Trouble with Yo-Yo Dieting! Any Suggestions?

SarahRDanaher

I was never one who believed in weight loss in general. I thought that we were all designed to carry a specific height and weight and that was it. In my case this was 5'4" and about 153 lbs.

However in August 2010, during my freshman year of university I lost approximately 20+ lbs in a very short period of time due to nerves, malnutrition, and athletics.

Nevertheless, after the first semester I became VERY comfortable with myself and my surroundings that I steadily gained about 30+ lbs over the next 2 years.

Frustrated by this weight gain I took a HUGE step in bettering myself physically and mentally in September 2012. I moved to France. Over the course of 6 months I gained fluency in the French language and lost approximately 20 lbs leaving me at 143 lbs. I was so thrilled by this weight loss I achieved by walking A LOT, drinking tons of water, and eating smaller portions of food.

Nonetheless, after returning to the United States I slipped right back into my old habits, thinking the weight loss would never come back. Before I knew it I was right back up to 165 lbs by April 2014.

That brings me today! I made another MAJOR change in my life by moving to North Carolina in August 2014. I am currently enrolled in Graduate school and working 2 jobs. I feel as if I do not have the time to work out like I desire to and over the past month I feel as if I have gained 10+ lbs by over eating, lacking sleep, and never making time to work out.

I need to make a change. This time will be different...I think! I have made small adjustments like swapping my 1-2 cups per day of Starbucks coffee for Numi Organic Tea, working out in the morning (even though it takes everything I have to get out of bed), and eating more fruits and veggies rather than my go to easy to bake pasta recipes.

neandermagnon

The most common cause of yo yo dieting is people making the diet too difficult to stick to in the first place, and also this goes with all-or-nothing thinking......

you don't need to be perfect to lose weight, you don't need to lose weight quickly, you don't need to torture yourself with exercise that you hate, you don't need to give up *any* of your favourite foods.... you don't have to make this difficult at all.... all you need to do is burn more calories than you eat. Change your focus... don't try to lose weight fast... aim and plan instead for not regaining the weight you lose, i.e. your long term goal is to get to your goal weight and stay there for life - it really does not matter how long it takes you to get there, so long as you stay there. Try to find the highest number of calories you can eat and still lose weight, slowly but steadily. Pay attention to getting all the nutrition your body needs (protein, essential fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, fibre, etc) and then with the remaining calories, eat what you want so long as you don't go over your calorie goal. Plan your eating so you can have all the foods you want to eat, and log your food carefully so you know just how much you can have without going over goal (you'll be surprised how much you can actually fit in)...... with regards to exercise, anything that gets you moving is fine... pick something you enjoy and won't find it hard to stick to and get into the habit of doing it regularly.

For goals, instead of setting goals like lose x lbs by whatever date.... set compliance goals, i.e. 1 month 2 month 3 month etc goals sticking to it... long term ones would include 1 year, 2 years, 5 years.... if the thought of sticking to the same lifestyle changes that long freaks you out....... well that's why you have to make sure what changes you make to lose weight are ones that you *can* stick to and *don't* feel like torture or deprivation, because you do have to stick to it for the rest of your life.... and you can lose weight and keep it off for life without any of it feeling like torture or deprivation because you just have to burn a little more off than you eat. Aim for long term compliance.... don't worry about how long it takes to get to goal, aim to stay there for life when you do.

CrazyWhiskers

I also have a problem with yo-yoing. I've mastered gaining and losing weight but the part that baffles me is keeping a steady weight. What the poster above said makes sense

StaciMarie1974

I too work 2 jobs, am a full time graduate student, in addition to family.

The key? Find ways to multi-task and work activity into things you do already. Some of my textbooks are available as online versions, so I read while walking on the treadmill (slower and uphill incline are better for reading real books though). Jogging in place while watching tv. Doing active things with family, friends. Walking to the store instead of driving.

The big key to weight control is making your food choices/amounts reasonable based on what your body needs. Avoid mindless eating. Eat for nutrition, fuel. You can & should enjoy your food also, and that can fit into the nutrition/fuel aspect as well.

SarahRDanaher

Thank you so much everyone! I think you're right, steady portion control and creative exercise will help alot.

likitisplit

In theory, you should be able to manage your weight simply through controlling your calorie intake.

It sounds like you've got a lot on your plate right now, and it'll make things a lot easier if you figure out a preparation strategy. One thing I've learned is that the majority of successful users on here have figured out a way to bulk cook/do meal prep for the week on Saturday or Sunday. It's a lot easier to eat more fruit if you've got a bowl full of cut-up watermelon in the fridge.

999tigger

In reading your post it looks like you dont see with clairty why you were putting weight on.

You need to get yourself the right mindset as to why and how you will do it.
Undesrtsand why you yo yo'd. What was said above overcomplication as well as a failur to understand what was involved.

As also said above for pure weight loss, then begin with understanding how MFP and losing weight works through creating a calorie deficit. To get a deficit conume less than you burn. MFP makes it easy to track what you consume, stick to the deficit target and you will lose weight. Accurate and consistent logging will help you sustain this.

More you understand and learn from the forums an the stickies then you will have knowledge to help you tackle the diet properly.

As for exercise, please rememeber that losing weight is c80%+ diet. Exercise is handy, but people cna lose weight without it.

As for Yo Yo, then you need to think it through to stop you lapsing. MFP is about adopting sustainable lifestyle changes that are longlasting. You need to know what you will do when you lose the weight in order to keep it off. You then have to put the effort in to put that into action.

Understanding how it all works will help you gain those good habits. You cna then move onto issues such as nutrition and fitness.

I wouldnt start the diet until I had the mindset and a plan that deal with my previous weaknesses. Make it different this time and mak a choice to lose the weight plus keep it off.