Onwards & Downwards: April 2018

[AB Editor]

Hi all! Hope everyone had a good Easter - I have had a lot of eggs bestowed upon me, which will keep me going for a month or so if I practise enough moderation. How is everyone else doing?

Here is the thread from March:
https://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/Body-and-Soul/Weight-Loss-and-Dieting/Question1595839.html

[Old_Geezer]

Up yet another 0.8 lbs. I am so close to just giving up. Sick of it all the time, years of getting nowhere and having the scales mock me time after time. The only way to lose weight seems to be to make life a complete and utter misery craving food all the time and thinking of nothing else.

[xstitcher]

I can feel your misery OG. I was like that last July. Nothing was working for me and I was making life for myself a misery having to carry around all that extra weight. As soon as I made up my mind to seek professional help I already felt better. I wasn’t half starved at any time. That was one of the things you must NEVER be. My dietician and I made a list of everything I liked to eat and from that she made food plan ideas for me and the rest is history. I stuck to it...not one cheat and oh boy has that paid off. All we can do here is try and motivate or commiserate but the real help is out there and only you can find what is right for you. I really hope that you do.

[wendilla]

Og I have struggled with weight all my life . I am not obese but I needed to lose 3 stone when Xstitcher and I started this approx. 4 to 5 years ago and I lost that in about 18 months but I still struggle with a stone that I would like to lose .wasn't too bad until I stopped smoking 20 years ago when my first grandson was born .But struggled ever since but certainly wont go back to smoking .I have stayed the same a few times .If I fancy something I have it in moderation . For someone that has a lot of weight to lose it is best to try and stick to healthy eating like I did when I got rid of the 3 stone . I still plan my meals out for the week .Stay with us because if you don't like me I would probably gain and I have something to try and achieve every week .

[Quoi]

Morning all - I know how you feel OG - no change again for me even though I feel I am eating far less than I used to and exercising far more. I am happy with the food changes though and although I am not hungry, food seems to be on my mind a lot. I thought a decent calorie deficit each day would have better results but its early days for me and I can be patient for a little longer - I hope you will be too.
I read on here about sandyRoe dropping from 14st to 10st in about 6 months but looking at the diet he used that seems far too extreme for me.

[wendilla]

Hello quei and welcome the quicker you get your weight off the faster it will go back on . A steady small weight loss each week is the best way .diets and clubs are no good it is sticking to a healthy diet and making sure you do your meal shop for the week write everything down that you eat every week . In saying that about clubs it might work for some for a start as it does for everyone if you have a lot to lose .

[Quoi]

Thanks wendilla - but like OG implies - its always nice to see a return for your efforts when you do it the slow and easy way.
I know someone whose wife is on one of the drastic 500 calorie protein style diets. She feels terrible and says she has lost 'a stone and a half' since january but had a 'do' over last weekend and claims to have put 8lbs straight back on - destroying months of hard work.
Totally proving your point.
I have always known it is a lifestyle change and I dont think I am doing anything that I wouldnt be happy to do for the rest of my days as long as I am physically capable.

[Old_Geezer]

Thanks for the responses. I think part of the problem is that I've lost enthusiasm. I try to continue noting what I have eaten (a pain trying to estimate work out figures a lot of the time) but instead of monitoring it as the day goes by I catch up at the end of the day or next morning as a compulsion rather than a weight loss aid.

I'm not particularly in control for half the week anyway, but weirdly it's not unusual for me to have done better over the heavier weekend than the lighter rest of the week. Weird.

I've more days over the daily limit than I'd like but fewer than one might expect. Maybe i just need a break.

[wendilla]

surprise surprise guess what still the same but I wont give up .I feel a weight loss coming for next week . Og please please don't stop maybe just give yourself a break from weighing daily .

[xstitcher]

I ditto what Wendilla says OG!

[Old_Geezer]

It's going up weekly too.

But was up again this morning too. Maybe because I had two sandwiches for evening meal yesterday. (One first, then when I was still peckish later, the other.) Bread does have quite a few calories.

[wendilla]

Hello spath I have just been reading all about intermittent fasting . I certainly would not advise it . Your biking and exercise would be sufficient . Yes you would lose weight but you would put it back on as fast . And on long term could make your self bad .
The only thing the warmer weather does is we can have lighter meals like salads but not every day . Plan your meals for the week and write everyone down then you can refer back to your weekly gains or losses and you will be able to calculate what not to have from your weeks you gain ,

[pastafreak]

Intermittent fasting is NOT starving yourself or going hungry. You'd still eat enough food to nourish you, but with a longer period between dinner and your "break fast" meal...usually about 16hours. Intermittent fasting has been shown to help regulate blood sugar amongst other benefits. That in turn will keep hunger at bay.
O_G...I'd suggest reading up on reducing your carbs. It's worked for others on here...myself included. Done correctly, you can even have butter and cream. ;-) And no...fat does not make you fat.

[Old_Geezer]

I've heard you give that advice before Pasta. Thanks. Would be very difficult for me though. I long to fill up on bread or other carb. Other food categories seem so unsatisfying. It's part of who I am. I'm unsure what would substitute properly (besides I'd have to tell my woman to stop baking me a loaf each weekend ;-) )

[jennyjoan]

my neighbour gave up carbs and dairy - jeepers has she lost weight. She may have been 14 stone now I would say she is about 10 stone - in one year - she is a Skinnymalink.

[pastafreak]

O_G...the fact that you "long to fill up on bread and other carbs" is the very reason you should try. I used to be like that...hence my user name;-). If I was happy...if I was depressed...I'd stuff myself with carbs. A "midnight snack " was a potful of cheesy pasta. I could eat bread for England. And forget cakes...a six pack of donuts vanished in an evening. I never got FAT...but I was about 2st overweight...and knew I couldn't carry on.
I could still devour bread if given a chance, but I don't like pasta anymore. I eat meats, fish, cheeses, I use cream and butter, I eat dark chocolate and berries and more cream ;-). I've found substitutes for starchy foods that I now like better. I'm rarely hungry....or should I say I don't obsess about food like I did when I ate low fat and counted calories. And was miserable. And hungry. All the time.
What I did might not work for you...we are all different. But it's worth considering.

[Old_Geezer]

Piles of (unappetizing) steamed veg aside, (along with rejecting outright most nuts & seeds, and raw salads) isn't cutting out carbs and replacing with fat laden options just asking for cholesterol problems and furred up arteries ? Sounds like a risk of stroke/heart attack.

[pastafreak]

No O_G...there is a lot of recent research that shows that a lower carb diet ( or even *very* low carb) is healthier...it can result in long term sustainable weight loss, can reduce blood glucose, and does not cause raised cholesterol. In fact bad cholesterol is often reduced. Patients with Type 2 diabetes can often manage their condition with this type of diet without the need for medication.
As far is fat is concerned, I mention butter and cream as so many feel they have to give up these when dieting...obviously you don't eat bucketloads. But you don't need to cut every scrap of fat or crispy skin off your meat.