Anyone struggling to diet?

Hiya,

I just wanted to moan and celebrate a bit at the same time. I went to my doctor with a kidney infection and also talked to him about the fact that I have been really giving an A+ effort on exercising since mid December and working on my eating and still haven't lost any pounds. Mind you I can tell I have gain muscle, but what gives. He indulged me with one of those thyroid tests, but really gave me a "come to Jesus" speech about how I am most likely underestimating my calories.

Well, he was right and I am happy I guess to have finally accepted it while I am still in the habit of exercising. I use the bodybugg system to monitor calories out and end and really measured and tracked like crazy the last 4 days. It was somewhat an eye-opener. Even though two of the days I did really well and two of them I pretty much ate what I burned. I also played around and entered a couple of typical "bad" days to see what the calories were. YIKES! Some days could have been well over 3,000 cals once you factor in a couple of beers and the snacks that go with it.

Anyway. It really is true that it is calories in, calories out. No magic. I sat down and came up with several 200 calorie meals and 100 calorie snacks (that would actually feel like a meal and a snack) and hope to stick to eating 5-6 times a day.

If you want a free way to figure out what your eating www.sparkpeople.com is a fabulous community that includes a food log. I used them a lot before using bodybugg.

Anyone else who is struggling or succeeding, please feel free to "weigh in" on this topic. We all need all the support we can get!

-Metina

Thank You. You are awesome for sharing this DIET with us. I looked at the site and joined up. It's totally FREE, which is a great incentive. The site has a lot of great information, and looks to be very versatile in it's diet approach.

Recently I went to the Doctor (for a stomach bug) and weighed in at 194 Lbs..
And then Last week someone took some pictures of me while I was performing at a birthday party.....All I could see in the pictures was my big wide butt and all I felt was sadness at how big I had gotten...Ok, how fat I have gotten. So, Thank You for sharing this site with us, I will use it to get out of my 2X clothes, and I will report back to you at the lose of my first 10 pounds. If anyone cares to join me in losing, I would be happy to have friends lose with me.

Thanks again,

Jenny

I've been struggling with my weight for the past two years after the birth of my 2 year old daughter and I am FINALLY about 4 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight.

I've been doing Atkins.

I've actually managed to lose 40 lbs since I started seriously dieting about 8 months ago. I get exercise at my night job at a restraunt just walking around, but the main thing was that I tried the Alli pill and started counting calories. I know diet pills arent always a good thing but it is FDA approved and it worked for me. I'm into a size 13 jeans for the first time since high school and it feels great! =3 And I haven't been unhealthy; I just started eating healthier foods and checking the calorie/fat content, trying not to take in over 1200-1300 calories a day.


Best of luck to y'all! <3

I love me some Sparkpeople.com- I lost 18 lbs w/o exercising (181- 163) by using their nutrition tracker vigilantly for about 6 months.

I even bought 1 of their t-shirts to help advertise for them! I just love their whole philosophy and I recommend them to everyone.

I am 3 months post partum and I have lost all the baby weight from baby #2, but now I need to get down to pre-baby weight from baby #1 (who is 4 years old!). So it is back to SparkPeople for me.

Also, their articles and forums really helped to jump start me.

Sorry for sounding like an ad- I just really appreciated how much their free site helped me : )

~Michelle Heffner
Columbia, MD

I'm thrilled to be a 2X!! It is great to be able to buy off the rack at a "normal" store... even if I still am "plus sized"...

Over the last 9 years I've lost over 100 pounds... slowly. But, I get a kick out of hauling the fat pants out of the trunk every now and then and getting in one leg!!!

That's awesome Shannon! I need to diet but haven't found the willpower quite yet.

Wow Shannon that is awesome!!!

I lost 30 pounds about three years ago on LA Weight Loss and kept it off unit now. I had to go on a really strong dose of steriods and I have gained 25 pounds since Dec.

I did just sign up for the Biggest Looser Challenge at work. It goes from Monday until the 9th of June.

Steriods did a number on my sister... they gave them to her to combat an MS attack when she was in her early 20s, since then she's continued to gain and is now close to 400... It really worries us. Up till then she was very petite without any issues about weight.

I still could loose another 100 and not be skinny. But as long as I maintain and drop a little here and there, I'm happy (and so is my doctor cause my blood sugars are staying in the right area!!)

