Learning self control

Most of you know that I love sweets, specifically chocolate sweets. Growing up I must have had a very high metabolism because I consumed quite a lot of ice cream and candy without really ever gaining a lot of weight.  For the past couple of years I started noticing some changes and realized that my metabolism must be slowing down. My weight would fluctuate but never so much that I felt compelled to curb my appetite for chocolate.

Well during my pregnancy I experienced something that I am sure a lot of pregnant woman do… freedom.  I freely ate whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted because hey I was eating for two.  This lack of self control was the main ingredient to my pregnancy weight gain of 45 pounds.  Throughout my life I have struggled with the concept of a healthy body image and post delivery was no different.  I kept on saying, oh the weight will come off eventually, all the while indulging on my favorite chocolate of the week.  It finally hit me, 8 1/2 months after Lucas was born, that I needed to take charge and change my behavior.  It was then, that for the first time since Lucas was born, I had to go up a pants size.  I despised the way I looked in the mirror and cringed when I saw photos of me.

For the past 6 1/2 weeks I have been enrolled in weight watchers to help me learn self control and portion size.  There are good days and bad days but I can take pride in the fact that I have lost 15 pounds and I am down to pre-pregnancy weight.  I am extremely thankful for friends and family who are either doing weight watchers with me or are accountability partners with me.  I have more energy and am walking with more confidence these days.  More importantly though, I am learning self control.  I am learning that just because that bowl of ice cream tastes good, doesn’t mean that I can have it whenever I want.  For possibly the first time in my life, I am setting food limits and sticking to them.