Developing a Plan B ... and a Plan C ...

"A light supper, a good night's sleep and a fine morning have often made a hero of the same man, who, by indigestion, a restless night and a rainy morning would have proved a coward." - Lord Chesterfield, diplomat

So this quote and an article I read yesterday about developing a "Plan B" seemed like a good prompt for me to make sure I'm organized about the next stage of the diet. I've decided that one week on the "fast break" stage was good for me. I'm now in the habit of journaling my food everyday, drinking water and doing my cardio. Tomorrow will begin Stage 2 - Healthy Diet Habits.

In order to do this successfully though, I need to make sure I have back up plans to deal with barriers and triggers in three main areas - food, sleep and exercise. I've already identified the weakest area for my food consumption - evenings and alcohol. My strategies are:

• FOOD/ALCOHOL
  Plan A: One glass of wine, after dinner, after 8pm.
  Plan B: To combat the desire for more wine, I'm keeping other yummy drinks on hand - died Sunkist, diet pink lemonade mix and hot teas.
  Plan C: If I do overindulge, I will make sure I go to bed with a full water bottle next to me and drink as much water as possible. I'll also have single-servings of healthy snacks around if I start craving stuff.
• SLEEP
  Plan A: Get at least 7 hours of sleep each night, no more than 8.
  Plan B: If I wake up in the night for more than 15 minutes, I'll go get a glass of hot tea and read for a few minutes before heading back up to bed. I won't adjust the alarm clock.
  Plan C: If that doesn't work, I'll grab the iPhone for the relaxation mp3 and adjust the alarm clock by 30-60 minutes.
  
• EXERCISE
  Plan A: Run every other day with the C25K program. Keep the relevant podcasts on the iPod shuffle. Lift on the days I don't run, using the Body Sculpting Bible Express workout for 6 weeks. Walk the dogs for 15 minutes on days I don't run.
  Plan B: If I can't run for some reason (weather, don't feel like it, etc.), do 20 minutes of work out videos in the living room. If I don't lift, do a yoga video. Take the dogs of a quick walk down the street and back.
  Plan C: At the worst, do the 10 minute yoga warm-up video.

So I think I have all the tools in place for my various plans. I need to move the videos over to the shelves in the room where I keep my lap top, make sure that the relaxation mp3s are on the iPhone and make sure that I don't run out of healthy food & drink options. Tonight I will eat a "light supper," ensure "a good night's sleep" and plan so that, no matter what, tomorrow is "a fine morning" so that I can start Stage 2 a "hero!"