Weekly weigh-in: Snack attack

Last week's weight: 171
This week's weight: 171.2
Difference: +0.2
Total weight lost since January 2010: 100.6

I apologize for the delay in posting my weekly update. I was simply too tired when I got home from work Friday to do it and I didn't even turn on my computer on Saturday. Anyway, this week was about maintaining ... obviously.

I was under a tremendous amount of stress personally and professionally so I knew this past week wouldn't be easy. So I cooked healthy foods last weekend and they did help me stay away from major pitfalls. But I felt hungry all week, which led to a lot of snacking.

The good news is that I didn't eat anything incredibly bad for me. The bad news is that I did eat more than I should have. And the trend has continued into the weekend with a a function for work during the day Saturday that involved food and wine and then a dinner out Saturday night that ended with a stop at an ice shop (I bought candy instead of ice cream, but the effect on the scale will be the same.)

I had a proud moment during dinner Saturday night, though, when a friend pointed out that she's never seen me truly deprive myself of anything. We've been to dinner, parties, etc. many time in the past couple of years and I try to make smart choices, but she's right that I don't starve myself or refuse to eat something served to me.

I've said all along that this journey is about changing my eating habits for the rest of my life. And I hope I'm doing it in a way that allows me to maintain my weight loss forever. I know that I could drastically restrict my food intake for a couple of months and lose the last 20 pounds. But I also know that after those two months (maybe even before), I'd end up binging and gaining the weight back quickly.

I love food. I love to cook. I love to eat. This is part of who I am. That's not going to change. My goal is to find a healthy balance that lets me eat foods I love while maintaining my weight loss. So I might not be exactly where I want to be yet in my journey, but I am happy that my friend recognized that my strategy does not involve eating like a bird or giving up the foods I love the most. I hope this is a recipe for long-term success.