Frustrated, even furious

histora

I would advise counting calories (and exercise). It works for many people on here, definitely. :-) x

My god. It's so simple, even a caveman could do it!

I'm trying to imagine calorie counting cave art now. Thanks.

ajaxe432

“Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

~Albert Einstien

paulaviki

To be honest with you, everything that I have read here, particularly the habit of daily calorie logging and the belief that unless you know every little number attached to every little bite - you are on your way to anorexia, metabolic shut down, getting morbidly obese, or even death ...sounds like a clear prescription for weight-related obsession.

As you can see, I come to this forum very rarely because I don't care about THINKING of my weight loss every day. So I am not sure who is closer to "obsessive behavior". Neither do I have epic goals related to weight loss, lookin' good, breaking the weight bars at the gym, working out "truly intensively" as opposed to "intensively"... or acquiring Madonna type arms.

I mentioned the two pounds that come back up because I noticed this is what happens every time I eat a bit more - and it is indeed very annoying.

Maybe that IS water after all, as some mentioned. I will see next week when I weigh in.

Otherwise, arguing that I should have done calorie counting instead of spending time arguing here is a pretty weak argument as I definitely do not plan on being on this discussion forum every day.
Calorie logging IS a daily task though. You would think this would be self-explanatory but looks like not.

If that's the case why are you exercising intensively 4-6 times a week? Cut back on the exercise and spend some time logging recipes or just relaxing if your life is so busy you don't have time to tie shoelaces. Weight loss is mainly about your diet, exercise is really about health.

You also need to think about the long term, are you really going to go for the rest of your life feeling hungry and unsatisfied with the food you eat? I doubt it, and if that's the case you'll just put any weight you've lost back on once you get fed up. Plus in the meantime you could seriously damage your body if you are only eating 900 calories a day!

I think you need to take time out an evaluate your goals, you can't maintain what you are doing right now so change it before it damages your health.

marshall_lovee

You must be gaining water weight, you cannot gain 2lbs of fat over night, it's natural for weight to fluctuate, on average weight fluctuates by + or - 2 lbs throughout the day due to water retention, just keep going with it, make sure you accurately log calories and accurately log your calories burnt, if you eat under your BMR, then you should loose weight, or at least maintain your weight. Good luck, your weight loss so far is amazing! it's natural for it to slow down as you get nearer to your goal, your initial loss was very quick so naturally your body will not keep this rate up forever. Good luck (: try not to get too stressed out, state of mind effects weight loss too. also jealous of naturally skinny people!

MANDallasTX

Have you considered you may have a medical condition which inhibits your progress? My Doctor found my Thyroid was under performing. When this happens your body does operate effectively, which can leave to tired and cause you to not lose weight. When I got on medication for the Thyroid problem I was able to start losing.

After a very good blood work up where I showed I was back to the low side of normal I ask my Doctor to let me decrease the dosage. WRONG WRONG WRONG. I wound up real tired and even though I really upped my exercise and watch my food I could not lose weight. When I went back on the original dosage the weight cam off and my energy levels went up.

Bottom line if your in a holding pattern see a Doctor to see if you have medical handicap. Especially the Thyroid. It may be small, but it can make a big difference.

Hildy_J

Hi,

I'm not American and I cook from scratch too.

The only equipment you need is a little pair of food scales and those little coloured teaspoon, tablespoon measurers (£2 from Asda?). Tonight I know I had 250g of sprouts (79 calories) 150g of asparagus (17 calories) and two chocolate brownies earlier weighing 150g (400 calories!).

I have the scales out all the time now, by the kettle, and weigh everything!

It's not so time consuming to log after a few days because the site saves your favourites so you just tick a box. Takes me 10 min a day now. Is all.

Get stuck in!

Jenny x

Hildy_J

Also all the passive-aggressive rude people on here addressing the poster indirectly and calling her 'insane'. STOP.

Play nice.

SanDiegoJohn

Now I eat intuitively, and I eat when hungry and stop when full.

This is what I am talking about. Eating healthy and INTUITIVELY. NOW someone is getting it, finally!!! :-)

Geez, what have people been doing for thousands of years without the tools on this forum?... and the suckers were rarely, if ever, overweight.

