What hasn't worked?
 

Anything (except for "Making The Cut") that promised results too soon. Anything but counting calories and exercising.

1) Hydroxycut
2) The Zone
3) South Beach
4) The low to no carb diet

~choirgirl~

Slim fast!

What didn't work for me...this list is going to get loooong ;)

- calorie counting
- apple cider vinegar
- iodase patches
- gift diet
- elimination diet
- dissociate diet
- food intolerances diet
- kousmine diet
- linfo massages
- electrostimulator
- various creams and pills...
- vegetarian diet
- ww diet

Medifast and Atkins are the recent 2 that come to mind. Medifast tasted like crap and Atkins was too restrictive.

Okay, I've been on many supplements and some would work for awhile but as soon as I went off I gained the weight back. When my husband and I were on South Beach I loved it I ate all the food he cooked and still lost weight, it did work but again it is a LOT of work and I'm not willing to make the time for the recipes and my husband went and got the lapband and lost over a hundred pounds.

I don't want to have surgery to lose weight I just want to eat better I think my biggest problem is making the time to eat better, if I had a chef to cook for me I would be skinny.. LOL.

Simply they need to make good food more easily accessible, If they had a South Beach or Weight Watchers fast food place or something along this line most of us probably wouldn't have a weight problem. Just my 2 cents

EMW - I personally don't think it takes a lot of time to eat better. I don't eat fast food (unless you count Chipotle) but there are some decent options out there.

I cook a couple hours per week, if that. I make batches of food and eat leftovers. I microwave frozen veggies. It honestly doesn't take a lot of time to eat better, but if you aren't used to it, it might be something you have to learn to do.

Also, I know people are busy but is it worth it to your health to figure out how to make easy, quick healthy meals?

I was just saying I would like better food to be available like fast food is so I would not have to prepare it on my own, that's what I think would help all of us.

What DIDN'T work for me:
- Doctor's Quick Weight loss program, lost weight all right but gained it right back
- Slim fast
- Dexatrim
- any "diet" that was too low calorie or banned any particular food group
- failure to exercise along with the diet
- failure to see the "diet" as a long term lifestyle change

What has worked: Calorie counting with moderate healthy eating that doesn't outlaw any particular food - I just need to stay within my calorie "budget". That, and daily exercise.

I buy bagged salads, nuke fresh or frozen veggies and cook lean proteins in bulk on the weekend to re-heat and make into various meal combinations during the week. I pack my lunch every day. If you plan for it, it doesn't take any more time to make the healthy food than the crap. I can have something ready in less time than take-out. You DO have to plan, though.

WW
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Weight Loss Clinic
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Phentermine
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LA Weight Loss
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South Beach
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Ok, I have finally figured out that WW does not work for me! I am so slow! I had some success with SB but eventually put the weight back on. I have not been able to lose more than 10 lbs for 13 years (I need to lose at least 50--I am 5'3 & weigh 188) I think the flexibility gave me too much freedom/permission to eat what I want. I am now following Biggest Loser 30 Day Jump Start. I am eating the foods they suggest (and finding some new and interesting foods I enjoy) and following the exercise program too. I like it because it is very easy & manageable and builds more time for cardio and more difficult weight training.

*Dexatrim
*Slim Fast
*100 calorie packs of junk food (sugar/refined carbs don't agree with me)
*Sugar free chocolates (if I'm having a bad day, they trigger cravings)
*Fat Smash Diet (I didn't want to see another bean or grain of brown rice by day three)

*Apple Cider Vinegar (I didn't know I was supposed to drink it with water! I had serious cramping and other effects ;) while I was drinking it STRAIGHT)

* Metabolife (I lost weight, but as soon as I stopped taking it I gained it all back! Plus, I would be weak and woozy because I didn't have an appetite and would not eat all day).

I am currently doing South Beach, and it's working - plus I feel like I can stick with this way of eating for life, because I love to cook, love to eat, and found foods that I can eat that taste good and still stay on plan.

I was successful with weight watchers in the past, but I felt like the flexibility that weight watchers allows was going to get me in trouble this go round.

Atkins didn't work at all for me. I hated the food and didn't lose at all. Awful diet.
Any diet that is too restrictive, like cabbage soup or fasting. I can keep it up for a couple of days, but end up bingeing!

This is a great thread. what didn't work for me:

VLC diets - did lose the weight but it slowed my metabolism and I gained the weight back.

Atkins - did lose the weight but too restrictive and as soon as I started back eating carbs I gained the weight back.

Hydrocut - I've never taken drugs but this had me so wired and my heart beating so fast I stopped. I did lose a few pounds but the side effects were too much for me..

What is working for me is calorie counting and exercising. I write everything down and it's non restrictive and it's a matter of math, calories in vs. calories burned and it works for me the best and most of all it's a lifestyle change not a diet.

For me the issue is whether I can really commit to something or not. I really believe that when I'm committed, I can make something work. So I will not go into detail on all the diets I've tried half-heartedly. :)

But I've learned that the Intuitive Eating approach does not work for me. I need structure, I need a real plan. I LOVE this whole idea and it SHOULD work in theory. Eat what you want, when you want it. Stop when you are satisfied. Well. I ate what I wanted when I wanted, I just had trouble stopping when I was satisfied. I guess I was never satisfied. Now, 25 pounds heavier than I was a year ago when I first tried that out, I am extremely dissatisfied. It just doesn't work for me as a diet plan.

I love Atkins. It is the only diet that has ever worked for me. I gained slowly but steadily on Weight Watchers. I either gain or maintain on counting calories. I am a carb addict, my body cannot process carbs, so Atkins is the only thing that works for me. I'm glad there are people that can eat carbs and still lose weight; I'm not one of them.