by Tish MacWebber | Nov 14, 2019 | Trust Your Gut
Distractions are all around us. No matter where you look, they are out there. Waiting for you. When I was talking to a friend earlier today about an unrelated topic, she pointed out the obvious. I need to focus, and to help me to do this, I need to be keeping my eyes on the prize.
In the business world, I am seen as a bit confusing, as I have been told I am too diversified. When we talked about this, I explained that I thought it was what I was supposed to be doing, because the moment I declared that my jewellery business, Tish MacWebber Always Blinging would now be officially a hobby for me, someone wanted to buy Book Bling. I took it as a sign, telling me that I was right all along. I thought it meant to keep pushing forward, full speed ahead in all areas.
My friend wisely pointed out I misinterpreted the sign. It wasn’t telling me to keep doing all of the things, but rather, testing my declaration.
WHOA!
Hang on there.
Maybe I was wrong.
In that moment, I realized she was right. The sign wasn’t a sign at all. It was a distraction.
How many times have you misinterpreted a sign?
I can assure you, it is very easy to do. One minute you are feeling great about the choices you have made for the food you have eaten so far that day and the next minute you are looking at the tub of ice cream in your freezer. You didn’t open the freezer to get ice cream, but now that it is staring you in the face, it is the only reason you should have opened the freezer.
Or is it?
What you really opened the freezer for was to get the bag of frozen broccoli out to thaw because you want to make a casserole, and one of the ingredients is broccoli.
But the ice cream is just there. Screaming at you. Insisting that it needs you to eat it right now, so that you can get the instant gratification it always gives you. You imagine yourself eating all of the ice cream, and how happy you will be.
Until you realize that you ate it all and feel awful because you were doing so well and the ice cream DISTRACTED you from your goal. Oh, it is sneaky and mean and it wants you to eat it all every time you open the freezer.
So do you lock the freezer and never open it again?
You could. It is not the practical choice, and truthfully it is not very realistic.
Should you declare to never ever buy ice cream again?
Maybe. But we all know the second you do, your favourite flavour is going to be on an incredible sale the very next time you walk into the grocery store.
What is the right answer?
Focus.
When I open the freezer, I need to focus on the broccoli. The ice cream is only going to be a temporary distraction. Ice cream has its time and place, as a treat, not as an everyday splash into guilty pleasures. As much as I love a bowl of ice cream, I need to remember that I am on a new path where I am being kind to myself.
I need to love myself more than I love ice cream
That right there is a bold statement. The love I have for ice cream is right up there with lobster and pizza. It includes chocolate. To be perfectly honest, there aren’t many foods which I don’t love. The struggle is most certainly real, and when you put broccoli up against ice cream, the broccoli doesn’t stand a chance if I am not committed to my goals.
Broccoli has one thing going for it in this equation. Me. If I choose to get the broccoli and continue making the casserole, I will be preparing a meal which can be the reason I open the freezer for. Healthy food is how I show myself kindness. I need to focus on the short term goals to be able to claim the prize I am aiming for.
I know I will falter from time to time. Being human means I am not perfect, and I will make mistakes. I will be tested and distracted. The point is to not stay there. If you picked up the tub of ice cream because it was on sale, it is going to be there until you eat it. Unless you need to eat your feelings, which is never the positive choice to make but might happen if you get dumped or fired, it is not going to go bad before you eat it. It can stay right where it is because it will be there when you do decide that you want a bowl of ice cream as a treat.
Indulgences are a privilege of being an adult
You are your own boss of your life. So get the broccoli out of the freezer, close the door and act like it. Set your goals, keep your eyes on the prize and focus.
As I am writing, I am also recognizing that I have steadily lost a pound or two in the last few weeks. I weighed in at 313.6 pounds yesterday. I am getting closer to taking the new picture for this blog, the one where I show myself and the world I can and will reach my goals, one pound at a time.
You can do this with me. I believe in us.
#TrustYourGut
by Tish MacWebber | Dec 29, 2017 | Trust Your Gut
The names here may or may not reflect the person’s real name. If someone wants to remain unknown, we will choose a different name for that person’s story. The goal is to help people, and anonymity is a valid personal choice for contributors. I will use a person’s name only if they give permission to do so.
