for those who have lost quite a bit of weight...what diets actually work? I do not want to sink money into things that do not work. I was thinking south beach but it limits foods too much...... I do not know of any others......

Granted, I haven't lost a lot of weight but it's simple: Eating less and healthier, and exercising more. Of course, you have to find out what works best for your body and go with it. Some have to have more veggies, some more fruit, some less carbs, some more protein, but ALL are less calories and fat. You've lost 44 lbs.... what've you been doing?

Most conventional diets plans work to a greater or lesser extent. However, what you really need to think about is making sustainable changes. From years of yo-yo dieting I've discovered that there's really no point in doing something that's either too restrictive, too costly, too time-consuming or just plain gross as there's no way that you will be able to maintain this. You need to find what works best for you that you can keep at for life and it will be as individual as you are.

Kitty

I'm still far from finished losing weight but I've found that the simplest things are often the best. Calorie counting is really working for me, along with eating a more healthy diet. For me that means limiting sugars and eating complex carbohydrates. I have also increased my protein intake and the amount of vegetables I eat. In terms of volume, I'm eating more now that I ever did!

It also helped when I worked out just how many calories I was supposed to eat for my height and weight . None of that 1200 for everyone nonsense! I never lost before because I was eating too little. I was quite miserable because I though I was doing everything right and didn't get any results.

Exercise is also very important for me. Before my weightloss started I'd never been inside of a gym. Lessons with a trainer helped me a great deal! I'm now doing careful cardio and weight lifting, so I don't aggravate my medical issues. The initial insecurities and feeling like a duck out of water were quickly dispelled.

As everyone said, in the end what diet works is very individual. You seem to have had good success, so you must be doing something right.

MN.

Counting calories is what I have been doing. And of course, incorporating healthy foods and exercise into my life didn't hurt either .

Good luck with your goals.

Hugs
Michelle

Eat less,exercise more. I count calories because if I want something I can eat it. No restrictions. That doesn't mean that I eat junk food all day,because I find it more satisfying to spend my calories on a good, filling meal, that has nutritional value. For excercise I simply use a treadmill most of the time, however occassionaly I use a stair stepper or a bike, I dont belong to a gym but take a gym class at my college. I have a GoWear Fit which is a great motivation.

I am also a calorie counter. I like it because it requires education and preparation and is something I feel is sustainable long-term. It also gives me the power. I learn new things every day about what my body needs, healthier food alternatives, how my body reacts to my nutrition and activity levels, etc. I love it.

By the way, I don't do gyms either. I began walking and then progressed to running. Recently I have also started tennis and swimming. They don't cost anything as there are courts and pools where I live.

I am another calorie counter. I have to count something, calories, Weight Watcher's points, fat grams, just something, so decided on calories as that is really the core issue. To lose weight, you have to burn more calories than you consume. It sounds so simple, but yet is so complex.

I also have to be careful to weigh or measure everything to get an accurate calorie count. I just have no built-in portion control!

I agree with the above post. Calorie counting is very effective. I started with LA weightloss and it is a good program but it basically sets up specific meals with specific calorie combos to eat thoughtout the day. I have lost 37 pounds in 19 weeks.

The most important thing is you need to focus on yourself, you need to educated yourself on what you are putting into your body and what your body can handle. Some have issues with carbs/some sugars/some both, but you have to figure it out for yourself. Also realizing portion size is an eye opener. So weighing and measuring food helps. Exercise is also a main component to weight loss start off slow and building up your endurance and try not to get discouraged. drinking water is a must.

I use a website called the Dailyplate.com and it allows you to imput your calories as well as your exercise and it is free. It is a wonderful tool to assist in weightloss. If you dont want to do that get a calorie counting book and log all your food so you have an idea of what you are eating daily.

I'm careful where I spend my money. Spending it on different nutritional systems or advertised diet plans is the last place that I'd put my dime. I'm in this to get healthy, not to make someone else rich.

I invested money in a psychologist and that has been money well spent, it has helped me address the issues behind my eating and I can see my goals more clearly now because of it.

I have spent money on good sneakers, tennis balls/racket, a good supportive exercise bra, some fitness clothes, wrist weights, 5lb dumbells, a pedometer, a calculator for my calories, and a food scale. All money well spent to aid me in my calorie counting and they have all been invaluable tools for me.

