I did my best today. I went to spin, I packed my lunch, I had a good breakfast, I planned ahead for dinner. With all of this, I went over my SmartPoints balance, it could have been worse. I had a scoop of Baskin Robbins ice cream. It was 9 SmartPoints and that did it. I enjoyed it but was it worth it? I honestly don’t know.
I am doing my best. I just wanted you to know that, I hope you are happy with your choices today. Keep going, your health and wellbeing is worth it.
Sometimes it is a good idea to change things up. I had become complacent with dinnertime meal planning. This week, I’m trying to plan ahead. I’m three days into my WW week and so far so good. Dinner has been less stressful because I knew what I would be cooking and took steps to help myself along the way. Tonight we had stew and I cooked the beef in the crockpot I made the vegetables when I got home, and mixed it together. I prefer that because then the vegetables don’t get too soft. Anyway, planning dinner helps me to stay on track.
I’m eating more varied foods and that helps to keep it fresh. Here are some new foods (and some returning favorites that have been off the menu for a while) I’ve added…
That’s it for today. I had a good one, I hope you did too!
Goals make this journey possible for me. A new feature that has been added to my weekly workshop meetings at WW is writing down goals and action plans. This is a very good practice to embrace, I find that the closer I am to my goals and progress the better I feel. Here is my goal this week…
To eat one meal a day mindfully.
Goal Week of September 8, 2019
Working towards a goal makes me happier, and when I feel good about myself it makes the journey easier. I am also using my WW Recovery Checklist. It is really helping me focus on my good habits. So, if you don’t have a goal, get one. Make a goal that you think you can really accomplish and dedicate yourself to making it happen. Not every day on the journey will lead to a success on the scale, but every day can be a success nonetheless! How? If you define success with taking time to focus on you, then that sounds like a successful day to me.
Be bold! Be empowered! Believe that you can do this and you will.
There is nothing wrong with asking for help. Whether is help with health and wellness goals, or something more. It’s really a sign of strength because when we ask for help, we are advocating for ourselves. So why is it so hard to do?
I’m working on recognizing when I need to ask for help. My three big triggers that have the potential to derail my health and wellness goals are when: I’m very stressed out, overly hungry, or tired. I can’t do it all, all by myself all the the time. So when I feeling overly hungry, just by telling someone, “I’m really hungry,” it helps. Or if I’m dealing with a stressful situation, acknowledging and naming the emotions help me to be specific with the kind of help I need. When I’m too tired to stay up and work, I name it and make arrangements to carry the work on into tomorrow.
We all need help sometimes. My wish for you is that if you need some help to stay on track with your goals that you ask for it.
I’m thinking about why weight loss is difficult:
Right now, I’m in a period of recovery and I’m working to get back to Lifetime status at WW. I wish I could achieve my goal quicker, and I know that kind of thinking is not so helpful. That kind of thinking sets up unrealistic expectations, and disappointment. Disappointment that will deplete my efforts.
How generous are you to yourself? It’s dangerous to dismiss the helpful habits and and routines that make the journey possible. I could just take it for granted that i packed my lunch when I got home from work today, it’s just what I do now. However, that would be a mistake.
Even though I was hot, sticky, and tired by the time I made it home from school today, I still took the time to pack my lunch. Go me! That is a power move, that makes tomorrow just a little bit easier. I won’t be picking a random food left over in the faculty room, I will have the low or zero SmartPoint options available. These are the little things that deserve to be acknowledged with a little celebration, You did it!
There are some people in my professional life that seem to drain my energy. This can happen anywhere, and I am fortunate that I’m in a place in my journey where I recognize the potential impact of emotional responses and weight loss. I’m no longer dismissive of my feelings, and I find just acknowledging when I don’t feel good helps. I’m not trying to escape negativity, I want to experience it and let it go. I think that may be what I’m supposed to be learning.
It’s it funny that the definitions for the term vantage point has two very different meanings?
The first definition a good view implies clarity a place that is unobstructed by obstacles. The latter definition is much more murky. Opinions and experiences knit together to construct an individual’s vantage point. In other words, the way each of us sees things.
This blog is an attempt to find a place that provides a good view of my behaviors. I try to think through my day and reflect on my actions. As I think and write I realize I’m also creating my own unique vantage point. I’m shaping my view of wellness and weight loss to match my beliefs
I had a good day, I stayed within my Blue Dot ranges, I was active, and I was mindful. From my vantage point, today was a success. Keep going, you can do this!
Change takes time. The decision to make health and wellness a priority may be building up over time, until one day, BAM! You decide, I’ve had enough, it’s time to make a change. That rush of motivation is like adrenaline that ignites inner motivation to take action. It’s harder to hold onto that focused effort for the long term.
It’s all about the energy you’re willing to reserve for the journey. Finding things that inspire helps, a favorite song, something beautiful in the natural world, a favorite outfit, it can be anything so long as it makes you feel good. Filling yourself up with the things you love helps to draw in the positive energy that helps us all to make better choices along the way.
Today was a hard day, I’m transitioning back to work, and while I get a lot of personal satisfaction from work, I’m sad to be losing this intimate time with my family. My son is growing up, and changes are on the horizon. It’s so easy to lose yourself and health and wellness require attention. If I want to make these positive changes to my life for keeps, I have to find ways to set aside some of that love and care I feel for everyone else for me too.
It’s funny how a song can bring you back in time. I was watching the movie, Crazy Rich Asians, and heard a beautiful version of Only Fools Rush In. My uncle, Big Frankie, sang, that same song at my wedding. I remembered all the family and friends who were there to celebrate with us. It’s a very special memory.
You might be thinking, “Ok, so? Isn’t this a wellness and weight loss blog?” It is. Weight loss can be transformative experience. While it changes how I live my life, inside I am still me. I think, in order to stay on this journey, I need to gather everything I am, all I was, and all I hope to be and use that so I keep going. I need to embrace it all if I want to hold onto the best version of me.
So as you do the work to reach your goals, why not turn your gaze to something sweet? It is especially important to remember how much love there is in life. So this is what I have to say to you, remember the love, just remember that. Hold onto that and know you are worthy of accomplishing your goals. Even when you fail, or slip up, or have days that don’t go as planned. You can do it, you’ll get there. Say that and believe it.
Down another 2.2! Woo! Hoo! I just want to enjoy this moment. It feels good to see results when I’m putting in so much effort. Moments like these make me feel capable, and in control. For every positive there is a negative. Moments are funny because while the good ones seem to go so quickly, the hard ones seem enteral.
Sometimes a moment can seem like everything. The pull of wanting something can consume me, it’s like I want this… cookie, bread, pasta, or whatever it is and I lose perspective. My perspective becomes very narrow, and I think, I want it and that’s all there is. Then interior dialogue pipes up and begins to rationalize as if I’m playing, Let’s Make a Deal. Sometimes, the trajectory of a day lays in the balance of a single moment.
Learning how to pause, and think through a momentary craving or impulse is a big step on the journey. I believe learning how to do this is the work ahead of me now. While I’m not there yet, I am aware of the need to get there and that’s a good beginning.
Getting to Goal 