Advice on Commiting to a method
I am having trouble comitting to a weight loss method…been like a ping pong ball for the past two weeks…and would like to know what other methods or programs people are using and what they like about them.
Part of me thinks that unless I can get my head in the right frame of mind I will continue to have trouble sticking to anything. So much of this process is a mental process and my mindset and motivation just don’t seem to be there.
I would appreciate any ideas from others.
Thanks
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There are a lot of diets out there and they all work to some extent. I’ve tried them all from Weight Watchers to Atkins. I’m currently counting calories and using the food journal on this site. I am also committing to at least 1 hour of exercise per day.
Weight Watchers is good if you need support from people face to face. I lost a lot of weight on it before but did not follow up with maintenance so I gained it all back. The diet is easy to follow and you are taught how to eat in the real world and you get motivation from the lecture each week. If I don’t think I can accomplish this on my on this time, then WW is where I will be headed for help.
Atkins- you can lose a lot of weight on in a short amount of time, but it gave me heart palpatations so I stopped it. Plus, eating all that meat made me wonder just how healthy it really was.
The only thing that works and really works without any gadgets or fancy stuff is plain old counting calories and exercise. Losing weight is not rocket science it’s just really hard because it’s a lot more than what you put in your mouth that is making you heavy.
Hope this helps.
I’ve just recently switched from counting calories, to counting food groups. If you go to mypyramid.gov, it will tell you exactly what your daily reccomended servings are, for maintaing and losing weight. also, they give healthy eating tips, and there is a tracker to see how you are doing.
I’m probably not the best to offer advice as I have gained weight. Sadly, some of the weight gain is because of medications I’m on. Anyways, I really like Weight Watchers. They teach you how to eat sensibly for THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. Its a lifestyle change. With the points system you can still have the goodies you want, you just have to count them in your daily allowance. I also agree with Debbie above, common sense, eating the right foods and definitely exercise.
There are several Weight Watchers followers here at BuddySlim…maybe ask them? Good luck finding the right fit…you’ll find it I’m sure. And when you do….WOW..watch out!!! You will do great!!
I prefer the low carb route. Once you really commit to it, it works great.
For me, although I desperately miss breads and pasta, I feel so much better without them.
The first few days are hellish, but the sugar cravings will go away.
I think counting calories and fat grams is the way to go. That way you don’t really restrict everything, you only restrict the amounts. I also combine this method with cutting off white bread (or enriched flour) products and replacing them with whole wheat products and simply using common sense of avoiding or strictly limiting sweets. If you choose the calorie and fat gram route, you just need to research on what’s a good calorie limit for you. And to be honest I don’t really count anything anymore because I did it for so long that I already know what foods are good and what to avoid and what’s a good portion. Hope this helped you! Oh, and I love Bob Greene. If you are interested in a good book with some great tips, I swear by his first one “Making the Connection”. It’s alot of old school ways of thinking on exercise and healthy habits. For me, exercise and food go hand in hand.
hey there, i’m probably not the best as i don’t have a specific method or plan really, but i am doing my own version of portion control, smarter/smaller snacking, and finding ways to deal with emotional eating or eating when i don’t feel physically well. that plus exercise. i’m really into making my life fit in with my beliefs and making me more of who i want. the challenges are really helpful to me, too!
My diet is so similar to debbies, and wonder womans! Count those calories…I posted this in September, see if this helps!
My diet all laid out
Posted September 30, 2007
File under: Weight Loss
On My diet I concentrate primarily on LOW FAT and LOW CALORIES.
I was on a diet of sorts years ago and lost over 60 lbs…worked very well (then had a baby thus the weight returned) and I am once again on this diet.
I have found this book to be a BIBLE OF SORTS! It is called THE COMPLETE AND UP TO DAT FAT BOOK , by Karen J. Bellerson. I have purchased this book a good many times and anytime I see it I buy it for a friend as well.
The scoop on the book is that It tells you what all fat and calories are in every food. Now the computer has many programs that also do this but they require you getting online and finding the food exactly as eaten and sometimes substituting other foods for what you actually eat. The book tells you exactly how many calories you should eat according to your weight, and how many fat grams also…
Ok take my starting weight…220lbs and this is how to figure out how many calories I should not go OVER when I started dieting. Ok to find out your maximum daily allowance, multiply your daily calorie intake by .30 and divide that total by 9 ( there are 9 calories in each gram of fat). To calculate your daily fat gram budget you need to know your daily calorie intake. To do this, multiply your current weight by your activity level factor.
types of activity/level factor
lightly active = 13 moderately active = 15
Very active = 20
I just calculated using 13 so I knew I would be under the guidelines.
my example- 220X13=2860 calories allowed in order to not GAIN any weight
2860X.30/9=95.33 95 fat grams allowed to not GAIN any weight
my goal weight is 160 so I did the same thing for these numbers…..
160X13=2080 calories allowed in order to lose to desired weight
2080X.30/9=69 69 fat grams allowed per day to reach desired weight
now based on that I knew I hade to eat under 2080 cal and 69 grams of fat per day to get to my goal of 160 lbs.
Next write everything down!
The more you write on paper the easier it is because then you feel guilty if you have eaten a whole page of crap during the day! When you add the numbers up at the end of the day you realize that wow I ate a lot! So if you write it down it will help!
So do this for yourself… your weight X your activity level=calories to maintain your weight
then the calorie amount X .30 divided by 9= fat grams daily
NOW personally I draw charts in my diet log on paper too so That at the end of the week I look and say I DID GOOD! or I need to improve! I really really really try to stay under 1000 calories a day and I know that women should not go under 1200 calories a day but I know that I can do it with my goals in mind. and I try to eat under 12 grams of fat a day because I really really really want this weight to fall off! This is not possible for everyone, It is hard….I DONT BUY ANY FOOD FOR ANYONE IN MY HOUSE THAT I CAN NOT EAT! Because I WILL EAT IT! I have had to buy lower in fat everything because I know if I get a craving that it is over! I will eat the food that is sugary here in this house to appease me! So now I have an assortment of sugar free popsicles tropical flavored mmmm they are good!, and fat free jello pudding, and fruit cups cold, and jello in the fridge made in cups, and 100 cal pack everything, ice cream sandwiches, crackers, cookies, puddings, and fruit on hand. I can not stop snacking! If I do I get more hungry so I have to buy the 100 cal packs to limit myself. If I buy the box because I know it is cheaper then I eat the box because I know tomorrow I can go buy another one and start over again! But it would be too expensive to buy the box of 100 cal packs everyday! So I don’t eat but one snack in the box at a time! well this is my diet and I know I ranted on and on, but a few of you asked how I could motivate you, and this is how I am motivated so why not share it? I hope you try it and see if it works for you! Angie
, and fat!
