So I was hoping to get some feedback from some of you experienced dieters and maintainers.... I've been pretty successful losing weight over the past couple months, but every few weeks I seem to just lose it! I just get fed up with paying attention to every bite I eat and tracking my calories and skipping the cookies etc. I just rebel and find myself pigging out and no longer on plan. Usually it's just for a meal or a day, but it's always hard to get back on plan.
It makes me worried about how I will ever be able to maintain a loss! If I get fed up after two months, how will I be able to do it for years? For a lifetime?
So, does it get easier over time? Or do you still get fed up and frustrated? Does all the tracking and eating good foods and worrying about what you're going to eat at the restaurant tomorrow or how you're going to get through the meeting tomorrow without eating a donut get easier over time?
Yes and no. The way I eat has become habit, and in that sense it is easier. But I do still get frustrated sometimes and wish I could "eat like I used to." Then I remember how miserable I was when I was eating like that and it's less tempting.
My advice would be, if you feel like you are currently on a plan you don't think you can stick with for life, you need to change your plan. If you don't like the food you are eating, then find a (healthy) way to incorporate more foods you like. Allow a planned treat once a week and it makes it easier to skip the treats the rest of the week, since you know you have one coming.
It is different for everyone. Having planned weekly treats and cooking healthy foods I love works for me, but of course junk food is still a constant temptation and I do have to think about what I am eating all the time. When I slip up, I gain some weight, and it is back to counting calories until the pounds come back off. Some maintainers weigh, measure, and record every bite they eat all the time.
I think it gets easier over time, but it definitely doesn't get easy, if that makes any sense. I get sick of dieting too and constantly watching what I eat and not getting to have all the yummy stuff all the time like I used to, but then, like jessica said, I remember how miserable I used to be and how I would have done practically anything then to be at where I am now. That thought SOMETIMES helps me avoid falling off track. It's also a learning experience. Lately, I fall off track less frequently than I used to, and not as badly as I used to, because I realize how hard it is to get back on track after a big binge, and how hard it is to take off the couple of pounds that I put back on. I also still allow myself one or two cheat meals a week, they were never intended to be blow-outs but just restaurant meals where I could order what I wanted, like a cobb or fajiata salad. When I was actively losing, I was really careful not to overdo and then once I hit goal I started going overboard thinking that every restaurant meal was license to indulge. Now I am back to being careful even at restaurants, because it's just not worth it to overeat.
I hope this helps!
Pam
I do think it's important to ask yourself some questions:
- why do you go OFF plan initially?
- are you doing a plan you really CAN follow consistently over time?
We all have slip ups and it can be tough to recover. So, it seems like it makes sense to try to minimize when we go off plan to begin with...
As for the easier or harder question... For me what does get easier is knowing WHAT to do and how I CAN make it work for your life. However, sometimes the actual doing can be trickier. I tend to go off plan when under stress and have to figure out how to manage that...
I still fight going headfirst into trigger foods if I'm upset or very very tired, but it's so much less frequent over the years. I don't have "planned treats" except a once-a-week glass of wine or some extra fruit. I think because of this, I'm hypersensitive to excess sugar, salt and fats, and really feel PAIN if I eat too much off plan. Pain is a great reinforcement, so I really get back on quickly. If eating crappy food didn't actually make me sick, I'm not sure it would be as easy to stay on the straight and narrow.
The other huge motivator is clothes. I recently started a new job for which I needed an entirely new wardrobe of business attire. I literally cannot afford to gain more than two pounds. That's about a size for me around the waist.
So I'm not sure I'd say it get easier, but I'm used to it and like the results. I never want to go back...so I live the lifestyle!
Easier or harder. Hmmm. If you ask me on two different days, you'll get two different answers.
Knowing what to do is easier. Foods to get. Good habits. Writing stuff down. Exercise. And, yeah, just how far you can push it before you have to work the weight management thing hard again.
What gets harder, at least sometimes is the mental game. As time passes, I forget how hard it was to be morbidly obese. It just isn't my daily experience anymore, and I have to be reminded. I also forget how weight loss with hunger and denial is unpleasant and uncomfortable. I become less committed to making the good choices, and do the 'just this once' thing more often. Then the fat pants get tight, and I remember why I turn down the cookies again. Sigh.
But it really doesn't matter if it is hard, because the alternative is really awful. So I do it. People do harder and more unpleasant things than this every day, and if this is my lot, well, so be it.
And if you figure that donut thing out, let me know, because I could really use the tip.
To me it really hasn't gotten easier. I have to remind myself daily why I lost the weight and why it is necessary for me to keep it off. Knowing what foods to keep available helps, but there are still temptations around to overeat even on healthy foods.
If my scale goes up or my clothes get tight, it's automatically time to kick it back into losing mode and take it off. Actually I've had to do this many times, but I'm willing to do it.
I guess the only thing that is easier now, is I always think about what I'm eating and how it will affect my weight. I never just eat it and don't care.
I guess the only thing that is easier now, is I always think about what I'm eating and how it will affect my weight. I never just eat it and don't care.
And that's why we are maintainers!
About the donuts...just develop a wheat or gluten intolerance It makes it VERY easy to ignore the donuts and cookies. Remember, you are allergic to grease, sugar and empty starches...they make you break out in FAT!
About the donuts...just develop a wheat or gluten intolerance It makes it VERY easy to ignore the donuts and cookies. Remember, you are allergic to grease, sugar and empty starches...they make you break out in FAT!
Mel
Love that! My "allergies" include processed foods, high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, MSG, white pasta, white rice, and enriched and bleached flour!
Love that! My "allergies" include processed foods, high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, MSG, white pasta, white rice, and enriched and bleached flour!
I don't know if I could ever develop an allergy to those things! LOL I'll sure try, though!
Easier or Harder?
I get sick of dieting too and constantly watching what I eat and not getting to have all the yummy stuff all the time like I used to, but then, like jessica said, I remember how miserable I used to be and how I would have done practically anything then to be at where I am now. That thought SOMETIMES helps me avoid falling off track. It's also a learning experience. Lately, I fall off track less frequently than I used to, and not as badly as I used to, because I realize how hard it is to get back on track after a big binge, and how hard it is to take off the couple of pounds that I put back on. I also still allow myself one or two cheat meals a week, they were never intended to be blow-outs but just restaurant meals where I could order what I wanted, like a cobb or fajiata salad. When I was actively losing, I was really careful not to overdo and then once I hit goal I started going overboard thinking that every restaurant meal was license to indulge. Now I am back to being careful even at restaurants, because it's just not worth it to overeat.
