I feel like a failure

KayTeeOne

Don’t lose hope dear. You can achieve your goal. Just need to stay focus that’s it. You are so young so it will be easier to lose that weight now than five years later. Have you worked out how many calories you should eat to lose weight? Try to eat within your calorie goal daily and you will lose wait. It’s basic maths. I know it’s a challenge but I try to input my calories in the dairy in advance the night before and try to stick to the plan the next day. Just a tip. Might help you too if you struggle with what to eat and stay in calorie goal. Good luck girl feel free to add me. Looking for support on my journey

Rebirth08

I can relate: in 2012, with the help of MFP, I started at 238 and got down to 197. By 2016, I was at 290 pounds! It's so easy to because un-mindful of those things we need to be most mindful about.
But I have good news! In Jan 2016, I was disgusted with myself. I decided to go all in! Going for all of my goals, even the ones that seem out of reach.
As of my last weigh in, I'm 220 pounds! You can turn this around! This time around, seems like the fat is being more stubborn, but so am I! I'm not giving up. I have had 'bad' days and weeks since 2016, but I never lost sight of my goals.
So that's my advice to you. Go back in the game. But this time, stay in until it's over (and it's a lifetime thing, so it won't be over for a LONG time).
30 days ago, I decided to use MFP again after a 4 year break. It has done wonders for me!
You will succeed!!!!!
P.S. Graveyard shift is tough, so focus 100% on being consistent with your diet. Eventually, the exercise routine will follow.

cbelc2

So I had lost most if my weight then life happened and now it's back on. I was feeling all mad at me. I realized recently that this weight is my security blanket, but I don't need it anymore. I can get rid of it, and good riddance to it! So I made a plan. I can't do it halfway, so I'm all in. I walked into the gym and the guy mentioned that I hadn't been in a while. I told him not to mention it. I dusted off MyFitnessPal and packed my lunch and counted the calories. I took half back out. So here I sit in the evening NOT EATING! I've had all my calories and I'm enjoying ice water. I think I feel more energetic, less lethargic. I'm following generally a Mediterranean Diet because it's the one recommended by the American College of Cardiology and by the ADA. I stopped craving sugar after 24 hours without it. And I'm also 58 years old. If I can get the train back on it's track, so can you! Let's do this!!!

rheddmobile

If you make the time to do just one thing, make that thing logging everything you eat. Measure accurately and log.

Figure out what healthful foods you can quickly and cheaply prepare and eat without having to work for it. In college for me that was egg sandwiches and oranges and red beans with rice. But I could do better than that now, since I know more about cooking. If you can quickly stir fry a bunch of vegetables with some chicken, put them in portions in sandwich baggies, and stack them in your fridge to grab and reheat, that's home cooked meals you hardly have to think about. You know what you love to eat; figure out the logistics.

You don't have to work out a long time to work out. And I know you're tired and having to do even more seems hateful. Fifteen minutes hard exercise before your shower in the morning would help a lot.

You're right, 300 pounds is scary. I have diabetes now, a life long illness, because I let myself get out of hand and never addressed the problem. Save yourself while you have time! Good luck.

batters1964

I started this year weighing more than you do. I've lost over 60 lbs, so still a way to go. I include as much walking as I can - I get up half an earlier during the week to fit in a walk as part of my commute. You can do this but you need to be in the right mindset. Youve had some good advice on here. Good luck!

allenpriest

It's more about how much you are eating than exercise.

carolinelanewa

Oh honey. I so feel for you. I wouldnt worry so much about the exercise at the moment. Your body is probably under so much stress with lack of sleep and the load you have happening. Ie school and work. Yes stress puts weight on some people. Try and make small changes. Say knock out the nuggets and coke meal with a salad and soda water. Then go from there. Im alot older than you and been working out with a trainer for 18 months. We both couldnt work out why it was so slow going. I was eating really well. Trained for a triathlon and nothing. Had a really bad weigh in and cracked it. That was it. No sugar in coffee, potatoes and pasta. I lost 3kg in a month. We worked out how much sugar i was having. I only have a teaspoon in a cup but have around 10 cups a day. We backed off the cardio training. Stress on the body. And its worked. The weight is falling off. I still struggle with the logic of not working out as much. Its what we are told. Flog yourself and you will loose weight. In my case nope. 15 hours a week for triathlon and nothing. Now im in and out 4 times a week in 30 min. But we are all different. Good luck. Small steps in the right direction and im sure you will loose weight. But be patient.

goldthistime

We have the quantity/quality debate here frequently. Of course I agree that if you stick to your calorie goal you will lose weight. But part of the problem is figuring out HOW to make it easiest to stick to that goal. There's not just one answer. We differ.

