[tubbyjen]

Hi all, I'm new here. I was browsing around google because my neighbor has been taking adipex, and with the results she had gotten with no effort, i wanted to check up on it and that was how i found you . Let me explain my current situation

currently, i weigh 250lbs +/- (my kids broke my scale) and this is the biggest i have ever been in my life. 8 months ago my family and i got a membership at the local YMCA which has a WONDERFUL workout room and a large pool. i try to use them atleast 3 times a week, if i'm lucky. i'm a stay at home mom and don't know many people where i live so child care is an issue for now. 4 months ago i quit drinking soda, and the only sugary drinks i have are 1/4 tsp in my coffee, and a sugar substitute in my diet raspberry white tea. for the most part i drink water, and unsweetened iced tea. also 4 months ago my whole family went through a diet change. all of my meals are portion controlled and actually a bit less than that, i can't usually eat a whole serving. breakfast is either whole grain cheerios or Protein Plus Special K. lunch primarily consists of a bowl of jasmin rice, broccoli and some soy sauce. and dinner always includes a side dish of jasmin rice. The main dish is usually boneless skinless chicken/pork cooked in different fashions, none of which include breading, deep frying or butter. i do fry my chicken/pork on occasion, but i use about 1 tbsp of EVOO for 6 pieces, enough for flavor and to stop them from sticking to the pan. we rarely add a bread to our meals, and always have as an additional side dish raw or lightly steamed vegetables. i havent lost any weight. at all. as a matter of fact, i've gotten slightly bigger. i don't know what to do. i'm 5'4. i was 83 lbs when i got pregnant with my first child, went up to 184 lbs, dropped back down to 150 lbs (which is my goal) got pregnant with my 2nd child went up to 175lbs got pregnant 4 weeks after having her, weighed 200 lbs when i had my 3rd and have just continued to go up from there. im at a loss. healthy diet, check, workout, sorta check (i work out when i can and chase a 3 and 4 yr old all day long)...

any ideas at all?

[srmb60]

Oh yes! I can tweak til the cows come home.

There are so many aspects to building a healthy slim body that the choices are almost endless.

Have you tried putting your foods into a calorie calculator? Although I do advocate calorie counting, you don't have to. A calculator can tell you so much about your food choices. Reasonable amounts, salt content, vitamins, fiber ...

Exercise is often a matter of fitting in what you can. However, you can tweak your intensity, add something at home like videos, walking, dumbells, resistance bands... Even just adding intensity to the things you already do, like playing with the kids.

Keep in touch. The folks here are more than happy to help you work this out.

[Pita09]

I agree with Susan B that you have to count your calories. You need to weigh/measure your food and enter it in a calorie calculator like Fitday (it's free) and find out what exactly you are eating. Then you will have a much better understanding on how to tweak your plan to get the weight-loss moving.

[Sunnigummi]

I second the calorie counting. That was the first thought that crossed my mind when I read your diet. It's a good start, that's for sure. You're definitely making a major overhaul to your diet, which is good. My second thought was "buy a scale." I weigh regularly and I find that helps me stay on track. It also helps to know your starting point, although some may say that measuring (clothing getting loose, using a measuring tape to see a drop in inches) is better than weighing. I do both - weigh and measure - to get an accurate picture of what's going on with me.

Good luck!

[Naama]

Another question - have you had your thyroid checked? I think that even mild hypothyroidsm (sp?) can make it almost impossible to lose weight ...

[rockinrobin]

Sounds to me as though you've definitely improved your diet. BUT, it's most likely that you're still not creating that all important calorie DEFICIT. We can take in too many calories eating healthy foods too. So I agree with the others - start tracking those calories. Stay within a calorie budget and watch those pounds melt away.

[pintobean]

Great advice here and I also recommend calorie counting. Also, invest in a good quality food scale. It will help you measure and portion out food accurately. Not to mention, if you're eating soy sauce, rice every day it can make you retain water. At least, it does for me. Do try experimenting with different whole grains as a side dish.

You mentioned, you cannot eat your serving. Maybe, it is possible, you are not eating enough? Body could be going in starvation?

