Accountability - Clean Slate # 3
BMI: Overweight (moving closer to goal)
How I'm feeling about my journey: 😊 Anticipatory
At 3 days into this intervention journey, I've already made some pretty big accomplishments! Last night was our church community group night. I'd eaten reasonably all day - smart portions and healthy choices - and yet, I was still feeling really constricted in my clothes when I got dressed to leave for group. It was a good reminder of how much work I had ahead of me to try to get my weight back down to a comfortable size. I'd tried lots of other things to keep me focused on my goals in the past, but the way my clothes fit was always the strongest of my accountability partners and I was about to learn that my 'boundaries' list would be another reliable help to being successful on this journey.
At group, we celebrated one of our member's birthdays and when I walked into the host's house, I was greeted by familiar faces and a familiar tempting situation: desserts covering every inch of the coffee table in the middle of the room that we would sit around in a circle of chairs for the remainder of the night.
This group has always been a tough couple of hours for me in regards to resisting the temptation to binge, but last night was particularly difficult. As I sat there, looking at all of the delicious 'special' foods and watching others so delightfully enjoy them, I felt left out. I literally felt like I wasn't participating in celebrating my friend or her birthday, despite the fact that I'd brought a card for her as well as pitched in to buy her some flowers.
I wanted to indulge. I wanted to make an exception to my rules (just this one time), and I wanted to take part in the things that everyone around me seemed to be so freely enjoying. But my boundary list kept popping up into the forefront of my thoughts, reminding me that "refined sugar" was not only an avoidance on my list, but also the very FIRST thing on my list. Refined sugar was the height of my temptations and it included every piece of food on that coffee table! Talk about sink or swim...this was going to be a true test.
As the night rolled on, I wrestled inside every time someone else picked up a dessert and every time my gaze just happened to fall upon the dessert table. One chocolate covered strawberry won't kill me, I'd think. It's mostly fruit anyhow. The justifications were pouring in. But I simply could not side step around my boundaries - having just constructed them that very same day, mind you. If I ate from that table, there would truly be no justifying my behavior. And so, I resisted and when I finally arrived back home, I made myself one small slice of multi grain toast with almond butter and a touch of honey before going to bed. It had, after all, been three hours since I'd last eaten at dinner and I considered my pre-bedtime snack a win.
I slept soundly and when I got up this morning, I was curious to see what the scale might tell me after my full day of good choices. I didn't expect anything too exciting since it had really only been one day, but I was pleasantly surprised to see a number reading almost one pound less than what I'd weighed the day before. It was an accomplishment. A small one, but still! I'm learning that celebrating even the smallest of my efforts is always worth the fuss. I happily made the announcement to my husband, who sincerely congratulated me. It felt good and I felt ready to start another day of hard work with the hope that all of my sacrifices were going to prove to be worth it.
How I'm feeling about my journey: 😊 Anticipatory
At 3 days into this intervention journey, I've already made some pretty big accomplishments! Last night was our church community group night. I'd eaten reasonably all day - smart portions and healthy choices - and yet, I was still feeling really constricted in my clothes when I got dressed to leave for group. It was a good reminder of how much work I had ahead of me to try to get my weight back down to a comfortable size. I'd tried lots of other things to keep me focused on my goals in the past, but the way my clothes fit was always the strongest of my accountability partners and I was about to learn that my 'boundaries' list would be another reliable help to being successful on this journey.
At group, we celebrated one of our member's birthdays and when I walked into the host's house, I was greeted by familiar faces and a familiar tempting situation: desserts covering every inch of the coffee table in the middle of the room that we would sit around in a circle of chairs for the remainder of the night.
This group has always been a tough couple of hours for me in regards to resisting the temptation to binge, but last night was particularly difficult. As I sat there, looking at all of the delicious 'special' foods and watching others so delightfully enjoy them, I felt left out. I literally felt like I wasn't participating in celebrating my friend or her birthday, despite the fact that I'd brought a card for her as well as pitched in to buy her some flowers.
I wanted to indulge. I wanted to make an exception to my rules (just this one time), and I wanted to take part in the things that everyone around me seemed to be so freely enjoying. But my boundary list kept popping up into the forefront of my thoughts, reminding me that "refined sugar" was not only an avoidance on my list, but also the very FIRST thing on my list. Refined sugar was the height of my temptations and it included every piece of food on that coffee table! Talk about sink or swim...this was going to be a true test.
As the night rolled on, I wrestled inside every time someone else picked up a dessert and every time my gaze just happened to fall upon the dessert table. One chocolate covered strawberry won't kill me, I'd think. It's mostly fruit anyhow. The justifications were pouring in. But I simply could not side step around my boundaries - having just constructed them that very same day, mind you. If I ate from that table, there would truly be no justifying my behavior. And so, I resisted and when I finally arrived back home, I made myself one small slice of multi grain toast with almond butter and a touch of honey before going to bed. It had, after all, been three hours since I'd last eaten at dinner and I considered my pre-bedtime snack a win.
I slept soundly and when I got up this morning, I was curious to see what the scale might tell me after my full day of good choices. I didn't expect anything too exciting since it had really only been one day, but I was pleasantly surprised to see a number reading almost one pound less than what I'd weighed the day before. It was an accomplishment. A small one, but still! I'm learning that celebrating even the smallest of my efforts is always worth the fuss. I happily made the announcement to my husband, who sincerely congratulated me. It felt good and I felt ready to start another day of hard work with the hope that all of my sacrifices were going to prove to be worth it.
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