Giving yourself a leeway

[Greeneyes11]

KD, after reading this thread it makes real good sense to me..... I didn't plan on having a leeway anyway because I want to lose a bit more weight and I really dont want to lose another 7lb or whatever after that. I understand completely what you mean about knowing when you have eaten too much but when we first get to goal it is a bit trial and error knowing what our body needs. Last week whilst on hols I tried to cook healthily for everyone and I had a small portion of what they ate, if I hadn't of pigged out on our last meal out of the holiday I think I would probably have STS weight wise which would have been excellent as I now know the kind of portions of which foods I need to eat... since I have came home from holiday the extra 1.6lb has come off with not much effort from me as I have gone back to normal size eating again.... in fact this last week has taught me a lot and I feel much happier with controlling my weight. I am very glad you started this thread as I was wondering if I should have a leeway for weight gain. I did get on the scales today and they did gain slightly from yesterday but I know I ate the right things yesterday so it wasn't because of that.... no panic although I hope it goes before WI tomorrow.

 

[Bess]

So are you saying that if the scales show a 4lb gain (even if it's water weight), you'll cut back on what you eat?

Why would you do that?

Well, how would I know if it was water weight or not, if I weigh myself at the same time on each occasion? I think I'll know if I have been overeating and will react accordingly. But I don't plan on overeating and I'm sure working up the CD plans will give me a clear understanding of portion sizes v. weight stabilisation, which is what I need to learn.
It's really interesting reading other peoples maintenance diaries, Lelly's spring to mind recently - and the custard slice I think it was. These are things I shall find out for myself but the experiences of people on here help so much to add to my understanding and more especially, (thanks again Laura,) to avoid some of the pitfalls.

What I mean by 'leeway' is really just what I should perhaps call 'balance'. I'm new to being slimmer again and I don't really know what it'll be like to be at my goal.(11st.) But I don't feel that it should matter at all if I weigh 10.12 or 11.2 after that - it's 'around 11st', which is where I want to be. It'll just mean keeping an eye on my eating so it doesn't get out of hand ever again. A lb or 2 really isn't a big deal........
.....Or am I really missing something major here?

 

[KD]

.....Or am I really missing something major here?

Possibly

 

[Bess]

The plan was to get to 10.7 and then see that 7lbs zone between there & 11st as a zone I would stay in.

It is about leeway really, but I like seeing it as a safe zone better. I want to be at the bottom end of safe zone as much as possible, and if I start spending too much time at top end of it, then will cut back on carbs to get back there. You are right, I know when I have eaten too much or chosen less wisely... but the maintaining is still very new to me and my bad habits are still lurking not too far away. !)


xxx

This is pretty much what I mean too..... I think...? No, no, this is what I mean too. For sure.

 

[Bess]

Possibly

Umm what? I've read thro all the posts again and don't know what you mean?

 

[Laura Croft]

Umm what? I've read thro all the posts again and don't know what you mean?

You asked if you were missing something, and I think that's KD's reply to your question.

This is a brilliant thread. Thank you all for input.

I vote it gets stickied x

 

[Bess]

You asked if you were missing something, and I think that's KD's reply to your question.

Do you mean, I am missing KD's reply to my question (which one?) Or is KD's reply the answer? (Again, which one?)

I'm confused, but this discussion might mean that there's just a difference of opinion, mightn't it?

 

[KD]

Do you mean, I am missing KD's reply to my question (which one?) Or is KD's reply the answer? (Again, which one?)

I think I replied to your question, or was it to your answer, but could someone remind me what the question was, or if I replied to it at all? Or if I just gave another question (or answer)

That is the question....I think?

 

[Bess]

:crazy::giveup:

 

[Serena A]

I think I replied to your question, or was it to your answer, but could someone remind me what the question was, or if I replied to it at all? Or if I just gave another question (or answer)

That is the question....I think?

Methinks you are not being serious :copon:

Reminds me slightly of what we used to write in our schoolbooks as kids: "If you notice this notice then you will notice this notice is not worth noticing" (although ironically it escaped our notice that we were writing it in our exercise book and not on a notice )

 

[Laura Croft]

Do you mean, I am missing KD's reply to my question (which one?) Or is KD's reply the answer? (Again, which one?)

I'm confused, but this discussion might mean that there's just a difference of opinion, mightn't it?

