40-Somethings - Can I lose weight without a commercial diet plan?

I desperately need to lose weight. I have no idea what happened - I've always been a bit overweight but not like this!

In retrospect, I was soothing a lot of stressful life issues and spent my evenings in front of the t.v. eating junk - and this went on for months. I don't eat volumes of food, I just eat all the wrong things.

I don't exercise - ever. I used to be so into fitness, but now I just feel tired and the effort seems so monumental. Lately I've been wanting to TRY, but I just feel too heavy and embarrassed of how I look.

So where does one go from here? I'm in a rut, a deep one. There are the usual life issues, 3 kids, working 4 days a week, my youngest child is just turned 4, a marriage that could be better, and financial difficulties which are always there and never change (!). I'm not naive enough to think that any of these issues are any different than the stressful issues any of you reading are living under. I just don't like the idea of using the above as reasons to not care about myself - not anymore anyway.

I want health and energy and a lower body weight so I can feel better about myself. I DON'T want to be stick-thin - I have no unrealistic goals here!

I can't find Step one! I've tried WW and keep failing and don't want to sink any more money into that. How many of you are doing this alone - watching what you eat, exercising?

Thanks for reading - and thanks in advance for your help!

TracyLewWho

How about South Beach? Very easy to follow IMO.

I hate working out honestly, and sometimes just don't have time, but I've been losing pretty well since I started South Beach a few weeks ago :) I did start bike riding (but only 1-2 times a week) and stopped snacking at night which I feel has really helped as well. :D

I calorie count ....its incredibly easy and free... The gym takes a lot of commitment...not motivation... someone asked me how I motivate myself to go everyday and I said...I dont...I hate the gym...but its another thing on a list of have tos...its not a maybe its a must...and everyday I go because I am committed to going

Another vote for calorie counting. I haven't spent a dime on this round of weight loss - the one that's working - and I can vouch for many, many plans that DON'T work, that you can pay for. I've popped most of the pills and supplements ... and not one ever lived up to the claims. One of our 3FC'ers has a signature that says "Being fat is hard. Losing weight is hard. Maintaining is hard. Choose your hard." That about sums it up - when you get tired enough of being fat and tired, you'll find it easy to devote just a little energy to measuring how much you eat, writing it down, and finding out what it is you're truly putting in your mouth. It's not difficult, and it does become a habit when you get the positive reniforcement of weight loss. Seriously! :)

Yes, you can lose weight on your own. Calorie counting is my choice (and a lot of others) - but there are other diets that you can try with the cost of a book. Atkins and South Beach to mention two of the more popular.

There are also some great workout videos that can help you on the fitness front at a much lower cost than a gym membership. They work better for me because I don't have that extra time getting to and from the gym. Also I don't have to figure out what to do with my son while I work out.

Look around the site - there are some great threads on different diets methods and different approaches to fitness.

Good Luck!

I count calories and I walk my dogs as much as I can. Both activities are free and I've lost just over 40 pounds in 18 weeks doing nothing more than that :)

You can totally do it on your own!

Absolutely! I focus on calories, but basically just stopped eating junk food and started eating normal portions. I don't exercise much, but know that it's something I need to do especially when it comes to keeping this weight off.

You don't need a program and you don't need to even follow a plan from a book. Just take in fewer calories than you need and the weight will come off. Good luck!

I count calories too! Its really easy once you get a hang of it and eventually you'll be able to learn about how many cals everything has in it so it makes it that much easier.

I use a website to log in my foods and it tells me the calories. I recommend that, although I feel like Im constantly at my computer! But if it works! =)
I use fitday.com. I played around with livestrong.com and really liked it after someone recommended it to me today.

Theres alot of free resources you just have to search around!

Good luck! =)

I cut out junk food and I plan my meals and snacks the night before, which eliminates grazing behavior. I'm a librarian, so books have been my second best resource (3FC is first). My favorites so far are The End of Overeating by David Kessler and the books by Judith Beck.

I love to exercise mostly because it reduces stress and aids with insomnia. I keep it simple -- exercise videos (there are some available for free on the internet) and walking.

Hi Tracy... I was in a similar boat as yours. I wanted to lose weight but the first step...:?: I didn't know where to start, or when, how etc.

I made ONE SMALL change. I started by eating smaller portions (using smaller plates, no second helpings, eating half). After a week or so I felt really empowered to make another small change (for me the treadmill). Eventually I started counting calories and increased my workouts. I didn't make junk food a no-no, but when the weight started coming off, I lost my desire for it.

Some people do better following a diet plan, but you don't need one. It's the first step that's a doozy... it sounds like you are ready to get steppin'!:dance:

Good luck, you're going to do great. (You're in the right place for great support... keep coming back!!:hug:)

I don't follow any kind of commercial program - I get too wrapped up in all the details of what you can and can't eat, then I get frustrated with the program and quit entirely.

The thing is, you already know what you need to do to lose weight. Cut out treats, eat more fruits and veggies, drink water instead of soda, get some exercise, etc. The suggestion above to start by changing one of these things at a time is a really good one, then use your small successes to motivate bigger ones as you add more and more changes.

