hey everyone, hopefully this posts! im new here and i dont really know how to work everything haha. i'm going to be 17 this february and ive struggled with weight issues since the 7th grade. i know im not the most heavy girl, but to me it seems that way because all of my friends are around 100 to 112lbs. =/ ive tried weight watchers in 8th grade but it didnt last and ive been dieting on and off ever since. recently over this past summer i lost 10lbs due to just some healtier eating (salads, no junk food, etc...) but winded up gaining it all back plus some. last week i decided to try it again except stricter. i cut out all other drinks except water and try to drink around 32 to 46oz a day. ive also been doing hot yoga and lost 5lbs last week! but recently ive begun to fall of the wagon. at lunch i fell victim to popcorn chicken 2 times this week and yesterday i ate doritos and today i ate over 5 chips ahoy cookies with milk. does anyone have any suggestions or ideas that can keep my mind on my goal and help me from back peadling? thank you its greatly appreciated!

I dont buy junk food, so there is none for me to eat. I pack my own lunch, so I know that there are only good choices for me to have, and I try to make a variety of things so I dont get bored. Portion control and calorie counting is key, If I know how much caloried are in somethings, it helps me keep track do I dont go over my alotted 1400 that I eat to lose weight.

great advice, thank you. maybe instead of being tempted everyday to buy something for lunch knowing that i could easily buy unhealthy foods, ill pack my own lunch with healthy alternatives (=

Hi, I just wanted to echo nickyj's advice. I bring my own lunch to work every day. Even if my office is having a pizza party, I still bring my own. They are used to it and don't think it's weird anymore. It helps a lot.

One thing I noticed: you did ok this summer, but then tried to make it more strict and failed. If what you were doing this summer worked, why not go back to that?

The biggest thing is TAKING CONTROL. It's easy, especially when you are young, to feel like choices are taken out of your hands: "I have to eat this because . . ." You almost NEVER have to eat something if you plan ahead properly. For me, that means knowing every single night before I go to bed EXACTLY what I am going to eat the next day, when I am going to eat it, and where it is coming from. Make it part of your routine, like checking to see if your homework is done and your backpack packed up or if you have clothes to wear the next day.

I really recommend calorie counting. If you calorie count, foods aren't "bad" or "good", they are "in your budget" or "out of your budget". If you are just trying to eat "good" foods, then once you decided to eat cookies, you know you are "bad" so you might as well eat five. If you calorie count, you might see that you can fit two cookies into your budget for the day and be just fine. And two guilt-free cookies taste way better than 5 guilty ones.

One other thing: some of your friends are lying. They don't think about it that way (they think what they weighed last year was their "real weight", this is just water, or they are so ashamed of weighing OMG 130 that they can't say it out loud, or they simply haven't been on a scale in 2 years and are guessing). Look to yourself and your doctor to decide if you are at a healthy weight. Comparisons with friends never end well.

@JessLess: thanks for your advice!

and

@Shmead: you're right. i hate to admit it but maybe going on a stricter diet will just set me up for a downfall again. ill try to go back to what i did in the summer and im working on counting my calories! (:

You are so young, I hate to see you set yourself up on a pattern of undereating/binge eating. You really don't want to go there I would highly suggest weight watchers again - stick with it, go to the meetings, follow the plans - it will help you eat the proper amount of food and avoid binging/starving. In addition, it will allow you to work in some 'treats' that are just fine for a 17 year old to have (you do not need to eat lettuce the rest of your life!)

hey, mad props to you for trying to establish HEALTHY eating habits at such a young age!! understanding what a healthy (not overly restrictive) calorie range is, enjoying healthy foods, limiting junk food- these habits will serve you well throughout your life and will make maintaining a healthy weight a breeze. not many teenagers really take the time and effort to learn about nutrition. you have a really positive attitude. keep posting and reading here and you will get a lot of great advice and tips for how to keep eating healthy- and losing/maintaining a weight you are comfortable with- without obsessive behaviors that can undermine your efforts. it sounds like you have had success this summer, so keep up with what you did then, keep doing yoga (you will stay flexible and strong as you age!) and this will just become your regular, natural lifestyle- for life!

to pucedaisy,
thanks! you sound like a really positive person and i know it may sound corny, but that makes me feel more positive with myself. thank you again for the advice

You are wise to do this while you are young, it only gets harder as you get older.

thank you! (:

yeah stay on a waggon at this age is hard becuz of all the yummy things hat are in our reach im 19 n i feel your pan one thing that helps me is that i dont completely cut my slef off cold turkey

rember loosing weight is like a smoker instead of 1 pack a day try 6 ciggs. in our case

instead of an entire Hersey bar eat 4 squares u can still enjoy the little things in moderation

yeah thats true, thank you

I concur with everything said above about establishing healthy but not extreme habits while you are young!

One thing I picked up on is that you are actually not drinking that much water. Eight glasses a day would be 64 oz and I would suggest drinking quite a bit more than that if you are doing things like hot yoga.

true, when i do hot yoga i try to drink much more throughout the day