Keep on losing/gaining for over 4 years..

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hiyomi
hiyomi Posts: 906 Member
edited July 2016 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi everyone, I'm 23 years old, weigh 277 lbs and have been using MFP on and off for about 4 years now. I always do really good, lose 10-20 lbs and then fall off the tracks and gain it all back. I've tried so many different ways to diet and exercise but I always end up back putting on weight and fall to the same old habits. I just wanted to see if there was anyone here that had success stories after being successful and then failing again so many times. It's hard to keep telling myself "this time I'll do it for sure" after I've known that I always fall back to eating a lot and gaining weight. Once again I am back and want to lose weight, but what can I change so that I don't stop again or fall back to old ways? I've tried countless different methods and ideologies already..I have never done fad diets or juicing or anything like that though. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, thanks.

Replies

  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 13,637 Member
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    Use https://www.supertracker.usda.gov/bwp/index.html (switch to expert mode) and play with the simulation.
    I strongly suggest a 4 year time horizon. At a stab.. pick a target of 150lbs.

    This will give you the time to essentially be eating at your future maintenance and figuring out what you can eat and what changes you will have to make in your life to promote more successful weight management over time.
  • SophieSmall95
    SophieSmall95 Posts: 233 Member
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    The problem for you doesn't seem to be losing, as you have done that several times. It is maintaining.

    How is your behaviour changing once you reach your goal? That is what you need to address.
  • dmt4641
    dmt4641 Posts: 409 Member
    edited July 2016
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    They say habits take 21 days to change. Try changing your habits 1-2 at a time. Use a calendar or habit tracking app to track your progress. For example, if you drink full sugar sodas, cut those out and replace with water for 21 days. Or make the habit of prepping your food for the week on Sundays and Wednesdays. Or exercising three days a week. Or incorporating 4 servings of veggies. Or tracking on mfp daily. Whatever you think will be doable and most beneficial for YOU. After you complete the 21 days for one habit, continue checking off that habit and add another one. In 6 months you will have formed 8 new healthy habits. And these habits can continue forever, they don't need to stop when you hit maintenance, you just get to eat a bit more. Continue with this until you have gotten rid of the bad habits and old ways of eating that helped you gain the weight in the first place.
  • ChrisVassell
    ChrisVassell Posts: 6 Member
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    Well, what are your habits when you are losing weight? What usually triggers you to go back to your old way of doing things?

    For example, with me, I noticed that when I was getting in shape, that I ate perfectly, I never let one bad food enter my body and I would do this frequently. What usually triggered me back to my old ways was usually a holiday - I would pig out on a holiday or have a cheeseburger on a cheat day - and boom, back to square one.
  • hiyomi
    hiyomi Posts: 906 Member
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    dmt4641 wrote: »
    They say habits take 21 days to change. Try changing your habits 1-2 at a time. Use a calendar or habit tracking app to track your progress. For example, if you drink full sugar sodas, cut those out and replace with water for 21 days. Or make the habit of prepping your food for the week on Sundays and Wednesdays. Or exercising three days a week. Or incorporating 4 servings of veggies. Or tracking on mfp daily. Whatever you think will be doable and most beneficial for YOU. After you complete the 21 days for one habit, continue checking off that habit and add another one. In 6 months you will have formed 8 new healthy habits. And these habits can continue forever, they don't need to stop when you hit maintenance, you just get to eat a bit more. Continue with this until you have gotten rid of the bad habits and old ways of eating that helped you gain the weight in the first place.

    I've never tried this before, usually I try getting rid of a bunch of habits at one time and maybe that could be causing me to feel under deprived of what I'm used to causing me to spiral out of control! I will try this method! :)

  • hiyomi
    hiyomi Posts: 906 Member
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    ChrisVassell wrote: »
    Well, what are your habits when you are losing weight? What usually triggers you to go back to your old way of doing things?

    For example, with me, I noticed that when I was getting in shape, that I ate perfectly, I never let one bad food enter my body and I would do this frequently. What usually triggered me back to my old ways was usually a holiday - I would pig out on a holiday or have a cheeseburger on a cheat day - and boom, back to square one.

    I frequently stop dieting and exercising whenever I am out of school for summer vacation and holidays, I know that for sure! I guess I also seem to start picking up bad habits as soon as I say "one regular soda is okay"....then it makes me want more and more regular cokes or dr peppers instead of diets or water....Hmmm I will try and think of more stuff that seems to trigger me halting my healthy habits and write them down.

  • hiyomi
    hiyomi Posts: 906 Member
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    SophieSmall95 wrote: »
    The problem for you doesn't seem to be losing, as you have done that several times. It is maintaining.

    How is your behaviour changing once you reach your goal? That is what you need to address.

    I definitely know that I do not have a problem losing weight, and as you said, I just have a problem maintaining it. I tell my friends and boyfriend that a lot of times and they question at me like it's not true...but it really is...I've always been able to lose weight...my problem is that I stop and as soon as I do stop I start gaining weight quickly!

  • SophieSmall95
    SophieSmall95 Posts: 233 Member
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    hiyomi wrote: »
    SophieSmall95 wrote: »
    The problem for you doesn't seem to be losing, as you have done that several times. It is maintaining.

    How is your behaviour changing once you reach your goal? That is what you need to address.

    I definitely know that I do not have a problem losing weight, and as you said, I just have a problem maintaining it. I tell my friends and boyfriend that a lot of times and they question at me like it's not true...but it really is...I've always been able to lose weight...my problem is that I stop and as soon as I do stop I start gaining weight quickly!

    Then you need to change your post goal behaviour.

    It sounds like you probably stop tracking your calories once you get to your goal?

    you need to make sure you're not eating more than you maintenance calories once you reach your goal weight otherwise yes you'll regain the weight.

    just as weight loss is a numbers game, so is maintenance.


    Next time you're at your goal try tracking your calories for a few months, after a while you may find yourself not needing to count anymore if you learn how much you should be eating. But if you still struggle it's a sad truth but you may just need to track indefinitely
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
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    The willpower, portion control, logging and calorie awareness needs to be carried over to maintenance. This can't all be forgotten once we hit our maintenance weight. Of course if someone returns to their old habits once they've lost the weight then a regain is imminent and to be expected.
  • laoighse
    laoighse Posts: 22 Member
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    Ive had a similar history. I think it happens because the motivation to lose goes. You have lost 10-20 lbs, you can see improvements, the need to change is no so urgent, so the backslide starts. I find if I don't track I gain 1-2 lbs a month, my idea of normal eating is in fact overeating. I'd say this is common with overweight people, it's how we get overweight in the first place. I'm reconciled now to eating this tracking way forever. If I do I will slowly lost the other 80% of my goal. If I don't I will regain and then some. I'm only very short, I finally accept that if I eat like average height people I will be fat. And I'm sick of being fat. So conscious tracked food is the way to go.

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