I failed my first day of dieting big time

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  • jenilla1
    jenilla1 Posts: 11,118 Member
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    ...I really don't know how I can go without eating junk food, I eat it every day and now I'm not supposed to be eating it at all...How the hell am I supposed to do this when I failed the first day?

    For this to be a truly successful endeavor, it needs to be a long-term (permanent) lifestyle change. Temporary diets don't work because people can't maintain them forever and when they go back to their old lifestyle the weight comes right back on. Who told you that you aren't supposed to eat "junk food" AT ALL? And just because you have one bad day, how does that equal a failure? It's what you do over time that matters.

    If you eliminate ALL of your favorite foods you're not going to make it long-term. Don't set yourself up for failure. Eat what you want, but keep it within calories. Use exercise to earn more. Just try to make MOST of your meals healthy and gradually start substituting healthier options when you can. It gets easier once it becomes habit. :flowerforyou:
  • elyelyse
    elyelyse Posts: 1,454 Member
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    I just don't know how to eat less junk food.

    You do know how. It's very simple. Just eat less of it.
    Now...just because I said simple, doesn't mean it's easy.

    As others have said, go easy on yourself and don't worry about changing everything at once. Also realize you don't have to give things up, you just can't have as much as often. I used to have a bagel with cream cheese every day for breakfast, now I have that as a treat once a month. I used to order a pizza and wings and onion rings and bottle of soda, all for me, weekly. Now, once a month I order a small pizza and can of soda and I enjoy it without guilt. The rest of the time my diet consists mostly of lean protein, veggies, fruits, some dairy and whole grains. You just have to decide to do it, and try each day.
  • codeezy21
    codeezy21 Posts: 19 Member
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    Tomorrow's a new day...one day at a time...its a marathon, not a sprint. As habits change and your body starts to transform, you will find yourself not wanting the junk as much.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
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    Tomorrow, fail a little less. The next day, fail a little less. And so on and so on. Taking an all-or-nothing approach doesn't work for most people. Make gradual changes that you can live with for the rest of your life.
  • bubblygoldfish
    bubblygoldfish Posts: 213 Member
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    In reference to the BBQ...my trick is to eat something healthy before i go. Then when i'm there i am not as hungry and not as likely to eat as much and watch my portions.

    ^
    I agree. I always eat some veggies before I go out to eat with my family because my family loves italian food. For that matter, i love it too, but it doesn't fit into my daily calories. :(

    you can do this! Don't be hard on yourself. Change takes a long time. I only started eating healthy when i moved back in with my mom, and i had to eat healthy, because my mom only stocked the house with healthy unprocessed food. I went through sugar withdrawls and was majorly frustrated. But now (2 years later) i cannot conceive of eating a meal without fruits and vegitables.

    But I also agree, track everything. Even the bad stuff. This will help you to see the area's where you want to improve.
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,711 Member
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    Well, how did you do it before, when as you say in your profile you were super skinny ? Maybe you can use some of those old habits. Those and telling yourself that yes, you can do it and not feel defeated before you even begin might get you off to a good start.
    Good Luck !
  • stinsonkms
    stinsonkms Posts: 19
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    Well, how did you do it before, when as you say in your profile you were super skinny ? Maybe you can use some of those old habits. Those and telling yourself that yes, you can do it and not feel defeated before you even begin might get you off to a good start.
    Good Luck !

    I had a very high metabolism and could eat all the junk food I wanted plus I was eating carbs nonstop without gaining weight, so now I don't know how to break the habit of not eating so much junk food
  • arassely
    arassely Posts: 12
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    Take it one step at a time. Yesterday was my first day and I over ate. I think that you should keep logging any way and analyze what you eat. That is what I did today. I modified my diet so I wouldn't. Overload. Its hard but we can stay focused. :)
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    Any day that involves Coldstone isn't a failure. Then again, I eat ice cream by the pint, and have managed to lose a pound or two.

    The key to this is planning, not eliminating. Eliminating sucks, because then you'll be fighting temptation, you'll give in, you'll blow it all, then you'll feel like crap. So you try even harder to fight temptation, then you collapse and give in, then blow it, then feel like crap, etc... I've never given up a single food. I eat ice cream. I eat fast food. I eat out. I have barbecues. I bake cookies, cakes, and loaves of bread. There's no reason (except for a medical condition) to ever give up food, unless you don't want to eat it anymore.

    Take a couple weeks to just log without trying to change anything. Then you can review those couple weeks, and formulate a plan.
  • darvin1023
    darvin1023 Posts: 52 Member
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    The fact that you decided to do something about your health was already a step into the right direction. Ergo, ALL IS NOT LOST. It's just a matter of adjusting your behaviour and way of life to reach your goal.

    Like lot a lot of the people here say. It all comes down to PLANNING and making SMART CHOICES.

    A. Just because you're in Carl's Jr. doesn't mean you HAD TO order the greasiest burgers.
    Did you pause for even a second to look at their salad menu? grilled chicken burgers? Most fast food places now have "healthier option" menu. Don't be scare to check those out.

