What is your biggest issue/concern/struggle with weight loss?

124

Replies

  • VeryKatie
    VeryKatie Posts: 5,961 Member
    My biggest struggle is this:
    1) I'm a healthy weight
    2) I worked down to 10 lbs less than I am now and don't want to gain more
    3) Would like to lose the weight I regained
    4) But I'm trying to conceive so it seems somewhat pointless since I will gain again soon hopefully. And I'm still a healthy weight to conceive.

    So... kind of stuck between two opposing goals.

    Also I have a nacho problem. And if it isn't nachos... it's Chippits.
  • DanerTee
    DanerTee Posts: 263 Member
    dariacsf wrote: »
    DanerTee wrote: »
    binge eating.

    When do you find yourself binge eating the most?

    In the evenings, when the kids are in bed and I get some down time.
  • leejoyce31
    leejoyce31 Posts: 794 Member
    No Issues with food/eating other than a lack of protein. I'd happily eat nothing but carbs if I chose to. I'm very picky with food.

    Main issue is lack of muscle- mostly upper body strength. I'm banned from most of the machines at my gym for being to small to sue them safely (I can't get into the correct position to operate them and told I risk injury). I could use free weights but Id prefer to do that at home , in privacy- and I weights are expensive. I know I could start with body weight exercises. Honestly , strength exercises make me feel like vomiting when I do them. No idea why. I'm also depressed, anxious , lethargic and work 11 hours a day most days. I don't eat much (1050 cals ish) and would love to use exercise to up that, plus get more lean-looking. I'm 5ft, 40 years old and 98lbs.

    That's weird, why do they think you can't use them properly just because you are thin? Is it your height or your weight that concerns them.
  • kermax39
    kermax39 Posts: 149 Member
    My biggest struggle is eating out and takeaways. No matter how much peo
  • SophieSmall95
    SophieSmall95 Posts: 233 Member
    Accepting that I can't have my cake and eat it too.

    Sure when maintaining I can have a day where I just eat a shed load of calories, but it means I then have to scale back on other days. Not going to lie it is frustrating and upsetting knowing I essentially have to track for the rest of my life. Especially being so small, I have a smaller maintenance than a lot of people...especially men. I envy men haha.
  • lavaughan69
    lavaughan69 Posts: 459 Member
    That it's something I'll have to do forever! I hate that I can't just be someone that's just skinny and always will be regardless of what I eat. Soooo, yeah, basically I hate everything about dieting! :-)
  • kermax39
    kermax39 Posts: 149 Member
    My biggest struggle is eating out and takeaways....no matter how much people say u can still eat out/enjoy takeaways and stay under calories I just cant. At home during the week I can stick to my cals easily and go to bed with a good book, weekends are hard! Eating out just depresses me now, to sit there with a green salad and soup when your other half is munching into a tower burger with fries and onion rings is seriously depressing.
  • SophieSmall95
    SophieSmall95 Posts: 233 Member
    dariacsf wrote: »
    LoraMartyn wrote: »
    I am bummed because I am stuck......for 4 weeks now. After losing some weight MFP gave me 1200 calories, but I really couldn't stick to that so I upped it to 1400. I do exercise so I get a little extra on top of that. I am trying different things to try to get thing moving in the right direction again, increased exercise, drinking more, trying to get my diet to be healthier, etc...Even went to a registered dietician but all she did was confuse me!

    I am also stuck for 4 weeks already, which is so frustrating because I've been working out religiously. I did the same thing as you did, went from 1200 to 1400 because I feel deprived from just 1200cals. I like to believe that I am fairly active, jogging in the morning for an hour 4x per week, then go out for an evening walk. On my best days, I go for an afternoon walk too. I also lift weights 2-3x per week and dance and bike once a week, but my scale isn't budging. I went back down to 1200cals because watching my burned calories go down (I have negative calorie adjustments on) was frustrating me.

