The Woo That You Do (Or Did)
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Hoo boy... during college, I drank slim fast like a fiend. Nevermind that "dinner" often consisted of more than a day's worth of calories of chocolate or other candies. I tried restricting my food intake. Didn't work. I felt cheated, as I often tried to "eat my feelings" or soothe bad feelings away with junk food. I also tried nutrisystem, which was pretty disgusting, to be honest.
For me, calorie counting is much easier. If I want the damned chocolate, I can have it, BUT it has to fit into my daily allowance! LOL!3 -
I was afraid of fat for YEARS thanks to Susan Powter:
But my biggest regret is taking Fen/Phen, which wasn't woo, and actually worked really well, but taught me nothing about healthy eating habits, and now I worry every time my heart flutters that I messed it up.
Additionally:
- South Beach - worked, but was not sustainable for me.
- Juice fast - worked, but gained the weight back as soon as I started eating solid food again
In 2012, I complained to my sister that Weight Watchers was more expensive here in Massachusetts than I'd seen advertised elsewhere, and she told me about MFP. I lost 30 pounds from Easter to Halloween, but stopped logging amidst a relationship breakup and a move. I gained 25 pounds back over the next few years, came back to MFP Easter 2015, and have lost 36 pounds. This time around I discovered these discussion boards, and despite (or perhaps because of) all the MEAN PEOPLE :P the things I needed to know have finally sunk in.6 -
Slim Fast and Lean Cuisines for 4 months in college. Lost the 'Freshman 15', but it was a miserable experience! It did work, and I was mindful not to gain the weight back, so really any diet will work. It is adherence that counts, and some programs make you so miserable that you quit plus they don't teach you better eating habits.1
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I've done slim fast (disaster), low fat plans, switching to whole grains, cutting "added" sugar, watching portions, just exercising without changing diet.. Some of these things worked initially but weren't sustainable for me, other worked okay, but I would get "stuck" at a weight that was still too heavy for my height. I started doing LCHF three years ago and have been smack in the middle of normal weight for my height ever since (outside of a recent pregnancy, but that weight is all gone now). It works for me.0
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What bad weight loss plans or advice did you follow before getting onto calorie counting? How did you come to the conclusion they didn't work?
For me:
* Nutrisystem: Under the old shelf-stable plans. Tasted awful, lost a little, but not worth it. Sad cracker pizza.
* South Beach: Worked ok for a few months, but the rules were hard to follow where work had me eating out a lot and/or I couldn't keep the schedule that was recommended. Also pretty expensive for the foods you had to choose.
* 4-hour Body: Just dumb...didn't work
* Various supplements at various times. Never made a difference.
* Weight loss center: Worked great, I did lose and a lot. Also was expensive, and would have been more if I had bought all the bars and supplements and other stuff they peddled. I also realized I was eating extremely low carb and low calorie and that made me feel like crud. I felt much better once I re-upped my carb level.
While I was doing the weight loss center plan I started using MFP and realized I could still make progress while eating more than their mail plan recommended (same time I upped the carbs). After the plan, I didn't need to follow their recommendation anymore but kept with MFP.
Curious what "schedule" south beach had? Other than 3 meals and two snacks I mean.
4-hour body is kinda dumb.0 -
When I read threads like this I feel so lucky that I didn't have to go through what many of you did.
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Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »What bad weight loss plans or advice did you follow before getting onto calorie counting? How did you come to the conclusion they didn't work?
For me:
* Nutrisystem: Under the old shelf-stable plans. Tasted awful, lost a little, but not worth it. Sad cracker pizza.
* South Beach: Worked ok for a few months, but the rules were hard to follow where work had me eating out a lot and/or I couldn't keep the schedule that was recommended. Also pretty expensive for the foods you had to choose.
* 4-hour Body: Just dumb...didn't work
* Various supplements at various times. Never made a difference.
* Weight loss center: Worked great, I did lose and a lot. Also was expensive, and would have been more if I had bought all the bars and supplements and other stuff they peddled. I also realized I was eating extremely low carb and low calorie and that made me feel like crud. I felt much better once I re-upped my carb level.
While I was doing the weight loss center plan I started using MFP and realized I could still make progress while eating more than their mail plan recommended (same time I upped the carbs). After the plan, I didn't need to follow their recommendation anymore but kept with MFP.
Curious what "schedule" south beach had? Other than 3 meals and two snacks I mean.
Maybe he's referring to the "phases" of SBD. Phase one is very limited in what you can eat. Then in each subsequent phase you add foods back in.
