RAMBLING...GETTING YOU PAST THE FAILURES

GoaD GROUP THERAPY – WHAT ARE YOU PROUD OF?

This is going to be a group therapy session today… along the lines of the “WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MAKE YOURSELF PROUD” rambling…

Okay... so what can you pull out of this past week (or month or summer) that you can be proud of?? You know there is SOMETHING there... even if your COMPLETELY blew it, what did you do RIGHT?

Did you journal?
Did you drink your water?
Did you jump right back on track Monday morning??
Did you forgive yourself?

Remember, it's times like these that you need to look at the BIG PICTURE... you know, your future destination! I don't let the day to day stuff get in my way. Things happen, I'm not perfect & never expect myself to be... but I know where I am heading & each step I take NEXT is going to get me there. Yeah, I might take a side step every now & then (maybe even a BIG one!).... but I make sure that the NEXT step is the right one.

I don't stress out over the weight that I have to lose NOW... if I did, it would be way too overwhelming. Instead, I look to my future...I'm getting used to it, comfortable w/ it...I know what my future looks like...feels like...& I'm shooting for that! I haven't given myself any other future than a successful one!

A while ago, my sister asked me what my secret was... why was I able to stay on track, be so positive, etc... ? Well... I told her that I don't stress out about the weight I have to lose. I'm focusing on my future & I'm doing what I need to do to get there & STAY there. It doesn't mean that I have to be perfect... I mean, I'm FAR from perfect... but I know that if I continue to move in a positive direction... even if I step to the side every once in a while... that I WILL get there, eventually. I'm here to learn about myself... to figure out how I deal w/ the physical & mental part of all of this. I'm not here to just lose the weight... if I were, why in the heck would I be doing it the slow way? Why wouldn't I just pop some pills, drink some shakes, eat a pound of bacon?? Wouldn't it make sense to do it quickly if all I cared about was getting the weight off NOW? I care about taking this weight off for the LAST TIME... figuring out how to keep it off for the rest of my life. Don't you?

I mean, holy cr@p... I look at all that I've done in the last 19 months... even if it was slow going most of the time, (& is at a complete STAND STILL at the moment) I have lost SEVENTY-FIVE pounds!!! (85 unofficially) That just blows me away! I'm so proud of myself! I look at myself next summer & realize that I will be able to look back & see even more success (even if it's just another 20 lbs...THAT is still more successful than I would've been w/out going through this process!).... WOW, that's awesome!! I'm not going to look back & say "WOW, look what I've done.... BUT I sure blew it THAT day, (THAT week, etc...) didn't I?" THAT is what I mean by not looking back(@ the bad / stupid stuff)... what good does it do us? (not much!)

Okay... so I'm talking myself in circles again... I'm not really sure why I'm going on like this in THIS thread, well yeah, I do... last week’s posts were full of BLOWING IT / Starting Over threads... I guess I just want you to think about it.... do you live only day to day, so that when you DO blow it, you've blown apart the little bubble you keep yourself in? When you keep your focus so close to home, you will have a tough time getting past the immediate failures...you know it's true. Look farther out.... KNOW THAT YOU CAN HAVE THAT FUTURE... that it IS more than just a dream of yours... that it IS a reality if you really want it!! What do you want???

So... back to the original intent of this thread... :o)

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MAKE YOURSELF PROUD RECENTLY?

* I really had to sit myself down this morning & think about this... I’m struggling... well... I guess most of you wouldn’t necessarily call it STRUGGLING... I’m 100% OP (well, 98%)... I’m making conscious choices, I’m exercising (weight training w/ a personal trainer), I’m liking the shape that is emerging (I found my collar bone last week!!!)... feeling feminine & sexy... I’m happy & content... but that might be the problem, I think I’m TOO CONTENT... too PATIENT these days. The scale is NOT moving. It’s hovering. Yeah, I know, because I’m weight training, I’m gaining muscle, so I’m probably losing fat too, but I’m tired of not seeing any movement on the scale.

I have lost a total of NOTHING in NINE WEEKS... a total of around 12 lbs THIS YEAR! THAT is rough. I’m not in a hurry... I know that the life I am living each day is what is important... that’s the life that is not only going to get me to goal, but more importantly, it’s the life that is going to keep me at a healthy weight for the rest of my life. THAT is HUGE... that is what is really important, but I still want to see movement on the scale!!! :o) I need to get past this “patient” phase & start getting mad, start mixing things up, right? I’ve become too comfortable... TOO PATIENT... I’m just not so sure what to do. Guess it’s time to figure it out, huh??

So, I’m proud of myself for what I’ve accomplished so far, I’m proud of myself for making this more about the lifestyle & less about the weight-loss, but I’m obviously needing to pull some of the focus back to weight-loss. So...what did you do NEXT that you're proud of? Maybe it's time for you to DO the NEXT thing, isn't it?

THANKS FOR YOUR PATIENCE...

& thanks for thinking about me... I've been getting many inquiries into how I am doing. Between traveling in July & camping each weekend in August so far, I haven't been to a meeting to weigh-in since my last entry in my weight chart. I'll be heading to my meeting this weekend (8/21) & will update my chart accordingly! :o)