Determined to get back on that wagon! Want to Join me?

Well, I guess there no one to blame but myself... its February break and I have seriously lost sight of my healthy eating goals. I'm not going lament about the gory details of my astounding fall from the wagon, sufice to say I fell off, watched the darn thing rolling on with out me got up, considered trying to get back on and then ran full tilt in the opposite direction... for five days. 

Today has been better, I have turned around an began the trudge back toward the wagon ( actually ate healthy, and real meals today)... I figure five days off the wagon( in the opposite direction)well it ought to take me say, ten days, fifteen (of a little heavier then regular, work out and healthy eating regime) to be on the safe side before I can even think of declairing that Im back on track.

So anyway I thought I would just post here to gather anyone else who has fallen, to join me in my journey to get back... say we could talk about anything: what caused us to fall, what we're going to do to get back, how we're going to stay on next time, and learn to feel comfortable when bumps threaten us to fall again. 

Giddy up! Here I go, forward to health once more!

I'm definitely with you on this.  God help me.

I'm with you.  I had company for 4 days this weekend and didn't totally fall off but definitely had a few change-ups and curve balls. 

Mostly I ate maintenance calories, not too over the top but I feel like I changed course a bit.  Looking forward to re-setting my intake to a "lose it" plan.

Anyone interested in daily support and structure?

I'm soooo off the wagon. Just some of the crimes I've committed since Friday... alcohol, chocolate cake, a lot of pizza, pancakes and syrup, gorging myself at Olive Garden, squares, candy. I had to stop logging calories because I was too ashamed to face the facts of what I just did.

I find that as soon as something disrupts my routine (company coming, working later than usual, etc), I completely abandon everything I know I should be doing. Why is it so hard to just make a bowl of oatmeal instead of eating chips and cake with my friends?

It's a good thing.... that tomorrow is a new day!

I feel for you 5.  I myself was SICK for 90% of January and 50% of February.   During that time I drank about 4 to 5 cups of OJ a day and did all kinds of other high carb, low will power eating.  When I was sick I didnt gain.  I guess that was one of the factors that told me that my body was finally fighting off the lung congestion... when the excessively hefty food amounts I was eating were starting to sick to my tummy and thighs again.

So here I am... back trying to remember which freaking roadway that wagon took off toward?  It is soooo difficult to get back on it.  The exercise is whats trickiest for me though.  Bad winter weather, a horrible case of whooping cough, and I had more than enough valid reasons to stay in and be careful. 

Now those reasons are becoming excuses.  I am back to tabulating my daily meals and instead of being at 1800ish calories, the last two days I have been at 2600 and 2400.  ::sighs:: 

Hence I have a long road ahead... to even find the Wagon.  Anyone thats back on it, send out a search party for me, please?  I am the one with the confused look and the big tummy, standing in the middle of the path wondering which way to turn?  ~ Lost Artist
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Alright!  We have a...err... um wagon train.   God aside xjocelynx, well help you if we can.  

renekane ,Daily support, anger, frustration, forgetting what the wagon looks like, and well cheering on those who are getting there, that sounds like a good Idea.   I have started simply, I actually plannned a day ahead slightly below my calorie intake, (giving me room to have a snack if I want it.)  and have booked in an exercise session.  

Lost_artist, I like to think of the gym as restoring my health.  I think of all of the immuno benifits that Im getting and think how it will make me stronger for the next time a nasty ilness comes along.   Also, if you go in saying, well Im sick, Ive been off for awhile, Ill just go and work out light, I find I usually work out harder then I thought I would, just because Im there. (besides all that running to get back to the wagon is going to require some fitness training).

Rattwood, I have a hard time when my routine has been disrupted.  Ive been told that when I know something is coming to plan ahead for it, give room for some folly, but otherwise stick to your plan.  Thats all your doing when your on a regular routine right....thats what Im going to try.  Heres to hoping it works.

Hope anything helps... Im glad Im not alone!

Im so far away from my wagon i can't even see it anymore. I'd like to try and find it again, but im not sure its' gunna happen as i have just finished a very large binge...started the day off well, managed one bowl of porridge instead of the usual 5 (my binges normally occur at breakfast)...then went to the gym came back feeling good and healthy..what happened? i thought ill have a bit of low fat yoghurt, which tuned into a cereal bar, half a box of cereal, 3 slices of bread and a bag of raisins..i think? i ate so much im not sure i can even remember what it was i put into my mouth, and now i am sitting here thinking why???? 

Falling off the wagon is part of the journey.  I made vegan nachos yesterday and they were so good I ate almost 1500 calores worth of them!!!  YIKES!

I don't think you have to wait a week or a month to say you're back on track!  As soon as you put down the bad food and pick up the good food, you're back on track.  Give yourself credit for 'being good' even if very recently you were 'bad'.  Recommitting is something that happens right now in this instant, it doesn't take all week.  :-)

The place to start is where you are NOW, not where you were last week or where you hope to be next week.

lost_artist - I feel your pain. I was sick with the flu this past week, and i ate a lot of soup and crackers, and drank "virgin screwdrivers" - aka orange juice and sprite. I was too embarrassed to put in my calories, and now I am using it as an excuse to not exercise. "oh, I still can't breathe well, still stuffed up, better not exercise today!"

At least I found the wagon again... Anyone need a hand up into the wagon?

I'm definitely with you on this.  The motivational factor is the hardest of them all.  Keeping to it is what it's all about. 

I could use a boost to get back up there too. Helping hands, anyone?

It's been months since I've logged calories. I started again yesterday and did ok for the better part of the day.

