Losing weight is difficult

[Kelseymcdonald]

I'm 14 years old, I weigh 10stone and hate the way my body looks, I'm a size 12, and want to be a size 8, I would like to lose 2-3 stone and need help doing this as I'm not good at sticking to diets and excercise is limited as I spend most of my time at school and other stuff that I have barley anytime to do this, I'm big for my age so do any of you have any suggestions on what I can do? I need to lose weight for July as I'm going on holiday and would like to be able to wear a bikini

[annir]

High Kelsey , If you go to slimming world you wont have to pay they have a special student healthy eating plan ( diet is a dirty word lol ) .. my son came with me and lost a few stone he was 16 at the time he still keeps to his plan and has kept the weight off. .. he still eats chips and curry and pizza but you learn to cook them without all the fat .. I know some people on here will say your only 14 da de dah but i know my son was very unhappy with his weight and it can be miserable at school if your self conscious .. talk to your mom/ dad about it and if the slimming club is free you may as well give it a go ..good luck sweetheart x

[Betty67]

My son was 5 stone overweight at 14 and rather unhappy about it. He did not go on a diet up started to think about what and how much he ate. I year later he was "normal" weigh for his height and seven years later has stayed in heathy range.

However don't be too hard on yourself and do not do anything drastic as I do believe that this can muck up body and lead to long term problems.

Take care.

[GoogleMe]

Oh this is so sad... there's such clear evidence of the outside world generating a lot of your unhappiness. A 14 year old in 2015 talking about weight in stones rather than kilos (with no mention of height either) and talking about wanting to be a size 8... by July so that you 'can' wear a bikini. We have no idea whether you are overweight or not - you may not be at all (if you are my height you are not nearly overweight), and you are still developing so your nutritional needs are different to an adult's.

Plus feeling you don't have time for exercise when you are still at school and thus should at least be getting some PE time scheduled in automatically (in theory!)

You're out of term time this week so should be opportunities to be active - going for walks, cycling, swimming. How much support do you have at home for healthy eating and increasing your activity? What do your parents say? Do they have issues around their weight/food too and are they addressing them in constructive ways? This might be a great opportunity for your whole family.

[Samryan-19]

Hi I was a lot like you at 14, I was about a size 12-14 and I got bullied bad for it, I used to hate the way I looked, I found just cutting out all junk food, eating more salads instead of chips and fruit instead of chocolate and sugary snacks, you are still young you have a lot of time to change, I'm sure your not over weight, ok you might no like how you look in a bikini but have you thought about toning up? My advice to you is eat healthy foods, have a chat with your parent/ guardian and ask them to make you salad for lunch and try and cut all the fat of your meat. Small changes make a big difference.

[onion_surfer]

Firstly, I understand feeling bigger. I look back at myself now and realise how small I was at school. I think it is important that you be open about your intentions with your family because closet dieting never worked for me. I'd get fed huge meals and the house was loaded with biscuits and crisps but I was too ashamed to tell my parents I was trying to lose weight and not determined enough to leave the treats in the cupboard.

I am a big advocate of slimming world plans because you get a huge list of things that you can eat as much as you want. Try getting a recipe book and asking or offering to make meals from it for dinner. Eat as much fruit as you can and ditch any junk.

I would seriously consider ways of getting a bit of daily exercise, you can get 10 minute workout apps and most popular fitness DVDs are available to stream on YouTube. Everybody has 10 minutes a day, you have 1440 minutes to squeeze it in to!

Please please please don't go on a fad diet. I understand the desire to shed weight and even wanted to shock people with my weight loss and maybe even have people tell me I'd gone too far. Thing is these miracle rapid diets WILL leave you malnourished and tired and grumpy and you WILL put the weight back on.

I know it's not what you want to hear but healthy diet and excersise is the safest, most reliable and longest lasting solution to weight loss.

Talking to whoever does the food shopping in your house is essential because you will only ever get the same foods and the same problems if you don't.

[rubyslave]

Speak to your parents and doctor. There are nhs programs for teenagers which help you get on the right track with eating and exercise. They will also be able to advise whether you are actually overweight. Being a teenager is difficult and almost all suffer from a poor self image. Please go see your doctor and do this safely and healthily. Good luck.

[Hidden in reply to rubyslave]

can you recommend some of the program ??

[rubyslave in reply to Hidden]

Yes. I think it was called MEND, and I've just found it on Google: mendcentral.org/teens - definitely worth a look. Good luck.