    Ladies, I've worked with some dieticians with my clients and I have never liked them. 1200 is nowhere near enough for your body to function properly. At minimum your body needs 1500-1600 calories in order to maintain proper digestion, body temperature, no mention, if you work out, your body doesn't have enough energy to rebuild itself from the bout of exercise. Believe when I tell you, you need to eat more calories. Your body goes into what we call "starvation mode" in order to stay alive, that is the biggest reason most fail at weight loss.

    I have had female clients at 1700 claories, working out 3x per week and seeing amazing results. Also, make sure that you are throwing in some resistance training to build muscle. Unfortunately when your body goes into starvation mode, it eats away at muscle. 1lb of muscle burns an extra 50 calories at rest, just for maintenance. You can't build muscle from cardio, so even body weight exercises (squats, lunges, table or wall push ups) are beneficial.


    Non of the bolded is true. It just does not work like that. Feel free to argue with my metabolics degree lecturer but it is just complete nonsense.


    You also shouldn't blanket state what bodies need at a minimum "1500-1600 calories" is my MAINTENANCE I would not lose weight on that and would need to be doing some serious exercise every day in order to lose weight on that amount. I do exercise but it is just not a viable way to lose weight while eating maintenance calories for a lot of people. I would need to be exercising for hours every day, I simply don't have the time.
  • SophieSmall95
    SophieSmall95 Posts: 233 Member
    fr33sia12 wrote: »
    dariacsf wrote: »
    LoraMartyn wrote: »
    I am bummed because I am stuck......for 4 weeks now. After losing some weight MFP gave me 1200 calories, but I really couldn't stick to that so I upped it to 1400. I do exercise so I get a little extra on top of that. I am trying different things to try to get thing moving in the right direction again, increased exercise, drinking more, trying to get my diet to be healthier, etc...Even went to a registered dietician but all she did was confuse me!

    I am also stuck for 4 weeks already, which is so frustrating because I've been working out religiously. I did the same thing as you did, went from 1200 to 1400 because I feel deprived from just 1200cals. I like to believe that I am fairly active, jogging in the morning for an hour 4x per week, then go out for an evening walk. On my best days, I go for an afternoon walk too. I also lift weights 2-3x per week and dance and bike once a week, but my scale isn't budging. I went back down to 1200cals because watching my burned calories go down (I have negative calorie adjustments on) was frustrating me.

    Ladies, I've worked with some dieticians with my clients and I have never liked them. 1200 is nowhere near enough for your body to function properly. At minimum your body needs 1500-1600 calories in order to maintain proper digestion, body temperature, no mention, if you work out, your body doesn't have enough energy to rebuild itself from the bout of exercise. Believe when I tell you, you need to eat more calories. Your body goes into what we call "starvation mode" in order to stay alive, that is the biggest reason most fail at weight loss.

    I have had female clients at 1700 claories, working out 3x per week and seeing amazing results. Also, make sure that you are throwing in some resistance training to build muscle. Unfortunately when your body goes into starvation mode, it eats away at muscle. 1lb of muscle burns an extra 50 calories at rest, just for maintenance. You can't build muscle from cardio, so even body weight exercises (squats, lunges, table or wall push ups) are beneficial.

    I thought starvation mode was a Myth. That's what everyone on here says whenever it's mentioned.


    It is a myth. Not backed up by serious science.
  • Return2Fit
    Return2Fit Posts: 226 Member
    edited August 2016
    Training body adaptation: I'm not really sure what you mean by this. Is it just resistance training because essentially that is what RT is, training your body to adapt to the stress. Please elaborate.
    I do plyometric training, because the physiological response seems to be lowered body fat in its adaptation.

    I am looking for other such training programs as well as whatever your experience has been with like routines.
    Thanks :)

  • SophieSmall95
    SophieSmall95 Posts: 233 Member
    kermax39 wrote: »
    My biggest struggle is eating out and takeaways....no matter how much people say u can still eat out/enjoy takeaways and stay under calories I just cant. At home during the week I can stick to my cals easily and go to bed with a good book, weekends are hard! Eating out just depresses me now, to sit there with a green salad and soup when your other half is munching into a tower burger with fries and onion rings is seriously depressing.

