I have not cheated for one whole year!
I haven't eaten off plan this whole time. When I first started I kept cheating every 4 weeks or so (just for a day or two). It slowed down my weight loss but didn't stop it - so I let myself get away with it. Then I went a month without losing and it scared me so I stopped my end of the month cheat and I haven't cheated since.
I've made it through birthdays, Christmas,Thanksgiving, going out to eat, being stuck in the ER, grocery shopping, being sick, and a house full of carbs without cheating.
I do still think about eating bad sometimes but I usually end up forgetting about it in less than a minute. If I really can't stop thinking about some particular food, I find a LC version to make.
The longer I didn't cheat, the easier it got. It doesn't bother me anymore when people eat "forbidden" foods around me.

I've only got 1/2 a pound more till I get to my next mini goal of 75 pounds lost! Yay! I was stalled almost all last month (weight wise) so I'm relieved to see the scale moving again.

Edit :2-2-13
Made my 75 pounds lost goal this morning! (Acutally 1/2 pound below it )

Wow, congratulations! You've found the holy grail of low-carbing! For me it's been about 2 weeks since I cheated. But I, too, have a more serious mindset this time that I'm hoping will keep me strong against the desire to cheat.

Of course, it does help that the holidays are over! And mine is not a football family, so I won't have to contend with a Super Bowl party complete with pizza, chips, beer, etc, like so many other poor souls. I'd love to know some of your tricks for getting through special occasions cheat-free.

Wow, thats some will power. Congrats on your milestone and progress.

That's fantastic! Congrats on your sticking to it. It feels good, hey?

Thanks for the congrats, everybody!



I'll be honest - at first I was white knuckling it. I never let myself get hungry so that could never be an excuse. Even though I was over the initial withdrawl symptoms I still had strong cravings for about 2 -3 months. One day I realized I wasn't looking for reasons to cheat; I was thinking about what I could eat that was LC.

I always know what's going to be served if I'm not eating at home. Most places (or people) have some kind of meat dish and/or vegetables. If there's nothing I can eat, I eat before I go and I don't eat when I get there.
For things that happen at our house I just make what I want. I made a LC cheesecake for my birthday and for desert on Christmas.
SO I guess my trick is always knowing what's coming (to the best of my ability). I don't go to a restaurant without already knowing what I'm getting. I knew what I was eating for Thanksgiving a week in advance.
Christmas was at our house so I knew what we were having.
If for some reason I had to go somewhere and couldn't eat before hand and I didn't know what they were having, I'd pack a meal and leave it in the car and just go out and eat it when I got hungry. (Assuming there was nothing suitable to eat.)
Always have a plan. (And a back up plan.)
Don't set yourself up to fail. If you think a situation is going to make you cheat - avoid it. I know it sounds anti-social but it won't last forever. You'll eventually be able to be around any kind of food and have no desire to cheat.
Hope that helps

Thanks for those tips. So I guess the moral is: failing to plan is planning to fail!

That's definitely what I've found! I'm one year into my LC journey. The first three months I was like a machine. I had a couple of little slips, but lost 30 lbs my first 10 weeks because I made spreadsheets for planning my food and grocery shopping, and was totally in the "zone" about following those plans. Then my life got away on me - a whole bunch of crazy things happened with work, the kids, I began barely getting 4 hours a night to sleep, let alone time to focus on myself, and I struggled for 7 months. I was doing my best to LC, but was flying by the seat of my pants, instead of planning every meal. This resulted in a much higher number of "slips". For a long time I never gained, and ultimately only put back on 3 of the lbs I had worked so hard to lose. But, if I had stuck to my plan the way I started it I'd probably be at goal already.

On January 23rd, 2013, I hit my reset button. I'm now 10 days into my second round of induction. I feel great, my food plans are working wonders on my resolve, and I'm ready to keep doing this long term. I'd give ANYTHING to be able to celebrate one whole year without a single cheat!

Definitely!

aamama - Just take it one day at a time and you'll eventually get there

You are doing great! Wow...
I also find that starting the day with the right combination of foods
really helps set the rest of the day. For me it is bacon, eggs, cheese. Then I can go 5-6 hours without hunger.
Congratulations anglgrl

Congrats!

Congrats!!!

Thanks, everybody

Good job on your no cheating and thanks for the tips.

Fantastic-congrats!!!