Do you sabotage yourself?

I thought this was funny especially since I just wrote myself a letter b4 reading you post. I guess I'll share what I wrote.

Sometimes I am the person I want to be. Right now I am that person, fully in charge of my being and making the right decisions. While I am in this state of mind- my better half - I am going to write myself a letter for when the other me starts to make decisions.

To the other me:
What are you doing?!?!?!!? I have spent so much time writing down every little calorie, logging my food, watching to see if I go over calories, and if so, I go work out extra. Who are you to ruin all I have done? You are ruining us! I get our body on the right track with amazing workouts that you know will produce results if you will just let me stay in control. Someone brings home donuts and when I am in control, I say, “Get those things out of here. Eat them up guys so I won’t eat them later.” Cuz I know you… you’ll come in here all happy go lucky and allow yourself to eat one when I clearly said, “No!” You figure what is one little donut? You figure well I gotta live life a little. You think well I’ll just log those calories, but you know it usually messes us up more than that donut. For some reason that donut makes you think you are now in control for the rest of the day and you stop listening to a word I say. You are so miserable after making wrong decisions and I have to pay the consequences too. Would please stop and allow me to take over? Imagine if I were in control all the time… We would look so good. So humble yourself missy and let me take over. Eat the good for you stuff that you sometimes forget is so yummy too. Not sure why you forget how great these foods are that are gonna keep us on track. Have a fruit, yogurt, vegetables, bean tortilla, wheat puff cereal with bananas, soup, nuts… you know the drill. PLEASE!!! Let’s FINALLY see some results from all my efforts. I know you can.

First off, this is my first post here on myfitnesspal, as this op struck a personal nerve.

If I wasn't a "self-saboteur" I don't know what I'd do with all that extra time on my hands.

Seriously though, I am a professional when it comes to self sabotaging. What's worse, is that I know I am doing it while I am doing it, talking to myself about it while it's going on, and yet continue to do it anyway. I seem to even go out of my way to do it, and the "man in the mirror" somehow convinces the rest of me that not only is OK, but that I deserve the treat in which I am indulging in, and by "treat" I mean terribly unhealthy and bad for you food.

I have had glimpses of will power in the past, having somehow managed to get my act together, get motivated, get moving, eat better, exercise, be conscious of my food decisions and actually lose weight. The best I'd done was 35lb over 8months, but that was 10 years ago. I am now 20+lb heavier than I was then, before I lost it. Recently, 2 years ago, I lost 20lbs, mostly by just running 3x a week, and being pretty good about my food. But, like usual, it all come back on + more, thanks to self-sabotage (not too mention stress). So, here I sit again, just starting a new attempt at losing, holding tight to the slight glimmer of willpower I seem to have picked up recently.

Good Luck with your "man in the mirror", I hope your's starts texting mine convincing mine to leave me alone too.

This is so me! I have tried over and over again to lose weight, but as soon as I start making progress I find some excuse to mess it up. Its so disheartening. But here I am yet again..

Love it you are all speaking my language!!!

Wow!! I have actually been reading not this recently, as I have been trying to figure why I do this to myself. I can be going great, with exercise and staying under calories with no problems. I lose a few lbs and then I start eating truck loads of rubbish again!!!

What is happening?!

Tell these horrid ppl to go away and let us get skinny!!!

Haha! I totally get this and it isn't just in the area of food! Regarding food, however, I am a shoot-myself-in-the-foot degenerate. I am the late-night snacker my mother warned me about. I am glad you posted this thread because I just this very minute realized where this terrible habit got its start. Now I can actually battle this horrible fiend! Thank you! :happy:

We should start a thread for us sabotagers. All we need to do is come in and post, "I did not eat the blueberry cake donut." I was thinking this might be something that would work for me. Every time I am tempted, I could instead joyfully go to mfp to proclaim the victory. If anyone is interested, let me know.