I want to eat just like they were - intuitively, when hungry, stopping when decently full, NOT logging, and NOT putting on weight.
Too much to ask?

Yeah, I see what you did there. You selectively edited the quote so it would agree with what you want to believe. But here is the entire quote:

Also, 'intuitive' eating is something most people cannot successfully do for weight loss. There's a process that you must go through, in order for you to become in tune with your body's cues. I'm doing it now, but I'm in maintenance and have been learning to listen to my body for almost a year. No way in heck would I have been able to do it during weight loss and lost any weight. Now I eat intuitively, and I eat when hungry and stop when full.

You want someone to validate your choices, but that's not likely to happen when the choices seem unhealthy to the rest of us.

I wish you good luck on your journey, but I won't pretend that I think your actions are healthy.

PRMinx

Did someone say cat gif?

[img][/img]

Calliope610

Now I eat intuitively, and I eat when hungry and stop when full.

This is what I am talking about. Eating healthy and INTUITIVELY. NOW someone is getting it, finally!!! :-)

Geez, what have people been doing for thousands of years without the tools on this forum?... and the suckers were rarely, if ever, overweight.

I want to eat just like they were - intuitively, when hungry, stopping when decently full, NOT logging, and NOT putting on weight.
Too much to ask?

Thing is, I'm doing it successfully and you are not. And the reason for that is I've gone through the process of losing weight with a structured plan (alternate day IF), and through that process (counting calories, breaking bad habits like night time snacking etc), I LEARNED how to listen to my body and eat intuitively successfully. If you try doing this without first going through the process, then you will fail. I've also set up parameters for myself-I don't eat breakfast (break fast at 11am), I don't eat after 7pm, I still measure out portion sizes for nuts and seeds, olives and other higher calorie foods, I chose foods that are filling but not calorie dense (beans, oats, rice, leafy veggies etc). Even eating intuitively, I still need accountability tools to keep me on track. And again-I'm in maintenance. I did NOT eat intuitively to lose weight.

I don't think that is the answer the OP is looking for.

nomeejerome

Did someone say cat gif?

fixed

andreaeszter

I think you have made excellent progress. It sounds like you are reaching your goal of becoming and staying healthy. You have lost well over 10% body weight, which has already made a significant improvement on your health status. You avoid processed foods and eat organic - at least in part. Other than you are hungry and impatient, I don't see a major problem. You can take it easy on yourself and celebrate your success; be kind to yourself. You need to be your own best coach, patient, encouraging, persistent. You can stop worrying about how easy it is for other people. It is only easy for a small minority of people who are outliers and so far have not been apparently harmed by eating processed non-foods as much as they please. Sooner or later the damage will become visible.

I have found two things that have helped me stay healthy. I ate a clean low-fat vegan diet for two years with no counting and eating plenty with a hearty appetite, which did not lead to either weight gain or weight loss over the entire span of the two years, but worked as maintenance without the stress over the long haul. I had no healthy issues for two years, but after two years I started to feel like I needed to eat all the time to keep my blood sugar from fluctuating and feeling lightheaded. The culprits were fruit, rice, bread, cereal. I decided to try a clean, mainly organic Paleo diet, which led to 10 lb loss right away in the first month. It requires cutting all junk calories (grains, potatoes, processed oils, legumes, dairy) and keeping only what's nutritious (mostly vegetables, nuts, grassfed eggs, pasture butter, grassfed, anti-biotic-free and steroid-free meats). I try to keep carbs at 100 g per day and protein at 80 g per day, the rest is good fats (avocado, unrefined coconut oil, olive oil, nuts). Except for not having many options when eating out, it has not been difficult. I feel that my blood sugar has been at a steady low and my mood has improved. Anyway, if you are already eating clean, this should not be difficult to try.

Congratulations on the progress you have made so far! I hope you find it in yourself to persevere. After all, you want to live healthy. Feel free to friend me.

Pookylou

Did someone say cat gif?

fixed

KITTY!

PRMinx

Did someone say cat gif?

fixed

:flowerforyou:

SezxyStef

Now I eat intuitively, and I eat when hungry and stop when full.

