Frustration

cort124

So I have been on MFP for a few weeks now. I had a hard time making healthy choices because it was all new to me and I'm a VERY picky eater; not eating lots of veggies and in general just not many good things for me. I would try to be healthier all around but easily fall back into a rut. I've suffered from depression for a few years now and I think it tends to effect the way I look at myself and how I feel.

I try to exercise and eat good then i can. I am a college student with a very odd schedule which sometimes doesn't allow me to eat and exercise at good times. I don't seem to be seeing results though, a friend of mine tells me see can see parts of me starting to slim and build muscle (since i use the weight machines after my 30 mins on the elliptical) but when i use my WiiFit and it weighs me and my BMI, it just goes up and down and up and down but not by very much, so it seems as if I am staying the same, which is very frustrating.

I have had bad days this week (as you can see from my diary) but still try to keep within my goals. I don't buy junk food but it seems that I eat worse when influenced by other people or when I am visiting my family (because they don't try to change their eating habits like I am) I know I need to drink more water (which I'm trying), I drink an oolong tea in the morning and a green detox at night. I mix in a whey protein powder into my yogurt every day and try to eat when I get up in the morning (since i used to not eat breakfast at all). I am also taking the mega-t green tea pills with green tea, acai berry and hoodia. I just bought the Biggest Loser game for my wii and I'm hoping to use it more when I don't have the time or accessibility to the gym.

I'm just wondering if anyone has had similar problems to what I am having and if they have any advice. Or if anyone has any advice in general. Like I said, I am really new to this whole experience and I am still learning but I am really trying and I want to get onto the right path to a better and healthier life. Feel free to look at my diary and I am open to suggestions and criticism because I need some strong influence to push me in the right direction.

Thank you all.

cort124

BUMP

PompousClock

Hi Cort, I was just mentally lamenting the same frustration this morning. I have been diligent the last three weeks, keeping at or under my calorie count, exercising regularly (and vigorously), and I've lost one pound. Well, to be completely honest, I gained two pounds over the holidays, so I'm still up a pound from where I was in November. Frustrating.

But I know that EVENTUALLY the scale will again move. And I know it WILL NOT move in the right direction if I give in to the cravings and the old way of eating. And every day that I commit to a healthier way of eating, the easier it is becoming to consider this my new normal.

It sounds like even though you are in the same rut, scale wise, you are making some excellent choices! The variety of exercises keeps things fun. Finding better foods is always a challenge; but your adventurous sprit will help you persevere and find a few new healthy foods (and veggies!) that you can incorporate into your diet.

And a final piece of advice I read on another thread: consider the cravings for junky foods to be an It, not You. In other words, when you are struck with a craving, tell yourself, "It wants me to eat that junk food" instead of "I want to eat that junk food." Every time you feed It, It grows stronger, but It will never be satisfied, so why bother caving into It? You get no long-term benefit. And You are stronger than It.

Helloitsdan

A good rule of thumb is:
1) eat the right amount of calories!
If you are above 5'2" and eating 1200 calories a day you are doing this wrong!
2) Fill your macronutrients with 90% whole food and 10% junk!

So if you are a female who is 5'5" 25%+ body fat and works out 3-5 times a week you can consume 1600-2k calories and lose a pound of FAT every week.

You eat 90% great food and 10% junk food daily!

SCUBAMomofTwo

Here's the bottom line: all the exercise in the world isn't gonna do SQUAT if you're eating crap all day. I didn't look at your diary, but something in your post about being a "picky eater" and not eating vegetables leads me to believe that your diet is likely not very good. You are a grown up; you can LEARN to like new foods! But in the beginning you have to FORCE yourself to eat them. So do it! Do it today...and tomorrow...and the next day....for AT LEAST a month and then tell me you HAVEN'T expanded your food choices, that you STILL hate everything healthy!

Good luck.