First Week - Not So Good

duggers923

Okay so I started this week - had a couple of great days and then wham-o work got me and I ended up working really late on Wednesday induldging in crap food and didn't work out. Pretty much worked all night so Thursday was a wash. Last night went to Angels home opener so here it is Saturday and I feel blech!

Anyone else struggling?

Any suggestions for diet tips for the next few days after you eat junk? Headed to the gym in a few to sweat it out.

Thanks
D

catcrazy

water water water and write off the last few days, guilt helps no one!

norabeth

Yes head to the gym, but also don't feel guilt. We cannot be perfect 100% of the time. If we do awesome with watching our food intake and our exercising 80% of the time we will make our goals. It helps after a couple of indulging days to drink extra water and a great stretching exercise, like yoga or something like that. At least for me that helps.

RedsoxFan88

First of all I am jealous that you went to opening day!!! I felt I did really well this week and only lost a pound, which really deflated me. I have got to remember that this is not an all or nothing 'diet', but a lifestyle change to be healthy! My work can get crazy too, I take a small cooler and pack water, fruit, cheese stick, sometimes Lean Cuisine...anything to keep me from getting starving and hitting those junk vending machines. Tomorrow is a new day! Hitting the gym always makes me feel better! Keep going...it will be worth it to feel better and be healthy!

chanstriste13

water water water and write off the last few days, guilt helps no one!

well said!

go grocery shopping for the good stuff and brown bag it to your job. keep sunflower seeds, nuts, protein bars, fruit, stuff like that. that way, if you end up with a crap meal for lunch or dinner, it won't be stacked on top of mindless snack crap.

best of luck to you!

Tiffeney

My first week too and gained a pound ! Working on more water ! And need to work on the sodium thing !

KMV1967

I feel your pain. I just started on Monday as well. Did great all week. Then Friday came. Yesterday and today have been totally not on plan. Will start again tomorrow. Yesterday I raked just the front yard and planted some flowers and I hurt so bad I can hardly walk without pain. I hurt. And I am sick of doctor's telling me that if you just get out there and exercise you will feel better. I love yard work and then I end up hurting for days. Sorry for the rant. Just been one of those days. I have fibromyalgia and today is just a bad hurting day. Tomorrow is another day. Just went in and updated my food for today. Wasn't as bad as I thought but I sure feel bloated out after eating Chinese food. I love it and it is the devil. I was up 1 lb on the scale this morning. Could be due to overworked muscles swollen.

andybr

I dropped 7 lbs this week and had a bad day myself. Lucky for me I have an iPad and write down EVERYTHING I eat almost right after I eat it. Brown bagging is also the key. If your work has a fridge keep one meal in the fridge and bring another everyday. Need to stay late? No sweat! You got dinner in the fridge! Forget about the bad day as well. I slipped up and ate a 2100 calorie meal, so I just swam my *kitten* off the next day. Also, I had some extra time so I did some basketball drills in the gym to keep things fresh. Helps that I have way too much time on my hands!!! Keep with it though. It's a marathon, not a sprint.

Elleinnz

The past is in the past - learn from it - as someone else says these days are going to happen - so if you are prepared for them it is easier to stay on track. The important thing is to start again today, have a good day, and do try and get some excercise in - and then plan for tomorrow..... and the next day.... and the next.....
This is a marathon - not a sprint :-)

Good luck - if you put the effort in it does get easier.....

If you want to add me as a friend - I have been going at this for 7 months now - and still have "those days" - for me they are just getting less and less

Elleinnz

@ andybr - Oh this is so funny - you and me both using the marathon analogy at the same time

ajostraat

water water water and write off the last few days, guilt helps no one!

well said!

go grocery shopping for the good stuff and brown bag it to your job. keep sunflower seeds, nuts, protein bars, fruit, stuff like that. that way, if you end up with a crap meal for lunch or dinner, it won't be stacked on top of mindless snack crap.

best of luck to you!

Ditto! I work in a cube-farm, and I always keep something easy to grab and eat for the days I forget to bring my lunch. I keep my breakfast at work too since I"m never in the mood to eat first thing in the morning. Keeping a healthy stash is important if you want to keep away from unhealthy eating habits if you frequently work late or odd hours. I can't tell you how many times I've come to the office in the morning to find a "repayment" from one of my project managers who raided my stash because s/he had to work late.

iamhealingmyself

Plan/cook/package your meals/foods ahead of time. If you have the time and recipes, cook up to a month ahead and freeze them. Then just keep your daily fresh veggies and snacks on hand to grab and complete your menu. Planning is key to this process from food to exercise. Of course there will be times when plans will change but that should be the exception, not the norm. I still struggle with this 3 months in but find if I think ahead I do so much better not only calorie wise but nutritionally too.

