Week Four Fatigue

Every time I join a diet program, I inevitably hit the point of diet fatigue. It usually happens around the fourth or fifth week. I tend to get tired of eating the same 7 or so foods; preparing salads and sitting down to eat a big meal three times a day becomes impossible as the treadmill of my life increases in speed; and then I hit the dreaded plateau, where I don't lose anything, and maybe even gain a pound back. I tend to skip my final weigh-in sometimes. Usually by then I already have lost 12-15 pounds and am happy with my weight loss, so I just quit. However, in the past I always do 12-week-long programs. And it often takes me those 11 weeks to lose the 14 pounds.

This time, though, I have not hit diet fatigue yet. I'm still going strong. However, having lost 11 pounds already and very happy with my progress, I did start to quietly cheat a bit. By cheat, I don't refer to sugary stuff, bakery stuff, or extra snacks. But... I did eat a small piece of kugel and farfel on Friday night. I have really missed this slice of Shabbos heaven, and I treated myself. And tonight, I put salami in my cold cut salad instead of turkey. I really don't like turkey. Will this affect how much weight I lose this week? It might. Will I care? No.

One of my least favorite aspects of a diet program is the burden of charting my food intake, and then presenting it to a nutrionist at weigh-in, for inevitable scrutiny and constructive criticism. Remember: I have ADHD. I misplace the food chart the minute I bring it home. I forget to write down what I ate, and then have to scramble to remember at the last minute. And I'm a sensitive person. I do not take kindly to criticism, even if it's the constructive kind.  I feel down enough on myself for so many other things, so getting negative comments about little cheats does not feel good. "See, if you hadn't eaten that piece of kugel, you would've lost 2 1/4 pounds this week, not 1 3/4" But... I'm perfectly happy with 1 3/4! This is not The Biggest Loser; I am not in competition with anyone but myself. If I wanted to have that piece of kugel Friday night or those bits of salami in my salad, the onus is on me.

This is not meant as a criticism of the program or of the nutritionist. (Though I must admit, it's quite unnerving to be weighed in by a skinny-jimmy wisp of a girl!) The program obviously works, incredibly well. I have NEVER had such amazing luck with a dieting program. 11 pounds in 3 1/2 weeks? While eating well, and healthy, and barely ever being hungry? It's incredible. I look really good; people are noticing my weight loss; I am wearing clothes I haven't worn in two years! And at the weigh-in, the nutritionist compliments me with a glowing smile on the amazing progress I'm making every week. I guess I just have some personal work to do to not take the comments on the food chart personally. I can totally lie and not write down my cheats on the chart. But I will be truthful. I will IY"H hand in my honest food chart, and won't take it personally when inevitably the 'cheats' will be brought up.

I realized that I do better when I type than writing, so I created a google spreadsheet to write down my food intake. I had to recreate most of  Wednesday and Thursday from memory, though. Here's what I have so far:

It should be an interesting experiment. I wonder if these little cheats will seriously affect my weight loss. As of last Wednesday I was down 10 pounds. By Friday morning I had lost another pound. I'm still going to be really good the next 2 days. (Though tomorrow will be challenging since Sonny-boy is home for Memorial Day, yay. Not.) If I will have gained back weight, or not lost at all, then I'm willing to admit defeat and acknowledge that veering off the program even with these minor changes are detrimental. If I'll still have lost nicely, I'll give myself a pass. Any diet has to be a long-term sustainable lifestyle. If I have to deny myself kugel Friday night for the rest of my life, and forget about having salami in my salad, ever, I'll be really sad.

Stay tuned!