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I did keto for a while, though I don't think of it as "woo" because it did actually help me kickstart my weight loss from 210 down to 190. A lot of people don't realize that you also have to calorie-count with keto, and so they think it doesn't work. Keto is actually what introduced me to the concept of calorie counting, and showed me that it does actually work. The point of the keto diet is that the high fat content is supposed to make you feel more satisfied and full than a low-fat diet. In the end, it just wasn't a sustainable diet for me because I love fruit and baking too much. Because I couldn't stick to it, I got frustrated and plateaued at 190 for a year or so.
Before keto, I would get so frustrated trying to lose weight because of all the misinformation out there. I didn't know what to believe. I'd never heard of BMR or TDEE and had no idea how many calories I should be eating in a day. I worried about "starvation mode" and wondered if my "genetics" meant I was always going to have an overweight BMI no matter how hard I tried to lose weight. I believed that drinking green tea and sprinkling cayenne on my food would measurably elevate my metabolism. I didn't know that the calorie counters on exercise equipment were ridiculously over-generous, so I would get confused and frustrated when I was burning so much at the gym and still not losing much weight.
The amount of misinformation out there is so frustrating, and it's even worse when you see it being taken as gospel by people who are just trying to improve their health and their lifestyle.8 -
WinoGelato wrote: »I never really tried to lose weight before MFP so I didn't try any specific failed diets, but I would say what I fell for for a long time was the belief that because I was getting older, had kids, etc that my metabolism had slowed down and my weight gain was just a natural part of all that. I had an overweight mom and sister and just figured it was my genetics that was allowing the weight to slowly creep on over the last 10 years or so before finding MFP.
Now, 3 years later, I weigh less than I did at my wedding and am about 5 lbs from the weight I was when I was my healthiest and most active in college. Take that "women can't lose weight over 40" and "your metabolism slows down when you get older it's just part of life" proponents!
This. My 'aha' moment was that I control the food going into my mouth and I can lose weight, despite being 46 and having hugely overweight sister. No, it's not genetics. Nor metabolism.5 -
Ahh, perhaps. Yes, the optional phase 1 can be pretty limiting I guess.booksandchocolate12 wrote: »Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »What bad weight loss plans or advice did you follow before getting onto calorie counting? How did you come to the conclusion they didn't work?
For me:
* Nutrisystem: Under the old shelf-stable plans. Tasted awful, lost a little, but not worth it. Sad cracker pizza.
* South Beach: Worked ok for a few months, but the rules were hard to follow where work had me eating out a lot and/or I couldn't keep the schedule that was recommended. Also pretty expensive for the foods you had to choose.
* 4-hour Body: Just dumb...didn't work
* Various supplements at various times. Never made a difference.
* Weight loss center: Worked great, I did lose and a lot. Also was expensive, and would have been more if I had bought all the bars and supplements and other stuff they peddled. I also realized I was eating extremely low carb and low calorie and that made me feel like crud. I felt much better once I re-upped my carb level.
While I was doing the weight loss center plan I started using MFP and realized I could still make progress while eating more than their mail plan recommended (same time I upped the carbs). After the plan, I didn't need to follow their recommendation anymore but kept with MFP.
Curious what "schedule" south beach had? Other than 3 meals and two snacks I mean.
Maybe he's referring to the "phases" of SBD. Phase one is very limited in what you can eat. Then in each subsequent phase you add foods back in.
I do see the point to it, though, for folks who have a hard time moderating sweets.
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I think I tried just about everything. In high school in the 70's, it was dexatrim diet pills. I probably weighed around 110 pounds, but I thought I was fat lol. In my twenties, (still pretty thin) I used these diet candies that were actually called AIDS. In my thirties and forties, when I was actually obese, I tried Fen Fen, Atkins, South Beach, and Weight Watchers. I bought some Ally, but I'm so glad I never got the nerve to actually use it. A friend told me about this site when I was 50 years old and 268 pounds. When I realized the simple truth of CICO, it was as if a bright light of truth came shining down on me lol. To be fair, I think WW, can be a good program, as it's just another way to count calories. I just didn't like figuring the points, and I am not a meeting person.2
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I've never been down the 'magic pills' route, but in the '80s I tried the cabbage soup diet. Ugh. That one was a disaster. Then there was the 'egg diet'. That was even worse.
In the '90s I tried Weight Watchers. I don't consider WW as woo, and their '1-2-3 Success 2000' plan actually worked for me and I enjoyed the meetings because I liked the leader. Then the system changed, and my group got a new leader and I hated her, so I ditched WW.
And I have to confess, I once did a 'detox/cleanse'. Good grief, what was I thinking? It was vile. I can't remember much about it except I had to buy all sorts of crap from the health food store. Spirulina flakes were involved.
