Arrghh! The questions that plague us all
 

I have no idea if this is truly the right place for this thread, but when I saw the "support", it's what I want.

First, I'd like to say that when I look at everyone's pictures, both before and after, you are all very beautiful people, and by most of what is said, beautiful both inside and out.

I guess I'm not feeling that way myself. I look in teh mirror, and I"m fine from my toes to my knees and from my waist to me head, but not my saddle bags. Who knew something could be wider than my hips?

I used to do WW, but I just can't stick with it anymore. I try, but it only lasts a day or so, then I fall off the wagon, get depressed, ect, gain weight... I think all the crap I've been eating has caused me to have this insatiable sugar craving, kind of like the more you eat the more you want...I feel so lost right now. There are advocates of every diet known to man. I am looking for one that's easy to follow that doesn't eliminate major food groups...I'm thinking of calorie counting,or sugar busters but even that seems so daunting right now.

Also, I feel like I'm putting way too much emphasis on weight and how I look. I want this to be a journey, not something that I allow to define me. I'm one of those people who can give great advice, but I stink as far as taking it myself. So, I'm not sure..I"m kind of taking a break and floating for now, with thanksgiving and stuff...not going on a mad binge, just holding back.

Now, I"m normally not so melancholy. I'm just depressed and frusterated. My question is what has worked for all of you? Have you found something that just seems ;like the answer to you? I know it differs from person to person, but that's what this board is for, to share ideas... WW worked for me. I had lost 75 lbs on it at one time, but I just am having such trouble sticking to it. I'm half way thinking about trying something new, to shake it up a bit, and to renew my interest and commitment, or just sticking my nose to the grindstone. I"d like to add that WW meetings are not an option for me as they do not fit into my schedule and I am not financiallly able to budget for them....that, and I get more motivation and help on this board than at the meetings....

Thanks so much for hearing me out, you all rock!

Alteaon -- you know you're going to get all kinds of advice, and, a lot of it might differ since, as you said, what works differs from person to person.

You seem overwhelmed. Who wouldn't be? My advice right now would be to find one thing to focus on and do that -- even over the holidays! It might be making sure you exercise some every day, or just that you pay close attention to your portions, or that you eat a lot of veggies, or cut out soda... whatever you think is do-able NOW. Just one thing.

Then keep reading here about different plans. Don't be afraid to try out some different ones-- ask lots of questions! The point is to find something that works for you! But you don't have to decide that before you start doing something.

I think the best thing you can do is to make a commitment to yourself that this journey IS worth it.

So, let's see what everyone else says!

Alteaon, at 5'7" and 160 pounds, you probably don't *need* to get down to 135. Now, I am not saying you shouldn't, but I am 3 inches shorter than you, and my goal weight is 130 (which puts me in a size 6).

What you may want to try for a while is weight-lifting plus cardio rather than dieting per se. This is HUGELY hypocritical of me, because I hate weight-lifting, but it really does help define and tone what you already have going on. It won't specifically get rid of saddle-bags, but it will strengthen and tone your entire body, which means your legs will be lovely as a part of that. I am sure some other people will be along shortly to extol the virtues of weight-lifting as well :D

As far as looking for a diet that doesn't eliminate major food groups, it is called sensible eating. Just watch your intake and eat lots of fruit and veggies. That way you don't have to worry about staying on plan or any of those hassles.

Good luck! and remember, we are all here for you!

I agree about picking one small, tangible goal for getting thru a high stress time. Drinking a certain amount of water can be good. If it's already cold in Wisconsin,(home of my alma mater, UW-Madison!), you might want to borrow fitness DVDs from your library. I like the Target series for stability ball. A stability ball is about $10 at Target and pretty easy to use.

Good luck on the journey.

I agree also...pick one thing that you can change and work on that...beit, more water, more vegi's, less candy, ect....you only NEED to work on one thing at a time, as you have added bad eating habits slowly you need to change back to good habits slowly. It took time to put the weight on, it will take time to take it off.

Hon, the best thing to do is forget about diets completely and just make permanent changes you can live with.

I used to diet. That's how I got fat :(

I just keep track of calories and eat very little fat. It takes a while to find your own balance, but once you do, you have experience that will last you a lifetime.

There is lots of good advice here! I agree you probably don't need to loose that much more weight.

One thing that caught my eye is your sugar cravings. I use to have the same problem. There are a few diets that can help. I follow the Zone plan which has you eat low glycemic carbs. Keeping my bodies blood sugar stable has really helped to reduce sugar cravings!

Good luck!

One Diet plan is just not a good way to go.
Now some people can do this, some people have the ability to stay the course. But then theres some of us that we need variety and change and thats kind of where I fall in. I dont follow one specfic diet plan, I take a idea from many diffrent plans and incorporate what works for me.
What anyone can tell you is theres two things you have to do to lose the weight and thats it. These are the two major things you need to do in order to lose weight.

And its this Eat Less Move More.
Simple right. Journal what your eating for two weeks or so. You will see portion sizes is what gets alot of us and the amount we actually consume.

And basically if your not being honest with yourself and making sure your working out for at least 4 days out of the week then thats a good place to start.
We all have these thoughts or have at one time. Its understandable. This is a long journey, but when you get to where your going its one that will make you so proud of yourself.

