Living the Lifestyle-Fri. Dec 7

podkey

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 December below:

Monday - Imastar2 (Derrick)
Tuesday - 88olds (George)
Wednesday - minimyzeme (Kim)
Thursday - savignr (Bob)
Friday - Podkey (Bob)
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 December below:

Monday - Imastar2 (Derrick)
Tuesday - 88olds (George)
Wednesday - minimyzeme (Kim)
Thursday - savignr (Bob)
Friday - Podkey (Bob)

Today's Topic: Willpower,Self-control are they over-rated and if so how can we positively steer around temptations??

This follows up to savignr's LTL of yesterday.

Jimb376mfp

I remember reading a post about how every time you demonstrate willpower to not give in it helps you to build that “muscle”. Overtime I feel confident to not give in to a bad temptation.
For example a few nights ago I was craving a piece of toast with PB at 11:00 PM! I thought about it and how I used to eat late late snacks. I made the better choice to decide to have it for breakfast in the morning
I really do believe that The Willpower muscle does get stronger the more you use that as a conscience decision.

steve0mania

Overrated? No way. Willpower and self-control are critical skills. Heck, we should exert self-control in all areas of our lives!

I agree with Jim's point, though, which is a "use-it or lose-it" view. Initially exerting some willpower can be hard, particularly without a plan. For example, if you're at a work party, and there is some favorite food, it can be hard to resist in the spur of the moment.

Thus, exercising that "muscle" is important. Later-on, if you've been saying "no" to that favorite food at parties, then it's not so hard to say no again.

A useful aspect of this that impacts on both my personal life and my food life is keeping kosher. I started keeping kosher a few years ago, and that has really forced me to learn some self-control. For example, I know that I will never eat food at work that is not kosher. That really cuts out a lot of items that would have been very tempting to me in the past. While I am sure they are still tasty, I view them as foods that I exert absolute self-control over.

Ultimately, however, it's easiest if the temptation is never there. In response to this, I try to manage my home environment by not bringing in too many temptations (while at the same time trying to avoid being a crazy person). At work I bring my own lunch in every day so there is always an appropriate meal for me. Etc.

minimyzeme

Willpower,Self-control are they over-rated and if so how can we positively steer around temptations??

Both terms suggest to me that losing weight is a fight or battle we have to win. Maybe in the beginning, I felt the same, but if I did, it didn't last long. What I found, much to my relief, soon after starting WW, is that it gave me the structure I needed to help me accomplish something I wanted to achieve. That mindset took some of the "fight" out of the (endless) task.

Decades ago, I learned in a martial arts class to use the energy of my opponent against them. Ironically, I took on a similar perspective with weight loss by intentionally choosing not to make it a battle in my mind. Instead, I perceived it to be exactly what I wanted and needed to get where I wanted to go.

In large part, it has turned out to be that. I have gained a lot of benefits from losing substantial weight. I move and breathe better and more easily. All my medical metrics have improved and I sleep better at night. I've enjoyed wearing smaller, better-fitting clothes and feel more confident in my own skin. This isn't to say every day has been the proverbial picnic or that there aren't times I miss some of my former food and drink gluttony. But those times are relatively few and far between. For the most part, now that I'm here, I'll gladly take the tradeoffs I've made to enjoy these benefits.

It is with that mentality that I face my days now--having chosen to live in this smaller, healthier body. By doing so, I don't have to rely on willpower and self-control. I just have to appreciate how much better my life really is now compared to when I started this journey back in 2014.

podkey

Interesting Steve but as measured with some interesting new tests the ability of successful folks to exert control was not greater than than others. One of the new tests was to present a series of words of the name of colors that were in fact different from the actual color of the font chosen for the specific word. The word "blue" was done in red font the word "red" was done in green font as was brown. Results below:

Participants have to indicate which color they see and ignore what the word actually says. “When the meaning of the word conflicts with the color of the word, you have a conflict,” Inzlicht says. And, the thinking goes, you have to use self-control to power your brain through this conflict and come to the right answer.

Folks who answered the survey that they had exceptional self-control actually didn't do significantly better than those who said they had poor self-control.

Changing our habits and changing our environment helps tremendously and apparently much better than just staring at the devil and saying "no,no,no".

I like minimyzeme's idea of changing the energy and our direction. One technique I use that I suppose is a type of deflection is in surveying a buffet line to direct my mind at many possibilities. This works better for me rather than just to stare at each item with the "do I want this" or not. Not sure of how it works but it helps. Maybe it gets past the emotion of each item as presented.

I differ from Steve but find diverting my attention away from temptations is far more productive than trying to toughen up the so-called "willpower muscle". This is not at all meant to be negative but to direct us in a more positive manner. Steve is right that in some real sense we do need to face temptation and somehow change how we view it.

gadgetgirlIL

This discussion reminds me of this article I saw in the New York Times:

https://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/21/magazine/do-you-suffer-from-decision-fatigue.html

88olds

When I started I read a book by Albert Ellis called something like The Art Of Rational Eating. He said something like this- the trouble with people and willpower is they make it all about will and forget about the power.

I think the power is in the planning.

The will part- staring down a box of Girl Scout Cookies- is overrated. It can work here and there, but willpower runs out.

If we’re sitting around after the big family dinner and the dessert comes out, I’m getting some. But I’m going to delay eating it. Because I know the cookies and candy are coming next. And in a nod healthy eating, some fruit. So I’m waiting for the fruit and having some of that. Then when I can’t stand it anymore I’m eating that piece of pie.

Otherwise its going to be pie, cookies, candy and fruit. So I guess that’s some strategic use of willpower. But beyond just say no.

podkey

Excellent way to put it 88olds. there is power in planning and somehow it appears to strengthen our decision making no matter what ya call it. After maybe 10 or more years I finally got my wife out of the habit of bringing home 1/2 gallon of pumpkin ice cream. I like pumpkin ice cream but staring at that big carton would not help me. worse than that is she is really a light eater in general anyway.

I agree that it is a more complex issue than just a yes or no proposition but find the new experiments and data to be intriguing. I suppose to there was some observation or bias on my part when one of our nice First Ladies proposed just saying no to sex and drugs. I am always a bit skeptical that underage pregnancy would be eliminated by this alone.
Oh I I agree with Steve-O (?) and others that weight loss is simple BUT not easy.

imastar2

Willpower,Self-control are they over-rated and if so how can we positively steer around temptations??/b]

In my opinion

imastar2

Willpower,Self-control are they over-rated and if so how can we positively steer around temptations??

I just lost everything I wrote on this topic. I hate that when that happens so here's the short version.

To me their neither overrated. Their both very beneficial in my decision making. However there is another word that to me is much bigger than either of those and that's decide. I have to decide that I must leave the foods alone that are detrimental to my losing weight.
So the word Decision plays a huge part for me. Once I've decided on something and tell my mind then I just carry through with it. Much more to it than that but again abbreviated version of my lost post I lost.

SW 400.8
CW 337.6 🙂 - .4 lbs
1st 335.0 Goal
2nd 300.0 Goal
Final GW 185.0

62.2 lbs Total Loss

Jerdtrmndone

Willpower in any aspect is strong. If I do not have willpower I will not meet my goals. Years back when I lost my 110lbs. I was on the highest point of will power and lost every single wk. I also had the willpower to go to the gym plus the pool the same day. Now I am on the low end of willpower in both weight loss and exercise/activity. I push just to get 5,ooo steps in a day and to stay on track for my weight loss. I have lost 4lbs. over the past month so I am slowly improving my willpower.