I was 5 lbs short for my October goal but I am newly inspired!!! I did great this weekend and hit a huge NSV. I am really putting thought into why I want to eat stuff. Is is hunger? Boredom? Anger? I am finding my emotional connection to food and its awesome!!! I had several chances to eat off program and I didn't. I can actually say its just a way of life now, not longer a diet or program. This is who I am. Very exciting.

So... my November goals are:

*exercise the full 200 allowed cardio minutes per week.
*drink 100 oz of water a day.
*get to stabilization before the end of November.

We can all do this!!! November is our month!!!

daisy you and I sound very familiar. May I ask you, how did you go about discovering your emotional connection for food? That's something I need to address and am curious. If you choose not to share, I completely understand and PM if you'd like.

Oh! I want to November Challenge. My goal is to lose 15lbs in November and to make smart decisions during Thanksgiving dinner

I initially gained my weight (60 lbs) in the Air Force. Part was laziness but a lot was lonely and emotional eating. Being sad, lonely, single and away from my family. I had no problem putting down a whole pan of brownies or a pizza by myself. I was 195 getting out and stayed that way for a couple more years. I lost some after a little dieting but I just got to the point with food that it was my friend. I didn't have many friends when I got back home and had been single for several years. It even got to the point that I almost hit 3 years without sex. I was in a deep depression and food was always there when men and friends were not. I started pulling myself out of the depression and met my boyfriend. He was very healthy and I had always wanted to be. We went through a lot with me trying to loose weight. I was down to 165 when I hit a plateau and after a few frusterating months joined MRC. I have done pretty well but after the first 2 months started BLT and just making bad decisions. The change came a few weeks ago after eating a whole box of melba at dinner. I knew the melba wasn't bad for me, its on my plan after all but why did I have to eat the whole thing!? At a WI a counselor asked me if I ever connected that overeating of melba with emotions. NO WAY!! So the next time I pulled the box down with the intent of eating the whole thing again I stopped... I felt the feelings I was having, an argument with my bf. I was mad at him. Thats why I wanted to eat. To get rid of being mad at him only then I would be mad at myself for eating the 20 extra melba. SO I sat there and went through the feelings I could have... empowerment, being proud, accomplished if I stopped at my 40 calories of melba or ashamed, quilty, unworthy, embarased mad at myself for eating it all. THen I wondered how long the urge to eat would be compared to the feeling of dread after I ate it. It was no question the dread would last at least 2 WI's because I would be mad the first one that I had to write it down and show someone and mad the second because I was imagining what weight I could have lost if I stopped at 40 cal. It just wasn't worth the battle. I did the same thing Sat. I went to a Halloween party and really wanted him to go and he didn't. It was a week long disagreement and it upset me. On the way I wanted so bad to stop at a fast food place and get a large fry. I knew it was anger that was pushing me to want that food, not the need for fuel so I waited and told myself if I am mad when I get all the way across town I can stop. I blared music and sang my lungs out driving and still had a little push for the fries. I told myself if I still wanted it after the party I could do it. At the party I made up my mind I was not going to let the fact that we argued make me eat, again it wasn't worth the dread. I felt angry and just felt it till it went away then had a great time drinking my diet rite zero. I had brought a water bottle with HNS and Fiber for after the party and drank that on the way home. By then the pull to the fries was gone. Its been much easier since these things have happened and each time I CHOOSE to be the new me it is easier. I am in control of my mouth, not my anger, lonliness, depression or frusteration. ME. Its very empowering...

Sorry its so long but I just started going and couldn't stop... hope this helps!!!

DaisyHotRocks,
Thank you for sharing! Reading this helps me with my reasoning and motivation.



Started MRC 5/9/09

DaisyHotRocks - THANK you for sharing, I too have food issues with emotional eating...particularly when I am angry, lonely, bored etc...I have had a difficult last couple of weeks, nothing too bad just a million BLTs - you have helped me put these in perspective as I have been very stressed lately...you have helped me refocus on the emotional connection and I now will made conscience choices in what I put in my mouth…

Thank you for sharing! That's what I've been thinking, yet I've still continued to eat and binge eat. Every time I get the urge I need to think about what is pushing me to want that and think about the feelings I would get when/if I choose to eat and what I would feel if I didn't eat it. THANK YOU!!!

i agree, thank you SO MUCH for sharing. it really shines a light on why we do what we do. i'm going to try your approach and think it through the next time i feel like gorging on leftover mini snickers (ugh) or going for a big latte because i'm just "too tired" to make it through the day (yeah right!).

i think i really needed to hear this today. thank you, thank you!!

[QUOTE=daizy hotrocks;2998236]I initially gained my weight (60 lbs) in the Air Force. Part was laziness but a lot was lonely and emotional eating. Being sad, lonely, single and away from my family. I had no problem putting down a whole pan of brownies or a pizza by myself. I was 195 getting out and stayed



Way to go Daisy! --Joy2MeNu

Thank you everyone!!! Its been a great couple of weeks as far as getting in touch with myself goes. I think that it comes down to being afraid of those uncomfortable feelings and wanting them to go away and instead of alcohol, or drugs we use food. Those feelings suck but they are not dibelitating. The more I feel the lonliness and anger the less intense the feelings are... I'm glad my post helped so many of you!!! Keep up the good work everyone. I think November is going to show lots of loss for all of us!

I'm just beginning week 14 at MRC. I've lost 36 lbs. My October goal was to lose enough to get to 40 lbs. down, but, I came up short. I had a couple of small cheats and slacked off the water and exercise. Overall I am pleased with my results, but, always wanting more. I think it's important for me to set a November goal. This time I'm going to try to get to 50 lbs down. So, 14 lbs down in the next 4 weeks. Wish me luck!

daizy,

I think I've been eating because of anger too. I have committed to this program, put a lot of money in it, and have had the longest plateau of anyone I know.

Last weekend I just thought "It doesn't make any difference if I stay on plan or not, I'm still not losing." I pulled myself together Sunday night only to eat spaghetti on Monday.

And my weight is UP significantly. I know I can get it down, but it's giving me a big heads up that stabilization is not going to be easy for me.

I feel better since reading your post, daizy. Knowing that others get frustrated makes me realize it's only a temporary phase.

I think I need to find a new source of inspiration.

This might sound crazy but have you ever watched Obsessed on A & E??? I got the idea of feeling my 'feelings' from there. The show is mostly about OCD people that get really worked up around certain things... for example going into an elevator. The therapist makes them do exposures where they sit in the elevator and actually feel the anxiety... eventually the anziety level goes down and after several exposures the anxiety is way down compared to when they started therapy. I am sort of using this but instead of being anxious about an elevator I am stopping before I eat what I don't need to eat and paying attention to my body to see what I am feeling then just feeling it. It does go away, both the feeling and the need to eat to cover that feeling up. Whew... lots of typing but this is very theraputic!!!

Well everyone I finally did it I signed the 10# board. Still more to go, but
it felt good. Now, it's the 20# board in November. I think I can do it, just
hope Thanksgiving doesn't mess me up.
magnoliagirl

Daizy,

Thanks for your info. I too am a stress eater. When I get disappointed or feel out of control I eat. Due to this fact i have puffed up about 100 pounds in about 3-4years. YIKES, I hate to admit that.

anyway, thanks for your comments and letting me feel as if I'm not the only one!

Motivated for me!