loosing the battle..

hlpmelos
hlpmelos Posts: 13 Member
edited November 21 in Health and Weight Loss
CAN'T STAY AWAY FROM SALT AND CARBS.. THEY ARE CALLING MY NAME.. I was doing so good, but once I started back eating a few things, I can't seem to stay away from them.. I can't afford to gain the weight back.. I feel like I am giving up.. I know people have sent me messages, but that is the only message I get.. I almost need daily motivation or weekly motivation to keep me going.. I am weak right now..

Replies

  • elize7
    elize7 Posts: 1,088 Member
    Just say no for now. All that you want will be there when you reach your goal. During the time between now and then, make a plan so you don't go back to the same old patterns. Its not a forever no, just for now. Good luck.
  • MonikHouston
    MonikHouston Posts: 8 Member
    I know how difficult is, I lost weight then I gain, now I am back to loose!! as far as the carbs, I am replacing them with soy beans and it works!! unfortunately salt is hard, but you do need it so just put a little bit I guess... I need to loose at least 80 pounds
  • SergeantSausage
    SergeantSausage Posts: 1,673 Member
    It ain't a battle. Nor that other annoying term: "journey"

    It's a simple Calorie Deficit, right?

    Why don't you start there by not building it up into something it isn't.

  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    Look on YouTube for yoga breathing techniques. Breathing can help with body/mind awareness.
  • karlona
    karlona Posts: 1 Member
    YogaYoga would do good if I just could leave the couch.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    edited July 2015
    @hlpmelos - if you don't use iodized salt, what your body might actually want is iodine: Iodine Deficiency - An Old Epidemic Is Back. My salt cravings went away when I started taking kelp supplements.

    Also, if you are somewhat depressed or blue, you may be seeking carbs to boost your tryptophan/serotonin levels. Are you getting enough cardiovascular exercise and protein?
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
    It ain't a battle. Nor that other annoying term: "journey"

    It's a simple Calorie Deficit, right?

    Why don't you start there by not building it up into something it isn't.

    Calling it a journey is a very apt description of peoples experience.

    OP you dont really give enough information for people to assess what you are doing and seeing if you are making it hrader than it needs to be. Its possible you havent thought it through about whats involved and are unable to commit. You can have carbs and salt, but am not sure why they are causing you so much trouble? Are you unable to moderate?

    When it comes to the choice of eating more than you need or losing weight, then unless you want it enough and are prepared to choose to eat less, then you arent ready to commit to the whole process. maybe you need a rethink of what you are doing and why.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    Well neither salt or carbs are bad, so why not have some? All you need got weight loss is a calorie deficit.
  • cld111
    cld111 Posts: 300 Member
    Until your mind is ready to go, it's going to be tough going. No other person will be able to motivate you. But once you shift your mind, you will be unstoppable.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    elize7 wrote: »
    Just say no for now. All that you want will be there when you reach your goal. During the time between now and then, make a plan so you don't go back to the same old patterns. Its not a forever no, just for now. Good luck.
    What? That sounds like a great way to gain everything back once she reaches goal. Why not figure out how to incorporate them sling the way so she is prepared, once she reaches her goal, to maintain?


  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    karlona wrote: »
    Yoga would do good if I just could leave the couch.

    Starting is often the hardest part. If I'm not in the mood I'll tell myself, "Just 15 minutes" and keep going if I feel like it, which I inevitably do.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    Are you getting enough sleep?
  • meulf6f
    meulf6f Posts: 32 Member
    elize7 wrote: »
    Just say no for now. All that you want will be there when you reach your goal. During the time between now and then, make a plan so you don't go back to the same old patterns. Its not a forever no, just for now. Good luck.
    What? That sounds like a great way to gain everything back once she reaches goal. Why not figure out how to incorporate them sling the way so she is prepared, once she reaches her goal, to maintain?


    Erm, isn't that what she said?
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
    OP if you provide more detail then perhaps people can make more tailored suggestions.
  • KrunchyMama
    KrunchyMama Posts: 420 Member
    For me, I have junk food substitutions. For example, Old Dutch bbq is my favourite chip of all time. However, if I have some, then I will usually find myself eating 2 or three bags of them over the next week. But if I have Miss Vickies or plain Pringles then I seem to do alright.

