Three sets of Ten

Due to some lower back pain I've been having I'm in physical therapy and my workouts are restricted to walking.
Hearing the news that I should stick to walking only for awhile sent me into an unhealthy tail spin. All the negative and self-defeating thoughts came flooding in. "Why watch your calories if you can't workout?" This is a completely ridiculous thought. Shouldn't I watch my calories more? Oh, my, I just knew that after about 15 weeks of steady loss it would all be over, and what do you know, I did indeed gain a pound that first week of not exercising as I had been.
It is so strange that there is some sort of negative force in us that so wants to see us fail and go back to status quo. If our thoughts predict our failure often enough, we begin to believe that we are indeed going to fail. So many good habits can fall by the wayside lead by our negative thoughts. Even when I know the happiness of wearing a smaller size, my thoughts can lead me right back to commiserating with Dr. Chocolate Cake, PhD.
Perhaps while I am doing the prescribed exercises at physical therapy to strengthen my weak muscles, I should consider some exercises to strengthen my thought life. Things are hardly ever all or nothing and the all or nothing thinking (I must workout four days a week or I might as well just eat whatever I want) actually makes no sense at all, and only leads to discouragement and failure. Sure, I might not be burning the amount of calories that I am used to, but walking is better than sitting and will help me achieve my long term goals much more than giving up. It might be hard to have several weeks of not losing, or losing less than I had been, but why should I give up my healthy habits now?
It's always a good day to reset, restart, and refocus.