I’m feeling the tiniest bit stressed out… and the tiniest amount of resentment that goes something like, “Soooo many desserts… sooooo little time”. AND… I’m at the tippy top of my range… and have dinners out…
Resentment rant #1: Resentment goes something like I WANT to eat EVERYTHING and ANYTHING that is even remotely holiday like AND I want to eat them in portions that exceed the serving size in the nutrient information by a LOT. Like, I don’t want 2 cookies… I’m not even sure about how many I want… but it isn’t TWO, I can tell you that.
I don’t have time to list everything I want to eat… but flip thru any magazine or watch Food Network for a couple of hours… and I want to eat EVERY recipe listed in Cooking Light, Sunset Magazine, Women’s Day, Martha Stewart, etc. I don’t even have these magazines in the house… but I know that I want to make and eat EVERY single recipe… Even the recipes that call for fresh fennel. I hate fennel… but ALL recipes are looking good to me, even recipes with fennel… because they are festive or something.
And don’t even start me on the 24 days of cookies countdown on most every website I visit. Soooooo many cookies… so little time…
Oh… and the calories I could DRINK this time of year… ok… won’t go there.
However, the realistic side of me knows that I have been thru this many times before… and I know that it is “normal” for me and I feel this way EVERY December and I will live thru it.
And I CAN make and eat every single cookie recipe that looks good to me… I’ll end the holidays up 3-5-12 lbs… but I’m a grown up and if I WANT to make and eat cookies and just deal with the consequences… I CAN. But I don’t want to gain 2 or 5 or 8 pounds… so I won’t. So I guess I’ll eat TWO cookies tonight… and TWO cookies tomorrow night and NO cookies on Mon, Tues, Wed, Thurs, and split a dessert 4 ways on Friday.
The following are not exactly rants… just my reality…or “challenges” coming up.
Had one pot luck last Wed. Have dinners out or special dinners on Dec. 14th, 20th, 21st, 24th, 25th, 26th, and Jan. 2nd. Just mentally preparing… and have lunches and dinners and exercise semi planned for the next 3 weeks.
So… really I guess I don’t have any challenges this week… I’ve got my food and treats planned out. Got my exercise planned out. Have a dinner with friends in the city (that I REALLY look forward to every year) planned out for Friday. OK… not has hard as I thought or was feeling 30 mins ago.
How is everyone else doing? Any challenges this weekend or next week?
the hardest thing is getting back into a routine of clean eating. dd is out of school. my teaching and training schedule is adjusted for client's holiday needs. things are out of whack, and my eating could easily get out of whack! yikes--SOS!
i started reading Inside the Cage by the woman who started the findingbalance website (thanks denise for the link). I decided that in my next decade, i need to move away from the mentality of a chronic dieter, and thinking and living more like a Beck thin person. I want this to be a less dominant part of my life, and for that reaosn, i am not going to beat myself up for eating too much christmas. and i am going to really make a conscious effort to read my Beck response cards to stay on track for the rest of the holiday (with new years coming up).
and BTW, dd was nice and kind on christmas day. i was totally and pleasantly surprised. she has not been able to be smartmouth-free for the whole 24 hours for the last 2 christmases. i thought this year would just be a repeat but actually, she made a concerted effort to be pleasant for the entire 24 hours. wow! i guess that is why i feel optimistic today even though my eating is all turned upside down and topsy turvy.
i did discover the best movie snack. whole foods (in their bulk section) sells chocolate espresso beans, and dark choc cacao nibs with toffee. yes, even saying those words on my lips sends me a-quiverin'!! HA! i only buy a handful and i suck on them for the longest time while in the theater to make the experience last. oh--the best things in life are not free but these little Love Balls are so worth it. i may try to make my own chocolate covered coffee beans with dark chocolate chips. i am inspired.
Goals: 1. Stop thinking like a chronic dieter and start living to inspire. 2. HALT (hungry, anxious, lonely, tired) I will stop and tune in with myself should I experience these things, and respond with something healthy. 3. One word 2008: courage 4. Eat slow and mindfully.
i definitely feel myself relaxing the standards quite a bit. i have been relaxed about eating the sweets but trying to make up for it by having less carbs (breads), and still exercising every day. the gym is closed tomorrow , and opening late on wednesday, so it might make exercise tougher . but i bought some dumbbells yesterday for home routines , and i am planning a brisk walk/jog christmas morning. i am not going to fret about it. it will all come out in the wash once i get back to my regular work/sleep/eat routine next week.
