oxfordruse
This Time It's Personal!
I feel so good right now that I just wanted to send a quick message of hope specifically for all restarters out there.
To all those who've done CD before, and achieved great success, only to have undone all or some of it over months or years: don't be ashamed.
I lost a ton of weight (the first ticker in my signature) a couple of years ago, and ended up putting most back on. I didn't move up the steps, I neglected everything I'd learned, and went back to my old ways. Some people might say I 'failed'.
I'm four weeks into my final restart (I say 'final' because I refuse to say 'second' - I won't need a 'third'!) and, 22lb down, I can honestly say:
I'M GLAD I 'FAILED' THE FIRST TIME!
That time, I learned nothing. I was so amazed by the weight loss, that the loss became the end goal. I didn't think about *why* I'd got that big in the first place. I didn't reflect on my relationship with food. I didn't plan how I was going to overcome that. By the end, losing weight was my only aim.
Things are so different this time. OK, the losses are slower; it's more boring; I'm just not as enthusiastic about the whole thing. But: this second time has offered me revelations that I didn't pick up the first time; I know exactly what not to do; I have a plan; and, above all, I've realized that I don't ever want to have to do this again.
When I was deciding whether to (a) go back on CD with my tail between my legs, or (b) have another blowout, you know what I did? Tossed a coin. Heads was (a); tails was (b).
How silly it was. And how glad I am that I ignored it when it was tails. It was the first time I'd confronted myself, and made the decision to do this for my own self worth, and not simply for weight loss.
If anyone is reading this and in two minds about starting again, DO IT! It may be more difficult, but that makes the success even sweeter. Make failure your teacher, not your undertaker.
To all those who've done CD before, and achieved great success, only to have undone all or some of it over months or years: don't be ashamed.
I lost a ton of weight (the first ticker in my signature) a couple of years ago, and ended up putting most back on. I didn't move up the steps, I neglected everything I'd learned, and went back to my old ways. Some people might say I 'failed'.
I'm four weeks into my final restart (I say 'final' because I refuse to say 'second' - I won't need a 'third'!) and, 22lb down, I can honestly say:
I'M GLAD I 'FAILED' THE FIRST TIME!
That time, I learned nothing. I was so amazed by the weight loss, that the loss became the end goal. I didn't think about *why* I'd got that big in the first place. I didn't reflect on my relationship with food. I didn't plan how I was going to overcome that. By the end, losing weight was my only aim.
Things are so different this time. OK, the losses are slower; it's more boring; I'm just not as enthusiastic about the whole thing. But: this second time has offered me revelations that I didn't pick up the first time; I know exactly what not to do; I have a plan; and, above all, I've realized that I don't ever want to have to do this again.
When I was deciding whether to (a) go back on CD with my tail between my legs, or (b) have another blowout, you know what I did? Tossed a coin. Heads was (a); tails was (b).
How silly it was. And how glad I am that I ignored it when it was tails. It was the first time I'd confronted myself, and made the decision to do this for my own self worth, and not simply for weight loss.
If anyone is reading this and in two minds about starting again, DO IT! It may be more difficult, but that makes the success even sweeter. Make failure your teacher, not your undertaker.
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