Back on the Healthy Eating Bandwagon: What’s Your Tipping Point?

Pretty sure that my family knew that my “HOLY SH*T” scream from the bathroom yesterday morning couldn’t mean anything good as I stepped on the scale.

I shouldn’t have been surprised at what I saw though. The same way you lose weight – slowly and by a healthy calorie deficit- I gained weight slowly but eating (& drinking) more.

If I’m keeping it real, I’ll tell you guys that I’m 9 pounds more than I was six months ago.

The weight I was six months ago was something I had maintained responsibly without too much struggle for five years. (I lost a little over 10 pounds in 2010)

Obviously weight fluctuates. I can actually see the last 5 years of my weight as I’ve been keeping track of it in MyFitnessPal.com almost weekly for five years. I have a 3 pound back and forth around one number that I know is MY number. It’s there that I feel healthy and happy. It’s a number that in an ideal world I’d love to be even less but I know my body and this is the healthy number that I can maintain by eating right – not starving myself but not overeating and exercising regularly.

Do you have that number or range for you?

In the past, when I would see myself creeping up from that number, I could usually tone it back & eat carefully for a few days until I was back on track. But for whatever reason, since mainly Easter, I have been letting it very slowly go up & not doing enoughabout it. To the end of this chapter: my scream yesterday.

It was my breaking point. I think we all need one. It was the Holy Shit of Diet wake up calls – the dammit my pants won’t zip and you need to do something about it slap in the face I needed.

I should note at this point that it’s really not about the number itself. It’s about how I feel when I’m that number. I feel good. I feel healthy. When I’m 9 pounds more, everything feels uncomfortable.

So I’m back on the bandwagon. I was aware it was coming and it’s been a slow and steady of many extra cocktails, over-eating on vacations and just generally not paying attention that has gotten me here.

I’m sure it’s not the ideal time as I’m leaving tomorrow for 3 days for several blogging conferences & meetings in New York but it’s now or never so hopefully some serious accountability and responsibility with what I’m eating and doing will help.

Here’s some things I did before that made me successful that I hope to do again:

1) Weekly weigh-ins. See how on the chart above I just stopped May 18th and didn’t weigh in again until yesterday? Weighing in weekly gives me accountability and keeps me grounded. I don’t like weighing in daily because I think there are too many ups and downs on a daily basis but over a 7 day period? It’s legit.

2.) Less eating the kids food. It’s all over once I have ONE bite. I used to be so good when I’d be making the kids food about not trying it at all but lately, a bite here and there leads to many calories over several months.

3) Account for every calorie on MyFitnessPal.com. I have to log everything – otherwise I don’t feel responsible. But it’s nice to have a daily goal and I find I stick to it when I have to log it in each day. It’s a pain but it works.

4) Continuing to exercise regularly. I have this down as I do about 5 days a week but clearly exercise alone doesn’t do it since I gained the weight. Have to maintain a healthy balance.

So it’s summer – the land of extra cocktails and lots of BBQs but I’m getting back on the healthy path NOW. This blog post is my promise to myself. Anyone want to join me?