This week I am pleased to share another of my own stories.
Here is Trust Your Gut: Tish’s Story; Part 44
I have been doing okay with my food choices this week. Not perfect, but okay. I indulged in some chocolates and now they are gone. I bought chocolate ice cream, and haven’t gotten into it yet. When I did buy it, I looked really hard at the larger sized bucket, as it was less than a $2 cost difference between the one I ended up buying, and the larger one. I am fine with treats as long as they aren’t around all of the time. If they are, I make them disappear…and reappear in places like my chin! I want to learn to stop making the magic of this type from happening. It is a time for a new magic trick. And that different kind of chocolate that I have been craving. Diamonds, darling, I am setting my sights on chocolate diamonds.
I have mentioned this to my husband but I don’t know how seriously he took my comments. I am aiming for a time about six months from now. I am going to set a goal, and if I make it by my birthday, I am going to get a reward that I can happily show off to the world. What better incentive can I make? Well, I will be needing to add to my collection once I get it started. I would rather collect diamonds than pounds, so it is a great thing to work for.
I haven’t set the goal yet. I want to be realistic. So let’s do the math. Ugh. 6 months. The average healthy weight loss goals have always been 2 pounds a week. 6 months have 4 weeks each. Multiply that by 2 pounds a week and you get 48. I am going to round it up to 50. So the goal I am setting for myself is realistic. I am undergoing a change in my day job starting next week, and I will be missing my Zumba for a while. In the winter, but I have a plan. As I am ALWAYS THINKING…
I have decided that I am going to workout at home. I know a few of the Zumba moves by heart for some of the songs. I have a step here too, for exercise so I can mix it up. I may even start a third day of exercise a week. I want to say more than 3 days a week, but I am not going to push myself so hard that I just give up. That is not the way I want to approach this change in my schedule. I want to do what I can, on my own, and then when I do get back to Zumba, I will not be so far out of shape that I have to build myself up to where I am now in my fitness level. See, ALWAYS THINKING…
In the spring, I still want a dog. If it isn’t a chocolate lab, that is OK. I will love any dog we take home. A dog means I will have to take it for walks. Walks are good for me, but I do not want to go just because of me. If I have a dog, I will need to go, because the dog will be needing this to happen. More than once a day. I live in a trailer court, and it is well kept. It is a nice place to live, and lots of people have dogs here. I would have a regular route to walk a dog on twice a day, and I think that is a fantastic goal to work towards. I know, I have written about these things before, but I am still aiming for them.
What are your goals for living a healthier lifestyule in 2018?
#TrustYourGut
by Tish MacWebber | Nov 10, 2017 | Trust Your Gut
The names here may or may not reflect the person’s real name. If someone wants to remain unknown, we will choose a different name for that person’s story. The goal is to help people, and anonymity is a valid personal choice for contributors. I will use a person’s name only if they give permission to do so.
This week I am pleased to share another of my own stories.
Here is Trust Your Gut: Tish’s Story; Part 37
This week I have not stepped on the scale, or measured inches. I did go to Zumba Monday and missed it Wednesday because of circumstances beyond my control. I hope to start going twice a week again starting Monday. The day I made it I had 5,187 steps. That might be the highest step count I have ever had at a Zumba class.
I mentioned that last week I was on the scale at the doctor’s office. I was up. I didn’t want to face it. Bahahahahaha! My chocolate chin is where it all went. I swear. I wasn’t going to put a number on it, but as I am sure that I lost half of it already, I can face it now. 😉 I had gone back up to 312 lbs. I knew things were bad, and not as bad as the worst, but I was right. Making small changes to ease myself back into eating more on plan than off plan is working. I am sure the 12 lb chocolate chin is 6lbs or even less right now.
