[SeventeenTheStar]

I'm wondering what diet/lifestyle changes came particularly easy to everyone. Maybe there was something you thought would be difficult to give up, or to start doing, only to find that it was actually much easier than you anticipated.

For me, it was cutting out alcohol. In a college setting, it's hard not to get wrapped up in the weekend, er, extracurriculars, but since I decided to get to a healthier weight, I found that giving up alcohol was pretty simple. I still have a good time on the weekends without it.

How about you? Maybe we can inspire each other to pick up some stealthily easy habits!

[xgemziex]

I think for me it was chocolate and lots of it, I love the stuff but once I stopped having it so much I found I stopped craving it a lot :S All in moderation I guess x

[danni]

Once I started eating healthy foods I didn't feel like I was giving up anything. I'm so busy eating fruit and veggies that they seem like treats. I also had to give up the beer and that was what took me 2 months of starting and giving up. But once I did I soon found that it wasn't that hard after all.

The exercise was hard at first - but I worked on that several weeks before I started the new eating plan and slowly my whole lifestyle has changed.

I did have 2 beers this weekend when I went out to dinner - but it didn't start a desire to slide back to drinking again.

I think that the best advice I could give someone is work on a plan and don't give up - everyday I try to find a new healthy meal to eat and a new way to add more movement to my life.

Now after 2 months it has become a fun game I play - how can I improve today?

Just replace bad stuff with better choices ! Good Luck!!!

[tkm256]

I thought it would be really difficult to lower my calories from "maintenance" to "having another go at it," but my hunger has significantly decreased lately. I think it has something to do with the changes to my work schedule--I don't have to get up as early so there's one less snack per day (and I get more sleep, and we all know sleepy=cravings).

[kellost]

Cutting out soda was really pretty easy. I drank way too much of it, and it was just empty calories. Actually I made a goal to hardly ever "drink" my calories. So it's ice tea, hot tea and water mainly for me. Once in awhile I'll do a 25 cal hot cocoa or a glass of wine when I'm out. But cutting out those empty beverage calories was an easy way to start losing for me.

[xgemziex]

Oh I agree with kellost too! The amount of fizzy drinks I used to drink was unbeleivable! && It also stopped me getting so bloated cutting it out too I've found a new love for tea now haha x

[Ilene]

As I was readying the heading of this thread I thought I didn't have anything to share because I've been on a «plan» for so long I can exercise, I can eat well, although too much of the good foods... BUT when you mentionned alcohol, I thought it is the same for me. I used to have a glass of wine nightly and now I have tea and plenty of it without remorse...In hind sight, wine was quite easy to give up

[maenad]

Alcohol!!! It is a weekly struggle to not drink while my friends drink.


*edit* sorry i thought you said hardest! BahaHAHa!

The hardest for me is alcohol (like 100% all alcohol) but the easiest has been Beer. I have never missed it!

[Morgan03]

Regular soda. I always hated diet coke and diet Pepsi, but once I discovered others that taste way better (Dr. Pepper, A&W root beer, etc) I never looked back. I'd like to eventually give soda up all together, because I really don't think artificial sweeteners are very safe, but I'm probably going to hold off until the weight loss is complete. I'm trying to drink more water and tea anyway.

[Ilene]

I just remembered something else I gave up when Morgan mentionned sweetners... I gave up sweetners too about a year ago and have never looked back...

It threads like this, that make me think, make me realise how much I have changed in the last 20+ years... In a good way of course

[fosterfam]

For me I think it was Dr. Pepper. I make so many great tasting healthy concoctions in my Vitamix along with enjoying a variety of tea's that it doesn't bother me to not have soft drinks now. I honestly thought that being with out D.P. would be the end of my happiness, lol! Silly me... I am loving the way I feel! I wake up before my alarm goes off and get out of bed without the fuzzy head feeling and have pretty good energy throughout the day so it is worth it and then some.

Pam