“Do not reward yourself with food. You are not a dog.” – Unknown

I don’t know who said that, but they were a genius. Children are rewarded with some sort of treat when they exhibit positive behavior or reach some sort of goal. As adults we continue this behavior by rewarding ourselves whenever something good happens to us. While I see nothing wrong with this practice I must make clear that rewarding ourselves with food when trying to lose weight is like an alcoholic rewarding themselves with a shot of whiskey for reaching 10 days of sobriety! I am unconsciously setting myself up to fail!

I have been reflecting on my past when it comes to weight loss trials and tribulations (years to be exact) and noticed something very important about myself: I’m a self-saboteur. There it is! It’s out! I have this horrible habit of throwing a wrench into my weight loss plans by rewarding myself with the very thing that got me here to begin with. Now I know on Weight Watchers I can eat anything I wish just as long as I track it. My issue is I choose my “trigger foods.” Trigger foods, for those of who that don’t know, are those annoying, delicious, sugary, fatty foods that taste so good but trigger that little area in my brain that tells me not to stop at just one bite and then leaves me in a mental state of anguish and guilt. Whenever I lose a pound or two (which sometimes takes about 2 weeks to lose) I suddenly have this overwhelming need to congratulate myself with something covered in chocolate or peanut butter. A simple peanut butter cup can turn into three or four. A Snickers Mini multiplies into five or six. One or two Swedish Fish becomes the entire bag! You get my point.

I call this behavior self-sabotage because I am the one throwing the wrench. I know what my trigger foods are but the little girl in me says “I’ve lost 2lbs and I deserve a piece of chocolate!” Before I know it that 2lbs that took so long for me to lose is back on within days. See? Self-sabotage. So instead of food as a reward I have decided on other ways to celebrate. Whenever I lose 2lbs, I will reward myself with a download on my iPod. Whenever I lose 5lbs, I will reward myself with a new CD or book. When I reach my 10% goal I will reward myself with a vintage dress. And when I reach my goal weight, maybe a new wardrobe! But one thing I do know, food will not be the prize!

Liz