your mistakes made

knightreader · August 2019

forcing myself to try to lose weight when I wasn't mentally ready. I was setting myself up to fail every time. Only time I was successful was when I was mentally ready for the hard work, sacrifices, and determination.

lgfrie · August 2019

I've made many dieting mistakes, but the only one that really counts is: not getting back on the scale the morning after an unexpected blow-out meal. That singular fork in the road has been responsible for every diet fail and subsequent re-gain I've ever had. It's just too easy to then say "OK, I obviously need a full day off to get my batteries recharged here" and that becomes "I'll get re-started promptly on Monday" and then it's "First of November, I'm back on it" and then it becomes a New Year's resolution. And meanwhile, the scale collects dust and I get more and more reluctant to get on it, because I know I've gained weight and don't want to face the number.

Now, when I have an unexpected gorge, I immediately get back on the scale the next morning, record it, and move on.

durhammfp · August 2019

Pre-MFP my mistakes were that 1) I first thought I could out-exercise a bad-for-me WOE and 2) I reacted to that by then going on an extreme diet, eliminating entire food categories. WIth the first mistake I did not lose weight. With the second, I lost a pound per week for 12 weeks but was resentful the entire time and then something just broke, I fell off the wagon, and regained all I had lost plus a little more.

Since starting to use MFP seriously (beginning last Oct 1) I have lost around 40 pounds. I think I'm pretty good at tracking/trending but some old habits are hard to break. The main one is that I tend to be a polite eater--If a relative or friend insists I have something that I don't even want to eat and is not in my calorie budget, I still may eat it so as to not to disappoint them.

PrincessMelodyj · August 2019

I would agree with others, the big thing was not weighing my food. It makes all the difference. Also, for me snacking at night did me in so many times...so now I make sure to have low fat/low carb snack stuff like Greek Yogurt and Fiber One bars instead of chips and junk food. Also no alcohol for me...it stalls my weight loss.

FireyChimera · August 2019

obsessing over my weight and calories, I threw out the scale and focus on feeling good

eelamme · August 2019

Not prelogging. If I attempt to log the night before I tend to stick with what I intended. If I go off of cravings and log later on, I regret it. Same with meal prep. If I don't have something ready to grab and go waiting in the fridge then door dash or Uber eats it is.

mittencat77 · August 2019

This is a really interesting thread!

I think my major mistakes would have been:
- endless cardio without weight training
- Eating big pieces of cheese at various times of day and thinking they didn’t really count
- Trying to go low carb (always made me feel insane within three days)
- Lacking patience
- Not tracking food

Best things I have done:
- heavy weights with trainer
- Tracking everything
- Being patient
- Eating anything in moderation
- Learning how many calories are things and then deciding if it is really what I want
- Regular cardio, with one long cardio workout a week
- Not focusing too much on outcome; more on process and developing habits

The one continual struggle: I don’t drink a lot, but I like beer or wine on the weekends. Doesn’t take much to pack in the calories...and then I am always thinking “some chips/cheese/peanuts..whatever would go well with this!” Sigh!

derbygraham · September 2019

My biggest mistake is not being able to control my foodaholic tendencies. If I have one piece of cake, I end up eating the whole cake. If i intend to have one biscuit I end up eating the whole packet. One spoon of pasta and sauce ends up being ten spoons, you get the idea of the problem.

zippie2223 · September 2019

Not starting weights sooner

Danp · September 2019

Being emotionally invested in the scale number.

It was a huge step forward for me when I was able to divorce my emotions from the scale and begin to view my weigh ins in a more cold, clinical manner and see the numbers as just points of data, almost in a scientific sense.

