Help

[Meme1989]

Hey guys I am hoping you can all help motivate me, I seriously need to loose lots of weight, but I just cant get on track. I start everyday with good intentions. But am so weak, and when around the wrong foods I cave in. x

[Oolou]

Hiya

What sort of situations are you in when you find yourself around the wrong foods?

What sort of food do you consider 'wrong'?

[nanashon]

Hi Meme, Im the same the now, I dont know whats happened to my willpower but im struggln to get back on track....we need to take control and focus!!!! We have to tell ourselves we can do this 👍

[moreless Administrator 7 stone]

Hi Meme,

I'm sorry to hear that you're struggling to stay on track at the moment. My advice, is to go back over the threads here, you'll find hundreds of stories from people experiencing the ups and downs of their weight loss journeys. They are so inspirational, they can't fail to kick start your motivation.

Good luck

[June1965]

Meme1989

It's very hard indeed!!! Let's say this we all want to feel & look our best don't we ?

Well that road is not an easy one I'm afraid, so we have dig deep and carry on....

We can.....we WILL do this.......what's the alternative? Sit in front of the tv and get bigger???? Nah that's not for us 😖

[weedeepeachy]

Hiya try and have lots of healthy snacks, carrot sticks, rice cakes etc I make big pots of veg soup too, can be eaten freely. It's hard but you can do this!! Good luck

[Jay86]

I know all about caving in, but the biggest thing that helps for me is to keep the sort of foods I snack on out of the house. For me it's a 15 minute walk to the shop so last thing at night my laziness will stop me going to get something when I crave it. You can't avoid things when you are out, but if you manage to avoid buying them for your home then you are half way there good luck!

[Jenever]

Hello Meme,

It's so difficult when you first start on this weight loss journey/regime...whatever you want to call it.

I started the NHS 12 week plan last March and to date I've lost just over 3 stone. I had tried all sorts of other diets the previous few years and although I lost weight with them I quickly put the weight back on as I hadn't learned about portion size etc. When I finally turned to the NHS plan I decided to approach it as a project, I prepared myself by clearing my cupboards of cake, biscuit, sweets, etc. (as far as possible as my husband wasn't on a diet!), I made sure I had access to information regarding calorific value of food, I also set myself a target weight and a date by which I wanted to achieve that weight. I recorded everything I ate on a daily basis so I didn't consume more than my allowance. Some weeks I lost 3lbs some weeks I didn't lose any weight but over the 12 weeks I lost a significant amount of weight so I decided to continue with the plan. It works for me, it may work for you? Everyone is different so you may find a better system to work with but whatever you decide I wish you success.

I also kept a diary and on those days when I over ate or wanted to binge I made a note of what had happened that day and how it had made me feel, that way I could try and avoid it happening again or if it was a situation I had to face again I would at least be better prepared.

Good Luck.

[Windswept1]

Jenever has the answer. Good luck in losing weight.

[belin63]

Hi, I was where you are just over a year ago.......had six stone to loose, horridly high Ldl's and was looking liver problems and diabetes square in the eyes, on top of that had been flooded through a lousy excuse for a person opening sluice gates and taking the home I raised my children in. I found the resolve to try and get control over at least one area of life, me! Can't say it was easy or quick but I am now over three stone lighter have normal Ldl's, no sign of diabetes and am moving on from the flooding, running 5k most days, dancing with a new group of pals, soooo much better. Just try small steps forward and refuse to go back, soon all the small steps forward add up and you will find you have changed things for good. I fought the cravings by moving which helped me move on, drank a pint of water before meals to help the portion control and visualised the weight on or off by blocks of butter. The visualisation works for me and helps celebrate a pound off as a significant benefit. Also means I look the fat square in the eye when I creep a pound on! Get your head in the right place, then take small steps forward, remember to find some fun ways for you of moving and making yourself happy.

[jojowebb]

This sounds exactly like me. I really need inspiration.

[jojowebb]

Hi, I have just signed up and am hoping That I can beat this cycle of overeating. I have had a rotten 18 months, wont go into details, but the result was me eating for comfort, mainly in the evenings when I am sitting on my own. I just cannot seem to stop myself, My will power is non existent. I know I should be able to do this as I had the will power to give up smoking five years ago and have not started again. I think I replaced the cigarettes with food when I was stressed as it was in the evenings that I smoked the most.

[sandylaner1 in reply to jojowebb]

hi jo, (and meme)

the NHS 12 week site suggests strategies to take your mind off eating when feeling 'bored'. so basically it is saying find your hands and mind something else to concentrate on. easier said then done as we all know on here. if you 'love' your body then you are part way there. if you 'love' food then you are more than halfway there; take a real interest in what you eat (sometimes referred to as WATCHING what you eat). try breaking down the dead calories into their component parts, so if you are in the habit of putting a few biscuits on a plate ready for a cuppa, imagine your plate with a mound of sugar, a spoonful of salt and a gob of lard. then see if you REALLY REALLY REALLY want to eat it.

a chart similar to the nhs 'plate' sometimes helps: make a list of food that you like, check the cal content, cut down then out the biggest 'baddy' and take it from there.

don't beat yourself up. don't forget the we all do it. try and not to indulge yourself. be S.M.A.R.T. (see nhs page) and if you fall off your bike get straight back on it, as its you that's pedalling.

[tony_alex]

Don't be around the wrong food

[WeightWarrior]

I'm with Jenever on this, I started 7 weeks ago and did pretty much the same thing.

I think a key part of this is getting your head round things. I was dismayed at having to lose 8-10 stone, I didn't know where to start and I simply thought I couldn't do it - with my appetite I'd never manage on 1400 calories a day, so I had given up before I had even started! Then I gave myself a stern talking to about all the health issues and life, etc, etc. Decided I HAVE to do something and I'd have to just fill up on the things which contained the least calories and probably not enjoy my food a great deal. Boy, was I wrong!

