June 13: RFL Strategy

I've had to face one very obvious fact this week, taking my RFL plan into the real world.  The game is being played every day out in the great wide world.  If I want to reach my goals I need a strategy to help me win that game.

With anything in life, putting a strategy in place is always the best plan.  If you know your weaknesses, and you know what to expect, you can put together a strategy to help get you through it.  Here are the ones I am using to help me get through that gauntlet of food, otherwise known as the workplace.

1.)  I bring my lunch.  Without fail, every single day, I bring my lunch and a couple of snacks that are on my plan.  There is way too much temptation to be caught without food.

2.) I distract myself.  During the second break of the day, I take a brisk walk around the building instead of sitting in the lunchroom watching everyone eat.  If the weather is bad, I always have a book in my purse that I can read.

3.) I bring something similar to the temptation at hand.  My friend Lisa recommended this simple plan that was so obvious I can't believe it had to be recommended.  As per her idea, on the days they have barbecues, I bring a turkey burger from home, along with all my fave burger toppings, and eat it with a fork.

4.)  I bring the tastiest food I can.  If I bring a food in my lunch that is less than appetizing, it makes it that much harder to resist the yummier smells all around me.

5.) I escape if I have to.  I had one day last week where I just couldn't take it and I ate lunch in my car.  I had missed the concept of Idea #4 and brought plain tuna on a barbecue day. 

6.)  When all else fails, I think about my goals.  There are just days when all I want to do is eat what everyone else was eating.  On those days, I try really hard to just think about where I have come from and where I want to go. 

All of these strategies are working so far.  One day, they may not work.  I may just say, to heck with it and go off plan.  And when that happens, I need to remember the most important strategy of all: get back on plan the very next meal.

What are the challenges that you face?  What tempts you to go off your plan?  Write a list and then come up with some strategies of your own.  There are no true obstacles, only excuses.

I had a lot more I wanted to write about this weekend.  Due to an unfortunate flood in my basement I haven't had a whole lot of time this weekend.  But I felt like these strategies were really important, so at least I got these thoughts posted.  Weekends should be three days!