5'3", obese - transitioning from low-carb to low cal

viannee

Hey everyone!
I'm new to the message boards but I have already been using the the calorie tracker for almost 3 weeks now.
I was never a skinny kid. I lived most of my life with a jiggle in my thighs. In college, I lost weight because I got braces belatedly and I just didn't bother with a lot of food because it was such a hassle to eat when not at home. When my braces came off, developed an emotional relationship with food and once in a while I would purge. I also have a bad habit of frequently going to the grocery even though I don't have anything in mind to buy but return home with 1-2 bags of junk food. I love all the "wrong" foods. I work at home so I am sedentary. I am flat-footed so I detest running (it kills my feet, legs, and back). 2 years ago, I was diagnosed with PCOS, hygroma, and mild fatty liver. This year, my lipid report didn't come out clean.

I'm averaging at a meager 500 kcals/day and I was enrolled by a family member in a Ketogenic Diet program.

Before saying anything, please continue reading.

You see I'm not healthy eater. Oh the bad food choices I made. I don't like a lot fruits and vegetables. The program was very restrictive and and because I needed to lose 90 pounds, it would take me about 9 months to stick to that kind of diet. Most of the foods allowed were among the think I hated. Imagine the allowed foods all listed in 3 pages of bond paper and it's in font 16! It gave a shock to my system because it didn't give me time to ease into that new lifestyle. I calculated the calories I might be able to get if I do eat what they allow and it would be a smidgen higher than 1,200 kcals. I didn't eat a lot of the things they served either because I hated them or was cooked very poorly and lazily. And so I starved myself half the time. I'd sneak in a little of the forbidden stuff from time to time but even counting that, I still can't go past 800. I was also too afraid of eating more because the program costs so much and I didn't wanna quit because I had something to prove to my father (we have a dysfunctional relationship). I also rested on the heavy on the fact that they were giving me something for my metabolism. Sure enough, I lost 23 lbs, I've learned to eat more vegetables, and the way I look at food has changed but I was cranky, weak, and forgetful (so much so that I sometimes forget my next sentence). Oh, and don't forget the acid reflux I developed. My family also saw how miserable I was.

I joined myfitnesspal hoping it would aid to even a bigger weight loss. It gave me a wake up call instead. Lots of research (reading stuff from here and other health websites) later, I have learned I was sabotaging my metabolism and a big chunk of the weight I lost was water. My family also saw how miserable I was. I can't keep on doing it especially since school starts again soon.

Next week I am gonna start my transition from Low-Carb to Low-Cal. Even though I planned it to be a slow process, I still feel very apprehensive because I know I will gain back a lot of weight (both from glycogen being replenished and my metabolism adjusting). It's a bit discouraging because my effort will be put to waste and it just makes me think of sticking to the program. It also doesn't help that I live in an asian country and people here can be blunt and a bit mean when it comes to size.

But I am glad that MFP is here and I can find a lot inspiration and information from all of you.


Sorry for my long essay. I just wanted to let it all out.

Ang_Bruwer

Hi there all the way out of Freeeeezing South Africa!

I know how you feel, and finding someone who also likes junk food as much as I do is great,
Today is day 2 of no fatty junk food or sweets! And I must say Im feeling great, we can team up and motivate each other!

I ate all the wrong foods my entire life that I was rushed in for emergency surgery for cholosistic gallstones because I was eating the wrong foods!

Stay strong and looking forward to hearing from you ;-)

Angelique

Abooo34

Hey!

Hmmmm I think all of us who is logging in to MFP have or has had an unhealthy relationship with junk food otherwise we wouldn't be here! Dont beat yourself up about it, at least you are doing something about it.

You will find lots of help and support here and on other forums, I find it extremely hard due to a condition I have where any food that I eat stores the fat in my body and I Dont have the hormones to tell my body to dispose of the fat so regardless of what I eat it really makes no difference, its excersize all the way for me, I have been through a bit of a blip recently and in 2 weeks of eating normal foods (not fatty or junk) I have gained nearly 7lbs just because I hadn't done excersize. I am going in for surgery July 1st so I am hoping there will be a marked improvement on how my body behaves, and hopefully hormones and glands will restore to normality or close to it at least.

I also have PCOS which does make it a lot harder to shift the weight especially the excess midriff weight, but cutting out as many carbs as you can could help you, reduce your intake of bread and pretty much anything that makes you feel stuffed or bloated i.e heavy foods, and as soon as you feel full whilst eating your meal....Stop Eating! it doesnt matter if you leave some on your plate this is a way of training your brain to eat less and recognise when you are full, and the less you eat the smaller your stomach will shrink meaning you wont need as much food to get that "Full" feeling which in turn reduces the amount of calorie intake you have resulting in weight loss.

We all need a helping hand in life which is why websites like these have been introduced, there is no shame in asking for help.

Good luck in your journey and keep us updated!
xx:bigsmile:

jdm1726

Viannee,

First...Welcome to MFP!!

I also did the low carb to lower calorie transition and am so much happier that I did....while it was fun to eat as much steaks, bacon and cheese as I wanted, and while I did lose weight, it was such a hard way of eating to stick to..constant cravings for chips especially...now at least I can have my chips..every day if I wanted..in smaller quanties that is..

People can be cruel about your weight...most of us have experienced it in one form or another...

Believe in yourself...believe that you can do it!! And when in doubt..post a question...there will be someone on here with the answer!!

Good Luck!

John

Elf_Princess1210

Welcome. Feel free to add me!

You'll have support here.

viannee

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viannee

You guys! All your comments are a great encouragement to me! Thank you sooo much.

I'm glad there are people who share the experiences with me so I wouldn't be out there all alone in the dark.

@Angelique: My fellow junkfoodie! LOL. Here's to healthy eating! Cheers! *fruit bowls clinking*

@Abooo34: I hope your surgery goes well! I'm trying to learn more about PCOS but I'm taking information one at a time coz everything seems so overwhelming and scary to process.

@jdm: Thanks! I do have some questions. Your ticker is a great motivation!

@elf_princess: i like your nickname. thank you!

kryscallarman

Welcome to MFP! I've tried a lot of programs too! I'm actually on a lower carb diet at this point and it seems to be working well. I'm only 5' and have about 80 lbs to lose. Feel free to add me!

viannee

Thanks Krys. I'm still gonna limit my carbs too but definitely not lower than 100 grams. It just doesn't work for me. Lol