Having a rough time

I understand where you're at.

I'd lost almost 40 lbs in the first 5 months last year, then we had a major health incident with my mother, where she was hospitalized for 3 months (transferred between 2 hospitals) when it was determined that she was unable to live independently. Between an interim nursing home placement (we called the place Arkham Asylum - it was that bad), cleaning out and subletting her apartment, moving her to her chosen home, and taking over the management of her affairs, the last thing I was interested in was staying on track.

My husband was in to see the doctor earlier this month, and as a consequence of the stress we were both under (he was my rock during all of this) his weight had climbed back up, along with his blood pressure. I knew I'd gained weight as well - going out to buy new clothes for a business trip was a good clue - but didn't know how much. I decided to face the music. The good news was that I hadn't gained all of it back ; the bad news was that I'd regained 23 of those lbs I'd worked so hard to lose .

Okay...time to reset.

So, I started back 2 weeks ago, with a strategy.

1. I went back to the calorie levels I was using when I'd had that 40 lb run.
2. I linked my Google Fit account to MFP, because I have an AndroidWear 4 watch that tracks activity and workouts
3. I started to drink a lot more water.
4. I set up small goals - losing 5 lbs doesn't feel quite so overwhelming as losing 100.
5. Anything that's snack material automatically gets packaged into smaller serving sizes as soon as it comes into the house. I don't think I'm the only person who has picked up a big bag of anything and found that it mysteriously manages to empty itself in 1 or 2 sittings.
6. 5 minute 'Dance Breaks'. I'm lucky enough to work from home, so if I'm between calls or have a break working on a project or document, I find 1 or 2 songs from one of my play lists, blast it on my office speakers, and just get up and dance like no one is watching. It's hard to stay in a bad mood if you've just spent 5-8 minutes shaking your tail feather to music you like. It gets your heart rate up and doesn't really feel like a workout the same way slogging on a treadmill would.

If there's anything I've said that is at all helpful, I hope you try it.

You did it once, so you know it can be done again. Good Luck!