If I don’t laugh at it, I will curl up in a ball and cry as I eat the rest of the Halloween chocolate and chips. I am going to have my Thursday glass of wine with some Smartfood Gouda & Chive popcorn. Maybe more wine if I want to, but not necessarily. I need to get back on track one meal, snack and day at a time. I am happy today that I made BigMac salad for lunch yesterday. It was SO good. I am probably having it for lunch tomorrow. I made a pot of chili tonight. I am trying. That is better than not trying, and I can live with that. I couldn’t live with a 12 lb chocolate chin.
I think it is time to look at a new NSV. If you are new here, that is a non-scale victory. I admittedly love chocolate. Chocoholic, right here. I can make chocolate treats on the plan. But I am thinking about something bigger. Bolder. Goal achievement status.
I keep seeing commercials that catch my attention. Something I saw tonight made me think I need to get focused, and I think I found my next reward. I am not going to have to only go to twoville for this, I am going to need to be in onederland. That big.
More than one goal. As if I am just working for the big one, I am not going to make it. If I set the goal too high, I will fail. I know it. I can plan clothes shopping trips as I need them in the short term. I am also gearing up to start wearing more makeup. So those things can be small goal rewards. This may have to be the end of the journey prize! What on earth am I planning?
Well, I think it is time to set my sights on some other forms of chocolate. The inedible kinds. There are chocolate coloured dogs. I want a dog. We aren’t ready yet…sad, I know, but it is a major decision, and I want to be sure that I am 100% ready for the responsibility of taking that dog home. I now have an idea. How do I make it bigger?
BLING! I make beaded jewellery, and I am working on my website to launch it. I am not expecting it to be an instant source of income (although I wouldn’t have a problem with that), but I rarely make jewellery for myself. Bigger. Have you figured it out yet?
Diamonds, my friends. I am going to talk to my husband and set some realistic goals, and buy myself some diamonds. But not just any diamonds. For this plan to work, it has to be chocolate diamonds. I want Bling rewards!
I might be too far into the wine to be rational at this point, but I don’t think so. I am planning to up my game and work hard for something tangible. Something that won’t affect my blood sugars, and won’t cause me to be morbidly obese anymore. I have been saying that I am worth it, and it is high time I start planning to show it. So there you have it. I am setting the chocolate bar for myself, 😉 and you know what? I am looking forward to saving up for something really special.
#TrustYourGut
P.S. I am on time with this one!
by Tish MacWebber | Nov 3, 2017 | Trust Your Gut
The names here may or may not reflect the person’s real name. If someone wants to remain unknown, we will choose a different name for that person’s story. The goal is to help people, and anonymity is a valid personal choice for contributors. I will use a person’s name only if they give permission to do so.
This week I am pleased to share another of my own stories.
Here is Trust Your Gut: Tish’s Story; Part 36
Well, I have good news, and bad news this week. I went to the Doctor. Not because I was sick, but rather because it was time for a checkup. I met my new doctor. Finally. If first impressions are worth anything, I knew in the first minute I found myself a good one. She seemed meticulous and genuinely wanted to get an idea of my plans in relation to my overall health before my checkup. I needed to find a doctor that I could trust, again. My last doctor was good, but I think this one is going to be great.
The bad news is that I got weighed. I am not at the all-time high from before, but I certainly am not in as good a shape as I have been in the past. I am not following the plan, and I am visibly showing that to the world.
What is wrong with me? Why do I eat things that are bad for me? Why can’t I just lose weight and eat whatever I want to eat, like skinny people do?
I have health issues. I have reasons, and I know that realistically, it didn’t add up overnight, so it will not be removed overnight, either. I know in my mind that junk food is bad for me, and healthy food can taste good. But sometimes I pick the lazy way. Other times I self-sabotage. There are times when I just create excuses and choose to believe them, even though I know they are lies. Chocolate and the monster have been prominent in the last few months.
I don’t know how long I am going to be in this slump. I do know that the number on the scale made me take notice. It is a real number, one I can’t pretend isn’t an issue anymore by refusing to weigh myself. Avoidance is not a valid option when it comes to Diabetes. I know that. I am having difficulties in other parts of my life, and something is holding me back from being the best version of myself.
