Yo-Yo Here We Go.....Again!!!!
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To me, maintenance IS re-gaining and re-losing the same 5 lb over and over. I, too, will go a month or two tracking loosely or not at all. Paying less attention always results in a gain for me, never a loss. I really like food, what can I say? Usually I catch it at 5 lb. One summer a couple years ago I let the gain get up to 7, which is no big deal, but after 10 weeks losing at 0.5lb/wk, I felt deficit weary and made a mental note to catch it sooner in the future.
Biologically, we’re not going to stay “parked” at one weight without fluctuations. On top of that, life happens. Personally, I don’t mind having periods of making more effort and periods of less as long as my body composition is in the range that physically feels comfortable to me. Maybe some people call this yo-yoing. I call it maintenance.
That notwithstanding, I do respect that true out-of-control binge eating (powerless to stop when part of you doesn’t want to be eating at all) is something totally apart from enjoying the occasional splurge. Emphasis on “enjoy.” If you’re not enjoying your eating pattern, it would be worth it to invest the time and effort in what will make behavior changes possible.19 -
Thanks for all your comments folks. It seems I'm not the only one
As my house is always full of children and the snacks they love, its not possible to have a single treat in the cupboard waiting for me to break. Its a cupboard full of them. No need to coach me on parenting here, i regulate their treats vigorously. Hypocrite or what?
Anyway when I finally succumb to the treats, I inhale them standing up in the kitchen before I even get to sitting down and enjoying them with a cup of tea or whatever...I think in all honesty i do it so quickly so that nobody else see me. Like secret eating. Anyone else do this?
I guess I'm writing this down in a therapeutic type of way.
Appreciate all the dialogue 7 -
pontious11349 wrote: »Anyway when I finally succumb to the treats, I inhale them standing up in the kitchen before I even get to sitting down and enjoying them with a cup of tea or whatever...I think in all honesty i do it so quickly so that nobody else see me. Like secret eating. Anyone else do this?
Oh hell yes. Unfortunately! I've never understood how people can eat 2 or 3 biscuits (cookies) with a nice hot drink. For me, it's a case of stuffing the entire packet in, hiding the evidence and then feeling guilty and stupid.8 -
You just have to work at this chapter of your fitness. You know how to lose the weight.. now all that energy you need to put on tactics to maintain with lower regains.
That is how I'm doing it. I reached my goal weight and liked how I looked. I've "maintained". sort of ...gaining and losing up to 8 to 10 pounds a few times...but I always get back on track and lose it.
However, to me that is too much to regain.. so now I'm working on how to maintain and only gain 3 to five pounds before reducing again.
My ultimate goal is only allowing a 2 got 3 pound gain for maintenance.
But, it isn't easy.. this phase takes work just like the weight loss.5 -
Thanks for the comments, it actually really helped to just write it down and see others relate. I guess in May when I first posted this thread I felt like I was a ticking time bomb ready obliterate all progress.
Since then, I have ditched the food scales and focused on eating mostly clean and how much energy I have in the gym. I have miraculously managed to accept that a single donut is not an excuse to eat 6 and write off the day. My only concern is that maybe I take that single donut with me (in my head) to the gym as I think "I ate the donut - therefore more carbs - therefore must have more energy to push myself harder". Is this a good thing or am I dwelling on it too much still?
Finally, I've also ditched the bathroom scales and going on how I look and feel only now. I have started taking pictures mid-month and plan to do so until Xmas. My profile pic was when I started this journey in Jan and the mid pic was when I wrote the first post in May. The right hand pic was mid June so I am looking forward to see if there is any further change by July. Wish me luck...
A former fat ole dad.5 -
Pontious I am glad to see you post an update! It would be scary to me to give up BOTH logging (counting cals in) and weighing together, and just trust the how I feel and look thing. But everyone's journey is unique and if this is working for you, than it is exactly how you should proceed. As a serial yo yo er going on 18 months maintenance I can tell you that I have talked myself into a LOT of things over the years and for me they never ended well. Sigh. Keep in touch and let us know in a few more weeks how things are going.0
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I am beginning to lose my fear of gaining the weight back, I know how to eat and if I gain it back I know how to get it off.2
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I think it's because of diet culture. We are all conditioned to believe that healthy = a certain shape or size. By the time we're old enough to understand what a diet is, most of us try one, trying to obtain that perfect physique (washboard abs, low body fat %, thigh gap, stronger arms-whatever it is).
