Friend of Julie: Sacrifice

Continuing the conversation about key concepts, from my post about Compromise, here are responses from my survey about what the concept of sacrifice means. These personal stories exemplify the power behind sacrifice.

image source: Evil Mad Scientist

I was whining to myself about how others can "cheat" and seem to be doing fine: Why am I sacrificing all of that good yummy evil food, while others are enjoying it? (Well, I don't know if they are enjoying it) All of this effort when others seem to be able to have stuff off-program, but are able to do "3 hard days" and be fine! But, I am an addict. And I will sacrifice temptation.

For Julie to say up front that this was going to take SACRIFICE, that it was normal to feel cravings, and that we are going to suffer, was such an incredible relief. The biggest thing I have finally learned, not just intellectually--but in my gut, is that I can feel deprived and survive it, that I can sacrifice and be just fine. It just depends on what you want and need most. There is nothing wrong with a little suffering. I sometimes think of Olympic athletes and what they go through to get where they are. They give up a lot! I'm in training too. In training for a much better life for myself and those I love. And for that I have to give some things up. I happen to be addicted to them but they are really, really trivial.

The "sacrifice" concept has probably been the most powerful for me, and has extended to other areas of my life. In the past I always felt that someday the addictive hold of food would leave me and THEN I would be able to eat properly. All of the ads, the whole American lie that you could "eat everything you want and lose loads of weight", that you could do this and "never feel deprived" just made me feel that there was something deeply flawed about me, because I couldn't eat everything I wanted without becoming a blimp and getting sick and because going against my addictions does indeed make me feel deprived.

I've been sacrificing for 3 weeks now! Yesterday was my last 'Birthday' luncheon. I had a naked bacon cheeseburger with a side of coleslaw, water, and coffee. Friday night I celebrated with friends and had Chinese takeout and a vodka with club soda. The pay off? The weight is coming off. People have started to comment about it and I feel it. Just this morning I tried on a skirt with tags attached, which I probably bought a year ago and was unable to wear because it was too tight. Guess what? I am wearing it tomorrow. I just have to remember to cut off those tags! Oh yeah! I'm pretty darn happy!!!!

For me, sacrifice leads to compromise. I was on a vacation in CO in January and we were vacationing with friends who love to eat, and I mean EAT! Appetizers, breads, salads, entrees, desserts, after dinner drinks. In the past I ate right along with them, hence my before picture. Drinking would begin at our lunch break in the lodge and continue through the night. This time, I drank seltzer water or unsweetened iced tea during our lunch breaks. At dinner, there was no pre-meal eating. I made sacrifices to not eat along with everyone else and instead stayed on program. I watched everyone else eat the warm buttery bread. When dinner came, I savored each bite of my meal and I knew in the end I was not going to feel deprived. Nor stuffed or ashamed. For dessert I treated myself with a nice hot latte with whole milk. Never once did I feel deprived. I actually enjoyed watching others eat their desserts. For me, I see their enjoyment and I'm not gaining any weight from it. I think my success on this program is my example to others, that even on vacation--this is a lifestyle that's fits anywhere.

We all know the sacrifice we have to make to reach our goal of shedding the excess weight and getting healthy. We need to change the way we eat, plain and simple.

The funny thing is that I totally forgot to point out what my ‘sacrifice’ was during all these different celebrations. In short: I stuck with the plan the whole time. I did not have a sip of the fruity daiquiris my girlfriends so enjoyed, nor did I participated in eating the General Tso’s Chicken or those creamy desserts. Well, if you want to call that sacrifice... I didn’t suffer, believe me. I had a great time and I ate until I was full, which is a big part of this plan I really enjoy.

Never let anything sweet touch your lips.

These stories are inspirational examples that resonate with me, which is why I'm posting them to my blog, so I can come back to read them again.

How about you? What sacrifices do you make for yourself to support staying on program or maintenance?

Related Posts:

• Compromise
• Example