    B. Cold stone - You know this was a junk-food place. Why did you go here? But, again. All is not lost. If someone did tie you up and litteraly dragged you to that place and said "YOU HAVE TO ORDERING DESERT FROM HERE!" You still had a choice for the healthier option.
    1. Pick a small per size. - most of us are trained to "finish your plate." So, getting a smaller serving is the lesser evil.
    2. Pick the healthier option - sorbet, and frozen yoghurt are less-evil cousins of ice cream.

    C. Pot-luck - It's a pot luck. That means you can bring food too. Be the angel that brings the salad, vegetable and cheese dip. Trust me, A lot of people will love you for it.
    1. Again, if you have to try their BBQs, get "sample size" of each. There is no gun pointing in your head, and someone saying "YOU MUST EAT THIS MUCH BBQ, OR ELSE!"

    D. DON'T EXPECT OVERNIGHT RESULTS.
    1. Nobody can give up all junk food in the world overnight. We are all humans. We make mistakes. There is no Diet Fairy Godmother that will wave her magic wand and say "Ding! You're cured! You will now hate junk food forever!"
    2. Instead, train your body to give up one thing at a time. Like, give up soda first. Once your body gets used to not drinking high sugary drunks, give up another vice, then another, then another. Until your body learns that it doesn't NEED junk food.
    3. Also, if you're a constant "snacker," substitute chips and vending machine stuff with fruits and nuts as your go-to snacks.
    4. Don't have any junk food within arm reach. If you have an office desk drawer with junk food in them. throw them out. The less you accessible they are, the less likely you are to unconsciously grab them.

    E. BACK-UP ERASER:
    1. Use gym time as your "oops i made a mistake" eraser.
    2. If you ate something you know you shouldn't have, add more gym time to your normal workout routine. Burn off that unnecessary calorie you just ate.
    3. That way you will slowly learn to calculate how many of what exercises you have to do, just to burn of that junk food.
    3. By doing so, pretty soon you learn the calorie-in-calorie-out thought process:
    You will be able to think something like: "Wow! i really want that cupcake! Oh Crap! it's 300 calories? Nahh! I'm busy today! It's not worth staying in the treadmill for another 30 minutes for one cupcake! F* that!"
    Then you'll be able to walk away with head held high and sanity still in tack ...oh any not to mention feeling sexier. LOL.

    You seem like a smart young 20 year old. You can do this!!! You're stronger than you give yourself credit for!
  • phoenixgirl81
    phoenixgirl81 Posts: 309 Member
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    For a slightly different take on all of this...

    When I first started MFP, I dove in head first and made changes. But when my partner started using MFP a few months later, she chose to use MFP as a reality check for the first week to see EXACTLY how much she was eating and where her weaknesses were before she was able to take a step back and tackle the changes one step at a time. You might like to try to do that if it will help you.

    This is for life, not "until goal weight is reached". I know I will be keeping an eye on what I eat for the rest of my life and I'm totally ok with that. For this reason, I have not cut out all junk food. I eat out at least 2-3 times per week at restaurants that don't have nutritional information (like proper restaurants, not fast food places). I just guesstimate the calories. I still have chocolate every day. I allow myself treats if it fits my calories for the day and if it doesn't, I work for it (e.g. On Thursday, I could have had my 160 calorie pumpkin soup for dinner, but I decided to go for a big bushwalk and burn 500-odd calories and go out for Thai food for dinner instead with my partner for a surprise).

    Maybe it might also help you to look at the underlying reasons you are finding it hard to say "no" to junk? It IS literally just as easy as not buying it, but not buying it in the first place is sometimes hard because of a whole pile of psychological stuff (trust me...I know).

    Is it that you feel obligated to order a fancy meal because your dad took you out? Is it that you think you won't get back to that place again so you feel like you will miss out if you don't order something big and greasy? Is it that you think "just once won't hurt"? Is it that you won't order the healthier options (e.g. salads, sandwhiches, soups, etc) because you can make them at home (this was a HUGE one for me to overcome...I had to give myself permission)? Is there some parental saying that is blocking you? (e.g. My parents served me up the same plate every single meal until I'd eaten every last skerrick - even if the meal made me want to vomit because of the texture or if it caused me pain because of my RA. I had to learn that it was ok to stop when I was full). What is it that is stopping you from saying no?

    Maybe it is the biggest one I had to overcome...I didn't believe that I was worthy of health, happiness and weight loss. I didn't think I deserved it so I self sabotaged as punishment for thinking I did.