And all the time, my next-door neighbour kept saying, "you know, you should just count calories. It's much easier".5 -
positivepowers wrote: »I'm on Nutrisystem now and it's working but then, I like the food and the convenience (since I only cook for myself.)
I used Nutrisystem religiously 3 years ago and lost 70 pounds in about 9 months. I loved it and did learn to eat correctly through their Flex Meals. I am currently trying to lose more weight and am again using NS. The frozen foods now are so great! Now that I also use MFP and count calories, I don't rely solely on NS and am quite successful.1 -
I was such a bro in college; chicken and rice everyday, a bazillion eggs, protein shakes galore, all the supplements, eating 6 times a day, timing meals curls, curls and more curls, cardio; what's that?
I mean it worked, but I'm way more efficient now... If only I could go back and take advantage of the high testosterone again with what I know now.0 -
I think I tried just about everything. In high school in the 70's, it was dexatrim diet pills. I probably weighed around 110 pounds, but I thought I was fat lol. In my twenties, (still pretty thin) I used these diet candies that were actually called AIDS. In my thirties and forties, when I was actually obese, I tried Fen Fen, Atkins, South Beach, and Weight Watchers. I bought some Ally, but I'm so glad I never got the nerve to actually use it. A friend told me about this site when I was 50 years old and 268 pounds. When I realized the simple truth of CICO, it was as if a bright light of truth came shining down on me lol. To be fair, I think WW, can be a good program, as it's just another way to count calories. I just didn't like figuring the points, and I am not a meeting person.
I remember my mom using those candies. I used to sneak them out of her purse.
WW points is calorie counting shorthand if you wanna look at it that way, and when the changes in the new program were explained to me, not just told to me like "here's the rules now do it", everything makes sense.0 -
I tried South Beach. Did well for two weeks and then well a plate of pasta was there looking for innocent.
I admit to starting one of those lemon juice "cleanses" but I gave that up by dinner time on day 1.
I did take Alli and never had side effects. I did lose weight but I figured I could do it on my own without the pills.
I currently belong to weight watchers. I don't consider it woo. I actually like the new points but more importantly I like the meeting I go to and the leader. I lucked into a good one. My health insurance pays for weight watchers for me under their preventable care coverage. I rarely go to the doctor so I might as well get something out of my health coverage.0 -
When i first got serious about weight loss i weighed in at 76.5kg. I joined Jenny Craig and lost about 1 to 1.5kg a week for the month i was with them (total of 5kg in a month). I found them useful as i was a beginner in weight loss/dieting and they gave me much needed advice. After the month their promotional price was done which wasn't that cheap to begin with. So i stopped jenny craig and started Lite n Easy meals. I ordered lunch and dinners (just had regular oats for brekkie) from Lite n Easy for about 10 weeks and lost 6kg. I then began doing my own meal planning and managed to lose another couple of kilos but i kind of plateaued for 7 months, unable to hit my goal weight of 60kg. It wasnt till joining MFP just over a month ago that i managed to lose those difficult last few kilos by keeping my calorie counting diary1
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I hope a few beginners read this thread and learn from others' mistakes.2
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The worst was the lnasty tasting liquid fast diet in the mid 1970's. Nothing but nasty liquid protein 3 times a day. No chewing, no food at all. Lost 15 lb in 2 weeks. That plus more came roaring back immediately. Horrible1
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I was a little chubby in high school and would basically starve myself for days, eating either nothing or close to nothing. After some trial and error, I ended up getting it semi-right and was pretty lean by my early 20s. Stayed that way till I was in my 40s eating pretty much anything I wanted. Then I got divorced and starting drinking a lot of beer. A whole lot.
Last year I tried to just cut back on the beer while I lost the weight but that wasn't happening. Had to quit the beer altogether, probably for the best. Now have lost 30 pounds in the last 3 months or so, obviously feel a lot better now, still miss my beer though!
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I tried a lot of milkshake diets and starvation plans of various kinds. I was an expert at the cabbage soup diet. I lost weight on all of them but felt terrible and did my health no favors.
This past year on MFP is the most sensible and sustainable approach to weight loss I have ever followed. I have lost 14kgs with 4 more to go (I have been maintaining for 3 months - dealing with some its-ok-to-wan't-the-lower-weight issues).
I stay away from fads and woo and eat chocolate when I want it and carbs when I want them.
I used to be convinced that some food was "bad". That was a big mistake and led to obsessive eating on both sides of the scale. The best thing I ever figured out was that I am not the victim of bad evil food. Coming to terms with my own responsibility for my weight yo-yoing was a massive step as I could stop feeling sorry for myself and jealous of "naturally skinny people" (hint: they don't exist) and just get on with it.3 -
I tried weightloss supplements first- no weight loss
Then my doctor prescribed me adipex- was only eating 300 calories a day, and had the worst side effects heart palpitations, migraines, anxiety, and it stopped working after 1.5 months lost 40 ish lbs gained it all back plus more.
