Taking a break from "dieting"?

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  • annabeladcock
    annabeladcock Posts: 99
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    I think the stress of exams is really taking its toll (seriously, I can't stress how important they are to me), and I'm worried it'll have an affect on my health and on my eating. I just spent 10 minutes crying into a cupboard of food because I couldn't choose and was generally tired... (i had soup) :) revision takes it all out of me...
  • fificrazy
    fificrazy Posts: 234
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    You need to fuel your brain properly during exams and study. Definitely would advise a break from restricting your intake as your brain literally does need an adequate supply of food to function optimally- and that in itself can keep you on track!
  • hamelle2
    hamelle2 Posts: 297 Member
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    Annabel.....are you sleeping?
  • annabeladcock
    annabeladcock Posts: 99
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    Annabel.....are you sleeping?

    Morning all :) Yes I do sleep just fine, thankyou :)
    You need to fuel your brain properly during exams and study. Definitely would advise a break from restricting your intake as your brain literally does need an adequate supply of food to function optimally- and that in itself can keep you on track!

    ^^THIS, is what I've been thinking!
  • phatguerilla
    phatguerilla Posts: 188 Member
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    Surely the exams are the greater stressor and you should work on reducing their impact on your life, rather than removing the thing that should be having a positive impact on your life?

    Haha - if only that could be done! These exams are just SO SO SO important, and (not to be dramatic) could affect the course of my life... If I get the grades I need I will be fulfilling my dream of going to MEDICAL SCHOOL :D so right now I think they take priority... Just 3 months then they will be over :)

    I appreciate that and although I'm not doing exams I'm in a similarly stressful period in my education. However you have to think about what comes next, if you get into Medical school the work, exams, hours are all going to be even more stressful. Do you plan to take breaks from your new eating habits then? Perhaps it is too late to start looking at reducing stress but honestly I don't think it is, if anything its exactly the right time to look into stress reducing activities.

    Anyways, with regards food I would try to remove as much choice and effort from it as possible, stick to healthy ready meals, prepped food, or things you can make in under 15 minutes. By doing so you know exactly what you're going to eat at your next meal and you can put that part of your life into autodrive.
  • Iwishyouwell
    Iwishyouwell Posts: 1,888 Member
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    Do whatever you need to do right now that helps you better focus on your studies and decompress.
  • Jruzer
    Jruzer Posts: 3,501 Member
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    I see the "if you need a break you will fail" and "its not a diet, its a lifestyle change" so often and perhaps that is the best way to look at it

    However telling someone they will fail because they take a break is not always accurate

    Maybe a slightly different reason for breaking from dieting (creating a calorie deficit) but the following suggests that taking regular breaks may actually be beneficial

    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-full-diet-break.html

    I came here to say this as well. I just took a 2 week "diet break", as I've been working on my last 5-10 pounds for a long time. Don't stop tracking and logging, just eat at maintenance.
  • annabeladcock
    annabeladcock Posts: 99
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    I appreciate that and although I'm not doing exams I'm in a similarly stressful period in my education. However you have to think about what comes next, if you get into Medical school the work, exams, hours are all going to be even more stressful. Do you plan to take breaks from your new eating habits then? Perhaps it is too late to start looking at reducing stress but honestly I don't think it is, if anything its exactly the right time to look into stress reducing activities.

    Anyways, with regards food I would try to remove as much choice and effort from it as possible, stick to healthy ready meals, prepped food, or things you can make in under 15 minutes. By doing so you know exactly what you're going to eat at your next meal and you can put that part of your life into autodrive.

    Hmm yes I do see your point... I'm by no means stopping completely, I'm just taking it a bit easier... I'm still making good choices, I've just been to the supermarket with my mum and she was tempting me with cheese-stuffed pasta and all sorts of goodies, but I just went off and got my fruit and chicken etc!

    The de-stressing activities are a good idea. I love yoga and my college do a £1 class every monday so I might see if any of my friends want to come with me to that :) Usually going to the gym is may way of working out tension, I just haven't been able to go this week due to getting sick...
  • Sparlingo
    Sparlingo Posts: 938 Member
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    Maybe try to batch-cook for the next little while? Take a weekend afternoon to prep your suppers for the next while.

    Get 3 or 4 healthier slow cooker recipes. Portion everything out, and freeze most of it flat in large zip-lock bags. While you're studying, dump a bag into the slow cooker and let it cook while you do your revisions.