How many meals do you eat per day? From your post, it seemed you're only doing 3 meals/day. Another idea is to break it down to several small meals if you can - B/S/L/S/D or B/S/L/D...you'll have to try different things for few weeks to figure out what works for you!

Are you eating some form of protein with each meal?

HTH

[luvja]

You have already recieved some fabulous advice, but I second the "thyroid" thing. I would get it looked at if I were you.
Counting calories may also work for you. I think I'm one of the few people on this site who has never counted a calorie.
Good luck, and stick around for future advice and support.

[Jacquie668]

I really valued calorie counting and measuring when I started out. For me I needed to learn a few things and I now pay attention to my calories, but I moved away from counting every calorie and such. I think though that whatever works for you works for you and finding out what works and what doesn't is an important learning curve.

Agree to get everything checked out. I mean your doctor can give you advice as well perhaps on things you never considered. I myself had a full checkup last Feb and found out a lot of things lol. It has helped me navigate through my journey and continues to do so.

I like what luvja said, I may have counted at the beginning but I learned that after awhile that made me feel like I was on a diet and not living my life. I think it is important to find out what works for you, everyone is different.

Welcome and good luck with your goals!

[ladypeanutj]

The advice you have gotten is great.

I am not a calorie counter. (Probably why my weight loss is quite slow but it works for me) I did count calories for around two weeks though and found I was not eating enough. Yes you heard that correctly.

Browse the boards and you will here about this a lot. I had switched over to all lean meats and whole foods and I was not intaking enough calories to support my system. There is a fine balance between losing and starving. I was also very tired and lethargic from not eating enough.

I asked the board they gave me some advice on how to increase my calories without increasing the junk and I am losing once again.

Browse the boards alot. This place is ssssoooo supportive. I feel like I have a whole team on my side now

Good Luck to you.

[QuilterInVA]

You say you can't eat your portion, but have you actually weighed those portions? I also don't see enough protein, milk, healthy fat and fruits. I use www.livingstrong.com/dailyplate to track my calories. It's free and has a huge database of foods and brand name foods. Take a look at www.mypyramid.com to get an idea of a healthy diet and how much you should be eating to lose weight. Exercise can be done at home, you don't need fancy equipment or a gym. You can get exercise videos at the library and try different ones to see what you like. You could take the children for a walk every day. Walking is great exercise.

[Tealeaf]

I third (or is it fourth or fifth or sixth?) the calorie counting with food scale idea. I was personally shocked how little a true portion of cereal is. It sure doesn't look like much in the larger bowls I used to use.

Last week I re-started strict calorie counting again, to combat the slow but terrible road to regaining all I'd lost. I weight everything that doesn't come in a single serve package with the calories listed. I track EVERYTHING I put in my mouth, even the "just a nibble" that I didn't think was going to be a problem, but truly was.

I also recomend The Daily Plate. They have a huge data base, and the software "tells" you how many more calories you can eat and still hit your goal.

Good luck, and I hope this helps!

[annie175]

Definitely calorie count. Eat protein for breakfast instead of carbs.

[rachinma]

I no longer calorie count. But I *had* to in the beginning. I had no idea how much I was eating. I found that I was either eating way too few calories or way too many. I used The Daily Plate to figure out what a 1400 calorie day really looked like and then tweaked from there.

Now, I just eat sort of intuitively and work out 5-6x a week. I do 3 hours of cardio and 2 hours of strength training. This creates the caloric deficit I need to lose weight.

So, yeah: get a scale and start calorie counting. I think I may have heard that somewhere before...

Good luck!

[tubbyjen]

thank you all for your comments. to answer some questions. yes i have had my thyroid checked. and yes we do have protein with every meal. mostly white meats, but the soy sauce is high in protein which is why we use it with our rice. when we don't have meat as a main dish we will add low fat refried beans. i havent gone as far as getting the scale yet, but i do count my calories. i am only eating 3 meals a day, but i have tried eating 5 smaller meals. my nutritionist had me try it for a few months, but it was making me sick eating that much. i eat as much of a full serving as i can, but when my stomach starts to ache i have to stop eating. we decided together that it was a bad idea for me to eat the smaller meals.

i will try the food scale and let you know how it works. thank you all!