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Feeling a bit defeated and looking for insight

whitney_riffic
whitney_riffic Posts: 27 Member
edited November 24 in Social Groups
I started my weight loss journey in February 2017 at 340 pounds. I was horrified I had let my weight get so out of control and was ready to do something about it.

I started out on keto and realized quickly that it was not something that I could easily maintain. I decided to do a low carb diet. I try to eat less than 30 net grams of carbs daily and do not measure calories or the percentages of fats and proteins. I try to make healthy choices of fats and use common sense. I have had a few cheat days as I feel like that is something I can realistically maintain for the long term. I do not log or track food. I know I should and it is more effective but I just can't get into the habit of doing it. I have known all along that if I was stricter in how I am doing this the weight will come off faster. I have done that in the past and always end up gaining the weight back because I don't really learn how to eat correctly for the long term.

Today I weighed in at 287. I am 53 pounds down which is a huge win for me. I know I should be really proud as that so strictly from dietary changes. I just bought myself an elliptical and am working my way into being more active. I am also getting free weights so I can work on toning.

I guess I am feeling defeated because I have friends who are doing keto and have lost at a much quicker rate. I keep trying to tell myself that slow and steady wins the race.

I am hoping some of you may be able to share any pearls of wisdom you have whether it be ways to make keto simpler, things that help you log consistantly, your favorite low carb recipes or even links to in home work outs that you find work for you.

Thank you!!!

Replies

  • catherinearchibald
    catherinearchibald Posts: 7 Member
    I think a 53pound loss is awesome! I also think that losing it that slowly is a good thing as it will stay off and you won't get loose skin. The best advice I can give you is to stop comparing yourself to other people . You're you, you can only be you, and you can only be you, in the body you're in. Are you sure keto is right for you? You need to figure out what works for you, your mental/emotional well-being, and your body. Being under 30g net carbs doesn't automatically put you in keto. If your protein is too high, it'll bump you out. Forget measuring for a sec, are you happy with the way you are eating now and do you think you can sustain it? If the answer is yes then carry on doing what you're doing, safe in the knowledge that you'll drop around a pound a week. If you're upping your exercise, that might even increase. If you're not happy then you already know that you're going to have to kick your own *kitten* and tweak some things. Maybe you do a proper food diary for a week and see what's what. Maybe you really up your activities or maybe you do both. Either way, cut yourself some slack because what you're already doing, IS working ☺️
  • catherinearchibald
    catherinearchibald Posts: 7 Member
    Kitten! Too funny! I don't want you to kick a kitten, the word I used was the word for a male donkey
  • Cadori
    Cadori Posts: 4,810 Member
    53 pounds is an incredible loss. Especially done in such a sustainable manner (no tracking, not monitoring macros).

    Low carb and keto accomplish so much more than weight loss. They can help address a whole slew of health issues. Have you noticed any other changes: hormonal, immune, mood? Looking at whole health instead of scale weight can help.

    (((hugs))) and keep up the good work!!!
  • KnitOrMiss
    KnitOrMiss Posts: 10,103 Member
    whitney_riffic wrote: »
    I started my weight loss journey in February 2017 at 340 pounds. I was horrified I had let my weight get so out of control and was ready to do something about it.

    I started out on keto and realized quickly that it was not something that I could easily maintain. I decided to do a low carb diet. I try to eat less than 30 net grams of carbs daily and do not measure calories or the percentages of fats and proteins. I try to make healthy choices of fats and use common sense. I have had a few cheat days as I feel like that is something I can realistically maintain for the long term. I do not log or track food. I know I should and it is more effective but I just can't get into the habit of doing it. I have known all along that if I was stricter in how I am doing this the weight will come off faster. I have done that in the past and always end up gaining the weight back because I don't really learn how to eat correctly for the long term.

    Today I weighed in at 287. I am 53 pounds down which is a huge win for me. I know I should be really proud as that so strictly from dietary changes. I just bought myself an elliptical and am working my way into being more active. I am also getting free weights so I can work on toning.

