How do you stay on track? Do you have a tip to share?

[MamaMichelle]

Something else I stole from the gastric bypass board, some good tips here from MANY different people... Hopefully something will spark with everyone that reads this, and if you have a great tip please feel free to share it!!

We all have little hints and tips that give us strength and allow us to slowly change our life for the better and healthier on a permanent basis.

If we make HUGE changes it disrupts our life and we gravitate towards old behaviors... even if its only in our subconscious we cant wait to go back to the old food or old ways. If we make slow permanent changes that we actually LIKE we are more likely to stick to it.

I personally believe that the doctors and professionals are not strong enough in their warnings to us because they cannot personally relate to the destructive behaviors that lead us to Morbid Obesity... so they send us off after surgery to live with a few printed sheets of guidelines and a 'have a nice life', when some of us need Brain Surgery to make corrections to our stinkin' thinkin'. We cant wait to run up to that line in the sand and JUMP RIGHT ON IT TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS. We cant wait to stand in front of a Wendy's menu board to see what we can 'tolerate'... cant wait to see if a burger will stay down! Arrrrrgggghhhhh... it drives me insane.

We have to form our own methods to change the madness of our old ways. We have to start off fresh, and slowly grab hold of the reins and take control. This time though we have a superb tool to help us so we have to have the mindset that it isnt a temporary fix its a permanent solution if we use the surgical tool we have just had major surgery to implant.

Something that I do which I find is a great help to making permanent changes in my life is to negotiate with myself over food. When I have foods in front of me that I would like to eat that are not necessarily the best choice, I negotiate with myself that IF I eat my protein first, a few bites of healthy carb vegetables, THEN I can have a bite or two of the potato or a bite of the mac and cheese IF I want to.

By giving myself permission, BUT with qualifiers, I dont feel that sting of 'YOU CANT HAVE THAT' and the urge to do the opposite. We all that that tendency to rebel against what we are told we cant do, or cant have. However, once I eat my fish or steak protein, and a little healthy nutrition from vegetables... I no longer even want the food that contains the empty carbs, fat, and calories. So even though I 'allow' myself to have these foods that will not take me towards my goals, the reality is that I dont eat them. I never have any intention of eating them, I just play with my mind over it.

ALWAYS know the night before I go to bed EXACTLY what and how much I will eat the following day. I write it down, after making sure I have what I planned on eating. (sometimes family members get hungry and eat leftovers I might have been planning on, so I do a quick check) Then I post it in the side of my fridge, physically checking off as I go the following day. I always plan for one portable meal or snack, be it a shaker full of protein powder, a bar, or just a packet of peanut butter in case my day changes and I am eating on the go. If at bedtime the following day, I have not eaten everything on list, I stay up till I have done so, but my meals are well planned out, and I try to eat pretty much at the same time each day, its not often that it happens. Making sure I eat everything I need keeps me from feeling 'empty' or 'low energy' the following day which could lead me to crave the wrong foods!

Here are a few of my favorite things.

I NEVER eat out of a regular plate or bowl at home, only if I dine out.

I need to keep my portions right so I spent a lot of time looking for dishes that serve that purpose.

In the picture below I put eggs in everything so you can see the porportion.

The white round bowl and square plate is from Pier 1, the colored plate and bowl I found at TJ Max, I believe they are intended for sushi and wasabi, I use them to eat off of and put my veggie or sauce in the bowl.

The oval was a gift from a man in a small restaurant near us, I asked for his supply house so I could get some, they are so perfect and he made me a gift of 6 of them, don't you know I frequent his place now. This morning I modified Susan Maria's poached egg (I used pre-made salsa 1/3 cup, poached the egg and put some con queso 1.5 ounce over to get it melty)it fills this oval bowl nicely.

The spoon is all I eat with at home, my daughter overnigted them to me the day I had my surgery, I did not want to use the baby spoons that are colored on the end, she found these and Bed, Bath and Beyond, they are espresso spoons and they come 8 to a pack.

I also use Gerber baby bowls to carry lunch to work in (crustless quiche, or the pizza one for instance)perfect size, about the same as the round white bowl.

I use ice cube trays to freeze one and two ounce servings so they are ready to pop out and take along or throw in the micro wave.

I just found silicone cupcake things, like the papers only reusable, I will start putting my quiche and whatever in them to bake so they are already portioned. I do a lot of cooking ahead and then dividing, this will just save a step.