This is what I am talking about. Eating healthy and INTUITIVELY. NOW someone is getting it, finally!!! :-)

Geez, what have people been doing for thousands of years without the tools on this forum?... and the suckers were rarely, if ever, overweight.

I want to eat just like they were - intuitively, when hungry, stopping when decently full, NOT logging, and NOT putting on weight.
Too much to ask?

Yeah, I see what you did there. You selectively edited the quote so it would agree with what you want to believe. But here is the entire quote:

Also, 'intuitive' eating is something most people cannot successfully do for weight loss. There's a process that you must go through, in order for you to become in tune with your body's cues. I'm doing it now, but I'm in maintenance and have been learning to listen to my body for almost a year. No way in heck would I have been able to do it during weight loss and lost any weight. Now I eat intuitively, and I eat when hungry and stop when full.

You want someone to validate your choices, but that's not likely to happen when the choices seem unhealthy to the rest of us.

I wish you good luck on your journey, but I won't pretend that I think your actions are healthy.

I was wondering wth that came from....selective reading and quoting at it's finest...bravo OP

SuffolkSally

Now I eat intuitively, and I eat when hungry and stop when full.

This is what I am talking about. Eating healthy and INTUITIVELY. NOW someone is getting it, finally!!! :-)

Geez, what have people been doing for thousands of years without the tools on this forum?... and the suckers were rarely, if ever, overweight.

If I did that in my local supermarket, I'd consume mainly alcohol, frozen desserts, ice cream, bread, cheese, red meat, packaged processed meat with a bit of an off-set of raw fruit and veg. I don't think this plan works quite so well in the UK, although it does sound very attractive...

I want to eat just like they were - intuitively, when hungry, stopping when decently full, NOT logging, and NOT putting on weight.
Too much to ask?

Well here is a middle ground start:

Eat everything from the "perimeter" of the store aisles. This is where foods are in their natural state. Just from my experience you will become full "quicker" and more naturally.

If I did that in my local supermarket I'd consume (in addition to raw fruit and veg which are also on the outer edge of the shop) mainly dairy, cheese, processed packaged meat, red meat, bread, cakes, frozen desserts, ice cream, and alcohol. I don't think this plan works so well in the UK, although it does sound attractive...

40mpw

Then cut back on the exercise, so you have more time to focus on food-which is what has the most affect on weight loss. There are many, including myself, who have lost the weight without doing any exercise-it REALLY is about the calories. Also, 'intuitive' eating is something most people cannot successfully do for weight loss. There's a process that you must go through, in order for you to become in tune with your body's cues. I'm doing it now, but I'm in maintenance and have been learning to listen to my body for almost a year. No way in heck would I have been able to do it during weight loss and lost any weight. Now I eat intuitively, and I eat when hungry and stop when full. I also never go hungry. But, I still make very specific food choices that I know will be filling for longer lengths of time, that are also less calorie dense. I've also cut out lots of things that don't fit that criteria for me, like meat and dairy. I don't count calories, but I've learned how to truly listen to my body (which means I eat when I'm really hungry and never deprive myself and I stop when I am truly full), and I also have a healthy relationship with my scale and realize that I will have bounces and whooshes-the kind of relationship you obviously do not have.

It seems like you're trying to skip process of losing weight and go right to maintenance. It doesn't work that way. Take a step back, reevaluate your priorities and make it work for you.

I think this suggestion to cut back on exercise is a really good one. When I am working out 4-6 times/ week at an intense level, my appetite is a bottomless pit. I can eat everything in my house and yours and still not be satisfied.

My plan used to be similar to the OP's. Everything in moderation, "good decisions" over "obsessive tracking." I was running roughly 30-35 miles per week (which I consider intense, although some may not).

When I wasn't losing weight, I decided to incorporate calorie counting into my good decisions and running plan, and found that I was eating SO MUCH healthy food, there's no way I could lose weight.

As an experiment, I stopped running. I'm finally able to eat comfortably within my calorie limit and am now losing weight at a rate of a pound a week.

We are all an experiment of one. What the OP is doing now is not working. Maybe it's time to try something new for a few weeks.

victoriahunt93

I have found that with the many cooked-from-scratch foods I eat it is simply not practical to calculate how may calories my portion represents. I don't eat food that comes from labeled packages and for me it would just take way, way to long to figure out exactly how many calories a certain bite has.

