[Ursus]

I'm in my 30s and weight 375. I have been a yo-yo dieter for many many years and have had major successes but life keeps kicking me in the pants and I return to my old ways.

I am trying again this year and trying new things, like posting to this forum, to help keep me on track and accountable.

I'm not sure what else to say. Everything I can think of just kind of sounds like an excuse for becoming so heavy so I will leave it there for now.

If you have any questions, please let me know.

[Chanticleer]

Hello!

It looks like you've already made some headway - well done! Don't discount what you've already accomplished.

Tell us a little more. What plan are you using? What would you like to get out of this site? There are accountability threads, challenge threads, support for different medical conditions, etc.

There's some great support in the active threads all over the site, and some awesome information even in the old threads. I recommend looking at both.

[Ursus]

I am on a low carb diet. Call it keto or paleo or whatever you want but it's worked for me in the past. The reason I stopped doing that diet 4 years ago was because I increased my tea and coffee without really increasing my water much. For those of you in the know, you can probably guess what happened. I got a kidney stone. I was immediately given the advice to go back on carbs like I had chronic kidney stones. This was terrible advice. So I am taking a magnesium supplement this time around and limiting myself to 1 cup of tea or coffee a day while increasing my water.

I really don't know what I expect from this site. I have looked around the threads and I'm not really sure what to do at this point. I keep seeing people doing massive eating challenges who are thin and I keep getting the same advice:
You can't lower your calories too low or you go to starvation mode and you won't be able to metabolize anything.
You can't gain muscle on a calorie deficiency.
You can't lose weight while bulking.

You know what I've been finding out... It's all BS. All of it. I was 425 (my worst weight ever!) a couple months ago. You know what I can't do?
I can't count calories. (because as soon as I mess up, I give up)
I can't restrict my favorite foods without having a close replacement (because if I feel guilty about having it, I get hard on myself and give up)
I can't ignore food (because then I lose track of what I am supposed to be eating)
I can't listen to anymore advice that tells me all the negatives of everything. (It's too depressing and most of it I have found with me to be inaccurate)
I can't give up. (I have a family that needs me at my best. They need me as an asset, not a burden.)

Sorry I'm kind of ranting here. I just get so frustrated some times and I often don't know what to do about it. So instead of turning to food for comfort, I am turning to the internet. Not really for guidance but for information. I know that my body doesn't come with an owner's manual (I would have already read it by now.) But I do know that my body needs to heal and I am researching; what does my body need, what doesn't it need, what are the nutrients available, how do they affect me and my ability to lose weight. I am trying to tune myself to my body and learn from it instead of everyone else. They don't know me or how my body works. Neither do I really.... but I am the only one who has a shot at understanding it.

I should probably cut this post off there. Again, sorry for kind of going off on you but.... no, no excuses. I'm just sorry. Please, have a good evening and good days ahead.

[Chanticleer]

I'm glad you have a plan that you seem to like and that has worked for you. That's a good first step. And staying hydrated is important for health and very helpful for weight loss, so drinking more water is a great goal.

The advice most people give for how to lose weight is often the advice that has worked for them. Keep in mind that it may or may not work for you - that doesn't mean it's bad advice or that it's negative, just that they have a different body. But that's what most people know best: what has worked for them. That's very normal. It can help to listen to interesting/new advice, consider it for a while, and either decide to try it, or not try it, or file it away for possible use later. There is some geniunely bad info on weight loss on the internet, but you won't get a lot of that here (not that I've seen) - it more comes down to individual differences.

It sounds like you might be feeling a bit overwhelmed with everything you have to do. This, too, is normal. One thing that may help is taking it one step at a time. Set smaller, manageable goals. For example, I needed to lose ~100 lbs from my high weight, but that seemed crazy hard. So, I break it down into smaller goals. It's easier to lose 6 lbs 16 times than it is to lose 100. Same with eating or exercise changes. Then you can achieve a bunch of goals to bolster confidence. Now, again, this may not fit you to a T - for example, I go cold turkey with eating. I just can't do it gradually. But that's just me.

Not wanting guidance is absolutely fine. You'll find a lot of information here and some really good support if you want it. Feel free to try or not try the ideas you find on this site. Or to try and decide you don't like it or it doesn't work, and then stop. Pretty much everyone I've seen here isn't combative or pushy - they offer up information and support.

Ranting a little here is just fine. A lot of us don't have many people in our everyday lives who get this stuff at all. We all do some venting now and again. There's usually good support for that, too.

Chances are, you can absolutely lose the weight you want to lose. It will take a lot of time, patience, and effort, but you can do it. I know your family is a big driving force for you, and that's great, but most times the best reasons to lose weight and keep it off are intrinsic.

Good luck, and I hope this site is helpful to you!

[kaya35]

Welcome to 3fc forum