Eat less move more.... it really is that simple.

I have excluded nothing from my diet but I do log everything in FitDay that crosses my lips. No guessing either, I weigh everything using a small scale I got from Amazon for $15.

As for exercise I do have a treadmill and bowflex here at home but you don't even need that. Walk the neighborhood and if it's too cold go walk at your local mall. Always use the stairs, park as far away as possible from an entrance. Turn up the tunes to some awesome dance music when you clean. And then there is weight training; just about anything can be used. These things will add up and you will start to feel better..... be creative.

Before you know it you'll WANT to be more active.

Keep coming back here, the ladies are great motivators.

Count me in as another calorie counter. For many months, walking was my only form of exercise. Now that winter is approaching, I'll start back on the elliptical. I may join the gym so I can run on a treadmill; I haven't decided yet.

I haven't ever done a commercial diet plan because I am a picky eater and I would like all the weird things that they put in some of those meals. So for me, just cutting out the junk food, watching portions and counting calories has been very helpful. I don't lose as fast as some chicks do, but I've lost 50 pounds since January 2009 so I'm pretty happy with the results thus far. :)

I can totally relate to your situation-- many heavy life pressures, very little time and a tendency always to put myself last.

I decided to try calorie counting and it's easy and works well. I log my calories on fitday. It wasn't that hard because I already knew more or less what was good for me, I just didn't apply it.... I've gotten better at it and tweak more, but it's easy, and free, and I don't find it burdensome to log my calories on the computer they way I would if I had to actually carry a pencil and paper around.

I'm 4 months in and down 50 pounds. I added exercise in, mostly lap swimming but some walking, after the first month. I do enjoy it now, but the hardest part for me is always saying "I'm leaving" instead of giving into to the 1001 demands that are always competing for my time. I'm getting better at it, and it's not as hard as I thought it would be.

I do weight watchers but I don't go to meetings. I went to four meetings and then stopped. I've lost 65lbs doing weight watchers.

I don't calorie count or strictly carb count and I've lost 75 lbs since February 09. I just gave up junk food (you know, the kind in the pretty boxes with chemical names you can't pronounce), fast food (as in fast to my a$$), sugar, potatoes, rice and bread. I've been eating meat, cheeses, fruits, nuts and vegetables without regard to portion size and it seems to work well.

I have tried alot of commercial diets and none works for me and going to a gym is unrealistic. so what I have done is stop all the madness and I filled my kitchen up with everything healty and easy to grab when I get hungry. I threw all the junk in the trash on September 16th and started eating lots of fiber, vegi's and fruit and the funny thing is I eat more than I did before I am eating all day long so I never get a chance to feel deprived and a bonus my family is also starting to enjoy eating healthy. for exercize I bought a wii fit plus and started on the beginner level its so much fun that its not like excercize at all but it is when I wake up sore in the morning I have been doing this every other day and my balance has improved I have more energy and feel great even my BMI has gone down and I have lost 20lbs so far.I know it is hard to do this when you have a family to feed so I got everyone involved and they all love the wii. I am not the type of person that can stick to a diet if all I ever do is think about being on a diet all day everyday and I figure thin people don't have their lives completly revolve around a diet so I won't either. I am kinda lucky because I don't eat sweets so I have no cravings for them my weekness is for cheese burgers and fried chicken and things like that(comfort food) so I have just been teaching myself to prepare those type of foods in a healty way. once a month we go out for dinner and have what ever our hearts desire and not feel guilty about it and just get on track the next day...:D so far so good I wish I would have thought about it this way a couple of years ago.

Another vote here for calorie counting. I have done all the other diets, well it seems like all of them but I find calorie counting works best for me. It is something I can carry over into maintenance and of course it is free and flexible,

I do South Beach and love it! No calories or points counting. Very little measuring. I lost 30# last year and have maintained it for almost 1 1/2 years now. I don't think about food all the time anymore. My cholesterol dropped 30 points. This is the healthiest I have ever eaten in my life.

Another calorie counter here. I use fitday which is free. Measuring cups and spoons that I already had ...

There was a study done a couple of years ago that showed most of the people who successfully lost weight and kept it off did it by doing their own thing, not a commercial plan. Of the commercial plans, the one with the most long term success was Weight Watchers.

In the end, it's really about your personal tastes and lifestyle. Find what fits you, and it will work :)

Another calorie counter!

As to getting started -- I took baby steps. My first step was just to get in the habit of taking supplements. Then I upped the amount of fluids I was drinking. I did this for weeks before I started restricting calories. After a while, I added walking then Curves. And that's my program still at this point!

Since your life is so hectic (like mine!) I would suggest just cutting back right now or making one small change like eating all your meals on a smaller plate (forced portion control :) ) or drinking only water or going for a 20 min walk. Once you've conquered that one change, add in another one be it a specific diet or calorie counting or cutting out sugar. Baby steps! You can do it!