What was your sign that you were okay, that changing the way you live your life and think about it was the right thing to do, and that you could do this? I just got mine today, in the smallest way possible. It's actually something so small it might even be trivial if it weren't for the fact that it was a huge eye opener.

My mom got back from the store and we were unloading the car. I spotted a container of Oreos (reduced fat, which made me even more interested). I thought, 'oh, yum, I love Oreos', which was kind of weird. Ever since I got into this healthier-lifestyle thing, I haven't really wanted cookies, candies, cakes, sweets, fast food, etc. But anyway, after we were all done, I said, "I'm going to have an Oreo."

And I did. One Oreo. And I was fine. I didn't binge. I didn't crave more. I was satisfied with that one Oreo. And I just felt this great feeling of ease, like, did I need the Oreo? No. Did I want it? Eh, kind of. Could I have lived without it? Definitely. But did I eat it? Yes. Did I feel guilty? No.

Anyway, just felt like sharing. Share yours, please? I'd love to hear them.

oh yeah, that is a huge nsv. Especially if it is something you really really like.

For me that would be a slice of cheesecake. I would not even try it right now though.

my "sign" was when the ice cream truck drove by and I let it. I love ice cream--well I LOVED ice cream. I could live without it now, and have been for a few months.

My moment of clarity didn't really come with passing up something I love.

The moment my desire to lose weight was not all about how I LOOK, but rather about my HEALTH and how I FEEL... it was suddenly not so scary anymore, actually, it's kind of exciting and fun.

I want to start a family in the next couple of years, and my biggest motivation is that I want to raise my kids with a healthy lifestyle, and if I ever plan on doing that, I need to make changes for myself, too.

I went on vacation in May & completely went off plan. I don't think I ate a single healthy food for a week. I came home & I was 5 pounds heavier. But instead of giving up, I went back on plan, lost the weight and a little more.

No longer do I catastrophize overeating. It happens and I dust myself off and carry on. I never use a binge as an excuse to give up completely.

That's a huge success for me.

i haven't reached the "sign" marker yet, it's still early days, but i am looking forward to it. reading the responses is inspirational, though, so thanks for starting this thread.

I will never have faith in any "sign"--I am a very different person, yes, but as quickly as I changed into this person (less than a year), I suspect I could change back into my old self even more quickly if I stopped being on guard.

That's mine, too. Yey!


That, and the fact that I can and WILL live without all the bad things from before, because... I don't need it. And I'm almost to the place where I dont want it!