Workbook Day 4
Build Your Confidence:
This is a lesson that is important for me. To help reinforce the times I give myself credit, I use a counter. I put it in my pocket at the beginning of the day, and record the number of clicks I’ve given myself at the end of the day. Some behaviors get an extra click if the behavior is extra hard. For example, I’ve not officially ‘restarted’ my diet, so the temptation for a ‘last meal’ at McDonald’s was strong. I resisted, and gave myself an extra click for the extra difficulty. I also reviewed the Thoughts/Responses I had previously written, and added some more thoughts.
Workbook Day 5
Slow Down and Be Mindful:
There are several parts to this lesson for me.
1. Slow Down: Eating fast is not much of a problem for me. If I do, I get sick. Also, gastric bypass surgery retraining has taught me to enjoy the first bite. Because I can never be absolutely confident how quickly I will ‘fill up’, I am aware of the order in which I eat my food. Salad is eaten last. Protein and veggies are eaten towards the beginning of the meal, starches are eaten toward the end. I rarely eat dessert. Frequently I will ‘save’ part of my meal for the next planned snack.
2. Eating at a table is not something I do, unless I go out to eat or have company over for a meal. Being ‘required’ to eat at a table by myself actually causes me to feel stressed and resentful. I did my exercise today, but will continue to follow my normal pattern. I eat while watching TV, which serves the purpose of companionship during the meal. I have decided that driving or reading or working on the computer are distractions that lead me to eat without thinking about it, so I won’t do these. I have decided to continue to eat my meals while watching TV. Where I need to become more mindful is when I am eating a scheduled snack. In the past I have eaten snacks as I worked on the computer or watched TV. Now I will not eat meal or snack while on the computer. This will help me stay mindful of what I am eating.
3. Focusing on every bite. Even when I am watching TV and eating, I am aware of each bite I eat. One challenge is that my hand shakes. If I am not aware of what I am eating, it will fall off the fork. Guess there are some advantages to a shaky hand.
Workbook Day 6
Meet with Your Diet Coach
As before, I intend to use journaling on the Beck diet site as my diet coach. I have also decided to continue interacting on line with others who are familiar with CBT as a tool for weight management.
Workbook Day 7
Organize Your Environment
I am pleased to say that the changes I made last summer to support my efforts have remained. As I looked through my cupboards and fridg, there was only one sack of potato chips that needed to be addressed. Good for me. I’ve started using my clicker, located my timers, and step counter. Tomorrow will be … scheduling and re-starting my exercise routine. As I do these activities, I can hear the Thought/Responses from the summer in the back of my head. I am pleased at how much I have retained from my summer work.
