Resentful thinking lingering from too-intense diet

Danibrss

Hi everyone, I haven't really posted in the forums, but I thought I might get your point of view on this. About three years ago, I joined Slim 4 Life. I was single, tired of my weight and ready to make a change. I had the ability to pour a lot of money and energy into losing 55 pounds, and I succeeded. It got to the point that the staff referred to me as their spokesperson, endearingly. The problem really wasn't the food, other thean it was really strict. I ate really clean, with no processed food, no salt and no sugar. I discovered I was lactose intolerant, and that eating dairy had been troubling me for years.

It was a great experience and I learned a lot, but at the end of it I was so starved and deprived that I finally cheated after eight months. Of course I came in to some binging issues, but those were resolved quickly.

It took me a good three years to gain the weight back, and I don't look the same as when I started. I have more muscle mass now and less stomach fat, but I am still not satisfied with the weight gain. I think I really do want to make a change, but I'm still kind of bitter and resentful toward healthy food that was bland, unseasoned and took forever to prepare. I don't often have a lot of time to cook or meal plan, and I don't enjoy leftover chicken and such.

As a result, I eat out way too much. Every time I think about losing weight, I get kind of sad thinking about that diet. For the longest time I thought that was the only way to go, because it was the only time I was truly successful with losing weight. I guess my question is really just trying to figure out if anyone else out there has had a similar experience, and how they picked themselves up and continued on.

mkakids

I havent had a similar experience, but i wanted to chime in.

There is no reason why you cant continue to eat out regularly and lose weight. You may need to alter what you order, or how you eat it, but its doable.

if i were yoi, i would start with being conscious ov what your eating for a week. Dont count calories, dont obsess. Eat the types of food yoh have been eating, but try to make small changes to decrease the calorien count. Drink water instead of something with calories, leave a few bites on your plate, ask for dressing or other condiments on the side so you can use slightly less, make the effort to walk around the block, etc...

It may not be a massive difference, but evey calorie cut out helps to create a deficit.

Then slowly start to incorporate more diet friendly things....eat an extra meal at home every coupld days, use half the amount of oil or dressing in a recipe, eat a burger with half a bun, orderna side of veggies or salad instead of fries, etc...

Making slow changes will help ease the transition.

feisty_bucket

Dani_NicoleYA wrote: »

I ate really clean, with no processed food, no salt and no sugar.

I'm still kind of bitter and resentful toward healthy food that was bland, unseasoned and took forever to prepare. I don't often have a lot of time to cook or meal plan, and I don't enjoy leftover chicken and such.

Bleh, sure. It doesn't have to be like that though. You can get plenty fit without that unpleasantness, just get your calories and macros dialed in and stick with it.

Cooking can be as easy or hard as you want it to be, pretty much.

Hint: Lawry's marinade goop (my favorite is "Santa Fe Chili") on frozen veggies will blow your mind, as will BBQ sauce and Sriracha hot sauce on anything. Use all the Nu Salt/Lite Salt (more potassium than sodium) you want. Scrambled eggs, yes? Frozen meat? In a bowl! Apply heat, eat. Ten minutes start-to-finish, giant meal.

positivepowers

I had that experience with Nutrisystem. The first time I worked the program I got almost to my target weight (135 lbs) but then I ended up bingeing and gaining the weight back and about 20 lbs extra because of the restriction (even though I don't call Nutrisystem "eating clean!") I tried to go back on the program but no matter how strictly I worked the program I couldn't lose the weight the second time. Now I just use IIFYM and while I can't say I'm strict about it, it's better.

LKArgh

Dani_NicoleYA wrote: »

Hi everyone, I haven't really posted in the forums, but I thought I might get your point of view on this. About three years ago, I joined Slim 4 Life. I was single, tired of my weight and ready to make a change. I had the ability to pour a lot of money and energy into losing 55 pounds, and I succeeded. It got to the point that the staff referred to me as their spokesperson, endearingly. The problem really wasn't the food, other thean it was really strict. I ate really clean, with no processed food, no salt and no sugar. I discovered I was lactose intolerant, and that eating dairy had been troubling me for years.

It was a great experience and I learned a lot, but at the end of it I was so starved and deprived that I finally cheated after eight months. Of course I came in to some binging issues, but those were resolved quickly.

It took me a good three years to gain the weight back, and I don't look the same as when I started. I have more muscle mass now and less stomach fat, but I am still not satisfied with the weight gain. I think I really do want to make a change, but I'm still kind of bitter and resentful toward healthy food that was bland, unseasoned and took forever to prepare. I don't often have a lot of time to cook or meal plan, and I don't enjoy leftover chicken and such.

