FRIDAY October 23, 2009: FEELING GOOD

Find the Middle Ground
What's your favorite treat? Come on, now — if you could eat your way out of a room filled with one kind of food, what would it be? Cake? Chocolate? Cheese? Ice cream? When you know that you can never stop at just one bite of ice cream, it's tempting to swear off that food forever — especially now that you're focused on improving your health, diet, and physique. But as many of us have found out from experience, labeling something "forbidden" makes it all the more appealing!
A critical step in renouncing the destructive all-or-nothing mind-set is knowing how to walk the line between self-denial and self-indulgence. It's the middle ground that offers the best foundation on which to build your new life. Denying yourself little pleasures such as an occasional glass of wine or a chocolate truffle will only make you feel deprived, frustrated, and ultimately hopeless about maintaining your discipline. A temptation is a lot less powerful if it isn't totally forbidden. This is where moderation comes in.
There is room for all foods, no matter how "bad" they are; it's just a matter of being conscious of and careful about how often and how much. It's fine to have a piece of cake now and then — just not every day, and not the whole cake.
JILLIAN'S TIP OF THE DAY
There's Always an Alternative

Okay, I understand — you really can't control yourself around a trigger food, like chocolate. One tiny bite is never enough. Before you blink, that entire jumbo-sized bar is gone. In that case, find an alternative that satisfies your craving for salt, sugar, or fat but doesn't do as much damage as the real thing. For example, if your weakness is potato chips, try having some air-popped popcorn as a snack instead. Trust me — in time you'll adapt so that small amounts of trigger foods will not set you off on an all-night binge.
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Hey guys, I think we are all doing great for losing and also for continuing to return and report! We are not going to fail as long as we keep on trying. So, is anyone else interested in 1) Continuing after we hit our end date and give out the prize and start over again? 2) Trying a weekly incentive so we don't put off our efforts to the next week?
Any ideas on a weekly incentive? Mabey a virtual dollar (or real) could be sent to the winners for the week from the bottom 5-6 people? hmmm. I got the idea watching the Biggest Loser, which is so inspiring we should all DVR it, they have immunities, challenges and weekly rewards... just a thought.
Good Luck everyone!
Merrily