Be honest and hold yourself accountable. No one else can do this except you. and most of all love yourself enough to push away things that you know deep down that you should not be eating. Because we need to love ourself to be able to also take care of ourself.
You have the ability to do this. When you really want to it can happen. The determination we have within ourselves is amazing.
Let this happen and let yourself be happy.
Because when you beat yourself down you are digging the hole deeper and deeper and deeper and before you know it your buried and you dont want to be there I know its not a good feeling. ;)

I agree with what people are saying -- try changing just one thing at a time for about 2 weeks, then add on another. It will take a while, but the changes will become habits and will stick with you.
If you want a 'plan' to help you with this concept (I know it's hard to do without structure, at least it is for me!!) try www.changeone.com . Wonderful.

Another thing you might want to try is to just start recording down everything you eat. You don't need to worry about reducing it quite yet, but just getting in the habit of being accountable for what you eat and really -knowing- everything you eat might help steer you away from things you eat 'just becasue' without really noticing it. It helped me, that's for sure. Try www.fitday.com for a free online counter.

Hi Alteaon. I see you’re from the land of the Hodag, and I know those long, cold, dark winters made me want to do nothing but curl up inside and eat warm comfort foods. And it’s hard to exercise outside when there’s a foot of snow on the ground and it’s -10 degrees. If a gym is not an option I would find some sort of exercise you can do inside that you like. Videos and some simple equipment seem like good ideas. Also, you might want to look into cross country skiing if that interests you at all. It’s a great cardio work out and makes you feel great! It seems like you’re down in the dumps right now, and I know nothing lifts my mood more than exercise.

As far as food, I’m not one to follow a specific plan or diet, I just try to educate myself about nutrition, make better choices, and watch portions. Journaling for a while can really help get you in the right track.

Be good to yourself and don’t sweat the small stuff. Remember, this is just as much if not more about how you feel as how you look. Take care, hope you find something that works for you!

And shout out to fellow Badger Elana!

I'm with those who don't follow a "diet". A diet is what I used to go on and then go off again once I had lost "x" amount of weight! :dizzy:

I prefer to say I have changed my lifestyle or that I'm choosing to eat differently - for good! I know that if I go back to crash dieting and then regaining, I will feel very bad about myself. I'm also allowing myself more calories this time (1500-1600). This way, I'm losing very slowly, but I don't feel pressured to lose a lot of weight in a hurry. I do like to set small goals, but I don't feel like a total failure if I don't always meet them as scheduled.

The very best thing I've found is to keep a food log. I think a lot of people here do that. I'm doing Nutridiary. A lot of people also like Fitday - they are both free. You can even just get an old fashioned calorie book and write down what you eat in a journal. I think portion control (or counting calories) is the easiest for me as I can eat just about anything (within reason) so long as the portion sizes fit into my daily allowance.

My thighs have always been big too - no matter how much I weigh, I'll always be a 'pear' shape! My legs have firmed up quite a bit since I started working out at Curves. I've been going there 3x a week for two years now. I still have a long way to go, but I'm feeling good and my joints hardly ache any more (I have arthritis). Maybe you could start a walking program - just 10 or 15 minutes at first. When I'm feeling down I always feel better after some exercise.

I wish you lots of success in your weight loss efforts! Happy Thanksgiving.
:thanks2:

Sometimes it's just harder
 

I think most people here have probably lost weight more than once. So lots of us are familiar with that "just can't do it" state that comes along sometimes. I certainly am!

What's working for me this time is that I'm using Lean Cuisines (or other prepackaged meals--Smart Ones, Healthy Choice) as the basis of my food plan. Now I know some of you gals will want to jump in and say it's not healthy to do that. Not enough vegetables. Too much sodium. But really, LCs don't have too much sodium, and they have no trans fats. All the contents are spelled right out on the package, and they have low carb options. They even give you WW points.

The ones I get usually have under 300 cals, some under 200, and they taste really good to me. I eat them for two meals a day, and I add vegetables like spinach and green salads. I also have breakfast plus two snacks during the day, and I count carbs as well as cals. I try to keep the cals right around 1200, because I have found from experience that I don't lose weight at 1500. At least not to start. I try to keep the carbs between 15-30 grams per meal, less for snacks. I drink lots of water, and I take vitamins.

This is a really easy plan for me to follow because it doesn't involve cooking and trying to figure out portion sizes, weighing foods, etc.

I also joined Curves so I get some exercise three times a week, plus I walk on the off days.

This fits my schedule really well. I have a roommate, but she is happy to prepare her own meals--we like different foods. If I ate the carbs that she does, I would blimp up in no time. She is not overweight in spite of the carbs, darn it!

I'm down 14 pounds since October 2 following this plan. I know that I need a plan to eat for life, but right now I can only solve one problem, and that's losing the weight. I have 34 more pounds to lose.

I also just don't keep any of those "trigger foods" in the house--no ice cream, no tortilla chips, potato chips, etc. No way!

Think of a way that will work for you and do it! And good luck!

Jay

My freezer is stocked with Lean Cuisine and Healthy Choice meals, lol.

I eat them frequently for lunch. Yeah, okay, so they're high in sodium. But I could be eating worse things. And they help me to control my calories.

Carbs don't make you fat. Excess calories make you fat.

I've lost 77 pounds and I've never given up pasta and potatoes and the like. I just make sure that what I eat gets counted in with my calories.

ALTEAON,

I have been counting calories too. I started by eliminating the junk food in my life. No sweets, chips or junk. The first week was tough, but once I got past it I don't really miss it. Yeah on that one time of the month I have some M and M's or and bite of a chocolate bar. I also have days that I just blow it. I mean I am not in jail. I try and keep my calories at around 1400. I have had days of 1800 and days off 700 (when I had the flu) Good luck finding what is good for you!