Are you losing weight...or making long lasting changes?

skinnyone2012

Im wondering how many here are striving to not eat all the junk food, pop, and unhealthy foods that we grew up on. How many have really changed their eating patterns for say a year?

megsmom2

I feel like I'm doing both, at this point.

wisters

I have been making life changes. I have cut all pop (soda) from my diet for going on two years with no plans to drink it again. I am making healthy choices! And, most importantly, I've gotten rid of ALL of my too big clothes after my weight loss so I must make this permanent.

Sabine_Stroehm

Me. I changed my eating habits about 12 years ago. I lost 20Lbs and kept it off (until a little crept on as my metabolism slowed, but now that's gone too).

My eating now looks NOTHING like my eating from childhood til my 30s (I'm 47 now).

Jimmytreatingtons

I'm trying to eat more healthily and drop some of the junk food, I am not saying for one minute I WILL NEVER EAT IT AGAIN, during this current journey I am on I am not going to ban myself from eating anything unhealthy I never have and probably won't unless advised by the doctor.

Just about moderation and watching what i am eating and my exercise. Hopefully i will get where i want to be!

Hopefully I will will change my eating pattern forever, but it is just about moderation for me, If I know I am going to have a bad dinner just take it easy for lunch and Breakfast.

akaeding

I changed what I eat, but also at the same time I am watching more closely to what I am eating calorie wise, since I track it. I have notice since I have been tracking my food on a regular basis, that I dont eat nearly enough calories as what they say I should eat. I am hoping to at least eat the calories that they tell me to eat, but so far I have lost 28 lbs and I am still wanting to lose more that just that. I started working out a lot more now also. I think that it will be a long lasting change the I am losing this weight.

Lets just hope for the best.

crystalflame

I've lost my taste for a lot of the sugary drinks and processed carbs. It's not even appealing now, so I doubt I'd ever start on that crap again. Also, now that I've worked as hard as I have to be able to do it, I never want to lose my ability to run a 5K. I want to be as healthy as I can be now and get good habits instilled early so I don't struggle later in life.

ZugTheMegasaurus

Not a whole year yet, but about six and a half months here. Before, my diet consisted entirely of Doritos, fast food, regular soda, and alcohol. Since February, I haven't had Doritos at all, I've had McDonalds once and ordered pizza maybe once or twice, haven't had any soda, and have alcohol only once in a while.

It's not really hard, actually. I tried taking a drink of Pepsi about two weeks ago and it was disgusting; I couldn't even drink more than a sip of it. I'm not bloated and swollen from all that sodium and that feels pretty awesome. I went from being depressed and trying to hurt myself with alcohol to being able to enjoy a few drinks and not wanting it all the time. When I really want some pizza, I get the good stuff rather than spending as little as I can on the cheap kind since I don't get it every day, and it's more satisfying.

At first, I was pretty apprehensive. These were the foods I lived on; I thought it would be horrible having to stop eating them. But I honestly don't even want it most of the time. I want it so infrequently that I allow myself to have some when I do get those cravings; I know that once in a while isn't going to hurt me like having it 24/7 did.

And it's not just willpower or talking myself into it. I actually crave fresh fruits and vegetables now. I actually don't want greasy food most of the time. I actually turn down cupcakes and don't think twice about it. Once you start doing it, your body starts wanting it.

sgthaggard

Are you losing weight...or making long lasting changes?

Yes.

dlwyatt82

Little of both. I still eat some amount of the delicious junk food, just less of it than before.

LorinaLynn

I eat less "junk," but still have it. Maybe one or two diet sodas a day instead of it being all I drink all day. I still have pasta, but not Hamburger Helper. I still have pizza, but once or twice a week, not 3-4 times a week.

Pinkigloopyxie

I lost 60lbs after 2008 when I went to college and started cooking/buying food for myself as well as walking everywhere and taking a weight lifting class. (no car) I did nothing special after and kept losing steadily but then hit a mental roadblock.

