Retread
 

Hi again everyone. What a hectic couple weeks this has been...or month, rather. I just relocated (whole family) to another state and our house is a mess of boxes right now. Kids start school next week, but until then, they are home with me in this disaster zone. FUN! ;)

Well, I wish I could say that I've been following the plan these past few months but of course I haven't. I have a couple good days, then a week of bad ones. Get determined and then fall apart again. I'm trying to figure out why I keep screwing my own self over...

Could it be that I really dont GET how big I am now? Like...I know I am, I feel miserable, I want to change, I haven't felt like myself in years and I certainly don't look like myself. So, on one hand I definitely see it. But, maybe I just think I can change it when I want to, but when I do and I realize how long a process it's going to be, I get demoralized and give up...packing an additional ten pounds on every.time. I think that I don't have a concept of how serious this is...that it WILL take daily changes and hard work, going the DISTANCE. There arent any crash diets to take care of this mess, you know? I'm used to being thin and when I'd gain a little weight, it used to be easy to just do it to lose it, and I'd be rewarded for my short term effort. Now, when I do the same, it takes a week to see the scale move barely a pound....that's so discouraging.

I realize I'm not saying anything new here. I just needed to type it out and send it, I think. To remind myself that I'm still here, that I still need this, deserve this, WANT this. I need to make it a habit to check 3FC out every morning FIRST THING (before news, before email, before celeb stuff, before anything...) to get motivated for the day. Then, throughout the day I need to keep checking in here. It's the one thing that I KNOW gives me consistent feedback and support. You all are invaluable. Thank you for being there.

I know what you are talking about, Skinny. Any stress and I go crazy with the eating. Moving and living with the mess is very stressful.

My husband had emergency heart surgery in August and that completely threw me off track.

I think your idea of coming on here is a good one. Also, don't stop weighing yourself. When I have fallen off the wagon before, I always quit weighing myself. I think maybe I need to see my progress in the wrong direction, too.

Maintaining focus is definitely tough, and it is so very easy to just slip off track and stay there for a while -- it's familiar, and comforting, and un-challenging (if that's a word).

But it is worth putting in alot of effort to get that focus on your goals and keep it, because you will need that focus and that determination for the long haul. Weight loss is a long-haul project, and you still have to have focus and determination even when you like the number on the scale.

You can do it!

I went into my restart with the goal of 1 to 2 lbs a week weight loss at most. I was hoping to be 250 by the end of this year. I've exceeded that obviously, but continue to have modest expectations.

But what I focused on were changes for life. Absolutely not a diet. I've cut out candy bars, potato chips, almost all fast food (like 3 times in the last 6 months and lettuce burgers those times). I don't buy bread or pasta anymore, and just occasional sweet potato.

And I am exercising a lot more. I know what my biggest personal hurdle is, eating out too much. Really need to get that under control. But we are all works in progress.

I would suggest focusing on losing 10 percent of your body weight as the first big goal. Studies show that can really have an incredible impact on health. My blood work got vastly better although I am still very overweight.

I see a lot of goal times here on 3FC that make me cringe. But hey if it works for that person, go for it. But a lot of times it is 2 to 4 lbs a week and I think that is a set-up for failure. I do want to get under 200 eventually. If that takes me a year and half (from May 1 of this year) that is OK. Maybe this time next year I will be shocked at how easy it was to figure out how to not go out as much.

But could not agree more with Mrs. S, this is a long-term long-haul. Start with positive changes to eating and exercise that you can sustain. Have modest 4 to 8 or so lbs a month goals, that would be my advice.