An introduction, and ... help!
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riotbrrd
Posts: 1 Member
Hi all,
I'm in serious diet confusion right now and could use some help.
I'm 50 years old, in full-on menopause, and 5'3". Most of my 30's and 40's I weighed between 130-140. When I felt a little heavy, I would do Weight Watchers online, lose about 5 pounds, and then quit before hitting my goal weight of 132.
This fall, my weight went over 140 for the first time since pregnancy. In February I hit 146 and decided it was time to do something. I'm not at all knowledgeable about dieting, but I didn't want to do Weight Watchers again. I wanted a diet that would help me reset some of my bad habits -- specifically, drinking wine and eating chocolate all evening; eating too much quantity; snacking; a serious sweet tooth; and emotional eating.
On the suggestion of a friend, I decided to try the Fast Metabolism Diet. I made it about 2 weeks, but it was REALLY hard -- especially the paleo part because I don't like meat that much. Plus there was so much cooking involved, and my kid didn't want to eat anything I was making. 2 weeks in, after losing about 6 pounds, I decided to quit the FMD but try just restricting calories.
I've been eating very differently than I used to before the FMD. I'm not snacking much, I've given up my evening wine and chocolate, and I feel like my stomach is smaller so I'm eating smaller volumes of food. Plus I'm not eating cheese or sweets except very occasionally.
I'm trying to slowly add exercise back in to my routine (I didn't have enough energy on the FMD to exercise). I am not really a big exerciser, however, and my computer job is quite sedentary.
I've been consuming between 800-1000 calories most days. And guess what? I haven't lost any more weight in almost 2 weeks! I'm not really sure what to do at this point. I'd really like to lose 5 pounds more. And I know with my short attention span it's better if I can do it over a limited period of time rather than a long-term plan where I lose half a pound every other week.
Any suggestions? Is there another diet that might work for me that is less trouble than the FMD?
Sorry for the long rambling post. And thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.
Cheers,
Kim
I'm in serious diet confusion right now and could use some help.
I'm 50 years old, in full-on menopause, and 5'3". Most of my 30's and 40's I weighed between 130-140. When I felt a little heavy, I would do Weight Watchers online, lose about 5 pounds, and then quit before hitting my goal weight of 132.
This fall, my weight went over 140 for the first time since pregnancy. In February I hit 146 and decided it was time to do something. I'm not at all knowledgeable about dieting, but I didn't want to do Weight Watchers again. I wanted a diet that would help me reset some of my bad habits -- specifically, drinking wine and eating chocolate all evening; eating too much quantity; snacking; a serious sweet tooth; and emotional eating.
On the suggestion of a friend, I decided to try the Fast Metabolism Diet. I made it about 2 weeks, but it was REALLY hard -- especially the paleo part because I don't like meat that much. Plus there was so much cooking involved, and my kid didn't want to eat anything I was making. 2 weeks in, after losing about 6 pounds, I decided to quit the FMD but try just restricting calories.
I've been eating very differently than I used to before the FMD. I'm not snacking much, I've given up my evening wine and chocolate, and I feel like my stomach is smaller so I'm eating smaller volumes of food. Plus I'm not eating cheese or sweets except very occasionally.
I'm trying to slowly add exercise back in to my routine (I didn't have enough energy on the FMD to exercise). I am not really a big exerciser, however, and my computer job is quite sedentary.
I've been consuming between 800-1000 calories most days. And guess what? I haven't lost any more weight in almost 2 weeks! I'm not really sure what to do at this point. I'd really like to lose 5 pounds more. And I know with my short attention span it's better if I can do it over a limited period of time rather than a long-term plan where I lose half a pound every other week.
Any suggestions? Is there another diet that might work for me that is less trouble than the FMD?
Sorry for the long rambling post. And thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.
Cheers,
Kim
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Replies
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Hi, Kim! This advice comes from a 26-year-old who doesn't ascribe to any sort of dieting philosophy (no WW, no FMD, no Paleo, etc.), so feel free to take it for what it is.
Like me, you don't have very much to lose, so I don't understand why you're restricting yourself so much. You want to "reset" your bad habits--what are they? Overeating? Do you eat foods that make you sick, or that you don't enjoy because you "should" eat them? Do you not exercise enough, or do you feel like you exercise too much? Be honest with yourself about the problem.
Your "diet" should be a way of eating that you retain permanently, not just a temporary thing, otherwise you're not changing your habits at all. I don't cut anything from my diet. You don't have to, either. If you aren't losing on your 800-1000 calories, I suspect logging errors. These are typical; we all make mistakes. If you don't actually weigh all of your portions with a food scale, you won't have any idea of how much you're actually eating.
The dieting advice on MFP's introductory boards give you other good advice (getting enough water, protein, and fat, for instance), but buying and using a food scale would be my first step in your shoes.
Good luck!0
