This was also discussed at our meeting and is why I stay within a few
pounds of my goal on maintenance.  When I have a lapse I know exactly
what to do to get back on program.  Going to weekly meetings, keeping a
tracker handy even if I don't always fill it out and knowing how much I
should eat, exercise etc. helps me stay within goal.  It is easy to
overeat but the important thing is to regard it as just a meal, snack
whatever.  It's not a reason to give up.
Audrey

what a great view, thanks for sharing Eddie

Hi all,

Interesting meeting this week.  Learned something that I'd love to share
with all of you.

Have you had a lapse, but then turned into a complete collapse?  Think about
it.

Have you ever had  a"lapse" and gone off program, but then turned it into a
"collapse" by then just saying to yourself "ah, the heck with it, I've blown
it for this week, so I'll just wait until next week to get back on
program!"..........????

Here's something to think about.....it's a pretty good analogy of what NOT
to do....

There was lady who was having a dinner party.  She put out here best China
plates to show them off to every one, but insisted that no one help her do
the dishes in fear that they might chip or break one of them.  She preferred
to do them herself and take extreme care with them.  All of sudden, she
accidentally dropped one and it smashed all over the floor.  She was so
angry at herself for doing this that she then took her entire set of dishes
and smashed all of them in frustration!!!!  After she calmed down, she
realized just how silly it was to smash all of them in her little fit of
rage.

Next time you have a lapse, think about this.........."is it really worth
getting so angry at yourself that you should just smash all the
dishes??"......I hope you agree that the answer should be no!

Don't beat yourself up!
Forgive yourself!
Get right back on program, don't try to cut back on your points, just stick
with the program as if your lapse never happened.
Get some support and go to a meeting if you have to.
We're all human.  We will all have lapses.  Recognizing them and not letting
turn into full blown collapses will certainly help you in the long run.

Each time you recognize a lapse, I'm sure it will get easier to deal each
time if you continue to keep this analogy in the back of your mind.

Eddie
Weight June05-359lbs
Current Weight-284.4lbs
Loss to date=74.6lbs
Goal Weight-180lbs

Great analogy. You can probably take it a bit further.

Think how futile it would be to try and 'mend' the broken china. Best
just to accept it's broken, try not to break any more, and move on.

Ray

this was our meeting as well, it was really good, Lee

Eddie,

Did I ever have a lapse?  Heck yes!!!  More than once.  Actually, a bunch of
times.  And every time I did I became more determined.  I wanted to beat
myself up and just throw it all away a few times.  I thought to myself, why
not just accept the fact that I was meant to be heavy and just let it go?
But then I thought, if I do that, what else will I start and not finish?

Now, two and a half years later I'm a lifer with eleven weeks of being under
goal (still five pounds under) and I think about all the time I wasted just
fooling myself.  But I'm making up for all that lost time by staying focused
and determined and enjoying my new "lifestyle."

Thanks for the story.  It is a very appropriate analogy

Jerry