What can you do to feel good about yourself right now?

Monster2

New member
I've noticed a lot of posts that ask about how to deal with low self-esteem or low confidence in them.
Personally, I think this can be a big hindrance to weight loss, since many people eat for comfort. Here's a few suggestions that I can think of.
I'm going to try to keep my ideas easy to do, so you'll actually want to do them. (taking on big projects when you're down usually doesn't work too well)
1) Go shopping! check out a mall or shopping area that you haven't been to in a while. Not only is this is a fun thing to do for most people, but walking will also give you a bit of exercise, and this pretty much always makes me fell better. (I know most of you guys out there enjoy a visit to a hardware store!)
2) Take a walk... especially with a dog. You just can't control a dog's enthusiasm on a walk, and it's usually contagious. But taking a walk by yourself will get your blood going and you'll get to enjoy and appreciate sights that you don't always have an opportunity to do.
3) Listen to music! Hopefully not death metal though. Most everyone has a few favorite songs that make them feel better. Get out your ipod, CD collection, or just look at youtube.
4) Cook a meal (especially a healthy one) OR prepare food for the week! You'll have a feeling of accomplishment when you're done. When I need to, I sometimes cook a pot of chili or pasta, and separate it into containers that will give me lunch for a week or two. Now, you won't have to worry about it later.
5) Remember... a hobby? Did you ever play a musical instrument or get into wookworking, or just read or knit or scrapbook or paint whatever... I'll bet you've got that stuff lying around somewhere right now. Go for it. you'll spend some quality time with yourself, and you'll have done something.
6) Do a chore. Do a little housework, for you, because YOU deserve a clean and organized house! If you plan a short, and I mean very short project... like cleaning up your piled up dishes, or cleaning a bathroom. Or a load of laundry. Not only will you feel good about having done it, you'll be in a better environment that you made for yourself.
7) Go to a movie theater! Especially if you have a second run movie theater nearby. It's cheap, you'll get out of the house for a while, and hopefully you won't have selected a depressing movie! ;)
8) I almost forgot... in the spring, summer and fall.... do a some yard work. Being outside usually puts me a good, and getting rid of weeds, and cleaning up the flower beds (mostly bushes, though) always puts me in a good mood. Mowing the lawn might be a bit much when you're down, but... I'm glad when it's over!
I know there's a bunch of other ideas out there... keep them coming.
 
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One of the things I've been doing is to try to make my food interesting within the diet, and to add things that aren't going to blow the diet but feel like treats. For example, breakfast this morning was porridge (aka oatmeal) made with milk (rather than water, which is a calorie saver), with blueberries mixed through :drool5:. Something I would not have allowed myself under my old regime. (the way I made it- with 0.1% fat milk- 343 calories, 19g protein, 55g carbs, 4g fat) Another one is a dessert- low fat Greek yoghurt (I used about a third of a 500g pot, which I round up to 170g), 80g of berries, and a dessertspoon of yoghurt (just over 250 cal, don't have the other stats to hand). In general I'm allowing myself things on this diet that I wouldn't normally have allowed myself (because of expense/ their exotic nature- other examples include regularly having plums, kiwifruit, and mangoes).

I know rewarding yourself with food is part of the problem that a lot of us (including me) are trying to avoid, but I think keeping food interesting is one of the things that keeps me feeling good about my diet, and it is a way of feeling better about myself as well. That I'm really enjoying something that's so good for me.

Edit to add: Another thing I've done to feel good about myself is got a (way, way, way) overdue haircut. I spent more than I would've liked to, but it was a treat for me as a reward for getting started with the weight loss. My boyfriend's also more inclined to give me backrubs after I've been to the gym, and that makes me feel good too.
 
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Yeah.... taking a long hot shower or bath, and then cleaning yourself up nicely with a good shave, or makeup (whichever you prefer.. hehe) and putting on nice clothes can really make a difference in how you feel also. (The clothes make the man)
 
gawddddddd. It takes so long to open this page....

Anyhow, Amy i am with you on your approach to food. Cooking healthy meals you enjoy, treating yourself with something that might be a bit more pricey but which is healthy and will improve the flavour of your food are good things too. For me though I love an apple or a pear just as much in the morning. I also prefer my porridge made with water and putting the cold stuff on top. That's one thing i don't change for weight loss reasons. lol.

But for me, these days the best thing to keep my spirits up and feeling good about me is to do my garden chores. (any chores actually). Not doing them makes me feel quite bad about myself because this is part of an important project. So today i'm going out there to water all my thirsty plants. It will take about two hours i guess. There's nothing like getting the hard stuff done for making you feel good about yourself. Whatever it is.
 
Thank you monster. This thread got me going. I went straight out into the garden after posting and as a result felt better about myself than I've been feeling for a few days.
 
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