Weight Loss Standstill...Old habits rearing ugly head

I have been feeling very discouraged and disgusted with myself lately. I have been at a weight loss standstill for months. I feel large in part to my giving in to old habits of eating a cookie here and there. My worst habit is crackers..I want to snack on them all the time. Sure I choose the good kind with whole grains but, I know that I must cut them down. I deal with a great deal of pain due to fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis and that increases my depression. So here comes food as my comfort... the story of my life. I guess the psychological factor will always be there it is just learning to recognize and slowly get myself back on track. I am diligent with getting in my protein and eat mostly salads but, the snacking in between I think is my downfall. Due to my health exercise is next to impossible. I want to get started in a water exercise program soon...that seems to be the only kind of beneficial exercise for my condition. I have noticed lately my stomach makes more noises than usual and that has been a concern for me also. Maybe it is telling me you better slow down girl...lol Am I the only one that is or has experienced this backsliding behavior? If not, what if anything did you do that helped you to regain your focus and ways to encourage yourself ? Any experiences or suggestions are welcomed. I feel like I have come so far and I refuse to allow myself to continue in this pattern. ...but, I have to admit I really feel weak right now.

It is so easy to see those old ways of life rising up in front of you. I am sorry you are struggling with this. When I start to lose my focus and notice I am grazing, or eating lots of carbs, there are a couple of things that I do to help get back on track. The first is to get motivated, which usually just takes me looking at my "before" picture and remind myself that I COULD go back there if I did not get my head straight. The next thing that I always start with is something my RD recommended and that is to start a food journal. She says to do it a couple of days a week, but I usually don't unless I feel like I might be slipping. I hop back on Fitday, and journal everything that I ate, drank, or did, for 3-4 days. It is very eye-openning. For example, I at 2100 calories yesterday, where I only was at 1400 the two days before. Makes me really look at how easy it is to pack in an extra 700 calories and not realize it. Good luck getting back on track, and I hope you get some relief from the FM.

Hey Karen - first off let me tell you that your pictures on your profile looks great and 88 lbs is a lot to lose! So, don't be so hard on yourself. If I were you I'd try to get back to the basics. Drink a ton of water and eat protein first and when you want to eat those crackers or cookies, maybe allow yourself a couple of cookies a week and maybe 10 crackers a day? I'll eat a few unhealthy snacks here and there as well, but I make sure and not go overboard and then I'll drink a lot of water or tea and the craving junk food usually goes away. Bel had some good ideas, maybe post a pic of your before picture on your fridge? You can do this and we are here for you. I hope you feel better.