Great post Mary - and I'm shocked because I thought everyone did this. Semantics aside, it really doesn't matter what you call it - treat, cheat etc. the real problem is what comes next - fall off the wagon or stay on the wagon. That's where I always went wrong - I can't just have a little of certain foods, If I have one cookie, I then have to eat a bag or two of cookies - one just doesn't satisfy and the drive to eat more is overwhelming and lasts for many days. Whether I had a bag or one, I would fall off the wagon because I felt miserable; even if I was doing well and those calories were well within the limits of the plan. If I planned ahead that I was going to have a treat, my whole day would be ruined thinking, dreaming and finally eating that stupid treat. I have a long list of treat foods that are so powerfully addicting that they just swallow me up - I lose all control. I keep seeing people writing that they had a single piece of chocolate - I just can't do it, I wish I could but I can't. This stuff is like cocaine to me and there is no joy in it for me - just pain. Yet I do see that it works for many people - I just need another way to deal with this stuff.

I have a few feast days during the year when I can eat this stuff - these days are about celebrations and family etc. so the focus is not only on the treat but non-food activities too, and we're working to add more non-food traditions to them. I still have to be careful about those treat foods - I have to chose among the ones that have less addicting pull over me. It's okay though, I used to love peanuts and now I'm allergic so I feel about peanuts like I do those foods that I'm so addicted to - I remember what they taste like and how they made me feel, but a mature realization that these are not foods for me anymore. It's okay, I have so many other foods to chose from so it's not like I have nothing.

I normally follow Dr. McDougall's Maximum Weight Loss diet but on those days when I feel I need a little more, then I bump up to his regular plan. This allows me a safe way to treat but these aren't foods that drag me out of control. These are still foods that are healthy, just more calorie dense so I feel 100% good about eating them and I don't worry how they will affect my weight loss. I know they will stop or slow my weight loss but I'm not guilty about it, rather I've planned for it and it's okay. Sometimes you need something crunchy or salty or sweet - so I make popcorn without oil or toast pitas and add spices to them or dip in salsa etc.

And sometimes that feeling that you need a "treat" is really masking some emotions that you need to feel and express etc. Psychotherapy helped with this enormously.

Oh Sherrie, you scared me there for a minute, I'm so happy to hear you are doing so much better.  And you're Mama and brother, too!

Boy, you weren't kidding, that was one helluva visit you had from the Whoosh Fairy!  Doesn't it feel so much better to be refined carb detoxed and alla tha****er gone from your system.  You're supposed to be swimming in it, not it swimming in you!  Hehehe.

Hey Girl, I know that some people are allowed to figure in for an extra treat occassionally and Johnita has done well using this system, I do think that for me exercise would have to be figured into the equation at some point to make up the difference or I'd be gaining. 

So Holly, does the plan that you are using allow for a cheat day or cheat meal?  If so, exactly how far off plan are you allowed to go and if you don't mind me asking, how much weight have you lost using this philosophy?

Mary

Great loss, Christa!!  I know what you mean about any loss counts....just keep that scale going DOWNWARD!!!

Understand worry is a waste of time.

Have you ever avoided doing something, because you were worried about what might happen if you did it? Living according to your worries can create problems, because worries deal with what might happen, not what will happen. 

If your worries paralyze you, remember that nothing bad or good will happen without action. You'll never know what might be unless you take some risk. It's true, consequences will occur as a result of your actions, but that's not always a bad thing. Worries only serve to hold you back from reaching your potential. Casting them aside, you'll find the reality is usually much more tolerable than the imagined.

Action for the day: Are worries holding you back and controlling your life? In your journal, make a list of your main worries and explore how you can move past them.
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