    I have this problem with my sister. Whenever we go out for walks or a hike or something she is always like "oh let's go here for lunch" usually it's a pub, and typically looking at their nutritional information most of the meals are 1000 calories + bare in mind we would have already eaten a packed lunch.

    Drives me up the wall. I say no every time though. But she is so pushy it is unbelievable. She is a lot more active than me in day to day life (constantly on her feet for work and does a lot of sports) so she can afford to eat more than me...but yeah she just doesn't get it.

    She also would not be supportive of me losing weight if she knew, she once asked me "you're not counting calories are you" as if it was the worst thing in the world...it's like trying to better yourself is taboo or something sometimes. But thankfully now my mum is losing weight I have an "excuse" so to speak to count, as I prepare her food and help her with it.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    dariacsf wrote: »
    LoraMartyn wrote: »
    I am bummed because I am stuck......for 4 weeks now. After losing some weight MFP gave me 1200 calories, but I really couldn't stick to that so I upped it to 1400. I do exercise so I get a little extra on top of that. I am trying different things to try to get thing moving in the right direction again, increased exercise, drinking more, trying to get my diet to be healthier, etc...Even went to a registered dietician but all she did was confuse me!

    I am also stuck for 4 weeks already, which is so frustrating because I've been working out religiously. I did the same thing as you did, went from 1200 to 1400 because I feel deprived from just 1200cals. I like to believe that I am fairly active, jogging in the morning for an hour 4x per week, then go out for an evening walk. On my best days, I go for an afternoon walk too. I also lift weights 2-3x per week and dance and bike once a week, but my scale isn't budging. I went back down to 1200cals because watching my burned calories go down (I have negative calorie adjustments on) was frustrating me.

    Ladies, I've worked with some dieticians with my clients and I have never liked them. 1200 is nowhere near enough for your body to function properly. At minimum your body needs 1500-1600 calories in order to maintain proper digestion, body temperature, no mention, if you work out, your body doesn't have enough energy to rebuild itself from the bout of exercise. Believe when I tell you, you need to eat more calories. Your body goes into what we call "starvation mode" in order to stay alive, that is the biggest reason most fail at weight loss.

    I have had female clients at 1700 claories, working out 3x per week and seeing amazing results. Also, make sure that you are throwing in some resistance training to build muscle. Unfortunately when your body goes into starvation mode, it eats away at muscle. 1lb of muscle burns an extra 50 calories at rest, just for maintenance. You can't build muscle from cardio, so even body weight exercises (squats, lunges, table or wall push ups) are beneficial.

    Dieters don't actually stop losing weight due to "starvation mode":
    http://www.aworkoutroutine.com/starvation-mode/
    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/another-look-at-metabolic-damage.html/

  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    Biggest struggle for me??? I get my moments (mother nature is so cruel) where all I want is to eat JUNK! And I get VERY mean if I dont. So I have to control that...some men just don't understand! *cough husband cough*

    When my appetite spikes up premenstrually, I honor it and eat at maintenance for a few days. Most times I add a snack and have a slightly larger dinner, and/or a treat.
  • indiacaitlin
    indiacaitlin Posts: 691 Member
    My biggest fear is that I'll never reach my goal weight or be happy with myself. Or that I'll gain back everything I've lost.

    Biggest source of frustration is how slow the process has been!
  • redperphexion
    redperphexion Posts: 193 Member
    Accepting and living with the (IMO) small number of calories a 5'2 woman can eat and still lose weight. I want more!!! I exercise to get more and make good use of what I get, but it damn sure ain't a lot.

    Agreed! I'm 5'1" and netting 1280 is a pain in the behind... I mean tummy.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    No Issues with food/eating other than a lack of protein. I'd happily eat nothing but carbs if I chose to. I'm very picky with food.

