37 Days Down 8 More To Go!!!

What have I learned from all of this?  What have you learned from the last 37 days? I think I learned this was a tiny step for me.  I have seen where I can cut the sugar and soda out and be okay.  But it is not the big challenge it was last year, or the beginning of January.   A friend at church mentioned how I should just "cut back" on the sweets and still enjoy them.  My mouth said, "yeah" but my mind was laughing.  Then Kathy said something that really stuck in me, "all or nothing".  That is me.  I am an all or nothing kind of girl.  So with that said, and looking back here is what I have learned.

1) Support. I have never had much support in my life.  I have always had to do things by myself.  Here when I wanted to quit I couldn't because I thought of all the support that was here for me and everyone else.  I know I have heard to have a support system, a friend to do things with because you will stay more committed and motivared.  But I guess I just figured I could just as easily do it alone.  I can't.  I need all the help I can get and it is okay to ask for that help.

2) Goals.  We all have to have some kind of goals to reach for.  I have never been a goal setter.  I think because if I didn't make them, then I wouldn't feel like such a failure.  For months, I have said I was going to go walking but I never did.  Not until a friend said, "I will go with you."  Last week was only our second week of walking.  On Tuesday when it was cold outside (Cold for Texas anyway) Erika was still waiting for me when I was 10 minutes late and she made me go walking!!!  She told me, I know you can do this.  I know now I can too!!!  So now I need to set my goals for my walking, food, exercise, etc to really make some progress.

3) Emotions.  Man I think this was one of the biggest things I learned this time. It is amazing to me how many emotions go through our mind set that thrust us into high gear to eat.  Last time I did the No Sugar and No Soda, it was to gain some self control.  But this time I can see how emotions played more into it to help us gain that self control.  When I needed to drown myself, it would be nothing to get a huge page of Peanut M&M's and drown myself.  All of a sudden they sound good!!  LOL  But now, I see myself not so much going for food, as taking a step back and figuring out (or trying to) why I got upset by someone's actions or words.  Just last week I did not get all my change back from a drive thru  I went through.  When I asked for the change as well, the employee got a bit perturbed and said, "Gosh it wasn't that much!"  She was right it wasn't. But if I had been asked to I want to donate to something, it would have been a different story.  She did not give me that choice, and so I asked for it.  Normally that would send me through a few drive thru's, but this time it didn't.

4) Ownership.  Maybe I am finally taking responsibility for me.  It's easy for me to say my weight gain is because of all the abuse I have gone through in my life, but eventually if I want to get smaller and healthy I need to stop putting the blame on others and especially my mom. 

5) Read Labels.   Oh yeah I so need to do this!!  It doesn't do me any good to eat it THEN read the label.  Duhh me. The old saying, "it is easier to ask for forgiveness than permission". That is a cop out to me. I have a hard time with reading labels, so I have pretty much decided to stick to the perimeter of the grocery store when  go shopping until I can get better at reading the labels.  I get in trouble on the bread aisle.  =(

I am sure there are other things. I have not learned to write everything down, and my previous goals like no eating in the car  have not been conquered.  But in time I will conquer them.  But I am proud of myself for being able to do this once again.  But again I could never do it without all of your support.  Thank you again for sticking with me!!!