Why am I having such a hard time with GM?

[bertakim]

Most days I start out ok, but by the end of that day I have gone MM. Why am I having such a hard time with GM?

Thanks,in advance, for your suggestions. Oh, I am in constant pain (although the levels are way down from cold weather season) and use food for consolation which is a bad habit. I'm working too hard on my Tapping to not make headway because of eating wrong.

HHHHHHHHHHHHEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLPPPPPPPPPPPPP, please.

Blessings,
Kim

P.S. Carbs instead of sugar are my problems. Give me p-chips, crackers and I'm peachy. Sugars I can live without... what can I do to help?




kimhall@katewwdb.com
TheHallsEnterprises.wwdb.biz

2bfitagain

[sh99x]

I think it really is hard. And I don't do it--restricting food doesn't work for me in the long run, but I have done it for a period of time (3 months straight).

The key for me was planning--planning out every meal and snack, and making sure I had GM food available, and at least some variety and choice. Then it wasn't so hard to turn down any stray MM food that wandered into my path.

Sarah

[laughingW]

I was a starch junkie too.

"don't invite the enemy to the table" - don't have refined white things in the house. Then on MM days you can go out and get a single serving if you want.

For every MM thing you end up eating on a GM day, find something else. Potato chips can go to baked potatoes. Crackers can go to whole grain chips. It won't be the same, of course, but you have another day to look forward to.

I ended up liking the way I felt on GM days so much that I ended up dropping the refined whites, item by item, meal by meal, and love the way I feel now.

It does require planning to have the other things though. The whole rest of the world makes it easy to grab bad things.

[Heather73]

Hi Kim!

GM/MM is not supposed to be particularly difficult. The guidelines are very simple. Deceptively so, because we often are moving to it from very ridgid plans and feel lost without a bunch of rules to protect us from ourselves.

I tried GM/MM last winter and regained some of the weight I had lost over the previous summer with my low carb diet.

For me, I think the failure came not with the GM/MM plan so much as I was still approaching it with a 'dieters' mentality. For instance, if it was a GM day and I ended up eating a cookie or other 'forbidden' food, I would tailspin and figure the whole day was blown anyway so I would continue eating just whatever I wanted.

Learning to 'listen' for the body's satiety signal can be difficult as well. I mistakenly thought I would be able to eat 'any' GM food on GM days. But I am somewhat starch/carb sensitive and eating those foods several times a day seemed to keep me hungry. It wasn't that something man made had sneaked in, it was simply that those foods in those proportions don't like my body.

Only eating favorite MM foods every 2nd or 3rd day was like a prison sentence for me, not because it is impossible to do (on LC, I have gone weeks without those same foods and had no trouble), but because I was mentally rebelling against yet another dietary rule. I would binge on MM days.

After realizing that my biggest problem was not with my choice of diet, but with my attitude, I decided to go back to my modified low carb plan that has always worked for me (not as a 'diet' but as a lifestyle). As long as I don't start demanding perfection, I can live this way with plenty of good protein, non-starchy veggies, healthy fats and modest amounts of grain and fruit (the last two are foods I use sparingly, as on a GM/MM schedule) No food is forbidden, but I usually voluntarily eat less of the concentrated carbs like bread or sweets simply because I know if I do, I mess up my balance and will crave and feel crummy for several days afterward.

So, to make a long post even longer, you might first check for food sensitivity as you do GM/MM. It may be that an otherwise healthful food is setting off cravings for you. There is a lot of info on this site about gluten intolerance/celiac. That might be a good place to start if you tend to eat a lot of grain products. Or it could be dairy or another food that seems to be perfectly harmless. 'Natural' does not necessarily mean healthful, when it comes to individual tolerance. You may find that totally eliminating a certain food (or limiting that one to MM days) could solve your problem.

Or, perhaps like me, you are still stuck in the 'diet' mentality and need to break free before any plan will be helpful as a long term WOE. I do mean that in the kindest, most respectful way possible. I know that when I finally got over mourning the 'loss' of my favorite treats, I felt the freedom of being able to say 'no' and not regret having a taste. Or am now able to have a taste and not need to eat the entire recipe (usually;)) It has been several weeks now, and the winter weight I gained is finally coming back off.

Being human means we make mistakes. If you think GM/MM is for you, then dont give up! Tweak it wherever you think you might need to rather than tossing it and looking for something else. I had to learn the hard way that what I had before I found GM/MM is really what I needed to stick with--just with a more realistic and forgiving attitude than I had been displaying.

Sorry this is so long. Hopefully it may be of some small help.:)

~ A Happy Tapper! ~
I found the answer to my search for the 'perfect' diet http://www.trafford.com/4dcgi/view-item?item=9458

[WendyD]

Kim,

What if you start small. Try a GM brekkie for a week or 2 and move to GM snacks and move forward. If you do it all at once you may be over whelmed! Start with small changes that you can make habits and over 3 to 6 months you will be amazed at your progress. Be sure to reward yourself....for example: I was great at my GM snacks this month, so I'll go get that book I want to read. It's really hard to change life time habits all at once. You'll feel as if you failed. GO SLOW and go for the long haul.

YOU CAN DO IT!!! One step at a time.



Wendy

You can learn something from everyone you meet. Just listen...

[bertakim]

It's a hard frame of mind to break... feeling like I'm depriving myself. You all hit is on the head. Thank you.

Taking it slow and incorporating GM little at a time is a good way to start but for some reason I never thought of doing it that way... I guess I have an all or nothing mentality.

That is what is so great about these forums... you ladies are wonderful to offer suggestions and come along those of us who are struggling.

Thanks BUNCHES!!!
Kim

kimhall@katewwdb.com
TheHallsEnterprises.wwdb.biz

2bfitagain