    Main issue is lack of muscle- mostly upper body strength. I'm banned from most of the machines at my gym for being to small to sue them safely (I can't get into the correct position to operate them and told I risk injury). I could use free weights but Id prefer to do that at home , in privacy- and I weights are expensive. I know I could start with body weight exercises. Honestly , strength exercises make me feel like vomiting when I do them. No idea why. I'm also depressed, anxious , lethargic and work 11 hours a day most days. I don't eat much (1050 cals ish) and would love to use exercise to up that, plus get more lean-looking. I'm 5ft, 40 years old and 98lbs.

    $59.99 for 3, 5, and 8 # plus rack new at Dick's:

    http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/product/index.jsp?productId=80483066

    pDSP1-23017720p275w.jpg

    Probably get them dirt cheap on craigslist or free on freecycle.org.

    Are you doing cardio regularly? That can help with stress. I frequently have to force myself, and am always glad that I did.

  • pdm3547
    pdm3547 Posts: 1,057 Member
    dariacsf wrote: »
    I am interested in learning about your biggest issues, concerns, and struggles with weight loss. I will try to answer any questions and/or concerns based on my scientific knowledge and past personal experience.

    What a great question.

    A: Alcohol
  • CatchMom11
    CatchMom11 Posts: 462 Member
    My biggest issue is that after having taken plenty of health courses toward my nursing degree and talking to nutritionists, dietitians, doctors and personal trainers, I've come to realize that there's no absolute one scientific way to lose weight. It's a lot of trial and error and basically learning what works best for YOUR body, because that's not always going to be what works best for someone else. Which is why I LOVE talking to people to see what they're doing that works and trying new things as far as exercise and meal plan tips.

  • SophieSmall95
    SophieSmall95 Posts: 233 Member
    pdm3547 wrote: »
    dariacsf wrote: »
    I am interested in learning about your biggest issues, concerns, and struggles with weight loss. I will try to answer any questions and/or concerns based on my scientific knowledge and past personal experience.

    What a great question.

    A: Alcohol

    Haha same actually. I never really go over on just a food day. But I have a couple of times from alcohol and alcohol related inhibitions.
  • snerggly
    snerggly Posts: 112 Member
    Self sabotage due to being frustrated with my metabolism. Even though I changed my diet, the weight is not coming off very fast and yes I do exercise. Next month I see my doctor and once again he is going to tell me that I am too fat for my height and that I have too much belly fat. This time, since I am mostly eating lowfat whole foods minimal oil, I am going to tell him to give me blood work and suggestions on how to fix my metabolism.

    I relate to every single person who posted on here.
  • snerggly
    snerggly Posts: 112 Member
    LuckyAndi wrote: »
    My biggest concern right now is eating healthy on a very tight budget. Yes, I could just eat less of the not-as-healthy food, but I don't want to do that. I feel much better when I cook and eat fresh vegetables and prepare my own lunches and dinners versus fixing packages products or getting take out. That gets expensive.

    How does it get more expensive? Do you buy all organic, health food, gluten free, low fat? Or is waste a problem? Basic whole food ingredients and cooking from scratch is usually the cheapest way of eating well.

    100 percent agree. I stopped eating out for lunches, bring my own home cooked lowfat meals and make dinner four days a week from scratch. I have a crockpot and a pressure cooker which really saves time. I am spending 80.00 a week on groceries for two people. My husband eats meat and I don't so he buys that for himself so maybe more like 100.00. Neither of us eat out for lunch or breakfast.

  • SophieSmall95
    SophieSmall95 Posts: 233 Member
    edited August 2016
    snerggly wrote: »
    Self sabotage due to being frustrated with my metabolism. Even though I changed my diet, the weight is not coming off very fast and yes I do exercise. Next month I see my doctor and once again he is going to tell me that I am too fat for my height and that I have too much belly fat. This time, since I am mostly eating lowfat whole foods minimal oil, I am going to tell him to give me blood work and suggestions on how to fix my metabolism.

