Hi,

My name's Alicia. I joined this site because I desperately want to lose weight. I have been married for 5 years and have a 1 year old son. I want to be a sexy wife for my husband and a healthy energetic mom for my son. My husband tells me that he thinks I'm sexy but I look in the mirror and wonder why because all I can see is fat, and stretch marks, and cellulite.

I started this journey in May 2012 shortly after having my son. I developed gestational diabetes while pregnant with him and was told that I would likely develop type 2 diabetes within 5 years if I didn't change my lifestyle. I also tried to conceive for 2 years before success probably due to my weight.

I have lost 16 pounds so far and mostly because I have become a more active person. I kickbox almost every day, I'm fairly active with my son going to parks and gymnastics, and taking walks or doing zumba in the evenings. I love working out! I feel great afterward, and it gives me energy.

My issue is dieting. I'm a horrible dieter. I love to eat. I love healthy food and I love unhealthy food. I try to eat healthy all the time but I don't have the willpower to say no to sodas and sugary treats. It's my downfall. I have tried over and over. I tell myself, "Just this once and no more," or "I've done good all day, this one treat won't hurt," or "I need more energy and a soda would taste so great." I'm sick of it. I'm desperate to lose weight, but I'm stuck in a mental battle with myself and I'm not sure how to conquer it. I need help.

Alicia - first of all, you're doing great! You've lost some weight and you're moving your body. Everything's going in the right direction!

Why not choose one thing to eliminate from your diet? Just one thing, and shoot for 30 days without it. They say it takes 30 days to break a habit. Maybe one sugary treat that is a particular source of trouble for you? Then, when you've done that, try making another small change in your diet.

I read a book a year or so ago called "Diet Rehab." Its ideas were similar to this. He had people adding so-called "good" foods to their diet and then after they'd added so many per day for a couple of weeks he had them removing "bad" foods. (it's hard for me to write this because I don't believe in "good" or "bad" foods - but just throwing it out there because you might find it an interesting idea) You could probably google "Diet Rehab" to learn more.

Be proud of what you've done so far, and keep up the good work!

For me it's the savory and greasy I love, not the sugary. I have pretty much sworn off of fries but instead of saying I can't have them I say I could have them, but then I'd have to eat celery for the rest of the day and I don't want to do that so I don't have the fries. Just another way of looking at it. I am a calorie counter but for me no food is off limit, it just has to be in limited quantities or at least homemade. I buy those tiny bags of chips and only have them when I can stay on plan inspite of eating them.

Welcome to the forum! I hope you find your inspiration and good job so far! Remember, it is all about creating a calorie deficit so the amount you're working out may allow for a treat from time to time. It doesn't have to be a Never Again food, just a Limit It food. That's my take.

Welcome! I had the most success cutting out sweets back when I planned when I would have my next one. Like whenever I grocery shopped, I knew I was gonna get a york peppermint patty. Since I knew it was coming in the next few days, I did not need chocolate during the week.

It is hard with these sweets because once you have them, you tend to crave more (in my experience, anyway). So while it is not good to restrict yourself completely, once you eat it you might want more. So I totally get your struggle and I struggle with it as well

The other thing that I would say is that you want to be sexy for your husband (who thinks you are sexy already!) and energetic for your child (and it sounds like you are active)...we are wired to put others first, but what do you want for you in this journey?

Welcome and good luck on your journey!!

Thanks for all the welcomes and suggestions!

What I personally want out of this is to look great in whatever clothes I want to buy and increase my self-confidence. Shopping is a stressful thing for me right now. I love fashion and cute clothes, but I don't feel that I look good in them so I tend to resort to the usual t-shirt and jeans or capris. I'm working hard to get there!

Welcome!

First suggestion. Quit dieting! When you go ON a diet, it means eventually you will go OFF!

A few things I believe.

It's a lifestyle change.
No food is off limits.
Choose wisely!
I never say I CAN'T have a food, I simply say I DON'T want it at this time.
That gives me control, and the option.
Plan.
Plan some more.
Track your food, this is important. Does not matter how you do it, just do it.
Planning and tracking keep us from mindless eating, this does get easier with time.
Weight loss is done in the kitchen.
Fitness is done through working out.
Both are important.
I get grumpy, without my workouts.
Portion control and serving size are important.
Read labels, weigh, measure.
If I remember correctly, a can of Campbells tomato soup, if prepared according to the label, has 2 1/2 servings! The whole can is not a serving. Anyone with a handy can, feel free to correct me on this one.
Healthy food can be tasty!
For breakfast this morning, I had 3 slices of turkey bacon on 2 slices of Sara Lee 45 calorie whole grain bread with a bunch of spinach leaves and tomato slices. It was yummy!
It takes time, a lot of time at first, to learn about food, to find and or create recipes. Get creative! Try new stuff!
Another reason planning and tracking are important, is it will help you figure out how certain foods affect your body. So be sure, while you're tracking your food, you also track, mood, hunger levels, were you satisfied, or not? And so on.
For instance, I am a lifetime WW member. They are big on fruit and veggies. That is good, however over time, I have figured out that me and fruit, don't mix well. I like it, however, I can eat an apple or banana or orange for a snack when I'm hungry, 30 minutes later, my blood sugar is whacked out and I'm more ravenous than a mama grizzly on her first day out of hibernation.

Therefore, I don't eat a lot of fruit. But I can eat veggies by the truckload! And protein is my friend! Currently, I'm on a fat free cottage cheese in the morning, and a boiled egg in the afternoon, for snacks.

This will change. Most likely next will be rice cakes with a bit of peanut butter in the morning, tuna packets in the afternoon.

It just varies with my mood.

Ok, rambling over!