PWLP: Week Two - Lesson Four

I swear I've been doing my lessons, the last few haven't had really "questions" (per se) that I could answer in written form.

Personal Evaluation

1. List below the actions you are taking today to stay on the road to the TRUE YOU.    Exercising every day, incorporating more fruits and veggies into my every day eating habits, drinking tons of water, prioritizing my life, making conscious choices about where/when/why/how/what I will eat, learning to accept myself but to hold myself to a higher standard.

2. What are some of the negative statements you say to yourself concerning your ability to succeed? How do these statements affect your daily commitment to the program?    I tend to get really discouraged and down on myself when I don't see the numbers on the scale decreasing enough - I tell myself that I was just made to be a "fatty" and that no matter how hard I try I'll always be this way. I think that I'm trying another fad diet that won't work for me or give me the results I want, and that I'll wind up being a lost cause like every other time I've tried. Overall, these negative thoughts tend to discourage any and all of my efforts in a given day - regardless of how accurately I stick to the program guidelines or how many minutes I go on the elliptical, I feel like my efforts will amount to nothing anyways.

3. How do you feel about your performance in the program to this point? What are you most pleased about?    I am pleased with how the program is giving me structure - a structure that I previously lacked in my life. It's teaching me the importance of discipline and commitment, as well as showing me how to self-motivate and reach higher for myself. I feel like with every day, I become slightly more committed to the program and the 'end' result. I am most pleased with my ability to kick the sugar addiction to the curb and stay off of it. There have certainly been some trying situations, but I've managed to stay strong and for that I'm super proud.

4. Is it difficult for your to do things for yourself? Why do you think you often care for the needs of others before your own?    I think that I find it relatively easy to do things for myself, but I tend to be more superficial in the way I take care of myself - I'll spoil myself rotten with candies and chocolates and makeup and beauty products and clothes, but I never take care of my spiritual and physical and emotional self. I think it's easier for me to show other people how to succeed or turn their lives around than it is for me to look in the mirror and see the blatantly obvious right in front of me and take my own advice. I don't want to admit to myself that I was wrong...

5. When you gain control of your eating behavior and lose weight, how will those close to you benefit?   My husband will gain a willing teammate in life - someone who will participate in the activities he loves (hiking, baseball, etc.) as well as someone who will be around for a lot longer with a better quality of health. My children will know a mother who looks after herself, both inside and out, as well as instilling in them a genuine desire to be healthy and happy kids. My parents and sister will be encouraged in their own weight-loss journeys and will *hopefully* be able to make similar changes in their own lives. My in-laws will gain a daughter-in-law who will happily and willingly participate in their ACTIVities, not like the bench warmer I currently am. My friends and coworkers will be proud to know me.