Dieting causing weight gain!!??

fitnessbekhs
fitnessbekhs Posts: 71
edited September 30 in Motivation and Support
I've noticed that when I "diet," I tend to do great for a few days, then get frustrated, angry and over-indulge. And YES, I know I'm not alone...there are lots of others out there that do the same thing, hence the YO-YO dieting phrase. So I'm thinking that it should be easier for me to lose weight by forgoing the diet....the frustration that comes from the CONSTANT reminder that I've gained weight and need to lose it....the anger at the entire world because of MY food mistakes...the over-indulgence that is sure to follow when I say "Oh, what the heck! I'm done with this!"...and the weight gain that comes with that over-indulgence. What a roller coaster!!

So, I've decided to try something new...well, new for me anyway! :) NO "DIETING!!!" Yep, no conscious effort to diet....whatsoever! At first I told myself..."THIS ISN'T ANYTHING NEW! You've NOT dieted for YEARS....and steadily gained weight because of it!" :pppp BUT realizing that there's a difference between conscious effort to diet and conscious effort to EAT WELL was great for me!

So, the concept of EATING WELL...Hmmmmm. Eating well doesn't mean that we can't have anything that we enjoy. But it DOES mean that we THINK about what goes in our mouths!

It means we can be happy with the choices we make rather than angry about them. (Which saves us from getting sick of dieting and buying 10 boxes of Hostess cakes!) If we CAN have a Hostess cake, do we want one? Not really. Because they TASTE AWFUL! If you don't have the ANGER of dieting....causing a need to REBEL, will you eat the Hostess cake? Not me.

It's amazing to me how we can pass on something if it's okay to have it. Twisted, I know...but sadly, for me, true!

So, if we have the choice between the brownie or the yogurt, which will we choose? (For me, depends on the time of the month!) But knowing that choosing the yogurt will make me feel better, mentally & physically, most of the time I'll choose the yogurt. (Or a small piece of the brownie and a cup of yogurt.) The thing is, I LOVE yogurt....AND brownies. But I REALLY love that I don't feel guilty about eating the yogurt. So I can eat a food I love AND not feel guilty. Seems like a no-brainer...and it IS...as long as it's MY choice! :)

Anyway, here's to the good old concept of NOT DIETING but EATING WELL!

Replies

  • nathalie24
    nathalie24 Posts: 22
    YAY! Shes got it!! :D
  • dls06
    dls06 Posts: 6,774 Member
    If you don't plan on doing it forever, don't do it at all. We all know yo yo dieting makes you gain more then you lose.
  • evangpattismith
    evangpattismith Posts: 57 Member
    LOE, LOVE, LOVE this!!!! I am the same way.....nice to find someone who put into words what i have been thinking....lol
  • amberdaniels
    amberdaniels Posts: 96
    Hey there...i love the post. That is an awesome way of putting it. I have been trying to explain this to people for a few years now and they just will not listen. They want the quick fix. However, the quick fix usually is what gets us into trouble. I changed my diet....there is a huge difference between the two. I don't go out as much and when I do, I do not go anywhere near a fast food place and I tend to eat healthier. I can still have that oreo cookie every so often. It is really ok. :) I however, do not like yogurt. I sometimes like frozen yogurt though...I hate the texture of the regular yogurt. Also, if you like brownies, I have a suggestion for you, try gluten free brownies. I have tried a few of them and the one that I like is the "Pamela's Products. Then I add some dark chocolate chunks. The dark chocolate is actually very good for you during that time of the month.

    Enjoy and God bless. I hope you do well on your weight loss.
  • aatkins3
    aatkins3 Posts: 5
    This is really good. You should read "Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat" by Michelle May. It's basically the same concept. If we know that we're actually ALLOWED to eat something, it's easier for us to resist. You can say "It's okay for me to eat this brownie, but I choose not to."

