lbs. In order to maintain that, I have to exercise 30 - 60 minutes a day, cardio and weight training, drink at least eight glasses of water per day and eat about 1800 calories a day with a nutrient mix of 40% carbohydrates, 30% protein and 30% fats. I also need about 30 gm of fiber. I need to have regular sleep patterns and 8 hours of sleep. I'm not perfect about it all. I don't think healthy people who are at their perfect weight do either. If I go "off plan", I get right back on it and my body adjusts.

I do whatever it takes to maintain all that. I have eliminated all foods that don't support my goal from my house. I get up at a regular hour and get to bed between 10 and 10:30 p.m. I drink two glasses of water before every meal. I take vitamins and meds that need to be on an empty stomach first thing in the morning. I take the rest of them with lunch. And I keep all that stuff right where I can see them, because I will forget!

I don't like to plan meals. I just cook healthfully, without excess fats, sodium, refined carbs. I don't eat anything prepackaged any longer (to avoid the soy-allergy ramifications). The only time I plan ahead with meals is when I'm going to a restaurant. I try to look at the menu online when I can, but I try to stay with items that are prepared simply, without sauces, and I don't eat any baked goods.

Regarding exercise, that's where I stumble, a lot. I used to exercise very regularly when I lived overseas. I had a group of friends that I worked out with everyday, and they would call me if I even thought about not going! They were great! But since moving back to the US on my own, I haven't found anyone to support me in that way. And the other issue with the exercise is involved with the soy allergy. When I accidentally get soy (and it can be in diet or skin/hair products), I experience extreme lethargy and muscle aches and have to take the rest of the day off. Two days ago I was on fire! I got so much stuff done around the house, and went on some very long walks. But yesterday, while I ate entirely soy-free, I washed my hair and used conditioner that had lecithin and panthenol in it, then moisturized with something that had glycerin in it, all of which are soy products. I spent the rest of the day in a fog, and today I'm still struggling. Not much gets done on days like that. (Not all products are labeled with all their ingredients. I had to contact the manufacturers to get that information. Now I have a big bag of product that's going to my sister's house.) So the real frustration surrounds exercise.

I'm good with losing weight very, very slowly. I'm moving in the right direction. When I make a choice to go off the goal-weight maintenance plan, I gain. That keeps me honest in my choices. I'm not going to ever, ever diet for an event, or for somebody else. I'm the only one using this body.

My struggles:

- getting enough sleep
- drinking enough water
- handling stress and emotional things without food
- eating enough during the day so I don't overeat at night
- carbs (sometimes I just want carbs)
- exercise (i really struggle here)


Things like the exercise, I just need to do it or make myself do it. I'll get used to it eventually. I do like being active, I have been active all day today, but it isn't really "exercise" so I never count that. I do need to balance my meals more, sometimes I eat way too many carbs and notice my weight loss stalling or me being bloated/retaining water. Icks.

Some days I find myself making negative choices and other days I find myself making a heck of a lot positive ones. I think we all will make negative choices, I mean we are human beings after all, but if you see the positives coming out more and more then I think that attitude is what keeps me going. I never question that I'm going to lose my weight and then after that point I plan on working it for the rest of my life lol. There have been times when I've been impatient and thinking that I won't lose my weight fast enough and i even used to worry that I would gain it all back, especially in the beginning. I have periods where I gain back some weight or I struggle and I think that what keeps me going is just thinking about how I'm constantly evolving. I'm constantly becoming a better person, growing, and really seeing things in a totally different light than I did. I'm learning how to live and even with my back steps and such, I'm still trucking along.

I have this huge list of things that I need to improve on, that I struggle with, some are very personal and haunt me, others are more practical like drinking enough water. I think I sort of look at my list as goals, some are quick goals like "go out and walk you numpty" and others are like "hmmmmmm...put the fork down when you're full every time, not just SOME of the time." lol.

Eh.... lol...i'm rambling!

Julia - what a great question. First of all - weight has never just fallen off me. The things that I must do and I do without much struggle:

Minimum 100 oz water
Record every bite (I like the chalkboard idea)
Limit my carb intake

Things I struggle with include:

Weighing and measuring
Exercise
Getting bored with same ole same ole
Being too hard on myself

I would like to try putting my fork down between every bite - but I always forget until I've inhaled my meal.

water- 128 ounces everyday!
sleep- I need at least 8 hours to function
food- 1400-1600 calories....PLANNED!!
exercise- 30 min on the minitramp makes all the difference
2 fiberchoice tablets...just in case I didnt get enough fiber
1 multivitamin...going to make myself start them today