So I went to the gym and did a half hour of cardio to help with my cramping, and amazingly enough it helped! Thanks for the suggestion guys.

So....after that I told my mom that we should go through Drive-Thru at McDonalds and share a cone. So we ordered an ice cream without the cone and shared it. What a nice treat! I never eat at fast food, but I figured, it's low fat and a LOT better than keeping a half gallon in the freezer. Granted it's not part of my diet, but if you can't treat yourself sometimes....then diets get boring. Mmmm..I savored that ice cream!!

So how do you treat yourself and how often?

I don't really treat myself often. At least I don't think so.
To me a treat is something above and beyond my calorie count for the day.
I really try not to go over my weekly average of 12,460 calories per week.
I watch my fats/proteins/carbs "pretty" close.

And I save up my "treats" for Sundays.
We have company usually every other Sunday night, and my treat is always different depending on what my SIL brings.
Sometimes we add feta to a salad, or last week we really splurged and had baby back ribs.
I also usually have dessert that night too.
I give myself free reign on that day to eat whatever my heart desires, and what's funny is that I learned pretty quick that I don't want the same amounts as before.
If my SIL brings chips, I have one serving.
Pasta salad? 1/2 cup
Cheesecake? 1/2 slice.
Apple pie? 1 slice but I scoop the insides out and leave the crust.
BBQ ribs? 3 small lean ribs
Every once in awhile I kind of break loose and have too much of something, but I adjust the next 2 days to make up for it.
My weekly count is the same.

I count calories, and I'm always counting. There is no food I eat that does not get counted. If I want to eat something like ice cream, I first look up what the calorie hit will be, and then I decide whether I can alter my plan for the day to accommodate it--and also whether right now is the best time to do that. If I do eat it, it gets listed in my log with everything else. Why would I do otherwise?

Usually I decide against those foods more often than I decide in favor of them. My goal here is to lose weight, and eating a lot of "treat foods" is how I became overweight to begin with. They may have their place again when I reach my maintenance weight, but not often--and certainly not now, when I'm working on losing.

Jay

Good to hear it. It's always good to have control of the times that you treat yourself. Sounds like you do!! Same here...I knew I wanted to treat myself because I've been working really hard and I was having cravings because of TOM. The easy and best way for me to control that craving was to let myself have a little something. It was delish! I know I won't let it happen often, but it should happen on occassion.

I "treat" myself with a massage, with time to myself, with a pedicure from time to time and so on.

I don't think in terms of food being a "treat" or "reward" because that is counterproductive to me reaching my goals.

One of my loves is coffee. For the last while, I had been trying very hard to only have one cup per day, first thing in the morning. Then I made a deal with myself. If I go for a walk/cycle/etc. I get a second one.

Also forgot to mention is that I looked up the caloric value on the website and it was 90 calories for each of us because we shared it.

Jay, I have been seriously thinking about the calorie counting thing. I'm spending so much money on this class....like $350 dollars a month. *sigh* Although having the support is nice.

What class is costing $350 a month?

Well....there is the food cost which is a little over $100 a week, plus we have to have fruits and veggies, and then there is the monthly fee which is like $150 or something. I know...I'd be spending the money on the food anyway...just seems like a lot when ya go to pay for it there instead of at the store.

What is this class/program? I really would like to know.

If you google "HMR" you'll find it...also known as Hackley Management Resources...

The products were actually made for NASA...great tasting food...it really is. I love it, and love being creative with it. I used to cook a lot and I still can with this stuff. I used to be vegan so I'm very creative when it comes to cooking.

I try not to treat myself with food. I'm really trying to break myself of the mindframe that eating food that is off-plan has to be a part of any celebration. But it's very hard to do.

With all the exercise that I do, a massage is a real treat. I also get pedicures fairly frequently and I spend a fortune on my hair. I really look forward to the hour or so that I get to spend reading fashion magazines in the salon while the color sets. Clothes can also be a treat, although I have trouble finding things I like, so that can sometimes backfire. And, of course, a night out with friend is always a treat. I have a couple of close friends with whom I have a standing monthly pedicure/dinner date (the only thing better than a pedicure is a pedicure with friends).

Occasionally (maybe once a month), I'll have a couple of glasses of wine with dinner as a treat.

Also, any time my SO is out with his friends, that night is all about me. I'll rent a movie that I've wanted to watch (that he isn't interested in) and make something nice for dinner (that is on-plan) that he doesn't like. It's great if I can manage to find an OP recipe that includes several ingredients that he does't like.

I guess I look at it as being able to control myself now instead of saying "I can't have any of this until I'm at my goal weight".....then SOME people tend to splurge...I know I did the last time I lost a bunch of weight. I got almost where I wanted to be and ditched my diet and ate "real food".

I guess I was proud of myself that I was able to share a cone and be happy and not feel guilty. When I was dieting last time I got obsessive with my 500 calorie diet and wouldn't touch anything that wasn't liquid form. Eating a tiny bit of low-fat ice cream made me realize I'm doing great with not getting obsessive.

I do also treat myself with hair treatments because I love my hair. I give myself pedicures because my feet get very calloused.

I set some VERY strict rules for myself at the beginning of my journey. This isn't for everyone. But for me I needed initially to do without any so called treats at all. I felt if I allowed those so called treats into my diet in the beginning it would be counterproductive. Afterall allowing those into my diet in the first place is how I got to be almost 300 lbs. I really needed to change my entire mindframe and way of thinking. Just because I have a craving doesn't mean I have to give into it. The cravings alone didn't get me so fat. It was the giving into them part that did. I really needed to learn to get past the cravings without giving into them at all, no matter how many calories they had or even if I worked them into my day. No matter what the circumstances. Period. That's what has worked for me, because I have indeed now learned that just because I want something doesn't mean I have to have it. I don't feel deprived at all. I feel great about myself for the fact I make the right choices and that I am treating my body with the respect that it deserves. I have gone onto find that the more I did without the treats the less I wanted them. It was indeed a win-win situation.

Of course we're all different and this method doesn't work for everyone. We absolutely must each find the right mix and what works best for ourselves.
I'm glad you enjoyed your ice cream.

I never give myself 'treats/rewards' in the shape of food. I found out that it was totally defying my purpose of eating more healthily, it felt kind of the old trap of 'now that my diet is over, I can eat like I did before'. So I never set 'treat/cheat days' or whatever for myself with the thought of "I've done well". It works with some people, it doesn't for me. :/

I do, however, follow a 90/10 approach, and do my best to eat good foods during the week, knowing that I often visit friends on Saturdays and that we tend to eat pizza/cookies in the evening. But I've set a personal rule: I will only have those foods if I want them, not just because they're on the table (for instance, my friends love chips, while I don't really like them a lot, so I refuse to let myself graze on those just because the bowl is near my hand... KWIM?).

Hmm... In the end, I suppose I could call that treats all the same, in a way. I don't know?