Finding It

I read Losing It by Valerie Bertinelli so I just had to follow it up with her book called Finding It.

It was so refreshing to read this book and hear how Valerie overcame emotional and stress eating.  It was so comforting to know that she faced real issues and dealt with them like a real person. I loved how she told the story of how hard she worked to get her body ready for the bikini shoot for Jenny Craig and how she worked with her personal trainer not only training and working out her body but also her mind and her soul. 

It amazes me still that being overweight is really not at all about food but rather about will power, emotions and the kind of person you are.  There were a lot of passages in this book that brought flashbacks from Made To Crave.  Although they are by two completely different authors they touch on many of the same things.   I think for me, the very end of the book is where it really hit home.  The last chapter of the book was the most important for me.  I do love her "notes to self" sections and found many of those that I could take to heart.  I even am going to steal her idea and have been jotting down notes to myself of things I don't want to forget. 

Recently one of my struggles has been getting back on track once I slip up.  I love when she tells a story of what her trainer tells her.
"Everyone has a bad day.  They slip or they don't work out.  It's okay.  You have to allow yourself.  Let yourself have a day when you eat or don't work out.  Then get to the gym the next day.  Don't punish yourself for getting off track." 

I do exactly just that...I punish myself.  I mentally beat myself up, make myself horrible and in turn making me want to EAT MORE.  Sometimes I have gotten to the point where I will restrict my calories later in the day or even the next day to try and make up for it.  Neither one of those behaviors is healthy so I am trying to give myself permission to not make such a big deal out of slipping up.  This my friends is certainly a work in progress!  This is going to be a hard habit to break, one that I have been doing for quite a while.  I am trying to figure out a strategy to put this mindset into practice. 

I am trying so hard and learning so many things about myself through this journey to be healthier and weigh less.  I still have such a long way to go emotionally and because of that I believe this last 20 pounds or so is going to take longer than I think it should.