    I relate to every single person who posted on here.

    If you set your diary to public and make a thread asking for advice I'm sure many people would love to help.
  • driving_miss_crazy
    driving_miss_crazy Posts: 36 Member
    DanerTee wrote: »
    dariacsf wrote: »
    DanerTee wrote: »
    binge eating.

    When do you find yourself binge eating the most?

    In the evenings, when the kids are in bed and I get some down time.

    I would always binge during nap time. Once I started planning my meals and sticking to certain meal times (so I wasn't starving), I made sure to have something planned during the normal binge time. Such as cleaning a certain room, sewing, reading, something to keep my mind occupied. It's no longer a habit for me. But it still scares the crap out of me to think of going back :/
  • dariacsf
    dariacsf Posts: 32 Member
    fr33sia12 wrote: »
    dariacsf wrote: »
    LoraMartyn wrote: »
    I am bummed because I am stuck......for 4 weeks now. After losing some weight MFP gave me 1200 calories, but I really couldn't stick to that so I upped it to 1400. I do exercise so I get a little extra on top of that. I am trying different things to try to get thing moving in the right direction again, increased exercise, drinking more, trying to get my diet to be healthier, etc...Even went to a registered dietician but all she did was confuse me!

    I am also stuck for 4 weeks already, which is so frustrating because I've been working out religiously. I did the same thing as you did, went from 1200 to 1400 because I feel deprived from just 1200cals. I like to believe that I am fairly active, jogging in the morning for an hour 4x per week, then go out for an evening walk. On my best days, I go for an afternoon walk too. I also lift weights 2-3x per week and dance and bike once a week, but my scale isn't budging. I went back down to 1200cals because watching my burned calories go down (I have negative calorie adjustments on) was frustrating me.

    Ladies, I've worked with some dieticians with my clients and I have never liked them. 1200 is nowhere near enough for your body to function properly. At minimum your body needs 1500-1600 calories in order to maintain proper digestion, body temperature, no mention, if you work out, your body doesn't have enough energy to rebuild itself from the bout of exercise. Believe when I tell you, you need to eat more calories. Your body goes into what we call "starvation mode" in order to stay alive, that is the biggest reason most fail at weight loss.

    I have had female clients at 1700 claories, working out 3x per week and seeing amazing results. Also, make sure that you are throwing in some resistance training to build muscle. Unfortunately when your body goes into starvation mode, it eats away at muscle. 1lb of muscle burns an extra 50 calories at rest, just for maintenance. You can't build muscle from cardio, so even body weight exercises (squats, lunges, table or wall push ups) are beneficial.

    I thought starvation mode was a Myth. That's what everyone on here says whenever it's mentioned.

    When it comes to not consuming enough calories, it is definitely not a myth. Your body will eat away at muscle and store fat. Think of a homeless person that can't get enough food on a regular basis, unfortunately most are overweight, that is due to "starvation mode".
  • Return2Fit
    Return2Fit Posts: 226 Member
    dariacsf wrote: »
    fr33sia12 wrote: »
    dariacsf wrote: »
    LoraMartyn wrote: »
    I am bummed because I am stuck......for 4 weeks now. After losing some weight MFP gave me 1200 calories, but I really couldn't stick to that so I upped it to 1400. I do exercise so I get a little extra on top of that. I am trying different things to try to get thing moving in the right direction again, increased exercise, drinking more, trying to get my diet to be healthier, etc...Even went to a registered dietician but all she did was confuse me!

    I am also stuck for 4 weeks already, which is so frustrating because I've been working out religiously. I did the same thing as you did, went from 1200 to 1400 because I feel deprived from just 1200cals. I like to believe that I am fairly active, jogging in the morning for an hour 4x per week, then go out for an evening walk. On my best days, I go for an afternoon walk too. I also lift weights 2-3x per week and dance and bike once a week, but my scale isn't budging. I went back down to 1200cals because watching my burned calories go down (I have negative calorie adjustments on) was frustrating me.

