how to reward myself
saynow111
Posts: 135 Member
it is important to discipline to the diet
but most imprtant is how to reward yourself after long discipline to diet
should i reward myself with a free meal or a free day
or periodically afree day in every week
or free day in a every month
everyone need be set free from discipline somewhat
thanks
but most imprtant is how to reward yourself after long discipline to diet
should i reward myself with a free meal or a free day
or periodically afree day in every week
or free day in a every month
everyone need be set free from discipline somewhat
thanks
1
Replies
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There are lots of built in rewards- being stronger, faster, brighter, more energetic, fitting into things etc. I am a bit hesitant about “rewarding” myself because it seems like that would make my regular, disciplined life seem dreary or painful while the “bad” times are fun and enthusiastic. I’m not a fan of that dynamic. I try to just recognize the ebb and flow of this thing. Mostly I meet my goals, sometimes I don’t. It’s all good.14
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I don’t reward myself with food necessarily, but I also will eat anything I want as long as it fits into my calories, so I don’t feel like I’m missing out. I always aim for nutritious foods, but I wanted a hamburger tonight so I ate one and logged it all honestly. I don’t want this to be such a restrictive lifestyle where I feel like I have to reward myself for sticking to it.
But I will reward myself sometimes with other things. For instance, I said that once I reached my prepregnancy weight I would get a haircut and highlights. I reached that goal recently so I have the appointment scheduled! These things also work for motivation.11 -
If you want to eat more than your calories allow, just eat more. It doesn't have to be a reward, it doesn't have to be cheating, you just have to be aware of how it affects your goals. Sometimes your goal is to not be hungry, sometimes it's to enjoy not feeling deprived. Those are valid goals. They don't get you closer to weight goals, so it's up to you to decide how you want to balance your short and long term interests. Just like with money.
In this context, exercise is a way to have your cake and eat it too.
I like clothes as a reward, even better, I like looking good naked, going up hills faster, stuff like that. 🙂16 -
We don't have the same mindset, I think 🙂
The only 'discipline' I have is staying within my calorie goal (most of the time), getting enough protein and exercising regularly.
Within that, anything is possible and I have treat foods every single day. I don't have a need to be 'set free' since I'm not restricting myself aside from aiming for a small calorie deficit. I might eat above my calories occasionally, depending on the circumstances: a conscious choice, obeying how it will impact my goals, but never as a reward.
My rewards are: weight loss itself, achieving fitness goals, buying myself new equipment or new clothes,...14 -
IMO, don't reward yourself with excesses of what got you in in the situation in the first place.12
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What you are talking about, with a free day, has the potential to undo any deficit that you've worked towards that week and possibly more. Doing that every week could mean you either stop losing weight or you slowly start re-gaining it.
If you're getting fatigued, perhaps now is the time to take a diet break and eat at maintenance for at least a couple of weeks. If you've been restricting yourself for a long period, that is a good idea anyway.
Like others, I never 'reward' myself with food. But equally, my 'diet' consisted of eating the same foods as before - some things are eaten less frequently and others are eaten in smaller portions, but essentially I eat the same foods. If I want to have a piece of chocolate or a muffin or a glass of wine, I'll have it - but even if it puts me over that day's calories, I can adjust to make sure it'll fit within my weekly average.
Although I track daily, my focus is to ensure that my weekly net average is in line with my goal.7 -
The answer is whatever feels rewarding to you!
For me, I try to avoid rewarding myself with ice cream or desserts or restaurant meals. Part of the reason I got fat was that I was rewarding myself for "eating well" and I had to uncouple that. Sure, I'll eat some ice cream but not because "I've been good", and getting sushi rather than a greasy fast food meal.
I tend to reward myself with better gear: shoes, clothes, etc.
Nothing wrong with taking a day off of working out or whatever -- a rest day is actually good for you. I've been known to go to the gym and just hang out in the hot tub on such days (pre-COVID).3 -
Each person is motivated differently. I was never into 'rewards' personally. I was more about looking to the next milestone.1
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I have "rewards" set for every ten pounds or so, mostly self-care items that aren't food - a haircut, or a spa treatment, a new dress. Things I don't normally do all the time so they're special, but also affordable with some planning and something to look forward to. I don't reward myself with food, but I will alter my calorie budget to allow for more calories on certain days while still trending at about the same deficit I want. I don't have forbidden foods. I haven't done on a full-on "diet break" before (which seems to mean different things to different people but I mostly interpret it as eating at maintenance for a week or maybe two weeks), but it seems to me like it can be a nice mental break and refresher before buckling down again.
I have a rest day from intentional exercise every Sunday, though my family will often go on a leisurely walk that day if the weather is nice.
Good discipline does not mean going at it with 100% intensity all of the time. It's not endless hair shirts and penance, but a life well lived.0 -
I personally take a break from eating lower amounts of calories every couple weeks by eating at maintenance for a weekend. I also enjoy buying myself small things (never food) to reward myself for sticking with it awhile or for losing a set amount of weight.0
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Leggings.
If they don’t hurt your head to look at, they’re no fun. Zero calorie, and motivate me to stay slim so I can continue wearing them.
