Am I vain?
 

I have been thinking about what my mini-goals are going to be and I finally sat down and wrote some out. Ironically, they werent what I thought what they were going to be.

I think I have let myself go for so long that I am ready to "get myself back together"...what I mean is that I have not paid much attention to what I look like...i've bitten my nails to the skin, my hair is a hot mess, and I have no clothes because I hate shopping.

Therefore, I have come up with the following mini-goals which are 10 pounds at a time followed by a reward

10 pounds lost = hair cut and start tanning
20 pounds lost = hair highlight and teeth whitening
30 pounds lost = get my make up done professionally and nails done
40 pounds lost = massage/facial
50 pounds lost = new clothes
60 pounds lost = professional pictures with my boyfriend

Is this the way I ought to be thinking? or is this unhealthy?

:?:

I don't think it's unhealthy at all, I think those are awesome rewards! I think part of the process is not only feeling good but also looking good and enjoying the increase in self-confidence. Letting your inner "pretty-girl" come out to play is fun, embrace it and enjoy it, it's the fun part of being a girl :)

Thank you, Leeesa!! It does help to make the process more fun.

whatever works for you!!! it all looks good to me

Those are great rewards for hard work! And they are not being vain either, they are just having fun being a woman. Vanity is when you sit in front of the mirror a lot admiring yourself. Having your hair done, looking after your body, and wearing pretty clothes just show that you are taking care of yourself.

Goals and rewards are a great idea! And you're 60% towards the haircut!

What a great idea for extra motivation. This is like another version of the STAR CHART I used for my children.

Heck no, these are GREAT ideas! wish I came up with some of 'em, LOL :cool:

~ tea

This is absolutly the way to reward yourself. I did a similar thing with my mini goals. We as a culture celebrate with food, so what do you do when you are celebrating weight loss right? Your mini goals are fantastick and you should be very proud of yourself for setting your self up to succeed who would not want to succeed based on what you list has them looking forward.

GREAT JOB:carrot::):carrot:

Those are great rewards, don't worry about being vain, they're good motivators, and taking care of oneself is very pleasant after all.

(Now celebrating with food would be a whole other matter... ;))

I think it is an absolutely MARVELOUS idea. MARVELOUS. I gave myself rewards for every 10 lbs lost as well. It was great FUN and I LOVED having what to look forward to, above and beyond the weight loss itself of course. I rewarded myself with things though - a new pocketbook, a new pair of slippers, a new wallet, etc. Your "rewards" make perfect sense to me. First of all - they're not food. I never got the reward yourself with food thing. Anyway, this is definitely about taking care of oneself and being the best you that you can be and living the best life. And your rewards reflect that (except for the tanning perhaps).

Keep us informed of how you're doing. I'm anxious to hear how it all goes and how you enjoy those well deserved "rewards". :)

Hey what's wrong with being a little vain! LOL!

I like your idea I wish I had thought of something like that. I have lost 49 lbs and I gave myself a gift (new sneakers) at 25lbs. I wish I had thought about giving myself a reward at different intervals.

I may try it myself ... except I would modify my gift list to look like this! LOL!

25 lbs. - new wide screen TV
50 lbs. - 8 person hot tub for the back yard
75 lbs. - new car (fire engine red Mini Cooper)
100lbs. - two weeks in Europe with a new wardrobe

HEY I think I like this idea! :D

Wow. When you think reward, you REALLY think -

REWARD

And I like it. Very, VERY rewarding indeed. :)

I think aaneri's goals/rewards are a great idea! (And I loved flatiron's too. Where does "winning the lottery" come in?)

No, you are not vain. It is important to take care of yourself no matter what weight you are at, and things like hair cut, highlights, manicure etc. definitely boost your self-esteem. I would only say that you may need to start buying new clothes a lot earlier than when you have lost 50 lbs - your old stuff won't fit you any more and there is no sense walking around in clothes that hang like tents on you. As your new shape gradually emerges and your clothes size will keep dropping, you will find it very motivational - at least I did - and that's something money can't buy.

You are not vain at all! I have rewards set up for every 5 lbs, and they look pretty similar. Manicure, massage, perfume, lingerie... it's nice to do things that make us feel better about ourselves. That's not vanity, that's taking care of your self and looking your best. When I think vanity, I think of prancing around telling your friends how awesome you think you are all the time, lol... not buying a few treats for yourself for a job well done. I love your rewards. Enjoy every one of them!! You will have earned every one with your hard work and dedication!

Awesome job... it's a total body makeover!

Oh man this is a great way to be motivated! I'm going to start making rewards for myself when I hit mini-goals too. I want to smack myself for not thinking of this sooner--- I've always thought I'll only reward myself when I reach my end goal, but hey, I should reward myself during the journey as well!

And no, you're not vain. In fact, you're pretty darn fantastic! :D :D :D

I might steal these rewards lol ;)
although ive already started tanning

I don't think you're vain either! Most of my rewards have been similar...cheap earrings for a small loss, sexy red dress for bigger loss. There's nothing wrong with trying to look good! You will find you will feel good too.

