Weight-loss "task-force" challenge
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steve0mania
Posts: 2,977 Member
I've decided to start my own little "task-force challenge."
There didn't seem to be a lot of enthusiasm for having a 5 pound challenge (which is probably what I need to take off, more or less). There was, however, a really good question raised, which was (paraphrased), "what do I need that I'm not getting from the current 10 pound challenge?" I've given this some thought, and the issue (for me) is that I did lose the first 10 pounds, but didn't really have a focused plan to keep going. As such, I've been drifting a few pounds above my personal target weight.
In another thread, I was reminded of the importance of setting up a sustainable process rather than a goal.
I decided to challenge myself to a time-limited "process" effort.
The idea is that I (and anyone who cares to participate) will strive to follow my personal food plan for the next 30 days.
There is a background to the choice of 30 days. Some will recall that Jews recently celebrated Passover. On the second night of Passover, we start a process called "counting the omer." It's a biblically-commanded process related to the bringing of the new barley harvest, and the upshot is that we count 49 days, and the 50th day is the holiday of Shavuot, the day the Torah was given.
There is an idea that Jews are supposed to work to improve their character traits in a highly-focused way during this time. The details aren't important for this discussion, but I thought it would make for a nice effort at personal improvement to work on following my food plan for this time period.
I like the idea because (1) it's time-limited, (2) it's process-focused, and (3) if it works out well, I'm hoping that I will have established some new habits by the end of the challenge.
Finally, I will count based on the Omer. As such, today is day 1 of the challenge, which is Day 19 of the Omer.
Feel free to post whatever. Or not.
There didn't seem to be a lot of enthusiasm for having a 5 pound challenge (which is probably what I need to take off, more or less). There was, however, a really good question raised, which was (paraphrased), "what do I need that I'm not getting from the current 10 pound challenge?" I've given this some thought, and the issue (for me) is that I did lose the first 10 pounds, but didn't really have a focused plan to keep going. As such, I've been drifting a few pounds above my personal target weight.
In another thread, I was reminded of the importance of setting up a sustainable process rather than a goal.
I decided to challenge myself to a time-limited "process" effort.
The idea is that I (and anyone who cares to participate) will strive to follow my personal food plan for the next 30 days.
There is a background to the choice of 30 days. Some will recall that Jews recently celebrated Passover. On the second night of Passover, we start a process called "counting the omer." It's a biblically-commanded process related to the bringing of the new barley harvest, and the upshot is that we count 49 days, and the 50th day is the holiday of Shavuot, the day the Torah was given.
There is an idea that Jews are supposed to work to improve their character traits in a highly-focused way during this time. The details aren't important for this discussion, but I thought it would make for a nice effort at personal improvement to work on following my food plan for this time period.
I like the idea because (1) it's time-limited, (2) it's process-focused, and (3) if it works out well, I'm hoping that I will have established some new habits by the end of the challenge.
Finally, I will count based on the Omer. As such, today is day 1 of the challenge, which is Day 19 of the Omer.
Feel free to post whatever. Or not.
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Today is 19 of the Omer.
Over the past few weeks/months, my daytime intake has been consistent with my plan, but I've given in to snacking nearly every evening, with either food snacks, or a bit of alcohol. If I want a better "process," this needs to stop. My plan has always been to limit snacking and alcohol to the weekend.
In the past few days, I've managed to skip the snacking (and alcohol). It's funny how much of it is simply habit. As soon as I sit down on the couch after dinner, my immediate thought is how nice it would be to have a few jelly beans, or a glass of wine or bourbon. I'm certainly not hungry at that point, and I really don't need a drink. Nevertheless, it's a habit I've fallen into, and it's one I want to break.
So, a key area of focus moving forward will be to skip the weeknight snacking.
182/133.8/146 (personal target 130)1 -
I'm in! 30 days takes me to a few before our Vegas vaca. It would be very beneficial to the achievement of my end "goal" if I have firm habits in place, in the hopes that I won't lose the next two months trying to get back on track 🤦🏼♀️.
I'm not totally clear on what to post though. Should we post the plan? Check in regularly? I'm open to whatever, but would like some accountability.
By my count, day 30 is May 15.1 -
I think folks can post what they want. I'm planning on posting my daily thoughts on how the prior day went: successes, failures, struggles, issues, strategies, and whatever, plus a plan for how to push through any challenges I'm experiencing.
