Struggles...

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BeaHealthyGeek
BeaHealthyGeek Posts: 4
in Motivation and Support
Hey folks, I was wondering what your biggest struggles with nutrition and fitness are?
Consistency?

Breaking old habits? Creating new habits? Counting calories? Eating less? Tracking weight? Making fitness entertaining? Something else more specific?

I know for me after losing 20-25 pounds of weight I’ve plateaued, and have a hard time figuring out if I'm gaining muscle or fat or the opposite. I'll be purchasing a BMI scale to help with this...but what are your challenges?

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  • darkrose20
    darkrose20 Posts: 1,139 Member
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    For me it was the tedium of having to weigh/measure/log everything and the lack of freedom at the restaurant. It got old. I lost 60-ish pounds in the past year, but I plateaued. I got sick of the whole thing, so I stopped logging a few months ago. I've already put 5 pounds back on. It was an eye opener, so it's back to logging.
  • Ming1951
    Ming1951 Posts: 514 Member
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    I agree the logging of every tidbit can be monotonous. However I am being enlightened. It is really helping me see exactly what is going in my mouth. LOL. Yesterday I ate well, and then last night after watching everyone have candy and going to a neighborhood party where I'm told Oh you can have just 1 hot dog or 1 drink. (which I say no thank you too) I had 7 raw brazil nuts. Allowed, however in checking my totals I went over my allowed fat. Not by much but it made me aware of how just 7 little nuts can affect your overall. My daughter is following a diet too but hasn't started logging, she can't understand how I'm losing at a better consistency than her. Its the logging . One day she too will realize this.
  • funchords
    funchords Posts: 413 Member
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    BeaHealthyGeek wrote: »
    I know for me after losing 20-25 pounds of weight I’ve plateaued, and have a hard time figuring out if I'm gaining muscle or fat or the opposite. I'll be purchasing a BMI scale to help with this...

    Your BMI will mirror your weight exactly (unless you're growing taller or shorter), I think you mean Body Fat percentage.

    But to your question, I think that patience is a big challenge.

    Patience, because this takes a long time.

    Patience, because we're not as perfectly compliant with our plans as we want to be.

  • ILoveGingerNut
    ILoveGingerNut Posts: 367 Member
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    For me it's eating less. I have a "healthy" appetite...
  • kristimason3
    kristimason3 Posts: 131 Member
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    For me the biggest struggle is eating for sustenance and not for comfort. I am trying hard to like healthy foods more. Getting enough calories and macros / micros, when I would rather not eat at all than have another carrot or piece of lettuce.
  • Lalo_Nyc
    Lalo_Nyc Posts: 20 Member
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    Patience and perseverance.

    We have all hit a plateau at one time or another. It is around that time that you have to be vigilant and having your exercise/food numbers goes a long way in trying to figure out how to tweak your routine.

    Food intake should depend on your long term goal.

    Exercise is something that you can adjust every so often. You may need to increase the time you exercise for a while. Say your work-out 90 minutes a day/3 times a week. Try going on a 4th day and see how that helps.

    Interval training is a great way to move past plateaus.
    You can adjust a tread mill routine to your fitness level.
    Say that you jog at level 6 on the thread mill at same pace all the time.

    Make the following tweak:
    Select interval training
    Enter age, weight, etc
    Jogging speed, anywhere from 2-4 (depending on your fitness level)
    Running speed, anywhere from 4-8 (depending on your fitness level)

    Another tweak is to take one day of the week when you eat a bit extra than your normal food intake. It is a nice break and you deserve it.

    Good luck,

    Ed in NYC.
  • wrenegade64
    wrenegade64 Posts: 410 Member
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    I am 6 weeks post op from bariatric sleeve surgery and the biggest thing I have had to overcome is SLOWING DOWN WHEN I EAT. I don't eat much anymore and that is cool, but when I do eat and it is something really tasty, I eat too fast and it makes my chest hurt. OW!
  • BeaHealthyGeek
    BeaHealthyGeek Posts: 4
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    funchords wrote: »
    BeaHealthyGeek wrote: »
    I know for me after losing 20-25 pounds of weight I’ve plateaued, and have a hard time figuring out if I'm gaining muscle or fat or the opposite. I'll be purchasing a BMI scale to help with this...

    Your BMI will mirror your weight exactly (unless you're growing taller or shorter), I think you mean Body Fat percentage.

    But to your question, I think that patience is a big challenge.

    Patience, because this takes a long time.

    Patience, because we're not as perfectly compliant with our plans as we want to be.

    Thanks funchords...I meant body fat percentage...oops!

    I really appreciate all the thoughts folks...it seems like portion control is the major issue. Though I'd say patience and positive thinking are really important to long-term success...

    Thanks!


    Mike

  • deladypilot
    deladypilot Posts: 618 Member
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    I think for me it is owning up to a bad day and moving on. For some reason when I have a bad day, I tend to have a few more. That evil voice inside says....Oh what is one more bad day. So im working on that. Working on positive self talk. Own up to what I did and did not do and try to remember that 1 bad day does not ruin my journey.
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
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    Traction rebuilding momentum after an event is over.
  • ems212
    ems212 Posts: 135 Member
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    Exercise is my biggest issue. I hate running...with a passion. It's hard on my knees (old injuries make it worse). I'll do good for a week or two, and then I just don't want to do it. I lose my ambition to get up early or come home from work and go out. I know that running isn't the only exercise out there, and I'm okay doing everything else, but I need to get my cardio in somehow.

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