Weight Loss Wednesday “Preparing for Battle” by Mama Sue

Yesterday I went to a meeting. I knew there were going to be cookies there, because it was stated on the invite.

Well, I figured “forewarned or forearmed.” Cookies are a “trigger” for me; once I have one, others seem to follow until I have insensibly consumed more than I had intended. Knowing this, and knowing I was tired from having woken overnight and not slept well (when I’m tired I tend to crave sweets), I prepared myself for the inner battle by eating one of my favorite foods, Greek raspberry yogurt.

It took me a while to hop on the Greek yogurt bandwagon. I had been wondering what all the fuss was about; the stuff is expensive, for one thing, about twice the price of regular yogurt. So when I saw a display at my favorite grocery store, I checked out the label: 15% of the daily recommendation for calcium (no surprise there, as it’s made with milk), but 28% of the daily need for protein? Wow. That makes it, in my eyes, better than eating meat! More curious than ever, I bought one (peach was actually the first one I tried), and tried it the minute I got home.

Admittedly, there is a taste difference with Greek yogurt: it’s much thicker than regular yogurt, and there’s a little tangyness to it that took a little getting used to. But it is creamy and delicious, with fruit at the bottom. For the price, it is cheaper than some meats and it has both protein and calcium. And it satisfies my sweets craving, while filling me up enough that I’m not hungry for a while. SOLD!

I ate my yogurt just before leaving for the meeting. I also brought something low-cal to drink, just to keep my hands from wandering over to the goodies. It worked! I wasn’t really very hungry after the yogurt, truthfully. But the cookies were all my favorites. Not fair! Chocolate chip, M & M, and thickly frosted soft sugar cookies were offered to me over and over. They were passed around and of course they were set right in front of me. What would be the harm? But I stopped myself every time. I’m not hungry! I will have dinner soon with my daughter! Wait until later! Wait! WAIT! and I did. It worked. I was surprised and proud of myself.

I have had several small victories like this over the past couple of week; recognizing my “trigger points” has been a key to my success. I eat before I go anywhere that has tempting treats offered. Any more, that includes just about everywhere. Would you believe that even the fabric stores have a huge assortment of candies and soft drinks next to the checkout? I try not to fall prey to the marketing tricks, and it isn’t easy at times!

What about you? 

I love her focus on “trigger points.”  

She is learning to recognize these trigger points in her daily life and can plan accordingly.  You can combat those cravings OR just not eat as many/much:

I am also realizing, reading this, that I brought over cookies for her the other day.  Oops!  Sorry mom! :-/