May 2017 McDougall Weigh-In Group

[amandamechele]

Veggierunner - Fab-tastic job! I hope this week went well for you too. Sorry for the delayed response (It's been that kind of week). I will update last week's tally to be sure you are included!! How is your mom doing? Is she enjoying it so far? Was it a big change for her?

Qwerty988 - I'm with you, I'm also at the stage where only MWL will take me further. Your fries sounds deliciously spicy! Lol. You got your teenage son to come around?...please tell us your secret. Most of my family is intermittently onboard, too, but they still don't see the need to be as committed as I am (and need to be). Slowly but surely I'm sure they'll get there.


I have hinted above and in another post that my past couple of weeks have not been going so great. I'm battling with my desire to self-medicate with food while going through a slightly stressful patch of life (nothing time and patience can't fix ). I saw a delightfully humorous cartoon posted in another wonderful support group and I thought I'd share it here.

Some weeks I definitely feel this way about the scale, and other weeks I want to dance with it.

I look forward to hearing from all of you on Friday and Saturday. I hope you're all having a week where you want to dance with your scale!

Amy XO

[GlennR]

Amy,

Here's one of my favorites.

[Suey51]

Hey Amy.
Thanks for sharing the cartoon, it really made me smile Hope things improve for you soon x

I've been getting through my first MWL week, navigating minor bumps in the road with the help of inspiring words from Dr McD and you guys; planning how to have birthday dinner tonight with hubby without gaining weight before tomorrow's weigh-in, when suddenly I'm overtaken by stressful feelings and about to lose control of my eating I was going to go for a walk to calm down, but its started raining so I'm sharing it here instead.

**Now off to take some deep breaths and hunt for an apple **

[amandamechele]

Hey Amy.
Thanks for sharing the cartoon, it really made me smile Hope things improve for you soon x

I've been getting through my first MWL week, navigating minor bumps in the road with the help of inspiring words from Dr McD and you guys; planning how to have birthday dinner tonight with hubby without gaining weight before tomorrow's weigh-in, when suddenly I'm overtaken by stressful feelings and about to lose control of my eating I was going to go for a walk to calm down, but its started raining so I'm sharing it here instead.

**Now off to take some deep breaths and hunt for an apple **

How are you doing? Walking is a great idea when its not raining. I find cooked baby potatoes work well in these situations too. Plain. They are snackable and though I may overeat them a bit to circumvent stress/anxiety, they are quite filling and won't trigger further poor choices.

Sending you a calming hug. First week is tough, try your very best to keep at it!

Amy

(Edited to add:)

I just realized that my advice sounds like I am advocating for emotional eating. It is such an easy way to calm oneself when feeling stressed. Hence, why so many of us do it. Here's my flow chart, based on principles from the Pleasure Trap that I think lead me down the rabbit hole:
Stress + Conservation of Energy + hyperpalatable food --> desire to eat away stress --> weight gain + feelings of lower self esteem --> further poor choices ( not to exercise, engage with others, eat more junk) (and now loop it back to the beginning).

Hopefully, since potatoes are a whole food and shouldn't trigger those craving pathways, it can be a great transition strategy while exploring other ways to deal with acute or chronic stress. Or just a strategy to use when no others are available in a pinch.

[amandamechele]

Amy,

Here's one of my favorites.

Glenn,

Thank you for the laugh. I have had this exact same experience at the doctor's office...lol!

[Qwerty988]

Happy Friday everyone!

This week I'm down -0.2 pounds.

The weight loss is moving slowly at this point and in an effort to feel okay with that, I've decided to start weighing monthly. I'll keep checking in here weekly though!

Wishing everyone a great week ahead

[Suey51]

Hey Amy.
Thanks for sharing the cartoon, it really made me smile Hope things improve for you soon x

I've been getting through my first MWL week, navigating minor bumps in the road with the help of inspiring words from Dr McD and you guys; planning how to have birthday dinner tonight with hubby without gaining weight before tomorrow's weigh-in, when suddenly I'm overtaken by stressful feelings and about to lose control of my eating I was going to go for a walk to calm down, but its started raining so I'm sharing it here instead.

**Now off to take some deep breaths and hunt for an apple **

How are you doing? Walking is a great idea when its not raining. I find cooked baby potatoes work well in these situations too. Plain. They are snackable and though I may overeat them a bit to circumvent stress/anxiety, they are quite filling and won't trigger further poor choices.

Sending you a calming hug. First week is tough, try your very best to keep at it!

Amy

(Edited to add:)

I just realized that my advice sounds like I am advocating for emotional eating. It is such an easy way to calm oneself when feeling stressed. Hence, why so many of us do it. Here's my flow chart, based on principles from the Pleasure Trap that I think lead me down the rabbit hole:
Stress + Conservation of Energy + hyperpalatable food --> desire to eat away stress --> weight gain + feelings of lower self esteem --> further poor choices ( not to exercise, engage with others, eat more junk) (and now loop it back to the beginning).

Hopefully, since potatoes are a whole food and shouldn't trigger those craving pathways, it can be a great transition strategy while exploring other ways to deal with acute or chronic stress. Or just a strategy to use when no others are available in a pinch.

Thanks Amy for the kind words and calming hug, I'm feeling much calmer now. The deep breathing helped last night, as did the apple as an alternative to an unhealthy snack. I then made some no-oil kale crisps, prepared some food for dinner (chopping veggies can be almost meditative!) and had a bath. Potatoes are a good idea as a transition strategy and much healthier than my go-to 'treats' of crisps or chocolate! I'm going to walk to a gentle exercise class later this morning which I'm looking forward to

The advice and stories shared on the McD forums have been a great source of support, strength and encouragement this week. Thanks for the helpful summary of the Pleasure Trap, I'll investigate it further. You've also reminded me that there are other resources that can help me. I'm going to revisit some CBT exercises to help me manage future potentially stressful situations. Be good to try and reduce their intensity/frequency as well as managing the emotional eating aftermath!

Will share first week's weight loss (yaaaayyyy!) as a separate post.

Sue x

[Suey51]

Happy Friday everyone!
My weight loss this week is 1.4 pounds

Hope you all have a great weekend x

[Svenja]

Hello!

I at the same weight as last week, so no gain or loss for me ...

My blood pressure is 121/88 without medication ... coming from 150/100 with medication. Still room for improvement, but I am very excited for it!

I started the day with a big sleep in ... it's the first day off a good week of break days. oh yeah!!!
I will be studying at home during this week and overseeing some work at the new practice.
It will be hard not to gain weight being at home and convincing myself to study ... I am very easily distracted ...

Have a great weekend everyone!
Svenja.

[bmccloud]

No change on the scales from last week.

However, I'm wearing new pants and belt the next size down, and it feels so GOOD!

[galooop]

Hello, everybody!

Down 1.6 lbs. this week
"Little by little..."

Chris

[Loralei]

Hello everyone,

I have a gain of 1.5 lbs this week. I won't make any excuses...I was out of control this week. But I vow to be compliant, not over eat, and get some form of exercise everyday this week.

Gook luck to all!

[Yomom]

Amy, I am traveling so did not get a weight this morning. Please put me down for no change at 149#. Thanks.
Kathy

[hazelrah]

The pound I put on last week disappeared again (-1.0). Basically nothing is going to change until I get into a normal routine. So I'll probably be bouncing around for a while. Thanks for your patience.

Congratulations to all US losers. Let's close May out with a bang! Have a great week everybody.

Mark

[anne57]

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