Walking Beside the Wagon

When I started exercising and eating super healthy 3+ months ago, I was excited to see the pounds dropping away. But the one thing I wasn't ready to give up was my weekly eating out. Unfortunately there have been a few more of those eating out occasions lately, along with holidays and all that. The weight loss has slowed drastically as well.

Happily, though, when I looked back over my log I realized that even though the loss is slow, it is still a LOSS!!! Losing 3 pounds a month is so much better than putting on 3 to 5 pounds a month, which is what I was doing, hence my predicament and need to make a serious lifestyle change.

The past month or so hasn't been the easiest. I will readily admit that I got discouraged several times, along with binging for a day or so. I kind of gave up, since the scales persisted in going up for about a week or so (ahem, due to eating out). So I was kind to myself emotionally and allowed myself to slip into familiar eating patterns for a day or two.

You know what I found out? I don't enjoy the foods I used to crave as much as I did before. I think my tastebuds are actually changing and I am learning to appreciate quality foods. It's been so much fun to have some free time to experiment and try different recipes, finding out what tastes good and what really doesn't work. It is hard to make really good tasting dishes without oil, so while I've stopped adding it to my food, I haven't completely eliminated it from my diet. I still enjoy a good piece of chocolate and jelly beans and pie (okay, so maybe it's my sweet tooth that hasn't changed quite yet!).

It's also neat to see how many more fruits & vegetables I'm incorporating into my diet. I've heard the word "volummetrics" being thrown around, and whenever I have a chance to, I try to fill out my plate with plenty of low-calorie food items. A fun breakfast or supper is a pita bread or whole grain sandwich roll stuffed with my vegenaise substitute, tofurky deli slices, and thick cucumber sticks with a huge handful of cherry tomatoes & green olives to munch on.

I had the goal to lose 20 pounds in 4 months, but sadly I will come short. It's okay, though. Because I will still have lost a substantial amount, and the exciting part is that by this time next year I shall have lost even more! And hopefully I shall be even healthier, fitter, and stronger than today. So yes, I've "fallen off the wagon" when it comes to adhering strictly to my diet. (I simply had to have the jumbo white chocolate peanut butter cup at Jelly Belly Factory!) But instead of getting back on, I'm just going to walk beside it. I'm going to take things slowly, but keep slogging along. Because that is the most important thing, after all. Remaining faithful to the journey.