Sometimes, you have to hit rock bottom before you can climb out of a slump and rise up to your next level. Whatever I am going through in my personal life, I can’t eat it away. I have to face it and deal with it. Head on.
That is not an easy thing to do. It is not an easy thing to think about, let alone to write about, to share with people. But it is going to help me break free and move forward.
Change is hard. I have been pushing my limits with my writing and my blog while keeping a day job and running on coffee. I have been out of the multivitamins for a few months, now, and I plan to buy some again asap. They do help.
I got the doctor to change one of my prescriptions. One of the side effects of the other medication was drowsiness, and I was having a hard time with it. I know that I am a night owl, but I used to be OK with keeping up with my current schedule. I am starting to not do as well as before.
Maybe that was me tapping into the mystical energy people talk about having when they lose weight. I have gone in the wrong direction on the scale, again, and that is definitely a factor. Being heavier means it is harder to do everything because you weigh more. It doesn’t mean I am going to stop and give up.
I need to do some soul searching, and find a reason to get things back on track. I know I felt better, had more energy, and was happier. But if things are not Ok on the inside, and I am spending some of the precious energy I do have in keeping up the appearance of being happy for the world to see, then I need to get to the root of the problem, so I can find a solution.
It isn’t easy, but it is necessary to propel me into my next level. The fear of wondering how bad my weight has become is not holding anything over my head anymore. I know what it is, and I know how it happened. Now I have to find out why, so I can take the next step to working on my goals. I have to keep telling myself that I am worth the effort, that I matter, and that it is important to make my health a priority. It won’t be easy, but nothing worth doing ever is. Time to deep dive into my issues and make some changes.
#TrustYourGut
by Tish MacWebber | Jun 8, 2017 | Trust Your Gut
The names here may or may not reflect the person’s real name. If someone wants to remain unknown, we will choose a different name for that person’s story. The goal is to help people, and anonymity is a valid personal choice for contributors. I will use a person’s name only if they give permission to do so.
This week I am pleased to share another of my own stories.
Here is Trust Your Gut: Tish’s Story; Part 16
My hormones have gone CRAZY! When I was sick my body got a little confused, and now that it is getting on track, I WANT CHOCOLATE! Not the square or two of the 85% cocoa that is on plan, but regular, easy to find, totally bad for me chocolate. I am fighting with myself a lot right now. I know what I should do, and then there is what I want to do. Sometimes, the want is more than average, and my brain makes it a need. So this week I gave in a little.
I also made the lasagna last Sunday, and I have been eating a piece a day for lunch this week. I needed suppers, and I have planned an adventure in my kitchen that happened yesterday…
I love making Chicken Bacon Ranch Casserole. I don’t have any chicken breasts ready in the freezer to make it with. So I poached some salmon pieces and made Salmon Bacon Ranch. It turned out really good. I swapped the chicken for salmon (poached in water with onion powder, dill and garlic) and made the recipe. I doubled the dill, added spinach, and extra Miracle Whip and Plain Greek 0% fat yogurt. I used extra old cheddar, and bacon bits. I kept the parsley, cream cheese, garlic and pepper as per the recipe.
-
-
Salmon Bacon Ranch Casserole
-
-
Salmon Bacon Ranch Casserole 2
-
-
Salmon Bacon Ranch Casserole 3
I was surprised at how good this turned out. It is rich and heavy, but carb free. I checked my sugars right after supper, and they were at 10.2. For after eating, this is really close to normal range. Considering that it was a Zumba night, and I had a juice box, a G2 and a snickers bar before supper, (I was hangry and dropping) this is what I needed to see. It means that I was correct about being low, and I didn’t do too much to overcompensate. YAY!
So what I am getting at this week is that sometimes, chocolate is a necessary evil. More importantly, it is good to experiment in the kitchen with healthy recipes. You might surprise yourself.
I am not going to have Zumba classes for a few weeks. I am in charge of keeping the Zumba Crew motivated until class starts up again. I have a few ideas, but I need to get the gumption up for me to work on it as I need to be active too, especially when classes are cancelled. Dance off, anyone?
#TrustYourGut
