SO FRUSTRATED. when will i ever be able to stop dieting?

you gotta get yourself some willpower.
how bad do you want it??
kick some *kitten* and feel good!

Okay, so since everyone else here is giving you the "it's not a diet it's a lifestyle" bull**** mantra, let me be real with you:

You will never get to stop.

That's the price you pay for being healthy, fit, and fitting into the clothing size you want. The price you pay for stopping is...getting fat and health problems. So it's like, pick your poison.

But the silver lining here is that there isn't just one way to maintain health- there are plenty of different ways to eat and work out, so if you're feeling frustrated, change it up. But don't fool yourself into thinking once you reach your goal it's over.

Hi,

In all honesty, if you want to keep the weight off, probably never. On another post, many of the respondents are saying they are on the "Use-Common-Sense-And-Don't-Eat-Like-A-Moron" diet. And this leads to the principle of this isn't a DIEt, it's a LIFEstyle change.

Does that mean that at some point you won't be able to have a day here or there where you can just enjoy yourself and not worry about everything you eat? ABSOLUTELY NOT.....and that doesn't mean that you'll fall off the lifestyle change if you do. I truly take a day (sometimes a weekend or whatever) "off," and just enjoy myself. I try to eat somewhat sensibly, and to continue walking....but if I don't, I just know I'll have to start again when that weekend or special time is over.

I've changed my life.....I've transformed my thought processes....I never want to be overweight again.

You CAN change your mindset.....good luck in that transformation.
Kaye

^^I totally agree with this. I am at my goal weight and use MFP as a tool. I use it *almost* every day; I don't enter every recipe that someone else cooks for me; I don't worry about eating a piece of cake at a birthday party or having a few treats on a holiday. I celebrate with food when it's appropriate.

The lifestyle change for me covers many aspects of my life but one thing I've embraced over the last few months is realizing that food is fuel for my body. I think about nutrition much differently. I want to use the most effective foods to fuel my body which means eating natural foods; mostly fruits, vegetables, and lean protein. Any "junk" I eat; I feel I really can't even consider as "fueling" me in any way. I read once: "There is food and there is junk; there is no "junk food" That really makes sense to me and helps me be happy to be living a healthy lifestyle, not feeling like I'm a slave to a diet. I feel smart because I'm making smart choices. Using MFP most days of the week helps me stay accountable to myself and my friends who are in the same boat, or on their way to it! It helps me make sure I am fueling my body appropriately so I can exercise, as well as feel good in my daily life at work and play!

Hope that helps. Stay positive; that probably helped me more than anything!

I've been dieting for over a year now, started out with weight watchers and got to my goal Then when I came to college I came on here so I had a guide to help me stay thin through school. I'm just so frustrated because I feel like I'm going to have to do this for the rest of my life. I can't eat anything without logging it and its just habit now. I don't think I can eat normally without keeping track. Does anyone else have the same problem?

As others have stated, you have to b of the mindset of lifestyle and diet being a noun rather than a verb. I almost hate saying it, because it sounds so cliche...but it's true. Basically, I've completely changed the way I eat, and there's really no going back to the old ways. Honestly, this may be easier for me than it is for others because my motivation never was to lose weight...weight loss and looking good and fit again has just been a nice side effect. I got into this thing due to some health conditions, so I really don't have any choice...this is my lifestyle.

In RE to logging everything, I don't really find it to be necessary for me going forward. I have enough experience in this now that I can eat pretty intuitively and I know what a portion looks like, etc. So, once I'm at maintenance, I don't plan on logging unless I start to feel my pants getting tighter or whatever...then I may log some days to see where I'm going wrong. I'm not anticipating too many problems as I've overwhelmingly adopted a Mediterranean inspired dietary lifestyle...so just lots of veg, fruit, and lean proteins with some whole grains mixed in for good measure.

You're going to have to change your mentality and not view it as a "diet". Healthy eating is a way of life and you have to come to terms with having a healthy relationship with food. No one said you can't have the foods you love. Everything is in moderation! Look at food as a source of fuel for your body.

After a while, your commitment to logging may translate into you being able to listen to your body and know what you should eat. Maybe you easily fall into tempting habits and will need to log for the rest of your life. It is all about finding a healthy balance, because this process should not be frustrating. At first yes, but if you are continuously annoyed with this lifestyle you probably won't be able to maintain it. Find what works for you.