Two years ago I quit smoking and gained 40 lbs. I didn't realize what I looked like until one day, the 4th of July, we were at the beach and taking photos. When we got home, I uploaded the photos and could not believe my eyes. I was FAT! I cried, and for 2 weeks I did nothing but complain about how I looked and felt about myself. Then, my dear husband the most loving caring, humble and compassionate person I have ever met looked at me with a blank face and said "Well, then what are you going to do about it?" I was flabbergasted! He was right! I was bitching and moaning and I had the tools literally right there in my hand (I was eating chips when he said it) So, I set them down and came up with a plan. I omitted the foods that weren’t good for me, I convinced myself they were the enemy, I ate a lot of whole foods and parked further away from the stores, forcing myself to walk, I bought an elliptical and used my pool. I walked the dog and learned basic yoga. It took me over a year but, I lost those pounds and then some, I hit my ideal weight and felt amazing! You didn't put the weight on overnight and you won't take it off overnight either, it gets frustrating when the scale stops moving, but you have to press on, I even bought a bicycle! I had forgotten how much fun they are! Don't let your mind fool you. Being overweight is unhealthy, it's not a "Diet" you are seeking, it's a life style, a way of life. You are robbing your family of precious time with you, and you are robbing yourself of a healthy, full life if you are convincing yourself that obesity okay. I'm not saying any of you are obese; I would have no way of knowing this that would have to be determined between you and a medical professional. What I am saying, is that society today tends to accept it even though it’s one of the leading health problems in America and what’s so especially troublesome about obesity is it closely related to almost thirty medical conditions, some life-threatening. Basically, a person who is severely overweight is at an increased risk for heart attack, hypertension, glaucoma, cancer of the colon, uterus, breast, and esophagus, sleep apnea, respiratory problems, depression, type 2 diabetes, gallbladder disease, stroke, osteoarthritis, and much more. According to the National Institutes of Health, 17% of children and adolescents aged 2 to 19 years were overweight in 2004. And what’s more alarming is 32.2% of adults suffer from obesity (that’s almost 90 million) – which is a dangerous step up from just being plain overweight. Another 30% of Americans are simply overweight. (23.1% of Canadians aged 18 or older, an estimated 5.5 million adults, had a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more, indicating that they were obese)

Bottom line is, you have to want it. You have to do it for yourself, your children and your life expectancy. You have to want to be healthy more than you want the junk food. It's like when I quit smoking (that was SO much harder than losing the weight) I had to want the quit more than I wanted the cigarette. I took it one craving at a time, and I took my weight loss journey one day at a time. I was never on a "Diet" I was on a mission. I don't want to be a statistic, and I don't want to die of an unexpected heart attack at 50 either. I feel better than I can ever remember feeling. I like shopping now, I think I have a better outlook on life because I don't have that cloud hanging over my head anymore, and the fry grease running my system. There is a book called YOU on a diet. I recommend it, its great reading. It can show you a clear path to where you want to be. Okay, I’ll stop my rambling now; I hope my story helps you. If you want to get an idea of where you should be here is a link to a BMI calculator. http://www.healthatoz.com/healthatoz/Atoz/tl/cl/healthyweight/healthyweight.jsp Good luck to you. If I can help with anything send me a PM.

All of you are so inspiring. I need to get on the healthier lifestyle track!!! You are all so right - it was a slow glide into my current state of being. I have exercised like crazy and tried to cut back with such disappointing results over the years. I blamed my crazy underactive thryroid for not letting me lose back to a healthier weight and kind of gave up.

After having two more kids and dealing with a troubled teen I was doing more emotional and convenience eating which was just terrible for my body and my self esteem! Why deprive yourself and work so hard with no results. Might as well eat what tastes good and have those few moments of satisfaction...... I am going to check out the spark people website.

People do definitely judge you. Now that I am working with the "public" I am becoming more self aware I should be looking and feeling my best!

Thanks for the inspiration to get started!!!!

Yea...working with the public definitely makes you more 'self aware'!!

I have days when I just don't want to leave the house...especially when my pants feel tight or I feel bloated and everything just doesn't fit right and I feel horrible!

