Self Sabotaging

First, thank you to everyone who offered support and motivation yesterday! I really appreciate it so much! This past week was my biggest gain since starting this experience and it was rough, but it is so great to know I can open up here and be so supported by you all :)

I tried to respond to every comment, but some comments were listed as "no-reply bloggers" So if you didn't receive an email from me, it isn't because I'm ignoring you, it is because I couldn't locate your email. If you want to make sure your email is connected when you post you can see a good tutorial on how here!

I'm glad I've found such a supportive blogging community. I love the friendships and connections I'm making and wish I could meet more of you in person! If you are in the Pittsburgh area, I'm planning on meeting up with a few other lovely Pittsburgh bloggers (Lex and Stephanie) on February 20th. So, if you would like to join us send me an email at ktjweighingin(at)gmail(dot)com!

Finally, if you haven't already entered the giveaway, you can do so here :)
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I had a rough day after experiencing such a big gain. I have a bad habit of self-sabatoging when I get emotional, anyone else have this problem too?

It is an awful and vicious cycle. I feel bad about myself for gaining and then seem to gravitate towards the worst possible foods for me. I can't allow that to happen anymore, I get nothing out of it. I don't feel better after eating badly. I actually feel the opposite, angry and upset with myself.

I was out late, hungry, stressed, missed my workout. . . it seemed like the night was just a mess. Then the building I was in got evacuated and I had to take the stairs from the 18th floor so I'm sure I got a few activity points there! Then I got to stand in the snow and watch the firemen arrive to save the day.

Ok, back to the point. Really I was still feeling upset about my gain and throwing myself a dramatic pity party. It seems strange that I would turn to food being upset with gaining weight. I know, makes no sense, right? A history of using food as comfort in any situation is a difficult habit to break.

When I finally got home, I decided to look back at a Jillian Michael's book ("Winning by Losing"), I was reading through some tips and I thought I'd share a few tidbits here.

For those of us that are stress eaters:

"There will never be a totally stress-feee time in your life. The key is to identify the things that are making you feel pressured, sad, angry, or anxious. Once you have identified your emotional triggers, you can break the cycle and start getting back in control of when, why, and how you eat."

So many of us get caught in this cycle. At least I hope I'm not alone! Most of the time I don't realize that I'm comfort eating until after the fact when I feel horrible about it. It is going to take a lot more awareness to track my behaviors to be able to make a change. 

Here is a tip of how you can identify your emotional eating behaviors by adding to your food tracking habits:

"Write down not just what you eat every day but the emotional circumstances surrounding every meal and snack. From now on, every time you go to eat something, I want you to stop and ask yourself the following questions so that you can pinpoint the psychological and emotional conditions that are triggering your unhealthy eating habits."

The questions to ask yourself are: Are you hungry? Are you depressed or anxious? Can you find a way to address whatever emotions you may have uncovered in an appropriate way rather than suppressing those emotions? How can you turn this problem into an opportunity? 

I just need to think positively. I can do this. I will make this commitment: 

"I can lose weight and be healthy. I will exercise to the best of my ability, and I will get stronger and better at it every time I do it. I am going to eat well today, and I will feel good about myself as a result"

Ok. Pity party over. Tomorrow is a new day, as cliche as it sounds.

"Release the past, focus on the present, and open yourself up to the possibilities that await you in the future."