Getting in the right mindset

I'm catching up on episodes of "The Biggest Loser." I have several backed up in my DVR, and I think I stopped watching at about the same time I started concentrating on my novel-writing.

It all comes back to that balance problem of mine. When I'm writing, I'm not doing the weight-loss thing the way I should and vice-versa. I need to find a nice, even balance between the two.

I suppose we all do. If balance came easily, none of us would need to lose weight. We'd all already be perfect. ;)

How about 12 hours on, 12 hours off?

Nah. That won't work. Speaking of things that won't work, have y'all heard of "The Skinny Switch"? I keep watching that infomercial, wondering if it could really be that simple — "two days eating, one day treating."

Then, when I think about it, it's not all that different from WW, with the Flex Points. You could spend 2 days eating just the daily Points allowance, then use a chunk of FPs on that third day, no problem.

Something to think about, I guess. Right now, I'm not so convinced WW is the way to go. I know it works, but for some reason, I've been unable to make it work for me lately, because I've flat-out been unable to stay OP.

I've even entertained the idea of going back on Atkins ... except for the fact that I'm not sure I could eat that way for the rest of my life. There was a time when I thought I could ... but then I fell off the low-carb wagon and couldn't get back on. Also, I never made it to Atkins' "lifetime maintenance" phase. I was perpetually in Ongoing Weight Loss (OWL).

I know I can lose on Atkins, because I lost 110 pounds doing it. Of course, I regained 70 of them once I stopped doing the low-carb thing. It took 2 years to lose it and 2 more to regain it.

Maybe I should shake it up a little bit by trying the Skinny Switch or 6 Week Body Makeover. Then again, maybe I should just stop making excuses and start doing WW properly. I know it works, too.

Could have been worse

Surprise, surprise: I managed to minimize the damage from the delicious but not very healthy barbecue I ate for lunch by eating a smaller dinner. So it is possible for me to not go crazy after making one not-great choice. I'd forgotten that fact.

With a semi-successful day under my belt, let's see if I can achieve two goals tomorrow:

• Another walk of at least 15 minutes in duration.


• Drinking at least 48 ounces of water. (Today, I probably got about 24.)

If I manage that, perhaps I'll add counting Points on Sunday. It's like Roni at RonisWeigh said in a motivational post just the other day:

Pick one thing. Don’t overwhelm yourself with the amount of weight you need to lose. Don’t try to do it all (eat perfectly, exercise, etc) Don’t set yourself up to fail. Don’t beat up on yourself. Most importantly, DO NOT underestimate yourself.

Out of balance and out of control

It's been another rough month for me, and I think I weigh more now than I did when April started. (I can't be sure because I've been avoiding the scale again.)

Somewhere along this journey, I've lost my way. Bad habits have crept back into my life: inactivity ... not tracking what I eat ... eating way too much junk ... that whole "the day is ruined so I might as well keep eating" attitude I thought I'd vanquished ...

The Boyfriend says it's because my life is out of balance. I'm spending too much time writing and not enough on other pursuits.

Maybe that's true. I do find myself avoiding the kitchen because I'm on a roll with my writing, and then I end up letting some drive-thru do the cooking for me. The problem is, I've neglected my writing life for years. Now that I feel like it's starting to go places, I don't want to slow down.

Still, that doesn't mean my healthy-living efforts should grind to a halt. Somehow, some way I need to find a balance (something I've tried to figure out before, without much success).

Anyone out there have any ideas?

I know, I know: If we all knew how to strike that delicate balance, we'd all be in shape and healthy.

For now, I think I need to get back to one basic principle: Taking things one day — one choice — at a time. Like an addict, I need to focus on just one day ... one day where I take a walk and avoid eating a lot of junk food.

Just one day can't be that difficult. Can it?