Dieting habits: to keep or to break?

bethnewey

I have so many dieting habits, and although it feels like they're helping me in the beginning... Maybe they're actually contributing to the "screw it" phase that I get to after a month. Is it too much to keep up with in the long run ... Or does it help? ... I really don't know, what do you think? Do you do any of these?

1. Weighing yourself regularly
2. Counting down to a specific date to be "skinny" for..
3. Counting strictly.. Eg- having 4 almonds, should that be included in your diary?
4. Setting small goals but with time limits
5. Looking at old photos for motivation- sometimes leads to depressive over eating (how ironic)
6. Purposely buying clothes in smaller sizes to fit into

paperpudding

The only one of those I have done is no. 1 - and even then my idea of 'regularly' is only weekly.

I get your point that becoming obsessed/over strict with it could contribute to burn and crash failure.

47Jacqueline

I only do no. 1 as well, and I weigh every other week. I don't like seeing the number bounce around.

Eventually, the one diet "rule" I established was moderation in all things, including moderation.

RodaRose

1 I do this -- once a week.
2 I NEVER do this. ---- No establishing due dates for my body.
3 I absolutely do this every day.
4 rarely
5 rarely
6 never

We do what we believe what works for us.
Good luck to you.

RAinWA

I was in weight loss mode for a year. I found time related goals to be really hard on me mentally since you can do everything perfectly and still the weight won't come off on the timetable you have set for it. Our bodies are stubborn!

Instead I set other goals - weigh less than my husband, weigh less than my driver's license says I do , weigh less than I did when I got married.... you get the idea! Much easier to keep those goals going than date related ones since if you don't hit the date ones it can be really discouraging!

bethnewey

Hmm, I agree.. Time related goals can be so mentally exhausting.
Haha, they sure can!! the amount of times ive plateaued and then given up -.^
good idea, I'll set less specific goals, with no time limit
thanks RAinWA

malibu927

1-yes, every morning
2-when I started last year I hoped to be at my goal by this July. It's going to take me at least until next spring now, and I'm fine with that
3-if I eat it, I log it
4-no
5-since I'm smaller now than I've ever been in my adult life, old photos just motivate me to work harder
6-only if it's too good a deal to pass up

Wiseandcurious

I only do 1 and 3. Time-related goals are something I run from like the plague, they just don't mesh with my obsession with freedom and flexibility But I have a lot to lose, so I've split it into mini goals that I follow on my ticker on my profile page.

Number 6, never, I care too much about impeccable fit and you can't gauge that if you're not in the size of the clothing in question. What if it fits well but hangs totally ugly, or the shoulders are off, or there is a defect in the cut only revealed after you button/zip it up? How awful would it be to finally fit in it and find you hate it? But I have kept a few items in old sizes that used to fit me beautifully and am looking forward to trying those on again

melimomTARDIS

1. Weighing yourself regularly (once a week while I was losing, every day in maintenance).
2. Counting down to a specific date to be "skinny" for..No
3. Counting strictly.. Eg- having 4 almonds, should that be included in your diary?yes...ish. I do have days I eat more/eat out/etc...I just log to the best of my ability
4. Setting small goals but with time limitsno
5. Looking at old photos for motivation- sometimes leads to depressive over eating (how ironic)no
6. Purposely buying clothes in smaller sizes to fit intono

PeachyCarol

There are only two of those I do and plan to continue... weighing myself and tracking and weighing my intake. I weigh myself daily and plan to for life. I avoided the scale for years and fooled myself into gaining a ridiculous amount of weight doing so.

For now, I plan on strictly tracking my intake for good as well. My eye is off when it comes to portions, and I'm short. It doesn't take more than a little off here and there to throw me over my calorie goals since my calorie allowance is fairly low.

girlviernes

I weigh myself daily and track pretty much everything (don't always include spices, which have a small amount of calories).

I would recommend weighing less often if it creates too much distress that you find it demotivating. You can weigh weekly, every other week, or even monthly.

bethnewey

Oh wow! I'm suprised to see a few people weigh themselves daily. Thats what I tend to do, and usually everyone disagrees.. So its interesting to see that it works for some.

bruces41

Less food to mouth and more foot to pavement...
Keep it simple. Seriously, I find when I exercise I get to eat more of what I like, especially helpful when I know I am going to be going out to eat or to a party where I may have more calories than I normally do. I do weigh myself daily but only record it once a week.

