LTL Thursday 8-26-2018

goldenfrisbee

We meet here to explore, share, celebrate, and (sometimes) agonize over how we do (or don't) incorporate weight loss guidelines into our daily lives. "It's a lifestyle, not a diet" is easily and often said, but sometimes not so simply put into practice.

This is a thread for everyone. If you're new to GoaD, or to weight loss, your questions and comments are always welcome. If you're maintaining, or a long-term loser, your thoughts on the topic may be just what someone else needs to hear. If you're reading this, join in the discussion!

Each weekday, a new topic is offered up for discussion. Thread starters for August are:

Monday - Imastar2 (Derrick)
Tuesday - Jerdtrmndone (Jerry)
Wednesday - minimyzeme (Kim)
Thursday - goldenfrisbee (Chris)
Friday - misterhub (Greg)

Today's topic: Is there a self defeating thought that you have trouble with?

88olds

Not good enough.

What I’m doing isn’t good enough. Sometimes morphs into I’m not good enough.

Something that helped me- I was playing Churchill’s memoirs on a tape. At some point he said this:

Perfect is the enemy of the good.

Don’t think it’s an original Churchill idea. Maybe it is. But I had just started WW. It was a big help. I only needed to do better.

Jerdtrmndone

Yes. When things go wrong I think the worst instead of being positive but I am getting better with it though.

podkey

Later. I got poofed?

goldenfrisbee

I've been thinking about this recently and it occurred to me that I expect to be fat. I don't know when that happened.

imastar2

I can get started tomorrow.

SW 400.8
CW 344.4 ☹
Next GW 300.0
Final GW 185.0

56.4 lbs Total lost

podkey

I goofed. It is easy to drift into Dante's underworld. The road there is easy. I find that viewing myself slipping away from a program or lifestyle in my mind with negative thoughts and negative visualizing is self-defeating. It is ok to have a thought or an emotion but then to let go of it. As others have said perfection and consequent slippage is not helpful. So maybe the most self defeating ideas are of defeat itself and visualizing that. I prefer not to dwell on it so much.

misterhub

It's okay...this time.

minimyzeme

Is there a self defeating thought that you have trouble with?

I'm like @Jerdtrmndone in that I'm a worst-case scenario guy (which can lead to a 'oh, the hell with it' attitude). That worst-case scenario can stress me out, which often leads to mindless eating. And thus the cycle that used to exist about 90% of the time.

Over the past couple years, I've really tried to work on that. It was pointed out to me that if I can imagine the worst, I should be just as able to imagine the best. I argued, 'yes, but I'm a realist', then immediately realized how twisted that was. So, I've tried to slow myself down, and take things one step at a time. It doesn't always work and I still sometimes stress-eat due to my over-active imagination. However, I'm much more likely to be able to talk myself of my ledge these days than I was a few years ago.