Does anyone else find this exhausting?

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  • wewon
    wewon Posts: 838 Member
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    I have struggled with my weight all my life, and now for about 3 years now I have been trying to watch what I eat and make healthier choices, and even in the last year and a half struggling with binge eating. I just feel like constantly thinking about food (planning healthy options, cravings for sugary foods, grocery lists etc. I'm tired and frustrated with it. I just want to be like normal people who don't have to think about food all the time :/ ugh. OK I'm done whining.

    Actually, I don't consider this to be "whining" at all. Its a very legitimate concern and one that most people deal with and one of the reasons that people 'fall off the wagon'.

    How we eat is very much about habits and routines and one of the goals of your journey should be to not only log foods and lose weight, but to develop sustainable strategies for dealing with food. Otherwise, your left with a bunch of short term tactics.

    I have 'rules of thumb' for myself, that I could do easily if I never logged into MFP again still lose weight, but I do log on here everyday mostly to try to ingrain the habits.

    Things like making sure that I eat at least 3 fruits a day, no limit on veggies, 10 glasses of water, no sugar without fiber it comes with. I generally can only eat so much fat and protein before I'm too full, so I don't worry about the quantities of those.

    You also need to find your weak areas and learn out to mitigate them.
  • buzzcogs
    buzzcogs Posts: 296 Member
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    Someday it will be a lot easier but you are in the process of undoing bad habits and replacing them with good habits..this is an exhausting process. Every time you get sick and tired of doing this, just think about the good you are doing for yourself and also your family (healthier mom = good thing!)
    God Bless and good luck you have a whole lot of MFP'rs rooting for you!
  • katicasi82
    katicasi82 Posts: 121 Member
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    I know skinny people who write out a meal plan for the whole week on Sunday! Every meal and snack is laid out and they go to the grocery store with that list. I know for me I was eating randomly for dinner even though I could plan breakfast, lunch and snacks. So a few weeks ago I went out and stocked up on frozen meals, haven't done that in years, but it just made my life so much easier and healthier. I found low cal sugary snacks like vitatops and weight watchers ice cream bars.

    I pretty much do this - except once a week I make 10-15 portions of a meal I like and freeze them - I like to know EXACTLY what's in my food and to be honest frozen meals are not my thing :) well done though, bit of planning goes a long way!
  • kao708
    kao708 Posts: 813 Member
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    It will be hard not to be obsessed with it but I don't think about food all the time. When I'm hungry, then I think about what I want to eat that is good for me and within my calorie goals.

    Planning ahead doesn't work for me because if I'm craving something in particular, I want to have it. This doesn't work for everyone but I like to have the flexibility of making choices at the time that I'm hungry. You'll eventually train your brain not to think about it so much.

    Good luck!
  • GaidenJade
    GaidenJade Posts: 171
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    I understand where you're coming from and at times I've felt that way as well. But, you would feel just as frustrated and exhausted if you weren't doing anything to work on your weight. And whining every now and then can help off load the frustration, but stay focused and know that in the end you will be healthier and appreciate the work!

    ^^^^ This.

    Relax, this too shall pass. And when you push through this momentary weakness, you'll feel ten times stronger because you KNOW you are doing what is best for your health. It's okay to release frustration, just as long as you don't give in to it.
  • moseler
    moseler Posts: 224 Member
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    I don't know any of these "normal" people you are referring to. Even my thin friends THINK about what they are eating. It's the responsible thing to do for EVERYONE. I feel your frustration, believe me... I have been there many, many times. But, this is not just about losing weight, it's about changing your lifestyle and making choices that in the long run will help you feel better about yourself... feel stronger, more in control and eventually, healthier. This is HARD... I get it... but it is SOOOOO worth it. And so are you. Stick with it... it really does get easier along the way, you stop obsessing about food and start making good choices based on your body's needs rather than wants. You can still have the foods you love... just in moderation. That's the trick.
  • 3foldchord
    3foldchord Posts: 2,918 Member
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    Angelica- I am still at the "This is a LOT of WORK" stage, too. Just hoping it will become 2nd nature one day... soon.

    Kudos for being here and sticking to it!
  • ZugTheMegasaurus
    ZugTheMegasaurus Posts: 801 Member
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    It sounds like you're overwhelming yourself with details. Rather than preplanning each and every meal weeks in advance, you might try simply buying healthful ingredients and just making stuff on the fly. I precook a lot of stuff and just keep it in the fridge; then when I'm hungry, I can just pull out what sounds good at that time and know that no matter what I put together, it's going to be healthy and within my goals.

    For example, I'll cook up several pounds of chicken breast in the oven all at once, cut into half-pound portions; when I go to make food, I know that half of a piece is a serving, and it's already ready. I also cook up large amounts of black beans and prep tubs of salsa, fruits, and vegetables. So I can make a ton of different meals out of the same items with next to no effort or planning. I know I go crazy when I have things planned ahead of time because I get anxious about waiting for it to happen, so this works extremely well for me.
  • EDesq
    EDesq Posts: 1,527 Member
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    You don't think EVERYONE "stresses" over food? Let Me tell you, the healthiest and slimmest stress the most! The thing is, they refuse to give in to all the temptations, and when they do, they get right back on the wagon. Everyday they are making the same decisions around food as you, again, for whatever reason their Choices are different>>>and I suspect those Choices have less to do with negative feelings and suppressing stuff. For Me, wt loss and maintenance has always been Spiritual and Emotional. As My EQ has grown, so has My ability to lose wt, maintain wt loss and, get and stay healthy and fit. In other words Emotional shifts had to take place. The food was just a conduit!
  • moseler
    moseler Posts: 224 Member
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    I'll take tired, frustrated, and thin over fat, diabetic, and dead.