That's why there is a Recipe option... You add all the ingredients that you used (even the cooking spray, the oil, the garlic, the broth, etc...) and it calculates the total calories for you and, depending on the number of servings you put for the recipe, it tells you exactly how many calories are in each serving. And then, if you ever use the recipe again, you can just add it from your recipes.

The bottom line is that you shouldn't be furious or frustrated until you consistently track your food for at least a month... Even though you're eating 'clean' and making all your own food, there's no way to really know how many calories your consuming. For example, if you cook with oil, that's 120 calories per tablesoon right there...

Try tracking (it gets easier and easier as you get accustomed to the system) and then reevaluate. If it turns out that you were estimating correctly, then you have a right to be frustrated, but until you get an accurate number of what you're eating every day, you shouldn't be upset.

histora

Also all the passive-aggressive rude people on here addressing the poster indirectly and calling her 'insane'. STOP.

Play nice.

Excuse me, but I am going to need to see your internet police badge before I take orders. For my safety as well as yours.

acfkaren

OP - you do what you want to do, as none of the advice you have been given you will take on board. Be prepared for getting seriously ill through lack of nutition, be prepared for even more crabby days as your blood sugars are on a rollercoaster.

Oh yeah - and be prepared for your children to ask you questions when they do nutrition at school - as you are clearly (to me) setting them an example of panic-weight loss.

As for being busy - are you truly busy or just very good at thinking you are busy?

And yes that is harsh and yes I'll probably be flamed but I really don't care as I am also a busy person with a job, house, husband, outside activities, a heap of volunatry work and I am also insulin-resistant so it is even harder to lose weight. But I dont make excuses. I get on with it.

miniversion

I think if it was me, I would forget about losing weight for a few days to a week. I will have an image of what I think is the amount of food I'd be eating if I were on maintenance and eat that. Make sure I don't get hungry and drink water if I were, just in case it's dehydration. After feeling satisfied with food for days, then I will cut back and eat perhaps 25% less of the usual fare. Do that for a week then eat close to the full amount for a day or so then back to about 25% less again.....just cycle that way until I reach my goal...

histora

Did someone say cat gif?

fixed

Perfect!! Now I can rest in peace knowing a cat is running amok all up in here.
:smokin:

SanDiegoJohn

I was wondering wth that came from....selective reading and quoting at it's finest...bravo OP

Can you tell I used to co-own and moderate a political message board? We saw all the tricks. *grin*

Ang108

I have found that with the many cooked-from-scratch foods I eat it is simply not practical to calculate how may calories my portion represents. I don't eat food that comes from labeled packages and for me it would just take way, way to long to figure out exactly how many calories a certain bite has.

With all due respect; this is because you don't want to. I eat nothing from packages or boxes and cook all my meals at home. I log all individual ingredients, including condiments and it has never taken me more than 10 minutes. I am a busy woman with lots of activities, but also believe that if something is important to me I find the time to do it.....if not, than it is just not that important.
For example; I read the paper each morning and get up a little bit earlier to do so. Now I log my food above all ( 90% of the time ) and then I read the paper, if there is time....if not, than it's only logging and no paper, because it's important to me.

victoriahunt93

I have been following this thread (I know, I'm a glutton for punishment) and I still don't know what the OP is looking for.

She's looking for someone who has a secret way to not eat, not exercise, not be hungry and still make the perfect body appear.

Wonder if they'll show up.

^ This. Haha. Lady, if you want to lose weight, you have to track the calories that go into your body and track the calories that you burn. Its simple science. You're looking for us to give you a solution that defies science and it just doesn't exist. Count your calories, work out, and you'll lose weight. Then, when you reach your goal, you can dial down your workouts and up your calories for maintenance. Duh. That's what this site is designed around.

laylaness

FOR ME - and again, I emphasize FOR ME!! - calorie counting is not just unpractical and time consuming (yes, I have tried it on this very site and it is very time consuming), but also psychologically unhealthy. I do not want to obsess over a specific "food journey" or "weight loss" journey every day.

