The Skinny Rules

So a friend of mine recommended a book to me called the flat belly diet book and I had looked up some stuff from it the other day and started making a list of foods I should be eating and snacks to get to replace my horrible habit of eating processed sugary snacks. I went grocery shopping yesterday with the intention of buying better and then picking up said book from Fred Meyers to find that they didn't have it and all they had was the diabetic's version in hard cover for way more then I wanted to spend. So I sat and stared at the books for a while and a book caught my eye called "The Skinny Rules, The 101 Secrets Every Skinny Girl Knows" I opened it up and instantly fell in love with the style of the book and it's no nonsense approach on how to do things a skinny girl would and lose weight and feel better. First rule "Believe you can be skinny" well that is pretty straight forward and funnily enough I hadn't even thought about doing that! The first rule talks about changing your attitude, if you have a defeatist's attitude you're going to defeat yourself. You have to believe you can be skinny before you will be. When I start looking back the reason I stopped working out and eating good was because I wasn't seeing the results I wanted and my attitude wasn't the greatest around the time I gave up. What's funny though is since I gave up I've actually lost a couple pounds eating like crap and not exercising as I predicted. I haven't really been eating THAT bad but I haven't been watching what I eat as closely and definitely am not breaking my back working out like I was and I'm seeing more results. I wonder why that is? Skip to skinny rule number 16: Splurge every day, reason: it helps to curb your cravings, making you less likely to let your craving build up to an uncontrollable binge. I know this is me! To a T! Plus it says think of it this way, if someone tells you that you can't have something, it makes you want it even more right? So those people who deprive themselves and say they can't have it want it more! Even if you really didn't want it at all in the first place, the junk foods or things you aren't supposed to eat become more desirable. I also like the rules: Get in the driver's seat and call on a co-pilot. Take control of your life, weight and health and get someone to help you (one person or a full on car full lol) Add family members and friends to your car as your co-pilots and call on them when you are having a tough time staying motivated when trying to lose weight. This is where you guys come in, you've seen my alter ego Negator. She is a mean old lady and turns everything into drama and makes me give up. When you see Negator slip in I need you guys to give me encouraging words, even if it's "don't give up! you can do this! I believe in you!" you have no idea how much that helps me when I get down in the dumps. Today is a new start, I'm going to follow rule number 28 "Play the pounds away" instead of thinking of exercise as I'm working out, I'm going to think of it as playing. Kids don't go to a playground or run around outside and go ok I'm going to workout for 30 mins, they just play. So this morning the game plan is to take the younger two kids and put them in a stroller and go for a walk with Gavin riding his bike and just enjoy being outside. It's just a walk, for fun! Because if I think of it as Work then I won't enjoy it right? Here's hoping changing the way I think about things will help me even more. Wish me luck!