I am new here and I like the positive encouragement. Because lord knows I need it. I often find myself feeling depressed. I eat right. I excerxise and its kind of like I have nothing to "show" for it. Nobody says hey are you losing weight? Lol. I know that sounds petty. The scale isnt moving. I mean what else do i have to do! Geez! But I have to wrap my mind around being consistent because sometimes I feel like giving up. That is a lot easier said then done when you have a 1 and 3 year old who eat such delicious and tempting snacks and meals I.e sandwiches,chips, tacos, chicken nuggets mmm).

Do you weigh and measure all your food? What is a typical day's menu? We need more info to help you. Now is the best time to teach your children to eat healthy so they don't have the problems with their weight when they are adults. You really have to be willing to change the foods you are eating if they aren't supporting your weight loss and later maintenance.

Hi. Welcome. I also have a 1 year old and a 3 year old!

When you say you eat right, what does that mean exactly??? One can eat great, whole, healthy, wonderful food and still not be in a caloric deficit. Have you ever counted calories for a few days to see what a certain calorie range feels like, looks like? Just as one can eat total crap and still lose weight, one can eat very healthy foods and gain weight. A few bites here and there of the kids' snacks/leftovers can EASILY push you over your budgeted calories for the day (I know because I constantly struggle with not eating what remains on their plates).

Like Susan said, more info is needed to give any real specific advice.

Again, welcome, glad you're here! Stick around and you will get tons of encouragement, support, advice, and just overall awesomeness.

My children do eat healthy. They just aren't on a no/low carb diet like I am and they shouldn't have to be. Now I haven't tried weighing my food and counting my exact calories for a few consistent days. That may be the issue. I find it kind of hard when I make my meals at home. I kind of feel like it would be easier if I bought some of those weight watcher meals. But I know they have all kinds of preservatives and stuff. So I am going to have to figure out the calorie counting thing cause that is probably my downfall. So how do you figure out ALL your calories when you cook so much at home?

Figure out each ingredient and divide the total by the number of servings.

You didn't mention you were on low carb in your original post, which I think is probably where Susan's comment stemmed from. That can be the issue with posting vaguely in an original post.

I use myfitnesspal.com to count calories. I use a food scale to measure. It's very easy, especially after a couple days of getting the hang of it all. Very user friendly. There's a recipe section on myfitnesspal where you just add all the ingredients, it saves it, then you just add it when you have a serving. Very useful if you tend to cook the same things fairly often. Their database of foods is huge, its super easy to search and add. If you have a smart phone, their app is awesome; it has all the features of the website plus a barcode scanner to add any foods with a barcode. Heck, even the baby carrots and potatoes I buy have a barcode on the bag! It saves your recent and most used foods for even quicker adding. It seriously makes it soooooo easy! I highly recommend it.

Thanks. I will try it. Wish me luck. Btw. Referring to the title. Am I disillusioned and misinformed about being able to loose weight more easily the larger you are?

what is ur height/weight?

I'm so ashamed but I'm 5'6 193lbs

Here is aphil's post from the Calorie Counter's stickies thread. I don't know how to post I link so I have copied itHow many calories should I be eating?

There is no set number that is perfect for everyone. Everyone's calorie needs are different, and while there are many online calorie calculators out there, they are really just guestimates. The only real way to know how many calories to eat per day is through trial and error. Basically, you have to find out what works for YOU.

Here are some factors that will play into your caloric needs:

How much you exercise: Calorie counting is all about taking in less calories than you burn each day, so someone who exercises regularly is going to be able to eat more calories than someone of the same body size who doesn't. Someone who walks 5 miles a day is going to burn more calories than someone who walks 1 mile.

How active you are in everyday life: A waitress, aerobics instructor, or a construction worker is going to have a more physically demanding job than someone who sits at a desk and computer all day. This will affect your calorie needs.