    AMEN!
  • Alexstrasza
    Alexstrasza Posts: 619 Member
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    I know just how you feel. I went through the same thing about a month or two back. It was just driving me crazy. Making me feel like every waking thought was about food and counting calories and macros etc.

    I'm not entirely sure what changed. But I don't find myself obsessing as much anymore. Then again I tend to eat mostly the same stuff everyday, so food has become less of a huge thing in my life and is now just a "normal" thing.
  • wewon
    wewon Posts: 838 Member
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    I know just how you feel. I went through the same thing about a month or two back. It was just driving me crazy. Making me feel like every waking thought was about food and counting calories and macros etc.

    I'm not entirely sure what changed. But I don't find myself obsessing as much anymore. Then again I tend to eat mostly the same stuff everyday, so food has become less of a huge thing in my life and is now just a "normal" thing.

    Your profile pic is awesome!!
  • sandrajune72
    sandrajune72 Posts: 550
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    Someday it will be a lot easier but you are in the process of undoing bad habits and replacing them with good habits..this is an exhausting process. Every time you get sick and tired of doing this, just think about the good you are doing for yourself and also your family (healthier mom = good thing!)
    God Bless and good luck you have a whole lot of MFP'rs rooting for you!

    ^this^! :flowerforyou: right behind you hunni!! xx
  • Yellabutterfly05
    Yellabutterfly05 Posts: 43 Member
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    This
    The only thing exhausting for me is carrying the extra weight. I want to feel light again.
  • Goal_Line
    Goal_Line Posts: 474 Member
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    I've found comfort in the planning. I plan meals 2 or 3 days out, and work out 2 or 3 weeks out. I feel like it puts me in control.
  • JeaninePaige
    JeaninePaige Posts: 464 Member
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    I used to feel just like that when I was doing Weight Watchers. I hated it and that's why I always seemed to fail.

    With MFP I don't feel like that because it's so much simpler. You don't have to figure out points values, you just literally look at the label, type in the food and press enter. Also, I have found that the friends I've made here keep me so motivated. I see them working out and it makes me want to go and work out, too. I have also learned so much by reading the message boards. Literally, it's great that if I have a question I can get right on here and have it answered. It takes the guesswork out of things.

    Yeah, I have times where I say to myself, "Ugh I really don't want to work out..." But then I go and get it done and I feel FANTASTIC. I also have times where I reeeally want to eat junk. But I think about it. Is this garbage going to make me feel better than having the body of my dreams will? The thought of reshaping and taking control of my body is a rush for me and I love it. I have never felt so alive before.

    Put the frustration aside. Do you want this? It's not easy. But if you want it badly enough YOU CAN DO IT and you will.
  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
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    I already do grocery lists and meal planning every 2 weeks usually. I find though, that if I plan out what I will eat every meal/snack, I don't feel like eating it on that day and I go off track. So I'm trying doing it every week so I can get a bit more change when I get tired of it.
    I think what's most frustrating is that I am thinking about food seriously, 24/7. I lay in bed thinking about it as soon as my head hits the pillow (thinking about healthy food choices for my next grocery list, I usually change my mind and write 10 lists throughout the list by the time grocery shopping day comes) I am on my computer or writing in my notebook to look for new recipes, or on these message boards. That's what is exhausting. I just don't want to think about food anymore!

    I buy lots of healthy food and that's all I have in the house. Then I cook whatever I want when I feel like it. Otherwise I can get obsessed with planning and micromanaging my future. If I have something in my fridge I'm not sure what to do with I'll browse through epicurious.com 'til I see something that sounds good.

    All my obsessiveness goes into logging my food (and spending too much time on this forum). I could see getting tired of doing that over the long haul, but I'm still learning a lot and definitely need it.
  • Dr229
    Dr229 Posts: 39 Member
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    I FEEL THE SAME WAY.
  • smartmom0818
    smartmom0818 Posts: 83
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    I'm not in the mood for all this "Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels" b.s. today. Yes, being thin is wonderful. Yes, that is the goal of almost everyone on here. But she asked does anyone else find this exhausting so I will answer that: Yes. It's exhausting because it is not the norm for me. Are you saying you're going to quit? I didn't get that from you... and I'm not going to quit either. But dammit, this isn't easy for all of us and I hate that it comes off that way on threads like this. So yes, OP, this is exhausting sometimes. Sometimes I even wonder why I am doing all of this. Sometimes I want to quit. But I figure I will be exhausted either way so I might as well man up and do the right thing. Being fat is exhausting in it's own way. I try not to EVER complain on here... I have a journal for that. And if my journal ever magically tells me "Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels" I will burn the hell out of it. It's okay to get frustrated, OP. We just have to keep going, whether we like it or not. Such is life.
  • dorothytd
    dorothytd Posts: 1,138 Member
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    When my friends see me, they assume I am a normal person eating what ever I like.

    What they don't know is that I constantly track my food everyday and exercise vigorously 2 - 3 times a week. It's a lifetime commitment.

    Children become a lifetime commitment as well. Your health is no different.

    ^^This, for sure. Well, not so much friends, but people who didn't know me all those pounds ago. They think I can eat whatever I want, whenever I want. Ha. Every day is work and planning and scheduling the exercise... On those occasions when it starts getting to me, I WILL take a day off from the minute tracking and relax a little. But I figure, too, that the healthy lifestyle is like bushing my teeth, putting on makeup, etc... If I dwell on the fact I have to do those things every day for the rest of my life, I go crazy. So I just do it. One healthy day at a time. YOU are doing great!!!

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