    I guess I am feeling defeated because I have friends who are doing keto and have lost at a much quicker rate. I keep trying to tell myself that slow and steady wins the race.

    I am hoping some of you may be able to share any pearls of wisdom you have whether it be ways to make keto simpler, things that help you log consistantly, your favorite low carb recipes or even links to in home work outs that you find work for you.

    Thank you!!!

    @whitney_riffic - The thing I always tell myself about the rate of weight loss is that the slower you lose weight, the easier the losses are to maintain. The slower you lose, the more chance your skin has to shrink some with the weight loss (make sure to get enough protein and collagen for this!!)...

    Also, any time you lose more than 5-10% of your body weight, you need to build in maintenance time. They say 6 months, but most of us find 6 weeks practicing long term maintenance strategies helps a lot. You have to give your body a break from the stress put on it of weight loss... Then you will set it up for losing more weight again.

    And I'm sorry, but I would bet my left ... well, I would be A LOT that anyone who has lost more than you have (more than the 1-1.25 pounds per week - the averaged out number was around 1.13 pounds per week) has lost a LOT of muscle tone, especially if they restricted protein a lot, and likely not as much true fat loss and inches lost as you...

    Not only that, but you are losing in a way you can maintain. You're tracking the carbs and letting the rest fall where it may... That's incredibly sustainable for nearly all of us... How many of your friends are frenemies with their scales now? How many of them think, when I get back to maintenance, think of all the things I can eat!? OMG, one cheat day and I gained 9 pounds! Etc. You are developing a healthy, sustainable, and workable format in which to lose weight and maintain those losses.

    There may be a time that tracking becomes important to continue on this journey, but there may not...

    Remember to up that sodium with the activity and be prepared for water retention (it's necessary to strengthen and rebuild muscle) - and know that it will level out sometime in the next 1-4 weeks for the most part... Any time you have heavy activity, especially with sore "used" muscle feelings, you'll retain water. This is how the body works...

    (Hugs) and good luck on your continued successes!
  • baconslave
    baconslave Posts: 7,021 Member
    TavistockToad wrote: »
    comparison is the thief of joy.

    Truth.



    @whitney_riffic Most people are in ketosis at <50g carbs. And I seriously doubt you are eating enough protein to kick you out of ketosis. You'd have to eat a ridiculously impossible amount of protein for it to kick you out of ketosis. If that's even possible, as many sources say that gluconeogenesis is demand-driven. Protein needs are a range based upon height, weight, and activity level. Input your stats in this calculator: https://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/ midway down the page they'll have your range. You have to eat enough protein.

    Btw, ketosis does not guarantee weightloss. It sets up a condition in the body that causes many to experience reduced appetite. But sustained calorie deficit over time is what causes a person to lose weight. You can do this with just plain low-carb (50-100g of carbs, a pretty broad range) just as well if keto isn't giving you the appetite suppression necessary for sustaining it.

    How-Low-Carb-Diets-Actually-Work.png


    If you want to lose faster, I recommend cutting the frequency of your cheats and logging all your food. I'd bet money you are eating more than you think. Logging can be eye-opening. Your calorie needs diminish as you lose weight, so every 10-20lb, if you seem to stall, you should look at your new calorie target. That' is up to you. Faster isn't always better. It takes time for habits to become ingrained enough for a diet to truly become a lifestyle and every day you are successful is paving the path during maintenance to success there.

    And to remind, as Tavistock Toad said, "Comparison is the thief of joy." Your body will lose what it will lose when it is capable of losing. Your body is different in every way from that of any of your friends. DNA is different, personality, health history, work/family situations... Your experience just isn't going to mirror theirs.

    PLAN. Failing to plan is planning to fail. I pre-log my day. Every day. There are no surprises, oopsies, and the decision is made so that there's no on-the-spot-I'm-hangry decisions thrust at me.