    Good luck :)
  • nibblerbigcat
    nibblerbigcat Posts: 60
    That makes so much sense, and I am completely the same way!
  • luckyduck768
    luckyduck768 Posts: 40 Member
    I completely agree! It becomes difficult sometimes because we get frustrated with ourselves and only see the "mistakes". Well said!!
  • mikihainesy
    mikihainesy Posts: 98
    SPOT ON. MY THOUGHTS EXACTLY, especially the twisted reverse psychology part. GOOD LUCK
  • RMinVA
    RMinVA Posts: 1,085 Member
    On my profile it says "Don't diet...live it." Truer words have never been spoken.
  • kadoodle76
    kadoodle76 Posts: 234
    That's what I am doing, I don't cut things out or only eat one meal a day or do certain exercises. I just eat only when I am hungry and stop when I am full. I try to avoid things that make me binge and let myself have treats. I just have to practice self-control to not be a mindless eating machine. I also make sure I get off my big butt everyday and sweat. So far so good. Lost 2 pounds in my first two weeks and I have a lot more energy. I don't see myself getting bored with this.
  • gandydancer
    gandydancer Posts: 171 Member
    Well sounds good but what if you love brownies more? I would choose them hands down...went to a seminar where the subjet was EAT WHATEVER YOU WANT WHENEVER YOU WANT. well the premise was that if you didn't deny yourself anything your good sense would take over and you wouldn't want it eventually...yeah right, I gained 3 lbs and fellow classmates gained as well...never could figure that idea out just knew it didn't work for us...I swear half of that stuff out there is nothing but money makers.
  • Scott613
    Scott613 Posts: 2,317 Member
    I'm around 80% clean and20% not so clean.
  • fitnessbekhs
    fitnessbekhs Posts: 71
    Well sounds good but what if you love brownies more? I would choose them hands down...went to a seminar where the subjet was EAT WHATEVER YOU WANT WHENEVER YOU WANT. well the premise was that if you didn't deny yourself anything your good sense would take over and you wouldn't want it eventually...yeah right, I gained 3 lbs and fellow classmates gained as well...never could figure that idea out just knew it didn't work for us...I swear half of that stuff out there is nothing but money makers.

    There's a difference between EATING WHATEVER YOU WANT WHENEVER YOU WANT and THINKING about those choices. Like I said, I've been eating whatever I want whenever I want for years...causing weight gain and unhappiness. But when you come to the realization that eating BAD is causing UNHAPPINESS, don't you think it'll make you THINK about those choices and CHOOSE WELL?

    A coworker brought Oreo Cookies into work today because she didn't want to have them at home and eat them herself....so she pawns them off on all of us. And I love Oreo Cookies. But I don't love the feeling I get when I eat them. So I chose grapes instead. I could have the Oreos if I wanted...but CHOOSE not to. (Now, if I was dieting, I would have obsessed about those cookies ALL DAY LONG...slowly getting angrier and angrier that I couldn't have them...and finally eating 10 or so to rebel. But since I'm not dieting and can have them, I CHOOSE not to.)

    It's something that we each have to decide for ourselves. I've known that "dieting" is not a great way to lose weight...contrary to the billion dollar per year business that it is. But REALIZING if for myself has been WONDERFUL!!
  • LJCannon
    LJCannon Posts: 3,636 Member
    You have already made the First Step toward SUCCESS!! No Dieting!! This is a Lifestyle Change and you have figured that out already.
    :flowerforyou: Good Luck with your Journey!!
  • mark03264
    mark03264 Posts: 334 Member
    You said it right.

    People ask what diet I am on. I tell them I am not on a diet I just eat right and sensibly. I eat whatever I want but I just make sure I track what I eat and I stay close to my calorie goal every day. It's that simple. Eat the brownies and you don't get to eat as much that day. It is amazing how much you can eat in a day when you eat clean.
  • LoloD
    LoloD Posts: 3
    I agree! The key is to track it...When I want a brownie, I enter it into my tracker and figure out how it's going to affect my choices for the rest of the day. "Okay, I can eat that, but I'll have to have a fruit n yogurt parfait (160 cal) for dinner." Sometimes that works and sometimes I decide the cost of the treat is too great.

    But you're absolutely right - knowing that I CAN eat it if I want to is very freeing!!! :) It's much easier to stick to this sort of system than to a diet.
  • gloriaandison
    gloriaandison Posts: 15
    I really needed to read this one right now-makes perfect sense-thanks for posting it!
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