Living the Lifestyle - Thursday, Jan. 5, 2017
imastar2
Posts: 6,785 Member
Everyone says it, but just how do you do it? How do you take the guidelines of the WW program and turn them into a lifestyle you can live every day...from now on? That is what we are here to explore. Each weekday, a new topic is offered up for discussion. Newbie? Join in! Veteran? Join in! Your thoughts may be just what someone else needs to hear.
Monday -- Jerdtrmndone (Jerry)
Tuesday -- whathapnd (Emmie)
Wednesday -- DavidKuhnsSr (David)
Thursday -- Imastar2 (Derrick)
Friday -- Al_Howard (Al)
Today's topic: When Life is Good! Do you handle LTL differently?. Is there a secret / tip to share with weight loss/maintenance when Life Is Good? We hear lot about overeating due to stress or being depressed over any number of life's challenges. When things are going well and everything in your life seems to be going well or normal (if there is any such thing) do you let down your guard? Maybe drink a beer or two too many, more wine perhaps or maybe treat yourself to some chocolate or other delicacies you may enjoy. ?
Monday -- Jerdtrmndone (Jerry)
Tuesday -- whathapnd (Emmie)
Wednesday -- DavidKuhnsSr (David)
Thursday -- Imastar2 (Derrick)
Friday -- Al_Howard (Al)
Today's topic: When Life is Good! Do you handle LTL differently?. Is there a secret / tip to share with weight loss/maintenance when Life Is Good? We hear lot about overeating due to stress or being depressed over any number of life's challenges. When things are going well and everything in your life seems to be going well or normal (if there is any such thing) do you let down your guard? Maybe drink a beer or two too many, more wine perhaps or maybe treat yourself to some chocolate or other delicacies you may enjoy. ?
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I don't know that I have a particular secret I can share but in the last 6 years or so I've been on this weight loss journey there have been lots of good times. I find myself during those times trying to stay the course b/c I know that while I'm happy and rejoicing and things are going well I must keep working on my weight loss plan. I really don't think my physical body knows that I'm happy or sad, depressed or worried. It does know whether I am depriving it of food and proper nutrition or giving it too much food and or wrong nutrition. Some of you may challenge me on my statement about my physical body not knowing whether I'm happy or sad or depressed and worried. I have no data or knowledge to support this statement other than it just seems to me to be logical.
I do think when things are going well and your happy that you can build on that momentum and keep the weight loss/maintenance continuing forward in the right direction. So in a manner of speaking maybe there is a secret to continue to losing weight or staying on maintenance by staying happy or positive even when things aren't going well. Since I started 2017 out with a bad cold I believe I will release this positive thought and make sure I tell my body I'm happy and feeling great. I really didn't mean for this to come out like a person must think positive and happy thoughts all the time but it just came out as I was typing it out.
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I really don't think my physical body knows that I'm happy or sad, depressed or worried.
Sorry to hear 2017 is off to a rough start for you, Derrick. Hope that turns around soon!
I agree with your statement above. Over the course of the last couple years, I've learned it's largely my mental and emotional states that are triggers for mindless eating. I tend to be a stress / anxiety / worry eater. When I experienced those things in the past, I used to eat many foods that added to my weight. Honestly though, I ate the same way but with different motivation when I was feeling good.
Now, I would say I'm less food-focused overall. I do notice the urge when the chips are down but when things are good, not as much. Because I've been at this a while now, I'm out of the habit of stuffing my face mindlessly. I enjoy weighing less and am not as likely to eat the same kinds of stuff or as much of it, even when I'm feeling good.
Staying the course is as much (or more) mental for me as anything. It helps me to feel good when I make good choices. I can reflect on the change in my choices and actually be proud of making good ones. I may/may not have another beer or a little more food, but I'll consider the consequences before-hand and usually come out where I want to. I find I far prefer that to stuffing myself and being POd after-the-fact.
Good can feed more good for me. A big part of the equation is really being in touch with how I'm feeling and how it relates to my desire for food and drink. These days, I find more joy and satisfaction with making good choices than I do with filling up on stuff that only makes me fatter.0 -
Chicken or egg? Seems like when I'm happier I'm more active. I think my mood is better now that I'm retired but I'm surprised by how easy it is to just start running those old tapes in my head that darken my mood.
Big picture, the whole thing works better when my mood is good. Positive is better than negative, optimism is better than pessimism. Active is better than not.
That said, emotional eating comes in all forms. I've had plenty of 100pt "good day" celebrations.0 -
Honestly, I rarely have issues with eating or exercise when everything is going well and when I'm happy. I'm a big emotional eater so I'm much more likely to overeat when I am sad or lonely. My exercise also suffers because I'll feel too depressed to put real effort in.
Now there is definitely overeating on holidays or special occasions, but I feel like those are a different category than general happy days.0 -
I think in general when my mood is good, all aspects of my life run smoother, whether it is my exercise, my adherence to my food plan, my ability to be productive at work, my home life, etc.
When I'm stressed or feeling blue, then the f-its rear their ugly head and chaos can ensue.
I will say I've never skipped a workout when I've had a negative mood, but I may have altered the goals of said workout.0 -
I don't think my mood affects my eating all that much. That's largely due to all the practice I've had this past (almost) five years on the program.
What does affect it is busyness. And I don't mean a busy day or two. It's when I have a busy 'season', a few weeks or months, that I struggle. I still need time to stay on program. Also if I'm emotionally drained (whether it be happy or sad), I can struggle to find the energy to plan, prepare, cook, track, etc.0 -
@linmueller...I agree with your statement about busyness. That is what happened to me this year with a very busy season business wise but when that happens it seems to effect every aspect of my life. Everything I do seems to be effected obviously even staying on program and keeping up with tracking etc. I did make it through it but it was tough. It ws a roller coaster emotionally to say the least.1
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I guess I'll find out how "Life is Good" affects me next WI. Today I had a -4.6 WI that put my total loss at -149.6. The last time I lost 3.8# I gained back 2.8# at my next weeks WI.
I try to not reward myself with food but the temptation to say "you deserve it" is still there. I try to remember that the feelings I get when I see the scale number go down, I get NSV compliments, buying smaller sized clothes and the medical NSVs are all better than the very temporary satisfactory feeling of eating a bag of cashews.
I keep telling myself that I don't eat my emotions but if anything I may eat more off plan when happy. Your LTL question is very timely for me and I will be thinking about it all week leading up to my next WI. Thnx0 -
@Jimb376mfp ... Getting really close to a big milestone! That's motivation to stay OP. Good luck reaching it next week!1
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