oldmanblurtsout™

When temptation arises do you start to feel irrational, like you have no mind of your own? When they bring out the appetizer, do you think, “I can eat just a few bites?” When you hear them start to sing Happy Birthday, does your mouth start to water for cake and ice cream? Do you just have to have a pudding cup as you spy your child grabbing one? I know that these times for me really test my strength. It is difficult for me to stay on my diet and live the healthy lifestyle I yearn for. I think Mark Twain said it best, “I deal with temptation by yielding to it.” It is so easy to give into temptation and let my addiction take over. Temptation is everywhere. You find it at home, during celebrations, socializing with friends and dining out.

At home, I find it easier for me if I can avoid or hide the things that tempt me. I will store snacks and chips out of sight and out of reach. When my son brings home soft drinks, I have him put them in his refrigerator in his room. I will bag up snacks for me in portions so I do not go overboard and devour the whole package. I keep healthy snacks on hand like fruits and nuts. I buy healthier snacks like popcorn and those 100 calorie prepackaged snacks. I buy the diet snack bars to satisfy my sweet tooth. All of these methods help me stay on my diet. These actions are easy to do and help me make the lifestyle change that I need to succeed.

I find it especially difficult for me to stay on track during celebrations. Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, New Years Eve, Birthdays, Anniversaries, or just sitting down to dinner at the table (definitely a special occasion in my home) are times when my brain starts to go into high gear trying to rationalize the decision to cheat. But if I plan for these times and make the adjustments in my diet and exercise for that week, I will usually find that it is easier to avoid the temptation. I know that I will probably not experience a high weight loss, but I do know that I can possibly have a small weight loss or at the very least maintain my current weight.

Socializing with friends can also be a time of weakness for me. When they pass around that joint, can you resist and say no? I can now, because I have conquered that addiction. But as I was dealing with that lifestyle change of quitting drugs, I found it easier to resist by not associating with that crowd. I know some of my friends are still struggling with that addiction and they do not use around me, but if they were to light up, I know I can say no. I have made the decision not to participate in that behavior anymore. Making those lifestyle choices in order change and stay on our diet and achieve our weight loss is much the same way. It is a conscious decision to lose weight and make those changes. When we are in a social situation and there are snacks on every table, we must stop and say no.  We have to choose to not hang out at the buffet table or in the kitchen. We have to choose not to drink that high calorie, alcoholic drink. It is our decision. Some people call it willpower. I just believe you have to make up your mind that you are going to change. Not for anyone else but for yourself. You are the one in control. It is your choice. If you make the decision to go off your plan, then also plan how you will regain your strength. As I have said before, if we plan for our success, we will reach our weight loss goals and make the lifestyle changes we need. 

“’Tis one thing to be tempted, another thing to fall.”…William Shakespeare 

“Every conquering temptation represents a new fund of moral energy. Every trial endured and weathered in the right spirit makes a soul nobler and stronger than it was before.”…William Butler Yeats

Trackback URI | Comments RSS