Back on track today!

I was married on October 18 to a wonderful man. My goal (begun last spring) was to lose 20 pounds by the wedding, and I started at about 265. After following a pseudo-Weight Watchers plan for a couple months, going to bed hungry every night and, frankly, doing more cheating than dieting, I remembered how easily the weight came off when I did Atkins in 2002 for a year.

That was the first diet I'd ever been on, and I went from 227 to 168 in six months. I couldn't stick with it, but since then my weight has only ballooned, and I've come to terms with the fact that in order to get down to and maintain a healthy weight, I have to be on a specific eating plan. I am far too susceptible to bingeing, and I can't just have a taste of something--one Reese's peanut butter cup? Are you kidding me? It's the king-size pack of four or NOTHING!

So low-carb worked for me before, and it'll work for me now. When I started my Wedding Weight Loss Plan, I lost a few pounds over two months on a "regular" low-cal/fat diet. I began low-carb again on June 1st, and by the wedding, I'd gotten down to 234--even with a few days of full-out cheating in there.

Of course, big celebrations mean food, and with all the parties and traveling we've been doing over the last two and a half weeks, I haven't stuck to the plan much--maybe two or three days on, and the rest off--and when I do off days, I Do Off Days. I'm such a hedonist. I indulge in everything low-carb won't let me, and not much in moderation.

So, the numbers that appeared as I stepped on the scale this morning for the first time in weeks shouldn't have been much of a surprise--but it's always disheartening, isn't it? I weigh myself on two scales: a big analog dial scale, and a Weight Watchers brand digital scale. I'd noticed the digital scale sometimes fluctuates within a few minutes of weighing oneself mutiple times, so I wanted a reliable backup system--but I still like the exact numbers the WW scale gives me. So I do both.

This morning, pre-shower, post-underwear, the scales read:

249, Analog

248.4, Digital

Yikes! I knew this would happen...weight comes back so easily when I quit low-carb. But that's still almost a pound a day!

Today, though, is a new day. As is every day on a low-carb plan.

I have at work with me a 12-oz Coca-Cola Zero I'm nursing, and a 64-oz bottle of water waiting in the wings (only about 2/3 full because it's really heavy when it's totally full, and I'll never drink 64 ounces during the five hours I'm at work--I'll drink a smaller bottle to make up for the absent water tonight). I am stocked with the lower-carb South Beach Crispy Meal bars (Vanilla Creme), Cocoa Roast Emerald almonds, smoked almonds, a drawer full of Slim Jims, a jar of pickle spears in the mini-fridge, two kinds of Babybel (the cheddar's my current favorite--gouda was a disappointment), a bag of sugar-free Reese's cups (wow those things have improved since they came out during my first foray into the low-carb world), and a half-pound of Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese. There's no opportunity to cheat here, and I can leave work early this afternoon feeling full so there's no temptation to stop at DQ for the Chicken Strip Basket with extra gravy.

Wish me luck!

Here I go....