Monday, September 14, 2009

LISTENING TO MY VOICE OF REASON

I have given my "diet" a lot of thought today. I woke up feeling awful (too much wine over the weekend and some over indulgence at hubbie's birthday dinner last night). I suffered through my leg workout and then did my bike intervals. There wasn't much enjoyment there until it was all done LOL.

That's the price you pay for making poor choices with food and wine.

My voice of reason told me that going ultra low carb for however long is not the answer. Yes the number on the scale will drop but its just water weight essentially. I may last 4 days but will probably end up having mad cravings. Plus eating like that just doesn't work for me. I need far more fibre in my diet (and chugging glassfuls of Metamucil makes no difference) and I need my brain working optimally for my job. Fuzzy brain just doesn't cut it for me.

So carbs are in and this in itself makes me a happier person. So over my black coffee this morning (more on that later) I thought about what I wanted and how I wanted to live my life and achieve my goals. Here are my thoughts / decisions:

1. I'm not worried about what I'll weigh going to Melbourne. I'm not fretting about whether the size 11 jeans will fit or not. I'll wash my loose size 12s and wear those and enjoy the weekend.

2. Today I feel calm and rational again but the balance thing still eludes me. I'm over the weekend and I'm not stressing about it, regretting it or worst of all, beating myself up over it. Moving on!!

3. I'm going to relax my approach to my diet and trust my instincts to know what / how / when to eat for fat loss. I've lost fat many times before just by being more mindful and I'm giving this a go. I don't want to obsessively weigh and record everything and I want to be a bit more liberal in the choices I make. I wont go overboard on treats as I still want good results but I need to feel more "normal" so that I don't get to a point where I just become totally obsessed and consumed by what I'm eating or not eating. Hence one reason for my recent poor choices.

4. If I can get my headspace right (and its just about 100% today so things are looking great there) I believe this can work for me. I just have to believe that it will and be mindful of what I ultimately want. And that is to be: strong, lean and toned, to look great and feel fantastic (and I wont achieve that by putting crap into my body). PS This is my mantra / affirmation.

5. Oh and I HATE black coffee and will be having a small skim cappuccino in the mornings again.

So bring on a new approach and a new outlook with a view to achieving a better balance and more consistent inner calm and happiness. I'm smart enough and wise enough to realise that crash diets dont work and if I'm not prepared to do it long term then why waste time on it in the short term. Better to find what works, what makes me happy and then stick to it.

Oh I love feeling like this again :-)

Magda

7 comments:

Dawn said...

I'm trying t get to the right place in my mind. I'm a little off this month but I will get it together.

Keep with a positive outlook.

Fifi said...

It's so hard to find just the right way of eating to suit. But yeah, one that sits 'mentally' with you is a great place to start.

Oh.I don't know what's happened. 'dieting' was so easy when I was younger. Even after the kids, eat healthy, cut out crap and walk everyday whooosh goes 15 kilos in a 4 months. Doesn't work now :o(

weight loss seems to be 80% diet but diet seems to be 80% in the mind!

Magda said...

Hi Dawn,

It sounds like you too appreciate how important it is to get the mind working right. The rest just falls into place. Sometimes easier said than done though but well worth working towards.

Oh Frankie, I couldnt agree more. My problem is that when I want something I go HARD to get it but in doing so I set myself up to fail because its too strict and cant be maintained over the longer term or my expectations are so high that I dont achieve them and then feel like I've failed anyway. And 40 might be the new 30 but it aint much chop when it comes to weight loss. It may as well be the new 60 LOL.

:-) Magda

Bug's Mumma said...

You just have to find what works for YOU, not what the latest fad is :) I've personally stopped and started so many different ways of eating, both in-and-out of competition, that my eating was completely and utterley screwed. Now, I eat what I want, when I want and dont feel a single shred of guilt. Sure I do have my 'crap' days, but such is life :) xoxo

Magda said...

Hi Alicia,

I've come a long way over the last few months but the journey continues. Still not in the ultimately happy place I want to live in 99% of the time.

Cheers

Magda

Erika said...

It's so important to have your head in the right place, I was there before my injury and I'm back now. It's also important to find the right way of eating for you. Once you find that, it's half the battle. Erika

Michelle said...

Hi Magda,
I've been reading your posts for the last few weeks. I was wondering have your read the book 'Beck Diet Solution' by Judith Beck. It's all CBT for diet. I'm reading it now and keep thinking of you.