Struggle with food

sarahwilding1992
sarahwilding1992 Posts: 12 Member
edited November 23 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi,
I have never done this before so it's a bit odd for me. I'm 23 and disgusted in myself. I am yet again trying to lose weight. And there's a lot to go. Size 22, wanting to lose minimum 100lb. I really struggle with food, will power and saying no. I can have my head in gear and be amazing and see the weight come off, one little trip up sends me right off and months down the line I try to start again. Story of my life for the last 7 years. I'm looking to see if there is any support out there, anyone to talk to when you want to just binge. I'm going to start tracking from tomorrow and try to excersize (I hate excersize). Not sure where to start. But porridge for breakfast maybe a good start!

Replies

  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    Log everything. Do the math. One pound is 3500 calories. If you set MFP to lose 1 pound a month that's a 500 calorie deficit a day, and you don't have to deprive yourself. Even if you have a bad day and eat 1500 calories above your goal, you'll only have undone 3 days of deficit. It's fine. You can do it.
  • bored_geek
    bored_geek Posts: 11 Member
    > I hate exercise

    This is the first thing I addressed when I started. For me, the key to dealing with food is to be able to adjust my exercise accordingly. At a 500cal/day deficit, I feel starved if I meet that deficit by eating less (or eating lots of high-fiber vegetables). If I eat normally and simply burn 500cal, I feel much more normal. My first goal was to feel good exercising.

    To quote Terry Crews:

    "TREAT THE GYM LIKE A SPA.

    Yes. It has to feel good. I tell people this a lot - go to the gym, and just sit there, and read a magazine, and then go home. And do this every day.

    Go to the gym, don't even work out. Just GO. Because the habit of going to the gym is more important than the work out. Because it doesn't matter what you do. You can have fun - but as long as you're having fun, you continue to do it.

    But what happens is you get a trainer, your whole body is sore, you can't feel your legs, and you're not coming back the next day - you might not come back for a year!

    I worked my way up to 2 hours a day. I ENJOY my workouts. They are my peace, my joy - I get my whole head together! I value that time more than my shower! And it really gets me together. But it's a habit.

    There are times when - I'm not even kidding - there are times when I"m in the middle of a work out, and actually woke up because i am so engrained with going to the gym and being there - it's that much of a habit to me. The first thing I do in the morning is work out - I lay out my workout clothes the night before, and just hop in 'em.

    So lay out your clothes, and go to the gym, and relax.

    HaAHAHAH!

    But sooner or later, you WILL work out."
  • rosej31
    rosej31 Posts: 189 Member
    I was a binge eater in the past and what help me is to discover why I binge. Because I had so much going on that I thought comfort food would take away my problems but it made it worst. Ask yourself why do you binge. Is there something going on in your life that make you binge. If so, try to solve to problem maybe see a therapist. Also you start your exercise with walking.

    You can do this and of course you have MFP friends to help.
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    i always thought i hated exercise.

    then i found i really LOVE going to the gym. and yes, the right gym can make ALLLLL the difference.

    i also wanted to lose weight more than i wanted to be fat. that means, weighing food, working out and being much more cognizant of how much I am eating.

    IF you want it bad enough, you will not make excuses.

    I started in january at 260 pounds and a size 22/24. Last friday i was 188 and am a 10/12 on top and a 14 on bottom.

    i was tired of being fat and feeling crappy. I look better and feel better now, and still have more to go :)

    like i said, if you want it, you will do it.
  • HippySkoppy
    HippySkoppy Posts: 725 Member
    Hi there,

    I'll add a +1 to @Francl27 about getting into the logging and MFP in general.

    If you hate exercise then don't. Weight loss comes from your diet and exercise is for health. You want to do this for the rest of your life not yo-yo back into bad habits as you have been doing for the last 7 years. Get you logging and weighing spot on, eat at a sensible deficit, eat the foods you love and the weight will come off.

    Patience and daily commitment will be your next best friends. Read these forums, get yourself some like minded friends to support you and you are set to go.

    Baby step at this point. You take the whole kit and kaboodle on all at once and it can be truly overwhelming and a really great reason to talk yourself into giving up....this is a pattern of behaviour that you have already noticed in yourself and it needs addressing.