I also try to have protein every 3 hours, eat from smaller dishes and I plan all my meals and snacks on Sunday, go to the store and get anything I'm running low on, and cook for the next week. I also took Ken's advice and posted pre-op photos of me all over my house, especially previous mindless-eating zones. There's one next to my computer screen, on my refrigerator, I even have one taped to the TV remote. I only cook and eat large meals when I'll be eating it with the rest of my family as witnesses. The rest of the time I eat my pre-measured meals from the refrigerator, drink protein shakes, yogurt, cottage cheese, deli rollups, etc.

One thing that really made a difference for me was to decide that food could go to WASTE rather than go to WAIST.

So now I have absolutely no regrets when I toss out half an order from a restaurant! Although, any more, Ron and I tend to only order a combination plate of some sort. We ate at Outback the other day, and ordered prime rib, and told the server we would be sharing it. They brought that one order on two plates, and it looked like two complete orders. We saved food, money, and the server got a nice tip!

Before surgery I could not stand to throw food away, and I knew if it made it to the fridge, it would not get eaten. So I became "mikie." I ate everything. Not anymore! If I can't freeze portions, it just gets tossed or the dog gets it. The starving kids in podunksville will have to forage elsewhere!

Yes, for me too planning is very important. During the week, being on my work schedule is easier than on the weekend, when my usual eating plan doesn't fit because I'm running around doing chores/having fun. I have to pay attention a little more and try to get in a good chunk of protein early. Also when I travel I have to watch and plan a bit more. I always have some supplemental protein with me, altho I try to eat normal food first. Most of the time that works, but sometimes it doesn't so I pull out a protein bar or jerky.

a lot of it for me is mental too. I divide food into "my" food, which is the healthy, bariatric friendly protein food, plus healthy vegetables and fruit, and then the "sometimes" food, which is food I can eat sometimes, like a bit of bread or pasta, and then the absolutely "never" food, which is sugar food. sometimes i end up eating/drinking some sugar by mistake, so I know that I can tolerate it but I choose to make it a firm no. Most of the time the "sometimes" food is in the "never" category.

I am very strict with myself and that is fine. I was lenient all those years and look where it got me...being MO and miserable. I don't want to blow this opportunity by eating stupid food...maybe I look down on food now...it is not the comfort it was but "just nutrition". I try not to think of it as something enjoyable and pleasurable like before. I will find my pleasure elsewhere and treat food as nutrition to live.

My normal schedule is 3 meals a day, protein first. I don't count calories or carbs. Life is too short for that and as long as I am within my maintenance weight range, then I just eat to my plan. If I do creep up, I will count my calories for a day or two to see where the extra calories are coming from, because the only way you can gain weight is taking in more calories than you burn, so cutting calories would then work.

I have found that when I get lax in two areas of my life, my overall general eating gets lax as well.

1. unplanned, mindless snacking. one bite leads to three bites which leads to an all day eat fest. It surprised me to find that even when I only consume protein rich or high fiber snacks when done in a mindless and unplanned manner it has nearly ALWAYS led me to binges of low protein, high carb, no fiber unhealthy eating. I've bumped myself of the wagon multiple times this way, and then it becomes a vicious cycle. Example- I'm a substitute teacher and picked up a job yesterday, it was the first day of school and there were lots of goodies in the teacher's lounge and when I saw the homemade chocolate chip cookies I did what Ellen did and said to myself " I know what that tastes like, no reason to tempt myself my trying some." Then I walked on and didn't give it another thought!

2. exercise. when I exercise regularly (even when I don't want to do it!), I find that I treat my body nutritionally better, too... I really focus on making healthy choices so that what I consume is top rate 'fuel' that keeps my furnace stoked. I honestly fear being out on a run (and I don't go far, trust me!) and bonking.

One of the most difficult challenges I have is resisting goodies that people bring to the office to share. Best way to stop myself dead in my tracks is to log the goodie into fitday.com BEFORE I give in to the temptation. Usually all it takes is for me to see in black and white how many calories one of those goodies contains and how much I'll have to give up for the rest of the day to keep myself from exceeding my allotment for the day.

I bring all of my food for the day to work with me, but those treats can sabotage my plans if I'm not careful.

[emtstacey76]

Great tips and my dogs have been eating great since I got this. I will not put leftovers in the frig because I was the only one that used to eat them, I just give them right to the dogs now and they think its wonderful!

