Thank you yet again. I haven't even started and, as was my experience last time, already this forum has given me a ton of answers and support. I am so glad this place exists in cyberspace!
Water used to be a real hard thing for me - I hated it, absolutely hated it. Couldn't stand it. Would rather die of thirst than drink it. But that's one hurdle finally gone. I transitioned at first (can't even remember if I was on a diet or not when I did this) to carbonated flavored water, then just flavored water, and finally just water. I really don't remember why I did that, but I'm glad I did because at least that's one hurdle I won't have to jump with this plan.
I like the idea of a soda a day as a treat, but I don't think I'll keep it in the house anyway because I doubt I could have just one at this point. I can drink 6 or more in a day right now. I did finally get myself from regular to diet a few years ago (I must have been on some sort of health kick or something with my drinks) but I can still really guzzle it down. So I think I should stay away for now. I am relieved that Crystal Light is pretty much OK - I think I may get some of the packets you mix right in your bottled water and make that my "treat." I need some sort of backup plan for if I suddenly want to bail on this, so that's what those packets will be for me. A treat that's not really a bad treat, you know?
I will admit that I'm kind of packing in all the forbidden foods right now. All my favorites - I won't mention them in case I spark a tempation for someone.
And yet at the same time I keep wishing I had my shakes so I could get started already! I know I could be making better choices in the meantime, but somehow my mind won't go there yet. One last hurrah and all that, even though I know it's silly and will probably only put on a few more pounds I need to remove. But there you have it, silly or not - and at least I know what I'm doing with each bite. I'm thinking about it, even though I'm doing it anyway.
I really, really hope my delivery gets here soon. I have this whole week off of work and the parties are all done after tomorrow, so I wanted to have a few days to be on the program without any hassles, so I can relax if it's leaving me tired and have my husband (who also has the week off) here for support and to keep me honest in the first days. As it gets closer to starting I'm getting more nervous. I was very optimistic that it would be smooth sailing, I'd love every minute of it and never be tempted by food again - ha ha. Now with every fattening bite of something I wonder if I'll miss it, and if I can resist in the future.
I've made a mini-goal of getting through the month of January without going off plan for any reason or special event, and maybe not even to weigh myself in that month. I have scale issues, too, where if I do have a little cheat and then weigh myself the next day and still lost, or didn't gain, then I think that little cheat wasn't really a cheat after all and I do it again and again until suddenly I've gained 5 pounds seemingly overnight. From what I've been reading, once you're on program for a while your body tells you if you've gone off by making you feel sick and miserable - so it seems like I can rely on that feeling rather than the scale to know if I'm being honest. But then, maybe I won't be able to resist the scale, either.
So, the day after my order comes (here I go again, have to start in the morning, not the middle of the day, you know) I'll weigh, take my measurements, and dive in. Full fast for no more than three days unless it's killing me, then I'll add the L&G. And I've also read that due to circumstances, some people have occasional full fast days where they just have an extra supplement, so I'll have to remember that, too. Last time if I missed a supplement or my L&G, I figured I blew it and went completely off plan for the rest of the day. I must must MUST have alternatives already in place for myself. I am all about rules and routines and I drive myself (and others) crazy with them - but I know mentally I have to be prepared for every slip-up so if/when it happens, I have a game plan in place without wrecking all my progress.
Well, I'm going to go re-post this in my journal since that's what it turned into - a bit of a ramble/rant - Merry Christmas everyone!