I tried adding whey protein to my diet to help with my RA and Inflammation issues...it's supposed to help. Albiet that it might have been helping..but my rear end and thighs 'filled out' and now my pants are tight in areas where they had been loose! Haha...oh well! I've cut out the whey but my pants are still tight! /sigh

However, since I do TKD..it might be from all that kicking that's giving me a 'J-Lo butt' again. I haven't had that firm a rear since I was in high school! I just thought I had a big butt back then...I guess it's 'in' to have a full butt, but I prefer my pants not fitting so tight!

I just need to do a ton of aerobics to burn off the layers of fat...the muscle is coming back...but it's pushing up all the fat! Haha...oh well.

I am hoping I'll hit that point where the muscle eventually helps burn down the fat. It seems whenever I even 'look' at weights or doing things that build muscle I get much 'larger' at first, then start to slim down. I'm just at that 'annoying' plateau before it starts to get better!

I agree...it's not a diet but a lifestyle change. Otherwise you won't stick to it and it'll start to come back once you stop a 'diet'. Temporary dietary adjustsments to help with plateus and 'getting started' are fine...but really it needs to be a permanent change.

Good Luck everyone!

I have added in prepackaged meals like soup and the frozen stuff just to help monitor the calories for a while. I know they have tons of crap in them that aren't so good for you, but I have got to see what eating 1,200-1,500 cals a day can really do. I really hate measuring and logging food, so I am hoping that at least seeing some results my motivate me to do it more.

So far I have eaten really healthy, but am still probably eating to much and thought nothing of eating another 400 cals after dinner.

So in addition to eating the pre-prepared stuff, I am trying really hard not to eat anything after dinner. We'll see if this adjustment helps any.

-Metina

I quit smoking a year and a half ago and gained weight too. I had the same experience of pictures at the beach in Hawaii. I told my husband I looked like a manatee, tore the pics up and threw them away.

Some time after that, I came across an article about a book called Eat to Live. It's pretty much about eating vegetables, fruit, and beans. Since I love those things it's easy. You can eat tons of it too. That's probably what I like the best. It's not for everyone since meat, fat, and carbs are pretty much off the menu (very limited).

I've lost some and don't look like a manatee anymore but still have some to lose. My motivation is less in the winter than in the summer. My husband is not on the plan and I end up going off the plan when I cook for him or we go out to eat. Last fall I was actually almost thin again... then winter hit. Summer is just around the corner though!

Here's a link to the book if any of you are veggie lovers.

http://books.google.com/books?id=CX8huSU0n8AC&dq=eat+to+live&printsec=frontcover&source=bn&hl=en&ei=j7PPSay6N5PjnQehsa3wCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=4&ct=result#PPP1,M1

Metina wrote:I have added in prepackaged meals like soup and the frozen stuff just to help monitor the calories for a while. I know they have tons of crap in them that aren't so good for you, but I have got to see what eating 1,200-1,500 cals a day can really do. I really hate measuring and logging food, so I am hoping that at least seeing some results my motivate me to do it more.

So far I have eaten really healthy, but am still probably eating to much and thought nothing of eating another 400 cals after dinner.

So in addition to eating the pre-prepared stuff, I am trying really hard not to eat anything after dinner. We'll see if this adjustment helps any.

-Metina

Have you tried the Campbells Lite Soups? 2 servings per can and 40 to 60 calories per serving. You can eat a whole can and eat less then a hundred calories, and they are really filling and tasty.

Jenny

I stepped on my daughter's WII and was told the "ugly truth"!!! Talk about brutal! the WII fit tells you how out of shape you are and if your balance is off and what your fitness level age vs. your chronical age!!!! I am feeling more motivated (and disheartened!!!!) than ever!!! Then your character is adjusted to show the proportions it calibrates!!!
Has anyone used a WII to help achieve their goals??

I am trying the Alli stuff and the principle of muscle confusion. I have been so frustrated with doing 1.5 hours on the treadmill 5 days a week with little results. Then when I was using my 5 day free pass at the gym, the owner mentioned muscle confusion and now I am going to try this principle. I also stocked up on canned soup and low-cal meals. I know they are loaded with sodium, but I think I am really underestimating cals and this helps balance things for a bit.

If this all fails I am going to take a butcher knife and cut off the fat! Just kidding, I am just going to keep tweaking things till this fat comes off!

Here is an article on the muscle confusion principle if you are intersted http://www.biggest-loser.us/muscle-confusion-and-cross-training.htm

Good luck with the Alli Metina! It really did work for me