The lockdown hasn't been good to me?
dave_in_ni
Posts: 533 Member
Lost 60lbs 4 years ago, kept it off until now. I knew I was gaining in lockdown but didn't want to admit it. I stepped on the scales this morning, up 10lbs in 2 weeks. I need to nip that in the bud before it gets out of hand. Okay I am not working, however, as those in the UK will know we are allowed out to exercise and I have been out every day walking or running. Yesterday was a 5-mile walk for example. Its the amount of junk food I have been eating and not tracking that's the issue, not much else to do when around the house.
I do need to lose the weight but I know my mindset isn't in the right place to do it at the moment. I guess junk food brings comfort at the moment with the way things are. Then we have Easter coming up and the house is full of Easter Eggs.
Anyone else going through this at the moment? Or how do you get yourself in the right mindset again?
I do need to lose the weight but I know my mindset isn't in the right place to do it at the moment. I guess junk food brings comfort at the moment with the way things are. Then we have Easter coming up and the house is full of Easter Eggs.
Anyone else going through this at the moment? Or how do you get yourself in the right mindset again?
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Replies
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Yes! I’ve been within a 2 lb range of my maintenance weight for about 4 months.
Went on lock down 4 weeks ago. Gained 5 lbs above my higher maintenance number. I had almost given up on maintaining my maintenance weight till after things got back to normal. Then last week something clicked. I’m not going backwards for nothing!! It’s too much work to get back there! I’ve been looking at more exercise and adding yoga for stress relief. Reading more( no food commercials) I feel I’m back in control. Screw Easter candy, you’ve got this!!14 -
frankiesgirlie wrote: »Yes! I’ve been within a 2 lb range of my maintenance weight for about 4 months.
Went on lock down 4 weeks ago. Gained 5 lbs above my higher maintenance number. I had almost given up on maintaining my maintenance weight till after things got back to normal. Then last week something clicked. I’m not going backwards for nothing!! It’s too much work to get back there! I’ve been looking at more exercise and adding yoga for stress relief. Reading more( no food commercials) I feel I’m back in control. Screw Easter candy, you’ve got this!!
Yes thats exactly how I thought, no point maintaining until things get back to normal. I think with stepping on those scales I had been avoiding really woke me up9 -
You've got this, sounds like you had your wake-up call. I went the other direction, controlled what I could and channeled my stress into workouts and totally overdid it! I currently have ice packs on my calves and no cardio/lower leg weights until they recover. I'm used to doing a variety of cardio and lately it's been a lot of walking/dancing/wanna-be HIIT videos on You Tube. I figure one of the few things I can control right now is what I put in my mouth and how I respond to this. I'm not able to get all my staples food-wise so I'm trying to be creative with recipes for what I do have. I also don't live with anyone so it makes it easier to keep food I can't moderate out of the house. I'm listening to a lot of music to stay upbeat, reading, watching a little TV, and trying not to go stir-crazy being alone. I was recently talking to my dad about how it feels like life is paused but we're still aging and time is still passing despite it. I'd rather be closer to goals even if they're harder to strive for right now than go back to old ways.10
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I just read an article on this topic in the news here. A dietician saying that in times of stress we instinctively crave high fat and high sugar/carb foods, so that we are more likely to indulge during this crisis. She emphasized that while it's normal behavior, it's very easy to revert to old bad habits or create new bad habits, which might be difficult to get rid of once the crisis is over. Even just small habits like a few potato chips or a glass of wine every day can lead to weight gain long term, so we should be mindful and try to keep/create healthy habits during this period.16
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I just read an article on this topic in the news here. A dietician saying that in times of stress we instinctively crave high fat and high sugar/carb foods, so that we are more likely to indulge during this crisis. She emphasized that while it's normal behavior, it's very easy to revert to old bad habits or create new bad habits, which might be difficult to get rid of once the crisis is over. Even just small habits like a few potato chips or a glass of wine every day can lead to weight gain long term, so we should be mindful and try to keep/create healthy habits during this period.