I stayed that weight for 3 years without the motivation to watch portion sizes but just recently I've felt the need to lose the last of the weight. I kind of feel like I don't deserve to be skinny and I'm also afraid of the attention I would receive from guys by being skinny because I'm not good at socializing in general and I've never been on a date or anything.

Still a bit scared about all of that but I want to lose weight for myself. I feel like I can't truly be myself until I can shrug the weight off and will no longer have that fat person stigma/people judging me because I'm fat. I get really anxious imagining people blowing me off and ignoring me/my opinions just because I'm fat. I think being a healthy weight will rid me of some old fears and help me grow a bit more.

I actually eat well, and rarely have junk food, but I'd eat too much, like a whole pizza or half a bag of chips or half a 1.65 quart of icecream

tomruhland

Long lasting changes here. Cut out all pop (100%) and strive to avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup products. I have occasional desserts, but not every night / day. Really trying to eat clean and drink water ALL the time. Trying to get 1 lb per body weight protein, eat lots of veggies and fruit for snacks instead of junk, and stick pretty close to my calorie limit for the day. Went from 220 to 188 so far. Looking to decrease body fat and increase muscular strength and definition at this point! I will never go back!

Deipneus

Not yet a year but about 9 months. Definitely made changes. But I'm on guard against any backsliding. Been on maintenance for months and still logging every day.

TamAD48

Both...originally started out to lose weight, but now that I've changed up my entire diet to eat healthier I've discovered that I can no longer tolerate or even desire a lot of the foods that I used to eat before. So even though I started out as losing weight, it's now become a lifestyle change.

spaz4me2

I had a lot of bad eating habits formed during my childhood and beyond. At the ripe young age of 45 I can honestly say that through much trial and error and that I have now formed ALL new healthy habits that will now serve me for the rest of my life.

meerkat70

I didn't grow up on junk food. My mum always made healthy, wholesome food for us. Just a lot of it. As an adult, I did the same. My basic diet has always been good, just large portions, and too many 'additions'.

I've filtered out the less healthy foods over the time I've been losing. I focus on making sure I get enough protein (as a vege, that's always been important to me, but more so now), avoiding too much refined food, and generally eating as well as I can.

So I guess I'm both losing weight, and focusing on making my food healthier. Perhaps more important to me though is securing long term fitness.

thelovelyLIZ

I suppose I'll be coming up on a year in a few months, and I've stuck with it. I allow myself a few more indulgences than when I was actively losing, but I still work out consistently, and I've lost my taste for a lot of unhealthy foods entirely. I knew I had made a lifestyle change when I come home from work exhausted and instead of going through the drive through, I take the time to cook a healthy meal.

obeseto13point1

The day I left the hospital after I had my daughter I began changing my diet back to what it was the last time I was successful at losing weight. First I was still drinking diet soda, eating the so called healthy convenience foods, est, but I have gradually gotten away from some of that stuff and have completely quit soda and artificlal sweetener. I try to eat mostly whole foods, rarely go out to eat, watch sodium, try to avoid HFCS, and I only drink alcohol a few times a year. I have worked out in the past, but I would just go to the gym and use the cardio machines and put in the least effort possible to burn the calories I wanted to burn. Now I am training for a half marathon:).

zyxst

Are you losing weight...or making long lasting changes?

Yes.

Ditto.

It doesn't work for me to cut out all the "bad" or "naughty" food. Being denied a food I want makes me binge. I prefer knowing I can have pizza, Mt. Dew, candy bars, chocolate, cookies, bread, pasta, etc. with 2 caveats - 1. they fit into my caloric and macro goals and 2. I only eat one or half of one.

verptwerp

Changed my eating habits almost 4 years ago ...... I seldom eat fast food or baked goods ...... and lost 40+ lbs along the way.

Now I'm here to tweak those calories and up the exercise ....... want to lose those last 10+ lbs :drinker:

Best of luck to you !

DawnieB1977

I've never really eaten junk food. When I was a child we always ate healthily, and my parents never took is to Mcdonalds or anywhere. I didn't have take-away food until I was at university!