    Tomorrow is a new day. Aim for more exercise tomorrow and one better choice. Start with one. the day after you can make two better choices.
  • sub10orbust
    sub10orbust Posts: 706 Member
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    new day
  • MinatoandClover
    MinatoandClover Posts: 160 Member
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    It's a process. If you've been eating junk without thinking for years, you sort of need to re-teach yourself how to eat properly. When you first learn how to do something, are you good at it the first time? Occasionally, one might be, but for the majority of the time, we all fail the first time we try something. Changing you lifestyle is no different. Again, it's not just picking the right foods. It's teaching yourself how to do that. Teaching yourself how to eat healthier overall. At first, I had a lot of days where I went over, too. But as time went on and I learned how to utilize this site properly, I got a lot better with my amounts. It's a day to day thing. Don't consider going off for one day to be a huge failure. Learn what you did wrong and try again the next day. Failure is a stepping stone to success.

    I found that what helped for me is planning my day out ahead of time. If I know what's going to be for dinner that night, I put it in ahead of time so I know how much to eat for lunch. If I know I'm going out to eat, I make a point to eat a little less for lunch, have my remaining calorie amount in mind and pick something that fits. For your barbecue tomorrow, I'd think about what kind of foods will probably be there that you'll likely want to eat and play around with the site a little bit. Find something that fits a calorie goal you'd like to stay under for that meal. Then, plan your other meals accordingly.

    Also, I wouldn't be so worried about junk food. Tomorrow isn't going to be the healthiest day, of course, but by eating under your calorie goal, it's not so detrimental. This is another part of the learning process. Everybody eats junk food sometimes. What you wanna aim to teach yourself is how to eat junk food sparingly. I eat a lot of salads, foods I prepare myself with lots of veggies and some meat as well as healthier store-bought snacks. However, I allow myself to eat some junk once in a while. I have a designated day where I drink pop and eat bacon-filled bread. Sometimes I have ice cream. Sometimes I have pizza. It's a matter of learning not to do it every single day, and when you do, doing it in a controlled way. Having 1 scoop of ice cream, not 3. Having the recommended serving amount of chips instead of the whole bag.

    And I know I've just given a lot of information, but keep in mind, you don't have to do all this stuff in one day. Again, you're learning how to change your life. You can't change in a day. Make slow, gradual changes and before you know it, you'll be eating a healthier, balanced diet. Best of luck :)
  • Bunny1177
    Bunny1177 Posts: 32 Member
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    It takes a while to learn the ropes, don't be too hard on yourself :)

    So BBQ potluck. Maybe bring something healthy there to eat, so you will eat healthy food for sure.

    Bring maybe a veggies tray and munch on them as well? Make sure to fill your stomach with healthy food. Then you are not hungry any more and it is easier to resist temptations.
  • BonnieandClyde29
    BonnieandClyde29 Posts: 1,026 Member
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    Just eat half of it, or get something grilled. That usually helps me out but i mostly will only eat half of my meals and i give the rest to someone else, a coworker, friend, or my husband. My husband and I anytime we go out to eat we will get a medium sized plate of food, and just spilt it, helps me out too so i'm not tempted with left overs or feel bad for throwing food out. Just take it one day at a time
  • robertcooper904750
    robertcooper904750 Posts: 13 Member
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    There is only one way I have found,make time to prepare your own food and say goodbye to any fast food. Then when faced with a a BBQ you can have a little bit more, mark it as a bad day and get back on it next day. Six days good one day will get you there in the end
  • dakitten2
    dakitten2 Posts: 888 Member
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    I agree with all the good info the posters have made. One trick I find that helps me, is to try to preplan my day. I know going to a cookout is hard to prelog since you don't know what foods will be there. My family has learned that I bring my own super lean hamburger or turkey dog along with a wrap to cookouts and throw them on the grill with the rest.

    I'm a junk food junkie too and I log those first and then prepare the rest of my day around them. If I'm going out to eat I look up the menu online and log what I am going to order and don't even bother looking at the menu to be tempted by something different. Desserts are still ordered but instead of eating a whole one by myself, we share desserts because I've sort of gotten several of my family members into losing weight also.
  • kellyskitties
    kellyskitties Posts: 475 Member
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    I really think the first week or two on MFP should have no dietary goals. Just log and see what you eat now. Then once you have an idea of how much you are eating it is easier to make changes. It is easier to know you need to reduce every meal by 1/3 or 1/2 than it is to "run out" of calories by lunch. You might try to step back from the "diet" for a week to see what adjustments you need to make.

    THIS!

    I did this my first day - and wasn't planning to make changes - but it was instantly obvious what I was doing that wasn't working. So I tweaked. A few days into it - I retweaked. A week later I found part of it wasn't working - I posted for help on my friend feed - and a few chimed in with answers - one of which helped a lot. I picked around in the advice for the answer that I thought worked and retweaked. If I had chosen an answer that didn't work - I would have undone that change and chosen another. It's a process. I'm calling it the "some assembly required" diet. I have to find what works for me and let the rest go.
  • Lemmynade
    Lemmynade Posts: 160 Member
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    What helps me is that I look at my calories like a bank account. This is how much I have to spend today, if I go over, I have to burn that plus more to earn it back.

    I've also found that one or two bites is all I need to actually be satisfied. Savor things, eat slowly, and just give yourself bites, not servings of the bad stuff!

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