[soccermom]

Something else I stole from the gastric bypass board, some good tips here from MANY different people... Hopefully something will spark with everyone that reads this, and if you have a great tip please feel free to share it!!

We all have little hints and tips that give us strength and allow us to slowly change our life for the better and healthier on a permanent basis.

If we make HUGE changes it disrupts our life and we gravitate towards old behaviors... even if its only in our subconscious we cant wait to go back to the old food or old ways. If we make slow permanent changes that we actually LIKE we are more likely to stick to it.

I personally believe that the doctors and professionals are not strong enough in their warnings to us because they cannot personally relate to the destructive behaviors that lead us to Morbid Obesity... so they send us off after surgery to live with a few printed sheets of guidelines and a 'have a nice life', when some of us need Brain Surgery to make corrections to our stinkin' thinkin'. We cant wait to run up to that line in the sand and JUMP RIGHT ON IT TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS. We cant wait to stand in front of a Wendy's menu board to see what we can 'tolerate'... cant wait to see if a burger will stay down! Arrrrrgggghhhhh... it drives me insane.

We have to form our own methods to change the madness of our old ways. We have to start off fresh, and slowly grab hold of the reins and take control. This time though we have a superb tool to help us so we have to have the mindset that it isnt a temporary fix its a permanent solution if we use the surgical tool we have just had major surgery to implant.

Something that I do which I find is a great help to making permanent changes in my life is to negotiate with myself over food. When I have foods in front of me that I would like to eat that are not necessarily the best choice, I negotiate with myself that IF I eat my protein first, a few bites of healthy carb vegetables, THEN I can have a bite or two of the potato or a bite of the mac and cheese IF I want to.

By giving myself permission, BUT with qualifiers, I dont feel that sting of 'YOU CANT HAVE THAT' and the urge to do the opposite. We all that that tendency to rebel against what we are told we cant do, or cant have. However, once I eat my fish or steak protein, and a little healthy nutrition from vegetables... I no longer even want the food that contains the empty carbs, fat, and calories. So even though I 'allow' myself to have these foods that will not take me towards my goals, the reality is that I dont eat them. I never have any intention of eating them, I just play with my mind over it.

ALWAYS know the night before I go to bed EXACTLY what and how much I will eat the following day. I write it down, after making sure I have what I planned on eating. (sometimes family members get hungry and eat leftovers I might have been planning on, so I do a quick check) Then I post it in the side of my fridge, physically checking off as I go the following day. I always plan for one portable meal or snack, be it a shaker full of protein powder, a bar, or just a packet of peanut butter in case my day changes and I am eating on the go. If at bedtime the following day, I have not eaten everything on list, I stay up till I have done so, but my meals are well planned out, and I try to eat pretty much at the same time each day, its not often that it happens. Making sure I eat everything I need keeps me from feeling 'empty' or 'low energy' the following day which could lead me to crave the wrong foods!

Here are a few of my favorite things.

I NEVER eat out of a regular plate or bowl at home, only if I dine out.

I need to keep my portions right so I spent a lot of time looking for dishes that serve that purpose.

In the picture below I put eggs in everything so you can see the porportion.

The white round bowl and square plate is from Pier 1, the colored plate and bowl I found at TJ Max, I believe they are intended for sushi and wasabi, I use them to eat off of and put my veggie or sauce in the bowl.

The oval was a gift from a man in a small restaurant near us, I asked for his supply house so I could get some, they are so perfect and he made me a gift of 6 of them, don't you know I frequent his place now. This morning I modified Susan Maria's poached egg (I used pre-made salsa 1/3 cup, poached the egg and put some con queso 1.5 ounce over to get it melty)it fills this oval bowl nicely.

The spoon is all I eat with at home, my daughter overnigted them to me the day I had my surgery, I did not want to use the baby spoons that are colored on the end, she found these and Bed, Bath and Beyond, they are espresso spoons and they come 8 to a pack.

I also use Gerber baby bowls to carry lunch to work in (crustless quiche, or the pizza one for instance)perfect size, about the same as the round white bowl.

I use ice cube trays to freeze one and two ounce servings so they are ready to pop out and take along or throw in the micro wave.

I just found silicone cupcake things, like the papers only reusable, I will start putting my quiche and whatever in them to bake so they are already portioned. I do a lot of cooking ahead and then dividing, this will just save a step.

