Welcome, I am also a new member. I have a few comments to make. First you should say you "can't" exercise. There are many exercises out there that would not bother your back especially if you took it easy, walking, swimming, and biking are examples. Exercise might even help your back problem if you strength your core muscles. Second, you hit one of you main problems on the head, a lack of will power. When you have a craving you need to just ask yourself which do I want more this junk food or a healthy life.

Good luck and please report back your success.

yes i think you are right about the cycling- when i injured my hip, i was told by my physio to cycle because it would stengthen my gluts and lower back muscles to help support it. Pilates is also supposed to be good for supporting back injuries, but you'd have to talk to the instructor to check that first :)

It is easy to tell yourself that you have messed it all up and why even try? So you just fall back into your old eating patterns. I have done that so many times. But, I have learned that one meal or day isn't going to destroy everything I am working for and that I can get back on track. And I believe that you can do it, too. :D

Just walk as long as you feel comfortable and not having pain. I don't want to see you hurt yourself, but often gentle exercise will improve a sore back or other aches or pains. Start out with fifteen minutes or so. A nice walk with your doggy would be great. Then, try another in the evening. As you begin to lose a little and feel better, and as long as your back is okay, slowly, steadily increase your time and speed. If you have pain, see your doctor and talk to him or her about the best way to start a walking or exercise program with your particular health concerns. :D

that is just the cutest idea i have ever heard!! i think im gonna start doing that when i just can't get my mind off of snacking :)

Hi fellow Portuguese! :) I’ve read your posts and, although I don’t have anything useful to say (partly because other users have already expressed a lot of their knowledge regarding safe weigh loss and those are really some wonderful pieces of advice), I just want to say that I understand what you’re going through, not only because I’ve had people try to deter me from dieting (my mother, for example), but also because I’m Portuguese as well and I know how tricky it is to be fit with our kind of gastronomy.
Personally, my weight loss methods aren’t exactly disciplined. I’m too lazy to exercise regularly and counting calories can be too big of a hassle when you have people constantly pester you about it, so I have nothing to share on this. However, you say you often crave for chocolate, cakes and things like that, which I assume means that you like to nibble, right? So, instead of cutting all snacks out of your food plan, why don’t you simply replace them with low-calorie alternatives? I’m not talking about veggies or fruits or those ghastly diet bars that taste like something that a bird would eat – those barely feel like “proper food” to me. What I’m talking about are things like jelly, Dietorelle sweets (SO good!), Coca-Cola/Fanta Zero, “tortitas de maiz”, etc., which is pretty much like delicious junk food, only without the hundreds of calories. :D
Assuming you live in Portugal, it’s very easy to find stuff like this. Just head to places like Pingo-Doce and Pão de Açúcar and wonder around the diet food sections. There’s so much to find!
Changing topics; don’t be so hard on you. There isn’t one single annoying kilo you gained that you won’t be able to lose. Everything’s mutable, so don’t rush, don’t get paranoid and try to stay optimistic. It’s easy to have all kinds of negative thoughts about ourselves when we’re fat, just because we feel ugly and self-conscious, so whenever you’re down, just put some happy tune on blast and try to imagine yourself as the person you’d like to be. That always worked for me, so it might work for you as well.
Bye. :)

Hii,
I'm pretty new here too and I don't really have much to say because I basically agree with all the other posts. I did just want to mention that everyone has their off days but don't be too hard on yourself, instead of looking at is as a failure, take it as a slight bump in the road and continue on/over it the next day.

Also, when you are feeling defeated I think it would really help to come to the site and either make a post and talk with people for encouragement or even go to the goal photo albums and look at the pictures.

Those are what really inspired me to put all my effort into losing weight this time, and although I have just re-started, I can tell I am more determined than ever. Before I came across this site, I was at the point where I felt like it was hopeless and that there was no way i could ever "look good". But I was proven wrong when I looked through the goal photo albums. Now I believe that it can be done and although it will take a long time and a lot of hard work, it IS possible.

This is my calorie intake everyday since late July. Spot the bumps :D

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w...host/bumps.jpg

My husband is Portuguese, so I can identify with the "food culture." Holidays can be dangerous! ;)

It sounds like it might be easier for you if you do things in small steps. It's so much harder when you try to do everything at once! Given your age and what your weight is (14st 8lb = 204lbs I think) you could probably lose eating 1700-1800 calories per day. You might lose slower, but if that's easier for you, why not start there? Just try to add a new healthy habit every week or two. As these habits are added together you'll see more progress and it won't seem as overwhelming. For instance, one week you could try to drink more water, the next week cut back on sugary drinks (try substituting unsweetened tea, fizzy water, etc.), then you could try setting a "curfew" on eating another week (say, no eating after 9pm), you get the idea. Oh, and it might be easier to go to bed earlier if you continue having problems with night eating. I had to do this for a few months to keep from snacking too late at night.

Try to find things other then food that make you happy and focus on those. This helped me a lot. I started a new hobby to keep my mind off of food, or I'll read one of my favorite books.

Don't be so hard on yourself! You can do this. It just takes awhile to "reprogram" yourself and your habits. You can't expect to have perfect eating habits overnight. It just doesn't work that way. Just make small changes slowly and you'll get there. If you have a bad day, then continue on the next, don't use it as an excuse to binge. Keep posting here on 3fc, we're here for you! :hug: