how hard was it for u to start dieting and cutting back

cryshelle247

at first it was e.z but now come the 4th of july weekend ive been messing up . by me taking a pastry class in the past everyone always depends on me to bake goodies... everytime they purchase a cake mix or something... man i didnt do bad today but me eating sweets alone pissed myself off and the night before i purchased a bag of 99 cent doritos from the liquor store and today i bought me a fruit ice cream bar .. im thinking to myself what in thee blue hell r u doing. u will never reach your goal like this. but then a part of me thinks like i thought u werent suppose to completely cut something out of your so called diet. its such a back and fourth thing trying to diet. i was talking to friends and i was telling them that im so mentaly drained trying to diet because im so tempted at just eating anything that i want but im also resistant towards it and its like im at a constant battle all day between being temptin and resistant towards food. its to the point im gettin scared because im seeing good results but i just dont want to eat the wrong thing and gain the little progress i lost back ...

i just want to know how hard was it for u to adjust to dieting and cutting back and leaving all ur old habits behing

zozzabubba

The biggest thing that gets to me is when I see my skinny friends eating ice cream and chocolate every day, along with a big spag bol for dinner...and I'm just thinking THAT'S NOT FAIR.

I get past it by reminding myself that every body is different, and while i COULD eat ice cream and chocolate, the effect it would have on me would be very different to them, and the difference (IN TASTE) between me eating ice cream and chocolate, and frozen greek yogurt with berries is negligible (train your tastebuds!) enough that it's worth it. While they may not gain external fat like I do, I always remind myself that their insides are not as healthy as mine. While they externally look skinny, their body fat percentage is probably higher than mine. If we were being chased by an axe murderer, I would most likely survive over them because from exercising and eating clean, my fitness levels are higher.

It's said way too much on here but think of food as fuel. Food is there to make your body run, and the fact that it tastes good is just a plus. Yeah sure your tastebuds sometimes feel like they really NEED a certain food, but they really are only craving FLAVOURS not specific foods. Your brain is registering the flavour and then filling in the gap with the food you would like. Substitution is key! As with the example above, if you're craving an ice cream sundae (400 cals? I don't even know), mix up 100g of 0% greek yogurt with 100g of fresh berries (add some artificial sweetener to it if you need to) then freeze it. This comes out at about 100 cals depending on the brands and types of berries used! And going back to the seeing food as fuel perspective, with the exception of artificial sweetener, this is all natural and healthy! The yogurt gives good protein, the berries a GIANT hit of healthy antioxidants, so you can really feel proud of yourself for having fueled your body properly, the way nature intended rather than with processed junk.

Another substitution could be...
Salty (e.g. craving chips): Homemade hummus (tons of recipes online!) with vegetable sticks - sounds boring but keep the fuel thing in mind, it IS yummy, just a different type of yummy, and there are so many different subtleties to the flavours that processed chips would not have, as well as the added protein and vitamin punch AND the wayyyy lower calories.

If you have a craving that you really really can't shake, you can make yourself a deal, like, I've been eating healthy all week, I can have this one small packet of doritos for instance. That's where the whole "don't cut anything entirely out" thing comes from - the key is that you can't use that same excuse for 4 separate servings of junk food in 1 day.

Hope this long ramble was at least a little bit helpful?

Vailara

I have a deal with myself that if I'm really hungry, if I really, really want something, I'll have it. Sometimes I find that I don't really, really want whatever it is! But if I do, then I would have the Doritos and icecream if that's what I really wanted. I'd just try to fit it into my calorie allowance.

Baking doesn't work for me. I don't do it. I'd end up eating too much. It must be difficult if other people are expecting you to do it - I'd be tempted to say no. Maybe even explain that you can't eat it, so you can't bake it. They should understand.

justjenn1977

not really....

I set VERY SMALL goals...

my first calorie goal was 3000 per day... and my first step goal was 1500 per day...

and I struggled to meet them... after two weeks I was at 2800 and 2000... and I struggled... then a month later I cut to 2600 and 2200... my goals are now 2200/day (tdee ~2800) and 100+ miles per month...

I have times when I loose motivation to lose weight and simply work on maintaining... and that is OK... because this is becoming a LIFESTYLE and not a DIET... it has taken me 8 years to lose 70#.... but it is very ingrained in me... and when craziness happens in my life I don't gain 50#.... when craziness happens I don't reach for the hagendaas... when craziness happens I can simply say "today is a new day and I can begin again"... I can know that I am making changes that are second nature...

cryshelle247

i love all of you guys stories. im a emotional eater and when things get krazy and dont go right i know i smoke and go right to the fridge ...dieting for me im trying to make it become a new lifestyle because i went through one big huge rollercoaster last year and all i need now is a new way of thinking living and eating . its days when i look in the mirror and say " oh who r u kidding u trying to resist that food look how big u r so u mite as well what will it hurt" i know harsh right but lately i havent been doing it. some days r easy some days r very hard. what makes my days hard is i dont eat breakfast and i stay up late till like right now. i have no set schedule im just kind of up and running. i just need to think brb

nikkinoonarr

In the past when I have tried to avoid biscuits and have an apple instead I would end up having the apple and the biscuits! tut tut me!

Now if I have a craving, I sit, ask myself: "do you really want that custard cream or will an apple do?" I think, I listen to my body. That is the most important thing, listen. Your body will tell you if you need the sugar or the fat. Is it your body or your mind.

It has taken me a good month to be able to properly listen, I can't tell you how to do it because we are all different. You need to be able to tell the difference between what your body needs and what your mind is trying to tell you your body needs.

We all need fat and sugars, we all need treats and our need to indulge should not be ignored all the time.

We are not on a diet we are changing our lifestyle, can you go forever without a treat? It is all about moderation, learning when to stop. In the past if I wanted a biscuit I'd eat 8, now I have 1. To be honest that 1 tastes 10x better than the 8 I used to have!

It does take time and effort but if you stay under your calorie goal every day don't beat yourself up. Take time at the end of the week and look back at what you have eaten, if there are 8 ice creams in there, you need to think about if a banana would have done instead. You will get there eventually. If I can do it, anyone can! xx