Depression and weight loss

allikost

If any of you out there have depression and are on a weightless journey, how do you do it? I have struggled with depression and being overweight for years. It just seems like the pounds keep adding up while the depression gets worse. Any tips on losing weight?

try2again

PMed you

Fflpnari

Some things that have worked for me are: exercise, eating enough, getting enough protein. Eating too little makes my mood worse. I stick to 30%f 40C 30P with a 1 pound week loss goal. Weighing also makes my mood plummet so I stopped that for a while
Try what works for you. It will take a while of trial and error but find an exercise that works for you. Play around and see If you can find an eating plan that helps. Therapy might also be a good place to start.

ED_ant316

I seeked out a therapist when I was at my lowest. I was suicidal soley due to my thoughts about my weight. I also developed an eating disorder to which I sought out a nutritionist. We're all working together to help me recover. Its so so hard to do anything let alone stick to a diet/exercise routine when having depression. People are always like "oh exercise helps!" Sure it helps the symptons but doesn't cure it. I know its rough. I'm right there with you. What helped me was surrounding myself with a loving and supportive team. Whether they be professionals or friends and family.

RealWorldStrengthLLC

Break the cycle one small change at a time. I spent a couple years in a very depressed state - largely because of how much I had let myself go.

I started with getting back into lifting. That was all that mattered. Not weight loss, not health, not eating better, not cutting back on alcohol - for me, I knew the first step was to re-kindle my passion for weight lifting. I knew once that happened, the rest would follow suit. 4 months later, I started to focus on food and weight loss. Now I'm beginning to take steps for my overall health - but the thing is, I've been lifting for almost 9 months again, eating right for 4+, lost 50+ lbs - my PHYSICAL health is miles better, my fitness is almost back to pre-depression, due to calorie counting and weight loss and fitness goals my drinking is finally moderate for the first time since I was about 18, and my MENTAL health - it's night and day compared to a year ago - because of all the above.

That was me. You need to find your weight lifting - that one fitness/health related thing you truly have/had a passion for. Re-kindle that, force yourself to do it even if you don't want to. Eventually, the passion will come back - and when it does, the weight loss, the health benefits, the eating right - it will all become a lot easier because it is now fueled by something you love.

And the mental health - it comes with all if that, with setting goals and smashing them, with feeding your body right, with regular exercise, with having a routine.

WillingtoLose1001984

allikost wrote: »

If any of you out there have depression and are on a weightless journey, how do you do it? I have struggled with depression and being overweight for years. It just seems like the pounds keep adding up while the depression gets worse. Any tips on losing weight?

Getting it properly treated can make all the difference in the world. I have been depressed since I was a teenager and suicidal and gained a lot of weight. Now that I'm treated I could care less about food. It's crazy. I feel free for the first time in so long!

cheryldumais

Surprisingly once I started walking I felt a lot better. Also as the weight comes off my mood improved as well. Start slow and don’t try to lose it all overnight. If you are an emotional eater like me find something lower calorie you like for your snacks and don’t cut calories too low. Some counselling could also be helpful.

GottaBurnEmAll

cheryldumais wrote: »

Surprisingly once I started walking I felt a lot better. Also as the weight comes off my mood improved as well. Start slow and don’t try to lose it all overnight. If you are an emotional eater like me find something lower calorie you like for your snacks and don’t cut calories too low. Some counselling could also be helpful.

^This. I had been in a very bad place with a few undiagnosed medical conditions and a bad doctor on top of chronic depression. I finally got to the point where I said ENOUGH to that and got a new doctor. When I was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis, I learned one of the things I'd have to do to manage the disease was exercise.

Well, I'd never exercised in my life and I was using a cane at the time. I started out with just walking. And it was very slow progress, but eventually I no longer needed the cane, and when the weather turned, I joined a gym to get access to a treadmill. The trainer there told me about MFP, and well, by that time, my depression had lifted enough from the walking to be able to finally address my weight.

That was four years and 90 pounds ago.

I don't know if it was the walking itself or being proactive about doing something for myself that made me less depressed, but all of it has a snowball effect in building on itself and continuing to better how you feel.

Just take one small step. Make one small change and then, when that's habituated, make another. Get your own snowball rolling down the hill.

roxxyo

I wrote this huge essay about regular every day activity and recording your thought via video every day for 10 min and looking back at them weekly . And talked bout avoiding places that make u feel inferior etc but then i stupidly didnt press post so hey at least your not stupid like me lol

88olds

Have you sought treatment for depression?
Try some therapy first. Talk to your therapist about trying some meds.

But for our purposes here I agree wholeheartedly with the walking suggestion. Start slow. If you have a lot to lose, even walking can lead to injury. And it’s not about calorie burn. Exercise is overrated as a weight loss tool. But it can do a lot to lift your spirit.

I think I was trying to kill myself in slow motion. At 285lbs, I really couldn’t do much walking. I started by digging the old stationary bike out of the corner of the basement. My first “workout” was 8 min. That was the most I could do. In a couple of weeks I was able to start my walking program.

But this- take heart. You can have the life you want. Push back against that nagging voice in your head telling you it’s hopeless. That’s your brain engaging in an old bad habit and pretending it knows the future. The future is not controlled by the past. Tell yourself you aren’t going to settle for way things are going now, that you want something better. You can do this. It takes some determination but you can do it.

Dilvish

Exercise can be an effective tool against depression and is also an excellent tool for weight loss. Try to incorporate exercise everyday that involves others like water aerobics, water "walking" or some other form where you are around other people.

Additionally make sure you are getting plenty of vitamin D. You'd be surprised to know that many people who suffer chronic depression have a Vitamin D deficiency.

I suffered depression for a long period. I was diagnosed with an untreatable nerve disorder in my legs (Axonal Polyneuropathy) that pushed me into depression. I ate for comfort. I gained about 40lbs in 3 years.

I decided to do something about it because the drugs I was being prescribed were ineffective. I started "water walking" at the local swimming pool every other day for about 40 minutes.

Now I go 6 days a week and average 90 minutes a day. I have met a lot of people at the swimming pool and chat with them daily so it has also become a social activity.