Then came night-time snacking. Which unfortunately turned into night-time binging....sigh. And hundreds of calories later, I was kicking myself again.

Last time I was on here, I kind of turned into a crazy person. Food was my only thought. I drove everyone crazy. I was eating hardly any calories one day and succumbing to my starvation the next.

I'm not good at moderation. I want to be on the wagon but I want to be happy there too.

Tragic -

It's all about moving towards not a dieting mentality, but a healthy lifestyle.  No one is expecting you, for example, to go your entire life without chocolate.   By making more good choices, you leave room for the bad ones. 

Moderation is the key to everything, but when you find a way to have it as just part of your day, the 'extras' become more gratifying.

I guess the way I see it is that food is kind of an addiction, like drugs or alcohol, right? And when an alcoholic is recovering, they can't have just one drink. That one drink just kind of sends them spiralling.

Food's the same way for me. I analyze and overanalyze and overanalyze again what I'm planning on putting in my mouth. I opt for an apple, eat that and then somehow end up stuffing myself with a million other things.

People can live without alcohol. People can't live without food. So everyday feels like such a battle.

Does that make sense?

It makes perfect sense, but I think there's an important difference.  You can live without drugs or alcohol, but you HAVE to have food.

For this reason, I think you need to learn (as do I, and millions of others) how to live the healthy lifestyle. 

I've lost 50 pounds by NOT dieting.  I just eat what makes sense, and what is good for me.  I'm a victim of Binge Eating, so when I do it, I try to at least make it something that's not horrible.  I used to be the guy who could polish off a large pizza, full order of breadsticks, and then go to McDonalds.

Now, if I have to binge, I go attack the Wheaties.  It's the feeling of losing control that really kills me.. I might as well stab myself with a rubber knife instead of a chainsaw, you know?

I have been dieting for 3 months and having trouble with motivation for a week. I have found that the first thing I need to do is to forgive myself for eating too much and drinking wine. We all transgress, so what? Once I have that clean slate, I look for motivation outside myself, like this group, or a higher power, or long walks by myself. My motivation bank needs deposits, not just withdrawals and I think you guys make great depositers! The other almost sure way to get back is to walk there. If all seems lost, I get on my walking shoes and go. I can walk for the whole day. It gives me time alone to think, exercise and keeps me out of the kitchen. (I think I just talked myself into getting those shoes on) Good luck to everyone and Thank you!

Its definatly a battle. I agree rotbuck,  If we lived in an early day, and had to work for our food (I dont mean shuffling papers in an office) and made it all our selves: grow our own veggies (because who really wants to slaughter a cow and grind up the meat for a hamburger), bake our own bread, perserve out own goods...we wouldn't have this problem.  I while doing all this catching up to the wagon, and listening to what everyone has to say, I have had some time to do some thinking. Your right ellybell I have to start looking at food and exercise differently. I have a goal weight.  But what am I going to do when I reach it?  Will I relax and gain all the weight back?  Thats what I would have done had I not stopped and thought about it in a different way.   This really and truly is a lifestyle change.   Learning to love ourselves and learning to be healthy every day.  Now since we don't have to work for our food, we still need to be physically active, if our jobs don't keep us that way it is our responsibility to get exercise, even if it is just going for a walk (way to go sailor babe!)     Also, I have used to be of the mind that if its processing is more then what I know i could do myself I wouldn't eat it.   Then I got sick because I didn't eat enough protine and that went out the window.  But I am going to start again with a new addition--- meat.  WHY SHOULD I PUT JUNK IN MY HEALTHY BODY?   Because they load it with sugar and salt to get me addicted?  So I can spend more money in the long run, because even though its cheeper to buy it dosn't streach as far?  NO! 

 Thank you everyone for your help.  Keep up the good work!  I intend to. And I intend to keep posting hear to help anyone else in any way I can.

count me in! it was my birthday this weekend so i came home from college and haven't really been worrying about what i've been eating. i figured, hey, its my birthday, stop worrying about it for once. but now it's time to get back into the healthy swing of things!

I have been really bad myself. I will do well for about a week then start eating treats and don't stop. I am starting again today so I know how you feel. I find visiting the forums for a bit tends to motivate me along with my pants feeling slightly tighter. I have a cold right now so that should stave off any sort of extra eating I seem to do on the weekends. I might try and go for a walk tonight if I am feeling a bit better.

Hey y'all,

Looks good.  I love the support this site provides.  Very encouraging words.  I was on a business trip over the past week and as it heads into my busy season, I anticipate lots of alterations in my habits. 

I'll be on the road at least 3 days/week until next fall (minus a few weeks).  This past weekend wasn't too bad.  Definitely indulged myself with the available food (mostly pizza at this event) but ate reasonable portions and jumped right back on the wagon on the drive home. 

I'm packing nuts, fruits and whey for the drives and try to find whole-foods and co-ops while I'm in certain towns.  It definitely takes some planning but is so worth it.  I feel so happy with where my body is headed I just can't imagine allowing anything to get in my way...

My current success is the motivation to my future success.

How are you all doing this week?

Friends, This is my second reply and I am not used to discussion groups. renekane has my respect for being able to maintain good eating habits when life throws constant curve balls. It must be very difficult to figure out how to eat on the road!

I have trouble when ever... I drink alcohol My routine is disturbed I entertain I go out to dinner

I plan what I will eat for the day and then when things change, I get swept away in the energy of the moment. I seem to be able to COMPLETELY forget good eating habits when I want to! It's like I get "Brain blinders".

Is it to late to get on the wagon? lol. Count me in. I fell off around Christmas, and am finally back. 1 pound gone already!