Rules

It's no secret that I've been struggling with this whole weight loss endeavor for a long time. Not much progress is being made, despite the time I've spent writing here, and since I can't afford to start a weight loss program like Weight Watchers right now, I'm kind of on my own. And this is something I should be able to do! Being on my own should not be an issue. But as anyone who is struggling with weight loss knows, doing it alone is not only hard, it can feel impossible.

So I've been thinking about that tonight. My wedding date, that seemed so far away when we set it, is creeping ever closer. What was 13 months away when we set the date is now just, what, 9 1/2 months away? Something like that. I need to lose about 80 to 85 pounds, so that means I have JUST enough time. If I start losing it NOW.

So what can I do to make sure I'm more successful? Well, I did a web search on that, and came up with a page that gave me some great tips - things I already knew, but that I hadn't thought about. The main idea was to set rules on when/where I can eat.

For me, the most obvious rule to set to go along with that is:
1. No eating is allowed at my home desk.

When I'm at home, especially when I'm alone (which is fairly often, given Jim's work situation), I sit at my desk for most of the time that I'm awake. I watch TV, watch stuff online, play my Sims game and, oh yeah, eat. It's easy, it's comfortable, and it needs to stop. So. New rule - no eating at my desk.

I think that's really the only rule I need to make at home. I don't really spend any time sitting on the couch unless Jim is home, and then I don't eat as much junk (I'm half convinced I'd be at my goal weight now if he worked regular hours - or we'd just be snacking together, which is more realistic). So unless I start just moving the food from the desk to other places, this rule is good enough for home.

The problem is, though, what do I do at work? I sit at my desk for most of the time I'm at work, and I'd love to say no eating there. But I need to have an afternoon snack, and I can't really go anywhere else to eat that. So I think these are the rules I need to make for work:

2. Eat breakfast at home before I go to work, if possible.
3. No morning snacks (I eat lunch at 11:30, so morning snacks really aren't necessary).
4. Only ONE afternoon snack allowed. That means one banana, one 100 calorie pack, one granola bar - one thing and that's all. I don't need more than that.
5. No more taking chocolate from the front desk. We have a woman who keeps a supply for the office, and it's all too easy to go grab some, and it's always four or five pieces, not one. So, no more.

These five rules pretty much cover all of the areas where I overeat, so if I follow them, I think they'll help me a lot.

I should probably add a rule about eating out, too, but I only do that with Jim on the weekends, and the stuff I get isn't too horrible, usually, so I'll stick to these rules for now.

My second idea is to work with Jim on this. I'd love for us to weigh each other once a week, and congratulate each other's successes, and help monitor each other's eating. But he's dealing with a lot of stress at work, his hours aren't even close to normal, and right now I know that isn't an option. We'll see what 2011 brings for that.

Anyway, for now I'll follow my rules. And I'll keep checking in here from time to time to let you all know how I'm doing. :)