So, I started out by using the BMI calculator. It tells you exactly what cals you can expect to consume and still lose weight, which I found really useful as I didn't imagine myself going straight down to 1400 cals a day, I "knew" I'd never manage it, etc, as I am big AND tall with a huge appetite. I had a pleasant surprise about how many cals I could consume and am finding it plenty filling enough, I never hit the max level of cals per day. So, use the BMI calc and you might have a pleasant surprise - it was an instant relief to me to know my range was so high because of my size. It will decrease as your weight decreases, so maybe check it every stone or so, but I cheated and looked at the end for my healthy weight, and I know I won't starve on that amount so I feel confident that this is do-able for life.

NHS BMI calc link: nhs.uk/Tools/Pages/Healthyw...

Next job is to find out exactly how many calories are in the things you eat. Warning, there may be some shocks in store - lol! I was a pork pie fiend, I would eat 2 medium ones for lunch - 800 cals - eek! Now, I have a plate full of food at lunchtime and it comes in at less than 400 cals. Instant huge change for the better.

NHS calorie counter: nhs.uk/Livewell/weight-loss...

I keep a food diary, although I keep it on the computer, I have a simple document saved daily in a folder, named with the date, so that I can go back and reference it if I put on weight, and try to work out what happened. I also have a folder with typical meals and their cals. I always prepare meals the same way, so once I work out the cals I just save it under a recognizable title, eg "Fish and beans meal", "veg stir fry meal", even "porridge breakfast meal". Then I can just copy and paste the meal into my daily diary document without having to work out the calories in it. Takes a little more time when you start out, but worth it in the long run as it saves you a heap of time and if you are stuck for what to have for tea you can go to your folder for inspiration, I have done that several times!

Something else which has helped me is factoring a daily 100 cal snack in. Evenings are my worst time, and I know I can have a snack every evening with a cup of tea, which is a big boost.

Once you figure out your plan of action, something which helped me is to talk through it with my husband and son (it can be anyone you trust and are close to, just to be accountable to someone and to get support when you need it). I explained to them, I don't want to die basically, and I NEED to do this and I need your support. In the evening, sometimes I say to my son, I've got "the munchies bug" and he always says, "As long as it's within your calorie range mum?". It's invaluable because if it isn't, I can't help but be honest with him and it puts me off going to eat something else. I don't tend to feel hungry or get "the munchies bug" all that often but the evening grazing habit does take some breaking and I'm sure that over a longer period of time I'll get more and more used to not doing it. It's emotional or hormonal rather than hunger, I am noticing. It doesn't happen often, thankfully, but the demon is still in there somewhere. I've got this - the demon is not gonna win!

Ok, I hope I haven't waffled on too much, I do have a tendency to do that! I hope this has been useful info for you. If not, maybe if you ever have trouble sleeping, you could come back and read it again and bore yourself to sleep - LOL!

Good luck on your journey!

[sibyll in reply to WeightWarrior]

I LOVE your posts WW, you make so much sense to me.

[kravaga]

Hi😊i was there just a week ago,weak,lazy,no power,no belief that i can do it,blamed contraceptive implant that cos of it i can t lose weight,had lots of excuses to not exercise. u can t get rid of eg cakes,cookies all sweets from home if u r livin with other ppl. U can t get rid of fatty food if u share a fridge with others. But u can make a choice what u gonna eat😊 everythin in yr life is yr choice. Yr choice is to stay at home n not exercise,yr choice s to eat too much. If u ll anderstand that everythin s up to u ll see that u can lose weight and u r not weak😊 u just have to get to this point in yr life that if u won t go out today outside n exercise u ll always be in the same position-overweight. U must programme yrself to exercise, don t think "oooh i must eg run today" think "oo im goin out to have fun". don t think bout it just do it,like robot which s programmed,it doesn t think just does it. If u can t exercise 3x a week for first month,exercise 1x or 2x a week n just walk not run. It s up to u what type of exercise u r able to do n stick to it for a first month😊don t exercise longer than hour cos u ll overtrain n lose yr motivation. Try to motivate yrself by makein yrself a photo of all yr body n look at it,look look n look. Even if u can t just look n think "do i really wanna look like this n feel this way?"u don t wanna feel this way all yr life don t u?u wanna be happy in yr own body-life s definetly too short to think "im too big for that jeans, my fat s everywhere, can t wear nice sexy dress cos everone ll see my big belly n hugh legs". Try to eat just smaller portions,dietin s nonsense. U ll be on yr eg 1500kcal cos u calculated on some web that u have to be on these kcal to lose weight blah blah blah. What after?after diet? U ll back to yr old habits... Eat everythin BUT smaller portions,more vegetables n fruits,1x a week or ok 2x a week some sweets. And slowly slowly u ll get what u want- slim u😊 if u ll do it faster u ll lose yr motivation, u must patient. I gain weight long time now u have to wait to take it off like a jacket😊 don t even look at pics of celebrities,they ve got money to hire a best trainer,have liposuction,great make up stylist n best photographer to do their Photoshop😁 it s rarely that u ll see real trained body on webes😊so go forward,make a photo of u,look at it n start tomorrow😊 U can do it,u just need to understand that u make a choice😊

[June1965]

Meme1989

What's to say then !!!! Mmmmmmmm

I'm in the same boat and it's very difficult to put you on track, BUT we both can do it...I'm sure 😋 One day at at a time !!!

[Portlandprincess]

Ok, when you have a weak moment...write a post or reply to a post...it's a great distraction!