Stuck & growing

Vmsunderland

Four years ago, right before I got married, I was a slender 140 pounds.

I walked daily

Ate whatever I wanted

& had no problem managing my weight

Fast forward to now & I'm tipping the scales at 213.8

I still walk & I try to manage my eating but I'm failing miserably

I feel like every other day I'm saying "this is it! I'm finally going to lose weight"

& then I never do.

I feel like I'm very stuck & that I have an extreme addiction to food.

Help, tips, tricks... anything

Also please note I am on a tight budget for food so the cheaper the better

skywa

Learn how to re-portion your food. (more protein and veggies, less carbohydrates)

Shop the outer edges of your grocery store. (the veggies/meat/dairy sections)

Keep your eyes open for healthy alternatives (eg. non fat yogurt in the place of mayo)

When you buy canned goods, look for salt free versions.

Start cooking at home more and eating out less (this will save you money and calories if you do it right)

You signed up for MFP, use it. Log EVERYTHING. Even the bad stuff. Its easier to clean up your diet when your forced to face the macros in everything you've been eating.

Stay positive. It took you 4 years to put on, dont expect it to come off over night.

Masterdo

I actually found that eating correctly costs me less than what I was doing before... With so many options of vegetables, protein sources, etc There is sure to be something on sale every time you go and buy food.

What worked for me was to make a change in what I do with my spare time. I gained 65 pounds during 4 years of University, but always viewed dieting and exercise as something I have to do to get back under control and then be allowed to come back to my old lifestyle. Needless to say I failed...

This time around I used better tools (like myfitnesspal), actually managed to get my girlfriend to jump on the wagon too, but more importantly, wondered what I would do when I reach my goal weight and started doing that right away. Now in my spare time I do bicycle, walk a lot, check new videos about workouts (rather than mindless youtube stuff). I lived in Montreal for 4 years and never went for a walk on Mount Royal...

So maybe start from there. Evaluate WHY you want to lose some weight, what will it allow you to do and start doing it yesterday. Victory on day one really, and it'll only get better from then on.

Good luck!

Vmsunderland

Thanks for the advice, what do you all do when you're hungry? Well I mean hungry but not hungry.... I don't think my body even knows what hungry is anymore.

What are some guilt free snacks I can eat pretty much all day?

Masterdo

Fat free jellos. A full box is 40 calories and it's deceptively fulfilling. It helps to start, but after a while, your appetite will probably settled around what you should eat anyway. I went out with friends and didn't really care about dinner (still logged it, but didn't care if it was 500 or 2000 calories)... Turns out I couldn't finish my cheat meal anyway...

Your body adapts, you'll be amazed

Vmsunderland

I think its the transition period I can't take, I feel almost like a drug addict without my fix... my life basically revolves around food