How much you weigh: The more you weigh, the more calories you use per day. Think about it-if a 250 pound woman, and a 150 pound woman walk a mile together, the woman carrying 100 extra pounds of resistance with her is having to work much harder-and this is true walking stairs, and doing all of the everyday activities. So, your starting weight will have a lot to do with your starting calorie level.

Here is a good starting guide for you to begin self testing your personal calorie needs:

Over 300 pounds: Start at around 2000 calories a day.

Over 200 pounds: Start at around 1800 calories a day.

151-199 pounds: Start at around 1600 per day.

150 pounds or less: Start at around 1500 a day.

To find out your personal calorie level for weight loss, you simply find your starting point, and weigh in. Try the calorie level above for a week, and weigh in again. If you have weight loss of 1-3 pounds, then you are on the right track. If you show no loss at all, then drop it down by 100 calories a day, and see what happens the next week. On the other hand, if you show a huge loss-then you would probably be better off adding 100 calories a day to that level. And so on and so forth...

As you lose weight, your calorie needs will change. You might lose just fine for the first 2 months at 1600 calories a day. 20 pounds down the path, the weight loss stops. You don't lose anything for a couple of weeks. This is when it is time to go to the next level. Drop your calories down by 100 to 1500 to get things moving again.

**Increase Your Activity, Too!**

I would like to note, however, that dropping calories is only PART of changing your calories taken in/burned scenario. This can also be tweaked by increasing exercise as well-so dropping calories at every stall isn't always the best choice. If you have been in the game for a while, it might be time to increase your activity, or at least the intensity of it, at times as well to get things moving downward instead.

It is also important to increase your fitness level as well, to continue to see improvements in your body. After 2 months of doing the same walk, or the same hand weights, or the same Pilates video-it isn't quite as challenging as it might have been when you started. This means you have become fitter, and you need to step it up to get even more so. If you walk 1 mile a day-try walking 1 1/2 or 2...if you use light 3 pound hand weights with a dvd, then maybe you need to get a set of 5 pound weights instead. If you are doing beginners yoga, maybe try an intermediate level class or dvd. Keep increasing your fitness level, and you will not only be burning more calories, but your body will get better and better.

nothing to be ashamed of..
yup, 1st thing to do is making sure what u take daily, as before i thought what i eat is healthy but actually its not.. try to take nots of what u eat and the time u have it, and compare it some of the "right" diet menus/plans
Good luck!

Sorry for the giant paste. Like aphil says though there is trial and error. According to this I could eat 1600 cals a day but I have found I don't lose hardly anything at 1600, probably cuz I am fairly sedentary in my job, I am short and I only walk to exercise. It also depends how many pounds/week you want to lose. myfiynesspal will calculate this for you too. I do about 1300 cals/day and so far loose about 2 lbs/ week, sometimes less.

So yes, you can eat more at a higher weight but you are not high enough that you can eat 2000 cals and still lose weight. And it is very easy to eat 2000 cals, even of healthy choices.

thanks for the article, it helps a lot, now i need not envy ppl that could eat more yet losing weight

If you consider "sandwiches, chips, tacos and chicken nuggets" healthy, that could be part of your problem. And I agree that the processed meals are not the solution. Sounds as if you have gotten some good advice here so I will just add that "your grandmother was right... eat your fruits and veggies."

I wish you the best on your weight loss journey

I have an 8 week old and an almost 3 year old.

I will say, it is very demotivating/draining/pain in the *** to make 3 separate meals for breakfast/lunch and then 4 at dinner for 4 people.

Have you thought of just eating the same as your kids?

My son loooves things like chicken nuggets, so I make them for everyone, you can do it with chicken breasts, panko crumbs, and even a fun greek yogurt dip for everyone.

You can make your own tacos with whole wheat tortillas and let them assemble their veggies. They have cheese, I don't.

Potato chips, processed chicken nuggets, tacos in a box, are generally poor food choices, especially for kids.