Checking in

Howdy.

I'm just barely paying attention to my diet.  Well, that's not even true.  I'm half-heartedly eating healthy (for instance, a huge salad for dinner but yesterday?  more than one donut) . . . I am scatter-brained and stressed out and working all the time.  And when I'm not working, I'm trying to catch up on laundry and cleaning and errands and . . . everything.

I contemplated shutting down this blog.  But I think that's just my stress-level speaking.  I'm focusing on a writers conference I'm heading to in a few weeks and I can't really focus on anything else.  This blog feels like a weight, which could be good if that weight is an anchor and keeps me from floating away. 

But I am here, still.  At least when I eat a donut I eat it with full awareness that I should not eat it.  That's something, right?

Comments

[Tish]

Hi Mel,

Hang in there, girl. I know the feeling about being overwhelmed. Dieting is a bit like my laundry pile. It's never all done. Even when I'm feeling good about the state it's in, someone is throwing wet towels on the bathroom floor, or DH is coming home with stinky workout clothes. You just have to keep at it.

And Mel, you are STILL down 20 pounds from where you started. Do you remember when it was so hard lean over to tie your shoes? You don't want to go back there.

And finally, selfishly, please don't stop writing about this. Yours is the first blog I check (out of 20 some I follow). I find your honesty and your insight speak to me and help me.

[Jules4422]

Mel,
Hang in there! Your blog is REAL...and so are you...and I appreciate the effort you put into the blog and your weight loss.

Like Tish above, your blog is one of the many I read, and one of the few that really speaks to me.

jules4422

[becca banana]

I love your blog - don't stop!

[Michelle]

Mel, don't give up... your struggle is real & one so many of us can relate to.

And yesh, being aware you shouldn't be eating something is something... : )

[Wendy]

I love your blog it is my favorite weight loss one!

[Lynne]

Just so you know - a donut is better than a bagel... Don't quote me on the calories, but I think a donut has 200+ vs. the bagel with (usually) 400, and that doesn't include the cream cheese.

Don't give in, and don't give up the blog. You'll find your Mojo one day, and you'll be glad you had this place to share it!

[Stephanie]

Yes, it's certainly something! I, too, appreciate (and completely relate to) your ups and downs. While as a reader I certainly want you to always succeed, it makes me feel much less shameful that I mess up when I know others do too. You're a wonderful writer and I hope you don't shut down!

[Julie]

A friend and I are having a terrible time getting back on the diet/exercise routine. We email back and forth, trying to figure out why we don't "get it" this year, though last year at this time we had made the connection. Is it mid life? The weather? What is it? Is Mercury in retrograde? Is the stress taking a toll we can't imagine?

Hang in there--you aren't alone. Let's kick the cosmos in the butt and get it back aligned.
Take care.

[Steph.]

That is something. Don't give up! I actually stopped reading and commenting (uh, and updating) my blog for awhile, but I'm back and glad to be reading yours. Don't give up the fight!

[Karen]

Hi Mel, I would send this in a personal e mail, but I don't know your address. Please don't post it, it is not an advt. but, I heard of this new book, and I have requested from the library. I think you would find it interesting. It is Thin is the New Happy by Valerie Frankel. It is certainly an issue many if not all women deal with. Hugs, Karen

[somebodys mother]

Oh I would be sad and a half if you shut down your blog. I come here because as others have said, you are so real and honest. Yes, you're going through a period where taking care of yourself is difficult because you have so much going on. Maybe you could get someone (or a couple of someones)to guest blog while you're getting ready for your writer's conference. Give yourself a break and take some of the pressure off of yourself.

[Janet]

OK Mel,please don't stop the blog now.... I just finished reading it in it's entirety! All the ups and downs. And I'm sure there will be lots more "ups" in your future. We all have to hang in there.

[Stacy]

I do hope you stick with blogging. When I read your posts, I don't feel all alone with my dieting woes anymore.

Chin up! Healthy eating is a way of life. Like everything else, there will be ups and downs. As Tish mentioned, you're still down 20 lbs. That right there shows you have been doing something right with your diet and exercise program. You've accomplished something good, and if the past is a predictor of the future, then you'll get over this hump and lose another 20 lbs.

[Ceci]

Mel--
I have a slightly different take on the blog...and perhaps because I know that you have to focus on you. I love your blog dearly...I mean, I have read you since the beginning and you were there for me when I hit goal the first time. But I know that so many aspects of your life have changed, and I know that although your blog is an important of my journey...if it isn't working for you in yours right now, it would be selfish for me to ask you to keep it going.

I pray for you, dear friend. If you should decide to discontinue this blog, I will continue to pray for you. But remember to put you first some of the time too.

[Helen Baldwin]

LOVE your blog, as you are speaking for so many of us. Feel free to take a break to focus on the essentials, but please hang in there and don't give this up! You no doubt have many more supporters than you imagine....

Lucy

[Biz]

Hey Mel - don't worry if you need to take a break from the blog - we'll be here when you get back! If it feels like a burden then what's the point?

And there are so many inspirational blogs out there to hang on to. Hope your writing conference goes well!

[MamaBearJune]

Sending you hugs and prayers. I know many would miss you if you shut down, but totally understand your need to take a break.

Your "Start here" articles are priceless, though and need to be available for everyone to read. They are so very helpful.

[CWComment]

I always find my diet less overwhelming when I embrace the power of small and take it one day at a time. I think of it as having to only behave from when I wake up until when I go to bed. Good luck!

[cindi]

Don't stop. It is nice to know someone else out there is going through exactly what I am going through and can relate. Skinny people have no idea how hard you and I have to work to keep from totally falling apart. I lost your blog for awhile and have just found it. Keep up the good work.

[4oz]

Mel, hang in there! You have an awesome blog...it would be a shame to see it go away. Maybe you need to take a short break from it...but come back! =) (I know, I'm being selfish...)

[Honey]

I hear ya, I've sooooo been there! Just started blogging about it. Check out http://hungrybitch.wordpress.com/

[Val]

I am in touch with your struggle. It's humbling to be going in the wrong direction.

[Healthy Low Fat Recipes]

This is a great website and I appreciate all the great information Thank you

[julie]

"But I am here, still. At least when I eat a donut I eat it with full awareness that I should not eat it. That's something, right?"

There's something about this statement that disturbs me, and it's more than my high school psychology teacher telling us to banish "shoulds" from our vocabularies and thoughts. I see your struggle, and I kind of understand, but I think you are sabotaging yourself somehow. If you really want a donut, eat a bloody donut. If it makes you feel better, great. It certainly won't help with weight loss, but the internal struggle over it will just make you crazy, and possibly eat even more (it would me). Maybe she did have a point with those shoulds

[RG]

I totally disagree with the last poster - I think that "just noticing" bad behavior is good! Yes you're eating a donut and not committing arson, but so what! You are not doing your body good by submitting it to the sugar highs and lows. It's hard to get off that roller coaster, but the first step is just remembering how it feels not to be on it.