Nanlee I can relate totally to what you're saying. Sometimes I think what's the point, I'm short and chubby and will always be that way. I will always have to be on some sort of "diet" to keep this weight off....something I'm not sure I'm prepared to do. The other option is giving in and eating whatever you want, but feeling awful in your own skin. I hate that feeling too. So I chose to stay on track and workout to try and fight this battle. Good luck. You're not alone.

I read this somewhere:
Being fat is hard.
Losing weight is hard.
Maintainance is hard.
Pick your hard.

For those of us who don't have metabolisms that naturally keep us thin, it's a life of making smart diet choices and always being mindful of what we put in our mouth.

I'm back also. I won't say how many times I've done IP (it's embarrassing), but I know it works. It's the ONLY thing I have done successfully to lose weight. This is going to be HARD, but I know I can do it. I've made the mistake of not phasing off, so that's why I was never successful in maintaining. Each time I've been on IP, this support group has been a big part of my success. Tomorrow I'm going back to the IP place to start. Once again.

I think the problem in 'taking a break' is that most of the time the break isn't done like one should eat when at Maintenance... it's often a break to eat whatever we freakin' feel like, lol. Which is why there is weight gain after it and not maintaining the weight we took the break at. If one phases off and takes a proper maintenance break, and maintains their weight within a couple pounds due to glycogen restoration, THEN, yes, it can be a good thing if one is feeling diet fatigue. It's not a good thing when it's just an excuse to go wild again and eat like we did before we knew better.
Many have been there and done that... and we have learned from it (I hope )
Liana

I'm back again too! Without a coach as well and trying to figure out how I can maintain my exercise routine and stay on plan. This week I'm keeping my Kick boxing classes and adding extra packets, so hopefully that works.

I'm scheduling my skin removal surgery for next February and I want my body fat to be low so I have a really good end result (I had a gastric bypass in 2001, lost 150 lbs and have managed to keep off 120 through three kids and a marriage).

I'm up 35lbs since I last went off IP three years ago and am looking forward to getting back down into my sweet spot and fitting into my clothes better.

I am restarting this week also. I lost 40lbs and gained back 20 of that. I tried to restart with alternatives, but it didn't work. Three days ago, I went back to my clinic, sat with a coach/nurse and bought IP food. For me, if I don't use my clinic and IP food and stick with my weigh ins, I go off-course. The ladies at my clinic are so kind, yet tough. They are such a great tool for me and what I need to do this. For me, the alternatives and not weighing in at a clinic just didn't work. I'm excited to start again and be active on this blog. I also am doing DietBet, which is SO FUN (and easy money if you are doing IP 100%)!!! Good luck to everyone!

By the way- I just discovered some new IP foods that were introduced after I stopped using them the first time around. First is the apple cinnamon oat meal. It is really good!! The best discovery is the Walden Farms creamers!! I am NOT a fan of Walden Farm products generally. However, the Walden Farms sweet cream is great in coffee or over a microwaved IP brownie...YUM-O!

Hi All, I'm starting over tomorrow for the umpteen time also but I know this works so it just takes commitment on my part which I am ready to do now. Hope this board stays active because this is where we get the accountability. Wont weigh in until next Monday. Lets keep going together.

Hi all, starting over also. look forward to staying on track this time.

Thanks Sunflower40! Really appreciate the encouragement and knowing that others have felt as I do. I guess I finally do get it that there isn't any going back to the way I ate before. This is a new way of life if I want to look and feel as good as I did. In a way it's cool that it is so easy to regain the weight FAST-because you can't really ignore it! Here's to our health!!

Thanks, HereIStand! I guess I never wanted to admit that I wasn't born with the metabolism to be naturally thin, HAHAHAHA!! That somehow something was making me gain weight outside my control...Once I accepted that this is a way of life for me I lightened up about it. It has been an easier week. Appreciate the support! Have a great day!

Hi Happy2bme1, it is very encouraging to see that others have had to start again. My coach was telling me that people have to learn how their bodies can maintain. Makes a lot of sense. She herself has a "tune-up" regularly. In thinking over this whole weight loss thing, it seems to me that after feeling shame for being "not thin" (echoes of years of my relatives always commenting negatively on my weight whenever I saw them) it is heartening to accept that I have the means to silence the echoes simply by adopting a new way to take care of myself aside from binging. Good luck to all of us!

Hi Navydocmom-boy can I relate about the phasing off part. I can't believe how quickly I ballooned back up in all of the old familiar places...simply because I jumped right back into eating whatever I wanted whenever. I do think the Phase 4 is a bit confusing. I need to read the threads for advice (when I get there again haha)
Best of luck!

Welcome back!! Sometimes it is not the end result but the knowledge we gain to Know what to do to redirect when we don't feel comfortable.

I started again on Monday, right now I am using up some extra food packets and will probably go to alternatives when they are gone. I am hoping to be successful and phase off properly. Having surgery in December and would like to be at goal by then........27 lbs. to go.