I've been saying that weight loss has created a monster out of me! I went out on a rare night on the town last week, staying at a friend's house for the night, and I brought along two pairs of pants, about six shirts, shoes, and a few jewelry pieces to choose from b/c I wanted to look my very best! I work two jobs, and I rarely ever get to leave the house without a uniform on, so when I'm off, I dress to the nines! A few of my friends have told me they like seeing me take an interest in myself and the newfound confidence this weight loss has brought me, whereas before I wore what fit and wasn't confident.

Getting off my soapbox now...didn't think I'd make this so long!

Awesome idea! I made my own list just now - borrowing on your momentum and I'm anxious to get to goal 1 - I really want that DVD!!

10 - DVD from NG
20 - Manicure
30 - $30 at my fav consignment shop (which means a PILE of clothes if they are having a 1/2 price day!)
40 - A 'fun' class or workshop at one of the local colleges/nature centers
50 - NEW jeans from a nice store
60 - Jean jacket for my collection of patches
Goal - A trip to Philadelphia!

Allllthoooooooough, Flatiron's fiery red mini-cooper is intriguing! ;)

Bojo----I'm glad I could inspire...but I have to ask...I am from Philadelphia....and why in the HECK would you want to visit? I wanna GET OUTTA HERE...

Aaneri - I love those! I didn't set a lot of rewards for myself when I was losing and I think I would have been more motivated if I had. I do think I'm going to steal your teeth whitening reward idea - I'll come up with something to reward myself for! :)

He he - Being a bit of a Lewis and Clark fanatic I want to visit the American Philosophical Society and see the items they sent back during the expedition. Also, my son wants to see...The Liberty Bell. Of course!

Lastly, and I probably shouldn't mention this here, but after reaching goal I would love to reward myself at Pat's!!!! Oh, that's so bad! :D

Funny you'd mention Pat's. I just spent the weekend in Philly with my best girlfriend from law school. We ate at Pat's, Geno's and Prince's. Now I am back at home and back on plan - need to lose 2 more pounds to meet my March goal.

You should probably be MORE vain, and start doing those things now. Just cause you have weight to lose doesn't mean you shouldn't want to look great everyday...

Big girls are pretty, too.

Made my own last night

160-Some awesome sandals
153-Pedicure
145-Get my hair done professionally
140 or less - Two new outfits and a massage! :)
and my boyfriend said hed buy me a ring when i reached 140 lol :)

Thanks for this idea :D

Thats far from vain! I'm going to do the same thing, thanks for the inspiration!!

10 - Pedicure with all the extras
20 - Get my nails done again, its been years (always felt so feminine with french manicure)
30 - Spa day! Full body massage, facial, etc
40 - Slurge on I-Tunes...I'm a music head
50 - Plan a turn around trip to a beach in CA (I live in AZ) and buy a new bathing suit to wear before the summer ends.
60 - New hair style for my slimmer face
70 - Designer jeans from my boyfriend (his promise to me)
75 - An "after" photoshoot with me and my boyfriend as he is trying to get in shape too.

The mini-goals are great because they help you to stay focused...and the reward might as well be something you honestly want and are willing to work hard for.

OH WOW! I am SOOOO stealing these ideas! thanks for the inspiration. I never thought about doing this before..err, except with food, that is :(

I definitely agree

aaneri, (and everyone else!) you're truly inspiring! I have a "raindrop therapy/massage" scheduled at a local spa for April 10 - yeah, that's gonna be a GREAT Friday!. My DH gave me a gift certificate for my birthday last May and I just couldn't see myself enjoying it at that weight - didn't want anybody touching me! I've held a 10 pound loss for 2 weeks now, so I'm declaring victory on that. :)
Here's my ideas for reward:
159.5 (-15, and NORMAL weight): New swim suit for workouts
149.5 (-20): Interior decorator for my living room
139.5 (-30 and GOAL): A weekend family vacation at Typhoon Lagoon - the most absolutely awesome waterpark!
Thanks so much - now I'm all motivated again to go for the next 5 pounds!

I'm in the same boat, my son is 16m and I still wearing some of my maternity clothes.:mad:

Thanks for inspiring me, here I was thinking the 50 pounds I have to loose are not realistic. I think for me it's better to follow your example.:)

Success for you!

To be honest with you...

I have done EXACTLY what you have done when I made my "weight loss plan" last summer.

For every 10 lbs I will reward myself with something that makes me feel GOOD about myself (eyebrows waxed, hair dyed, teeth whitened, buy shorts, bikini, corset, get a tattoo, etc). The incentives help to keep you in motivation... and I will not reward myself with the above until I make my goal (ie. my eyebrows were really hairy and I really needed a wax, but I said NOPE not until you lose 4 more lbs to make your mini-goal.. so since I really wanted it I made sure I kept up with everything... my eyebrows are now waxed :))

I think this is a very healthy way.. plus you will maximize your self confidence when you feel like you are enhancing your physical appearance