This turned getting on the scales and seeing a significant weight increase from being a negative upsetting experience to merely useful and interesting data that I could use to improve my approach and results.

wendyheath32 · September 2019

Lost the weight went into maintainance. I creeped up 10lbs in 2 seperate points ( about 5 lbs a time) months as I had stopped weighing my food and myself. Now back on a small deficit to get rid of these 10 lbs two have vanished already. Also due to my back getting bad I couldn't exercise as much and wasn't as active and my main mistake was not changing it on mfp and I was eating to much

koalathebear · September 2019

I'm not sure they were mistakes rather than still just finding my way, but in the early days I assumed that I had to deprive myself and eat 'healthy' food that I might not like.

It was only over time that I realised I could offset calories eaten with calories exercised so I found that I didn't have to stick within the ceiling of 1200 calories but could significantly boost it with exercise.

There were also times when I misread the nutritional values and assumed that the value was for the whole food item rather than just a serving. I've realised since starting my health journey that the recommended portion size on food is kind of teeny tiny and pathetic!!! I mean I would never be satisfied with the ice cream serving size they have on the nutritional label.

lgfrie · September 2019

My biggest mistake was letting a binge day turn into a binge weekend and then a binge week and binge month, and binge year. And there might've been a binge decade in there too. Nowadays, I embrace my binge meals and enjoy them ... and get right back on the scale and calorie logging first thing the next morning. It's made all the difference.

Binging is going to happen. I've learned that it's all about what happens after the binge.

wendyheath32 · September 2019

lgfrie wrote: »

My biggest mistake was letting a binge day turn into a binge weekend and then a binge week and binge month, and binge year. And there might've been a binge decade in there too. Nowadays, I embrace my binge meals and enjoy them ... and get right back on the scale and calorie logging first thing the next morning. It's made all the difference.

Binging is going to happen. I've learned that it's all about what happens after the binge.

I do this it's really helped. No guilt now over it just acceptance and moving on from it

steveko89 · September 2019

Not doing any QA/QC on my logging and wondering why I was spinning my wheels. I'd gotten lazy with logging and when I really took a hard look at my data it'd lost all integrity. I was only logging 4.5 days per week with Friday night thru Sunday usually being blank. Locked down my logging and started dropping weight requisite to expectations.

ljarrett526 · September 2019

Not staying with calorie goal

mi_nina_lola · September 2019

i did keto to lose 20 lbs. i am now in maintenance and am happy about that. if i was smart - i'd have started doing weights back then. i lost fat, but also a lot of muscle.

last year i had pneumonia and an eye surgery where i was forced to be sedentary *on two separate occasions*, and on top of that - lymphoma. i have JUST started doing weights under with a trainer in the last month. i am ridiculously weak, but i realize i have to start somewhere.

i was not paying much attention to my protein levels, and not eating nearly enough. i've started eating 250 calories more daily and am not gaining any weight.

learning about our bodies is an ongoing process. better late than never.

kds10 · September 2019

All or nothing way of trying to lose weight. If I ate something I considered "bad" I would use that as an excuse to blow the rest of the day because I can start fresh tomorrow only often to have the same thing happen.

I no longer do that..I eat pizza/sweets/chips but in moderation. This attitude I had of have to eat perfect is long gone thus so are 30+ pounds. It is very freeing. Not always easy but I am getting better at being okay with still feeling like I could have eaten more.

SCoil123 · September 2019

I made two big mistakes along the way
#1 - I placed advice of what had worked for others above what I felt better doing and what worked for me. Example being 5-6 small meals a day. I always went over calories and was never satisfied. It was miserable. When I started eating when I was hungry and simply tracking the calories and nutrients at those times it clicked.
#2 - The first time I lost weight (almost 90lb) I got complacent and “too busy” to keep doing what I did to get there. I gained around 30lb back and ended up on this site. Now back in maintenance I’m more aware and continue tracking so it won’t happen again.

sandhillsmom · September 2019

the biggest mistake I have made is not giving any change in y life style changes time to actually work. I didn't gain these extra 80 pounds overnight. I cannot expect an overnight change once I started working on eating better and being better to myself. It took time to get to this heavy point in my life, It will take time to see a change and make progress.

your mistakes made

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