Day 4

My favorite day, more or less. This is the day where you build your confidence by giving yourself credit. The first time I went through the Beck program, it was in a group facilitated by my Life Coach, Kim Avery (www.LifeCoachingForChristianWomen.com), and I loved the accountability. That's when I fell in love with Day 4 -- Giving Yourself Credit.

Since much of the Beck program revolves around writing and reading 3X5 cards, I decided to make one for giving myself credit -- and I called it my Credit Card. I just think it's cool to have a Credit Card that I can use as much as I want and it's a GOOD THING!

Let's talk about the whole "give yourself credit" thing. At first it was hard because I didn't feel like I had done anything to deserve any credit. And I didn't like the whole idea of patting myself on the back, either. It almost seemed childish -- like getting stars. And then I thought about the high school students I taught who would do almost anything to get those stinkin' stars... Hmmm.

So I started talking to myself. "Good job!" "Nice one! I like the way you ignored that tasty looking sample." "I really WOULD rather be thin than eat that cookie. Really!" And you know what? It felt good. Then I started writing those little triumphs down, and that felt good, too.

What I discovered is that I like to look back over those little victories - makes me feel in control. And encourages me that I can do it again.

So, here's what I came up with... I take an index card and write "Credit Card" at the top, and then I start filling it up. Not in list form, but one thing right after the last one. And when I get the credit card filled up, I can trade it in on a treat. For me, that's usually something geeky.

Here are some of my credits: I wrote my advantage card ~ I read my advantage card ~ I used less creamer ~ I stopped eating when I was full and left food on my plate ~ I chose water over Diet Dew ~ I didn't take the sample of yummy stuff at Publix ~ I passed up the home made banana bread at church ~ I ate chili instead of a burger ~ I checked the stats before I went out to eat...

And speaking of going out to eat, I'm going to lunch at Ruby Tuesday's tomorrow after our first Bible Study class (www.LifeRenewalMinistries.com) and I just looked their menu up on DWLZ. Oh my goodness! The calories and fat grams are off the charts!!! If you know anything about Weight Watchers points... I get 22. Their colossal burger ties their Fresh Chicken & Broccoli Pasta at 49.5 points! That's crazy!!! The chicken has 2061 calories and 128 fat grams! I might just have a diet coke and some vegies.

Wow. I think all those calories are scary.