Goals: 1. Stop thinking like a chronic dieter and start living to inspire. 2. HALT (hungry, anxious, lonely, tired) I will stop and tune in with myself should I experience these things, and respond with something healthy. 3. One word 2008: courage 4. Eat slow and mindfully.
It's Christmas Eve, and so far I'm good. Weighed in at my current lowest this am, measurements so-so but still ok. I've decided it's not one particular huge meal that will make me gain (if I do) but the small things that add up over several days. So I won't see the the extent of any damage before the end of the week.
Now if only I could get my busted lower back into shape, then I might be able to enjoy my food more...
****************** “The older you get, the tougher it is to lose weight because by then, your body and your fat are really good friends.”
I have decided that I have reached the goal I wanted way back in October, and want to keep it, so that means I have to be careful until weigh in next Wednesday.
December 21 - 28.....well, of course Christmas Eve and Day will be a challenge, but I am making sure that my cupboard and menu are filled with things that are good for me, and my family will enjoy. But remembering that it's not the food, it is NOT the food is important. I have decided that I have reached the goal I wanted way back in October, and want to keep it, so that means I have to be careful until weigh in next Wednesday. I will be the same or lost something.....it's not the food, it's the reason for celebration and being with my family.
It's never too late to get it right.
Posts: 3466 | Location: Central USA | Registered: March 11, 2004
HEY! glad you are out there with the wind in your face, burning the rubber beneath your shoes....running is a wonderful activity. it makes me feel so alive and capable of doing anything.
no challenges. i plan to go out to eat on christmas after a nice relaxing morning of having birthday cake and opening gifts and watching a little snowman DVD. otherwise, i have my usual sunday meal as a "splurge" with TCBY ice cream as my dessert.
the hardest thing will be to get up and go to the gym since my TOM has increased the fatigue level quite a bit.
Goals: 1. Stop thinking like a chronic dieter and start living to inspire. 2. HALT (hungry, anxious, lonely, tired) I will stop and tune in with myself should I experience these things, and respond with something healthy. 3. One word 2008: courage 4. Eat slow and mindfully.
I'm thinking I'm in pretty good shape. I really just need to sit down and re-read Beck while I'm still on break.
Otherwise, I'm keeping up my exercise and keeping calories low. As an added bonus, I got back out and ran a short run today, the first since I bruised the heck out of my knee on Saturday. I'm far more calm now that I got much of that pent up energy run off.
Life is like a roller coaster, with lots of ups and downs, but the curves, spirals, loops and corkscrews are what make life interesting.
We have a bunch of stuff but nothing that I would call a challenge. Dinner out with friends on Saturday before a hockey game, x-mas eve at our house and x-day with my parents. I have my food planned for all three days plus my scheduled exercise so I'm feeling like I'm well in control.
Out of our beliefs are born deeds; out of our deeds we form habits; out of our habits grows our character; and on our character we build our destiny.
No major food challenges. We are going to my sister's for our Christmas Lunch on Saturday but I know what to expect there and it should be no problem. With 3 diabetics in the family she cooks pretty clean.
Finances are a different story. Major challenges on that front and it is making for a Blue Christmas
"Live your life so that you are not afraid to sell the family parrot to the town gossip."
Posts: 3989 | Location: NE Atlanta (Chamblee, Doraville, Norcross, Duluth) | Registered: March 15, 2004
Tomorrow is my Moms' Group holiday dinner. I USUALLY order something that I can't make at home when I go out for a dinner like this... But I regretted that strategy last Friday, and ordered the clam chowder and it wasn't to die for or anything... so I'm going to order salmon or something like that... even though I can make perfectly good salmon at home.
Saturday is my family holiday meal. Not too much of a challenge. I received a box of (good) chocolates from a student yesterday... so I will take those.
Monday is Xmas eve... and it is just the three of us. Not too much of a challenge.
