Let’s Talk About That “Leeway.”

88olds
88olds Posts: 4,540 Member
In the LTL Al mentioned “leeway.”

Leeway explains why following the “green, yellow, red zone” strategy when maintaining, I’m nearly always in yellow bumping up against red.

Replies

  • Al_Howard
    Al_Howard Posts: 8,898 Member
    Interesting etymology.

    leeway (n.) also lee-way, 1660s, "sideways drift of a ship in her course caused by wind, deviation from true course by drifting to leeward," from lee + way (n.). Applied to loss of progress in general from 1827.

    LEEWAY | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary
    https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/leeway
    an amount or period of time that has been lost or wasted: There is a lot of leeway to make up after the holiday period.

    Leeway Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
    https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leeway
    1. : an allowable margin of freedom or variation : tolerance. The new rules allow managers greater leeway in making decisions.

    I guess I look at as margin FOR error. Personally, I have my MFP caloric intake set for 1800 Calories. Fit bit allows me 1600 Calories, plus what I "earn" from activity. And WW is completely different.

    I plan to be under 1800 Calories, and run a weekly sum, which I HOPE will not be in the red. ;)
    C'est la vie, c'est le guerre.
  • crewahl
    crewahl Posts: 4,628 Member
    Ah, the bell curve . . . .

    I went back to find Al's comment, and I’ve read his observation above. I agree with the use of “leeway” as margin for error, but George's observation is also interesting.

    I think for any of us, there are three zones - where we are right now, where we wanna be, and where we don’t wanna be. Call them whatever you will, but I think that’s true at almost every point. The question is whether the “where we are” zone is acceptable, or whether it’s worth the effort to get to where we wanna be. That’s a decision for each person - how much effort or commitment are they willing to invest in aligning where they are with where they wanna be. I’m thinking about Steve, who is ten pounds about where he wants to be, taking some steps to get where he wants, but at least knowing he's still below his goal weight. (Or me, at free Lifetime, but working to get down more so my weigh-ins have less stress.)

    The distinction to me between that thought process and Green/Yellow/Red is that the latter is a bit firmer. There are specific action plans or steps to be taken when I move from one zone to another. Absent that, it’s just “wishin' and hopin' “, as Podkey might say.
  • 88olds
    88olds Posts: 4,540 Member
    where we are right now, where we wanna be, and where we don’t wanna be.

    LOL