Heck of a time getting back on track
 

Well I went on the eating bender from heck this weekend and it's been near impossible to stop. I seriously feel like I want to continue on this train wreck. It all began when I went out of town to visit family. I've been back on track for 2 days but I am seriously hanging on by a string. I had some binging issues in the past but those have been behind me for over 3 yrs. Well the urges have returned :( It's almost like once I opened up that portal, the flood gates swung wide open! I am so afraid of losing all control!

We all have those time where we fall off the wagon and don't always get back on right away. Whenever this happens to me I sit down and write all the reasons I want to lose the weight down on a piece of paper, I imagine myself at my goal weight and then I ask myself - Is food really worth losing all my hard work?

I believe you can do this :D Just because you made some bad decisions this weekend does not mean all it lost. Pick yourself up and get back on track, you can do this!

Whenever I feel the urge to swerve off track, I get out some photos of me that showcase my weight loss and think to myself, 'it took forever and a day for me to get here, do I really want to blow it now?' Works every time. Don't beat yourself up, tomorrow's another day. You've come so far. :hug:

Thank you. I ended up with 1500 cals today. This isn't so bad. But I try to stay between 1100-1200. So this is a little more than I wanted. And after the gluttony from Thurs-Sunday, I should have done better today. I know there is a gain but I have not stepped on the scale. The good news is at least I am stopping here.

Christine, I feel for you. Right now, I feel as if being on plan is so easy, but I know from past history that this feeling doesn't always last; I dread the day that I don't feel on top of my game because I'm not sure how I'll handle it.

What sometimes works for me is to just allow myself to experience the feelings that are leading me to overeat. For example, sometimes I get lonely and down, and rather than eating, I just allow myself to sit and cry. I know that sounds sappy, but it really feels good to just allow myself to experience my feelings rather than burying them with food.

Also, have you thought of maybe just figuring out what your approximate maintenance calories would be and eating up to those calories? There is no race to get to your goal, is there? Why not take a little break and "practice" maintenance? That will give you a bit more leeway in your calories so that you don't feel like you've overeaten if you do go beyond 1200.

Finally, it might work to try a few new things---a new exercise regime, even a new weight loss plan. Sometimes just taking a "break" from the current routine helps.

As I say, I feel for you. Do continue posting as doing that seems to keep many (including me) in the weight-loss "loop," so to speak.

Thank you for this. I went and cried in the bathroom at work. I suppose I am feeling some emotional pressures and I needed to just feel sad but being at work I could not. Also have not had funds this week to shop for groceries the way I need to. That messed me up. I think there's so many other things triggering this. Thank you for all the support everyone lended. This place helps so much.

I hate to say that today I did not fare any better. I was worse! 1900 cals. However, I do actually FEEL better emotionally. Tomorrow is the 1st and I'll be able to buy groceries like always and that will help. I have been subsisting on the snack food at the office and that's been making everything 1000 times worse. I am sure there is a gain but I am not getting on the scale until I hunker down for at least a week. I am afraid to let myself go the way I did last time I fell off for this many days in a row (today makes day 7, with 1 weight loss day and 1 maintenance scattered in there). Last time this turned into 3 months, during which time I gained half of what I lost back. I think with my food in tow, I'll be much more in control tomorrow.

Christine, the silver lining I see in all this is that you are still counting your calories. To me, that means that you are not going to give up. As you say, when you buy groceries, that will put you back into your usual routine. Let us know how it goes.

Thanks Lin. I made a commitment to myself that I would count no matter what, even if I gain, so I can learn better. I have been overeating but not binging and I'm trying to take this as a victory because my normal way is to easily eat well over 3000 cals (which I stop counting but estimate that's the damage I usually do) until I'm sick when I feel I've seriously blown it. I'm conscious that I want and need to get on track now so that helps me not throw caution to the wind to an extreme because I want to minimize the damage I have to correct. This is a process.