For me, improving my nutrition was one of the keys to my success. I felt like my blood sugar had a tendency to bounce too around too much. I'd feel shaky and hangry if I had to wait too long to eat, despite the fact that I was gaining weight. There were times when I couldn't imagine trying to "go hungry" the way I would need to if I were to try to diet. More protein in my diet helped immensely with that bounciness, as did making the consumption of super sweet things a rarity. If I've stopped for a snack in the middle of a vigorous two hour bike ride for example, a Snickers bar is an awesome choice. But most of the time, eating a Snickers bar is going to make sticking to my calorie goal more challenging than it needs to be.

Switching to more veggies and fruits instead of so many starchy or sugary carbs, in conjunction with more protein (meat in my case), was far easier than eating the same way I was eating previously and just relying on willpower to stop when I got to goal.

OP, you're going to have to find the path that works for YOU.

yirara

champion818 wrote: »

You guys are honestly amazing ! I read every single thread on this post and want to say there has been some amazing advice on here ! Just to clarify everything with you guys since I wasn’t too descriptive in my post ... in concern with my eating habit / diet ... it has been mainly fast food .... i haven’t been counting calories in over a year easy . If I had to estimate I would have been eating easy 3,000 calories a day no exaggeration .. 1 typical day would look like this : chick filet with a large waffle fry , 12 nuggets large coke and extra sauce , lunch in and out and dinner mcdonalds .. for 1 year straight my diet * resembled * this ... why did I do that to myself .. well compulsion ... I’m a compulsive eater I would have already eaten a buffet before I realized what I had done .... I won’t say I’m a binge eater because I don’t eat huge masses of food in one sitting I just eat super super high calorie foods through out the day ... NOW ... how did I loose the weight before u may ask??? CALORIE COUNTING !!! I was literally counting everything but I worked out during it aswell ... cardio mainly running on the tredmile elliptical ect ..... it worked for me . I was loosing weight at a reasonable pace ( 3 pounds a week usually ) I felt great amazing happy omg I was on top of the world lol size 12 jeans ... medium shirts ... everyone noticed I was happy ....... but I don’t know what happen one day I had wing stop and then I just couldn’t stop ...... once I have food that’s not the “ healthiest it’s like a trigger “ I don’t think I could have cheat meals during a diet or life style change in the early phase of my weight loss .... my personal experience . Yeah I gained over 50 Pounds in 1 year .... not proud at all and now I don’t fit into any clothes , I totally lost my menstrual cycle completely , I can’t walk like I used to I’m miserable .... sleepless days ( I sleep during the day since I work graveyard ) it’s just a complete mess I’m only 19 I should not deal with these type of health issues and I recognize it.... honestly when I first started my weight loss I had no concrete plan I just winged it .... found my flow but NOW I’m lost I don’t know what to do I’m scared to fail I can’t reach 300 thinking about that scares me so much how last year I was 219 now I’m 290 that is scary to me ... wow now that I remmeber I gained more than 50 wow even worse ..... if u read through this I thank you !

Love, you can do this! You managed this before and other people have already given you some good advise. Just a thought from me:

If you really eat out several times per day... have you thought about not eating out but cooking instead, saving a lot of money along the way and then you don't need to work that much anymore? It's a win win: Spend less money, work less, focus more on yourself and learn some new skills along the way like cooking. Cooking certainly doesn't need to be complicated. I guess I spent about 20-30 minutes in the kitchen all throughout the day. I do make my own sandwiches for breakfast and lunch, pack some fruit and veggies, and then cook something quick and yummy in the evening.

shipleyamye

I think it is really important to identify why you are gaining. Trying to identify your triggers that lead to overeating.
Maybe it is when you are tired or stressed or really busy or not too busy.

