8 Ways NOT to Cheat on a Diet

Are you "cheating" on your weight loss plan? Learn some tips to help keep you on the straight and narrow.
"Stop!" screams your conscience as you swipe a handful of mini-candy bars from your co-worker's communal candy dish. If no one actually sees you take them then the calories don't really count, right? Some call it "cheating." Sneaking. Closet eating. But one of the reasons dieters "cheat" is that they're often so strict with themselves that they end up feeling deprived.

Remember that healthy eating includes lots of good choices with a few "naughty" ones as well. Devising some strategies to help you enjoy treats rather than "cheat" will help keep you on the straight and narrow. Here are some suggestions to try:

1. Plan for treats
Making sure you get to enjoy your favorite treats every once in a while will help you from feeling deprived. Pick a night each week when you can indulge in something decadent like a piece of chocolate mud cake. Give yourself permission to truly enjoy your dessert! Taking time to savor a treat is always more satisfying than gobbling it down with feelings of guilt or shame.

2. Put your pantry on a diet
If most of the foods in your house are healthy, then you're already halfway there. If you must have tempting foods around for a special occasion, store them out of sight or buy them at the last minute. On the big day, enjoy your favorite foods and send any leftovers home with your guests.

3. Choose your friends wisely
Beware of any "friend" who continually tries to coerce you into "just a cappuccino" which you know really means a cappuccino and a slice of carrot cake with frosting an inch thick. Put these friends on hold until you're feeling strong enough to say "no." Or suggest a different kind of get-together such as a walk in the park or an afternoon at the movies.

4. Count the cost as well as the calories
Allocate so many dollars per pound you plan to lose and save the money in a separate account or piggy bank. Or "pay" yourself so much every day you stick to your weight-loss plan. Then treat yourself to something fabulous like a new outfit or a day at a beauty spa.

5. Picture yourself
Find some not-so-flattering photos of yourself and place them strategically at prime temptation spots—the fridge, the cookie jar or in your desk drawer. That way you will be reminded of the positive changes you're trying to make to your life whenever you're tempted to overindulge.

6. Surround yourself with witnesses
Tell everyone you are changing your eating habits. Give them permission to remind you of your dedication to better health if they catch you transgressing. Make sure you have chosen friends who will support and encourage you. The last thing you need is someone who will try to trip you up.

7. Check up on yourself
Write down every single thing that passes your lips each day. If you often eat when you're upset or stressed, try to record this too. If you gobbled up a candy bar after arguing with your partner, you probably need to find alternative ways of coping with your moods. Next time try phoning a friend or going for a stress-relieving walk.

8. Keep a sense of proportion
We all slip up from time to time. We all forget our best resolutions and bend the rules. It's not the end of the world. The worst thing you can do is give in and say, "Well, I blew it. Let's forget it. I'm never going to succeed."

Now, that would really be cheating. Not just cheating on your diet, but cheating on yourself and your health as well.

http://www.weightwatchers.com/util/art/index_art.aspx?tabnum=1&art_id=18051

St. Jude 5k Give Thanks Walk

On Saturday, November 20, I am participating in the Give thanks. Walk., benefiting St. Jude Children's Research Hospital®. As I walk, I have challenged myself to raise $1000 to support the lifesaving work done at St. Jude and I am asking for your support to help me reach my goal.


You can help me reach my goal by www.mygivethankswalk.org/hope4u and making an online donation. If you do not wish to make an online donation but prefer to use a check, please let me know and I can make other arrangements with you to obtain your donation.

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, founded by the late entertainer Danny Thomas, is one of the world's premier centers for the research and treatment of pediatric cancer and other catastrophic childhood diseases. St. Jude is the first and only pediatric cancer center to be designated as a Comprehensive Cancer Center by the National Cancer Institute. Children from all 50 states and from around the world have come through the doors of St. Jude for treatment, and thousands more around the world have benefited from the research conducted at St. Jude -- research that is shared freely with the global medical community. St. Jude is the only pediatric cancer research center where families never pay for treatments that are not covered by insurance. No child is denied treatment because of a family's ability to pay. To learn more about St. Jude, visit www.stjude.org

If you cannot donate but live in, or will be in the area, I am asking you to join me in participating in the Give thanks. Walk., benefiting St. Jude Children's Research Hospital®, on Saturday, November 20 in our community. By walking in this 5K event, we can help the doctors and researchers at St. Jude find lifesaving cures for desperately ill children in communities everywhere. By walking, we can bring hope to the patients and families that walk through the doors of St. Jude everyday in search of a cure. I hope you will consider joining me in supporting St. Jude by joining my walk team or even forming your own.

Your first step is their first hope. Register today!

Please contact me with any questions or comments!
Thank you for your support!

Mini-Goal

So I have had a bit of a set back these last few weeks. And for some reason, have yet to grab a handle on things and get my head back into the game. SO! I have decided to set for myself a mini goal!

I would like to lose 3.4 pounds within the next 2 weeks (to put me under 210), and WHEN I do, I am going to purchase new around the ear headphones and an armband for my ipod! I think that it will help me also when I'm at the gym and when I'm running these 5 and 10k's this next month.

I'm know that I'm going to achieve this goal by tracking 100% this week (and in the weeks to come) and getting in as much exersice as possible.

So here's to getting my head screwed back on right! And getting my mind back into full weight-loss mode.

A little of this and a little of that...

I'm not really sure where to begin this blog. I have a lot on my mind...some good and some...well, you get the picture.

I guess there's no better place to start than at this weeks weigh-in. I gained 1.6 pounds this week! Naturally I was upset, but I think I was more disappointed than I had been with past gains. I know that I had eaten as well as I could with the circumstances the week previous had presented me, but obviously not hitting the gym or the trails was a major set back. And as hard as I have tried yesterday and today, I have gone over my points limits (and I'm sure my weekly limits).

Not to sound like a complainer, but I worked 48 hours at my regular, PART-TIME job; 12 hours at my nanny job and 7 hours of rehearsal (see below). That’s almost 70 hours of non-stop motion, does that not count as exercise? Not to mention that most of the work was unplanned, meaning unplanned lunches and dinners....so I did the best I could. Making the healthiest choices possible, from Subway to grilled chicken and veggies at the food court! (I do have to make a side-note, thanking the people I work with (you know who you are) for providing these healthy meals, seeing as I could not leave the store myself. So, THANK YOU!)

Okay! A more positive note, I ran a 5k on Sunday, September 26! And I placed 854th out of 979 people! With a completion time of 44 minutes! I ran a 14 minute mile! My personal best, I was so happy to have seen that I shaved 23 minutes off of the last 5k I did in May (1 hour and 7 minutes). I also plan on signing up and running a 5k on November 6, November 25 and a 10k on November 13!

On September 20, I auditioned for a play with the Oswego Playhouse, and I got the part! :) I am playing Doris Walker in Miracle on 34th Street. We have been rehearsing on Wednesday and Thursday evenings, and it has been so much fun. I have met some great people, and hope that I will be able to continue with them!

So my train of thought has been derailed for the time being, so that's all the update I have for now. Thanks for listening to my ramblings. It's much appreciated.