KD's reply is the answer. You wrote in a post below (3 Days Ago 06:28 PM) and seemed a bit confused about leeways. You asked if you were missing something (i.e. about leeways) and KD replied that you possibly were.

 

[KD]

Sorry, missed replying to this. Saw it..then forgot

it is a bit trial and error knowing what our body needs.

Yep, it is. And the scales can be a useful tool on the way

I have came home from holiday the extra 1.6lb has come off with not much effort from me as I have gone back to normal size eating again....

That's what I found. My first holiday after goal was two weeks in Canada. That was my biggest gain. (4lbs). I did go a bit crazy with the food, but at that time, I hadn't really got to grips with the eating sensibly business. Still in the learning phase Still, it came off quickly just getting back into my routine again when I got home. There's a good chance a fair bit of it was water retention after the flight anyway.

If it hadn't been water retention; if it had been fat, then just a gentle cut down of calories...just a tiny bit and a little more walking would deal with it. But it's hard to know the difference when you read the scales. Better to judge the reading according to what you've eaten

What can happen though is people either think

"OMG...I'm a failure!!"..munch, munch go the next family sized packed of crisps.

Or they say "Only 4lbs?? Fab...I've given myself a 7lbs leeway, so I can still overeat now I'm home" (probably subconsciously)

Or maybe
"right...Sole source...here I come" Ack.

A healthier approach to the scale reading would be

"Interesting..right, that's probably x in water, and maybe x in fat...tut tut...never mind. Right now, what does my body need today".

More along those lines anyway.

I feel much happier with controlling my weight

Excellent, though ideally, you don't need to control your weight. That'll just happen if you 'control' what you are eating. I hate the word control when it comes to food, but it's the best word I can find at the moment.

I did get on the scales today and they did gain slightly from yesterday but I know I ate the right things yesterday so it wasn't because of that..

Yep. You ate the right things. And as long as it wasn't too much of the right things, then you'll be fine

Yay!

 

[KD]

Sorry Bess for teasing The thread was making me laugh though

To be honest, I couldn't really give you an answer, because I couldn't quite work out whether you thought I was saying something different to what I was meaning. Probably my fault.

At the beginning, I was thinking that you disagreed, but then you seemed to be saying the same thing, so not sure now

I think both Serena and Porgeous put it better anyway, so maybe look at those posts again? Bet you'll agree in the end

 

[Bess]

Methinks you are not being serious :copon:

Reminds me slightly of what we used to write in our schoolbooks as kids: "If you notice this notice then you will notice this notice is not worth noticing" (although ironically it escaped our notice that we were writing it in our exercise book and not on a notice )

Oops, sorry Miss! x

 

[Bess]

Sorry, missed replying to this. Saw it..then forgot


Yep, it is. And the scales can be a useful tool on the way
That's what I found. My first holiday after goal was two weeks in Canada. That was my biggest gain. (4lbs). I did go a bit crazy with the food, but at that time, I hadn't really got to grips with the eating sensibly business. Still in the learning phase Still, it came off quickly just getting back into my routine again when I got home. There's a good chance a fair bit of it was water retention after the flight anyway.

If it hadn't been water retention; if it had been fat, then just a gentle cut down of calories...just a tiny bit and a little more walking would deal with it. But it's hard to know the difference when you read the scales. Better to judge the reading according to what you've eaten

What can happen though is people either think

"OMG...I'm a failure!!"..munch, munch go the next family sized packed of crisps.

Or they say "Only 4lbs?? Fab...I've given myself a 7lbs leeway, so I can still overeat now I'm home" (probably subconsciously)

Or maybe
"right...Sole source...here I come" Ack.

A healthier approach to the scale reading would be

"Interesting..right, that's probably x in water, and maybe x in fat...tut tut...never mind. Right now, what does my body need today".

More along those lines anyway.

Excellent, though ideally, you don't need to control your weight. That'll just happen if you 'control' what you are eating. I hate the word control when it comes to food, but it's the best word I can find at the moment.

Yep. You ate the right things. And as long as it wasn't too much of the right things, then you'll be fine

Yay!

Now this is brilliant - clear as an unwooded lake. And, a slightly more relaxed way of seeing things which is what I was trying to explain. Bullseye KD I've got it!!!

Sorry Bess for teasing The thread was making me laugh though

To be honest, I couldn't really give you an answer, because I couldn't quite work out whether you thought I was saying something different to what I was meaning. Probably my fault.

