ultimatum if not on track

happy_vegan

So I was wondering...
I'm SURE I'm not the only one who rationalizes why they can go over 1200 on a day to day basis. This isn't all the time but it is sometimes and it's why the weight loss is slow, if marginal.

I see a lot of people rewarding themselves at intervals if they make it to a certain weight. Does anyone do the opposite if they don't? I feel like I can't think of a reward that would be worth it (without being wildly expensive that I can't afford anyway) other than the reward of being skinny. Does anyone do things like donate items or have to do extra penalty exercise(without getting to eat the calories), etc if they don't make it to their goals on time?

I need a brainstorm ...if this is a good idea that is.

stella77

I don't think that "punishement" works in any form - inflicted by self or others. I think it is important to love yourself and make sure you understand WHY you were not on track (maybe it isn't THAT important to you? maybe something else is going on?)

As long as I am extra nice to myself (i.e. undertsanding that eating real, healthy food is being good to myself), I can be on track!

In the end, if you don't treat yourself well, nobody else will!

xraychick77

i dont sweat it..i'm happy, i'm healthy and i'm alive. so what if i slip, so what if i dont work as hard one day at the gym. whatever. at least i'm out there doing it. you cant look at being healthy in the light of reward and punishment. you just gotta be...you gotta be ok with yourself no matter what. if you arent happy right now, then whats the point? things, ideas etc cant make you happy. losing weight cant make you happy. you just gotta be happy during the journey. if that makes sense.

JunkFoodJane

i dont sweat it..i'm happy, i'm healthy and i'm alive. so what if i slip, so what if i dont work as hard one day at the gym. whatever. at least i'm out there doing it. you cant look at being healthy in the light of reward and punishment. you just gotta be...you gotta be ok with yourself no matter what. if you arent happy right now, then whats the point? things, ideas etc cant make you happy. losing weight cant make you happy. you just gotta be happy during the journey. if that makes sense.

Nicely said.

Slow progress is ok. Maintenance is a standstill at best. I am happy I've stopped gaining. That's part 1 of losing, and something to feel good about.

Levedi

I know this won't sound right, but you can't control outcomes. You can control your effort. That's why I don't reward myself for weight losses. I do give myself pats on the back for working out and meeting my calorie goals. Really, going over is its own punishment - if you cheat the diet, you cheat yourself.

The punishment of doing extra workouts and not getting to eat your calories is going to be self defeating, both mentally and physically. You don't want to send your metabolism into panic mode and if you go to bed seriously hungry, as you would, you'll suffer in ways that will make you weaker and less able to work out and more likely to binge the next day. Also, I wouldn't punish my child by sending her to bed without a meal, so I wouldn't do it to myself either. A good punishment should teach the person to associate pain with bad behavior, and reward with good behavior. (No, I am not advocating beating or otherwise physically harming your kids.) Using exercise as punishment turns working out into a punishment. I know that would make me start to hate working out really fast, so it would be self defeating. You want to look forward to your work outs, not see them as self-torture.

i try to focus on positive self-talk - be your own trainer and cheering squad to keep yourself accountable. Reward yourself by looking in the mirror and saying "good job! You worked hard!" or hold yourself accountable "You at more than you needed today. Tomorrow you need to be more careful." Not self hatred, but honesty and accountability.

baabybabs

Levedi's post is perfect and well written, I agree 100%.

"No matter how slow you run, you're still lapping everyone on the couch."

happy_vegan

It's obvious, but i really like the way you put it:

"Really, going over is its own punishment - if you cheat the diet, you cheat yourself. "

which is why I need more of an instant before the fact thing, because I can still talk myself out of hitting 1200 because I won't know until the next day that I shouldn't have done it. It's a mental problem for me.

and this makes sense too:
"I don't think that "punishement" works in any form - inflicted by self or others. I think it is important to love yourself and make sure you understand WHY you were not on track"

I'm not on track because I'm an impulsive-compulsive overeater. I can't buy ready to eat items larger than one serving size because I'll eat the whole thing.

So that said,
Does anyone have advice on how to talk yourself out of rationalizing eating more than 1200 is the question I really have. Proverbs or phrases you can tell yourself when you really have problems controlling yourself?

I saw one person had a Kate Moss quote (while I would normally think would be dubious, I really liked):
"Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels"

Anyone have one they'd like to share?

JunkFoodJane

When I was younger and trying to get into gymnastics shape I had some little rules for myself- I LOVE flavored colas. I wasn't trying to lose weight, but say if I wanted a coke I could have 2 a week and I had to do 30 leg lifts first (lie on back, feet together, raise to 90•, lower to 6", go back up). It REALLY strengthened my stomach. I also found that I was able to control myself by setting aside a predetermined amount of treats. I'd almost always make it to Saturday with leftovers, because it was a personal challenge. Often I'd even carry some into the following week.

I can't tell you what to do, but at your height and weight I would be eating no less than 1500-1800 calories. I would also eat back my exercise calories. I'm 5'7" and even when I was much thinner I ate a lot more than 1200 calories. Even when trying to drop a little more weight. We all need different amounts of energy, though.