Keeping a food diary that has your calories listed like on MFP is supremely helpful especially if you identify the moods that go along with your eating. Listing out how you are feeling when you are eating in the notes area will help you to find patterns which you can then work on solutions for those negative patterns.

Identifying any faulty thinking that is leading you to sabotage your progress is also helpful. The book "feeling good" by Dr David Burns. identifies ten faulty thinking patterns. For instance there is the "all or nothing thinking". I need to have a perfect diet or its not worth it" "I had a chocolate bar so my diet is ruined today"

Analyzing how you are thinking about food and diet can be really helpful in getting where you want to be.

joemac1988

First, quit thinking you're a failure; that's not helping and it's not true. You've only failed if you stop trying.

mysteps2beauty

YepItsKriss wrote: »

mysteps2beauty wrote: »

Haven't read all the

Muscleflex79 wrote: »

Nutritionislife wrote: »

I challenge you not to excercise for 3 months but to educate yourself and make changes in your nutrition only. I was talking about caloric intake, types of meals for 1,200 calories and different challenges 5'1" females deal with but of course i still have tips. 1 pound shows much more on us short people quicker. Anyways...
1. Drink water, nothing else..youll save lots of hidden calories just by that.
2. Read about and learn about your body type such as caloric intake, nutrient and vitamin info
3. Set goals, write them down and measure your body
4. Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, dinner like a pauper
5. Find at least 2 snacks for each taste...like sweet, salty, cold. Have them available always
6. No red meats or cheese, maybe once a month
7. Dont have cheat days, have a cheat meal; but not every day! Maybe 2 times a month.
8. Drink a beer or some liquor if you want it, once in a while.
9. Find new ways to make food you love, create things that fit your taste.
10. Use correct serving sizes and this app...you will fall in love with proper nutrition
By the time you really learn and apply all this, 3-4 months will pass easily. After you've learned what works for you and you have dropped some good amount of weight. Excercise is important, Id say out of 100% 70-80% is nutrition. I would get overwhelmed sometimes with gym and nutrition but learn one thing at a time. Nutrition should be priority, it is most important. Good luck.

most of this is unnecessary woo.

OP - eat the calories that MFP tells you to - no need to arbitrarily avoid certain foods or stop exercising for 3 months. eat at a deficit and you will lose weight over time - it's as simple as that.

Haven't read all the comments here, but I like this one....Have you heard the saying you can't exercise away a bad diet?

Learning portion control is key. It's like budgeting. If you only have $20 a week to spend, you are going to find a way to make it stretch. Calories are the same. Also, your palate has to be tweaked. And it will when you start limiting sugar, salt and fat. That's why logging here on MFP is so helpful. After a period of time, that soda will taste too sweet. I used to drink coffee with cream and sugar. I trained myself in 2 weeks to enjoy black coffee. Now, I abhor sugar or cream in my coffee and saved 200 calories, in just one drink! Use mustard not mayonnaise on your sandwiches. Balsalmic vinegar or lemon and olive oil, instead of salad dressings. The things you love to eat, find a way to make them with less calories. It absolutely can be done. But you have to choose to do it.

I agree about lack of sleep....it has a direct impact on weight gain. :Perhaps you can take one less class a semester to gain back time to do healthy things for yourself. If you are working FT to me that means you are not getting financial aid which has a FT student status requirement. So, one less class.

You've done it before, and you can still do it again. Baby steps, one meal change at a time. When your tummy rumbles, wait a little longer to fill it. This will change over time too.

Again, this is just suggestions with no reason to do them.
No ones pallet needs to be tweaked unless thats a choice they want to make for themselves.
None of those things are going to affect weight loss, only over consuming calories.

We can only suggest what works for us as individual. What works for me may not work for you or OP...she can choose which of our suggestions will work best for her.

