What is the rush?

KateTii

People want a quick and easy fix so they can lose the weight fast so they can stop the "diet" and get back to their normal lives. Heck, who wouldn't want a quick and easy fix? 12+ months of logging and careful eating? Nah, just drink this magical potion four times a day for two weeks and you'll be bikini beach body ready!

That, and shows like "The Biggest Loser" gives an unrealistic image of weightloss - normal people don't lose 9kg of fat 6 weeks into weightloss. They don't see the team of doctors, nutritionalists/dieticians, personal trainers etc. that are there to make sure the extreme losses aren't killing them. Then when Joe Doe tries doing the same thing but only loses 1kg, he feels like a failure - surely it's possible, I must just be missing the magical pill.

evildeadedd

maetijip wrote: »

msf74 wrote: »

I think part of what drives the desire for quick weight loss is psychological distress which no one particularly wants to live with for a long period of time.

I think many people live in a state of deliberate blindness to their weight and size because the reality is hard to deal with.

Then when the scales from their eyes and they are presented with what they have become they want to get away from it as quickly as possible.

It is a perfectly understandable reaction but leaves them wide open to be exploited or vulnerable to reckless approaches.

I would like to echo this sentiment as it relates to my experience.

The ever-present feed-beast/hunger-lion's claws do not dull around the necks of those who attempt a 'lifestyle change'.

It is a daily struggle, a mental apocalyptic war, with nuclear neurons firing towards the synaptic shield we call 'will'. Their goal? To satiate the feed-beast, to give in to his wanton lust for food.

Our inner fire, or whatever catalyst that ignited our change will always be in direct opposition to the void that now exists. This is where the true testing of oneself occurs, will your reasoning and motivation hold up to the onslaught?

Should we then seek to draw out this eternal battle? Hell no! We march forward with all we have, armed with our inner fire for change and either it will extinguish, or we will set the world ablaze with our triumph.

I rather live with 1200 calories a day championing my weight loss expediently and reveling in my unbreakable fortitude, than crawl to victory after years of slow progress.

*Not meant to demean or defame those who have made slow progress ultimately reaching their goals, for their victories are no less than mine... Personality wise, I like an all or none approach, so I was simply ascribing that above.

That is the thing, there is not onslaught for me, this isn't an apocalyptic battle that I fight tooth and nail to get through. This is a sustainable life for me. I have been all or nothing many many times, 10 years of all or nothing, you know what I have to show for it? Nothing. A small percentage of people thrive when they push themselves, there are exceptions to every rule.
In my life I have seen it with myself ,and those I know many times, there is almost always a burnout when you push too hard. Will power is a finite resource, if you are spending every ounce day after day, if every waking moment is a battle for you, you will get tired.
People have said dieting sucks and they just want to be done with it, and I couldn't agree more. Dieting does suck, especially if you are over restricting, that's why I am done dieting. My road will be long, and I know there will be hard spots. because I am not fighting every single second of every day, I will have strength to push through those hard times.
There is nothing wrong with wanting results, if you are doing anything in life correctly you should be seeing them. I see results every day. Maybe I walk a little farther, or a little faster, maybe the scale is down, or that pair of pants that was uncomfortably tight a few weeks ago not needs a belt. That's what I want you to focus on, just improvement.
When you are married to that number on the scale, when it consumes your entire being, you lose sight of the world around you. I know this from experience, I have been there over and over and over.
If you think "all I need to do is lose 50 pounds and I will be happy" I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but that's likely not going to be true. Happiness doesn't come at XXX weight, life doesn't start at your goal, you are alive now. You don't have to be miserable to get healthy and lose weight. Start appreciating life now, look at where you were last week and be glad that you are closer to your goals today. That is where happiness comes from, appreciating your progress, not hating that it wasn't enough.
Don't just look for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, look for and cherish the nuggets you find along the way. As long as you are moving forward you will meet your goals.

ashleyjongepier

I feel like a lot of people don't understand that 2lbs a week isn't easy or sustainable if they don't have a lot left to lose. They see a 300lb person losing 2 or more a week and they think well I can as well, but they weigh half of that person.

For me personally, I can say when I have wanted to drop weight very quickly it was because I dreaded the amount of time it would take other wise. I'm learning that the journey is what matters the most.

jemhh

evildeadedd wrote: »

Christine_72 wrote: »

Probably because dieting sucks for a lot of people, and they want to get it over and done with as quickly as possible? ?

If it really sucks that bad you are doing it wrong. That was kinda my while point with this rambling gibberish. I am eating the all the foods I love still, I am just not sitting down and eating a whole large meat lovers pizza and a two liter of mt dew twice a week. If you want to maintain a healthy weight you can't "diet" and "get it over with", all that is going to lead to is a cycle of gaining and losing that will last the rest of your life. Why not learn proper portions and how to live ? The idea of a "diet" is flawed , and exactly how the fitness industry wants you to think. I know first hand what it leads to, I have dealt with it since I was a teenager.
I'm not miserable, I don't hate anything about the process this time. I am seeing improvement is some way every day. Maybe the scale goes down, maybe it doesn't, but when I go into the gym I bump up the treadmill a little faster, or I lift heaver. If the only thing you focus in is pounds lost you don't appreciate every other milestone you are hitting. Maybe you walk to the end of your driveway today, and maybe to the end of the block by Friday. Those are HUGE accomplishments for some people. Every day you are getting better, stronger, faster than you were the day before. If you teach yourself to hate the process of improvement, you are only forcing yourself to learn to settle for mediocrity. Taking just one more step today than you did yesterday is something to be proud of. Don't hate the fact that you can't run a marathon, appreciate that you can run farther than you did last week.

When you're not a straight of the gate starter, I think this is a load of BS.

In general, I am all for moderate weight loss rates. At a certain point, though, even with a moderate loss rate and eating the foods you love, dieting can really start to suck. I've been there and I know that it does. At a certain point there are many of us who cannot go faster or lift heavier while eating in a deficit and, for me, that's when it really starts to suck. I'm two years into this. I've reach a point where my hormones are fighting fat loss tooth and nail, where I'm not happy with how my body looks, and yet I'm also not happy with being able to get faster or stronger. It doesn't happy to everybody but it does happen for some of us and I've got to tell you, fat loss purgatory is a really sucky place to be. I can't really blame anybody in such a spot for trying to move things along faster.

jenlivingstone915

This is a brilliant thread, I wish I had realised this 5-10 years ago, there are no quick fixes, well there is but then you go back to your 'normal' and back to where you started. For the first time I feel in control, the weight is coming off slowly, but it is coming off, and I feel good, and I'm eating food i like to eat, just less of it!