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| Zen garden; photo by Theresa |
I haven't been aware of an urge for sugar, but when I feed my give-me-beef-now hunger with the right foods, I am rewarded by weight loss.
Today I understand how this program works in a way that I didn't before, and this information came at a perfect time. I've been a year and a half on program and I have not touched sugar in all this time. Over the weekend I had an incredible dinner in Boston, and I indulged in two glasses of champagne and two bites of dessert. Remember, you are either on program or off; there is no middle position here. The good news I am not on a spiral down into sugar, sugar, sugar. I've also moved on. What's done is done.
In the refresh, a few nights later, I realized if I do this program straight through, don't stray, and I don't go into grey areas, I can reach my goal weight and be done with dieting. Once I reach my goal size, I can learn to maintain that size, by going up and down a few pounds within that size for the rest of my life. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel here. I am going to see this journey through. This is very exciting!
What about the rest of you? What's working for you this week? What's keeping you on your journey?
One and done. I like it. Wish I listened to it. Lol!
ReplyDeleteWhat's keeping me going? Some of you may laugh, and some may be shocked, etc.... But dh and I made a bet. Lol. It's working really really well. Especially on these hot, hot days. I have three kids(4,4,3). Do you know how hard it is not to lick their ice cream comes as its dripping all over the place?? Or to try something of theirs because they have offered it to us(and they now are questioning why we aren't trying their food lol). Honestly, it's not as bad as it could be to be honest.
So, it's Not a small bet. $100. He's on the program too. If we catch the other cheating, we have to pay up! And that includes my weekend away with a good friend-right in the heart of the North End of Boston!
It's good until his cousins wedding in two weeks. I'm at goal. I've been here. Now it's just to see if I can get a few more lbs off in the process and heck, maybe even another size!
But I definitely see the light at the end of the tunnel. I haven't done maintenance right at all. So I am currently debating if I should go to a refresher to do it the right way, or to stick with what's been working with me thus far(six months). Time will tell. I look forward to this wedding in two weeks!
Aloha Meaghan,
DeleteI love it! A little competition sounds like a good thing here, especially since it sounds like the two of you do it in a fun and positive way! Good luck to the both of you! I hope you have a blast at the wedding! If you're struggling with maintenance, I encourage you to go in for a refresh, so you can learn the new game: going up and down within your size. Learn this once and be done fighting with excess weight gain. As I understand it, at maintenance you gain and lose within your size and continue to do this to reprogram your brain to stay at the new size.
Congratulations with your success and thanks for sharing with us!
Hi Theresa, I went to a refresher last night. It was quite interesting...very different from past one, but i loved it. I have reached my goal, but not really following the maintenance program. Well, I am now!!! I finally understand the consequences that my small cheats have done to me. NO MORE!!!! I will not eat sugar, or get on the scale again. Now I know why!!! Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteThanks Susan. Yes, Julie has changed things up in her classes and everyone I've talked with who has been to a refresh is very excited. No scale. No sugar. Once and done!
DeleteYou keep up the good work too.
Theresa, I am so excited to read your post. I am scheduled for my first refresher on Tuesday afternoon with Julie. Today is day 65 for me and this was the best decision I EVER made. I have gone from a size 18/20 to a 14 & have lost a total of 28".
ReplyDeleteI had a couple of questions I was hoping you or others may be able to answer for me. At the refresher, can I change my goal? Is it possible to have Julie add exercise to my hypnosis? These probably sound like silly questions but I am so motivated & feel so much better both physically & mentally I want more from my body. I was really going crazy all week checking for new posts...I'm beyond happy that this one is about refreshers. Any information you could give me will be greatly appreciated!
Thank you for your commitment to this blog, you are what's giving me continued motivation!!
Yes, as twinglesmomma said, you can change your size. Many of us were not able to visualize our ideal size at our first session, so we picked a number. As we lose weight, we see a smaller size really is possible, so we change the number. You can ask Julie for help at this at any session.
DeleteMy friend went for a refresh this week and the woman sitting next to her is the size she wants to be, so she visualized that woman (during the meditation/hypnosis) with her head.