I didn't even get on the scale for the first 2 weeks. I simply reduced what I was eating to serving sizes and just learned HOW to eat better. Then when I had some knowledge under my belt I started to incorporate those changes too. I don't exercise often due to my back and my original plan to walk at least 30 minutes a day was quashed after the 2nd day since I couldn't get out of bed and stand up in such pain. So, I focused on the food and now I'm walking more and even doing other things too that 3 months ago I couldn't imagine I'd be doing.

Don't give up. You can do this - we all can! It will just take some planning on your part. Start with 3 days plan and go from there. On the 2nd or 3rd day, build up your supply again so that you never run out. If you want to plan a night out, your food will hold another day or you can eat it for breakfast or lunch - the only rules are the ones you set for yourself and your lifestyle. In the beginning we all have to figure out what we're doing wrong before we can fix it.

There are some basic things, like drinking lots of water, reducing sodium, sticking to portions that will help you get started. Exercise is what you make it. If a trip to the gym is not feasible, shoot some hoops for 30 minutes or run around the block, do some calisthenics in your living room - whatever it takes to get you moving and get your heart rate up in the beginning is still more than you were doing before you came here. Everyone makes big plans when they start but don't realize how hard it will be to implement and maintain them once they get going. Don't let that stop you because your initial goals were set too high or didn't consider work schedules. Have a back up plan for times when you work later than expected on a gym day. Workout at home or go for a run or cut it short but make it harder (add higher intensity intervals instead of focusing on time alone) you will burn more calories that way and save some time.

If I can't get out and walk or hit some equipment at our apt gym I'll stay home, do some situps and upper body work that allows me to be more immobile while doing them. I'm still moving, I'm getting some toning in and my heart rate is still elevated - granted, not like a regular day, but I'm moving and that's more than I used to do so it's progress.

Don't shoot yourself in the foot by planning too much (exercise) or not enough (food).
:flowerforyou:

MyNameIsNotBob

The trick is to just keep on keepin' on!

You reflect on the days that gave you trouble, and you make a plan to overcome the trigger next time. So, you won't be derailed by working late if you've got a healthy stash of stuff at work--whether it's in your desk drawer or the office fridge. I like to keep stocked up on granola bars, string cheese, cans of low-sodium v8, cans of soup, etc. Stuff that won't go bad quickly, but is a better choice than vending machine food & a soda.

Gratefulbead

I'm new here too. It's not about yesterday, simply learn and move forward. Expect the set backs but shake them off. Remind yourself and you are in a safe place and you are ready to shed the layers -- peel each layer off one by one... before you know it, you will be living in the skin that is meant to be. Sometimes the Universe pushes us around a bit so we open our eyes to what we need to see. Stay in the moment...

I'm finding that by having to record my consumptions each time and I see this choice versus another choice, it's making the healthier choices MUCH easier to make. So, when you indulge, weigh your choices... maybe this "crap food" is significantly better on the tally than another choice.

Tomorrow is a NEW DAY -- it's ok! It will be so much better!

Peace!

rebeccalippett

As I always say "Life gets in the way sometimes". And it does. I've had similar events this week that have lead me off the path of righteousness!!! :-D Just don't beat yourself up about it, and keep getting back on the horse. Try and make up as much as you can with exercise and keep trying. It's a long process this losing weight lark. You will have bad weeks and great weeks. But it'll add up in the end and you WILL get there.

If you know you have things coming up that might lead to overeating then try and have a plan in place to deal with it. Prepare for it by eating fewer calories that day beforehand, and trying to plan what you might eat during that event. You won't always stick to it but it helps to try and visualise yourself eating healthily during the event and how you'll feel afterwards when you're still on plan.

And get some exercise in as soon as you can afterwards.

You won't always be able to plan ahead for things as sometimes life takes you by surprise, but the important thing is not to admit defeat and feel lousy.... go easy on yourself, remind yourself that you are only human and we all do it, and then get right back on the horse!!

And, for the record, your weight loss this week is great! So you didn't do too badly!!

Good luck next week.

Ms_Natalie

wow...some great advice from everyone here!

Try to take a mental snapshot of how you were feeling after indulging. Keep this in mind next time you're tempted to over indulge again. It's okay to have a few mishaps and cheat days are essential now and again to make sure you don't go crazy!

Try and work out what triggers you to start eating poorly...next time this happens try to change your habits and maybe try something else rather than eating unhealthy foods.

As mentioned before. Water is absolutely amazing at shifting the sodium that poor foods leaves behind.

Good Luck :flowerforyou: