I tried to search on this subject, but cannot find exactly what Im looking for. Is it a bad idea to switch diets periodically? For example, low fat\calories one month and then Atkins the next. Can you tell Im getting bored. That scares me because I know it puts me at risk for failure.

Hi. I am by no means an expert or even close. But I would say if you are board already, maybe you should pick a way of eating that you think you can do for life. Most healthy diets work, you just have to find the one that clicks with you. You can lose weight on most healthy diets, but if you feel deprived to do it, it is less likely to stick for life. JMO Good luck! Jelly

I know with calorie counting that you are fine when ever you get back to it. However I'm pretty sure Atkins and that type of diet is made to follow a certain plan and you have to stick with it.

That is why I like calorie counting. It's flexible and you get to eat all the foods in moderation. As far as being bored I guess I get bored sometimes. You have to make this a lifestyle not just a diet. A diet is great for someone who needs to lose 10 0r 20 pounds but for people like us we need to change our life. Sorry to say we will never be able to get off this plan. That is why I can no longer call it a diet. That is something that has an end to it. We will always have to watch what we eat and write it down. It's hard to think of it that way sometimes but the payoff for that little bit of work is tremendous. Yes there will be times we slip up and gain a few pounds here or there but if you continue with a healthy lifestyle that won't matter. You can see by my weight chart that though the last few years there has been ups and downs but all in all there has been a lot more downs.

I guess I'm getting a little off topic here but I'm just trying to show you switching diets is not the key. You need to find a healthy way to eat that you can live with for the rest of you life. That is the key to success. Going from diet to diet is not going to help you.

I hope this helps.

I just want to echo what jelly and howie said. Find something you CAN stick with for LIFE, whatever it is. I am also a calorie counter... I also like the flexibility.

I agree with what everyone has said. Find something that you can do for the rest of your life, or once you've reached your goal, you're at a greater risk of starting up with the bad habits that made you overweight in the first place. Maintenance is the hardest part of weight loss, and to be successful at it, you need to pretty much continue what you've done to lose weight. Check out the Maintainer's forum--they have wonderful tips on how to be successful at keeping weight off. You CAN do it!

You guys are right. I guess it sounds like I have not made a commitment. I think part of my problem is that I AM bored with what I am eating and I need to use a little imagination. I wish I had time to try new recipes and cook complete meals, etc but I barely have time to sleep anymore. But given that, I think I have done very well. I STILL have not touched even one piece of the Halloween candy. Anyway, I went to the grocery store after my post today and I went by myself! I was able to slow down, read some labels and discover new food that will add a little excitement to my "plan".
Confession: I did cheat today. I ate 3 peices of skinless, baked chicken at one sitting. I have been CRAVING meat all day and don't know why. It could have been worse......
Thank you all for the support.

We have been trying new recipes too. I know what you mean by wanting something different. I think that is why we always used to eat out so much. I am going to try and make one new recipe a week. I will be posting them on my blog. So if you check in there you might get some ideas. The one that is up there now is for swordfish but it would really work well on chicken also. The link for my website is below my signature.

Hi

You were discussing getting bored with your food. You also mentioned being quite busy. It just got me thinking... one thing that can really help one stay on plan is having all those old, "boring" stand-bys to eat. It doesn't take a lot of thinking, and you know that those things are healthy.

I need to remind ME of this when I am getting bored.

I agree, though, variety is nice. I love Howie's idea of having at least one new recipe a week.

I know a man who did just what you are suggesting. He would get "bored" with one plan and so he would do what he called a "Shark cycle" (Shark was his boardname). He would plan it out very carefully, and switch from one diet plan to another Some weeks it would be low calorie, some weeks Atkins, some weeks he might throw a day of fasting in there. He combined it with a lot of exercise, and he went from a very HIGH number (400+) to his goal in the of about 220 doing it this way.

His trick was he was very structured about it. He didn't switch from one day to the next or eat whatever felt right for today. He planned it out in advance and stuck to the plan.

I wouldn't be able to do that myself I don't think. It would confuse me too much to be switching all the time and I think I would eventually be not dieting at all. But it worked for him.

Hi Justwill!

Weight loss is not a walk in the park. It is an honest-to-goodness- J-O-B! I think that's why it always feels so hard to do no matter what! I decided to try to think of ways to make it more F-U-N and less work by being as creative as I could.

I mix up my "diets" and also mix up the kinds of exercise that I do. I give myself permission to "cheat" when a certain food really calls to me. I mix and match all different types of foods and read all different takes on weight loss.

Some things that I HAVE kept constant are 1) drinking lots of water, 2) tapering off my calories IF I have eaten a higher calorie "cheat" food, 3) weighing myself every morning, 4) doing some exercising every day usually with DVDs in my living room, 5) eating as healthy as I can, and 6) eating something every three hours to keep my metabolism moving.

I've maintained 210-212 lbs. for six months and not regained the 48-50 lbs. that I lost. It has made me feel pretty good about my choice to mix it up. My goal now is to force my body out of its happy place of 210-212 lbs. and head to under 200 lbs. I'm planning on doing more intervals and just ordered some step aerobics DVDs.

Good luck on switching things to keep yourself motivated and fresh! Remember: You LIVE in your body 24/7 and know more about YOU than anyone else! You can do it!

Cheryl

Great advice everybody

I can't really add anything but wanted to echo what's already been said!

You can do this Justwill