    Hope some of that is helpful.
    Consistency + Persistence + Time = Success
  • Xerogs
    Xerogs Posts: 328 Member
    edited January 2018
    baconslave wrote: »
    If you want to lose faster, I recommend cutting the frequency of your cheats and logging all your food. I'd bet money you are eating more than you think. Logging can be eye-opening. Your calorie needs diminish as you lose weight, so every 10-20lb, if you seem to stall, you should look at your new calorie target. That' is up to you. Faster isn't always better. It takes time for habits to become ingrained enough for a diet to truly become a lifestyle and every day you are successful is paving the path during maintenance to success there.

    And to remind, as Tavistock Toad said, "Comparison is the thief of joy." Your body will lose what it will lose when it is capable of losing. Your body is different in every way from that of any of your friends. DNA is different, personality, health history, work/family situations... Your experience just isn't going to mirror theirs.

    PLAN. Failing to plan is planning to fail. I pre-log my day. Every day. There are no surprises, oopsies, and the decision is made so that there's no on-the-spot-I'm-hangry decisions thrust at me.

    Hope some of that is helpful.
    Consistency + Persistence + Time = Success

    I think this advice is spot on. Tracking my calories on MFP even before I was LCHF helped me visualize my eating habits and where I was going way overboard on certain foods. I am not obsessive about weighing foods so I try to keep my calories, carbs, fat, and fiber within a certain range that allows for some wiggle room if the food entries are off. That being said if something is way off I will do a bit of research and make sure what I am tracking is either dead on correct or close to something similar. Everything takes time. I remind myself that I didn't get to 70 lbs overweight in a short period of time so losing that weight will just take time. I still have 25-30 lbs to go but I am happy I lost the 40 lbs because with that I am more active and have better muscle tone, stamina, etc. etc. My weight loss journey will be one year old in March (LCHF in May/June) and I am striving to hit my target weight but if I don't its OK because I know I will eventually.
  • bailey2208
    bailey2208 Posts: 5 Member
    First of all you've made tremendous progress in your journey. Try not to compare yourself to others. We all lose at different rates.

    I've been Keto since March 27, 2017. Recently I experienced a bit of a stall. It was totally on me. I got a bit lazy with tracking my foods and begin to incorporate more carbs than I should have. I decided to try what I call a Keto reset. Here is what worked for me.

    1. Consistently tracking my foods via Myfitnesspal. Knowledge is power!
    2. Keeping my carbs to 20 net. I primarily focus on eating meat and veggies.
    3. Increasing my movement. I've done great with strength training, but I'd let me cardio slack a bit. I've increased my cardio to 4 days a week.
    4. Increasing my water intake. Again, this is something I knew was important, but I'd let slack.
    5. Keeping it simple. I'd started to do lots of fancy Keto recipes, but once I want back to my meat and veggies basics I saw the results I wanted.


    These strategies have helped me begin to see the results I was missing.
  • cstehansen
    cstehansen Posts: 1,984 Member
    First, what you have done so far is great. As others have said, comparing yourself to others only has one guaranteed outcome - your unhappiness.

    Second, weight is only one measure of health, and not even the best one. Keep that in mind as you move forward. The best measure is generally how you feel. Do you feel better now? Are you able to do more now? Move better?

    I did not have as much to lose, but I lost it VERY slowly - as in the 40 lbs was in roughly 3 years. Most of that was just LC. The last 15 was keto.

    That said, one of, if not the, best ways to improve weight loss without slowing your metabolism is fasting. I am not talking about long term fasts as I don't think those are the best option for most and without doctor supervision, longer than a few days shouldn't be done.

    What I think does work is starting with some intermittent fasting such as only eating in a 6-8 hour window during the day. Most do this by simply skipping breakfast. Then work up to 24 hours where you don't eat from dinner one day until dinner the next.

    Here is a good study showing how alternate day fasting had better results than calorie reduction even after 24 weeks of being back to regular eating:

    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5042570/

    If you want to understand why this works, I would recommend the book The Obesity Code by Dr. Jason Fung. If you are not a book person, he has a ton of videos online where he discusses fasting and it's benefits such as this really short one:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIhhrYjVhOk

    Good luck with your continued journey to better health.
  • mmultanen
    mmultanen Posts: 1,029 Member
    I've been eating low carb ( I have no idea if I'm in ketosis, I don't measure or track) for 3.5 years now. It is a life style for me so while my target is 35g of carbohydrates daily , I average about 45g. (some days are higher, some are lower) Over that time I've "fallen off the wagon" so to speak when I hit "goal" weights thinking I "deserved" to go back to "normal" eating. We all know how that works out.