I was overweight as a teenager (genetics unfortunately), lost loads of weight at university and got really slim in my mid 20s, and then when I did my teacher training I put loads on, then I lost it for my wedding, and then after I got married I had 2 children 22 months apart and unfortunately I put on loads of weight while pregnant, despite still exercising and eating well.

My youngest is 15 months old now and I've been gymming 4 or 5 times a week and eating really healthily since she was 8 weeks old, so 13 months now. I've lost about 40lbs. I plan on keeping going until I lose maybe another 15-20lbs, and then maintaining.

I enjoy healthy food so it's not difficult, plus having children means I pay even more attention to what i cook as I want them to grow up healthy and slim.

mmmyotwnz

I have taken the words "I will never eat that again" out of my vocabulary because as soon as you make that food a taboo subject, you crave it more.
What I have replaced it with is "I choose not to eat _____ right now, and choose to have more of this healthy food. I plan out what i am going to eat if we go out, so I am not stunned later when I find out the stats.

I choose to monitor what goes in now since I was simply not responsible before.

If I HAVE to have that 'whatever' food item, I will plan out my day with exercise and watch the portions if I have it. I've found that you can manipulate every recipe for the healthier alternative and I find that I was craving the flavor combination rather than the actual fattening food.

I love the taste of Mexican food, I add salsa as a condiment side with my grilled chicken. If it is the crunch of tortilla chips, then I will find an organic whole grain tortilla chip and crunch up a few chips over a salad with a slice of lime to it to get that taste. I have a love for balsamic vinegar and make a very light alternative as a salad dressing so I get the zing but not all the calories with oils added.
My weakness is pasta and a certain kind of flatbread pizza....again I find alternatives like a whole grain pasta and a small serving of a veggie flatbread. I find that it is enough to curb the crave and move on with my life.

So the answer to the question is: I am loosing weight (a lot of it) and making a lifestyle change. A diet is a quick fix to solve a long term problem. A change in your life is a permanent change. I choose to grab life by the horns and take control back. No more self doubt and hatred of what I see in the mirror. It's time to suck up what is, acknowledge it, put behind what was, and change the aspect of the here and now to alter and protect the future.

It would be no different than a person who had a stroke, heart attack or had diabetes. You simply cannot continue on the path you were on.

BigGuy47

A little over a year now. I've made lifestyle changes that are sustainable.

TheRealParisLove

I've been making incremental changes since April, and it seems to be working so far. I had a near panic attack last Saturday at a family gathering where there was literally no healthy food. Chips, dip, hot dogs, cake, potato salad, macaroni salad, ice cream, and sugary soft drinks.

The hostess was so proud of the spread she put on, I really didn't know what to do. I was also really hungry by the time I got to the party, and expected that there would be at least some fruit or something. So, I loaded up my plate, ate my hot dog with some mustard, had a little bit of macaroni salad and pushed the other foods around to look like I wasn't being a completely judgy *kitten*. I also didn't want to hear about "just this one time won't hurt" kind of bull**** that people say at those kinds of events.

Is the change lasting? I sure hope so because I like how I feel, and am beginning to like how I look, too.

nataliexxxx

Both im losing weight whilst eating mostly healthy food and snacking on mostly fruit but I will have a treat once a week but this is also a lasting change because once I lose the weight I will keep eating like this but just increase my calories:)

ericalynn104

I don't know what I would call it exactly.. Before I moved out of my mom's house, I was so frustrated with all the junk she would buy. I knew before I left that I wanted to be different. I'm in college so I will admit that my eating habits aren't always perfect, but I try to eat as healthy as I can. I cook as much of my own food as I can because the processed food really effects my body and my lifestyle. These are the kind of healthy habits that I want to contribute to my future family, so I guess that it really is a lifestyle change. There's nothing wrong with a splurge day now and then, but that's not my lifestyle now.

Birdie

Both I hope. In the past I might have just done it to lose weight but now my health has suffered so I have to make these changes for life.