It took a million times of hearing it before I believed it too but "Eat less, move more" is the only thing that works.

Let me say upfront that I am anti diet. But with good reason. Here is one of my posts here on the gabriel method forum.

I found Jon Gabriel's book and CD late last year. To me, it is the missing link. I have tried just about everything including many diets, weight watchers, jenny craig, tony ferguson, etc etc. I even had lapband surgery twice many years ago and still have an adjustable band in place but enlarged to the maximum. That is the only way I could keep food down.

There is far too much focus on food and diets and way too little attention paid to the psychological aspects of obesity. Much of what we read is rubbish - losing weight is too hard, you must diet, energy in must be less than energy out, you must be greedy, it's in you genes, you must exercise, if you like a food it must be bad for you, you need to be punished, and on and on.

Jon's book was the first thing I found that made any sense of the whole debate. Obviously, what we are doing about obesity is not working, yet we insist on doing it and we continue looking for the magic pill or gene or protein or discipline - instead of looking into our minds.

I believe Jon has the answer for most of us, if we would take his theories seriously.

While his book is a great source of information, his meditation CD is the key to success, imho. I found it is fabulous, but thought his approach was a little off-beat. So now I also use the ************* guided meditation program as well.

I have to admit that I am completely single minded about the gabriel method.

One thing to watch out for is that the weight loss is not steady - at least not for me and hubby. We drop some, then spend long periods on a plateau. That is when most of us would give up or say that it does not work. Nevertheless, I have dropped 30kgs in a little over 6 months. Hubby is not as dedicated as me but has lost about 15kgs. We both have about 20kgs or so to go and we are happy to be persistent and patient and let it happen. It is no ordeal at all.

We do not "diet" but we have added more healthy foods to our routine. We start the day with fresh lemon juice and several glasses of water, then have Jon's big yoghurt based breakfast most days (including fruit, nuts and ground seeds), a salad or such for lunch and some snacks during the day. We are usually not hungry at night and skip dinner most days, or have something light early.

Our food bill has dropped dramatically and we have very little waste - mostly banana skins and lemon remains.

Love
Marie

IMHO and IMHExperience, I've found that I need a STRUCTURED eating plan. I spent YEARS chasing my psychology "tail" so to speak -- WHY am I fat? WHAT is the psychology of my eating? and so on. I've tried pretty much everything out there.

SO, from what I've found, you've got to change your LIFESTYLE, which for me is two-fold. I have to address my out of control eating AND exercise for better health.

I gave up the "diet" mentality, and I gave up self-loathing, and I gave up perfectionism.

I go to Weight Watchers. They do the calorie counting for me, as I am math challenged. I get a budget of points to spend each day, and some extra ones each week so I can work in treats/meals out/life in general.
I do Bikram's Yoga 4 days a week.

And no matter WHAT anyone who is selling a plan says, it DOES come down to ENERGY IN vs ENERGY OUT. It absolutely does. Whether you want to acknowledge it or not, if you consume more calories than you expend, you WILL GAIN WEIGHT. And the converse is true. HONESTLY...

JMHO

Kira

ditto on the counting. even though I do not keep a food journal now, I used to and it helps tremendously. I eyeball and keep a mental list of my caloric intake. I also like the idea of only a certain time to eat. The less time I spend thinking about food the better off I am. Although I love weight watchers--I was still thinking and obsessing about food way to much. I am doing the fast 5--and have already passed the point I gave up on 3 attempts with ww. You have to find what works for you. I hate the idea of spending money on any plan especially since I have been studying diet and nutrition HARD CORE since I was 14 and dealing with eating disorders. I was learning calorie counting and kept a food journal at 14. Only way I could eat.

I lost a lot of weight from 169 down to 135 in 4 months with alternate day fasting, and a very restrictive diet plan. I kept it off for 2 years. I decided my WOE was too restrictive and I gave up on dieting! And gained it back and 27 more over 6 years. That's a 10 lb gain a year. I wish I would have evaluated my calories sooner. I love healthy food, and was an occasional binger on junk. But I ate way to much healthy food--calories do count!