Ever since starting SBD, I've felt in my gut that this was the 'diet' or better yet lifestyle that was going to work for me and even allow for some errors along the way. Nothing else I tried made sense or quite fit. I haven't posted in over a week because since the July 4th long weekend I made some poor food choices and didn't exercise nearly as much as I should have. Despite that I managed to remain on p1.5 85% of the time. To me P1.5 means 1.25 cups of low glycemic fruit and the occassional raw carrots in salad and corn on the cob.

I'm not ready to go to P2 just yet because I'll be leaving for a 3 week vacation on Saturday and I know inenvitably cheat so my goal is to continue to strive for p1.5 85% of the time hoping that will help balance out the off plan choices. That and I'll fit in as many walks as I can.

So today I took a deep breath and got on the scale. I was scared of finding out I gained and was crossing my fingers I maintained. I wanted to know my weight before vacation because my goal was to maintain it so I wouldn't have to start over once again when I got home. I'm so tired of going up and down. But to my shock, when I stepped on the scale I found I lost another 4lbs!! This makes me feel so much more hopeful for my vacation because I thought it was going to throw me off course too much and quash my newfound motivation.

So now I've revamped my goal and I'm going to dare to lose 2lbs while gone. The significance of doing this will be twofold, for once it will mean vacation doesn't automatically equate with an eating fest of garbage and drinks and that I can eat healthy and still enjoy myself, but secondly I will be on the verge of going from the 170's to the 160's. I got as close as 170lbs a year ago from 202 lbs and I could not get past it and instead my weight slowly crept up back into the 180lbs. The 160s seemed so unatainable to me now for so long and now I can practically taste it.

Another hurdle I recently overcame happened the other night. I did something that I never in a million years thought I would do. DH went out to get us chips and he bough a big bag each because they were on sale. We both ate a moderate portion and decided they made us feel crappy and they didn't taste that good. So we threw the rest out. In the past I never would have done that. The fact I did that really drives home to me that I can do it this time.

Sorry for the novel but I felt the need to share these mini successes. In the past I never tooted my own horn but maybe I need to start doing that so that I don't slip back into my old routine and so that I will finally believe I can do it. Even if no one reads this or comments, I know its out in the Universe and its there to remind me that I will make it this time.

I'm also hoping newbies like me and those who are at crossroads can take from this post and know that slip ups along the way are OK and NORMAL and they will happen. It's what you choose to do once you slipped up. Just keep on striving.

This is the Universe speaking:

GOOD FOR YOU!

I'm smiling at you. I "cheated" tonight but with pork rinds, an old Atkins fallback of mine. In the Beck Diet solution they recommend you have a fallback diet (i.e. Atkins, calorie counting) when you just really can't adhere to your current plan. Life happens and if you can stick to a plan 85% of the time you are light years ahead of most others on the planet!! Glad you threw out the extra chips. Next time you decide to cheat, buy a small bag and eat the whole thing. Then get right back onto the bandwagon. Falling off and staying off are the easy parts, getting right back on after slips is what we all need to learn how to do.

I totally needed to hear this...congrats on your successes, and sharing your cheats...we are all human! You can do it...and so can I

Good for you! Even with the cheats, I'll bet you are eating a lot more healthfully than you were previously, and you have the success to prove it! What great motivation before your vacation!

YAY!! That is so awesome! I had a small cheat today and felt so guilty. But reading your post made me feel a little bit better. Thanks for sharing!

Thank you for posting this. It makes so much sense!

to OP: congrats on how far you have come, and keep your head up as you move into the future!

I love this post. Now, bookmark it or something and refer back to it whenever you feel like you are having a crappy day and can't go on!

I think you've done amazingly! And they aren't small either!

It gives me hope for when I go on my cruise - I can enjoy it, enjoy the food but also exercise and LOSE weight!

Yay and great job!

Thank you everyone for the feedback! I'm feeling renewed and motivated. I even scoped out menus online for the place I'm having dinner on Saturday and planned my meal and I'm packing a lunch for our flight. Plus I asked my brother to buy us some SBD food for breakfast. If I ask my family for help they will. I hope I can come back here in three weeks and bump this post back up with good news of either a loss or a maintained weight.

I'm glad this post has helped some of you as well. Already love this forum for the support it offers.

Congrats on your success! Have a great vacation! Planning ahead is such a great help and it sounds like you've had time now to think things through.

Yay!!! Thanks for posting this! Toot that horn so others can hop on the train too!