May 15th is about right. It's a little tricky because the Hebrew calendar "day" starts the night before. Nevertheless, Shavuot starts on the evening of May 16th.3 -
That helps, thanks! I like the idea of daily. Should really help with mindset!1
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Checking in !
Background ... I'm working to get back on track after a 2 month hiatus, otherwise known as a time of near mindless eating (near because I was just pretending, I knew exactly what I was doing), I'm finally tracking accurately (8 days in a row).
Yesterday, my biggest struggle was not having "just" one or two jelly bellys, a few pistachios, a tortilla chip from the bag DH is munching out of... I can't even guess at how many times I had to resist! And honestly, the only reason I resisted was because I had committed to checking in here. I was doing some serious white knuckling! It made me realize how strong of a habit I've created. I kept telling myself that I'd have popcorn at night and could munch to my heart's content. In the end, success! But REAL success comes when I don't make an inestimable number of trips to the snack cupboard! That's the goal! Still, celebrating the win 🎉
Today's challenge will be the cottage. Going this afternoon, and already planned a hike in the woods (to get me away from food and moving). Bringing popcorn for my evening snack. Spending the night with family, there will be adult beverages. Will report back!
I'd promise my check-ins will be shorter in the future, but ... they probably won't 🤷🏼♀️2 -
As I've said on a couple of threads, I've felt challenged by my change in WI day.
In truth I've been "hanging around" the same weight for a while. Have started concentrating, of late, and SLOWLY drifting lower.
Last night was a planned failure. I've been hankering for some "real" pizza, so ordered out for a SMALL (first time ever?) loaded pizza. Closest SPs I could find was 21 SPs for 1/2 . TOL and T really enjoyed it, and were pretty satisfied, until a couple of hours later, when we had a homemade brownie sundae, with REAL good ice cream, 41 SPs.
Weight was up, as expected, from the UNexpected low yesterday, but still less than my Thursday weight, by 0.2. I figure that was a win.
Back to the same old same old today.1 -
@Al_Howard I have the same thing happen a lot. It's like one indulgence leads to more. I had a ML that ate ice cream at the end of her day, in bed. Something to look forward to and no time to eat more. 😂1
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I like this idea of focusing on process. I'm going to give this a try "counting the omer'
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✔️ in
Sat was a challenge as expected but I'm ok with how it went. Snacked after our hike, but no struggle and loss. Instead I considered and decided. Expectation of salmon for dinner limited snack consumption. Not a bad day!
Today will be more of the same with a high point meal added in. Noone to blame but me since I chose the menu of lasagna and brownies. Eggs for Bfast and snack is ff gk yogurt w/cocoa, artificial sweetener, and cherries. I have a plan!0 -
Today is the 21st day of the omer. In case anyone is interested, one of our omer calendars has a daily thought from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks zt”l. Today's thought is, "We should never feel anger. But there are times when we should show it. People sometimes need that shock to help them change their lives."
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I was off-line yesterday for Shabbat, and Shabbat is generally my biggest challenge. I struggle to balance limiting my intake in the setting of two "festive meals," a requirement for wine and bread, and a "third meal" (which is generally more snack-like, but nearly always requires bread). I didn't eat out-of-control, but as @Al_Howard said above (I like this terminology), it was a "planned-fail."
We went to a friend's backyard for a get-together with two fully-vaccinated couples. It was nice, and I knew we were going to have a glass of scotch or two (or three). However, I was not anticipating that the hosts had baked a couple of pizzas for the group. In other settings I would have simply skipped it entirely, but I felt guilty that they had prepared food for us, and I feel obligated to eat a couple of slices. This was more of an unplanned-fail!
So, all-in-all, my process wasn't where I wanted it to be yesterday. Today is another day to hit the reset button. My biggest Sunday challenge is in deciding whether Sunday is a weekend day or a weekday day. In other words, do I settle in with a glass of wine or bourbon at the end of the day, or do I skip it. Clearly the better choice is to skip it, so that's my plan.0 -
linmueller wrote: »Yesterday, my biggest struggle was not having "just" one or two jelly bellys, a few pistachios, a tortilla chip from the bag DH is munching out of... I can't even guess at how many times I had to resist! And honestly, the only reason I resisted was because I had committed to checking in here. I was doing some serious white knuckling! It made me realize how strong of a habit I've created.
