New Year Resolutions

One of the great things about Garden Lites is that it's Kosher (Look for details on what that entails in an upcoming GL Focus!) and one of the great things about working for a Kosher company is the extra vacation time! Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown (Shana Tova!) and thus kicks off my 4-day weekend. To most, that would seem like a great thing, but I am terrified. I do not know if I can survive 4 days of trusting myself to not eat my way through my apartment. If I just winged it and went in with high hopes I know I would fail, so I have put together a list of reminders for myself.

• If Hoda and Kathy Lee are on, you should have eaten breakfast by now.
• You may think "It's okay, I'm on vacation!" and want to go to the bagel store around the corner but resist. Not worth it.
• If a cooking show comes on TV, turn the station. Or better yet, pop in a yoga video! Sitting and watching food is just mean.
• Get out to the local park once a day. Don't wear a watch, just keep walking until you start to feel tired from walking. Then walk a little more.
• If you feel like there's only bad food choices for you in the fridge/cupboards - make a list. Really think about what would help you to stay on track. Then go grocery shopping, but stick to your list.
• By eating several small meals it'll save you from binging on fatty snacks and raiding your boyfriend's ice cream stash.
• If you find yourself standing at the fridge, ask yourself "Am I really hungry? Or am I bored?" If you're bored (which I know you are) then leave the house and don't come back until you're no longer bored.
• Only go out to eat once (if at all). Challenge yourself to let those leftovers last 2+ meals.
• Drink 2 water bottles a day.
• Stop eating by 8pm. If you get hungry after that, have some water.
• Don't weigh yourself. Losing a pound may encourage you to treat yourself... it's better for you not to know until Monday.

It might seem like a lot, but it's good for me to acknowledge my weak points and to have ideas on how to improve myself. I find a lot of times I realize that what I am about to do is bad (turn off my alarm instead of getting up to exercise, have a piece of cake, eat an entire sleeve of Ritz crackers) but I make some excuse to justify my actions. "I deserve it" should be banned from my vernacular.

My personal belief is if you acknowledge something in your life should improve and you let it continue to be sub-par, then that's a reflection on how you value yourself. I owe it to myself to find my willpower. After all, I deserve it.