I also try to have protein every 3 hours, eat from smaller dishes and I plan all my meals and snacks on Sunday, go to the store and get anything I'm running low on, and cook for the next week. I also took Ken's advice and posted pre-op photos of me all over my house, especially previous mindless-eating zones. There's one next to my computer screen, on my refrigerator, I even have one taped to the TV remote. I only cook and eat large meals when I'll be eating it with the rest of my family as witnesses. The rest of the time I eat my pre-measured meals from the refrigerator, drink protein shakes, yogurt, cottage cheese, deli rollups, etc.

One thing that really made a difference for me was to decide that food could go to WASTE rather than go to WAIST.

So now I have absolutely no regrets when I toss out half an order from a restaurant! Although, any more, Ron and I tend to only order a combination plate of some sort. We ate at Outback the other day, and ordered prime rib, and told the server we would be sharing it. They brought that one order on two plates, and it looked like two complete orders. We saved food, money, and the server got a nice tip!

Before surgery I could not stand to throw food away, and I knew if it made it to the fridge, it would not get eaten. So I became "mikie." I ate everything. Not anymore! If I can't freeze portions, it just gets tossed or the dog gets it. The starving kids in podunksville will have to forage elsewhere!

Yes, for me too planning is very important. During the week, being on my work schedule is easier than on the weekend, when my usual eating plan doesn't fit because I'm running around doing chores/having fun. I have to pay attention a little more and try to get in a good chunk of protein early. Also when I travel I have to watch and plan a bit more. I always have some supplemental protein with me, altho I try to eat normal food first. Most of the time that works, but sometimes it doesn't so I pull out a protein bar or jerky.

a lot of it for me is mental too. I divide food into "my" food, which is the healthy, bariatric friendly protein food, plus healthy vegetables and fruit, and then the "sometimes" food, which is food I can eat sometimes, like a bit of bread or pasta, and then the absolutely "never" food, which is sugar food. sometimes i end up eating/drinking some sugar by mistake, so I know that I can tolerate it but I choose to make it a firm no. Most of the time the "sometimes" food is in the "never" category.

I am very strict with myself and that is fine. I was lenient all those years and look where it got me...being MO and miserable. I don't want to blow this opportunity by eating stupid food...maybe I look down on food now...it is not the comfort it was but "just nutrition". I try not to think of it as something enjoyable and pleasurable like before. I will find my pleasure elsewhere and treat food as nutrition to live.

My normal schedule is 3 meals a day, protein first. I don't count calories or carbs. Life is too short for that and as long as I am within my maintenance weight range, then I just eat to my plan. If I do creep up, I will count my calories for a day or two to see where the extra calories are coming from, because the only way you can gain weight is taking in more calories than you burn, so cutting calories would then work.

I have found that when I get lax in two areas of my life, my overall general eating gets lax as well.

1. unplanned, mindless snacking. one bite leads to three bites which leads to an all day eat fest. It surprised me to find that even when I only consume protein rich or high fiber snacks when done in a mindless and unplanned manner it has nearly ALWAYS led me to binges of low protein, high carb, no fiber unhealthy eating. I've bumped myself of the wagon multiple times this way, and then it becomes a vicious cycle. Example- I'm a substitute teacher and picked up a job yesterday, it was the first day of school and there were lots of goodies in the teacher's lounge and when I saw the homemade chocolate chip cookies I did what Ellen did and said to myself " I know what that tastes like, no reason to tempt myself my trying some." Then I walked on and didn't give it another thought!

2. exercise. when I exercise regularly (even when I don't want to do it!), I find that I treat my body nutritionally better, too... I really focus on making healthy choices so that what I consume is top rate 'fuel' that keeps my furnace stoked. I honestly fear being out on a run (and I don't go far, trust me!) and bonking.

One of the most difficult challenges I have is resisting goodies that people bring to the office to share. Best way to stop myself dead in my tracks is to log the goodie into fitday.com BEFORE I give in to the temptation. Usually all it takes is for me to see in black and white how many calories one of those goodies contains and how much I'll have to give up for the rest of the day to keep myself from exceeding my allotment for the day.

I bring all of my food for the day to work with me, but those treats can sabotage my plans if I'm not careful.

Michelle this is great!! I am printing this now to bring home, and I am going to start writing my meal plans out daily. I do think this will help. This is the kind of stuff I was looking for. Thank you so much! :lb23:

[DaGreen]

FANTASTIC POST! Thank you for finding it an sharing it!