Lounmoun

1. Weighing yourself regularly- I weigh myself once a week.
2. Counting down to a specific date to be "skinny" for..- No. I feel that is too much unhealthy pressure.
3. Counting strictly.. Eg- having 4 almonds, should that be included in your diary? Kind of. I would count out almonds. I would not count individual popcorn pieces. I do measure/weigh and log almost everything.
4. Setting small goals but with time limits no time limits
5. Looking at old photos for motivation- sometimes leads to depressive over eating (how ironic)- No. I don't find it motivating.
6. Purposely buying clothes in smaller sizes to fit into- No. I do have a couple of things that did not fit that I keep. I try them on every so often and can see they are fitting better. I didn't purposefully buy clothes that don't fit. I feel that is also unhealthy pressure.

kommodevaran

bethnewey wrote: »

I have so many dieting habits, and although it feels like they're helping me in the beginning... Maybe they're actually contributing to the "screw it" phase that I get to after a month. Is it too much to keep up with in the long run ... Or does it help? ... I really don't know, what do you think? Do you do any of these?

1. Weighing yourself regularly Yes, I weigh every day now.
2. Counting down to a specific date to be "skinny" for.. No, but I played with projections and ETA.
3. Counting strictly.. Eg- having 4 almonds, should that be included in your diary? Whenever possible/reasonable, I weigh everything
4. Setting small goals but with time limits I did set intermediate goals with time frames, not time limits. Now I have a eternity time frame...!
5. Looking at old photos for motivation- sometimes leads to depressive over eating (how ironic) No. (Not relevant for me, I hate looking at photos of myself, whatever weight.)
6. Purposely buying clothes in smaller sizes to fit into No, but enjoying shopping for tighter clothes as layer of fat got thinner.

NoelFigart1

1. Weighing yourself regularly- Keep. I weigh every day and track it on a trend.
2. Counting down to a specific date to be "skinny" for.. -- Toss. Biology is a complex system and besides, skinny isn't even a goal in my case.
3. Counting strictly.. Eg- having 4 almonds, should that be included in your diary? -- Keep. Yes, I count strictly. Yes, it is a pain in the rear.
4. Setting small goals but with time limits - Within limits, yes. Incremental goals are excellent for overall success, but they need to be realistic. For me, losing five pounds in a month or speed up my swim time by another 4 seconds per 100 yards is realistic. 8 pounds a month or 10 seconds per 100 yards isn't.
5. Looking at old photos for motivation- sometimes leads to depressive over eating (how ironic) - Irrelevant in my case. I'm not losing weight to become more socially acceptable.
6. Purposely buying clothes in smaller sizes to fit into A moronic waste of money. Buy and wear clothes that fit.

turtle0022

1. Weighing yourself regularly - I tend to weight myself several times a week. Yes, can be frustrating when you see it inch up, but it helps me be reminded to stay focused
2. Counting down to a specific date to be "skinny" for.. Doing that now as a motivator. Again, keeping me focused.
3. Counting strictly.. Eg- having 4 almonds, should that be included in your diary? I intend to be accurate every day. Sometimes I'm not as accurate as I could be and that's okay for me.
4. Setting small goals but with time limits I've broken my big number into 10 lb increments - so each goal is 10 lbs. I do better with smaller numbers than seeing that big number looming out there.
5. Looking at old photos for motivation- sometimes leads to depressive over eating (how ironic) No. Why sabotage myself.
6. Purposely buying clothes in smaller sizes to fit into[/b]Did that in my younger days. Didn't work then. Buy what fits you well now and go from there.

AmazonMayan

I never weigh myself. I know a lot may disagree with that, but I know myself and weighing either discourages me into giving up or encourages me to celebrate in the wrong ways lol. I do measurements occasionally, about 1 time a month. The inches are melting away and I'm happy with that progress. The actual number of pounds can come later for me.

I am now very strict on logging every last thing. I slacked off on this in the past.

I set small goals but no real timeline. I'd like to be smaller by May when my daughter gets her first college degree. I'm tired of hiding behind people in pictures to try and appear smaller!

I don't buy smaller clothes as a goal, but I have some smaller old jeans I will eventually be checking to see if I can get into them.

My absolute is logging everything and staying within my allowances. It's working. It's easy.

lemurcat12

I've done most of these. Whether they help or not depends on you.

1. I weigh daily (usually), and think it helps because it robs the scale of its power over time and not weighing myself for years is part of how I gained. Knowing the number is owning it for me. I'm pro this one.

2. I think this can be self-defeating, but for me it's helpful if reframed to thinking long term. Rather than a specific number, I think about plans for the next year and about how if I am consistent I will be down a significant amount of weight or in better shape or so on then. If you can manage not to feel like a failure if you are down 25 instead of 30, I think it can be a good way to bring yourself out of the mindset where a year (or 6 months or whatever) may seem like forever so put it off another week, who cares. It helped me get started.

3. I find this helpful.

4. I do this with behavior-focused goals: this month I will work on going to the gym regularly or some such.

5. On the whole I think it's not great to live in the past, but I can see how this could motivate you or remind you that you can be smaller.