Tuesday is Xmas day at mil's. Sort of a challenge but we will only be there for two meals.
I think that is about it until New Years eve... and I don't know our plans for that.
I have our first Holiday party this weekend. It is from 5-9 and is appetizers and drinks.
My plan is to eat a late lunch, which we normally do on Sat. anyway, and then have a salad or some sort of substantial healthy snack before we go. Normally, I don't do that, but I know that being dinner time, I will want to eat and being appetizers, there probably won't be many low-fat/low-calorie options.
I'll limit myself to 1 drink. It is DH's office party, so it isn't like I should drink more than that anyway.
Dawn
"Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You have to set yourself on fire." anonymous
Posts: 4284 | Location: Indianapolis, IN | Registered: March 15, 2004
Susan - Running on pavement is way different than the treadmill and yes, does put a lot of stress on your joints.
If you enjoy it though, you may want to have your gait checked and see if there is some kind of imbalance that is causing the bulging before chucking it entirely.
I hope your PT and meds give you relief and you can get back to "normal" quickly.
Out of our beliefs are born deeds; out of our deeds we form habits; out of our habits grows our character; and on our character we build our destiny.
Susan, I can so relate. I injured my hip early in September and it's been bad ever since. In my case they said I have worn joints (osteoarthritis) but since I also have chronic lower back trouble, it could be there's something more to this. I see an ortho on Dec 31.
I tried NSAIDs and they did nothing. Right now I'm on glucosamine supplements that are supposed to prevent further damage to cartilage. I also do PT. The pain is still there but manageable. At least I can walk most days. Where this will take me I have no idea.
****************** “The older you get, the tougher it is to lose weight because by then, your body and your fat are really good friends.”
Quick update on my "I-can't-exercise" challenge. My doctor referred me to Orthopaedics, and that doctor refined the diagnosis. It is in fact sciatica, just not the kind that affects the back of the leg. He thinks I have a slightly bulging disk that's putting pressure on the sciatic nerve and causing the pain. So my "prescription" is to keep going to physical therapy, take Advil for the next two weeks along with Tylenol for the pain, and stay away from "strenuous" activity.
Talking with the orthopaedist got me thinking about what would have caused the bulging disk. I told him how the problem started both times after an airplane trip, and he said that could be a factor, the way I sit in an airplane seat, not getting up often enough to stretch, etc. But I thought of something else later. It could be from running. At home, I do most of my running on a treadmill. On our vacation this summer, and over Thanksgiving, I ran on pavement. Not many times in either case, but it was definitely something I did differently. Don't know if it would mean giving up running but I'm just wondering.
My father bought me a 5lb box of fancy chocolates from my favorite place.
If it helps...when I've gotten some REALLY good chocolate as a gift, I put them, individually and lovingly wrapped in plastic wrap, into a freezer bag and put them in the deep freeze. I can't just HAVE one, then, plus they keep for a long time, without getting funky. When I know I'll want one after dinner, I can pull it out several hours ahead of time to let it come back to room temp.
I was going to recommend the same thing.
Susan-so sorry to hear about your injury/pain. Hope they figure out the problem and get it fixed.
Jill
Summer Challenge Goals: 1) Walk 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week 2) Plan weekly menus
My father bought me a 5lb box of fancy chocolates from my favorite place.
If it helps...when I've gotten some REALLY good chocolate as a gift, I put them, individually and lovingly wrapped in plastic wrap, into a freezer bag and put them in the deep freeze. I can't just HAVE one, then, plus they keep for a long time, without getting funky. When I know I'll want one after dinner, I can pull it out several hours ahead of time to let it come back to room temp.
Challenge Goals: *10 minutes of unplanned exercise five times a week *Gym time twice a week *Socialize at least once every two weeks.
Well, I have been thrown a surprise challenge this week.
My father bought me a 5lb box of fancy chocolates from my favorite place. ACK! It is a lovely gesture, and I can count on two fingers the times that I have had my own box of chocolates. ( I usually just have them at my parent's house.) I am not going to throw them away.
There is no danger that I will eat half the box in one sitting. It's just calories that I wasn't counting on.