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You rely on discipline to lose weight, and you want to reward yourself for keeping this discipline for a week, or a month.
Are you going to rely on discipline to maintain your weight?
For a year?
Two years?
Three years?
Four years?
Five years?
You have to find a new normal.
Normal may need, occasionally, a nudge of discipline, but not the amount and frequency of discipline that requires rewards to avoid giving up.4 -
Incentive, not reward, is what I work on.
I know a long and healthy life is the goal, but short term goals help me with the long term.
I lost weight when I was an inactive 54ye old.
Since then I have taken up travelling the world.
I have seen so many people my age seeing the world through a coach window. I don’t want to be that woman. Therefore I watch my weight and exercise.
For each trip I have a challenge.
Can’t swim = can’t snorkel, learning to swim was that incentive.
Can’t ride a zebra(ok it was some horse type animal), learn to ride, another incentive.
Haven’t hiked a mountain for 30 years, get those legs and lungs working again, whew, yet another incentive.
Weight train, just because it helps with (almost) everything. (Zip lining, rock climbing, rappelling)
Keep a reasonable cardio level, just because it helps with (almost) everything. Ooh those ancient ruins in Rome, Greece, Turkey, etc)
You get the drift. I set myself a year challenge based on where I plan to go the next year.
I suppose the reward is- I haven’t succumbed to seeing the world through a coach window.
Long term, getting older isn’t so scary.
I started this in 2008, it seems to be working for me. Those little over goal pieces of cake, glasses of wine ( my particular favourites, but not thought of rewards) didn't mean a hill of beans in the whole scheme of things.
It’s different for everyone, long term, short term, find rewards, if you need them, that work for you.
Cheers, h.6 -
I lost 90 pounds and it took me 3 years to do. Why so long? Because I did life along the way. I enjoyed birthday celebrations, Christmas goodies, camping with friends, etc. But they weren't "rewards" to me. I was just living my life. My rewards were things like new hiking boots, a new exercise bra, a lower time at a 5 km run, seeing my reflection in a store window and not recognizing myself, etc. Food was never a reward. Food was just food.8
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springlering62 wrote: »Leggings.
If they don’t hurt your head to look at, they’re no fun. Zero calorie, and motivate me to stay slim so I can continue wearing them.
I love leggings too! I just got ones covered by Kermit the Frog and they make me so happy!3 -
kenyonhaff wrote: »springlering62 wrote: »Leggings.
If they don’t hurt your head to look at, they’re no fun. Zero calorie, and motivate me to stay slim so I can continue wearing them.
I love leggings too! I just got ones covered by Kermit the Frog and they make me so happy!
If they had Fozzie Bear I would be over the moon!3 -
Agree.
Reward yourself by treating yourself with respect and fueling your body with healthy choices.
Be realistic. I still eat ‘treats’, but I don’t do it to reward myself. It is a choice.
Other non-food ways I take care of myself: a hot bath with epsom salt and essential oils, a long walk in the sun, a new piece of workout equipment.2 -
I agree with some of these posts about having something yummy every day. I record all my daily intended calories at the beginning of the day so I can plan it out. I find when I’m looking for something to eat it’s because I’m hungry and if I haven’t planned it I’m more likely to eat more or “cheat”. But if I figure in my special snack and I’m still within my calories for the day, then my reward is built-in. It doesn’t feel like a reward so much as part of my daily intake and it’s all OK.3
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springlering62 wrote: »kenyonhaff wrote: »springlering62 wrote: »Leggings.
If they don’t hurt your head to look at, they’re no fun. Zero calorie, and motivate me to stay slim so I can continue wearing them.
I love leggings too! I just got ones covered by Kermit the Frog and they make me so happy!
If they had Fozzie Bear I would be over the moon!springlering62 wrote: »kenyonhaff wrote: »springlering62 wrote: »Leggings.
If they don’t hurt your head to look at, they’re no fun. Zero calorie, and motivate me to stay slim so I can continue wearing them.
I love leggings too! I just got ones covered by Kermit the Frog and they make me so happy!
If they had Fozzie Bear I would be over the moon!
https://www.redbubble.com/i/leggings/Fozzie-Bear-by-NeverGiveUp/15734789.7DWO7?country_code=US&gclid=Cj0KCQjwyN-DBhCDARIsAFOELTmimqVJHoK2zBtIWCVaX3kQrenp-OyYRl4RYzEIaP2HenYYfCZmazsaAg4MEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds0 -
I have chocolate for dessert every night (but stay in my calories). Once a week I have an alcoholic beverage, and about once or twice a month I have a "Freedom day" where I let myself relax on my calories as much as I want.
For achieving results ,of course the reward is better health, but I buy myself jewelry. It's pretty and I am reminded of how I kept my promises to myself whenever I look at the jewelry1 -
For me, it sets up a bad mindset to put food in the "reward" category. I start thinking things like.."I had a bad day at work and I'm stressing over X or Y, so I "deserve" to have an extra large blizzard!" or "I lost 10 lbs so I "deserve" to have a "cheat" day!" Pretty soon I'm undoing the good progress I made and the habits I've been forming. Building in daily treats that fit your calorie goal is a much better option, then that takes the emotion out of it. I mean, why can't a walk in the sunshine by the river be a reward, or some other favorite activity? Why does it have to be a "cheat"/free/binge day?