6. I did this with jeans--same brand and style. It was a nice additional way to measure and motivate myself. However, I would make sure that you don't do it at the expense of buying clothes that you look and feel good in now.

jdhcm2006

bethnewey wrote: »

I have so many dieting habits, and although it feels like they're helping me in the beginning... Maybe they're actually contributing to the "screw it" phase that I get to after a month. Is it too much to keep up with in the long run ... Or does it help? ... I really don't know, what do you think? Do you do any of these?

1. Weighing yourself regularly
2. Counting down to a specific date to be "skinny" for..
3. Counting strictly.. Eg- having 4 almonds, should that be included in your diary?
4. Setting small goals but with time limits
5. Looking at old photos for motivation- sometimes leads to depressive over eating (how ironic)
6. Purposely buying clothes in smaller sizes to fit into

1. I weigh myself daily or a few times a week.
2. I do this to a point. For example, I want to weigh less this vacation than I did last vacation.
3. I log everything. If I eat it, I log it. And if I don't weigh it out, I err on the side of caution and count it as more than I think it is.
4. I do this, but if I don't achieve it, it doesn't matter to me. I know that this is a lifetime commitment. Right now, I've joined a lose 10 pounds the month of Feb. Is this going to happen for ME? No. I'm too close to my goal weight for it to be possible. But it's nice to have something to work towards.
5. I don't actively do this. But if I run across an old pic, and I do a side by side view, it makes me incredibly happy to see the progress that I've made.
6. No. Never. That's a complete waste of money.

jgnatca

1. Weighing yourself regularly - I weighed myself daily for about thirty days to make heads and tails of my fluctuations, and have now gone back to once a week on the advice of my dietitian. Too many extreme dieters make the scale the focus of their success, their mood. I'm not riding that crazy train.
2. Counting down to a specific date to be "skinny" for.. Heavens no. Too rife for failure. Though I have control over my choices, I can't control the rate of loss or even the weight on a particular day. I set weekly/monthly weight loss rates, and re-evaluate from experience.
3. Counting strictly.. Eg- having 4 almonds, should that be included in your diary? Almonds, of course. They have a big calorie kick. Snack foods and fatty foods are measured carefully.
4. Setting small goals but with time limits. Never a weight goal. It might be an exercise goal, a new habit, something like that. I am keeping in mind when I hit my next target weight which should be in the next two weeks.
5. Looking at old photos for motivation- sometimes leads to depressive over eating (how ironic) Not trying to turn back the clock. I use photos of lady athletes to inspire me. I am losing weight to get my mobility back, not recapture youth.
6. Purposely buying clothes in smaller sizes to fit into Heavens no. I celebrate achieving a size by packaging up my too-big clothes for donation. And planning a shopping trip.

katherine_startrek_fan

I do number 1 - weigh daily.

I do buy down jean sizes during a sale, but I only buy two pairs per size and am stopping at size 10. After that, I will have to be the size to buy it.

sodakat

malibu927 wrote: »

1-yes, every morning
2-when I started last year I hoped to be at my goal by this July. It's going to take me at least until next spring now, and I'm fine with that
3-if I eat it, I log it
4-no
5-since I'm smaller now than I've ever been in my adult life, old photos just motivate me to work harder
6-only if it's too good a deal to pass up

Me too, except that for #2 I wasn't quite sure how long it would take.

Liftng4Lis

I use to weigh daily and am very strict with counting (everything counts). Otherwise, I'm in for the long haul so this is all part of life. I look to where I want to be, not where I was and I refuse to put a timeline on it.

crosbylee

I am using daily weight to track the trend of my weight. It doesn't bother me to see small fluctuations as we all have them each day. Over time I hope to see a downward trend. This is why I will not set a deadline for when it has to be gone. My body needs time to adjust to what I am doing and hopefully not rebel on on me! Yes, logging everything you possibly can is necessary, because what you don't track can add up very quickly and you will eat more than you intend to eat. Looking at old pics of when I was thin, then more recent ones, just makes me angry with myself for letting it go this long. Kinda like a cattle prod to get me off my butt. I have enough smaller clothes, I don't need to buy any more!!

MKEgal

bethnewey wrote:

I have so many dieting habits, and although it feels like they're helping me in the beginning... Maybe they're actually contributing to the "screw it" phase that I get to after a month.

One problem is that you're thinking of this as a "diet" instead of a life change.
A diet is something you do temporarily. Once you go off your diet, back to your original way of living, the improvement you saw will disappear. Your old habits made you unhealthy to begin with. Why go back to them?
Change your life for good (permanent as well as benefit). Don't do anything short-term that you wouldn't be able & willing to do the rest of your life (other than perhaps eating at a calorie deficit... once you get to goal you will be able to eat a bit more).