[bubs]

Something else I stole from the gastric bypass board, some good tips here from MANY different people... Hopefully something will spark with everyone that reads this, and if you have a great tip please feel free to share it!!

We all have little hints and tips that give us strength and allow us to slowly change our life for the better and healthier on a permanent basis.

If we make HUGE changes it disrupts our life and we gravitate towards old behaviors... even if its only in our subconscious we cant wait to go back to the old food or old ways. If we make slow permanent changes that we actually LIKE we are more likely to stick to it.

I personally believe that the doctors and professionals are not strong enough in their warnings to us because they cannot personally relate to the destructive behaviors that lead us to Morbid Obesity... so they send us off after surgery to live with a few printed sheets of guidelines and a 'have a nice life', when some of us need Brain Surgery to make corrections to our stinkin' thinkin'. We cant wait to run up to that line in the sand and JUMP RIGHT ON IT TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS. We cant wait to stand in front of a Wendy's menu board to see what we can 'tolerate'... cant wait to see if a burger will stay down! Arrrrrgggghhhhh... it drives me insane.

We have to form our own methods to change the madness of our old ways. We have to start off fresh, and slowly grab hold of the reins and take control. This time though we have a superb tool to help us so we have to have the mindset that it isnt a temporary fix its a permanent solution if we use the surgical tool we have just had major surgery to implant.

Something that I do which I find is a great help to making permanent changes in my life is to negotiate with myself over food. When I have foods in front of me that I would like to eat that are not necessarily the best choice, I negotiate with myself that IF I eat my protein first, a few bites of healthy carb vegetables, THEN I can have a bite or two of the potato or a bite of the mac and cheese IF I want to.

By giving myself permission, BUT with qualifiers, I dont feel that sting of 'YOU CANT HAVE THAT' and the urge to do the opposite. We all that that tendency to rebel against what we are told we cant do, or cant have. However, once I eat my fish or steak protein, and a little healthy nutrition from vegetables... I no longer even want the food that contains the empty carbs, fat, and calories. So even though I 'allow' myself to have these foods that will not take me towards my goals, the reality is that I dont eat them. I never have any intention of eating them, I just play with my mind over it.

ALWAYS know the night before I go to bed EXACTLY what and how much I will eat the following day. I write it down, after making sure I have what I planned on eating. (sometimes family members get hungry and eat leftovers I might have been planning on, so I do a quick check) Then I post it in the side of my fridge, physically checking off as I go the following day. I always plan for one portable meal or snack, be it a shaker full of protein powder, a bar, or just a packet of peanut butter in case my day changes and I am eating on the go. If at bedtime the following day, I have not eaten everything on list, I stay up till I have done so, but my meals are well planned out, and I try to eat pretty much at the same time each day, its not often that it happens. Making sure I eat everything I need keeps me from feeling 'empty' or 'low energy' the following day which could lead me to crave the wrong foods!

Here are a few of my favorite things.

I NEVER eat out of a regular plate or bowl at home, only if I dine out.

I need to keep my portions right so I spent a lot of time looking for dishes that serve that purpose.

In the picture below I put eggs in everything so you can see the porportion.

The white round bowl and square plate is from Pier 1, the colored plate and bowl I found at TJ Max, I believe they are intended for sushi and wasabi, I use them to eat off of and put my veggie or sauce in the bowl.

The oval was a gift from a man in a small restaurant near us, I asked for his supply house so I could get some, they are so perfect and he made me a gift of 6 of them, don't you know I frequent his place now. This morning I modified Susan Maria's poached egg (I used pre-made salsa 1/3 cup, poached the egg and put some con queso 1.5 ounce over to get it melty)it fills this oval bowl nicely.

The spoon is all I eat with at home, my daughter overnigted them to me the day I had my surgery, I did not want to use the baby spoons that are colored on the end, she found these and Bed, Bath and Beyond, they are espresso spoons and they come 8 to a pack.

I also use Gerber baby bowls to carry lunch to work in (crustless quiche, or the pizza one for instance)perfect size, about the same as the round white bowl.

I use ice cube trays to freeze one and two ounce servings so they are ready to pop out and take along or throw in the micro wave.

I just found silicone cupcake things, like the papers only reusable, I will start putting my quiche and whatever in them to bake so they are already portioned. I do a lot of cooking ahead and then dividing, this will just save a step.