At the beginning, I was thinking that you disagreed, but then you seemed to be saying the same thing, so not sure now

I think both Serena and Porgeous put it better anyway, so maybe look at those posts again? Bet you'll agree in the end

Teasing? You? :giggle: I think it's just the limitations of trying to chat this way. Got it now though - and we were agreeing, even though I didn't explain what I meant very well! :hug99:

 

[LizzMB]

i've been thinking about this for a while, my "initial" instinct when i first came on Cd was that i would get into the "healthy" weight bracket and then give myself a 7-9lb leyway...but since losing most my weight my opinion has changed a lot!

I now see a cake for a cake!
If i want to eat the cake, then so be it, i know it has empty calories etc, i see it for what its for....but how i respond to this is more important to the cake itself!
I, a) have to stop at 1 cake....! Something i have found very difficult in the past hence why i'm where i am now, b) I have to accept that it will have a concequence on my weight....and with a balance of eating and exercise i will be able to control that consequence.
By accepting that there is a consequence to everything that goes in my mouth is my way of changing the way i see food.

I feel like i'm learning all over again....

Of course, all this is in theory...but i'm determined that the practical will be a success now!

I love my new body a lot more than i do a cake!

xx

 

[Porgeous]

i've been thinking about this for a while, my "initial" instinct when i first came on Cd was that i would get into the "healthy" weight bracket and then give myself a 7-9lb leyway...but since losing most my weight my opinion has changed a lot!

I now see a cake for a cake!
If i want to eat the cake, then so be it, i know it has empty calories etc, i see it for what its for....but how i respond to this is more important to the cake itself!
I, a) have to stop at 1 cake....! Something i have found very difficult in the past hence why i'm where i am now, b) I have to accept that it will have a concequence on my weight....and with a balance of eating and exercise i will be able to control that consequence.
By accepting that there is a consequence to everything that goes in my mouth is my way of changing the way i see food.

I feel like i'm learning all over again....

Of course, all this is in theory...but i'm determined that the practical will be a success now!

I love my new body a lot more than i do a cake!

xx

Great to read your post as I have always use consequence to maintain my loss. When tempted to go overboard I always consider the consequence, is it something I am happy to deal with or is there a compromise that I would accept that would have no consequence. For example, I can eat the entire packet of biscuits and accept the consequence, or I can have one or two without any consequence.

xxx

 

[KD]

When tempted to go overboard I always consider the consequence, is it something I am happy to deal with or is there a compromise that I would accept that would have no consequence.
xxx

Yep There's always a consequence to overeating, whether the scales tell you or not. And that's not just biscuits and cakes...it's also the more healthy type foods.

I, a) have to stop at 1 cake....!

Not necessarily. Depends how big the cake is

For example: I see a plate of cakes that I really like. It's worth cutting back on something else, because these cakes are yummy.

I try to pick an appropriate portion size. Could be one, could be two. A slightly bigger slice, or a smallish slice.

Remember the first two bites are the most powerful...after that, if you aren't hungry, the taste buds aren't so good anyway and it becomes a bit of overfeeding.

But anyway...2 is worth it to me, so I pick 2. I eat them. That's it (usually). Not because I mustn't have any more, but because I don't need more. I wanted to taste them and enjoy them. I didn't need the whole packets worth to do that. Of course, I could chose to have yet another, but need to weigh up the consequences.

The same goes for healthy food too. One apple is enough. 4 apples is a bit OTT

 

[Porgeous]

Yep There's always a consequence to overeating, whether the scales tell you or not. And that's not just biscuits and cakes...it's also the more healthy type foods.

Yep definately agree. Although strangely I am always less inclined to over do it on the healthy stuff... can't think why!

 

[soon2bslimmer]

Fantastic thread! Glad I found it. Can so sympathise with Serena's 'time off'. I was doing well maintaining after losing 4.5 stones. But now with having been on hols and still having the kids at home (go back to school next week, yay ) my 'good' routine has completely gone out of the window. I hardly walk now, whereas I would walk to school and back twice a day and find I have all these snacky things in the house for the kids but I end up eating them (again...). So yes, I have put some weight back on, but will get back on the straight and narrow. Am now a size 14 after getting down to a size 12, which is rather annoying. But hey, still much better than a size 20 or 22 which I was before starting CD at end of Jan!! Will have to start checking in here at Minimins more often again, it really helps reading other peeps going through similar stuff.

Thanks for posting everyone!!

Soon2bslimmer x