Ho, ho, ho or no, no, no?

I’m feeling a bit weary of the dieting.  I’m guessing you are too: the world of dieting blogland is oh so quiet.  

I seem to have fallen into one of those deep crevices of dieting woes that is hard to clamber out of.  I had hit a 2st 2lbs loss just before our trip to Devon.  Then I put on 4.5lbs.  Then I put on another ¼ lb.  And then I couldn’t get under that.  On a starve day I can lose 2lbs but a normal diet day will lead to me putting on 1.5lbs.  Now, someone of a relentlessly Pollyanna persuasion would say that this is still a net loss of ½ lb but actually, the reality is that I’m still over 2lbs over my 2stone loss – and over 4lbs over pre-Devon.  And WAY above where I a) feel less frantic and repulsive and b) where I need to be.

There are other nasties in the mix which probably aren’t helping.  I’ve got very bad at not drinking anything during the day again – that may impact.  And I’m just finishing my period.  I certainly feel more bloated than normal. 

But it’s quite hard to keep motivated when you’re not seeing much return on investment.  I think some people use a lack of success to fortify their resolve: for me, I tend to think ‘oh sod it, what’s the point of denying myself if it’s not achieving anything’.  I had wanted to get down to the next stone bracket before Christmas but with less than 5 weeks to go, I think that just over 10lbs is unlikely.  Especially as there will be a few more social occasions in the diary than my usual semi-hermit existence.  So I’m reluctantly revising my target to below my 2stone off (again) -  I’d like to get a bit of a buffer against festive over-consumption so I don’t end up back up here again.  I’m also going to be super-careful where I can over the ensuing weeks to try and achieve this: I’m still going to do my 2 starve days a week, hard-core dieting the other week days and dieting with slightly less vigilance at the weekend but accepting that the odd weekday will be more indulgent than usual, minimising that indulgence as much as possible and trying to offset on those days by particularly frugal with other meals.

This weekend we’re going out to dinner on Saturday.  This kind of encapsulates what I most hate about dieting.  Okay, the second thing I hate most: number one being the dieting with no appreciable results thing.  But I have the familiar pull between pleasure and dread – I love the idea of going out to dinner with my lovely husband, but I fear that I will pay for it, weight-wise.  It spoils the pleasure.  I will of course be mindful in anticipation with as frugal a breakfast and lunch as I can manage but that doesn't reduce the nagging fear.  Or indeed the weight.

Anyway, if there’s anyone still reading this, how are you doing?  How do you manage Christmas and other special occasions – both physically and psychologically?