crocodoxie

Dang, right now with the hurricane and flooding, and being cooped inside--worrying about if we will flood, it's been very hard not to revert to old habits of eating salty, crunchy, high reward foods! I compromised. I made some homemade queso, but served it with pork rinds and veggie dippers instead of tortilla chips. I also made sure to weigh and measure on a scale and to log it. I was able to keep within 100cals of my daily goals through planning and still adhering to some of my food rules. (I did gain a couple of pounds of fluid from the pork skins saltiness, but those are gone and took away 2 more pounds with it! Woot!)

What I learned through this is that plans and rules exist for a reason. I felt TERRIBLE for "cheating" and eating off plan and getting off my schedule...like I'd really reverted to old unsuccessful habits! And I realized that for me to be happy, I really have to work my plan regardless of stress levels. Things that are helping me get back to my good eating plan (I did this yesterday and am on track today too):

1. Don't keep snacky/trigger foods in the house. IF I have to go out to get them, I probably won't.

2. Don't deviate from my current plan of eating/meal schedules/diet composition just because there is a crisis/emergency.

3. Use CBT (cognitive behavior therapy) to process the emotions/feelings of the stress rather than medicating with old, unsuccessful habits!

Great question hon!!!

Thank you for your input, and I'll keep your family in my thoughts during the tragic conditions with flooding. I found safe alternatives, I think it's more about creating new patterns/habits over time as well. What usually worked, challenged me. Thanks again for taking the time to answer.