@linmueller: you've really captured a lot of what I've been thinking about recently (and jelly bellys [and a store-brand equivalent] are a current favorite, and thus super-challenging, snack for me). So much of my eating is habitual. There are so many times I pour myself a small ramekin of jelly beans "just because that's what I do." I'm definitely not hungry at those moments, and to be honest, the store-brand jelly beans aren't even that tasty! It's just a habit. I want to identify as many of these maladaptive habits and work to break them during this challenge. Sometimes "white-knuckling" is exactly what it takes.
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Checking in: OK day yesterday. 150 cal. over my "reduced" daily goal. 1SP left. Up 0.2# WHATEVER!
On to today.0 -
I achieved my calorie and nutritional goals Saturday.1
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Followed heart diet nutritional guidelines Sunday. Achieved calorie goal.0
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Saturday was a planned fail day as we took a dear friend out for our first dinner out in just over a year (both couples are fully vaccinated) and it was a wonder to be out like that. I tracked it all and was over points for the day but still within my weekly's. Yesterday was much more controlled day and the end result was down by .5 for the weekend, I am more that happy with that.0
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Although not a planned fail yesterday, I failed, Way too many snacks. under 3 SPs, over 73 calories. And, weight up.
Back at it today!
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Today is day 22 of the omer. A quote for the day:
"The highest achievement is not self-expression but self-limitation: making
space for something other and different from us."
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I had a great day yesterday, on all accounts. Sundays are often challenges because I tend to wrap-up the weekend with alcohol and snacks. However, I told myself that I was not going to do that, and even though I had plenty of "cravings," I had a cup of tea instead and skipped all of the extra calories. Plus, I got in a lot of other things I wanted to do: I got a nice walk in, I fixed some things around the house, I read for a while, etc. All in all, a good solid day. Put a checkmark in the "win" column.1 -
Today is day 22 of the omer. A quote for the day:
"The highest achievement is not self-expression but self-limitation: making
space for something other and different from us."
___________
I had a great day yesterday, on all accounts. Sundays are often challenges because I tend to wrap-up the weekend with alcohol and snacks. However, I told myself that I was not going to do that, and even though I had plenty of "cravings," I had a cup of tea instead and skipped all of the extra calories. Plus, I got in a lot of other things I wanted to do: I got a nice walk in, I fixed some things around the house, I read for a while, etc. All in all, a good solid day. Put a checkmark in the "win" column.0 -
✔️ in
Sunday was a little sloppy, but it was my birthday, and far from a disaster. Tracked, with some estimating, but at least didn't just concede the day. That's the positive. The negative is that today was a little sloppy.
I needed the reminder that white knuckling is sometimes necessary. Thanks @steve0mania ! Tomorrow it is! also need to do some meal planning. There's food in the house, I just need to figure out what to cook BEFORE I'm hungry.
And I love this quote ... "The highest achievement is not self-expression but self-limitation: making
space for something other and different from us."
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Today is day 23 of the omer. Today's quote from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks:
“For each of us God has a task. Discerning that task, hearing God’s call, is what gives a life meaning and purpose.”
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Yesterday was another solid day of sticking to my plan: I had three appropriate meals, got my exercise in, and didn't have snacks or alcohol. All good.
But, as noted the other day, there was a bit of "white-knuckling" to avoid those snacks and drinks. Again, so much of it is habit, and I think recognizing that that's what it is, labeling it, and refusing to give into it, was a useful approach. Someone said that will-power only goes so far, and that's probably true, so my goal is to convert this will-power-avoidance process into a habit instead!
I have also been thinking about yesterday's quote (The highest achievement is not self-expression but self-limitation: making
space for something other and different from us) and how that fits in with weight-loss/management. It seems to me that we need to be willing to change who we are, and bend our-wills, in order to achieve our weight-goals. The core-group of GOADs recognize that weight-loss is a life-long management process (there is no finish line). We can't simply diet, and then go back to our old patterns. We have to be willing to change. In other words, we have to make space inside ourselves, for something other and different than us, and ultimately, we have to incorporate that other/different into ourselves to create a new identity (e.g., "I'm a person who always eats in a healthy manner.").
Anyway, chalking up a "win" for yesterday. Todays plan: do it again! Tonight may be a little more challenging than yesterday, as I had an on-line class last night, so there was one-hour that I didn't have to think about snacking. Tonight I don't have any specific plans. I think it might be useful to do something that takes more mental-energy than sitting on the couch watching TV. I think I'll read instead.0
