Hello!

joshuamhort

Hi everyone, I joined a few months ago, but never posted anything on the forums. I have also stopped using the site for a while now but am looking to use it again. Part of the reason I stopped using it was because I didn't have time to log my food and exercise and forget what I had when I would go on later to log it. I also stopped using it because I was embarrassed to report what I was eating and just got demotivated about it. I am living with my parents and sister until I can find employment. My family mostly likes food that is unhealthy, and I don't have the funds to buy what I want to eat so I would just go along with what everybody else wanted, which turned out to be a bunch of empty calories and really high fat content food.

Now that having been said, I am getting tired of it. I am the one who does all the cooking, and receive no input from my other family members, so from now on I am going to buy what I want to buy, and force portion control on myself. I will also be forcing it on the rest of my family because I will not cook as much food at a time as I normally do. I am going to start off by eating 3 meals a day, with a couple snacks throughout as I feel hungry. I will slowly eliminate snacks, because one of my goals will prevent snacks throughout the day and only allows 3 meals at specific times.

I am 5'11" and have around 130 lbs. to lose, since I have gained weight since my last weigh in but don't know how much and I don't have a scale at home. As for exercise, I didn't have any equipment except a couple of 5 lb. dumbbells and a workout machine that was missing a pin. I got a new pin for the machine, and decided I will start using that, do some dumbbell exercises, and start walking 8 miles and build up to a jog for that distance. I have decided I want to join the military, probably Navy but don't know for certain. Since I have a 4-year degree, I would join as an officer and enter the officer training school, but still need to meet physical requirements. With this goal in mind, I am motivated to start exercising and eating properly again. I will not avoid logging food into the food diary just because I am worried about seeing how many calories I actually consumed and I will be honest with how much I exercise.

The time for running from my problems has now passed. I will stand and face them head on. No more excuses, for my goals will never be reached by relying on them. Thank you for taking the time to read this, and if you have any tips or pointers or encouragement, I would be grateful.

Helloitsdan

Wave!

kagenw

It was really hard for me to cook smaller portions than I was used to cooking. I just get in a habit of following a recipe one way and trying to cut back to one portion (or two for dinner with my wife and myself) was difficult. Now that I've created the new habit of cooking the right portion size, it's been a lot easier. Good luck with your journey and feel free to add me as a friend. I myself have 75 pounds to lose.

kantone999

Good for you! You've taken that all-important first step--deciding to change.

One thing you might consider is the no-snack policy. It's easier to keep blood sugar levels stabilized with 5-6 "meals" per day. I'm doing this so feel free to add me as a friend so you can see my food diary. Snacks can be healthy--i agree with you that if you're talking no chips and candybars that's a good thing. Really, the 6 meals are more like three where you save an item to eat later if you get hungry. If you get too hungry waiting for the next meal, you're more likely to overeat. Or worse, grab some high-calorie empty carb because your body knows it will provide the sugar-rush it's craving. Good luck!

Erin959

I completely understand where you're coming from in terms of living with people that don't want to eat healthy or don't care. My housemate is like that and is always trying to get me to eat junk food. I have started saying no and I understand how hard that can be. Good on you for deciding to make the change for yourself. Feel free to add me as I'm fairly new to this as well :-D

joshuamhort

Thank you for the replies so far!

Kagenw, Cooking smaller portions is going to get easier I think. When I am the one shopping (which is now always), I tend to get some of the meats from the meat counter, rather than the pre-packaged meats. This allows me to say how much I want, and to have it packaged for just enough for everybody in my house . The hard part for me is maintaining the carbs and starches at a reasonable level. If it is rice, it isn't too difficult, but potatoes can be a problem when they aren't the instant mashed and noodles and pasta are trouble as well. Carbs and starches are everyone's favorite at my house. Pasta or rice is usually a big part of the meal, and it is hard to find vegetables that people will eat. I think I am going to dish myself up a smaller serving than what I am used to, and let everyone else fight over what is left when food gets done.

Kantone, I suppose I should have clarified a little on the no-snacks. I am going to have celery or apples and string cheese and yogurt to snack on throughout the day. At least starting off. I will not eat chips or candy or things with virtually no nutritional value for snacks. The reason I am going to slowly get rid of snacks is not for the health reasons, but because when I am able to get into the military, I will only be allowed 3 meals a day with no snacks between meals, at least during training. Food will not be permitted between meals. That is the reason I will slowly eliminate snacks. When I get a chance to eat during meals, I will be sure to have plenty of water to help act as a buffer to prevent overeating.

My eating habits are so screwed up right now that eating snacks would be the best idea when starting this. Before I decided to make the change in eating and exercising, I would have no breakfast, I might have had a lunch but most likely not, I may have had something small to eat before dinner if I was able to find something. Then, because I would have nothing to eat all day, I would have no control over eating at dinner. So, staying full throughout the day by eating snacks when I start feeling hungry will help me to control how fast I eat my regular meals. As I am better able to control that, I will be able to slowly reduce the amount of snacks. When I was going to school, this process worked or me. After moving back home, I have been unable to maintain the habits I was working on at school and am now working to force those habits back into my life and on everyone else if I need to.