I also try to have protein every 3 hours, eat from smaller dishes and I plan all my meals and snacks on Sunday, go to the store and get anything I'm running low on, and cook for the next week. I also took Ken's advice and posted pre-op photos of me all over my house, especially previous mindless-eating zones. There's one next to my computer screen, on my refrigerator, I even have one taped to the TV remote. I only cook and eat large meals when I'll be eating it with the rest of my family as witnesses. The rest of the time I eat my pre-measured meals from the refrigerator, drink protein shakes, yogurt, cottage cheese, deli rollups, etc.

One thing that really made a difference for me was to decide that food could go to WASTE rather than go to WAIST.

So now I have absolutely no regrets when I toss out half an order from a restaurant! Although, any more, Ron and I tend to only order a combination plate of some sort. We ate at Outback the other day, and ordered prime rib, and told the server we would be sharing it. They brought that one order on two plates, and it looked like two complete orders. We saved food, money, and the server got a nice tip!

Before surgery I could not stand to throw food away, and I knew if it made it to the fridge, it would not get eaten. So I became "mikie." I ate everything. Not anymore! If I can't freeze portions, it just gets tossed or the dog gets it. The starving kids in podunksville will have to forage elsewhere!

Yes, for me too planning is very important. During the week, being on my work schedule is easier than on the weekend, when my usual eating plan doesn't fit because I'm running around doing chores/having fun. I have to pay attention a little more and try to get in a good chunk of protein early. Also when I travel I have to watch and plan a bit more. I always have some supplemental protein with me, altho I try to eat normal food first. Most of the time that works, but sometimes it doesn't so I pull out a protein bar or jerky.

a lot of it for me is mental too. I divide food into "my" food, which is the healthy, bariatric friendly protein food, plus healthy vegetables and fruit, and then the "sometimes" food, which is food I can eat sometimes, like a bit of bread or pasta, and then the absolutely "never" food, which is sugar food. sometimes i end up eating/drinking some sugar by mistake, so I know that I can tolerate it but I choose to make it a firm no. Most of the time the "sometimes" food is in the "never" category.

I am very strict with myself and that is fine. I was lenient all those years and look where it got me...being MO and miserable. I don't want to blow this opportunity by eating stupid food...maybe I look down on food now...it is not the comfort it was but "just nutrition". I try not to think of it as something enjoyable and pleasurable like before. I will find my pleasure elsewhere and treat food as nutrition to live.

My normal schedule is 3 meals a day, protein first. I don't count calories or carbs. Life is too short for that and as long as I am within my maintenance weight range, then I just eat to my plan. If I do creep up, I will count my calories for a day or two to see where the extra calories are coming from, because the only way you can gain weight is taking in more calories than you burn, so cutting calories would then work.

I have found that when I get lax in two areas of my life, my overall general eating gets lax as well.

1. unplanned, mindless snacking. one bite leads to three bites which leads to an all day eat fest. It surprised me to find that even when I only consume protein rich or high fiber snacks when done in a mindless and unplanned manner it has nearly ALWAYS led me to binges of low protein, high carb, no fiber unhealthy eating. I've bumped myself of the wagon multiple times this way, and then it becomes a vicious cycle. Example- I'm a substitute teacher and picked up a job yesterday, it was the first day of school and there were lots of goodies in the teacher's lounge and when I saw the homemade chocolate chip cookies I did what Ellen did and said to myself " I know what that tastes like, no reason to tempt myself my trying some." Then I walked on and didn't give it another thought!

2. exercise. when I exercise regularly (even when I don't want to do it!), I find that I treat my body nutritionally better, too... I really focus on making healthy choices so that what I consume is top rate 'fuel' that keeps my furnace stoked. I honestly fear being out on a run (and I don't go far, trust me!) and bonking.

One of the most difficult challenges I have is resisting goodies that people bring to the office to share. Best way to stop myself dead in my tracks is to log the goodie into fitday.com BEFORE I give in to the temptation. Usually all it takes is for me to see in black and white how many calories one of those goodies contains and how much I'll have to give up for the rest of the day to keep myself from exceeding my allotment for the day.

I bring all of my food for the day to work with me, but those treats can sabotage my plans if I'm not careful.

Thank you, thank you, thank you. What great ideas. I am going hunting for some fun small dishes to use. I have been so bad this last week I can't stand myself. Your post helped me get hold of myself and get back on track. The only exception is my dog is also on a diet. LOL.

[Dontondan]

And another great post from Mama Michelle!!! You are definitely our "forum cheerleader"!