Atkins- I did that for two weeks but was getting too shaky, and was so hungry that I couldn't function.
21 day fix- workouts were fun, the measuring cups were nice but I was averaging too little calories a day.
Now MFP, and am losing weight with this when I eat within my calories. I have fallen off the bandwagon so trying to get back on.1 -
What didn't I try? That would be a much shorter list. I tried, lost some weight, gained it back on Nutri-system, WW, Medi-fast, diet pills of all kinds (& that speed feeling sucked!) South Beach, Atkins, just plain not eating (diet pills) A. Wish I had all the $$$ I spent over the last 40 years B. messed myself up big time on stupid woo. January 2013 I was sick and tired of feeling sick and tired all the time. Got on MFP - lost 70+ over 2013 and have maintained within a 10# range. Figured out over 2015 I NEED to keep counting, weighing, measuring, exercising or going to be right back up.2
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I did a highly restrictive diet. The only thing I ate was:
Breakfast: black coffee
Lunch: celery with 2 Tbl peanut butter, 2 oz cheese
Dinner: a big bowl of oil popped popcorn with Parmesan sprinkled on it
I lost lots of weight over the 4 weeks or so I did this, was hungry all the time, and put the weight back on a few months later, with extras.0 -
Slim-Fast - Made my blood sugar spike and drop like crazy
Low Carb - I lost a little weight, but it was not a lifestyle I could maintain so I gained it back
South Beach - Couldn't make it past the first phase, just too restrictive
Garcinia cambogia - Only thing I lost was my money
Green Coffee - See above
So far with MFP and exercise (walking and running), I have lost 28 pounds, more than I have ever lost on any other thing I have tried.2 -
Fortunately, none. Using MFP was my first time losing weight. I never had a weight problem until I graduated college at age 30 and took a desk job. I put on about 40 Lbs over about eight years. I knew it was just math and there were no magic bullets.1
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My roommate did the "Chips Ahoy diet". She made it up herself (obviously). She was trying to lose weight for her wedding, so for 1 whole month she ONLY ate Chips Ahoy chocolate chip cookies. Her rule was that she could eat as many as she wanted, but nothing else. I think she lost 15-20 pounds in that month. Finally she cracked and ate something else when her boyfriend visited from out of town. That was the end of the Chips Ahoy diet. She still talks about how great it was, but I notice she's never tried it again. PS - she was heavier than ever at her wedding (but still beautiful).
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WJS_jeepster wrote: »My roommate did the "Chips Ahoy diet". She made it up herself (obviously). She was trying to lose weight for her wedding, so for 1 whole month she ONLY ate Chips Ahoy chocolate chip cookies. Her rule was that she could eat as many as she wanted, but nothing else. I think she lost 15-20 pounds in that month. Finally she cracked and ate something else when her boyfriend visited from out of town. That was the end of the Chips Ahoy diet. She still talks about how great it was, but I notice she's never tried it again. PS - she was heavier than ever at her wedding (but still beautiful).
Oh, I almost forgot, I did something similar to this. I called it my Chocolate Diet. I would eat nothing but chocolate Slim-Fast shakes and bars. I did this for almost a month, I think, and lost a bit of weight, but of course it came back on after I came to my senses.0 -
I tried -
*starving myself
*the 3 day diet, which only made me feel starved to death and on day 4 I regained what I had lost when I ate my normal meals.
*Atkins, but I didn't last long because it didn't make sense to me. Of course, I was thinking "diet" and it says bacon is ok, when in my head "diet" usually meant salads, fruits, and veggies! Oh and then I realized it was low carb... yeah, I need my carbs.
*7 day Cabbage Soup Diet!! Oh man was this my go-to diet even though I hated it with a passion!! Now just thinking about the smell of it makes me want to gag. To make matters worse, when my brother would realize I was doing that diet, the next few days he'd get McD's, bring it home, and literally grab some fries from the bag in front of my face and loudly go "nomnomnom" while enjoying them. Yeah... guess where I'd go on day 8?!
All these diets ever did was make me gain more pounds in the end. They always say, "Lose X lbs. in X days!!", which is what always catches your attention. Sometimes it works (but only for the moment). When you go back to eating normally, you gain the weight back and then some. Realizing here on MFP that all you need is CICO to lose weight, I'm glad I don't have to ever "diet" to lose the weight!!
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Before joining MFP I was on a different calorie counting website that I think was a little pro ana. Everyone ate 1200 calories or less and talked about starvation mode ALL THE TIME. The woo was strong there.1
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