Hi, this is my first post on these forums.. I tend to use ******** regularly, but find some of the members have been quite narky of late and I can't be bothered for that behaviour! Anyway..

The short of it is that I have 83lbs to lose, to take me from 209lbs to my goal of 126lbs. I know the healthiest option is to count calories and exercise regularly, calories in and calories out etc.. But I am SO miserable. I suffer with depression and social anxiety disorder, but find its progressively getting a lot worse since I've gained all this weight..

Back in December last year I weighed 136lbs, so I've gained 5 stone in just seven months! Its my own fault - I got lazy, got greedy and for some reason started binge eating...

I'm an impatient person anyway, & I just want this weight off me! I'm not used to being this big, and I'm only 5ft 3 so don't carry the weight well either.

My original intention was to consume 1300 calories a day and exercise 3-4 times a week - apparently this would've given me a 2lb a week loss meaning I'd be at goal weight by June 2013..

But lately I've become so miserable, uncomfortable and generally not feeling too well either that I'm leaning towards a faster option such as a VLCD of 800 calories a day or less..

I've followed a plan like this before, it's what helped me lose weight in the past & I probably would've maintained the loss if I hadn't of gone off the rails so badly!

Must note I had a baby boy July last year, gained 5 stone during the pregnancy going from 9.7 stone to 14.7 stone.. But by consuming 800 calories a day, taking a multivitamin and exercising now & again I managed to lose all the weight and was down to 9.10 by the November, so basically lost 5 stone within 4 months..

Obviously I gained all the weight back, but that was through fault of my own.. What I'm wondering is do I follow this VLCD method again? But ensure that this time once I'm at goal that I refeed properly in order to maintain the weight loss... would that even work?

I'm desperate now. The fact I can barely walk up the stairs without being in pain with my knees or panting for breath is killing me! I'm only 22, I don't want this lifestyle for myself

You need at least 1200 calories a day to get adequate nutrition. VLCDs don't work in the long run because you need to eat like a real person so that you can keep it off. Slow and steady (like the tortis and the hare fable) leads to permanent weight loss.

Hello! Welcome to 3FC! I'm sorry you feel so bad about your current weight. Being overweight can be very uncomfortable and definitely puts more stress on the body than being at a healthy weight. Losing a substantial amount of weight and keeping it off is difficult for most people. It's nothing to do with being lazy or greedy; it's mostly physiology and psychology. The trick is finding the right tools for your body and mind.

A few questions:

VLCD's are only supposed to be undertaken with medical supervision. Have you talked with your doctor about what you want to do?

Were you under medical supervision the last time you tried a VLCD?

You say that your depression and social anxiety disorder have worsened as you've gained weight. Are you currently under treatment for your mental health issues?

I wasn't under medical supervision last time no, I can't really afford VLCD's like Cambridge and so on, so before I've always just eaten low carb & high protein, under 800 calories and taken multivitamins.. I was happy and healthy, admittedly tired sometimes but nothing else.

I'm currently on sertraline anti depressants for my depression and social anxiety disorder, they work well but I'm finding now that I've gained so much weight I just feel constantly miserable and down.

I've done a few online calorie calculators, and the average is giving me 1300 calories a day with exercising 1-3 times a week to lose 2lbs a week & be at goal by June next year.. Maybe I should stick to this healthier way rather than basically starve my body?

lozziemay vlcd's ultimately are unlikely to give your body what it needs in the long run.
I know I may sound 100 years old but I think it is much more important to change your lifestyle in to something that is manageable for life not just a quick fix.
I have tried so many quick fix diets myself and (alongside some pretty significant mental health problems) I always failed.
I am finally receiving the correct treatment and my change of lifestyle is easier and easier.
If your antidepressants are not suiting you .....ask your doctor to consider something else.
I am not sure where you are in the world but in Wales we have Exercise on prescription where a GP can refer you to a local gym for assessment and cheaper access to their facilities. There is lots of evidence to say that regular exercise is a really effective treatment for a range of mood disorders.
Please be kind to your body and ultimately it will reward you!

I can't give you advice as well as others, but all I can suggest is find some posts by kaplods, she seems very wise on these subjects... She'll probably be able to explain best why a VLCD is usually a bad idea....

Hi :-) the antidepressants I'm on aren't a problem, it's just I'm causing trouble for myself by letting myself gain so much weight and progressively feel more depressed about it..

I'm from Wales :-) South Wales near Cardiff.. I'm actually a member of a gym as it is and my job pay the membership, admittedly I haven't been in a while but I'm going tomorrow morning to try & ease myself back into exercise.

hey lozzie i am from penarth! 3catsmeow is right kaplods is a wonderfully wise lady from the us who has a post grad degree in psychology ( I think)and really gets to the heart of a problem.

Mountain walker really hit the nail on the head!

I think you will serve your health and body better in the long run if you work with the more moderate diet/exercise plan you mentioned above, rather than pursuing something as extreme, difficult to sustain, and potentially dangerous as an unsupervised VLCD. There are a lot of reasonable diet plans out there, as I'm sure you're aware. There are communities for most of the major types of plans/programs on 3FC, so you've got a place to come for support with whatever plan you choose - even if it's "non-plan" of calorie counting.

Like mountain walker said, there is a growing amount of evidence that exercise helps some mental health problems. Starting back at the gym (or even just walking) could definitely help you feel better. If your medications work well and your current worsening of symptoms is related to your weight gain, could some sort of complementary treatment help you feel better mentally? It might be worth discussing with your physician. It really does become much easier to manage the physical stuff once the mental stuff is under control. FWIW, I've had a lot of success using the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy techniques provided in David Burns' self-help book Feeling Good (along with other things my shrink has "prescribed," including exercise). That book is aimed at people with depression, but I know there are other CBT books out there that focus on anxiety. I'm not any sort of medical expert, but perhaps CBT or a similar type of therapy could be useful to you.

And yes, kaplods does a wonderful job of explaining things! Her posts can be very enlightening.

My gut feeling is that is too low... 2lb a week is a fine loss, you have to be kind to yourself and your body, not so long ago still you had a baby! I guess it takes time to recover.

I know how horrible it is to feel fat and unhealthy and just bad about yourself, and Summer '13 feels a long way away, but you havr to think, it is not as if you have to wait that long just to feel good; every pounds on the way is a mini victory, and you feel feel so good as you tick off each stone, feel your clothes get looser, feel yourself managing the stairs easier, etc. It might take a while to hit your goal but you will begin to see difference before you know it!
xxx

IMO, I think its most important to first figure out why exactly you got impatient and regained the weight and come up with a weight loss method (will prob take a few tries) that will allow you to get to goal-while still getting adequate nutrition-and that may vary from person to person, and maintain that.
Me, I like to eat alone, eat big meals and I'm carb sensitive. Its hard for me to lose weight without eating fewer, but bigger meals and staying away from bread. But that is ME, and other people can lose weight and keep it off in other ways.