Getting started/need help

mjc8080

Trying MFP for the millionth time. I start on Mondays, and by dinner time, I Am waving the white flag. I have no willpower. Need help/advice as to what helps fight through this and what has helped you and would like to get friend requests to help me through this journey. Thank you.

Evamutt

can you do it where do don't need much willpower? Are you the most hungry at dinner? I am. Try to eat different ways till you find the right one for you. when are you least hungry & what satisfies you the most? I tried so many ways like eating small amounts throughout the day, I was still hungry at dinner. Before mfp, I only ate twice a day so I thought about it & found what works for me now is similar....I eat a large brunch, small snack mid day & large dinner with snack right after. Think about your eating pattern & try to mimic it within your calories

concordancia

It takes practice. If you don't hit your goals on Monday, you try again on Tuesday.

serindipte

What's worked for me is to make myself log everything I eat, even if it's going to make me go over my calorie limit for the day. No wiggle room about logging at all. Knowing I'm going to have to put it in my log, I'm far less likely to eat way over my calories. It happens, but I log it and move on... then usually find that, at the end of the week, my average is right where it needs to be.

If I know I'm going to want a big dinner, then I now tend to eat lighter earlier in the day (as I did today) or I save up calories for a few days so I can go over for that one day and still average out.

Sharon_C

What are the types of food you're eating? You may need to eat higher protein foods to keep you full longer.

Personally I eat every two-three hours. I sort of naturally evolved into that eating pattern and it works for me. I make sure that everything I eat has some protein in it.

Evamutt is right, you have to play around with it until you find what works for you. Once you find that you will be able to stick to it.

LivingtheLeanDream

Willpower comes and goes so you need to decide how much you want to lose weight. It takes hard work, determination and forming lasting good habits.

Danp

You don't need willpower unless you're forcing yourself to do something you don't want to do or something that doesn't work for you. So my advice was to skip the willpower and just find something that works!

A couple of examples:
1) I kept joining gyms and forcing myself to go and exercise. It took amazing willpower to motivate myself to go and work out. Eventually my willpower would give out and I'd stop. So instead of forcing myself to do something I didn't enjoy I found something I did. I started cycling and I love it! Now the only willpower I need to excerpt is to make sure I don't over do it too much and burn out.

2) I used to make myself eat 'health foods' that I didn't particularly enjoy and it would take willpower to continue to make and eat meals that I didn't really like. Again, eventually my willpower would give out and I would go back to my over eating habits. So I tried something different. I did away with the good food/bad food way of thinking and just decided to eat foods I enjoyed in amounts that let me eat in a calorie deficit. Now, because I'm not forcing myself to eat foods I don't enjoy I don't need any willpower.

Willpower is a finite resource. Great for a temporary change, excellent if that change becomes second nature and no longer requires willpower but if that doesn't happen, then willpower will only take you so far.

hroderick

check this out https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/mindful-eating-guide