This is the end of my 5th week of the program (4th week on shakes). Yeah! Time is flying by! Here's the verdict: minus 1.4lbs for a total of 12.5. Not bad for 4 weeks. I figure I will average closer to 2-3lbs/week. No particular reason why, it's just a feeling I have. ;-) I have had no cheats and really haven't even thought about it. I think I have a slight advantage in some ways since I live alone, no kids, no husband, no boyfriend to influence me. BUT I also have to say that the time I eat the most is when I am alone. I am not one who eats their whole meal at a restaurant. I typically eat 1/4-1/3 at the most. Maybe if it's a super fancy place with tiny portions I will finish, but otherwise that is not my problem.
We are talking a lot about emotional eating in class. I would say I occasionally have that issue, but I would more say that I don't eat when I am really stressed at work, but then I go home and I'm starving so I either 1. stop for fast food and eat the whole meal with a large drink or 2. order pizza and eat half saving the other half to eat throughout the next day or 3. I just eat whatever I can get my hands on at home. When that happens I eat so fast that I don't even realize I'm full until it's too late. Couple that with a few years of night shift and there ya go! It's interesting to hear how much some of the people in class miss food. I guess I'm lucky that isn't me. I have always had control issues with food that date back to toddlerhood that probably weren't helped by having a young mom who didn't know you shouldn't force kids to eat!
I'm really really trying to focus on not just setting a timer to have a shake or water. I thought I would do that in the beginning, but I decided that wouldn't really teach me about listening to hunger cues in the future. SO, I wait until I feel that first little pang of hunger and have a glass of water, wait 20min and then if I still feel it I have a product. It is never more than 3 hours and sometimes as few as 1.5. The time it is sooner is when I do my run/walk in the morning. My only real exception is if I get busy at work and notice it is getting close to 3+hours and I know that even if I'm not hungry yet if I think about it my energy is just a little low. I also might have a product early if I know I'll be busy for the next 5hrs or so because I DON'T want to get back into that mode where I'm starving! I think this is an important skill. For some reason, listening to hunger cues when I'm eating with a group isn't difficult. I'm thinking it's probably because I'm eating more mindfully. When I'm at home I'm eating in front of the TV and really not listening for "full cues." We talked about the hunger-o-meter tonight in class. -3 is famished, -2 is hungry and feeling it (this I call Hangry) and -1 which is just hungry. That is when you should eat. Then the other side 1 is comfortably full, 2 is uncomfortably full (wanna unbutton your pants etc) and 3 is so full you feel sick. I have been 3 only rarely. I have been 2 more frequently but I don't realize til it's too late. Hence the need to eat mindfully!!
Bottom line-it's 1/4 through products, I'm ready to start practicing not perpetuating bad behaviors (eating on the couch, while driving, etc) and will continue to get to know my cues. :-)
And I'm slightly anxious to see my official weigh in tomorrow morning. :-)
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