New-ish mom trying to get back on track
 

Hello,
I guess I can start by telling my story. I am a 32 year old mother of 1 son, who is almost a year old.

I have always had "weight issues" and this has been a life-long struggle. Before I was pregnant with my son I got down to 145, the lowest I had been in a long time. Before that I usually fluctuated between 160-170. When I was pregnant with my son I got up to 230. The day after my son was born I weighed 210. Last summer and fall I stayed around 190-195. I nursed for 9 months, nursing did not help take off the baby weight like some people claim.

Then I got pregnant again got up to 198 (3 months pregnant) lost the baby.
Here I am almost a month after the loss, sitting between 190-195 trying to get under 190 and back into my regular cloths. It makes it more depressing wearing maternity cloths, I want to get over the loss of the baby and feel good about myself again.

The last month I have become a vegetarian again, mostly because I hate cooking meat and it grosses me out to eat it. I have always been grossed out by meat and was a vegetarian for a long time until I tried the adkins diet which helped me get down into the 150's. I was a vegetarian in the past for about 7 years, I gained weight because I ate alot of cheese and pasta. This time I am vegetable focused.. no grilled cheeses for this girl. I also eat fish probably 4-5 times a week.

I have been trying to do the calorie counting thing, I try to stay under 1000 calories a day. I walk alot for exercise. I "pop" raspberry ketones every day (300 mgs a day). I drink alot of water, eat whole grains, lots of fruit and veggies. Weight loss has always been a huge struggle for me, I think because I have been weight obsessed my whole life and will try every yo yo diet, crash diet, and diet pill I can get my hands on. Which has totally screwed up my metabolism. That being said, I would totally take any diet pill that actually worked, any suggestions??

I was excited last week because I got down to 190, my goal for this week was to get under 190, somehow the scale is saying I gained 5 lbs. I think I might be starting my period again or something because I have been "good" with my diet and exercise.

One of my "downfalls" is that I like to drink. I don't have a sweet tooth, but I really enjoy a beer, cocktail or glass of wine to wind down at the end of the evening. I have given up alcohol before (when I was pregnant) and have no problem doing it, I just enjoy it. I guess you could say I have a "drunk tooth".

Anyway, I am looking for support and new diets to try. I am avoiding going adkins because I don't want to eat meat, but I will try almost everything else. I would really love to get down past 190 which has been seemingly impossible since my son was born.

Also this is the 1st time I have ever discussed my weight with anyone. Even at the doctors, no matter how much I weigh I feel shameful when I get on the scale in front of others, or discuss my weight it makes me want to cry.

1000 calories a day seems pretty low. If I were you I would be looking at 1600-1700 calories a day. I am much shorter than you and started out a little heavier, I usually ate about 1400 calories a day to lose.
I have tried many diets and found calorie counting to be best for me, no forbidden foods, reliable and flexible and free. Experiment a little to see what works best for you. We have a number of vegans and vegetarians in these forums. Good luck.

Welcome! I saw your post under the new posts tab and wanted to chime in because I also am not finding nursing to be a magic weight loss program.

And then I read more of your post and knew that I had to comment. I'm very sorry for your loss. Mentally and physically, you need time to heal.

You've definitely come to the right place for help though. I find myself focusing on my weight and body appearance under times of stress. I gained 20 pounds back after my dad passed away. What worked for me longterm has been to count calories without changing any of my bad habits to see how much I'm really eating. Then, I'll do a 300 calorie a day deficit from that number. A 500 calorie a day deficit works out to about a pound a week, but I am usually too tired to do that long term. I like the principals of the South Beach Diet, but I haven't been successful maintaining with it. There's no magic pill either, but there are many ladies (and men) who have ups and downs, successes and failures who are willing to share their experiences. Please try not to let the number on the scale upset you...instead, think of your personal victory in being brave enough to share with us here!

Welcome!

I almost cried when the scale went over 200lbs while I was pregnant - and then my hubby looked at my chart, so I sucker punched him. :mad:

Losing a little one is a big deal, mama. Be kind to yourself!
And no, nursing is not a magical weight loss program. I was reassured by any and all that the weight would just meeeeeeelt off - LIES!

So here we are. You're in the right place. :hug:
We can do this!

Thank you all so much! I do feel like I am in the right place. I have never had a weight loss support group, so I think it will help.

I thought 1000 calories a day was alot for calorie counting. I am new to this calorie counting method, I never paid any attention to calories just tried to eat healthy or follow whatever my diet plan said I could eat (adkins). I read victoria beckham only eats 500 calories a day! crazy!

I also think south beach diet may be worth a try if calorie counting doesnt work for me. I really like the whole grain/ clean eating thing so I dont want to give it up too soon. I am going to give it another month then I am going to go low carb since its worked for me before, but focus on more fruit and veggies like the south beach diet does.

The success stories on this website are really inspiring! And its so great to see other people in the same boat as me :)

First obvious thing, drop the booze. It's nutritionally worthless and it's way too easy to over-indulge (both the liquor and food eaten with it).

Also, it sounds like you've got the inside track with the vegetarian line. It worked for you well once, that'd be where I'd start.

Good luck OP.

I agree about the nursing NOT helping lose the weight. I think it aggravates insulin resistance. My body refuses to just use my 'stores' for breastmilk, the hunger from it is CRAZY. I had gestational diabetes, and I know when I increase my insulin sensitivity with diet, I get more milk production and weight loss AND LESS SEVERE hunger.

I AM SO SORRY. for your loss. yes, you need to heal. I pray for healing and comfort for you.

1000 calories is wayyyy to low. it can be done, but not comfortably, and you are already under alot of stress. You stress your adrenal glands, and weight also will not come off.

I am fighting the same battle with the 190s. However, you have gotten a lot further me, I also was diagnosed with Hashimotos, I lost from 217 down to 185 very quickly, and then started to go up again :(. I've bounced twice since then. My labs are perfect for my thyroid though. So I'm pretty sure the culprit is insulin resistance.

This is a great place for LOTS of support.

I have been keeping track of my calories on myfitnesspal and I am averaging about 1300, so that's good right? I agree the alcohol is a bad thing, but it really chills me out at night and I try to stick to diet/ light whatever I can. My Grandma swears by red wine (which she has every night) and she is tiny and never had health problems at 85. So I almost think there might be a benefit to drinking red wine (probably not beer or hard liqueur).

jendiet- your story is really inspiring. I am a fan of you for sure :) I am really sorry about your Hashimotos, (I had to look it up to see what exactly it was). I was checked for thyroid and It turned out all clear. I still feel like there might be some underlying problem why I have always struggled. Stress is definitely something I can't get away from. I have anxiety problems for sure (non-medicated as of the last few years).

So, anyway.. I am happy to be here! I am happy to be in such great company! This is going to be a long journey, so it's nice to have such a good support system. My husband thinks I'm nutz for (1) any sort of dieting and (2) reaching out for support.

I definitely feel like I am on the right track :) If nothing else I will have met a great group of people.