who else isn't too worried about 'the rules'?

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  • sPaRkLiNgLYFE
    sPaRkLiNgLYFE Posts: 609
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    same here
  • simplydelish2
    simplydelish2 Posts: 726 Member
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    I look at this journey as a lifestyle. When it's life - there are no rules!
  • trudijoy
    trudijoy Posts: 1,685 Member
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    I look at this journey as a lifestyle. When it's life - there are no rules!
    same here

    :D
  • NanaWubbie
    NanaWubbie Posts: 248 Member
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    I'm in this for the long haul, so I don't sweat the small stuff. If I try to meet my goals most of the time, this mimics my life, and I am happy!
  • trudijoy
    trudijoy Posts: 1,685 Member
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    I'm in this for the long haul, so I don't sweat the small stuff. If I try to meet my goals most of the time, this mimics my life, and I am happy!

    and at the end of the day, lifes about achieving happiness imo :D
  • irishblonde2011
    irishblonde2011 Posts: 618 Member
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    I'm making it up as I go along. Seems to be working. Shhh don't tell anyone. Lol.
  • DaniH826
    DaniH826 Posts: 1,335 Member
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    I only follow 2 rules anymore:
    1. Reasonable
    2. Sustainable

    Crazy and yo-yo need not apply.

    Having said that, MFP is the reason I started lifting and is also the reason I finally (!!!!) found what I know is going to work for me. There might be a bunch of noise here, but there's some real gems here also that I've learned much from, and who confirmed things I already knew but didn't quite know how to put into practice, and I just needed that bit of a nudge to fully embrace what I've had in the back of my head for a long time, and just go for it and do it. Take control. Fully.

    We all know how to eat (mostly) healthy and exercise regularly (and that includes resistance/strength exercise of some kind). That's the whole secret. There you go. It really goes no deeper than that, and you don't have to become an extremist to see long-term results. You just need to find your motivation, make the decision to go for it, and have some inspiration and support along the way.
  • trudijoy
    trudijoy Posts: 1,685 Member
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    I'm making it up as I go along. Seems to be working. Shhh don't tell anyone. Lol.

    its between you, me and the internet :p
  • trudijoy
    trudijoy Posts: 1,685 Member
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    . You just need to find your motivation, make the decision to go for it, and have some inspiration and support along the way.

    I love this.

    You make good points - this IS a good source of info... :)
  • flatblade
    flatblade Posts: 224 Member
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    Sustainable is a really good term. I had an initial goal that I was going to get to as soon as possible (that was 25 pounds ago) and then I wanted to modify my approach to be sustainable for the long haul. So far, so good.
  • trudijoy
    trudijoy Posts: 1,685 Member
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    Sustainable is a really good term. I had an initial goal that I was going to get to as soon as possible (that was 25 pounds ago) and then I wanted to modify my approach to be sustainable for the long haul. So far, so good.

    yep. i'm breaking all mine into 'next steps'

    Goal 1 was to get under 100kg
    Goal 2 was to get to 20 lb lost
    Goal 3 is to get to 95kg
    Goal 4 will be 25 lb lost

    by alternating and keeping it fresh i'm always working towards a little attainable goal.

    Good on you for smashing initial goal and resetting :)
  • upgetupgetup
    upgetupgetup Posts: 749 Member
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    About a year or so after I lost my weight via strict - ok, obsessive - counting, I had a period of a couple of months where I basically went right off. Also recently I've been kind of relaxed, but it's because other things have taken priority.

    But If I didn't go through that obsessive phase, I wouldn't have built the experience in adapting general principles to my tastes, eyeballing portions, mentally ticking off macros, etc, which are now part of my overall repertoire of eating strategies. And which I use even when I'm relaxed. (Not as strictly as that weight loss phase, but as others have said the aim is sustainability, not perfection.)

    I've also had times of eating just too much, and being more rigorous at those times about counting helps keep me in check.

    I intend to at least go back and forth like this for life. Counting consistently predicts success in long-term weight control.
  • trudijoy
    trudijoy Posts: 1,685 Member
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    Counting consistently predicts success in long-term weight control.

    consistently - yes. but not down to every microgram of nutrient, not for me. Again, you've found a way that works for you and that is awesome. I'm saying that different things work for different people and noones way is 'wrong' if it's working :)
  • upgetupgetup
    upgetupgetup Posts: 749 Member
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    Counting consistently predicts success in long-term weight control.

    consistently - yes. but not down to every microgram of nutrient, not for me. Again, you've found a way that works for you and that is awesome. I'm saying that different things work for different people and noones way is 'wrong' if it's working :)

    Oh yeah, for sure, there are lots of ways, and people should do what's right for them. I just meant that compared to people who don't count calories, people who do, statistically, keep weight off longer, in lots of different studies. (The studies consistently predict that, is what I meant by consistency, but yeah also counting consistently is probably good.)

