well said everyone! great thread. I have nothing to add but I have been having a difficult time lately myself.

to find out today I have let 4 pounds creep on doesn't help any. I'm not even at my goal yet~!

anyway it DOES help to know I am not alone.

Thanks Woo for this rant. It has had me thinking for a day or two. I guess I was I getting a little panic building as I face the fact that I'm thin now. It hits in stages, doesn't it? I am a non-natural thin person. I know that I can't go back to eating the way I used to, and I'm really okay with that. I do get the jitters at the recovery realization that I will always have to deal with occasional, but frustrating, cravings. ...and that internal restless feeling which seems to zap my confidence.

I've been rereading Berstein's Diabetes Diet book. He emphasizes no phases or treat days. I have to wrap my mind about that. I've always been somewhat of a rebel. The immature Sara inside my head likes to sigh and think, "Sometimes you gotta say, F*** it!" I'm trying to reprogram that to say, "Get over it!"

One of the life changes that seems to have helped me stick with this program is not feeling that I always have to go above and beyond in all I endeavor. As I've learned to think that I'm enough (and hence do not have to have more, more, more), I am realizing that I only have to do enough. I am learning to accept myself and meet some of my unrecognized needs. Here is the rub: I'm soon to be 47, I am in a size eight, I don't need accolades from others, I've made a LOT of mistakes and have to responsibly live with the repercussions, but I'm not completely clear on who I am now. As Henley says, "The more I know, the less I understand."

I do feel as though I've veered off of the path I was on. I'm just not real clear about my current surroundings or where I'm heading. It helps to touch base with this forum. I don't have people in my life that have had obesity, carbohydrate addictions, and a physical metamorposis. This feels dramatic (I did not say traumatic). I don't see how others could possibly connect or relate to we we are living.
Sara<><

I lost all my weight in 2000
and then had a slow setback
that put 45 lbs back on me
by May 2005. I have since
lost that weight and the setback
was humbling and taught me not
to listen to naysayers about the
diet I am on.

I am happy with my diet now and
can splurge once in awhile and it won't
kill me, although I still don't do any
pies, cakes, cookies, donut type stuff,
ice cream or candy and no chocolate
in particular. I don't do pizza either.

I am not fond of fried foods, or grains
or potatoes either, but find that I can
eat Mexican or Chinese or a steak or
seafood dinner OUT once in a while
and it won't make me relapse.

I think maintenance is easier if you realize
that you are on an eating plan for LIFE, and
not just to lose the weight. And god forbid
that I ever have a mental lapse and eat a
ton of chocolate bars. I guess there is always the
confession booth on this forum and I will
beat my butt over there and confess my sins.

But being at maintenance is a bigger rush
than any piece of candy. And being fit sure
beats the hell out of being fat.

This is a great thread. I have maintained,once exeption, my weight loss for over a year.I would like to lose 15-20 more pounds, but I am not unhappy with my current size either. In Nov/Dec I gained enough weight (I don't weigh myself) that my clothing was tight and some things did not fit. I ate controlled carb, but too much and too high of good carbs. I was scared of the weight gain, but in January did induction and went back to OWL. By the end of January my clothing fit again and I was feeling good again. This was an important lesson for me. In the past I would start to gain weight, throw in the towel and gain it all back in short order. This time I knew the tools I needed and I got back on track in short order. And I never really gave up my low carb lifestyle, just got lax. I know that this time the changes I have made are for good. Nothing tastes as good as being thin feels and I have no real cravings for bad carbs, I have found substitutes.
The typical american lifestyle makes it hard to make good choices sometimes. With my good friends I will joke and say I can't eat something because of my tendency towards morbid obesisty..or I am allergic to that..I break out in fat. With everyone else, including family, I try to stay very low key about my lifestyle. I make the best choices I can and don't say much. If questioned about not ttying an item I just say that I am full, had a big breakfast/lunch, etc. I ALWAYS make sure to own bring my own safe food with me. I usually keep something in the car. This keeps me from being so hungry that I resort to eating something that I shouldn't and has been key to my success.