Identify a personal goal that you would like to reach. What are the changes you want to create in your life?
Example: “I want to take action in recovering from my alcohol addiction.”; “I want to create a healthy sleep routine.”
I took the Compass Test and my lowest score was physical.
My goal is to loose 40 pounds by September of this year. My son is getting married and I want to look and feel better. I also need to loose the weight because of my Type 2 Diabetes and in preparation for my foot surgery. I was considered a controlled Diabetic a year ago, but trying new anti-psychotics have made me gain weight pretty fast. I’m going to be starting a new medication tonight for my hallucinations and they tell me it won’t cause me to gain weight. So, I am feeling hopeful about that.
Formulate your goal in a way that is specific and measurable. What does it look like when you’ve succeeded?
Example: “I will reach my goal when I will hit 6 full months of sobriety”, “I want to be able to sleep 7hrs/week for at least 4 nights/week”.
I want to reach my goal by the end of August, so I can fit into the outfit I buy for my son’s wedding in Sept. I did some research and I can safely loose the weight I want in 4-5 months, so I think I can do this in a healthy way.
When do you want it to be done by? Make sure to define a healthy and realistic time line.
Example: “In eight months, by 12/18/23.”
I am really really proud of you my friend. This is a big step forward for you in self care. That you have made this decision and formulated a plan to follow through is a great start in your journey.
Do you have any concrete first steps in what you will do to achieve this weight loss? Know that I will be here supporting you and cheering you on in this journey because you really do matter. You are greatly loved friend.
Thank you for your encouragement, support and love, it means the world.
I’ve already started eating like a Diabetic again, but not 100%. That’s why I wanted to make the Action Plan and get support. It’s really hard changing your diet and really easy to fall off of it.
I’m going to do my best and knowing that the community is here to support me makes me feel pretty confident that I can do this.
i’m glad you made a plan for this and i like that the reasons are multiple too.
We will all be here supporting and cheering you on, but just as equally reminding you that success is also in trying! Baby steps to eventually reach the big goal.
Myst, exciting to be committing to this new journey. And to have a built-in “milestone” or celebration point with your son’s wedding - makes it time-bound and VISUAL. You can SEE yourself there, and that is powerful for motivation.
What do you feel like is a good step 1?
→ and I 100% agree that changing diet is hard have you had success with this in the past? If so, what helped? And if not, what were some obstacles you might face this go-around?
Looking forward to hearing more and cheering you on!
Thank you, I didn’t think of the wedding being a celebration point. I like that.
First step was cleaning out my pantry today. I got rid of a few things that were tempting and not necessary to have around. I’m going to start converting things back to the way I ate as a Diabetic.
I have lost 160 pounds in the past, but it wasn’t done in a healthy way. I was actually delusional and believed if I put food in my mouth, I would go blind. So, for two years I pretty much starved myself and went thru the torture of thinking my eyes were just going to “turn off” any second. Since then, I’ve had to try a few different anti-psychotics and a lot of them make you gain weight. I’ve gone 20 pounds over the weight I told myself I wouldn’t go past.
This time, I’m going to eat like a Diabetic and try to keep around the recommended calories for my age to loose. I’m not able to exercise much because my body is broken, but I really would love a stationary bike. I used to cycle when I was younger and I loved it.
I like the stationary bike idea. Seems like a great low-impact option for some exercise. @Sapphire is also doing some biking in her action plan!
Love that you have a sense for what kind of diet you’ve done, that you’re sticking to things you know, and that you’ve already got to work cleaning out your pantry. All of this sounds solid, Myst.
So, for two days in a row, I’ve struggled in the morning. I got in the habit of having a couple cookies with my morning coffee and yesterday was particularly hard. I really wanted those cookies, but I decided to use Urge Surfing and it actually worked! I did a 10 min meditation and just road the waves of my urge to eat cookies and by the time I was done, I had better control and made a better choice.
I ended up having a piece of high fiber bread with a thin layer of peanut butter instead.
It sounds like you handle this urge like a champ! Well done, @Mystrose.
Additional question: did you enjoy your breakfast? Do you manage to keep it a nice, comforting time beyond the choice of food? (environment, etc.) – As you shift what you eat, you may feel in the long run like missing something, as there would still be a need for comfort to be nurtured. Did meditation fill that need eventually? Curious to hear about it (if you’d like to share, of course)!
I did enjoy my breakfast beyond the choice of food and I feel like doing the meditation helped to ground me and lessen the intensity of the urge. Instead of hating the fact that I couldn’t have the cookies and had to settle with the toast. I was able to say to myself, “I don’t want the cookies, I’d rather have the peanut butter toast.” It was satisfying.
I think the meditation gives me that comfort and helps with the almost obsession you can have in your head trying to decide if you should eat something you know you shouldn’t. When you’re doing the meditation, thoughts will enter and without judgment you acknowledge they are there and gently bring your focus back to the present moment. It really helps get you thru the urge.
Hey @Mystrose – aka you very strong and inspiring person.
Checking in as it’s been a little while now. How is your plan going? Do you keep meditating? Any urge following the one you’ve mentioned before – and if so, how did it go?
I don’t feel too strong and inspiring, but thank you. There have been more good days then bad I guess. I ordered food a couple times, but only because walking into the kitchen and being faced with making dinner sometimes is way too much for me and I shut down. Feeling badly about it, I’ll order food for my partner if I don’t have a frozen pizza or something simple to throw in the oven. We went shopping today, and we bought a few pre-made dinners to help with that situation.
I have lost 3 pounds, but I wish it was more and it could have been if I made better choices here and there. I’m also trying to stay drug free (5 months now yay me), so I have those urges too that I have to deal with so at times it’s a big struggle dealing with two big things like this.
I got into the habit of mindfulness meditation when I was in my therapy program last year and I do use it a lot, but I will admit that sometimes I don’t have any fight in me and I just give in. I’m trying tho.
Thank you for checking in, I really appreciate you.
have you had success with this in the past? If so, what helped? And if not, what were some obstacles you might face this go-around?