Another thought...If your plan requires such strict discipline to adhere to that you want food rewards, then maybe the problem is that it's TOO strict? I mean, there's nothing that says you can't build in maintenance days. It's actually good practice for when you get to your goal weight, it gives you a break, and has nothing to do with "rewards".1 -
dragon_girl26 wrote: »For me, it sets up a bad mindset to put food in the "reward" category. I start thinking things like.."I had a bad day at work and I'm stressing over X or Y, so I "deserve" to have an extra large blizzard!" or "I lost 10 lbs so I "deserve" to have a "cheat" day!" Pretty soon I'm undoing the good progress I made and the habits I've been forming. Building in daily treats that fit your calorie goal is a much better option, then that takes the emotion out of it. I mean, why can't a walk in the sunshine by the river be a reward, or some other favorite activity? Why does it have to be a "cheat"/free/binge day?
Another thought...If your plan requires such strict discipline to adhere to that you want food rewards, then maybe the problem is that it's TOO strict? I mean, there's nothing that says you can't build in maintenance days. It's actually good practice for when you get to your goal weight, it gives you a break, and has nothing to do with "rewards".
Yes, I agree! If I have a “free” day once a month where I can eat whatever I want to “reward” me for restricting, I would be thinking all month about all the stuff I could cram into that day to eat, and I would restrict even more the other days to make room for it, and that is exactly the mindset I am trying to change, and the mindset that has caused a life long struggle with weight. I don’t want to have a “good food” and “bad food” mindset, I want to eat what I want and work on portion control and generally staying in my calorie range.
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springlering62 wrote: »kenyonhaff wrote: »springlering62 wrote: »Leggings.
If they don’t hurt your head to look at, they’re no fun. Zero calorie, and motivate me to stay slim so I can continue wearing them.
I love leggings too! I just got ones covered by Kermit the Frog and they make me so happy!
If they had Fozzie Bear I would be over the moon!springlering62 wrote: »kenyonhaff wrote: »springlering62 wrote: »Leggings.
If they don’t hurt your head to look at, they’re no fun. Zero calorie, and motivate me to stay slim so I can continue wearing them.
I love leggings too! I just got ones covered by Kermit the Frog and they make me so happy!
If they had Fozzie Bear I would be over the moon!
https://www.redbubble.com/i/leggings/Fozzie-Bear-by-NeverGiveUp/15734789.7DWO7?country_code=US&gclid=Cj0KCQjwyN-DBhCDARIsAFOELTmimqVJHoK2zBtIWCVaX3kQrenp-OyYRl4RYzEIaP2HenYYfCZmazsaAg4MEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
...ooooooooh.
I saw the Socrates one, too, and am off to see if they have Gandalf or Frodo.0 -
The reward of keeping a healthy weight is seeing ladies looking at how young and we'll lean I look at 47yrs old2
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dragon_girl26 wrote: »For me, it sets up a bad mindset to put food in the "reward" category. I start thinking things like.."I had a bad day at work and I'm stressing over X or Y, so I "deserve" to have an extra large blizzard!" or "I lost 10 lbs so I "deserve" to have a "cheat" day!" Pretty soon I'm undoing the good progress I made and the habits I've been forming. Building in daily treats that fit your calorie goal is a much better option, then that takes the emotion out of it. I mean, why can't a walk in the sunshine by the river be a reward, or some other favorite activity? Why does it have to be a "cheat"/free/binge day?
Another thought...If your plan requires such strict discipline to adhere to that you want food rewards, then maybe the problem is that it's TOO strict? I mean, there's nothing that says you can't build in maintenance days. It's actually good practice for when you get to your goal weight, it gives you a break, and has nothing to do with "rewards".
I was thinking this exact same thing.0 -
dragon_girl26 wrote: »For me, it sets up a bad mindset to put food in the "reward" category. I start thinking things like.."I had a bad day at work and I'm stressing over X or Y, so I "deserve" to have an extra large blizzard!" or "I lost 10 lbs so I "deserve" to have a "cheat" day!" Pretty soon I'm undoing the good progress I made and the habits I've been forming. Building in daily treats that fit your calorie goal is a much better option, then that takes the emotion out of it. I mean, why can't a walk in the sunshine by the river be a reward, or some other favorite activity? Why does it have to be a "cheat"/free/binge day?
Another thought...If your plan requires such strict discipline to adhere to that you want food rewards, then maybe the problem is that it's TOO strict? I mean, there's nothing that says you can't build in maintenance days. It's actually good practice for when you get to your goal weight, it gives you a break, and has nothing to do with "rewards".
When I drank alcohol to excess and learned a few cognitive behavioral techniques it was really easy to recognize these thoughts as sabotaging. I could just not drink though. Now that my Addictive Voice has switched to food the struggle can be much harder unless I am extremely mindful.4
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