Rewarding Yourself

A recent article at Sparkpeople.com had me thinking about rewards.
Oftentimes, we go through weight loss as a means to punish ourselves, likely for gaining the weight in the first place so we don't think to reward ourselves for the hard work we have done to get where we are.
When I started my weight loss journey, I was looking at a 150 lb goal. I knew that if I kept that kind of goal in my mind, I was setting myself up to fail. I was needing to lose half of myself! How would I manage with such a high amount of weight to lose?! I kept my sight on smaller goals. First, I started with losing my first 5 lbs and then 10 lbs and then 25 lbs and then 10%. From there, I kept changing my goals accordingly. 50 lbs...75 lbs...100 lbs...no longer obese BMI.... At the moment, I am 2.6 lbs away from my next goal 125 lbs loss.
Up to this point, I haven't exactly been able to afford to give myself physical rewards. At 100 lbs lost, I did get my hair cut and I coloured it myself at home. And even though I haven't been rewarding myself with things I can buy, I am still rewarding myself. Sometimes without even realizing it. I started using facial cream in the morning and at night (the whole reason why I noticed I no longer had a double chin!) I started using makeup on a daily basis and have only missed a couple of days, where I didn't leave the house at all! LOL And chances are, because I am feeling so much better about myself, I am making steps to make myself look better. My self esteem is through the roof compared to where it was. I wear my clothes so differently now. Tighter, showing off my girlie curves! I may be a stay at home mom, but I certainly don't have to look like one!
I have started thinking in terms of when can I start doing that when thinking of a new sport or fitness activity to try. Tennis is the new one that my friend and I will be starting soon.
I will be getting a pedicure and manicure soon. I am giving myself a vacation this year. It may be only a couple of days away camping, but it is something I do enjoy doing! My final reward? A new tattoo signifying my transformation. The design is still in the works.

From the article:

Here’s how to set up a good rewards system:

* Choose some benchmarks and reward levels. You can also reward yourself for levels of consistency.
* Make the reward meaningful to you. As a reward, a new pair of shoes may not hold as much motivation as a simple night alone with a book. Then again, it might.
* Choose two or three options from the Reward Roster below or come up with a few reward options of your own. It doesn’t take much. Sometimes, the best rewards are those you can’t buy.
* A lot of small rewards, used for meeting smaller goals, are more effective than relying solely on the bigger rewards that require more work and more time.
* Don’t use food as a reward. Even good food. It’s just too much of a slippery slope. Don’t even mess with it.
* Plan to celebrate. Figure out now how you’re going to celebrate reaching your health, fitness or nutrition goal. Involve other people, tell them about it. Create a celebration that you can anticipate and then keep it within sight all the time.
* Be honest with yourself. Fudging the numbers mentally, or "borrowing" against the next reward hurts the cause of building a lifetime habit. Remember to keep your focus on building a habit, not just figuring out how to get the reward.

REWARD ROSTER CHOOSE YOUR FAVORITES AND USE THEM LIBERALLY

* Compliment yourself. Write down what you would say to anyone else who accomplished what you did.
* Create an actual plaque or trophy.
* Give yourself badges of honor for different levels of accomplishment.
* Take a vacation or weekend getaway.
* Take a day off from any goal activities.
* Put $1 in a jar every time you meet a goal. When it gets to $50, treat yourself.
* Create a Trophy Scrapbook, where you keep mementos from your accomplishments.
* See a movie.
* Make a grab bag of little prizes. When you reach a significant goal, reach in and get your reward!
* Go for a spa treatment or massage.
* Buy yourself a gift certificate.
* Take a limo ride.
* Subscribe to a magazine you always wanted.
* Go canoeing or do something outdoorsy.
* Watch your favorite TV show.
* Buy something for your hobby.
* Read a funny book.
* Celebrate "100% Days". If you reach 100% of your goals that day, choose two rewards.
* Find some time to be by yourself.
* Pay someone to do the yardwork or house cleaning this week.
* Fly a kite.

How many of these have you done? What do you do to reward yourself? Have any different ideas than these? I know I will be taking a couple of these ideas and implementing them!