    We also make a point of buying one bag of chips once a week, and split it up into 4 dishes (hubby, myself, and our two kids). So we all get a dish, and then the bag is gone. It's a system that seems to work well for us.

    When I first started tracking on MFP I came across this article, and it really helped me to analyze why I was feeling snacky. If you are craving salt/carbs, is it because of something on this list? http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/nutrition_articles.asp?id=1660

    Or maybe your body is deficient in something? Maybe homemade potato fries will help (another common food in our house).

    You need to find a way of eating that is going to work for you, so that you stick with it. Just don't give up! And if you go on a meal bender, for one meal or two, or three, then don't consider it a failure, consider it a learning opportunity. Look at how you might be able to do things a little differently next time. But always come back here, because the logging does help, and you WILL get there eventually.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    meulf6f wrote: »
    elize7 wrote: »
    Just say no for now. All that you want will be there when you reach your goal. During the time between now and then, make a plan so you don't go back to the same old patterns. Its not a forever no, just for now. Good luck.
    What? That sounds like a great way to gain everything back once she reaches goal. Why not figure out how to incorporate them sling the way so she is prepared, once she reaches her goal, to maintain?


    Erm, isn't that what she said?
    No?
  • SergeantSausage
    SergeantSausage Posts: 1,673 Member
    edited July 2015
    999tigger wrote: »
    It ain't a battle. Nor that other annoying term: "journey"

    It's a simple Calorie Deficit, right?

    Why don't you start there by not building it up into something it isn't.

    Calling it a journey is a very apt description of peoples experience.

    Except it's not, right?

    You can call it a Rose if you want but - by any other name, it's still a just a simple Calorie Deficit and smells nothing like a Rose.



  • LeenaGee
    LeenaGee Posts: 749 Member
    The following article was in my inbox today. I heavily edited it so as not to bore you too much and hope that maybe one of the ideas will jump out at you and help in some way. Getting started is the hardest part and I don't care what anyone says, getting rid of sugar, salt and carb cravings is a great way to work towards being in a calories deficit.

    Here are 5 vicious cycles to avoid if you can, and how to get out if you’re already in them.

    1. Blood Sugar Crashes <-> Eating Sugar

    How it works: You start your day with sugar (for example purposes, let’s take a “healthy” LARABAR, with 18 grams of sugar for the apple pie flavor and almost no protein). But it doesn’t give you sustained energy without enough fat and protein, so you crash midmorning. You grab a handful “healthy” raisins (25 grams of sugar for one of those little boxes, again with no fat and almost no protein) for a pick-me-up, which works fine until your blood sugar crashes again around noon. Rinse and repeat.

    This is also known as the blood sugar rollercoaster. It’s not fun. Blood sugar crashes can make you exhausted, irritable, depressed, fuzzy-headed, and just plain miserable.

    How to escape: Start your day with protein, fat, and vegetables to head off the cycle completely. (For example, three eggs fried in coconut oil with a pile of wilted spinach and some sweet potato – which unlike a LARABAR also has enough calories for an adult). It’s fine to eat carbs as long as they’re not the only thing you eat.

    If you’re already stuck in the blood sugar low, resist the urge to self-medicate with more sugar. Eat a real meal with protein, fat, and vegetables. You may have to tough it out through some residual sugar cravings. Eat protein, fat, and vegetables whenever you’re actually physically hungry, and find something else to occupy your mind when you’re just craving.

    2. Stress <-> Insomnia

    How it works: you’re stressed out, so you can’t sleep. The next day, everything that was stressing you out is a thousand times worse and more stressful because you haven’t slept. So you’re even more stressed, and your sleep is worse…

    Variation on a theme: you’re stressed out, so you can’t sleep. The next day, you drink way too much coffee, which makes your sleep bad even if the stress is gone. Then you’re tired, so you drink too much coffee again, so you can’t sleep…

    (Note that if you choose to self-medicate for exhaustion with sugar instead of caffeine, this can also be combined with #1 for a double whammy of awfulness).

