Have you ever just wanted to quit and...

KM0692

try and do this yourself, by cutting back on portion sizes, cutting out the junk and NOT counting calories??? I get really depressed when I think about having to do this for the rest of my life. My mom always said "if you want to drop a few pounds, just cut out the junk food and go for a daily walk." I only have 10 lbs. to lose to get back to my ideal weight, but I am so tired of counting calories, tracking, thinking about food...."how many calories is this?" "do I have enough calories left today for this?" etc, etc

I just want to be one of those "normal" people that doesn't count calories....they just eat reasonable portions and stop when they're no longer hungry. If they want a cookie, they have one (not three) and are happy. I don't want the thought of food consuming me anymore!!!

WitchesGuildMaster

You know I felt like this a few months ago. And I even stopped counting. Guess what? I gained. Even people who don't count are still mindful of what they eat and how much. Calorie counting is a tool. While those people may have portion control built in because they grew up with it, I don't. Hence I use counting as my portion control. I will be doing this for the rest of my life. Because I don't ever want to be fat again. :flowerforyou:

Psychdoll74

God yes. Many times actually. It seems tedious but it's really the only way you know for sure unless you know the calories in everything you eat by heart and can add them all easily in your head.

CindyMarcuzAdams

For years I felt like quitting and always did quit. That's until I found mfp. I dont want to quit this. Its not a diet its a new way of life and I love it. I wish this program existed 20 years ago.

brenn24179

I think we would all like to be one of those normal people. We are not and that is why we are here. It is what it is. I don't have a full button so I have to log or be fat. I have to exercise. I eat a lot of chicken,turkey and fish and veggies. I would eat pizza every night if I could. It is hard but it is harder to be overweight.

dotcomee

It's tough when NOBODY you know counts the same way. If it wasn't for being able to read these forums, there's no way I would have stuck with it.

wannakimmy

Yep, I feel this way from time to time too. For me, I know I will have to do this for a good long time. Perhaps over time I will be able to eyeball things and be ok, but I have been overweight my entire adult life. It will take lots of time to make the correct adjustments in my life. I am fortunate enough to have friends and family that have been very supportive of my new lifestyle. It does get old looking at everything as a calorie instead of food, but it is what has helped me thus far. Good luck OP, and keep it up, it will be worth it!

WitchesGuildMaster

It's tough when NOBODY you know counts the same way. If it wasn't for being able to read these forums, there's no way I would have stuck with it.

Same here. My family thinks I have an eating disorder lol :bigsmile:

CupcakesMom2

For those of you who think no one else is counting calories. The people out there who we perceive as slim, most of them are doing something to maintain their weight even if they do a good job pretending otherwise. They might be eating only one meal a day (the meal you see them eating) or they have days where they hardly eat anything but it does not happen by magic. I realize everyone is different and we can all give examples of people who eat alot and don't gain weight. But most people out there who are not weight challenged are doing something to keep their weight down even if they hide that they are doing it.

elle2max

Always. I wish I could be one of those people who was naturally drawn to the better choice of food and/or who enjoys working out/fitness but alas I'm not. It's a daily battle that I suspect will last a lifetime.

tbrown1974

I would love to quit and not worry about every single thing I eat. But I know me and I'm a liar (when it comes to food). I will tell myself its really not that much, or its just this one time....and I don't mean it. Tracking makes me accountable to myself. I hope over time I learn to lie less. so until then, I'm happy to track. Tracking shows results....relying on me to be honest about what I eat...not so much.

MelodyandBarbells

And how old are you, Miss Original Poster?

DebTavares

Hi there. I actually don't count calories, but I'm cognizant of the calories in foods and eyeball portion sizes. I made rules for myself such as have one slice of toast instead of 2, have one slice of pizza instead of half the entire pizza, etc. I also space out my meals every 4-5 hours or I'll just keep eating. I eat 3 times per day plus one snack. I lost 13 pounds from the end of November to the end of January doing this. Then I stalled but was ok with the loss and maintained it until last week. I consider this a success because I did not gain back any of the 13 pounds that I lost. My rules had become habits and I was able to successfully maintain my weight loss. Weight loss and maintenance is as much about physiology as it is about habits. Last week I added a few more rules along with exercise and I am losing again. I'll continue with these rules until I stall again and then create new rules. I'm actually loving exercise- it's so awesome and wish I started months ago, but it's ok.

I still consider this a diet though because my body is unable to tell me when to stop eating. I have two very thin coworkers who eat whatever they want, but it's always small portions and they have no problem leaving leftovers. Their hunger-fullness cues are not broken like the rest of us. Until my body can tell me when to stop eating I guess I'll always be on a diet.

Don't get me wrong, I see tremendous value from tracking calories and have learned quite a bit from this site. The problem for me is that I have diet fatigue so want to make this as easy as possible.

Good luck everyone!

Oh, I'm 5'4 160 lbs and want to get to 130.

j6o4

Nope, I don't want to be normal. Normal people arn't shredded so that's why I'm going to count calories for the rest of my life.

GammaKathy

It's tough when NOBODY you know counts the same way. If it wasn't for being able to read these forums, there's no way I would have stuck with it.

I flew through my first 25 pounds of loss and then it became harder and harder to stick with this. My husband has NEVER been on board. I had a GREAT fitness partner on MFP and in real life until a couple months ago. That buddy walked away from this for many reasons, but mainly because of fatigue with doing everything needed to improve life. I totally blew off everything temporarily, but now am back in. I may be a 58 yr old Gamma, but mentally MUCH younger. I have made the conscious step finally of realizing that I am important! SOOOOOO....... here I go again for the remaining 20 pounds. I also acknowledge that this may be my nuisance for a lot of years. But, better this nuisance than the alternative of spending those years with a wide *kitten* glued in a chair or on a cart watching the world go by.

WitchesGuildMaster

And how old are you, Miss Original Poster?

I've always wondered what OP meant... :bigsmile:

CMB1979

You know I felt like this a few months ago. And I even stopped counting. Guess what? I gained. Even people who don't count are still mindful of what they eat and how much. Calorie counting is a tool. While those people may have portion control built in because they grew up with it, I don't. Hence I use counting as my portion control. I will be doing this for the rest of my life. Because I don't ever want to be fat again. :flowerforyou:

Ditto. Indeed. Amen. Me too. Then repeat.

HeidiCooksSupper

I'm in my 60s. So my answer to your question is OF COURSE. Many times. Including last year when after I'd lost 22 pounds in about 3 months I decided to "take a break." I resumed back here 40 days ago at 1 pound more than before I'd started MFP last year. Think of how much closer I would have been to goal if I hadn't taken off 7 months and slowly put what I lost back on.

I've probably lost a ton in my life -- sadly, just the same pounds over and over. Don't use me as your model.

Desifreckle

I've felt this way before, but after awhile it became second nature and I remembered how many calories were in everything. I could go a whole day just calculating calories in my head (pretty accurately) without writing them down or tracking them at this point. I know I will always have to be conscious of what I eat, but most of people are it's just some of them have been doing it all their lives and don't notice it.

paulawatkins1974

I feel the same way! I just wanna be normal! Even made a post about it on here. People made me think of it differently though. Just think of it as a normal thing to do like showering, brushing your teeth etc. I'll take it over being fat any day! Maybe once you go on maintenance for awhile, try it for a week or 2 (not logging) You might do fine!

malcolmjcooper

Haha me too

And how old are you, Miss Original Poster?

I've always wondered what OP meant... :bigsmile: