Discouraged

katie32308

I started well in July of last year till thanksgiving. Lost a total of 34 pounds. Fell of the wagon during holiday season gained a few pounds back. New years started strong lost the weight I gained. Ever since the end of janurary I have be off and on following what I eat. I am having a hard time keeping with it. I do good but then I binge eat. It has been a aweful cycle since the end of janurary. I'm still at 34 pounds lost but can't break through that number cause I binge eat sometimes. I can't help myself. It is so discouraging.

zoeysasha37

Well at least you've recognized where your issue is and why you aren't losing ( calorie deficit for weight loss , surplus equals weight gain and so on ) so you know where to start.
Motivation has to come from within yourself. You really really have to want this , or it won't work . what helps me is routine. Once im in a good daily routine of weighing my foods , logging accurately, and working out then it becomes much easier.
If you could force yourself to stick to a routine for a while , it might be easier for you eventually also. You could start by listing your goals and then listing the things you need to do to achieve those goals. Some people like to see it written out on paper and then refer back to the page when they feel like they want to binge eat.
Best of luck to you ! It isn't easy but can be done if you want it bad enough

katie32308

Thorsmom thank u for the ideas and support.

TheRoseRoss

Here's one way that I've heard it described that I often go to:

What if you went to the doctor and were told that you have a condition. It cannot be reversed, but you can treat it so that it doesn't get much worse. You'll need to apply medication twice a day for the rest of your life, and visit the doctor once or twice a year to have it checked, and maybe worked on. All of this, every day for the rest of your life. You would probably think "geez! How am I supposed to do that?"

The scenario described is brushing your teeth twice a day, and visiting your dentist twice a year. For the rest of your life. Many of us don't get up, look at the tooth brush and think "My goodness! I've gotta do this 40,000 more times over the course of my life." We just get up and do it as a part of our daily routine. We brush our teeth for our health, hygiene, confidence, whatever. Fitness and healthy eating has to become as routine as brushing your teeth. So routine that the same way you'd feel "yucky" and embarrassed about running into people on the street having not brushed your teeth, you've got to feel the same way about eating properly, and exercising.

I'm at the point now where I dread taking trips, because my routine will be interrupted and I worry that I won't be able to eat well, or exercise. Try to make it as much a part of you as brushing your teeth. When you were a kid, your parents had to make you do it. Over time, it became habit. This can be as well

Lizzy622

The notes area of the diary is way under utilized. Write down how you are feeling,especially on binge days. It may help you figure out why you binge ( boredom, stress, over working the day before and being sore, or just being too strict and feeling deprived)

Julz519

First of all.. Congratulations on losing 34 lbs and keeping it off!!! I struggle with binge eating myself. It makes it hard to get over the hump!! I have found that setting small goals for myself really help me... for example I would binge on peanut m&ms. I actually ended up giving them up for lent. I still haven't touched them The longer you go without something the easier it is. (I had to give up pull and peel twizzlers too...that made me really sad)
Don't get me wrong, I am ALL ABOUT things in moderation and not depriving yourself of something that you really want I just find that there are some things that just trigger the binge eating. If you can find those and start slowly eliminating them I think it will become easier for you.
Good Luck!!!

katie32308

Thank you all for the input. Very helpful everyone! Love this app and the insight of every user!! We are in it together

SueInAz

Lizzy622 wrote: »

The notes area of the diary is way under utilized. Write down how you are feeling,especially on binge days. It may help you figure out why you binge ( boredom, stress, over working the day before and being sore, or just being too strict and feeling deprived)

This is my suggestion, as well. Binge eating is usually triggered by something whether that's emotional or physical. Figuring out your trigger(s) would be a big first step. Once you know what's triggering the binges you can then work to avoid or mitigate them.

Best wishes!

vinerie

I've felt like this, too, and I'm still trying to figure out the answer to getting permanently on track. What has worked for me in the past is to tell myself that my only goal for the time being is to log my food. I say to myself that there are no calorie restrictions, I simply need to log what I eat. I have found that getting in the practice of logging and tracking what I eat then leads to other positive outcomes, like modifying what I eat.

wizzybeth

What kinds of foods are you eating? Are you denying yourself things you really like? That also triggers binge eating. You're less likely to gobble up a whole tray of brownies if you know you can eat one or two and work it into your daily calorie goal.

Fighting4Healthy

@katie32308 I am in the same boat. The best thing to do is pick yourself up and dust yourself off. Congrats on losing 34lbs, and remember that you can do this. don't deprive yourself though a little bit is okay to have. It is also about finding a good balance for you and your body. you can do this.