However, it's very difficult to achieve these things. We work hard, deprive ourselves and deny ourselves the things we want...and now develops the unhealthy relationship with food and with our bodies. Soon certain foods become "bad" and others become "good". We torment ourselves over eating things we "shouldn't" and only feel good about ourselves when we follow a certain pattern of self-denial.
This can result in many things. Yo-yo dieting, eating disorders, low self esteem, poor body image...
I'm learning to eat intuitively. I eat what sounds good...until I'm satisfied. I struggle less with cravings because it's normal to want to eat certain things. Isn't it better to eat a handful of potato chips instead of deny myself for a long time then eat way more than I would have in the first place? That's what I think.
My worth is not determined by my size or what I eat. Food is delicious. Cherries are tasty (like I had at lunch) but so is cherry pie with ice cream (like I'll have tomorrow for the 4th). I don't praise myself for eating cherries any more than I beat myself up for eating pie.
I thank the universe/god that I have food to eat...a body that is nourished by the food and that allows me to live my life...and that is all. I really wish the word "diet" could be abolished all together.
Diet = die with a t.6 -
Hi Maureen , that’s fair enough but if you don’t believe in diets why are you on MFP?1
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Hi Maureen , that’s fair enough but if you don’t believe in diets why are you on MFP?
Who said My Fitness Pal has anything to do with "diets".
Tracking macros isn't dieting. You couldn't pay me enough to do Keto, intermittent fasting, etc. The diet industry gets enough money-I'm not giving a cent of mine to do something that people rarely stick with long term and that means eating according to rules. My body knows best.
A lot of people use MFP to track calories and/or other nutrients. I need to track my calcium due to concerns for stress fractures/weak bones and my carbohydrates because I have type 1 diabetes.
Not dieting. And you're right. Don't believe in them.3 -
maureenseel1984 wrote: »Hi Maureen , that’s fair enough but if you don’t believe in diets why are you on MFP?
Who said My Fitness Pal has anything to do with "diets".
Tracking macros isn't dieting. You couldn't pay me enough to do Keto, intermittent fasting, etc. The diet industry gets enough money-I'm not giving a cent of mine to do something that people rarely stick with long term and that means eating according to rules. My body knows best.
A lot of people use MFP to track calories and/or other nutrients. I need to track my calcium due to concerns for stress fractures/weak bones and my carbohydrates because I have type 1 diabetes.
Not dieting. And you're right. Don't believe in them.
Not arguing with anything you're saying.
Just curious as to why you would say that tracking calories and macros daily for the rest of your life would be any more sustainable than not eating before noon everyday for the rest of your life?
Anything to do with that being your preference? Just as intermittent fasting may be a preference for some?
Not trying to take this thing way off topic... just curious, I wont respond and drag this on after.2 -
RAD_Fitness wrote: »maureenseel1984 wrote: »Hi Maureen , that’s fair enough but if you don’t believe in diets why are you on MFP?
Who said My Fitness Pal has anything to do with "diets".
Tracking macros isn't dieting. You couldn't pay me enough to do Keto, intermittent fasting, etc. The diet industry gets enough money-I'm not giving a cent of mine to do something that people rarely stick with long term and that means eating according to rules. My body knows best.
A lot of people use MFP to track calories and/or other nutrients. I need to track my calcium due to concerns for stress fractures/weak bones and my carbohydrates because I have type 1 diabetes.
Not dieting. And you're right. Don't believe in them.
Not arguing with anything you're saying.
Just curious as to why you would say that tracking calories and macros daily for the rest of your life would be any more sustainable than not eating before noon everyday for the rest of your life?
Anything to do with that being your preference? Just as intermittent fasting may be a preference for some?
Not trying to take this thing way off topic... just curious, I wont respond and drag this on after.
Oh man-I'd rather die than have to do this for the rest of my life. I do use this sometimes also to generate nutrition facts labels for homemade recipes so I can figure out the carbs. My doc also asked me to track my calcium for a while to ensure I was getting enough.