    So out of those 3.5 years of LC eating, I have my fair share of experiences re starting, tuning up, getting back on the horse...whatever you want to call it. Never once have I had stunning weight loss like so many talk about when they start on a LC diet. My body prefers to slowly and consistently lose a pound at a time.

    Every body will handle a life style, diet, exercise, change differently. My best friend drops immense weight at the beginning of any change she makes. Over time, we end up losing about the same amount, mine is slow and steady, her's is in impressive drop offs followed by plateaus that drive her mad in their length.

    I whole heartedly agree with tracking. You don't have to commit to doing it for a life time but, do commit to doing it for a week. See what you're eating, how much of it you're eating, and try to understand why you're eating it.

    Be proud of what you and your body have accomplished. Keep making healthy life style changes one at a time. Give yourself the grace you deserve and recognize how far you've come.
  • kpk54
    kpk54 Posts: 4,474 Member
    @Whitney_riffic, I wouldn't change a thing. It's working. At some point in time you may need to tweak and implement some of the suggestions above.

    Your original post sounds like you know the common sense things to do if at some point in time you stop losing. Keep finding and implementing what works for you.

    Kudos to you on your current weight loss. :)

  • kimberwolf71
    kimberwolf71 Posts: 470 Member
    edited January 2018
    A friend of mine that didn't like logging or cooking did this to keep things simple when she went keto...

    She spent the first few days agonizing but then meticulously building recipes in MFP, food prepping, measuring and freezing. She would prep/freeze fresh entree(s) every few weeks, but she was able to basically eat the same meals with pre-determined macros for months at a time (she usually made 4 or 5 different things). It made logging incredibly fast and easy. It eliminated any confusion, calculations, choices. It worked really well for her. Personally it would drive me bananas.

    That being said, you clearly laid out why you went LC rather than keto, your thoughts on tracking etc. You are having excellent success and I suspect, like others, that it will be long term because you are learning so much! Do what works for you and don't compare :smiley:
  • kwalton65
    kwalton65 Posts: 50 Member
    2 things. 1 - 53 lbs is amazing. You are killing it and shouldn’t feel anything but amazing at that accomplishment. 2 - no point in feeling defeated before you even begin to fight. You HAVE to write down your calories. You are taking in more macros then you realize. When you start tracking calories you will realize that the little extra dressing on a salad, that extra glass of juice, that tablespoon of peanut butter all add up so fast it is insane.
    I hit a plateau after losing 35lbs and starting tracking only to find I was way way over eatting for a cut. If all you did was track your macros you will not regret it
  • mlinton_mesapark
    mlinton_mesapark Posts: 517 Member
    edited January 2018
    Great replies here already, just chiming in to say “take pics”. Before and progress pics are so helpful for showing you how far you’ve come. Congrats on your success thus far!
  • aupston
    aupston Posts: 44 Member
    edited January 2018
    So I will add my 2 cents--
    1. You have done an amazing job.
    2. I believe slow is best.
    3. My boss (a doctor) just did some education that shows the keys to success include
    a. Logging your food intake
    b. weighing frequently
    c. measuring body areas-a minimum of 4 areas-arms, waist, hips, thighs

    These things have helped me lose 65 lbs

    -I have found that I have to really limit my cheat foods-I can really pile on the calories if I am not selective and really make sure I have those things that I want.

