Back Again and the Heaviest I've Ever Been....

aleyjewell
aleyjewell Posts: 65 Member
in Introduce Yourself
Well here I am. Starting again... Gained so much more then I had lost after I quit smoking. I just can't seem to stay on track. I do good for awhile then l revert back to terrible eating habits. I need to stop the cycle. I need it for my kids and myself.

But how? How do I stop turning to convenience foods or fast food? It is almost second nature for me to think " it would be much faster to just grab something on the way home". But I know it has to stop. My 5 year old now asks to eat out almost every other day!! I don't want my bad habits to affect her.

I am motivated more this time due to actually being able to tell the wait I gained is effecting my body. I want to be healthy. Heck I deserve to be.

I need friends here. Friends who will hold me accountable. Friends who are motivating. Please HELP!!

Replies

  • StarvingDiva
    StarvingDiva Posts: 1,107 Member
    The struggle is real. Convenience foods when you are tired is something I totally understand. Meal prepping can help with that, By having meals ready so you aren't reaching for something quick. Get acquainted with a slow cooker and all the great recipes. When you are tired and don't feel like cooking, it's already done and ready, you just have to eat it. Seems to be easier to stay on track when its ready. You definitely don't want to get your little one in the habit of convenience foods, my friends kids are very overweight due to her always going to D&D for coffee and picking up donuts or whatever for the kids. It because a rough cycle to beat.

    Good luck! if you want to be friends the more the merrier. I was at my highest at 262.5. I'm still trying to lose, I'm within 40 lbs of my goal.
  • aleyjewell
    aleyjewell Posts: 65 Member
    I know I am trying to break the bad habits for her early. She is of course a string bean like her dad right now but I know it is not healthy for her. I think I just need to push myself to prep meals. Like I was super proud cause I got up this morning and actually made a healthy lunch instead of grabbing a frozen dinner or eating in the cafeteria at work!
  • Hodgeyboo4
    Hodgeyboo4 Posts: 4 Member
    Hello! I am new to the community and the more inspiration and motivation the better. I would love to have some friends that engage in real talk; the up's and down's of our journey and added humor to get us to our personal goals.
  • theHellion
    theHellion Posts: 2 Member
    It's easy to fool yourself with what you put in your body. My days used to start at 3:45 am. I was dragging my butt out the door by 4:30 to make my 90 minute commute to work. I would usually stop every morning and get 2 12 oz. energy drinks and a king size peanut encrusted candy bar to fuel my drive. At 9:00 am I would take my morning break which would consist of a 32 oz. soda, a hash brown, and a breakfast sandwich. At noon lunch was another 32 oz. soda, a 1/4# hamburger w/cheese, and a large fry. When I left work at 4:00 pm I would grab a large energy drink and a bag of party mix for the ride home. Dinner which was usually around the 7:00 pm time frame, might consist of three tacos and a bean burrito, and yes another 32 oz. soda. After eating I would usually park myself on the couch. I would then drag my tired butt to bed around 10:30-11:00 ish and start the whole process all over again. The actual food might change but this was a typical day for me. Let's take a closer look at the caloric intake:
    the actual "food" calorie count was 3225 calories. AND I was drinking in an additional 1455+ calories a day!!!!
    a grand total of 4680 calories on average per day. All of this and not a glass of water or exercise in sight. Like I said yesterday, it was my own fault. I kept telling myself what I drank didn't really matter, and I'm not eating THAT much...
    -the journey continues...
  • joanthemom8
    joanthemom8 Posts: 375 Member
    Good for you for quitting smoking! That is quite the accomplishment. But I know that it probably doesn't help with eating for now. We too fall into the "grab something on our way home" routine because with work, school, kid activities, it's HARD to make dinner at times, let alone one that's healthy and EVERYONE will like. Hang in there, set goals like "we'll only eat out once a week" or "Friday is Pizza night". When we do get food to go, we are trying to get it healthier... El Pollo Loco, Yoshinoya (I get it without rice) or something similar. It really does help me if I can plan the whole week out and grocery shop on the weekend. I would love for you to add me as a friend.
  • aleyjewell
    aleyjewell Posts: 65 Member
    You guys are amazing.

