I Cried Today

I am eighty five pounds down now. I was pondering that I most wanted to diet when I got dressed, and most wanted to forget about it when I was front of the refrigerator.

I suggest picking one goal for the next two weeks and it has to be attainable. It can't be "fit the capris" for instance. I don't even consider weight goals to be appropriate since the daily ups and downs are uncontrollable.

A behaviour goal may be to track your eating, every meal, every weekday for two weeks.

After two weeks check your progress. If you make the goal, add something else. If you didn't make it, figure out what to try next.

This pattern takes the emotion out of your progress and builds strength on strength.

I wish you all success.

I agree, a good first step is to log everything for a set period. Once you have that down, try to stay under your calorie goal with, say, a 1 lb per week weight loss.

One of the first habits i got into, long before mfp was even around, was to cut calorie-laden drinks from my diet. Then i added more veggies. Then i started cooking more. Then i cut down to fewer processed foods. It took a long time for all this. Even now, i don't cut out anything, but once i found mfp, it was much easier to see what would fit my goals and still make me happy.

I will admit, i had medical problems, but I got those fixed and after awhile, the weight started coming off. It's a long, slow process, but the weight didn't come on in two days so it won't come off in two days. Patience and motivation are key.

Good luck!

The thing is, you don't need to try different diets. Just calorie count... If done correctly, you can eat pretty much anything - in moderation. Everything is just one day at a time!

Admittedly, I am also addicted to food. I've come to terms with this recently. I was even thinking about it today. It is better than it used to be, I've been going at this day by day to try and not binge. I rarely feel the urge now. In fact, free food was offered at work multiple times last week - I didn't have a bite! Includes donuts, birthday cake/fruits, McDonalds breakfast sandwiches/Santiagos burritos... I just chose 'no'. And didn't allow myself to do it.

@JordanGirl5 I agree with highlyfavored6
I think a good first steps for you would be this....

Week 1 - Track your food; I mean every bite!! Dont sneak a cookie and not count it. For the first day of this eat like you normally are. It will help you see just how many calories you are eating in a typical day. The rest of the days try to stay within a healthy calorie range that myfitnesspal suggest for you. Also make sure you are not letting any "fatlogic" get in your way. Fatlogic is the excuses you tell yourself or b.s. in the media that will keep you overweight and unhealthy. I follow the "fatlogic" subreddit and it has helped me ditch a lot of fatlogic I had. Always remember the calories in < calories out to lose weight.

Week 2- Continue Tracking; Go recipe hunting, having good tasting healthy recipes to follow have been crucial for me. It is like having the right tools for the job. Pintrest is a great place to get this information. Also the recipe forum on here is pretty good. You can add me (I am very active, have an open diary, comment and like a lot, and I want you do the same) and I share the recipes that I love. If after I see you active for a bit we can exchange numbers if you need an accountability buddy. Also in this week start becoming a great friend with water! Do you need to go out and get a great water bottle and make sure to drink 4-5 a day? Get a gallon jug and put tick marks with time goals? I have a big jug in my fridge and I make sure to through at least 1 a day! There are also some great tips I can share with you on how to feel satisfied with less food (I can message you that later).

Week 3 - Tracking forever and for every bite from now on. Now that you have some information on diet it is time to work on the other half of health, exercise. Again research! Knowledge is power! Learn what works for you! Take day 1 for research and the rest of the days to test out a exercise routine that works for you! Does a calendar with workouts on them that you can do at home work for you? Popsicle sticks with workouts in a jar and you have to pick 5 a day? A constant 7 minute workout for everyday work? (again pintrest is a great place for ideas) For me none of these worked but they just might for you! I suck at keeping myself responsible with my workouts so I joined a class at my local gym. Now I go to CrossFit 3-4 times a week and I am surrounded by encouraging and supportive people (no judgement at all its super nice). Biggest thing is to get that heart rate up, roll some sweat off your forehead, feel sore, feel proud of what you have done and do it at minimum 3 times a week.

Week 4 - Did one type of workout plan not work? Try another! Biggest thing is finding something you enjoy so you come back for more. If workouts aren't your thing get into a sport or a club doing something physical like a hiking or biking club. Keep up on your food!! Try now cutting down/out your most unhealthy habit and stick to it! Do you drink a bunch of soda? Try to cut it out or only give yourself 1 can a week. I had to throw out all our brownie mixes (they are like my crack! I cant just have one I end up in a fit and eat like half the sheet D; ).

This should give you a great start off of your rock bottom. You can do this and remember you are the one to do it. I would love to continue you helping you and get updates on your progress!

Success is trying one more time than you fail.

If you failed in the past and your motivation is low, then you need help with motivation.

1. Throw out the crap - I don't have if you have 100 euros or 100 dollars worth of treats in your cupboard - give them to the homeless or a charity or a kids hospital or something.
2. Go grocery shopping after you've had a healthy meal. Don't put this off.
3. Drink water, it helps with the cravings.
4. Log in here regularly to keep motivated. Motivation doesn't last...but neither does washing. That's why we do it every day.

You can do it.

"If it is to be, it is up to me."

I too am at rock bottom. I have started my lifestyle change and it's going good so far. I do know that my will power is something I have struggled with for....well forever. I love food and that's the first place I started. I knew that before any weight loss was to happen I had to break my addiction to food. So far so good, but like quitting smoking or giving up drugs there is always that part of me that wants it. I keep fighting that need for food and in turn strengthen my will power. I need all the motivation and support I can get. I never knew about the community forum here on MFP but I sure am glad I found it. So thankful there are people walking this road with me, and for the ones who have been there before and have succeeded.

SarcasmIsMyLoveLanguage wrote: »

I remember rock bottom. It seems hopeless down there but in reality, it's a great place to be. Nowhere to go but up, as another poster already said.

Use rock bottom to your advantage. Use it for motivation. Get angry. Fight back.

Bold for importance from my experience.

You've already made the biggest step in realizing that you need to change. There is a lot of really great advice here. You've just got to find what works for you.

My biggest piece of advice (and the thing that made me realize that I can stick with this for the rest of my life) is be sure to do this in small changes. Trying to doing everything at once will just be overwhelming and will burn you out. Small changes add up to big ones eventually, so try swapping one unhealthy food for one healthy food, trying out a new veggie, hitting up that farmer's market on Saturday morning, or even going for a quick walk around the block after dinner. Just one small thing a week.

Best of luck. Before you know it those capris will be way too big for you. Feel free to add me for support