Giving Myself Credit

  I had a great WI today - down 6 lbs.  That's first.  Now in full disclosure mode, I have been having some fairly serious gastric problems of late.  I am scheduled to have a test done next week in hopes of nailing down a diagnosis.  But last Saturday evening, I had another serious bout of pain, and although I didn't need to go the the ER like last time, it was still pretty scary.  And for most of this week, I have been limited in my eating.  Some of that was simple fear - if I ate too much, I was afraid I'd start feeling pains again.  In the first day or two, I simply felt very tender, as a result of the stresses of Saturday night.  If I ate smaller amounts, I felt ok.

  So when I had this great weigh in result, I was tempted to write it off and say, well I was not feeling well, so it doesn't really count.  But the truth is, as I felt better, there was a pretty good war going on inside me most of the time.  I wanted to be cautious, because of the fear of another episode.  But I still really wanted to eat a lot at times, and not always good choices.  In fact, the devil on my shoulder kept rationalizing, and saying that since I was eating much smaller amounts than usual, and was frequently feeling actual hunger, that it would be ok to make some of my choices higher calorie/fat options.  Like having one of those delicious new frappes from Burger King instead of making myself a smoothie at home.

  I felt like it was an interesting week, with this battle raging on.  And the fact of the matter is that I continued to make smart choices, both in what I chose to eat and in my portion size. As a result, I've decided to give myself credit for the weight loss, because although some of it can be attributed to illness, the simple truth is that it would have been a lot less than 6 lbs if I'd given in to temptation.  So I gladly accepted the star the leader gave me, and shared my success at the meeting, with no hedging.

  It's so easy to diminish ourselves and our accomplishments.  To play them off, and act like they were accidental or just no big deal. So I followed last week's advice, and spoke to myself about it the way I would speak to a friend, and take the credit for the work.   And you know what?  I'm glad I did!

What Derek Jeter has to do with Weight Loss

   As a fan of the New York Yankees, I was happy today watching our Captain join a very elite club in baseball by getting his 3000th career hit.  During the game commentary, one of the announcers talked about how Derek grew up dreaming of being shortstop for the Yankees, and how great it was that his dream came true.  But that got me thinking.
   Derek Jeter dreamed of being the Yankee shortstop, but dreaming it wasn't enough.  He had to work long and hard to get to that goal (and yes, talent and luck, and the belief of a baseball scout when others weren't so sure).  But all in all, Derek achieved his dream - a very lofty one for a kid playing little league baseball - by putting his head down and doing the work.  Even when it was hard, and even when his dreamed seemed far away.
    And that's when I thought about something we talked about at the end of our WW meeting today.  Our leader asked us what one things we were going to do this week to help turn our dreams to reality.  Then I came home and watched this man make baseball history.  And I realized that it doesn't matter how lofty the dream, or how far away it may seem.  It takes hard work and determination.  It requires us to make choices that may feel like sacrifices, but act in service to achieving our dreams.  It means having strength even when we feel weak, and belief in ourselves and in the process even when it feels unmanageable.
   For Derek Jeter it meant endless hours of batting practice, fielding drills and physical conditioning.  For me it means planning my food choices, getting in activity, meeting the healthy guidelines and tracking.   And by sticking with it, even when it's hard, and it isn't fun, and it seems unreachable, I can see my dream of a more healthy me come true!