[1958Goldengirl]

Hello Kelsey,

I am a lot older than you.....57.....however I have never forgotten how it felt to be "big" when I was at secondary school.....at 12 years old I was 12 stone & even though I cannot remember my weight my Mother has always reminded that I gained a stone every year so at 14 yrs I weighed 14 stones......so you can imagine what life was like at school!! However I was tall for my age, you did not tell us your height which is a very important factor in working out your weight range.

My advice is to check your BMI [Body Mass Index] on the calculator provided on the NHS choices website. It is very easy to use, you just need to enter your age,gender [female or male] , height & weight. It then calculates your BMI for you & you can see at a glance where you fall on the scale......underweight, healthy weight, overweight or obese.

It also tells you your daily calorie range according to your activity level, you just have to choose which activity level suits yourself. I suggest you put Inactive & see what the calorie allowance is & then you can check the boxes of the other levels just to see how the calorie intake can vary.

You may be surprised & find that you are in your Healthy Weight Range. I hope so!

If you have friends that are all skinny lizzies then that can make you feel "big" also if you are taller than them......sorry to tell you that this will always be the same whatever age you are!! I feel like a giant when I am with my "short" friends but I can laugh about it now! BTW I am 5' 10 in in imperial measurements....think that's about 178cms....

In my younger days when I wore 3 or 4 inch heels I would tower above my friends & most guys!!

The other important fact is that you are still developing so you need to eat well & the calories for your body weight/ activity levels. Don't start trying fad diets or missing meals neither are good for you. However IF you tend to snack on sugary foods, sweets & chocolates, deserts & or crisps, you could make a start by not eating these foods as they are really just 'empty' calories which can bring you way over your required daily calories & then you could start to gain weight. Try it for a week or so & see how you go.

Also do talk to your Family or older person who you feel that you can chat to comfortably about your concerns.

I really hope that you are able to pick up some good tips from all who have replied to you!

Take care & enjoy yourself!!

[PhilipMarc]

For a young person, it is easier to get into a routine of exercise and dieting as you are younger. It takes some discipline. Is there sports clubs at school in the lunch break or after school? Do you walk to school or shops etc? Any friends who would play sports with you more? But to loose weight fast in a healthy way you need to combine diet and exercise. But don't be silly, and don't try to be someone you are not.

[jackieeb]

WOW there, your body is still growing and changing at your age. Can,t you sit down with your mum and devise a healthy eating plan instead of dieting. xx

[linggirl]

Please talk to your family.Go and see your doctor or your practice nurse they will be able to provide you with advice suitable for a teenager.

Being a teenager is a very difficult time as you actually have very little control over your life. You will need the support of your family to ensure that you have a healthy diet.

As a teenager I was convinced that I was massively overweight, I spent a lot of time trying every popular diet. Luckily I had very sensible parents who steered me straight. Looking at photographs now I see that I actually had the figure of a model , the only difference between me and my peers was that I actually had a bust

Please look after yourself and take advice.

[Kelseymcdonald]

Just so you all know I have support at home with my mum and I have tried many ways to lose weight and I find it hard maintaining a healthy diet, it was just to see if anybody had suggestions I hadn't yet tried

[PhilipMarc in reply to Kelseymcdonald]

That's great Kelsey, a supportive family is essential. Have you taken a loot at your snacking and what fat free foods you eat? Don't cut out chocolate, keep eating it if you cut out treats completely you will be more likely to give in and binge. But replace many snacks with nuts and fruits. seriously, watching what you graze on makes a huge difference.

[Hairyman in reply to Kelseymcdonald]

Dear Kelsey, A loving mum is a gift from God. I have two adult daughters and one of them has a 13 year old daughter. My oldest daughter has her mothers genes = naturaly slim, my yougest has a beautiful smile but takes after my sisters (One now sadly deceased). There is no way you are going to be a size 8 and healthy if you are taller than 5 foot as your comment "I am big for my age." implies.

The reason I spoke of my sisters is that neither of them ever stood a chance of fitting into anything less than a 12 at any time in their teens.

You may already know about Sugar but I still reccomend you search

"effects of sugar."

Above all though, as another has written "Do not try to be some one else."

Oh, by the way, my slim girl would have looked ridiculous in a bikini at 14.

Your still a child, still growing, give your body time to reach adult shape at 16/17 not earlier.