I want to adjust my eating habit to a point where I eat healthy, I lose all the weight I need to lose, then I just maintain - without thinking much about it.
Do I expect to be able to stuff my face with pizza and cake all day without giving it a thought - and maintain a healthy weight? Obviously not.

But this where common sense steps in.

I think you're already at a point that is psychologically unhealthy if you want to know if you will be hurting yourself by under-eating every day.

If you want answers to your questions, consult a doctor. They can tell you exactly how healthy your current lifestyle is.

csheltra26

[/quote]
Sounds like you went into it and changed everything, cut back your intake dramatically and have managed to lose 29 lbs in less than 3 months by starving yourself. Understand 10 lbs a month is NOT normal..That is VERY aggressive..unless you happen to be over 400 lbs you are losing WAY too quickly. When you have only a little weight to lose - which by your ticker..maybe 30 lbs total you should be no where near 10 lbs per month loss.

Your goal is way too aggressive. Your body has now started down the path to adaptive thermogenisis. Your body refuses to lose weight because it has determined by the lack of nutrition that it has been getting the past few months that it needs to conserve its stores. Every extra calorie you give it will be stored because you have not been providing your body with enough fuel.

Set your goal to .5lbs/week loss and eat. You will gain weight for the first while until your body can re-establish a 'normal' level of nutrients. Unfortunately there is not really much way around that.

Read:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1077746-starvation-mode-adaptive-thermogenesis-and-weight-loss
[/quote]

This.

Happened to me. I lost a ton of weight really fast (didn't feel like it at the time but it was). And I gained it back. I was starving all the time. I was exercising like a crazy woman and eating too few calories. I was tracking my calories everything bite that went in my mouth. I was under EVERY single week more than 3500 calories, yet I ate a burger for dinner one night and a donut for breakfast and my weight went up 2 pounds. This happened weeks on end.

Read the article. Listen to those people. You slow your metabolism down when you lose too fast and at too much of a cut. You need to gradually increase calories. You will probably gain weight. And then when your metabolism is working properly again, you can cut a reasonable deficit. I wish I had learned this much, much sooner.

Pookylou

Now I eat intuitively, and I eat when hungry and stop when full.

This is what I am talking about. Eating healthy and INTUITIVELY. NOW someone is getting it, finally!!! :-)

Geez, what have people been doing for thousands of years without the tools on this forum?... and the suckers were rarely, if ever, overweight.

If I did that in my local supermarket, I'd consume mainly alcohol, frozen desserts, ice cream, bread, cheese, red meat, packaged processed meat with a bit of an off-set of raw fruit and veg. I don't think this plan works quite so well in the UK, although it does sound very attractive...

I want to eat just like they were - intuitively, when hungry, stopping when decently full, NOT logging, and NOT putting on weight.
Too much to ask?

Well here is a middle ground start:

Eat everything from the "perimeter" of the store aisles. This is where foods are in their natural state. Just from my experience you will become full "quicker" and more naturally.

If I did that in my local supermarket I'd consume (in addition to raw fruit and veg which are also on the outer edge of the shop) mainly dairy, cheese, processed packaged meat, red meat, bread, cakes, frozen desserts, ice cream, and alcohol. I don't think this plan works so well in the UK, although it does sound attractive...

I would get...dvds, ice cream, yogurts,milk, bread/cake and tea/coffee...... WINNER!!

mrsgrimsdale

I only just joined so maybe I am not in the best position to offer advice but I will say this my OH eats anything he wants and stays slim because he constantly moves even when he sits to watch TV he taps his feet or fingers.
When I started logging my intake the first thing I realised was I was under-eating consistently and despite that my sugar intake was way too high I have already begun to adapt my eating accordingly.
Please try logging if you haven't yet, the advice others have given you comes from many peoples experience and they are not trying to preach they want to help

Bigjuicyhog

HEY GUYZ!

I AM DOING SOMETHING THAT IS NOT REALLY WORKING FOR ME, BUT I DON'T WANT TO LISTEN TO ANY OF YOUR SUGGESTIONS! CAN YOU PLEASE GIVE ME A WAY TO GET THE RESULTS I WANT BY ONLY DOING IT THE WAY I WANT TO DO IT? THANKS!