keeping it off
I was ruminating the other day that of all the people I know who have lost weight during the period of my weight-loss adventure (September 2003 through the present)–a not inconsiderable number–all but a handful have gained it back.
Those who haven’t regained (including myself) are the people who 1) exercise regularly and 2) have made permanent changes to their eating habits.
That’s boring, right? You know all this. I know all this. I just feel depressed about all the hard work these people have done and now need to do all over again.
A good friend–someone I’m training–was talking the other day about how she misses the bakery muffin she used to enjoy every morning from the shop across from her office. My advice was to let the muffin be a special treat that she enjoys maybe once a month while trying to lose weight and maybe once a week or twice a month when she’s in maintenance. Everything tastes better when it’s a special treat.
So boring as the concept of maintenance is (and the general idea of exercising self-control on a daily basis), the payoff is looking great every day and even better, feeling healthy and energetic.
