My weightloss journey up until now...

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Melissapaige1
Melissapaige1 Posts: 151 Member
in Motivation and Support
Hi, thank you for reading this post. I'm new to myfitnesspal. I'm not sure if this is the right place for me to explain this, but hopefully it is. Today I woke up feeling so defeated, and ashamed. I started my new health and fitness lifestyle in September 2015. I started at 205lbs, the biggest I have ever been in my life. I got down to 173.8 on February 1, 2016. I noticed when the really cold weather hit, I started to have a treat here and there, and I began to fall off track. I still go to the gym regularly, and once I hit 178, which was Feb 21, I began to track everything I ate, and all my exercise. Now, we are here at the end of the week, and I am now back up to 180 lbs. I know why I am up, but I don't understand how I can be up THAT MUCH? I've been truthfully in my food diary, and it says, by 5 weeks I should be on average about 165 lbs. I have also gone to the gym alot more frequently, and I have cleaned up my diet in the last 2 weeks, aside from two days (5 days) apart of one another, of mindless eating: a package of cookies, curry noodles...but nothing too extreme. So I can't understand why im sitting at 180 today?

On another note, I have 4 months to lose 40lbs. I am wondering if maybe a structured program would be beneficial for me. I know weightwatchers is a great program, although I have done that in the past and im not sure I would like to try that again, since I can pretty much do that on my own. If anyone knows of a good program other than WW, what do you recommend?

I made a promise to myself, to get back in the BEST SHAPE OF MY LIFE. I feel now that i've struggled so much to loose this weight, and be back up to 180, has really gotten me down in the dumps, and i need to nip this in the butt right away. Otherwise, i think i will feel awful come spring time, and i still have in my head, the fact that i don't feel good about how i look and feel. This battle is really draining me, and i just want to not have to think about each piece of food i eat, or how many calories i've burned for once, and just naturally get into the flow of things, while loving the way i look and feel.

Thanks again for reading this, i know it was long, but i just had to put my feelings and thoughts out there. If anyone has any suggestions, I would really appreciate that.

Replies

  • StealthHealth
    StealthHealth Posts: 2,417 Member
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    You have done very well so far and now seem to be struggling because you have relaxed a little and introduced a few treats?

    The people on here who seem to be the most successful in losing weight and then maintaining that loss tend to incorporate treats into their weekly diet. So, if for example you are a fan of chocolate then work your food plan out so that you can indulge every now and then - this may even be daily.

    Another thing to watch out for is that I see a lot of people who challenge themselves to lose x lbs by such-and-such a date. This, it seems to me, then causes them to panic as that date looms nearer and they resort to more and more extreme dieting. More helpful is to:
    • set MFP to a moderate rate of loss
    • log accurately
    • live with the fact that it will take as long as it takes
  • Melissapaige1
    Melissapaige1 Posts: 151 Member
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    StealthHealth wrote: »
    You have done very well so far and now seem to be struggling because you have relaxed a little and introduced a few treats?

    The people on here who seem to be the most successful in losing weight and then maintaining that loss tend to incorporate treats into their weekly diet. So, if for example you are a fan of chocolate then work your food plan out so that you can indulge every now and then - this may even be daily.

    Another thing to watch out for is that I see a lot of people who challenge themselves to lose x lbs by such-and-such a date. This, it seems to me, then causes them to panic as that date looms nearer and they resort to more and more extreme dieting. More helpful is to:
    • set MFP to a moderate rate of loss
    • log accurately
    • live with the fact that it will take as long as it takes

    Thank you. Although, I did relax a little and introduced a few treats, look where it got me :(. I can't understand how it got me nearly 10 lbs of weight gain, since I wasn't eating alot of junk food everyday.

    How do i set MFP to a moderate rate of loss then?
  • StealthHealth
    StealthHealth Posts: 2,417 Member
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    OK, when I say introduce a few treats I mean plan them into your calorie allowance.

