Keeping the "Discourage Monster" at bay...

do you weigh your food on a scale?

Just keep doin' what you know you need to do. You WILL see the results if you persist.

zombiegirlfriend wrote: »

callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »

do you weigh your food on a scale?

I don't, but I do measure everything very carefully with measuring cups.

That's the issue. Weigh everything you can. Food scale is the most important piece of weight lose equipment. Seriously. You can work out like a feind and drink water until you are literally living on the toilet, but if you are eating more than you think, it will derail the whole thing.

For the second month don't make losing x amount of pounds your goal. Make your goal eating healthy everyday and going to the gym 5-6 days a week your goal, for the whole month.

By the end of that month, you've created a good habit, which is more important for your ultimate goal ( weight loss) in the bigger picture.

You just have to keep pushing yourself and keeping fighting the discourage monster. You don't want him to win and he won't win unless you allow him to.

If you still don't lose any weight, which I doubt will happen , you may actually want to see a doctor about certain health issues.

jazmin220 wrote: »

For the second month don't make losing x amount of pounds your goal. Make your goal eating healthy everyday and going to the gym 5-6 days a week your goal, for the whole month.

By the end of that month, you've created a good habit, which is more important for your ultimate goal ( weight loss) in the bigger picture.

You just have to keep pushing yourself and keeping fighting the discourage monster. You don't want him to win and he won't win unless you allow him to.

If you still don't lose any weight, which I doubt will happen , you may actually want to see a doctor about certain health issues.

Lots of people eat healthy but don't eat in a deficit. That's probably one of the most discouraging things, to make these massive changes to your diet, work out all week (or month), and not lose. Focus on creating a deficit by accurate logging and conservative estimates. Better to err on the side of caution when it comes to calories in / calories out.

You sound like you're doing amazing with making changes to your lifestyle. Kudos on drinking more water - I have yet to do that myself.

I suggest investing in a food scale. I noticed a big difference in some of the things I was eating when I checked the measured vs weighed portion sizes.

You've gotten some great advice so far on here. I would like to second the advice about using a food scale. I was measuring food too, until one wonderful person in the forums helped open my eyes.

For example; Cheerios cereal can be measured by a measuring cup, or weighed on a scale. You can measure out that same serving of cereal 5 times and *think* you are getting the same amount each time. However, take those 5 different measures of cereal and put them on a food scale. You will be surprised at the lack of consistency you are experiencing by measuring with a cup rather than weighing.

If it's off by 10 calories' worth of food, ok, that's not an issue by itself, right? Then think about everything else you measure rather than weigh (dried fruit, flaked cereals, oddly shaped pastas, cubed fruits or veggies) and by the end of the day you could possibly be eating a lot more calories than you were logging. Switching from measuring to weighing got me off a plateau and helped me get close to my goal.

Another thing to consider, to help you get your scale and measurements moving is not just making sure you are accurately logging your food, is if you tend to eat a lot of processed foods, you may want to slowly change over to fresh food. I used to be a Hamburger Helper kind of cook. That's loaded with sodium and high in calories per serving. I now cook all my own food, meats and pastas are part of my diet, but are small additions to casseroles or soups and rarely the star on my plate. I aim for 2 to 3 servings of veggies at dinner, at least 1 at lunch, and 3 servings of fruits a day.

My diary is open to the public if you would like to get some food ideas. Just ignore the "snacks" section for the last week or so, as I've been struggling with some of my old eating habits and issues. They will likely always be a part of me, and something I will always have to battle and strive to conquer. They get easier and don't last as long now as they used to, at least.

Best of luck to you, zombiegirlfriend! This isn't easy, but with lots of great, supportive friends in your MFP friend lineup, and personal motivation, you can do this.

zombiegirlfriend wrote: »

I calculate calories burned via the machines. (I always enter correct age and weight)
I ordered a FitBit Charge HR a few weeks ago, but it's still on back order.

My fit bit charge hr was on backorder since January. I just got it a week ago. It is a lot of fun!

My advice to you is...set up some short term goals "just for today" "for 1 week I will" keep a journal and do a happy dance for every goal you meet. When you fall short, don't beat yourself up...keep calm and carry on.

Your blessings are new every morning!

zombiegirlfriend wrote: »

Thanks Gals. I appreciate it.

Just keep on keepin' on You've made some wonderful changes that will have a great impact on your health. You'll get there!

<pokes slogan on ticker below>

Hope you are sorted now, but just read it again.

The most important friend and valuable person on your team is you. That means you need to look after yourself, which means you need to know when to push i.e limit excuses, but also know when to rein back and not beat up on yourself.

Its admirable that you are putting in effort at the gym, its worth keeping going, but as others have said, it starts with getting the basics right and that means weighing and logging your food so you know where you are and what deficit you are at. Exercise supplements that plus provides health benefits. Its clear you are not at a sufficient deficit, which can eb adjusted and sorted out just by weighing and logging. You will then start to lose.

You can do the gym on top, but learn and appreciate how it all works. It will save you a lot of grief later.