My weight has been creeping up and up and I have to do something different. I don't like extremes, or going the same route over and over with the same results (diet, binge, diet, binge, ect.).

So I've come up with a new plan. Cutting out the "non-essentials", mostly just desserts and junk. I use to think a doughnut here, a cookie there, was no big deal, but now I think it is why I am the weight I am. I heard of one lady just giving up sweet tea and dropping 20 lbs! This is what I want to do, except I don't drink sweet tea. I eat cr*p instead.

I don't want to be a skinny minnie or anything. I'm up to 185 now and this is unacceptable to me. My clothes are too tight, and people are starting to make comments. I would be happy with going back down to 165, just so I can fit in my clothes again. Back a few years ago, being 165 made me feel like a whale, but now, after being this heavy, it would be heaven!

How does this plan sound?
Heidi

So how will you determine what is a "non-essential vs. essential'? For example, a piece of bread is not essential to live, so are you going to cut out all bread? Actually wheat products are all heavily fortified, and not really that healthy in their natural state, so will you cut out all wheat?

Seems like a good idea to cut out junk food, but there are loads of other food that can easily turn into pound packing calories.

I have to say I'm not sure because I got big from eating too much healthy food. 2 turkey sandwhiches with baby spinach and swiss cheese on whole wheat--instead of 1. 2 bowls of fiber one cereal, instead of 1, 5 glasses of milk a day instead of 3. Of course i had the occasional binge help me along the way.10 lbs a year for 6 years got me to where I am.

I don't like deprivation either. It makes me become obsessive and nuts. I would maybe food journal your normal eating habits for about a week. Don't try to change. That will also let you see what you are eating now--since you are not losing now--you know you have to go below that. It helps you get an idea of your overall current diet.

ANY food packs on the lbs if not accounted for, like Ms Lori and Ms Jen say.

Good luck with the plan -- I think the trick will be NOT eating more to "compensate", as in "this isn't junk so I have have another serving, cause I'm not eating the chips"...

Let us know how it goes!

Kira

Pretty much I'm going to start out with things like doughnuts, cookies, pie, stuff like that. I'm not going to go gung ho and eliminate all things unhealthy or anything. I'm going to start slow and give up the worst of the worst. For me that is sweet stuff. I don't need to eat all that sugar. I'm going to start with sugar.

The only things sweet I will keep are Diet Dr. Pepper and Otter Pops. This is only step one. I have to take this slow, one step at a time. If not, all I'll end up doing is crashing and burning. Like I said, I have to do something different. Maybe this will work for me.

Hey, it's worked for many people, and it hasn't worked for many people. All you can do is try to be informed, try what you think is best, and be willing to re-evaluate and change as needed.

Giving up sugary junk is certainly a good place to start, I wish you much success!

Sugar sounds like a great place to start! Sugar is the LOL (IMHO)

Thanks everyone. I'll post any progress I make. I'm not looking for fast weight loss or anything. Maybe 20 lbs. by Christmas or something. If I can be 40 lbs. down by NEXT summer, that would be fantastic!

I'm coming up to my 40th birthday. I'm done playing those mind games with myself, and for setting unrealistic expectations. I will get there. The tortoise always wins!

I think giving up unhealthy foods is a really good thing to do but IMHO the most important thing you could do is keep track of your portions and everything you eat.
Also, try not to compensate for not eating junk by eating MORE of other foods. While quality is important, I've found that quantity is equally important!
There are a bunch of websites that could halp you track if you'd like..
Good luck!!

Actually, my plan is to eat like I normally do, minus the extra sweets. I'm pretty sure this is what has caused my weight to creep up. No over compensating for me! I do pretty well during the day, it's my nighttime habit of eating cr*p that's BAD! This I will tackle first....

well, if your diet is good except for your night time noshing. in lieu of my other post about 100 extra calories a day. If you are noshing 400 cs a day extra (that comes easy with junk food) and don't stop. You could gain 17 lbs just from that alone by the end of this year. If you stop you could drop 17 lbs just cutting that alone. Add exercise and you could drop alot more.

That is a good plan. I think it is good to cut uneeded junk out. You might try setting yourself a cut off time for eating. Absolutely nothing but water after a certain time--maybe 8 pm?

I used to work at a feed and seed store. And we had very correct agriculture scales. Plus they can handle heavy weights. A young man that started his weight loss at about 500 lbs had to come and weigh on it every week. I got to talking him and he told me that he had lost 200 lbs easily. I told him I was proud of him and asked him how he did it. He said well not much really, I don't eat anything after 8 pm. I was floored!

jendiet

I went on vacation last week and hubby took us for doughnuts every morning. It was heaven (esp. the apple fritters! Yum!) but I got to thinking about all the treats I give myself, just because. Pretty much daily, not just on vacations. I'm not a math wizard, but I'm guessing I'm taking in about 500 extra cal. a day! And the scale is showing it! Horrible! So, this is why I want to see what would happen if I just didn't eat these things. I have kids, so it isn't unreasonable to eat a couple cookies or a cup (or 3) of ice cream on any given day. It's there, and it tastes good! Comfort food for a busy mom, you know? Anyways, I'm rambling.

So, are you trying to cut out the non essentials too, just to easily knock off a few cal. a day? Seems we have the same mindset.

I think the thing you have to be careful of is -- by cutting out all the junk, will you just move from overeating to maintaining? It sounds that, while you want to stop the ongoing slow increase, you also want to start a downward trend, right?

I think it is *great* to cut out the junk, definitely. I'd recommend doing that for a month as adjustment to the new way, and then reevaluate if you also now need to look at portion sizes and / or exercise.

I agree with the tortoise approach. This isn't a race. It's a lifestyle change that you want to be manageable and maintainable.

I think in my past attempts to lose this weight I kept making the mistake of going full force, trying to tackle all my bad habits at once. I always give up and go back to what I'm used to. Yes, I just may maintain for awhile, but it's better than watching the scale go up! Once I feel comfortable not eating all the extra junk (I tend to have anxiety attacks when I am out of my comfort zone, i.e. overeating), I'll move on to portion control. Then maybe drinking more water. I know what to do, it's following through with the changes for the LONG TERM that is difficult for me. I'm trying something different, which may not be the most conventional, but I'm hoping it works for me. Nothing else seems to be working.