    Or, buy some of those skillet meals - ones that come frozen with chicken, vegetables and pasta. Sure, they're not epically healthy, but they're not bad either, and they take the guess work out of your food for the next while and have zero prep time.

    You can also buy some of those ready-made salad kits. Or, hard boil a bunch of eggs so you have some quick protein for a snack, or to dump into your salads on a daily basis.

    "Cheat" when it comes to the prep, not the calorie counting. The counting doesn't take up much time, anyway.

    I do agree that it's completely fine to eat at maintenance for the next while, I just know how difficult it is to get back into the swing of things if you completely lose the habit of tracking.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
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    I think the stress of exams is really taking its toll (seriously, I can't stress how important they are to me), and I'm worried it'll have an affect on my health and on my eating. I just spent 10 minutes crying into a cupboard of food because I couldn't choose and was generally tired... (i had soup) :) revision takes it all out of me...
    Oh, sweetie! Food is definitely taking up too much mental space if it's making you cry! If it's an additional stressor, do whatever you can to remove that stress -- I'm sure you know that stress will make it more difficult for you to concentrate and remember things for your exams, which is exactly the opposite of what you need right now.

    I'd definitely move into maintenence for the time being. Think of it this way -- would you rather stay right where you are now (or even gain a pound or two) but ace your exams, or lose another pound or two and do poorly? You have the rest of your life to try to lose that extra pound.

    One last thought -- your fat macro looks like it could be low, especially if you're craving things like pizza and cheesecake. You don't have your weight listed on your profile, but MFP recommends around .45g fat per 1 lb of body weight. Everyone's body has a slightly different macro breakdown that it likes the best and obviously I don't know what yours does, but I get the worst brain fog when I go too low on fat. Can't make a decision to save my life -- I've actually cried over not being able to pick something for dinner before too (more than once, sadly). It might be worth playing around with your macros to see if another distribution would work better for you.
  • annabeladcock
    annabeladcock Posts: 99
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    Maybe try to batch-cook for the next little while? Take a weekend afternoon to prep your suppers for the next while.

    Get 3 or 4 healthier slow cooker recipes. Portion everything out, and freeze most of it flat in large zip-lock bags. While you're studying, dump a bag into the slow cooker and let it cook while you do your revisions.

    I LOVE this idea - thankyou so much! :)
    One last thought -- your fat macro looks like it could be low, especially if you're craving things like pizza and cheesecake. You don't have your weight listed on your profile, but MFP recommends around .45g fat per 1 lb of body weight. Everyone's body has a slightly different macro breakdown that it likes the best and obviously I don't know what yours does, but I get the worst brain fog when I go too low on fat. Can't make a decision to save my life -- I've actually cried over not being able to pick something for dinner before too (more than once, sadly). It might be worth playing around with your macros to see if another distribution would work better for you.

    I weigh 134lbs if this helps :) thankyou for the good suggestion :)
  • Elsie_Brownraisin
    Elsie_Brownraisin Posts: 786 Member
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    Maybe try to batch-cook for the next little while? Take a weekend afternoon to prep your suppers for the next while.

    Get 3 or 4 healthier slow cooker recipes. Portion everything out, and freeze most of it flat in large zip-lock bags. While you're studying, dump a bag into the slow cooker and let it cook while you do your revisions.

    Or, buy some of those skillet meals - ones that come frozen with chicken, vegetables and pasta. Sure, they're not epically healthy, but they're not bad either, and they take the guess work out of your food for the next while and have zero prep time.

    You can also buy some of those ready-made salad kits. Or, hard boil a bunch of eggs so you have some quick protein for a snack, or to dump into your salads on a daily basis.

    "Cheat" when it comes to the prep, not the calorie counting. The counting doesn't take up much time, anyway.

    I do agree that it's completely fine to eat at maintenance for the next while, I just know how difficult it is to get back into the swing of things if you completely lose the habit of tracking.

    That's an excellent idea!

    When I had exams last year, I stopped logging on here and focused on notthing but revision. But like you have said, the meal choices I made were generally a lot better than they used to be. It'll be the same this year.

    Do you exercise? Don't give up if so, it really helps your concention and is good for stress.