    I have accepted that this is all on me. I need to cut the excuses out of my life for good! Am I busy? Yes but so are most people. I need to move my butt lol!!

    I love the idea of planning a whole week of food and then shopping once. I have never done that. I always think I have but usually I have forgotten an ingredient or 2 and say well that's ruined and grab fast food instead. (when really I could just grab the ingredient).

    Thanks to all of you!
  • prpeterson2016
    prpeterson2016 Posts: 12 Member
    aleyjewell wrote: »
    Well here I am. Starting again... Gained so much more then I had lost after I quit smoking. I just can't seem to stay on track. I do good for awhile then l revert back to terrible eating habits. I need to stop the cycle. I need it for my kids and myself.

    But how? How do I stop turning to convenience foods or fast food? It is almost second nature for me to think " it would be much faster to just grab something on the way home". But I know it has to stop. My 5 year old now asks to eat out almost every other day!! I don't want my bad habits to affect her.

    I am motivated more this time due to actually being able to tell the wait I gained is effecting my body. I want to be healthy. Heck I deserve to be.

    I need friends here. Friends who will hold me accountable. Friends who are motivating. Please HELP!!

    I feel like you and I are in the same boat. I have been eating fast food almost every day for as long as I can remember. It is second nature to me. Today is my day 1 of officially tracking what I eat, and trust me it took a lot to get even this far! What has helped me, is looking at my goal every day and realising three years later that I still haven't started and that I'm the heaviest I've ever been. Yesterday, I finally went to the grocery store and picked up things I needed as per the meals I've planned out on here of what I need. As soon as I walked in the door at home, I prepped my food for the next day which the only cooking it involved was boiling eggs. Choose food that is easy to grab and go and convenient or else you won't stick to it! Boiled eggs, low fat dairy, smoothies, yogurt and keep full for the day so that you aren't starving on your way home, and you can actually go home and cook a decilious meal if you choose to, or maybe even meal prep once a week for your dinners, so that you don't have to cook if making time for that is an issue for you. I know it is for me!

  • Sharon_C
    Sharon_C Posts: 2,132 Member
    You can't rely on motivation. You have to change your entire lifestyle and retrain your brain. You're not eating healthy "until you lose the weight". You have to eat healthy the rest of your life. Forever.

    I've been on MFP for 5 years. I can't quit. I have to log calories every day. I have to hold myself accountable every single day or I will gain the weight back.

    It's only now, five years later, that I truly feel that I've retrained my brain. I now reach for healthy foods instead of junk food. I now order healthy foods when we're at restaurants, but it's literally taken me years to accomplish this. I know I can slip up and I know that if I'm not diligent every time I choose something to eat that I will fall back into old habits that took a lot longer than 5 years to establish.

    For most of us we have to constantly battle to stay at a healthy weight. It sucks. But it's what has to be done.

    Sorry for the tough love. I need tough love on myself too :D

  • clrug0912
    clrug0912 Posts: 43 Member
    I try to plan dinners a week at a time, even if it's only saying, one night we'll do this... another this. I basically give myself 5-6 options. I find cooking my lunches on Sunday to take for the week helps a ton with convenience. That's usually some chicken and vegetables or maybe if I did pot of chili over the weekend the leftovers from that. Maybe a smartone... I've found that even if what you are packing isn't the healthiest of things, it still helps you stay on track and is better than splurging. Speaking of splurging though... I've also found it's ok to plan a night of eating out. You don't need to go crazy and can still order smart. I just think it helps you feel, not so stranded and gives you something to earn by eating in. Just a thought! feel free to friend me if you'd like!

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