(Hopefully) Helpful Tips from a Yo-Yo Dieter

I am -15 pounds sexier than I was a month ago. And the thing is, my first thought was, “Well, I reached 15 pounds, but I’ve still got another 35 to go.” I was… disappointed. Disappointed that I’ve spent the last 5 weeks tracking every bite I’ve eaten, exercising 5x per week, and I’m still at the beginning stages of this journey. And then, I changed that. I reminded myself that the exercise and dieting is paying off – I feel better, my clothes fit better, I look better! All good things. Which made me think about how important and vital it is to be both psychologically AND physiologically prepared for this journey. With absolutely no arrogance or pretention or disillusionment into believing that I am some sort of fitness guru (I’ve still got 35 lbs to go, after all!), here are some tips to real success for us “real girl” yo-yo dieters (disclaimer: this is primarily written as a reminder for myself).

1)      YOU DO HAVE WILLPOWER. I’ve always kinda believed that “willpower” is one of those things that you’re either born with or not born with – not unlike those blessed with Cleopatra-like eyelashes. I’ve always been envious of both groups. I’m only just starting to come to terms that I can’t make my eyelashes magically grow to Kardashian lengths. BUT – I have realized that I, yes I, Rachal Jenson, yo-yo dieter extraordinaire, do have willpower. Willpower, my friends, is like a muscle. The more you exercise it, the stronger it gets. Just like once upon a time, I struggled at doing 10 girly pushups, I’ve strengthened my lats and delts and now I can pound out 15 pushups (still breaking a sweat, mind you – but dammit, I can do them!). And, once upon a time, I heard every piece of bread/cake/French fry calling my name – and don’t get me wrong, they still call my name. But I flex my willpower muscle, and I resist (almost all the time).

2)      CELEBRATE EVERY ACHIEVEMENT. This is a hard one. It really is. It sounds easy, but it’s not. Raise your hand if you’ve ever said to yourself, “I’ll feel confident when I lose __ pounds” or “I’ll celebrate when I reach __ pounds.” Raise your hand – you know you’ve done that. Okay, well I’ve done that. I do that all the time. But here’s the problem – when you do that, you set yourself up for failure, because every time you weigh yourself and you discover that you’re not at your final end goal, you feel discouraged. You feel like quitting. You think, “I’ll never make it, so what’s the point?” Rethink that statement. Seriously – rethink it. Cliché as it may be, everything we do that is worthwhile is hard. And it takes hard work. If we celebrate only when we’ve reached the end, and don’t take time to “stop and smell the roses” along the way, we will be fraught with disappointment and heartache. Will I love myself more when I get my JD? Absolutely not. Do I celebrate every A? Of course!! The principle applies to weight loss too. We can’t wait until the end to congratulate ourselves and beam with pride – celebrate your successes. Every time you grab a piece of fruit instead of a scoop of Haagen-Dazs; when you up the resistance on your elliptical; when you do sit-ups while watching TV. Whatever it is, note it and be proud of yourself for making the right decisions. Because it is a series of these good decision that will bring you your ultimate success.

3)      SPLURGE SOMETIMES. Here’s a common situation: You’ve been good all week, heck, all month, and you go out to dinner. The “healthy” thing on the menu just doesn’t sound anywhere near as tasty as the cream-covered goodness that the person sitting across from you is about to order. You cave. You order the cream-covered goodness…  and gosh darn it, a side of butter smothered potatoes, too. And the cheese filled puff pastry thing. And the fried chocolate moussey buttery thing for dessert. It tastes so good.  Until you go home, realize you just consumed 5,000 calories, and feel like total crap. Feel like you should give up because, “Hey, I’ve blown it anyway.” If I can be so presumptuous, let me tell you something: One meal does not a diet break. Yes, it was a huge meal. Yes, it was incredibly indulgent and delicious and full of butter and carbs and cream. Did you enjoy it? Good for you! That meal is over, move on. You’ve had your slice of cake – leave the rest of the cake for another time. Don’t wallow in the guilt. Thank God that you have the opportunity to splurge, savor the taste, and make a dinner reservation a few weeks from that date to enjoy creamy, buttery foods again. One unhealthy meal does not a diet break.

4)      LOVE WHO YOU ARE TODAY. Okay, that sounds lame. But I totally mean it. One of the best compliments I ever got was, “No matter where you are or what you’re wearing, you always look confident.” And the reason is, I think, I do try to be happy with who I am today. Not that I couldn’t be better – if I could immediately lose the next 35 pounds (okay, 40), grow 6 more inches of hair, have perma-blonde highlights, immediately graduate and pass the bar, all while rocking a 4-carat wedding ring while perusing dream homes with my realtor and wearing a DVF wrap dress and 4” Jimmy Choos that never hurt my feet… I would. But that isn’t me. My feet hurt after wearing 4” heels too long, I have 35 (okay, 40!) pounds to go, I’m getting dark roots in my hair, and I’m pretty darn scared of graduating and taking the bar. Here’s what I DO have: 5 successful semesters of law school under my belt, a one-of-a-kind bohemian glam (well I think it’s one-of-a-kind anyway!!) style, shiny hair, one big cute dimple, and an awesome family and friends who love me… even when I wear weird things and even though I have 35 40 pounds to go. And those things make me love myself, and I know that it’s okay, but not preferable, that I’m not at my goal weight yet. I am who I am, and I like it. No, scratch that. I LOVE it.

And with that, I return to my Progresso Lite Chicken Noodle Soup before getting my booty kicked at the gym today. Yes, I will be congratulating myself on those things. Go Rachal.