It’s subtle—until it isn’t.

All the hard work slipping away so gradually that it went unnoticed…until it wasn’t.

Reality finally sets in when the delusion no longer works and the excuses no longer apply.

For me, it was when cheating on my diet finally caught up. I had surgery last fall. To ease the nausea from pain pills, I ate more toast or crackers. I added peanut butter…and then honey. Falling off the diet wagon quickened when I “rediscovered” Nutella. From there, it was a short trip to eating whatever I wanted…again.

Combine this with my forced break from the gym (doctor’s orders) and I was on the way to losing what I gained. Which is ironically funny, because my gain had come from losing.

Despite the play on words, the end result stared back at me from the scales. It was time to recommit to healthy eating and exercise. What started as just a couple of pounds had increased to 20 while I was not “watching.”

Subtle sneaks up on you when you are distracted…and not only by overeating. Other areas are just as sneaky. Consider gossip. You may intend to avoid participating, but before you know it, you are listening…then commenting. You have strayed ever so slowly into the trap.

It works the same for most every area of weakness. Victory over it can be achieved…but until that is done, you run the risk of falling away when distracted. One thing that helps me to remain focused is accountability. I have restarted with a trainer to make sure I work out and refocused on healthy eating.

The weight is coming off slower that it went on…but I am stronger that I was previously. And as long as I have reasonable goals and expectations…I will find success…again.