connielovesdogs - While this week was a tough one, you are still down 4.7 lbs for the month! Lack of quality sleep has a way of making everything else feel much more difficult, right? As you observed, that, along with feeling famished, can be a real "double whammy" in terms of maintaining a pattern of behavior congruent with weight loss goals. When all of that runs into a broader societal environment replete with opportunities to fall into the Pleasure Trap, it becomes clear how challenging it can be to walk this path, and how resilient our plans and routines need to be if they are to endure. Your outline for navigating that 3 day training session seems very solid; the more you can do to ensure that you always have easy access to adherent foods, the better.
Cheers for a success-filled May!
squealcat - Don't beat yourself up, Marilyn; the Pleasure Trap is powerful, and escaping can be an arduous struggle! It sounds like you are well-prepared to support adherent behavior, and as you noted what you have done successfully in the past can serve you moving forward. I very much endorse the practice of keeping the focus of attention, and evaluation of success, centered on the behaviors outlined in the MWL 10-Point Checklist, rather than weight loss outcomes. We have significant agency over our behavior and decisions, while our influence over a specific outcome is attenuated, both with respect to timeframe and individual measures. I believe directing our attention toward real, specific actions we can take, and following through on that plan of action is a great way to bolster self-efficacy, and create positive loops.
PonysPlants - Down 0.4 lbs this week, and 1.6 for April! I applaud your willingness to let the pattern of behavior take the lead and set the pace for you, Naomi.
Congrats on your vaccine eligibility - very exciting news! Even if it takes longer than you might wish, your diligent, consistent adherence will get you to that last big milestone in the end. Not bad at all.
Onward!
Gimmelean - Hang in there! I second your efforts to move away from self-recrimination; calorie rich foods exert a robust allure for many of us - some days (and weeks) it gets harder to resist.
Gimmelean wrote:I know exactly which foods and behaviors were not compliant. I’m going to resume keeping my written journal, stay out of the kitchen after dinner, follow the checklist, revisit the Pleasure Trap video and resources.
That seems like a sound plan of action; might I add to the list adjusting your immediate environment to be supportive and conducive to your efforts to adhere to the MWL guidelines?
chef16 - You dropped 2 pounds this month, I believe, so your progress didn't completely stall out. Everything can feel more challenging when life grows hectic. Can you think of one thing you might be able to do, that would make adhering to a particular principal more achievable for you on an ongoing basis? When times are tough, the less stable areas of our practice reveal themselves; if we can adjust and strengthen those areas, we emerge better off than before.
carwex - Nice progress for your first full week back, Carol! Troublesome foods have a sneaky way of creeping into those spaces where we are feeling distracted, depleted, or just generally unmindful, don't they? Would it help to have an adherent snack
before you start preparing the family meals? I totally agree that the longer one abstains from hyperpalatable foods, the less pull they exert.
Rachael - Cheers for recommitting and returning to full adherence to the MWL guidelines! Sometimes feeling terrible post-indulgence can serve as a powerful reminder of why we are pursuing this way of eating, right? It helps us more accurately assess whether those rich foods are actually "worth it" to us. Glad you're feeling better about things now.
CindyD - Great work putting in the time to identify an action you can take to help support achieving your goals! Having enjoyable, adherent food prepared and on hand will always make things easier.
I'm so sorry you have been faced with that stressful family situation; my best wishes to you, your mother, her husband, and your siblings. These sorts of major life events are rarely easy to manage and process. With the pretzels and dried fruit gone, that's 2 out of 3 down, now for the nuts and seeds. Keep moving forward, and enjoy the lentil soup!
Noella - Your excellent adherence continues to pay off; you are down 0.4 pounds for the week and 1.8 for the month! Being able to comfortably wear that jewelry seems like a very nice bonus. Carry on with your exemplary habits and you are sure to get closer to wearing your wedding rings again.