I could use some help here, people.
ChoiceNotChance
Posts: 644 Member
Just checking in here. I'm really, really struggling with weight gain. I've gained about 15 lbs. I do admit to a few dietary indiscretions, but 15 lbs worth? I don't think so. Anyway, I'm going super-strict now for a while, just to see what happens. I'm going to try and stay away from nuts and almond butter. It's just too easy to overeat those, even though I do weight and measure. I also do IF, usually 16:8, sometimes 23:1, if I know I'm going out for dinner.
Any thoughts, support would be appreciated.
Any thoughts, support would be appreciated.
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Replies
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If you go out to dinner maybe you can check out the menu before hand and that way you will already know what your getting and have your carbs mapped out?2
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I pretty much do that already. I have a couple of "go to" menu items (bacon cheeseburger, etc).0
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Every so often I do what I call "lockdown" - it means I set my goals and absolutely adhere to them. I usually have a fixed amount of time, so I can concentrate and not be tempted. It always gets the scale moving. I'm currently in lockdown which means no alcohol, carbs 20g or less, eat when hungry, hydrate, exercise, sleep.
I've been in maintenance for a few months, after a lifetime of dieting and getting close but not staying in maintenance. There are a couple of non negotiables for me: log everything honestly, never eat off-plan in the house, be very careful around trigger foods (I have a list and in 6 months I've only eaten one thing from it...peanuts in the shell), and put myself FIRST when it comes to food. I exercise 5 days a week at least, but I love it. For me, the challenge is all about the food.
You can TOTALLY do this! You are WORTH taking care of. There is so much yummy food on a LCHF "diet" I don't feel deprived.10 -
It sounds like you're sensitive enough that those few indiscretions did manage to have a big effect on you. Of course, assuming they were carb related, they come with a bunch of water weight too. But it's important not to downplay them as being insignificant especially when they easily create a 15 pound scale weight swing.
I think the mindset that it "shouldn't" be a big deal can be problematic for those that it physiologically actually IS a big deal to. I agree it's not a fair shake, but just because it seems unfair and doesn't make sense to the CICO mindset, doesn't mean it won't cause a much bigger setback than it "should".
I've had to develop the thinking that certain things are simply not food for me to be able to achieve the kind of consistency that keeps me from wandering into even the smallest indiscretions. Even with my very strict adherence, I've been pretty much the same weight for about 5-6 months now. Up and down the same 3 pounds. If I had any off plan foods, on even a once a month basis, I imagine I would have been set back at least a few pounds. And I'm not even particularly carb sensitive.
I think it's very important for the long term to be consistent and to train yourself to believe you're not missing out on anything by skipping foods that are problematic to that consistency. The emotional aspect that some foods are simply bad for our health and progress and if we decide to partake, we are making that trade for a temporary satisfaction is important to recognize and create a plan to not allow ourselves to feel left out or deprived by simply not eating something that we know isn't a good choice simply because of its flavor... I personally found that saying things like that to myself worked. "Am I really going to allow this food to negatively affect my body and my spirit because of making the bad choice to eat it for a few seconds or maybe a couple minutes of getting to taste it?" That kind of thing works for me because I can't seriously say "yes, a few seconds of tasting this is worth it". There are so many things that taste good that I can choose so there's no reason to choose something that has so much baggage.4 -
@erinseattle, mind if I steal "lock down"? It's conceptually just about exactly the way I need to be thinking for a while.3
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erinseattle wrote: »Every so often I do what I call "lockdown" -
@erinseattle - yep, great concept. "Lockdown Erin" has a nice ring to it.
PS. www.lockdowndiet.com is not in use...1 -
Thanks Sunny_Bunny_ for the wise words. I guess I really am that sensitive. I really haven't lost any weight in about 3 years but I've been steadily gaining for the past year despite all the things I think I'm doing right. For those of us who think calories don't matter, well I guess I am that "special snowflake" cause they sure do matter for me. I've tried increasing them for periods of time, hoping to "reset" my metabolism- all it got me was more weight.
Sorry for the cranky-pants. I've been so frustrated for so long...3 -
Don't forget that artificial sweeteners can cause unexplained weight gain too! I don't know if you're using them, but know they can!1
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@RalfLott - go for it!
@ChoiceNotChance - calories matter for me, too. My last "stall" was from a handful of almonds here and there - just a few hundred extra calories daily adds up. It's frustrating, for sure. I had a serious week of cranky pants after I had my Bod Pod analysis last June - I worked SO hard and didn't make an ounce of progress - literally. Support from people here sure helped ❤️
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I like nuts too much to give them up; however, I completely understand how easy it is to overeat them. To effectively combat this problem, whenever I get a new bag or can of nuts, I literally sit down and portion the entire package out into individual portion sizes in small snack bags and then put everything back into the container. That way, in the future when I want some nuts I can just grab a small snack bag because (1) they've already been portioned out which saves me some time and is very convenient and (2) it will keep me from overeating the nuts because I know a "serving size" is contained in the snack bag I just grabbed.4
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I've noticed recently that a lot of burger patties have wheat in them. A restaurant we go to regularly told me recently that they do that too... I was checking ingredients on frozen burger patties tonight when shopping and they all had wheat too. Maybe not the best choice when eating out. A grilled chicken cheese burger is better I guess. Who knew. Kinda pisses me off cause I have a legit wheat allergy and didn't connect that was what was making me sick...1