As a result, I eat out way too much. Every time I think about losing weight, I get kind of sad thinking about that diet. For the longest time I thought that was the only way to go, because it was the only time I was truly successful with losing weight. I guess my question is really just trying to figure out if anyone else out there has had a similar experience, and how they picked themselves up and continued on.

Spend some time googling recipes sites, or buy a few cookbooks to experiment. Cooking to lose weight does not have to be time consuming and I cannot imagine why blunt food without seasoning would aid in weight loss.

karlis87

I eat exactly what I always ate, just less and I have been losing weight. I've lost 12 lbs in the last 8 weeks. I do notice over time I switch to healthier options because I want to eat more but if I don't feel like it I can get all my calories from ice cream one day. ( I don't recommend that though- makes you feel sick. )

Shrinking_Erin

I too eat what I always have, though much less of it. 70 down so far. Just weigh, track and stay within your goal.

Danibrss

Thank you all for the support. I think getting over the mental roadblock is the hardest part! You know sometimes I get so worked up and negative, but then I'll take a step toward being healthy and I'm like ... that wasn't that bad. Hah.

Thanks again.

elaineamj

skinnytaste.com has been changing my mind about "diet food". I get so excited about my meals now - and leftovers for lunches are SO YUMMY!

ninerbuff

I competed in my 20's and food I ate pre comp for 12-16 weeks was bland. And I was eating it 6 times a day. So I get where you're coming from. Part of the reason I quit competing was while I may have looked my best, I didn't feel my best physically and mentally.
There's a happy medium. You CAN eat the foods you like, you really just have to be disciplined on portioning. I've done it that way for the last 25 years now.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

Nuke_64

You came to the right place. If you haven't already, check out the posts below.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10300331/most-helpful-posts-getting-started-must-reads
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1

Danibrss

Thank you all! I forgot about Skinny Taste. I used to love that site, along with Emily Bites.

harrybananas

Weight loss is not exactly about the type or amount of food you eat. It's calories.

You like eating out at Red Lobster!? TGIF?!?! Cheesecake Factory!??!?! Then get that fettucini alfredo with all the sauce you can handle, but it may be the only thing you eat for the entire day.

Eat whatever the hell you want, just make sure it's within your weight loss calorie limit. Lose weight while maintaining your sanity and happiness. If you can't eat what you want, you'll never be able to sustain it in the long run.

And drink too. That'll go a long way.

upoffthemat

Stop looking at losing weight as a time limited thing. Start working on eating how you will eat for the rest of your life, just eat a little less for now. Find the things you can do for the rest of your life and make the changes as slowly as you need to, but I honestly think we should be thinking about what we are going to do when we reach our goal even on the day we start to lose weight.

KerryITD

This time around, I finally realized that what was holding me back was an all-or-nothing mentality: I resented having to deprive myself, although I sure wasn't happy where I was. So now I'm only making changes that are sustainable for the longterm and that don't make me miserable thinking about doing them for the rest of my life. I'm going for 1600 calories a day, not 1200, and trying to move more, not trying to get up a 4 am to work out for 2 hours. So far it's been easy and actually fun, giving me more energy and making me happier!

dubird

You don't HAVE to have bland, unseasoned food to lose weight. Hell, I still have a crappy diet and managed to lose 50lbs! You need to shift your thinking from "what foods do i have to cut out and what 'healthy' foods do i have to eat to lose weight" to"what portions of foods do i need to be eating and what adjustments to my eating habits do i need to make to lose weight". There are many recipes you can find that have lower calories but plenty of flavor and can be filling. In fact, just cooking for yourself allows you a great deal of control of your diet that you don't get from eating out all the time. You don't have to search for 'low-calorie meals' either. Find a recipe you like, enter it into MFP if it doesn't give the calories on the recipe (some do), and see if it's worth fitting into your day.

Remember, this isn't a diet as such, but a change in your eating habits. There's no need to make yourself miserable by cutting out everything you like. You can still eat your favorite foods, just need to learn what the proper portion is so you don't eat too much of them. If you start out a new eating plan, give it a couple of weeks and ask yourself "do i want to eat this way the rest of my life?" If the answer is no, it's not for you.

NinaSharp

I had a similar experience with Weight Watchers. When I first started the program I loved it! It made so much sense. I finally lost weight, readjusted my attitude to food and the pounds fell off. When I walked away, that was the beginning of the end, in that I could never replicate the success that I had the first time. I've rejoined WW several times and each time seems harder and harder even when I follow the plan strictly. I've finally just gave up following them, and resolved not to diet, but to be healthy.