An advent of ideas 5

[GoogleMe]

Get a dog! Seriously, whilst not everyone's lifestyle is suitable, that has been one of the most significant strategies I've used. It has enabled me to prioritise exercise (first walks and now running where she is always my companion so I am not dependent on a human buddy) and I can rein back on the urge to clear my plate myself. She can tolerate almost all leftovers (apart from those known to be toxic to dogs anyway like chocolate) except for Quorn and large quantities of chips. I love home made pizza but even with sparing Italian style toppings, the dough is a lot of calories to accommodate. But I bring it down by giving her my crusts. (And no, she's not overweight)

[Windswept1]

Thats what I used to do with leftovers but my dog who started a very dry itchy skin in the summer has been diagnosed allergic to beef, dairy, soya and all cereals except oats and potato, so now the wild birds get all the leftovers!

[GoogleMe in reply to Windswept1]

Oh bad luck! My dog's 'dog foods' tend to be low allergen and we rotated through a variety so I am hoping we can avoid that.

[daylyn]

My husband got me a yorkie-poo a month ago and she is 3 lbs now (roughly 1.7kg) and she is so stinking cute. I have to take care of her and take her for walks which has helped a lot with depression. I do get out and walk her, whereas, I was "stuck" in the house. Sometimes I have anxiety bad, but I take my meds and then out the door I go trying to clear my head and enjoy the walk with her. I have lost some weight by just walking around with her, an added benefit, but the purpose was to get me outside of the house. I am much happier now. I still have my moments and BeyLah comes and lays on my lap like she knows something is going on. Great therapy.

[GoogleMe in reply to daylyn]

Ah, that's wonderful. I got heaps of exercise at the dog training classes we attended.