    Ladies, I've worked with some dieticians with my clients and I have never liked them. 1200 is nowhere near enough for your body to function properly. At minimum your body needs 1500-1600 calories in order to maintain proper digestion, body temperature, no mention, if you work out, your body doesn't have enough energy to rebuild itself from the bout of exercise. Believe when I tell you, you need to eat more calories. Your body goes into what we call "starvation mode" in order to stay alive, that is the biggest reason most fail at weight loss.

    I have had female clients at 1700 claories, working out 3x per week and seeing amazing results. Also, make sure that you are throwing in some resistance training to build muscle. Unfortunately when your body goes into starvation mode, it eats away at muscle. 1lb of muscle burns an extra 50 calories at rest, just for maintenance. You can't build muscle from cardio, so even body weight exercises (squats, lunges, table or wall push ups) are beneficial.

    I thought starvation mode was a Myth. That's what everyone on here says whenever it's mentioned.

    When it comes to not consuming enough calories, it is definitely not a myth. Your body will eat away at muscle and store fat. Think of a homeless person that can't get enough food on a regular basis, unfortunately most are overweight, that is due to "starvation mode".
    Some are put off my the term "starvation mode".
    It makes a stifled metabolism sound more dramatic than it actually is.
    Long before you experience the actual symptoms of real starvation, your body ignites its defenses which is just what you mentioned: muscle loss, fat gain and lower calorie burn.
  • dariacsf
    dariacsf Posts: 32 Member
    tomteboda wrote: »
    dariacsf wrote: »
    tomteboda wrote: »
    My biggest struggle is with hunger. I'm tall and active, and my blood sugar has always run low. I have played around with things to do but hunger remains an issue

    Have you ever talked to your doctor about this? do you ever feel week, dizzy, etc.?

    Yep, my doctor is aware. Hypoglycemia runs in my family, and mine gets difficult to manage around 195 lbs. Above that, the fat effect moderates it (at my heaviest, 100 lbs ago, I still had normal blood sugar).

    I'm down to 169 now, and getting a lot of fiber and protein helps, but I have to pay attention closely to meal and snack timing.

    And the hunger is just frankly annoying.

    Congratulations on your success. That is a tough situation but I think you are on the right track. Make sure you are drinking plenty of water.
  • tapwaters
    tapwaters Posts: 428 Member
    I'm terrified of gaining it back. I gained it back once before, and my terror of this happening again knows no bounds. I imagine I will end up logging and weighing in every day for the rest of my life, which is a fair price to pay for not gaining it back.
  • pdm3547
    pdm3547 Posts: 1,057 Member
    tapwaters wrote: »
    I'm terrified of gaining it back. I gained it back once before, and my terror of this happening again knows no bounds. I imagine I will end up logging and weighing in every day for the rest of my life, which is a fair price to pay for not gaining it back.

    @tapwaters I'm here for the third time. I've come to the conclusion that I either count calories or I get fat. Its a simple choice. It may change in the future, but not just yet.
  • dariacsf
    dariacsf Posts: 32 Member
    leejoyce31 wrote: »
    Accepting and living with the (IMO) small number of calories a 5'2 woman can eat and still lose weight. I want more!!! I exercise to get more and make good use of what I get, but it damn sure ain't a lot.

    I agree with this post. I'm 5' 1.9" and I would like to have more maintenance calories without having to do a bunch more activity. But I just have to live with it. I do 45-60 minutes on the elliptical 6 days a week mostly. Sometimes, I may have 1 day out of the 6 that I will do 35-60 minutes of pilates, of which 35 minutes is with 5 pound dumb bells. At this point, I'm just not willing to fit in more time.

    1 lb muscle=50 calories burned. Put on more muscle on your body and you will have more calories to eat!