Rebecka22 - Congratulations on the positive feedback from your physical exam and on your successful efforts! Your diligent, thoughtful and ongoing practice is clearly paying off.
Artista - Fabulous efforts, Nancy!
Artista wrote:I don’t have confidence anymore that I can determine how I will feel and what I will do in two, three, or six months. For now I’m just focusing on each day as it comes, trying to remember every day to renew that commitment to follow this way of healthy eating and lifestyle.
This feels like a useful framework to me. By attending to things day by day, you keep your focus on the areas that are most relevant to success AND the activities over which you have the greatest agency. I think confidence starts to appear at the end of a long string of those individual days accrued in sequence; one runs into obstacles, figures out how to adjust for or overcome them, and continues forward.
BambiS - Consistent progress! I'm glad you were able to enjoy some tasty fare from the farmers' market. Yum!
Ejg - Really awesome progress this week, Eric! Kudos to you for finding a way to successfully navigate that "dinner party" and for productively managing the accompanying anxiety.
Happy birthday! I'm really impressed with your commitment to maintaining a pattern of behavior that is congruent with the goals you value.
I very much agree with you that the accumulation of a long series of congruent choices serves to habituate, "normalize", and make easier the accompanying behaviors. Carry on!
VegSeekingFit - I cannot wait for spring to arrive! Glad you were able to weather that storm and come through OK, Stephanie. I think you are wise to trust your intuitions and physical impressions around your injury; I hope your recovery is easy and manageable. I really identified with what you wrote about disagreeableness being a "secret weapon," especially this bit:
VegSeekingFit wrote:don’t want to fight / debate / argue with anyone, but honestly do not give a hoot if anyone thinks I should eat “X” instead of salad / baked potato
I feel like that really describes where I'm coming from with this, as well. I don't want to be combative, and I wish everyone the very best in the endeavors that matter to them, but I'm not looking for "input" into choices I associate with my personal values. You absolutely are a "
SUPER vegetarian"! As you describe with just assuming you'll be bringing your own food, I think the more we can normalize these behaviors for ourselves, rather than thinking of them as unusual or extraordinary, the easier they become to maintain. Have a great week!
Gimmelean - Excellent progress! Applying Dr. Lisle's framework for managing cravings to possible cues in your work environment seems like a fruitful avenue to pursue.
Let us know how it goes. I really love the post from
wildgoose you referenced, it is a favorite of mine.
Gimmelean wrote:I am glad that we have a 365 day ongoing Truth about Weight Loss Summit happening right here.
This definitely brought a big smile to my face! Have a great week!
Greens - Solid efforts! I think you are really on the right track in regard to adherence fatigue, Marilyn: "keeping simple systems in place so adherence is the default." I think making our preferred pattern of behavior feel normal, easy, and everyday is a viable bulwark against adherence fatigue.
Here's a post where Jeff writes about the thermos he uses.Lizzy_F - Definite progress from last week! I applaud your recognition of the capability to do better, particularly in attending to the "little stuff," but don't discount the things you are getting right this week and from day to day.
When that "inner child is in there stomping," what is the new information those "experiments" are meant to elicit? From my perspective, I try to differentiate between things I believe I NEED TO DO for my health and well-being (various experiments, interventions and trials can help me figure out how to make these things work), things I MIGHT LIKE TO DO for some particular reason, often social or interpersonal (experiments here can show me what the results of this thing are for me, whether it actually feels "worth it", and/or whether it really achieves what I imagined), and things I "COULD" DO (which often might amount to "could get away with"). In my experience, experiments in that latter category rarely offer useful information. Rather, to my mind, they keep nudging us away from normalizing the overall pattern of behavior that we know works for us; instead, we're chasing the lure of some hypothetical, perfectly tested, least obtrusive pattern of behavior that we never actually catch. It's also pretty easy to stumble and fall along the way.
Kudos to you for declaring your intentions to make the transition into March a "squeaky clean" success!
Hjklost55 - Awesome adherence! Your MWL-adherent, Mary's Mini-inspired, simple and focused routine is really working for you! That spinach and broccoli slaw dish sounds really appealing to me. Thanks for sharing. What an amazing, well-adapted resolution you were able to bring to your "cookie incident" - a big THUMBS-UP for that! Onward!
Noella - Excellent efforts and an outstanding week! I completely agree with your point about the importance of having a clear, specific vision of WHY we want to make these changes and maintain these behaviors.
Often those reasons will broaden and develop over time, in my experience. You DEFINITELY have a substantial and powerful list of reasons for adherence; importantly, many of them are outcomes you've attained, so you are directly experiencing those benefits. Enjoy them!