I think the fact that dieting even started is behind a lot of the weight issues and body image issues in the US and many other developed countries. It's like it's expected that once you reach a certain age you should be working toward not aging...or toward avoiding weight gain. Our bodies change-it is a normal process....and yet we're all programmed to fight it.
I have given up on that idea and am just embracing who I am and how my body is. I did meet nice people on here that are fellow fans of yoga or running so there is the social aspect of this site too. *shrug* Just me. Others prefer to be on diets or...think they're necessary. It isn't for me. Causes more problems than it solves.3 -
So to keep myself accountable I'm going to post my monthly progress pics mid month in this thread... Feel free to join me on this wee journey to xmas.
Tonight is my 3rd pic since ditching the scales (so 8 weeks roughly). Admittedly I have drank alcohol and had a few more indulgences since ditching the logging but I do feel I am still making progress and actually find life sooo much easier.
Top left - Jan 19
Top right - mid may 19
Bottom left - mid June 19
Bottom right - today 15th July 19
If you have any questions feel free to ask
Spread love people x9 -
I used to be an emotional overeater. I started MFP a month ago.
I've been truthful with my food diary from day one. I generally log a few days in advance. This means that when I wake up in the morning, my meals are already planned.
If I want to eat something not in the diary, I look to see if I have the calories available. If not, I don't eat it. Plain and simple.
In two weeks, my cravings were gone. I no longer eat after dinner. It's been a natural process to eat healthier.
I now eat a plant based diet with eggs, seafood and dairy and am really happy and satisfied with the food. In the first 30 days, I lost 7.5 inches and 10 pounds.
If I can do it, you can, too.4 -
My weight yo-yo's by 5 pounds. Because I have a day or 2 where I don't care what I eat. Then I weigh myself and i'm like 'CRAP! Better get back to it!!' and then I drop back down within a day or 2. Its a cycle tho that I've fallen into in the last few months. But I've decided since losing 40 pounds that I want to lose more, so I have to get my head in the game.6
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Really struggling to get back on track. We have had family visiting for several weeks which is a little unusual this year. I also have grandchildren who are over often. The heat has been intense especially recently so we restrict our activities to certain times a day. I am determined to get back to where I was. Walking really early in the am, logging, and trying to eat on my schedule until things settle are my goals. Really hoping I can get back to where I was!2
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Monthly accountability photo.
Although it doesn't look like I have made any progress, I am actually happy. Completely unafraid of social situations and have eaten cake and drank alcohol at least once every weekend over the past month.
I have not had urge to binge so all good. Hopefully there's not a lag and I'll be chubby again by next photo,haha6 -
I can relate. I lost 60 pounds and gained 40 back when I went off of MFP. I have recently lost 10 and I am planning on losing about 30 more pounds. I have come to the realization that it is not a matter of eating to lose weight, but that if i want to be healthy, I need to eat the way I eat when I lose weight. If I eat a certain way, i will be more healthy and i will be able to maintain a weight and i won't feel hungry or have cravings. But, it doesn't take long to put my body in a position where it is craving foods and perpetually hungry. When I get off track, it is not will power that will fix the situation, it is getting back to eating the way I am now. So, I hope I can keep going after I lose my weight, but if I can't, I know what will happen.
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We all struggle with dieting. It’s difficult to go cold turkey and eat extremely healthy all the time. For me what I find is when I binge it’s Bc I’m stressed. Maybe when you feel like bingeing go and find a stress relief? Something like boxing or Martial Arts can be extremely good for moments like that. Hope this helps and you find what diet and schemes work best for you. Just remember the best diet is the one you can adhere to long term. Just keep tweaking and you’ll find something that works2
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Here's my monthly accountable pic.
It's been a bad month on weekends with stag doos / weddings / social events etc. I have entirely let go on these days and tried to get straight back on point the day after...not always successfully.
Anyway - progress isn't great but at same time I've not been hunting out the binges like I previously did.
Question: what do you think of a new thread just for the monthly progress pics? There's all these dramatic before and afters (which are awesome) but sometimes feel like people are riding on the crest of old successes. The monthly pic keeps me accountable - something about putting the vulnerable photo out there keeps me ticking along.
Who's with me?3
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