Weighing yourself regularly

Every morning, and I write it on my calendar. If I've lost, I log it here. (And use the picture to update my ticker.)

Counting down to a specific date to be "skinny" for.

Heavens no. First, I don't want to be skinny, I want to be healthy, and there's no end date on that. Second, as others have said it's a setup for disappointment.

Counting strictly. Eg- having 4 almonds, should that be included in your diary?

Do they have calories? Of course. According to the database here, 4 almonds have 31 calories. Yes, they should be logged, especially if you're running at a close calorie deficit or just getting into the habit of logging food.

Setting small goals but with time limits

Small goals, yes. Time limits, no.
That being said, sometime in November I looked at my average weight loss & figured I could make onederland by 31DEC. Even my doctor thought that was a reasonable goal. Should have worked, too, only weight loss isn't linear & I had a monthlong plateau. Turned out I wasn't too far behind (about a week), and while I was disappointed I didn't let it stop me.

Looking at old photos for motivation

Absolutely! That's why I took the "before" pictures (which were really about 20 lb down, once I figured out that this "eat less, move more" thing was really working, and maybe I should have something to look back on).
And no, seeing my old self has never caused me to overeat. The image has occasionally been a reason I've stopped at just a few cookies, though.

Purposely buying clothes in smaller sizes to fit into

Sometimes.
If it's a slightly smaller size, at a good price, and I'm getting close to being able to wear it, sure.

Sometime last summer I found a pair of cable-knit leggings (think a sweater, but for legs) which were really a size or 2 too small, but I had faith that by the time I needed to wear them they'd fit... and they did. But that was from a thrift store and I think they maybe cost $3.
I've been shopping at thrift stores a lot during this weight loss [event, ordeal, journey, thing] because I don't want to spend lots on clothes which will be too big in a couple months.

bethnewey

Some good ideas Going on here, and I still am getting the same answers I was hoping for but I do want to clear a couple of things up.
When I said "skinny" I didn't mean skinny. What I should of said was "putting a time limit on your long term goal" whatever that may be, to lose 30 kilos, to gain 10 kilos of muscle, to be healthier.. What ever.

The other thing I should change is that when I say that I buy clothes smaller, I mean more like.. If you fall In love with a pair of shorts that might not fit you in a few months time, so you get a smaller size..

And lastly, when I diet I do eat healthy (usually low carb) so mainly vegetables, meat and some fruit. That's something a normal person could do for the rest of their life (with a little more carbs obviously) but I can't, my usual day consists of junk food, junk food and more junk food.
But I've been slim before and it's so much easier to maintain eating healthy, when I'm overweight i just have no desire to be healthy, at all... Unless I'm dieting.

bethnewey

Whoops! I forgot to say thank you!
Thanks so much for the replies!! It's so good to see what and how others do it.

StaciMarie1974

I'm 4 months into maintenance and still weigh myself daily. I got over the emotional connection with the scale a long time ago though - and used the daily weighins to learn my own trends. So there is no reason to be concerned when I go up at TOM, for example. Its normal, and temporary.

I never had a finish date in mind. That can be a bad thing, I think, because weight loss is not a perfect science.

When I was losing I made efforts to be as accurate as possible. Even for logging 4 almonds. That will depend on the individual, and whether it creates any negative issues.

Nothing to offer on 4-5. But for 6, I'd only 'allow' myself to buy smaller clothes for a great deal. And if there was reasonable chance of wearing them. As in I could squeeze into the jeans, even though they might look bad for not being a good fit.

We each have to find our own way. This is not a one size fits all journey.

quote="bethnewey;10073171"]I have so many dieting habits, and although it feels like they're helping me in the beginning... Maybe they're actually contributing to the "screw it" phase that I get to after a month. Is it too much to keep up with in the long run ... Or does it help? ... I really don't know, what do you think? Do you do any of these?

1. Weighing yourself regularly
2. Counting down to a specific date to be "skinny" for..
3. Counting strictly.. Eg- having 4 almonds, should that be included in your diary?
4. Setting small goals but with time limits
5. Looking at old photos for motivation- sometimes leads to depressive over eating (how ironic)
6. Purposely buying clothes in smaller sizes to fit into [/quote]

BWBTrish

I dont see what i am doing as a diet, this is a life style change.
When i wont count anymore
Going back to what i did before than i will gain weight again

So this is for me no diet, but how i start living my life.
Which mean i count and i weigh every day.

lol and nope i dont by clothes a size smaller to work too.
Goals are nice to reach but i will always have my goals in life. I was a heavy sporter so used to setting different goals all the time.