[amybpa]

Hi everyone. I'm Amy and I'm new.

I feel very frustrated because I'd like to lose weight in a non-diet way and I've tried WW, JC, LA Wt Loss, nutritionists, diet pills etc. I think my real problem is twofold:

1) I want to lose the weight but don't want to give up all my favorite foods

2) I have a really hard time sticking to a food plan, diet, etc.

I want to lose weight and have to for my health but I am having a really hard time making the change from impulsive, and overeating to healthy, weightloss eating.

Any suggestions would be very welcomed!!
Thanks

Amy

[Kim K]

I have a suggestion! How about calorie counting? You don't have to give up your favorite foods, just work them into your calorie budget. I've been calorie counting for 9 months and it's worked wonderfully for me! Good luck with whatever you choose!

[Samantha100]

Sounds like you are a candidate for calorie counting. I've been calorie counting for 2 months and have lost 24 pounds so far. If anything, I'm eating better now than before.

Go get yourself a good, digital food scale and keep it on your kitchen counter. Weight everything and keep a food journal. Track what your eat so you can get a handle on your metabolism. Create an account at Fitday.com to help you record everything.

[Moralia]

I was going to suggest the same as above! I love calorie counting... Nothing is taboo, you just have to account for it is all!

[CurvyBlond19]

as a newbie dieter here too i am finding calorie counting a lot better than all other diets i have tried. I stock up on plenty of fruit and veg with my meals, lots of fruit and water and im finding that im enjoying my food more now than before. i save my self enough calories for my vice....a gin and tonic after a long day lol.x

[seagirl]

Take baby steps. Just plan for a couple of days, without changing. Tell yourself that you can do this.

First, write down what you are eating now. All of it, for 4 days or so. Then get on a site like sparkpeople or fitday and log all that food in. Find out what you are taking in. Figure out how much you want to lose and how many calories per day will help you on that journey (the sites will give you that information.

Then get rid of any and all crap food that may be in your pantry/fridge/freezer. Chips, icecream, cookies, etc. Throw it out. Don't say the kids want it or my mom needs it to be here when she comes over or I don't want to waste it. Get it out in the trash.

Then, figure out ways to tweak your diet by making a list of foods you love that are "healthy" or low calorie (get on a site like sparkpeople or fit day to find out the calories) then you'll have an arsenal of things you can reliably eat until you are feeling more secure in you choices. I find that it's good to have a few meals that I know the calories of so I don't have to think about it for the first week or so, or when I come home dead tired I can just automatically fix those meals.

Tell yourself that you can do this. That you are worth it. That you are committed.

Then, figure out what exercise you like. Are you the type to go to a gym? Maybe hire a personal trainer for a few sessions? Or maybe you like to work out at home with DVDs, so build your DVD library from netflix or where ever so you are never bored. Maybe you love to be outside, so start the day with a brisk walk and take longer hikes on the weekend. Try new things - yoga, swimming, kick boxing.

Post here - find strength to stop and breathe and post before compulsively over eating. Get ideas for recipes or ways to have your favorite foods without letting them control your life or your body.

And tell yourself "I can do this. I am worth it. This is going to be fun!"

[rockinrobin]

1) I want to lose the weight but don't want to give up all my favorite foods

2) I have a really hard time sticking to a food plan, diet, etc.

#1 - For me, giving up the foods that I overate the most was ESSENTIAL to me. If I overate them, had no control with them, then I finally realized I was better off with them. I hoped that one day - further down the road I could bring them back in to my life under certain controlled circumstances. I found NEW favorite foods. Ones that tasted absolutely DELICIOUS, but were also lower calories and healthy. I rethought was at a treat was. Instead of cookies, I could have strawberries. Instead of fried chicken I could have chicken marsala with wine, lemon and mushrooms. Instead of ice cream, I could have FF/SF yogurt, partially frozen. Instead of rice, I could have tons of delectable roasted vegetables. I took away some foods - but added in lots more, much tastier and finer foods. Ones that provided me with a slim, trim and healthy me. And once I got rid of those other foods, the desire for them GREATLY diminished. I no longer settled for foods that just tasted good. They now have to be good FOR ME as well.

#2 - Lots of us have/had this problem. For me, when the desire to be thin, fit, trim and healthy outweighed the desire for "the food", I was suddenly able to stick with something. Like GLUE. That's just how strong my desire to be thin and healthy was. Wanting to be fit and healthy, so badly - I was WILLING to stick to a plan. I wrapped the fact around my head, that I can't have it both ways. Can't have my cake and eat it too (pun intended). I stopped dieting, starting eating healthy. I no longer wanted to be fat, so I was done with the high calorie/high quantity foods. I created a new normal for myself. And like I said in #1, I found wonderful foods to eat so that my plan was/is easy to stick with. But you do have to be WILLING to make changes.

And I agree with the others. Counting calories keeps me in line. Even those healthy foods add up! I don't look at it as a "diet", but what is needed to maintain a healthy, slender, happy me. It's built in accountability and forced portion control.

Don't dread it, but get EXCITED about the changes that you are going to make. Get into it and transform your life. You don't have to be overweight if you don't want to. Losing weight is a doable thing. It's not some hare-brained crazy scheme. It's a proven fact and anyone and everyone CAN do it. Including you. Welcome to 3FC. Glad to have you aboard.

[TJFitnessDiva]

Yes what Robin said!!

I do WW though since I needed the extra support at first with meetings but now I do it on my own I got to admit that I got the Daily Plate app for my iphone and I'm in love!

[Onederchic]

Calorie counting is a good way to be able to work some of your favorite foods into your plan. For me, I get crazy if I eat something that I consider "unhealthy" so I find it best, for me, to just veer from them all together so I can stay on the right track of getting healthy.


Good luck with your goals.

Disclaimer: I am not a registered dietitian, nutritionist, any kind of health professional or fitness expert...I'm just a woman who's lost 130 pounds so far with a lot of hard work.