Hi everyone -

I was getting extremely frustrated by the fact that I was eating the "right things," but the scale just wasn't budging. Not going up or down, just staying the same. I am still doing bootcamp, which is about 500 times the amount of exercise I was doing before, but still, nothing.

I only lost about 5 pounds during the first 2 weeks, and 6 or so weeks in I was still only at 9.

I decided to count my calories, and realized that I was averaging only about 900-1000 a day - far too little for my 5'7", pretty active self. I know I posted before about not eating enough calories.

I think what happened is that I had been eating so much processed junk, and not nearly enough veggies, pre SBD. When I changed my lifestyle I obviously incorporated a ton more veggies, so I was probably eating the same VOLUME of food, but the calorie count was much less.

So, I started splurging. I had a horrible weekend of eating - I was ashamed of myself because I knew exactly what I was doing. I was traveling with coworkers, and I was just eating junk - too much wine, cheesecake, potato skins..........and WOW did I ever pay the price. I woke up with the worst stomach cramps. I absolutely DREADED getting on the scale when I got back home. But guess what? Yep, I was down a 1/2 pound . First time that had happened in weeks.

So, this past weekend I made the decision to go back to WW. By counting points, I can better track my calories, and make sure that I'm eating enough. I'm still sticking to a lot of my "SBD ways," with mostly whole grains, lots of veggies, etc. But, I have also added Subway sandwiches back in to my life, which makes me smile. I missed those. I was told that their whole wheat isn't really whole wheat, so my Type A self avoided them like the plague, but they are healthier than the average fast food, and easy to do while traveling, and I just plain like them.

I'm still struggling a bit - despite my best intentions yesterday, I ended the day short by 9 points, which means I only had roughly 900 calories (again), but was right on the day before. I'm also happy to report that my scale says I'm down 3 pounds since Friday morning, so maybe I'm just better suited to a WW / SB combo.

If you got this far, thanks. Hope I'm still welcome to read here, despite being a SBD failure!

KSE! NO your not a failure! Your human!

I've missed you! Wondered where you'd gone!

You need to definately eat more! And I know the frustration, I've been holding steady at 181 for MONTHS! GGRRR, I'll gain, then lose, but pretty much stay at 181!

Your always welcome to not only read, but participate in the forums!!!!

Thanks Loriann - I'm at that dreaded 181 now too, so maybe we can bust through it together!

I've seen better results for myself since I started doing a SBD/WW Hybrid. I follow SBD but track with WW points. SBD is the primary plan but I use the WW points to make sure I'm eating enough/not to much since I'm pretty terrible about sensing when to stop eating. I struggle so on eating because it tastes good not because I'm hungry so tracking helps me compensate for that issue.

My results just doing the SBD plan was similar to yours, I just LOVED the plan and how well I felt but I was loosing so slowly that I didn't think I could stick to it. When I added in the points, immediately I saw a difference.

I bet you win! I can't seem to budge the scale, if I do it stops at 178! my body seems to like this ugly size! (being shorter it looks hideous, and ALL my weight is in the belly and breast, with stick legs and arms) it's disgusting! LOL

It seems like the ww/sbd hybrid is working for quite a few of us.

Great job! Nice to see you back!

Perfect timing. I have been tossing this idea around lately!

Regarding WW, does every individual have a different amount of points allotted in one day, or is it the same for all? I imagine high calorie and sugary stuff would have more points.

It depends on weight and how much you have to lose (I think). High fat/sugary foods have a higher points value.

I think that SBD and ww combined is a great plan! I've heard of a lot of people of WW alone use up their points allotment with unhealthy foods - and while they still may lose weight, they aren't much healthier. Combining a points system would be a kin to calorie counting with the healthy foods allowed on SBD.

Great for your heart AND weight loss.

By following SBD you address the cravings that occur from eating High GI Carbs. With the cravings out of the way then counting the points and staying in the proper range is a snap. I can't believe the difference, I couldn't hardly get by on my points before and now I actually can end up with left over points at the end of the day and feel completely satisfied.

WW's provides a formula to calculate what your individual points requirements are based on age, weight, sex, activity level, etc.

Calculating points you have a slide rule thing that you enter calories, fat and fiber of the foods to determine the points value.

You can also earn extra points by exercising.

Oh good - It looks like I'm in good company. I didn't realize there were so many others doing the combo. Thought I was being crafty!

Evangeline - that's what I've found. I'm following points, and I'm not AS strict as I was on SBD, but I'm still finding I have points leftover at the end of the day because I'm just plain eating healthier. I'm really hoping this will be the right combo for me!

Melanie - As others mentioned, your points vary depending on a lot of factors. They take into account your current weight / height / sex / activity level. For example, I sit at a desk 95% of the time at work, so I get fewer points than somebody who would be working on their feet in a warehouse all day.

And when you exercise, you earn additional points. When I do my bootcamp, I earn anwhere from 5-9 extra points (depending on the intensity). You can use up to 4 of those for extra food (which is roughly an additional 240 calories).

Aunt Flo came to visit today, and I'm still down 3 pounds, which I consider to be a major accomplishment!

Great work KSHE!

Can I just say that you are beautiful! My DS said that you were a "very preeeeeetty lady"