Day 1...staying strong and motivated

So, this morning was the big weigh in. For some reason, I have gained about 13 pounds since last March. Well, actually, not for "some" reason, but because I stopped caring again. I didn't stop caring about my relationships, work, money, friends, and family, but I stopped caring again about my goals. This is what always seems to happen, I start off very motivated, but then my motivation slowly starts to fade away.

About a year ago, I bought a book called "100 Days Of Weightloss". Each day it has lessons to work and questions to answser on while you're on the first 100 days of your diet. The author realizes that it's not just about eating less and exercising to lose weight for some people, but about a REAL emotional challenge that comes with shedding the excess baggage. Here is today's lesson:

"I used to be that way..."

This lesson talks about the fact that everytime you start a program, you are so excited to make it work, and this time you'll finally be able to stick with it. However, deep inside you have a fear that you haven't changed at all and you'll quit your program before the 100 first days are up. Past failures keep swirling in your head, and you remember how you'd cheat little bits at a time until you eventually stopped the program all together. But now, it's time to recognize that "I use to be that way, but now I'm different." You can do anything now because you're not that way anymore.

Here is the homework:

Make a list of fears or negative behaviors that have hurt your weight loss success in the past, then say "I used to be that way, but now I'm different"
Here are mine:
1. Giving in to pressure to eat when people bring goodies to work
2. Just not going to work out because I was tired or didn't feel like it.
3. I was afraid that if I lost the weight, I would be very exposed to the world again.
4. When I would get off the diet for one meal, I would feel as if I ruined the whole thing and just give up!

"I used, to be that way, but now I'm different"

Now, write new endings for those fears or negative behaviors:

1. I used to give in to pressure to eat when people bring goodies to work, but now I stay focused on my goal and politely decline the offer.
2. I used to not work out because I didn't feel like it, but now I go work out even when I don't feel like it because I like how I feel when I'm done.
3. I used to be afraid that if I lost weight, I would be exposed to the world again, but now I don't fear that, I embrace the fact that I will stop feeling invisible.
4. I used to get off the diet for one meal and then give up, but now if I get off the diet for a meal, I get back on for the next, keep on going!

So, I hope these lessons may be useful to other people that share the same battle that I do. Thanks again for sharing this with me!

BTW: I will weigh in weekly, and track progress on here, so my next weigh in will be Tuesday, Feb 9th!