What is the best way you stay balanced?

jackieza28

Need motivation & tips. I am a yo-yo dieter with a crazy work and life schedule. On top of that I am one extreme or the next. When I’m stressed I either eat too much or don’t eat at all. As for exercise only have 15 minutes at a time. Any suggestions?

LivingtheLeanDream

Its extremes that are the issue, at least at one stage they were for me.

15 mins at a time is better than nothing especially if its a consistent thing and you can do it most days - although exercise isn't necessary for weight loss, its good for our heart health plus it increases our calories out.
Weight loss happens when the calories in are consistently under the calories out.

I was once a yoyo dieter too. I would have been 'good' weekdays but that meant eating very little and at the weekend just went mad - little did I know but I undid all my weeks progress.
For me it was about finding balance and that's what I found with using this app. I knew if I restricted my calories too much I just would not last it out - I hadn't before so this time something had to change - so I aimed to eat 1400 cals a day and then realised when I exercised that meant I could actually eat a little more yayy. I had 20lbs to lose, 0.5lb per week was my aim and I did that on 1600 calories (gross) a day.
I'm only 5ft 2, someone taller would be able to eat more than that btw. I lost slowly and surely, got to goal and went on to lose a few more vanity pounds. 6 years have now passed and I've have kept them off, no more yo-yo dieting. I have never felt I was on a 'diet', I just thought of what I ate as calories in and consistently aimed to keep under the amount I knew that would help me lose. I do the same now in maintenance, only I get more calories now.
I also got into the exercise habit and still workout pretty much daily. I started off with walking, progressed to interval training, running, biking and strength training - it doesn't matter which exercise as along as its something you enjoy, that way you'll be inclined to keep doing it.

All the best.
Ruth

rainbow198

For your 15 minutes of exercise, maybe try to get in a Youtube workout or a walk if you can? Also there are walking workouts in Youtube I would recommend.

They get your heart rate elevated and some even use light resistance training as well. 15 minutes is usually a 1 mile walk and you don't have to leave your house. Do them 3 times a day and you'll get 3 miles in!

For me, once I started to plan things everything started to slowly fall into place.

Knowing the workouts I'm going to do and what I'm going to eat ahead of time keeps me balanced and focused.

Early on when I used to wing it, I found it very easy to skip a workout or go out to grab something to eat since I wasn't prepared.

Both didn't happen overnight however. It took some adjusting and time to figure things out. I had to learn the type of workouts and activities I enjoyed. I had to learn how to grocery shop for the entire week and plan/prep meals. I even had to learn how to cook more things and I discovered/tried new foods and ingredients for my meals.

Also taking baby steps and not being so hard on myself worked for me. I have a lot of drive so early on I tried to change everything at once, ended up getting burnt out and reverting back to old ways.

Taking small steps such as work on increasing the speed of my fitness walking miles or cutting back on juices and soda and replacing with water really helped. I didn't have to walk a 14 minute mile after being sedentary most of my life or cut out all of the drinks at once.

I believe taking it easy and planning helps me with maintaining my weight as well (I recently celebrated my 6th year without any regain!)

I know we all have our own journey and challenges, but good luck with figuring things out. ❤

ladyzherra

Thanks for sharing your situation. You're not alone @jackieza28. The struggle is real, and I feel like I can understand.

Meditation seems really intimidating and also confusing if you haven't really done it before, and can still feel that way even after years of practice. But nothing else has aided me exactly the way that meditation has. "Meditation" is a personal experience and can look different for us all, and even discovering what achieves meditative status for you can take work that can feel frustrating at times.

For busy bodies, like me, coming to meditation has been a winding road. But introspection, stillness, and learning about myself has helped me to reduce "stress," deal with feelings of sadness and anger, and feel grounded and balanced. Each of these has helped my diet and weight more than anything else ever has -- and I used to be a bodybuilder and personal trainer and runner.

If you seek peace, it's there. A peaceful, balanced mind lends to the same in the emotional body and the spirit, and for me, THAT is where my eating problems come from. Deal with that, and you're on a road to healing.

Jenn

TerriMcElrath

There are a lot of apps that provide 7 minute workouts. While they may not be ideal, they are better than nothing.

I too, have a crazy schedule. I get up at 4 in the morning to get my workout in, and mine is only 30 minutes. It took time to adjust and, believe me, there are days I would much prefer to stay in bed. But I always feel better for having done something.

As far as eating, what I do is I try to pre-log as much as I can, snacks especially, and that gives me an idea as to how much more I can eat. Like Rainbow198 said, meal prep helps a lot. It may take more time and energy one day a week, but then you are done for awhile.

Above all, give yourself a little grace. We haven't gotten overweight overnight, it wont come off overnight. Take those baby steps and soon you will find yourself falling into healthier patterns.

angmarie28

some days when I dont have time to workout much, I squeeze in cardio here and there. I will get on my recumbent bike for 10 to 15 minutes at a time, jump rope for 10 or so minutes, even run in place if I nothing, I also do walking lunges (15 minute of that you will really feel it), push ups, and other body weight exercises. I often split my workouts into smaller ones, I workout for 20 to 30 minutes on my lunch break, then come home and do another 30 of more minutes if I have time. It adds up.

puffbrat

For me, extremes are about perfectionism. I'm either all in and doing "perfect" or I'm a failure and may as well fully indulge. One of the hardest things about weight loss and weight management for me has been learning that I don't have to be perfect and being imperfect doesn't mean failing or giving up. I have just had to train myself to the mindset that it is ok if I didn't work out or eat within my goal today. It is even ok if I don't do it tomorrow or the next day. What is not ok is just giving up and not even trying to get back on track.

As far as the lack of time for exercise, I would recommend Googling or searching YouTube for 10 minute workouts. It looks like there are number of options such as these https://www.fitnessmagazine.com/workout/express/10-minute/