[Ariee]

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to thank the creators, mods and friends of this website for creating such a great vast support group. Awesome, hopefully, this site can help me stay on track.

I have a huge problem with food. As a kid my family was always on a budget so this led to a real lack of food in the house. I grew up with really bad habits and developed a really craving for carbs...

Age: mid-20's
Sex: F
Height: 5'5/5'6
Current Weight: 170lbs
Starting Weight: 175lbs

I think I'm about 40-50lbs overeweight correct?

I think my best weight was 140 and this was during grad school, where I spent a semester stressing out (hardest semester) and did not eat anything b/c I was worried I'd flunk out. When I wrote my licensing exams, is when I gained the 30-40lbs...it was eating and sitting...

My plan is as follows:
1. Eat about 1200-1500calories/day
2. Exercise by walking 90minutes a day
3. Cut out coke/juices completely and just drink about 2-3L of water
4. No more snacks/eating after 7pm

My problem is:
1. I love to snack- LOVE IT! yum yum yum! (sorry- had to show you how much I love it!)
2. My significant other has the same problems with food that I do and he is an enabler, not to mention stubborn b/c he doesn't want to lose weight (jerko!)
3. I can get kinda lazy...I had started this plan above about 3 weeks ago and went straight at it for 2weeks, but got off track with my enabling significant other. I lost 5lbs during that plight.
4. I have PCOS, so my metabolic rate is slow intinsically, but I've been careful with weigth throughout life, I've just never had the flat belly.

Can you all please help me out with any other suggestions you think may be helpful to keep me on track and going?

Thank you so much for reading!
Ariee

[bacilli]

My suggestions:

You don't need to give up snacks! Just replace the unhealthy ones with healthy ones! There's a thread, I believe in calorie counters, that lists a huge ton of good for you snacks that range from 100-200 calories. If you snack between meals, studies have shown you're less likely to overeat at meal time or grab something high calorie and low nutrition to munch on.

Track your calories, every bit you put in your mouth. Fitday, Daily Plate, and Sparkpeople can all help you track for free.

If you're burning out on 90 minutes of exercise every day, I would try splitting it up. Do some in the morning and some in the evening. Or knock a few days down to 60 minutes, or take a day off to relax. Weight training in addition to your cardio will help too.

Don't focus on your significant other's gains/losses right now. Focus on you. Tell him your plan, and ask him to help you stay on track by not shoving junk food in your face. Let him eat what he's going to eat, and remind yourself that's HIS food, NOT YOURS.

Swap all of your bad carbs out for heart healthy whole grains. They're much more nutritious, and have a much better taste imo.

You can do this!