I too looked for someone who is my height and body type to help me visualize the size I want to be. When I went to Savers a few weeks ago, I found myself falling in love with a ton of clothes and realized, wait...I'm not a size 8 yet!
Yes-you can change your goal. I have! And, I had her add exercise at my first refresher. And now I workout 5-6 days a week. :)
ReplyDeleteYes! Exercise is essential to our process, as we lose weight, when we reach our goal, and for maintenance. I remember Julie telling us "if you don't exercise, it's going to take a long time to lose your weight," I started at the end of January 2011 and didn't start exercising until early October that year.
DeleteYou start exercise when you're ready, but once you start and you feel the difference in your body, it's hard not to continue. As twinglesmomma said, you can ask Julie to add exercise for you; but she does this for everyone in the summer anyhow. Last summer, I just wasn't ready for it yet. This summer, I'm doing a 6-week mini marathon at work with my peers. We challenge ourselves to run or walk, bike, and swim, to win a silver, bronze, or gold. I don't know that I'll do enough swimming to even earn a silver, but I'm aiming for a bronze and I'll see what happens.
It must have been refresher week because I also went to one and LOVE the way it was done. I've only been to one other and doing one on one is great but by the time she goes around the room, class is over. We had more people in this refresher than in my original class.
ReplyDeleteI have been on program for 5 months and not strayed. I look at food differently now. Things still look good but instantly I hear Julie telling us what it does once in the body, especially after this refresher. Also love the "once and done" motto. I've done everything under the sun and this is the easiest by far and although a little nervous I will be going to the beach for a week's vacation this year and know that I will be OK.
I love the new way Julie's refresh classes are presented too. It was so positive to hear from everyone who has not strayed from the program. I was so bummed that I couldn't raise my hand with them to acknowledged I am on program, but I was honest with myself and kept my hand down. You're either on or off, and I had a night where I was off.
DeleteIt was so inspiring to listen to so many success stories!
Enjoy your beach vacation. Let us know how it was when you get back.
The thing that freaked me out as vacation time comes closer is the "beach food", meaning hot dogs, ice cream and everything fried. Julie told me not to worry, they have wraps with everything you can eat contained inside, hot dogs, hamburgers and of course restaurants everywhere.
DeleteThings become blurry for me when it comes to deli meat, hot dogs, the more fatty meats. I used to have small amounts and then stopeed because I think it was too often. I don't focus on food like I used to but don't want to slow my weight loss because I have a long way to go. Making the best choices with what I have to pick from and not fretting about it is how I'm going to handle it.
Thanks for the words of encouragement and answers to my many questions I had at the beginning and even now.
I guess this week was refresher week! I went last night-and, as usual, it was very powerful, a perfect time for me to be there. I am on month 4 of eating potato, and in another couple of months, if I want to, I will add on more carbs, like popcorn-She stated the longer you go without the sugar, the more you "own" this program. I definitely "own" this program!!!!!!!!! Keep telling that sugar "NO" and she will be right there with you-Don't give in!!! And she will be right there with you. Awesome stuff!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeletePowerful indeed! There is something in her visual presentation that she does with her hands, as she reminds us to "keep telling that sugar NO", don't give in, that resonates with me.
DeleteJulie talks about the unspoken language she uses to teach us and this particular movement really speaks to me. It speaks to me in ways I cannot verbalize, but This is what I meant when I said I feel so Zen like. The movement of her left hand towards her chest (the mind telling us to eat sugar) and then the push back motion of her hand away from her chest (saying no to sugar), reminds me of a Thai Chi movement I learned in class many years ago.
All of these posts have really given me so much more incentive!! I LOVE this program!!! I am going for a refresh soon and wish so much it was tonight!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI have not strayed and have no desire!!!
I will be asking her for extra exersize as I am the worlds worst couch potato!! It is literally in my genes. My grandparents were sitters. I know it is the missing key. I have been exersizing in the pool, but need way more than that!!