Kimmy82109

I can relate. I can't seem to lose more than 30 and have been trying everything. I've come out of my comfort zone, pushed myself etc and still at 30 I am beginning to get discouraged myaelf

TheRoseRoss

Kimmy82109 wrote: »

I can relate. I can't seem to lose more than 30 and have been trying everything. I've come out of my comfort zone, pushed myself etc and still at 30 I am beginning to get discouraged myaelf

Messages like this usually make me wonder, so I'll ask: which weighs more? 30 pounds of gold, or 30 pounds of turds? They both weigh the same. Place them on a scale, one at a time. The scale will say "they're both 30lbs." That's because the only thing the scale can tell you is a number. It doesn't know the value of that number. There was a guy here that said he's overweight. He's made changes, his arms, legs, waist etc have gotten smaller, but the scale doesn't budge.

I told him "you're likely losing fat while building muscle. That's why your body is getting smaller, but the number on the scale remains the same." I think a lot of us want to lose "weight" when we should be trying to lose "fat."

Would you prefer to weigh 100 pounds, with 50% body fat, or 130 lbs, with 15% body fat? If you simply went by the number on the scale, then it would be better to weigh 100 pounds, than 130lbs. There's so much more to it than the number on the scale.

Kimmy82109

RossAH wrote: »

Kimmy82109 wrote: »

I can relate. I can't seem to lose more than 30 and have been trying everything. I've come out of my comfort zone, pushed myself etc and still at 30 I am beginning to get discouraged myaelf

Messages like this usually make me wonder, so I'll ask: which weighs more? 30 pounds of gold, or 30 pounds of turds? They both weigh the same. Place them on a scale, one at a time. The scale will say "they're both 30lbs." That's because the only thing the scale can tell you is a number. It doesn't know the value of that number. There was a guy here that said he's overweight. He's made changes, his arms, legs, waist etc have gotten smaller, but the scale doesn't budge.

I told him "you're likely losing fat while building muscle. That's why your body is getting smaller, but the number on the scale remains the same." I think a lot of us want to lose "weight" when we should be trying to lose "fat."

Would you prefer to weigh 100 pounds, with 50% body fat, or 130 lbs, with 15% body fat? If you simply went by the number on the scale, then it would be better to weigh 100 pounds, than 130lbs. There's so much more to it than the number on the scale.

debubbie

Another thought for you: I have found that when I eat low on calories and exercise hard for several days in a row that I want to binge eat. When I eat at a slightly higher calorie level, about 1800 or so, I am able to eat consistently at that level without binging. I lose weight a little slower than I would like, but I have been able to stay with it for the last 15 months and lose 60 pounds.

Hope this helps and good luck to you.

totaldetermination

I went through a period of falling off the wagon and finding it hard to get back on and stay on.

What worked for me was to increase my calories to maintenance and eat at maintenance for a while. Then once I could do that easily I reduced my calories very slowly. With each reduction I waited til I knew I could manage it before I reduced it further.

Also, (if it makes you feel better) this really is quite a common problem for people to have so don't be too hard on yourself. Many people struggle. As long as you don't give up, then you're on the right track.

Fuzzipeg

Weight loss is a nightmare. So much can make it difficult if not nigh on impossible. May I suggest you look into thyroid problems particularly low, though some with high can also have weight gain issues. Before you give a deep sigh thinking this is the excuse of the nations inadequates. Please know its a real problem for many, most just struggle because they have difficulty expressing their disparate symptoms and this is a big part of the problem. A sluggish thyroid will make your body work on fewer calories if you keep asking it to and when you increase your intake even very carefully you can gain weight disproportionately. It's not always plain sailing once you are started on the usual modern jollop.

One support site considers up to 80% of US populations can have thyroid problems many of them remain undiagnosed. Modern foods and dietary advice leaves us exposed to many mineral and vitamin deficiencies, many hormones require protein and fat to be produced properly.

Please go on to one of the National Thyroid support sites, follow the links to symptoms and if as I hope, you can disregard 75% of these, you should be ok on that level. If not look more closely at what you can try to rectify your diet and try to get medical advice, sooner rather than later, the longer (years) it is left the worse the problem becomes. Understanding doctors are few and far between. Thyroid effects are systemic, the thyroid is central most if not all bodily functions. Medics presently are usually trained to look at one area not a group of symptoms and not the whole body in one appointment. If necessary keep going back or to a different doctor till you get proper answers.