    How to escape: Before you go to sleep, take 10 minutes (at minimum; you could definitely do more) to do some kind of stress management/reduction that works for you. Knit, read, take a bath, meditate, stretch, do yoga, go out to the backyard and shoot a potato gun at a picture of your boss’s face…whatever helps. Before you say you don’t have time to do that, consider whether it would be more useful spending that time + the next 6 hours lying in bed worrying, or whether it would be better to spend it setting yourself to get good sleep for the rest of the night.

    If this happens regularly, practice handling stress so that you can be in stressful situations without feeling stressed out.

    3. Extreme Calorie Restriction <-> Overeating

    How it works: you dutifully embark on a 1200-calorie diet. You’re starving and miserable. At some point, you snap and gorge yourself on everything you’ve been missing. Obviously, this calls for even stricter calorie restriction to “make up for it,” so you crank it down to 1100. You’re even more starving and miserable, and you snap again, so obviously it’s time to go down to 1000 in penance…

    This is not helpful for weight loss or anything else. If your diet is making you so hungry that you’re driven to uncontrollable overeating, the problem is the diet, not you.

    How to escape: muster up your courage (it does take courage!) and stop trying to punish yourself for your “failures.” Let them all go. Start fresh. At your next meal and every meal after that, eat a moderate amount of animal protein (3-4 eggs, 1 chicken breast, 1 pork chop, or equivalent amount), a huge pile of vegetables, some healthy fats, and some starchy vegetables if you do well with them. Eat whenever you’re hungry, and eat until your physical hunger is gone. Don’t eat for entertainment, stress relief, or other reasons.

    4. Eating junk food <-> Gut flora changes

    How it works: your gut flora respond to what you eat. Studies have actually found that eating junk food conditions the gut flora to want more of it (you can read more about this here). So you eat junk food, which makes you want junk food, so you eat more of it, which makes you want it even more…

    How to escape: get your gut flora used to real food instead. This may take a little bit of white-knuckling at first, but if you’re eating enough food to meet your actual calorie needs and getting all the important nutrients, the white-knuckle part shouldn’t last very long.

    Number 5 was buy pots and pans and start cooking at home instead of restaurants."


    Good luck OP. You aren't weak and I hope you win the battle and have a great journey. :)

  • meulf6f
    meulf6f Posts: 32 Member
    999tigger wrote: »
    It ain't a battle. Nor that other annoying term: "journey"

    It's a simple Calorie Deficit, right?

    Why don't you start there by not building it up into something it isn't.

    Calling it a journey is a very apt description of peoples experience.

    Except it's not, right?

    You can call it a Rose if you want but - by any other name, it's still a just a simple Calorie Deficit and smells nothing like a Rose.



    Maybe it's a dance? We learn as we go...
    Lighten up Francis.
  • Jmgkamp
    Jmgkamp Posts: 278 Member
    I like carbs and sugar (and protein, veggies, dairy... I like it all). Maybe I over simplify, but I stick only to my calorie deficit. Yes, it's nice to hit macros - but I've had days where I'm so carb heavy it's laughable. I'm still down 53.5 pounds and counting. For me, "giving up carbs" would not be sustainable. So I eat what I want within my limits.
  • barbecuesauce
    barbecuesauce Posts: 1,771 Member
    elize7 wrote: »
    Just say no for now. All that you want will be there when you reach your goal. During the time between now and then, make a plan so you don't go back to the same old patterns. Its not a forever no, just for now. Good luck.

    I disagree--this is how I spent my 20s losing 5-15 pounds at a time, then regaining. Abstaining and then regaining became my same old pattern.

    Figure out how to work it in, OP. What works for me is prelogging my day then giving myself a buffer for snacks--not always junk food, but by leaving that as an option, I want it less often. Keep it in an opaque container if it's in plain sight.
  • RuNaRoUnDaFiEld
    RuNaRoUnDaFiEld Posts: 5,864 Member
    karlona wrote: »
    YogaYoga would do good if I just could leave the couch.

    Does the food magically appear on the couch or do you leave the couch to get it?

    Some times challenging our own excuses is all we need to succeed.
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