    I love chocolate and I like to eat it late at night whilst watching TV. So I log it first thing in the morning (in my supper meal) and then flex my other foods so that I can have that treat. If I blow the budget earlier on in the day (by eating one of the cookies a co-worker brings in) then the late night chocolate has to go!
  • StealthHealth
    StealthHealth Posts: 2,417 Member
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    Setting rate of loss:

    In the web version:

    Home > Goals then click the View Guided SetUp link.

    your rate of loss is determined by what you select under the What is your goal? dropdown.
  • StealthHealth
    StealthHealth Posts: 2,417 Member
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    Melissapaige1 wrote: »
    (I can't understand how it got me nearly 10 lbs of weight gain, since I wasn't eating alot of junk food everyday.

    It's probably worth me point out that you can gain weight eating very, very healthy foods and you can lose weight eating mainly junk (that is not to say that eating mainly junk is healthy, clearly it isn't).

  • tekwriter
    tekwriter Posts: 923 Member
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    I was have joined WW multiple times but not since joining MFP. The support is better and it is free. Are you having too much sodium, is it close to your TOM, are you weighing and measuring? If you continue to go up while sticking to your diet you may need to get your thyroid checked. This can be as structured as you make it. Check your diary and keep going forward. Good luck.
  • nomoyoyoing
    nomoyoyoing Posts: 159 Member
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    Hmm..sounds like your diet is great and the 2 days that you cheated a little shouldn't have derailed you too much. When you go to the gym, do you mix up your workouts? Try to add some intervals to your workouts. The times when I've really lost weight were when I did speed work on the treadmill. It's super hard but I could almost feel the fat melting away!
  • Melissapaige1
    Melissapaige1 Posts: 151 Member
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    nomoyoyoing wrote: »
    Hmm..sounds like your diet is great and the 2 days that you cheated a little shouldn't have derailed you too much. When you go to the gym, do you mix up your workouts? Try to add some intervals to your workouts. The times when I've really lost weight were when I did speed work on the treadmill. It's super hard but I could almost feel the fat melting away!

    Yes, I do interval training on the eliptial and on the treadmill. I also do weights, but the same weights i do all the time. I took 2 days off at the gym this week. I really need to go tonight, no matter what! I'm just fed up a bit, and don't see the point, because of what's happend to the scale. Although, as i said before, if i don't do this, i will not like the way i feel 10x more, than this moment of feeling like crap.
  • nomoyoyoing
    nomoyoyoing Posts: 159 Member
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    What is making you feel like 'crap'? The number on the scale? If so, put it away! Do you feel good after a killer gym sesh? Do you feel good when you look in the mirror? Do more of what makes you feel good and less of what makes you feel bad (ex. weighing yourself). By the way...I need to listen to my own advice!
  • Melissapaige1
    Melissapaige1 Posts: 151 Member
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    nomoyoyoing wrote: »
    What is making you feel like 'crap'? The number on the scale? If so, put it away! Do you feel good after a killer gym sesh? Do you feel good when you look in the mirror? Do more of what makes you feel good and less of what makes you feel bad (ex. weighing yourself). By the way...I need to listen to my own advice!

    Thank you. Yes the number on the scale is definitly daunting. I guess I will take this time to focus on how i feel after i work out. Thanks.
  • Arieskathy
    Arieskathy Posts: 6 Member
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    Working out at the gym probably means you have more muscle which weighs more than fat. Don't stress about the scales so much check out clothes too as you may still be leaner. Great start keep it up

  • StealthHealth
    StealthHealth Posts: 2,417 Member
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    Arieskathy wrote: »
    Working out at the gym probably means you have more muscle which weighs more than fat. Don't stress about the scales so much check out clothes too as you may still be leaner. Great start keep it up

    <eye twitch>
  • Melissapaige1
    Melissapaige1 Posts: 151 Member
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    My clothes feel a bit tighter actually, and I've consumed too much salt according to MFP.

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