Theresa I remember my first session when she asked about sizes and I was almost afraid to hope for a 10/12. Seemed way out of my league! At my refresh I knew I wanted and will get to an 8. I still believe that and it makes me so excited!! Only 4 more sizes to go. I can get into some 14's but still can't wear them in public. So I am not fully into a 14 yet until I can wear them into public!! LOL That hand motion you mentioned is one I remember also!!! I use it too without thinking when talking to others! It is powerful! When I am cooking or baking and the habit kicks in and the spoon heads or even thinks of heading to my mouth, I can tap it away as Julie does!
I want to OWN this program!!!
I now understand much clearer about wanting to reset my goal using other people as a visual as you have suggested. It has been nearly twelve years since I was able to wear a size fourteen that when Julie asked how much weight do you want to lose & what size do you want to be that I said a size fourteen & now I it clicks why. It's the last size that I could picture myself in. Now that I see that this can in fact become a reality I want that challenge!
ReplyDeleteWhat has amazed me the most with this program is how differently losing weight on this program is compared to Weight Watchers for instance. Looking back I realize I was losing muscle & not fat. With Julies program I can actually see that I have muscle & tone peeking through :D
Okay...I DID IT..I also went in to a refresh today..Because of my confused head..She basically told me that if I have tried to go down another size all this time (8mos..off and on) and haven't..IT AIN"T HAPPENIN! I am very toned! I am good..However, she did today's session just like the first 3..NO TALKING until after..She deeply hypnotized everyone again..Only 2 people were doing the program correctly.....As you have all mentioned she went over in detail the maintenance plan..I am now taking one more week to rid my body of sugar again..Then I am OFFICIALLY beginning maintenance!
ReplyDeleteI am curious as to how only 2 people were doing the program correctly. I am a "newbie" ( only 10 weeks in) and am being overly cautious as to why. Is it because the refresher class has so many people in it that have been on maintence for some time? This being the first refresher I have scheduled for Tuesday I'm still not sure what to expect though I can't wait for it. I have not strayed once since day one & thankfully have no desire to. I'm wondering if it becomes harder to follow the program being it's summer/vacation time? How often do you go to refreshers? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for the information.
DeleteHi Melissa!! If you are going to todays refresher I will be in your class!!
DeleteWho knows why people stray. I have been on this for 8 months, and have not strayed 1 time!!!! Don't worry about the others, just concentrate on you! I have no desire to stray. Why bother when this program works and works well!!! I LOVE the freedom of this program and do not feel deprived at all!
Just remember when you have a group- of people, you have all those different personalities, well, you are bound to find those that will treat this program different than we do! I feel like, if it ain't broke, DON'T FIX IT!!!!
Keep up the good work and maybe I will see you later!!!
Congratulations to everyone who's gone to the refreshers and are succeeding. I have not gone to one as of yet. It's almost 5 months for me and I have not strayed. Losing slowly, however, I am smaller than when I started. I'd like to swith gear a minute if I may. My husband went for a DOT (truckriver) physical today. After he finished the eye test portion of the exam, he went to put his glasses back on and the doctor said to wait a minute because he had to check his eyes to see if he was eating too much meat and dairy. He then held his head in his hands and looked deeply into his eyes and said that he had in fact been eating too much meat and dairy and that he should eat a lot more vegetables. Have you ever heard of such a thing? I know that they say the eyes are the windows to the soul, but is there something hidden in there that tells the doctor what kind of things you've been eating. Now, here is the takeaway from all this. My husband, who you would never really say looked overweight, did have that spare tire as most men get as they age. He is following Julie's program with me and the doctor blurted out his weight to him (which is one reason I do not go to the doctor anymore) and he has lost 35# in almost 5 months. As I mentioned before my husband was not grasping the fact that we will look a lot smaller than the actual number on the scale. In fact, I would say he looks about 10 - 15# lighter. He really could probably start the potato thing, but we'll see. Anyway, the funny thing about this whole situation is that the doctor also made my husband do a vertical jump. I don't exactly know what that test shows, but my husband was able to jump quite high and he'll be 63 next month. The doctor said that he never saw a man of his age be able to jump that high -- my husband just smiled and said -- it must be the meat and dairy... LOL!!!!
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