    For me, it took a long time and lots of practice to relearn how to eat, and the counting and measuring weight and inches etc really helped give me feedback I personally needed. I started totally ignorant of what I was actually eating, vs what I thought I was eating.
  • Jessieee_huangggg
    Jessieee_huangggg Posts: 8
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    It took me a long time but definitely agree with you. I'm not going to beat myself up over a little dessert or heck even being over my calorie goal by a few hundred, better than binging on a few thousand. Harsh but true.
  • trudijoy
    trudijoy Posts: 1,685 Member
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    Counting consistently predicts success in long-term weight control.

    consistently - yes. but not down to every microgram of nutrient, not for me. Again, you've found a way that works for you and that is awesome. I'm saying that different things work for different people and noones way is 'wrong' if it's working :)

    Oh yeah, for sure, there are lots of ways, and people should do what's right for them. I just meant that compared to people who don't count calories, people who do, statistically, keep weight off longer, in lots of different studies. (The studies consistently predict that, is what I meant by consistency, but yeah also counting consistently is probably good.)

    For me, it took a long time and lots of practice to relearn how to eat, and the counting and measuring weight and inches etc really helped give me feedback I personally needed. I started totally ignorant of what I was actually eating, vs what I thought I was eating.

    ah gotcha

    yeah i DIDNT count last time, and it took me 18 months to strip 25kg. I did it, but i clearly wasnt eating enough because i did pass out in the gym a few times, among other things.

    This time i've got energy to burn - walked 2.5 hours today and also had a quick swim and a short circuit train, and feel like i could go again right now.... and i'm eating what feels like all the time! I know i can keep this up for life :)
  • trudijoy
    trudijoy Posts: 1,685 Member
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    It took me a long time but definitely agree with you. I'm not going to beat myself up over a little dessert or heck even being over my calorie goal by a few hundred, better than binging on a few thousand. Harsh but true.

    lol i have a student with your name. yeah it's like that eh - and chances are that you were under by enough most days to make up for being over occasionally
  • LiftAllThePizzas
    LiftAllThePizzas Posts: 17,857 Member
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    I'm with you. I try to stay close to my calorie goals - but if I'm hungry, I eat more - if I'm not - I don't try and find stuff to eat. I try to exercise every day - if I can't make it to the gym, I'll put on a workout video at home (this week was a bit of an exception - I had gastro..ugghh..). If I go to a restaurant that's known for their burgers, I'll order the one I want, and eat half with a side of salad..

    I'd go crazy focusing on the details...so, I try to look at the big picture..
    '

    i think (to me anyway) that this shows we're geuinely going to be in this long term, because we've found a way that works for us to get healthy and enjoy life - but sometimes i wonder if i should be trying the nitty gritty stuff.... really not keen though lol
    The bolded part is ultimately the goal and the whole reason for all the convoluted rules that people try to come up with. Some of those things get so convoluted they forget about the goal. It's definitely the best way to start out, instead of the ridiculous restrictive things people try to do thinking that they're going to get healthy even though they hate it.

    You might find once you are totally comfortable in your current setting and have gained more knowledge that you would enjoy tweaking smaller parts of what you're doing. Years and years of that might get you to a lifestyle you'd find unimaginable today. But I agree that the way to start is where you aren't torturing and depriving yourself all the time. Misery is not a virtue.

    yep but that makes it sound like this is a beginners approach to it - and it's not. i've done this this way before and been successful.
    It's not about being a beginner or expert though. It's easy for most people to adjust their comfort zone a little at a time to get from point A to point B, so that they don't have to deal with discomfort to get there and don't have any reason to go back. When people try to immediately change everything, any time when they don't like it (and they are much more likely to have that happen) the only other option they see is going back to point A... basically giving up completely.
  • montlucia
    montlucia Posts: 90
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    I love this thread. I'm not very particular about logging my calories every day. I was doing that before but now I simply total it up as I go along, then I'll log it if I've eaten out and don't know what I've eaten. I needed to log them to begin with in order to recognise where I was going wrong. Now I've figured it out, exactness becomes less important. Even when trying to up my protein, I aim for overall balance as opposed to fitting a specific number.

    I'm very keen not to ever eat a daily diet of less than 1400 calories. I know I could eat 1200 and lose weight but this is not something I want to be doing long term. I also know I could lose weight faster if I exercised hard every day of the week but I don't think I could keep up doing anything other than light exercise on some days. I want to lose weight in a sustainable way. I am trying to eat as clean as possible but I don't get into product obsession. When I've reached my weight loss target, I'll reintroduce some foods and be more flexible about cheating but have a fitness regime which allows me to eat more and maintain.

    I couldn't ever be vegan or eat a raw food diet. I love food too much. I love the odd piece of chocolate and the odd serving of chips. And I want better muscle tone but I don't want to have 6 pack abs. That isn't for me. I want to have room to live a little.
  • leaderzzz
    leaderzzz Posts: 113 Member
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    This should be renamed as the 'common sense approach to diet'..... So many people put them selves under so much pressure....well done to you.

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