How To Get Back On The Weight Loss Plan

Yesterday, after days of struggle, I got back on the weight loss plan! 

You might be saying, "Yesterday? That's not much to go on." 

I disagree. It's a lot to go on. 

Here's why. Remember, I have already lost 40 pounds. I do know how to do this. I have maintained a 188 pound or less weight for a year. 

I haven't experienced a day where I actually followed the food plan for a long, long time. 

And what made me realize it, was writing things down. Writing it here. 

I expect to stay on this now for the long haul. Instead of having long stretches of wobbles and bobbles, I'm looking at miles and miles of being on my game with occasional side trips.

Here's how I got back on the horse:

• I had a plan.
• Everyday, I look at my plan and say to myself, "What did I do well?"
• Everyday, I also say, "What can I do better?"
• Wrote about it every day.
• Worked at keeping a food log. 
• Easy to meet exercise goals.

I'll elaborate on this list. I laid out a plan that worked for me when I was losing weight easily. I blogged about it on my first entry. Having a plan, a target, helps you "get" whether you are getting it or not. 

Telling yourself what you did well is key. Because people who are trying to lose weight are usually way too hard on themselves. So am I. It's okay. No one does this without slip ups.

Of course asking yourself how you can improve is also important, especially when you perceive that you are doing well. Keep things going in the right direction.

Writing about it brings clarity. This is so important. Maybe there are other cheap ways of getting this on a daily basis, but I don't know what they are. 

The food log is part of the writing, but it seems different. It's the data. You can look at it and really see what's going on. A couple of days, I could really see that there was no way to even write down my food on myfitnesspal because I didn't pay close enough attention to what I was doing. Weight loss is all about paying attention to what is going on in your mouth. If you are not paying attention, you won't improve.

The easy exercise, really helps. It keeps me regular at it, and because I usually exceed my goal, it gives me a buffer when I don't meet it one day. I'm very encouraged about my amount of exercise last week. But I am sore right now!

Looking forward to more great results.

Weight today: 188.