    Best of luck to you.
  • flechero
    flechero Posts: 260 Member
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    If the "diet" is causing that much stress than you are doing something wrong. You can only watch your portions and still maintain at worst.
  • easjer
    easjer Posts: 219 Member
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    As someone who is a chronic stressor and for whom therapy hasn't helped much - please do not stop healthy habits. Right now it's these exams. Next will be med school, then internship, then residency, then practice . . . life happens. If you are like me, there is never a point at which there is no stress because life is stressful. You need to learn how to cope with that stress and maintain healthy habits anyway (or you'll end up like me, at +300 lbs trying to take it all off again).

    Switching to maintenance for now is probably wise, but learning to cope long term is wiser. Adaptive strategies are important to success (not just with dieting). If you stress out about a chocolate bar - that is too much stress over your caloric intake already. Learn how to build it into your day and let it go.

    Pre-planning meals is really helpful, as is batch cooking. If you can find 15 minutes to plan your week, shop and make some time to cook, you'll be golden. I have a few dishes that are crockpot dishes that yield a week's worth of lunches for me or a couple of meals for a family of four. Perhaps having the same thing for a few days will help relieve some of the stress of making decisions or counting calories right now. Stick a menu on your fridge and take 5 minutes to prep everything for the next day at the end of the day.

    And good luck with your exams.
  • bshot1
    bshot1 Posts: 44
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    My suggestion, preplan your meals in the morning when you wake up. Takes a lot of the time/stress out of the equation. Usually takes me a whopping 5 minutes. If you're finding yourself tired/exhausted throughout the day, make the breakfast/lunch meals a little more carb heavy. If carbo loading in the morning still isn't helping, bump up to maintenance for the time being.

    My 2 cents, good luck with exams.
  • annabeladcock
    annabeladcock Posts: 99
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    As someone who is a chronic stressor and for whom therapy hasn't helped much - please do not stop healthy habits. Right now it's these exams. Next will be med school, then internship, then residency, then practice . . . life happens. If you are like me, there is never a point at which there is no stress because life is stressful. You need to learn how to cope with that stress and maintain healthy habits anyway (or you'll end up like me, at +300 lbs trying to take it all off again).

    Switching to maintenance for now is probably wise, but learning to cope long term is wiser. Adaptive strategies are important to success (not just with dieting). If you stress out about a chocolate bar - that is too much stress over your caloric intake already. Learn how to build it into your day and let it go.

    Pre-planning meals is really helpful, as is batch cooking. If you can find 15 minutes to plan your week, shop and make some time to cook, you'll be golden. I have a few dishes that are crockpot dishes that yield a week's worth of lunches for me or a couple of meals for a family of four. Perhaps having the same thing for a few days will help relieve some of the stress of making decisions or counting calories right now. Stick a menu on your fridge and take 5 minutes to prep everything for the next day at the end of the day.

    And good luck with your exams.

    Thankyou for the helpful post!! This evening I made a curry for 4 people and have put the remaining 3 portions into containers and into the fridge - why haven't I tried batch cooking sooner!! :)

    What you're saying about life always being stressful is a very good, and very real, point. I think I am just overthinking it and stressing too much about it, craving to be as skinny as my friends etc etc. Wise choices when it comes to eating is now a part of my lifestyle - it's just when I ate 1300 calories a day I would get stressed out when I was hungry but had no calories left for the day... I've decided that for now I shall eat at maintenance calories (or a little below), because my brain needs to be functioning at its tip top form right now! At other times of stress I can handle it - but now my brain is slightly on overload! :) plus I have a 3 month summer before Med school to get my weight down to what I want it to be :)
  • kcrxgirl
    kcrxgirl Posts: 114 Member
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    What if you plan/prep your meals ahead of time? It will help you stay on track and also make cooking quicker/easier while you're trying to study. I gotta have some chocolate when I'm stressed so fit some in. Have you tried the mini Snickers ice cream bars? They are delicious and only 90 calories.
  • annabeladcock
    annabeladcock Posts: 99
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    What if you plan/prep your meals ahead of time? It will help you stay on track and also make cooking quicker/easier while you're trying to study. I gotta have some chocolate when I'm stressed so fit some in. Have you tried the mini Snickers ice cream bars? They are delicious and only 90 calories.

    Well, in general I always know what I'm going to eat for breakfast and lunch! Breakfast is cheerios, or a homemade smoothie if I have time. Lunch is a wholemeal pita with ham and laughing cow cheese. The snacks vary depending on what I have in the cupboard to throw in my bag - usually a cereal bar and an apple :) dinner is the only thing that really changes. And this batch cooking thing I've now discovered should be a great help :D

    EDIT - and I will be sure to try one of those snickers things soon!!! :)

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