    Dont be hard on yourself. Keep up the good work......and ask for help and encouragement from this group of people.
    Good Luck
  • whitney_riffic
    whitney_riffic Posts: 27 Member
    @catherinearchbold Thank you! So much of what you said is spot on. This is the first time in my life that I have changed my lifestyle to lose weight and felt like I could maintain it. That in and of itself should be a huge victory. So far I have no loose skin. I am very thankful for that and hopefully continue the trend!
  • whitney_riffic
    whitney_riffic Posts: 27 Member
    @Cadori You make some very good points. I actually have noticed a lot of changes on this journey but my divorce was also finalized in October. Having a reduction in stress, starting to work out again and losing the weight has really improved my overall sense of self and my moods. Thank you for the encouragement!
  • whitney_riffic
    whitney_riffic Posts: 27 Member
    @KnitOrMiss Wow! You are a wealth of information! I had no idea that I should be doing a phase to maintain. I will look into that. You are also right about being frenemies with the scale. Years ago I had a trainer and had lost a lot of weight. Food was my enemy. I remember visiting my best friend and she asked to meet up at the Spaghetti Factory. I remember getting up from the table and having a breakdown in the bathroom because I was so afraid of eating and gaining. Thankfully I am in a much healthier mindset now. Thank you for all the tips!!!
  • whitney_riffic
    whitney_riffic Posts: 27 Member
    @baconslave Thank you so much for the calculator and chart! I was able to calculate a reasonable goal for macros and calories. I think you are right that logging would make a huge difference. I am going to sit down this weekend and log next week ahead of time. That was such a great idea. I will see if logging this way will help me stay more consistent. I really appreciate your response!
  • whitney_riffic
    whitney_riffic Posts: 27 Member
    @xerogs1 Congratulations to you as well. I think it would do me some good to adapt to your mentality. In fear of going off on a tangent I will say that I feel like anymore we always want instant gratification. Weight loss is definitely something where that just isn't possible. Slowly but surely I will be lowering those numbers with you!
  • whitney_riffic
    whitney_riffic Posts: 27 Member
    @bailey2208 Those are all good reminders for me. I know I do not drink enough water and often forget how important it is with this diet. I am just recovering from surgery but am going to hop back on the elliptical tomorrow and need to get a strength training plan in place. I also think the suggestion of sticking to meats and veggies is a good idea. I tend to get overwhelmed trying to make recipes with a million ingredients and have trouble logging it all. Thank you for chiming in!!!
  • whitney_riffic
    whitney_riffic Posts: 27 Member
    @cstehansen I absolutely am feeling better and moving better. It is actually pretty incredible how much of an improvement I have made there. Thank you for the advice on fasting. This is actually something that I haven't ever looked into so I will follow up with the videos like you suggested.
  • camtosh
    camtosh Posts: 898 Member
    baconslave wrote: »
    TavistockToad wrote: »
    comparison is the thief of joy.

    PLAN. Failing to plan is planning to fail. I pre-log my day. Every day. There are no surprises, oopsies, and the decision is made so that there's no on-the-spot-I'm-hangry decisions thrust at me.

    This is good advice -- I do best when I bring in lchf foods for lunch and keep them in the work fridge: no temptation to eat carby stuff on the fly.
    Congrats on your weight loss! kcko
  • whitney_riffic
    whitney_riffic Posts: 27 Member
    @mmultanen I think that our bodies work similarly. It is nice to know that this has worked for you and I am definitely going to make it a priority to start tracking!
  • baconslave
    baconslave Posts: 7,021 Member
    edited January 2018
    camtosh wrote: »
    baconslave wrote: »
    TavistockToad wrote: »
    comparison is the thief of joy.

    PLAN. Failing to plan is planning to fail. I pre-log my day. Every day. There are no surprises, oopsies, and the decision is made so that there's no on-the-spot-I'm-hangry decisions thrust at me.

    This is good advice -- I do best when I bring in lchf foods for lunch and keep them in the work fridge: no temptation to eat carby stuff on the fly.
    Congrats on your weight loss! kcko

    Right! if you are prepared you ALWAYS have a good choice available. Unpredictable life events cannot wreck you.
    You control that at least, even if everything else defies control. YOU get to decide what goes into your mouth.
  • solska
    solska Posts: 348 Member
    53 pounds is amazing. You need to find your own way. Keep your eye on the long term goals but take it one day at a time.
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