Has anyone's lifestyle generally changed since you started the weight loss effort?

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  • Montepulciano
    Montepulciano Posts: 845 Member
    In six weeks my house is cleaner and I rarely have to push items from today to tomorrow on my to-do list.

  • jaga13
    jaga13 Posts: 1,149 Member
    I believe the 21 day habit is linked to simpler things like for instance: you start a new job; it will take about 3 weeks for the new drive to become sort of autopilot. The same can't quite be applied to larger changes. But if you pick one small aspect of your lifestyle change perhaps it could apply
  • Madux1818
    Madux1818 Posts: 307 Member
    nitaleotta wrote: »
    My excess calories came primarily from binge snacking and "gotta have ___ NOW" moments. So learning to deal with cravings is the primary factor in my weight loss success/maintenance.

    1. When I have an intense craving I usually keep putting it off and it goes away after a while. Sometimes it persists for days but the act of not giving the emotion priority in my life gives me power and control. Eventually I may have that cheeseburger, pizza, BBQ, etc. but then I'm indulging from an emotionally balanced place, not in the midst of some binge frenzy.

    2. I've gotten good at imagining the negative results of indulging a craving - like having that fast food breakfast when I wanted it: feeling bloated and crappy from low energy levels, that disappointing feeling knowing I've wasted most of my day's calories on low quality food. The results are almost never worth the 20 minute foodgasm.

    3. Evaluating what it is I REALLY want when I get a craving to binge eat. Sometimes a food craving just is what it is, but other times when you find yourself wanting to eat for pure recreation or to mindlessly pass the time there's an underlying emotional need or life stressor that needs to be called out. Food won't really ease job stress, relationship issues, or feelings of loneliness or hopelessness. It's the harder way to truly face these things but it's the healthier way in the long run.



    +1
  • Kitrinaa
    Kitrinaa Posts: 1 Member
    - I prepare food myself now, i use to order take out all the time
    - I see exercise as a postive thing now
    - I go to the produce aisle always, i used to never even go near the produce aisle
    - My desserts are usually fruits, I never ate fruits before weight loss. I always thought they were nasty and tasteless. Now I think their the most sweetest things in the world
    - I always look at the nutrition facts for everything
  • choppie70
    choppie70 Posts: 544 Member
    I am a lot more active now and more conscience of what I am putting into my body. If I want to eat pizza or a burger and fries, I work for it and make it work into my calorie goal.
  • tracie_minus100
    tracie_minus100 Posts: 465 Member
    My lifestyle has changed a lot. I used to sit around a lot, used to eat large portions of calorie dense foods multiple times a day, used to complain a lot about being fat, yet did nothing about it. I used to shovel food in my mouth when I was stressed, bored, happy, sad, angry...
    I'm down 85lbs since January. Now I exercise 5-6 days a week. I'm training for my first half marathon. When I'm stressed, angry, sad, etc I exercise and it actually makes me feel better. I take the stairs, I park further away, I go for walks when I can, rather than sit around.
    I still have times where I overeat, sometimes by a lot. The difference is that I just shrug it off and move on right away, whereas in the past I would have turned one bad meal into a bad weekend, then a bad week.
  • _Terrapin_
    _Terrapin_ Posts: 4,301 Member
    Cravings changed...yes.

    Exercise with regular goals...something like 4,000 calories weekly.

    Habits form in approximately 66 days...there is a study out there. Duhigg's book on Habits is a good read.

    I prep 6-10 meals each Sunday. Before I'd just grab what was availablle.

  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
    edited October 2015
    My lifestyle hasn't changed, just my cravings for certain foods, appetite, and energy level has changed.

    I still coach, read in spare time, eat with the family... Nothing has really changed but what I eat at meals. I think about food less since I don't get cravings anymore...

    Umm, I guess I no longer order a pop at the movie theatre, I just bring in coffee or water. That's about it.

    35 lbs down without huge changes to my life, just my dinner plate.
  • rtracy7
    rtracy7 Posts: 2 Member
    Well I find it easier to refuse junk food my friends/family offer (I accept if it's something I actually want rather than always taking it to be polite) & certainly don't crave it like I used to. Fresh "real" food makes me feel better so I rarely have a whole cheat day anymore - maybe the occasional cheat meal/snack.

    I choose to park my car at the opposite end of the big shopping centre so I can push my trolley (with the toddler in it) while wearing the bubba on my back, to the other side where the shops I actually want are. That's partially because I just like that carpark better though. The extra exercise is a bonus!

    Those exercise endorphins get pretty addictive too and as my fitness level is building back up to what it used to be before 2 pregnancies, I find myself really craving that physical activity.

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