Spliner1969

champion818 wrote: »

I am also a full time college student so it’s like I only have 7 hours left in the day after school and that’s to sleep time is really crunched with me . I’m not making excuses .... I see what u are saying though

If you're only left with 7 hours a day, I agree, sleep is paramount. So that means it's a diet issue. You need to re-learn what to eat and what not to eat. I'm a big fan of IIFYM, if it fits in your macros and calories, eat it. But in your case I would start substituting and changing things because the weight gain has got to be diet related. There's absolutely no reason to starve while dieting, but honestly sometimes you have to eat differently than you would like. Log your food, all of it. Weigh it by the gram/ounce with a good scale. Meal-prep if possible, that'll help keep you healthy and low calorie snacks for times when you don't have time to fix something healthy. Start refusing to eat out. Learn to bring your pre-prepped food with you. You'll probably find that you learn to like new things and by the time you lose the weight may not even care to go back to the way you were eating.

As far as exercise, you can incorporate it into daily activities. Walking instead of driving short distances, riding a bicycle, standing desks, etc. etc. Run/walk or ride a bike at lunch time, then eat a sensible and smaller lunch afterward. There's always a way.

I used to love Twinkies, little doughnuts, big doughnuts, bagels smeared with tons of high fat sweetened sugary cream cheese, pies, chips, dip, candy bars, any fried foods, etc. I still love them but honestly if i ate a bunch of that crap all at once now I'd be sick for hours. I may eat that stuff in moderation on special occasions, but otherwise I don't bring it into the house. If I am going to be out and about and need to buy fast food, I make smart choices, salads, healthier subs (think Subway), etc. instead of the obvious easy choices like burgers, fries, onion rings. Take a look at what you eat (logging will help) then think of ways you can make those foods yourself in a more healthy and low calorie way. You may find you don't have to give them up at all.

Just my .02.

kittybenn

One of my favorite sayings is this: "A year from now you will wish you had started today." What if you were only 20 pounds less next year than you are today? That would be good, right. Don't wake up a year from now and realize you've gained another 50. I agree with the poster who said new behaviors take weeks to become habits. And when they do they're very powerful. Both the good ones and bad ones. Set some relatively easy goals for yourself and then start ticking them off. Best of luck to you. You can do this.

jasummers76

At this point learn what calories are actually in what you are eating. This is what helped me the most. Go on Instagram and search calories and weight loss subjects. There are a lot of great photos and posts showing things like that morning cup of coffee from Starbucks is 500 calories if not more. I use to think I was eating so healthy when I would eat two cans of tuna with three huge spoons of mayonnaise. Little changes add up. Sauces I am sure I use to eat a day's worth of calories. I still get the burger but no fries. It is a small sacrifice here and there that will get you lossing and when you do you will become more driven to be the best version of yourself.

Also start reading food labels. Use this app if you're stopping say at a fast food place. Do not worry about percentages right now but calories. Starting off doing both doesn't work well for many.

riffraff2112

All you need to eat in deficit. You don't need magic to give you more time in the day. You have a busy life, but one thing you can control is what you put in your body!

You can do this, its a matter of making it a priority.

californiagirl2012

So many here have covered everything. Separate out your emotions as much as you can, it's just a problem to solve and it won't be solved overnight, or anytime super quickly, accept that. Focus on the PROCESS not the results, then the results will come. It's just like in school, if you focus on LEARNING the good grade follows. Focus on the journey not the destination. Everything good in life works that way. The frustration comes from wanting the results NOW. Forget that, it won't happen. Now, roll up your sleeves and get to work. Don't eat too low or it won't work (that's the impatience and wanting it now and it always backfires). Deep breath, eat at a slight deficit like the app recommends, if you do that consistently most of the time, you will succeed. You won't be perfect, nobody is, but you will succeed if you fall in love with the process of eating the right amount of mostly healthy food.

coueswhitetail

think back to what worked for you when you lost weight last time. Do those things that worked for you and stop doing the things that don't work for you. Keep logging your food. When I stopped logging, I gained back all the 40 pounds I had lost. Now I am back to logging and lost 6 pounds in 9 days! Logging again is showing me where I have relaxed my diet too much so I can stop doing that. Good luck, and keep at it. Logging food will show you what you need to learn. Also, a great website about food and nutrition is nutritionfacts.org