    The other area of concern is the binge eating - if this is truly out of hand for you then consider getting professional help so you can work on the underlying causes of this behaviour - You have the power to change and you have the right to be as healthy as possible and that means taking advantage of any and all resources that will help.

    Wishing you all the best.
  • WBB55
    WBB55 Posts: 4,131 Member
    make one change at a time, maybe?

    -like right now, just start walking for 30 minutes every day. Even in two 15-minute periods.
    -Then in two weeks, start tracking your food. Not to eat at a deficit, just to track it, to see where you're at.
    -Then two weeks later, calculate your average TDEE and start eating at "maintenance" for a while. If you're 100 lbs overweight from the last 7 years, this means you eat over your "maintenance" levels. On average you overeat by an average of 150 calories or so per day. Learning how to eat at maintenance would be a good step.
    -Then after a couple weeks, cut your daily intake by 100-200. And eat at that level for a couple weeks. Get used to it. Teach your body what this level of food is and looks like.
    -Now you're 2 months in, and it's a daily habit :) You'll never look back again
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    edited August 2015
    I agree with the baby steps approach; one change at a time. You don't need to exercise to lose weight. There are many reasons you should exercise but it isn't a requirement for weight loss.

    Right now, just get into the habit of logging absolutely everything you eat. That includes gum, vitamins and any binges. You don't even need to change what you're eating or meet your calorie goal, just log everything. It may be ugly but you need to start holding yourself accountable for what you are eating. Speaking of binges, if you're allowing yourself small treats built into your daily calorie goal, you should be able to avoid them. Most people binge because they are too restrictive with what and/or how much they are eating and then go out of control. Follow your calorie goals from MFP, don't try to eat 1200 calories per day or you'll be miserable. Eat well, but enough to lose weight, eat the things you like within your calorie goal and you should be fine.

    As far as exercise, once you have logging under control, just try to start moving more. Park at the back of the lot, force yourself to take the stairs instead of the elevator, take short walk breaks when you have some free time... all of those things sound small but they add up. For me, those things eventually lead to running (when I used to HATE running) and weight lifting. If my 40 year old self could see me now, she'd be amazed.
  • cupcakesplz
    cupcakesplz Posts: 237 Member
    I say start with bacon and eggs for breakfast!
    My bacon and eggs is about 240 calories
    Start with small changes each day.
  • sarahwilding1992
    sarahwilding1992 Posts: 12 Member
    Thank you so much everyone for taking the time to reply to my post. The support is fantastic and I'm going to start trying to just go out for walks then build myself up. Feeling positive this morning. @cupcakesplz unfortunately I don't get time to make bacon and eggs before work haha!
  • cupcakesplz
    cupcakesplz Posts: 237 Member
    Lol
    I am a stay at home mum I have more time.
  • sarahwilding1992
    sarahwilding1992 Posts: 12 Member
    Haha good on you! I am at work for 7:30am :'(
  • sheldonklein
    sheldonklein Posts: 854 Member
    OP: You say that "one little trip up" breaks your will. You need to break that cycle, and if you turn this into a math problem, I think you can. As others have said, 3500 calories = 1 lb of fat. Eat 3500 calories less than you burn, you lose a pound of fat. That's 500 calorie/day to lose 1 lb/week. If you "trip up" one day and eat am extra500 calories, that's one day that you didn't lose 1/7 of a pound -instead you stood still. Even if you have a really bad day and eat 1000 calories more than you planned, you've gained 1/7 of a pound of fat. That's nothing. A tiny pebble on a long road to a healthy weight and no reason at all to despair. Good luck.
  • coco_bee
    coco_bee Posts: 173 Member
    OP, what sheldonklein said, it doesnt have to be all or nothing (this way of thinking was a subconscious excuse for me to go back to overeating again). Anyway, it is not all or nothing, not black and white, it is the grey in-between area that we need to work on. It cant be perfect I'm afraid but if we aim for at least sticking with the plan 80% of the time, then we might see results. I'm not crazy about exercise either but I love the feeling I get after exercise. Would you be able to manage a 30 minute walk for three times a week to start off with? Porridge for brekky is definitely a great start :)
This discussion has been closed.