Gosh it seems like there was something happening on the planet yesterday as there have been eating blow outs everywhere, including me last night with chocolate!
I read an article that described dieting and exercise as a rubber band. The harder you diet and exercise without a break the further you stretch the rubber band. The more you push and push without stopping the further the rubber band stretches.
Eventually the rubber band either snaps back or it breaks. For a few people it actually reshapes and is able to continue to be stretched but that's rare.
When I look at it this way I don't feel like a blow out is that bigger deal it just tells me I stretched the rubber band too far.
When I looked at my day there were warning signals everywhere
- I was out of my comfort zone because I had become used to being at work every day, 12 hours a day in a controlled environment where I had all my food sorted and knew exactly what was happening at all times
- I was out and about and had not thought at all about lunch or taking a snack. I had not planned which is something I KNOW is crucial for my success. I finally found a place where I could get grilled fish and salad for some ridiculous price. The fish was tiny and the salad was actually pretty good but small. I was hungry for the rest of the afternoon.
- By the time I got to the end of the day and was driving home from work tired, I had only consumed about 60% of my goal calories....let alone additional calories that I could have consumed from additional exercise so I guess my body was feeling calorie starved.
And this perfect little storm all hit as I got home and resulted in much more chocolate than I should have had.
When I look back I probably *have* been undereating compared to my activity and calorie requirements and that has been setting me up for this kind of thing.
I am actually really happy that I can logically look at this and see where I went wrong. Its a moment of weakness in what has been weeks of great eating and exercise. Its not a big deal.
I'm already back in the saddle, eating well and exercising this morning .... and nursing an intermittent stomach ache and a sugar/carb hangover
And after all...
Failure is not determined by whether you fall down
It's measured by whether you get back up.
Have a great day all
EDIT 4 hours later and I still feel physically washed out and blah and gross from my excesses last night.
Finding it harder than usual to be active...and this is how I used to feel every day until very recently!
Gawd, how did I get through day after day feeling this way...AND smoking!?! LOL
Written by
Dave1961
25kg
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Hi Dave, I like the analogy of the rubber band. I agree, you can only stretch it so far before it snaps back. So yours snapped back and you ate more than you planned. you know what? That was then, this is now. It's a new day and the next meal you can organise well. Make sure you have lots of veges & salads, be sure to include some carbs and protein. Then later in the day you can have fruit and/or dairy for snacks. Get right back on that horse, it's just a slip. Come on, you helped pick me up the other day after a chocolate binge...now I'm reaching out to you. You can do it, don't make a big deal out some chocolate, like I said, that was yesterday, we move on. Hugs for you.
Rubber bands I think I've had many, usually they have all snapped!!!!!!!!!! I think you did really well to confine the damage. In some ways it's good that you feel so shockingly bad as it will help you remember all the good works that you have achieved so far. We don't appreciate things until see them or in your case feel them.
Glad your back on the BANDwagon, I know that's cheesy !!!!!!!!!
Hope you have a great day and that the weekend goes to plan, plan, plan.
I'm having to stop connecting Friday night with eating and drinking. It's a habit formed over the years. Work hard - reward yourself with food and drink. Also Friday is traditionally chippy night. It's the law. Washed down with Prosecco, followed by chocolate. Mindset change needed ASAP!!
Hi Dave, you've just summed up exactly why this can be so straightforward on one hand and so impossible on the other. Love the rubber band analogy. Its all about learning to really notice our bodies and their needs. When we are in a nice little routine where we can think stuff through - PEASY! We are Masters of the Known Universe! More than a couple of hours of unstructured time Babbling Idiots! How did we survive this long?
I've started factoring band stretch around the weekends - I've been having lousy Fridays so I've added a very small amount of carb to the diet towards the end of the week, also factored in some red meat, OK OK Its Spaghetti (40g) & Meatballs but its beginning to make a difference!
The non routine days are what leg us up though. I wonder how far you might have gone over your target for the week? Probably not as much as you might fear!
Have a great day!
What you say about how did I cope feeling like this everyday AND smoking, that was me with drinking. I would consume most of my calories in the evening along with half a bottle of wine or more. I was still doing this even after a warning from the doc about how alcohol was damaging my stomach. But I was ignoring all these effects, keeping rennies close to hand and having good resolutions again every morning followed by a big rubber band snapback in the eve. Not to mention a diminishing bank account.
I found it good to start by not having the exact thing I was craving. When I quit smoking 15yrs ago, I made myself smoke just half a cig at a time or very dry stale tobacco, so I'd disconnect the craving from an enjoyable experience. With alcohol I don't buy myself bottles of wine anymore, or if I do I get a tiny bottle or a single bottle of beer/cider, so there's less there to get my teeth into. Choc, again I have the dark choc now, I don't let myself get the dairy milk hit anymore. These slight shifts all help I think and it's something you can do while in the throes of a craving. Make yourself get a slightly smaller or more bitter tasting version of what you're craving.
Good luck with working out how to manage yours, it IS do-able in the long term. Try to really connect it all with how you feel.
Hi Dave, great title to thread and I agree 100%. In the immortal words of Cumba Womba...'I get knocked down, I get up again, ain't nothin gonna get me down...'
Well said Dave-I shall carry that elastic band thought around for a while! Good for you getting back-in-the saddle-no major harm done (scale-wise) I'm sure-enjoy your weekend!
Hi Dave,
We all learn so much about ourselves on this journey of health/fitness/wgt loss, and you are so right in your thinking of how we get back on track.
I now hate the sluggish feeling when have over indulged in high sugar stuff, and like you think 'how have I done this for years'
I do like that you have reflected on what went wrong and it's how we learn from it. Yesterday I was in a similar place of no planning and hungry. Was in a local food hall and everything was sky high in fat/cals and I ended up buying a small brown bread roll and a small banana, I love a nana sandwich so it turned out ok, but have learned from it !!
You have not failed, just detoured and back on the journey😎
Well Dave. It is a blip and can be recovered from. Finishing a sentence with a preposition. It's something that all dieters experience and you're just one of us. If the rubber band thing works as an explanation, that's OK. Is there a hint of having reached a position that you're a bit happy with? Could that be a factor in your change on the focus, albeit temporary? Anyway, you're back on the wagon and inspiring me and many others I suspect. Big responsibility. For me, I've had too long off task and have been intermittently back on it. It IS so simple isn't it really? Plan, count and the weight comes off. I will do it today as I've planned and the counting is done. Right now though, the ironing beckons. Speak soon.
RUBBER BAND-its worth to be used by all who wants.i appriciate the way expressed experience.Have a GOOD health,good day years to come.
Your darned right Dave, getting right back up after being floored is the true measure of success. You seem so surprised with the insightful knowledge you are gleaning about yourself, pleasantly I might add. That must feel good in spite of the choccy assault you have just had? Wishing you a better day today chick 😊
Hi Dave, what a brilliant post I just love it. I am so pleased to hear you are back on track now, it is one of those things we have to deal with when we are not prepared and preparation is key to our successes on this journey. I have only found myself in this position a few time over the course of my journey and can recognise like you where I went wrong.
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Aghh just ruined my diet yet again!!!
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Daily Diary for Wednesday 18th August 2021