Man that makes a lot of sense! I too last weekend had the urge to eat EVERYTHING. After 3 days I was like, nope I'm not going backwards! So for 5 days I've stuck to my calorie goals. I've felt so much better sticking to goal and plan. It gives me control over something I can't control11 -
Its certainly easy to slip into old habits. I discovered even after 4 years my old habits never left and were lingering for an opportunity like this to reappear and they surely did. I have a bad food addiction, I can't moderate anything, I can't have 1 piece of chocolate, no one piece of chocolate opens the flood gates and I eat until I feel sick, and boy can I eat when I put my mind to it. It was this reason I gave up alcohol also, can't have 1 beer, nope no point even drinking if only having 1 beer.19
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it might be easier to concentrate on maintaining first... then worry about creating a deficit instead of going straight from a surplus to a deficit.
that said:
a) no you can't wait for normal, especially if you're gaining
b) unless the Easter eggs are truly special for you in terms of meaning/tradition/what have you... *kitten* the easter eggs for now. You can always buy some from the discount bin once you've got things back under control--assuming you even care about them by then.11 -
I'm feeling this too, I'm exercising when I can but I'm barely getting 3000 steps in while working at home and the cravings have won recently. I darent get on the scales!
I started off thinking ok its a couple of weeks I'll go for maintenance and treat it like a holiday - i.e eating loads and not logging.
Shopping is difficult too, the choice and opportunity isn't there at the moment so it's harder to buy fresh and easier to get takeaways or convenience food.
I have 12 days off work now so I'm going to use the time to adjust to this temporary norm.
I've got some jobs to do around the house and garden to keep myself busy.
I've got time to cook properly so I need to get organised with the shopping, or just be creative with what i can get.
I'm also getting back to basics, drink plenty of water, go to bed at a sensible time and pre plan/log my meals.
Your 10lbs won't all be fat, eating more food and particularly more junk food will result in some water weight so don't despair.
Think back to how you lost those 60lbs and how good it felt, try putting some of your strategies back into your daily routine. Can you try a new hobby to keep you from boredom eating? Or are you able to volunteer? Our town is constantly asking for people to help deliver foods and medicines to the elderly and vulnerable.3 -
The Quarantine Fifteen is real....I think a lot of people are struggling.6
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A friend of mine referred to it as the covid nineteen.16
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it might be easier to concentrate on maintaining first... then worry about creating a deficit instead of going straight from a surplus to a deficit.
that said:
a) no you can't wait for normal, especially if you're gaining
b) unless the Easter eggs are truly special for you in terms of meaning/tradition/what have you... *kitten* the easter eggs for now. You can always buy some from the discount bin once you've got things back under control--assuming you even care about them by then.
This is my plan. I've got 25-30 pounds to lose, but for now I'm just trying to hold steady. We went into lockdown March 31st here (not as long as many people, I know). March 31st I was 202.8, and this morning I'm 202.8. I'm taking that as a victory! My mental state has gone up and down and up during it all. I do the most I can when I'm up, and do the minimum that I can when I'm down. I literally have had to force myself to go outside for a 10 minute walk, but I definitely felt an improvement after I did!11 -
I feel your pain and sometimes you just have to get pissed off at yourself and snap back into the routine. I did exactly that yesterday. Feeling gloomy, down on myself, going back to excuse making, and then got pissed, got up, went downstairs and did 54 min on my spin bike. Relieved my stress completely and turned my day around.. Don't screw up and let all that work be for nothing!10
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Same for me, and even worst, as immediately before the lockdown I just come through a very stressful time at work, that already made my weight grow a bit. And before all that, I was only 4 lb away from my maintenance target! Too bad! I'm not sure to be able to come back to my "old" calories target during the lockdown, but I've to manage a kind of strategy to limit the damage...4
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I don't have much more weight to lose so at the moment I am focusing on maintenance. However I am really concentrating on exercise - doing something vigorous really helps me mentally as well as physically.
It's hard to avoid junk food when stressed, but maybe focus on the fact that you want to be in the best shape you can in case you are unlucky enough to get the virus. Weight is a risk factor, according to what I have read, so might that motivate you to log more assiduously?
Anyway, good luck and stay well.1 -
I cut my calories about 20% in an effort to hold steady. I’ve just made it a point to not change my eating habits, to walk and run outdoors a lot (I have the luxury of an underutilized but great bike trail a four minute walk away).
But mainly I’ve stayed busy inside. I do a couple of live online mat classes every day, created a lengthy to-do list of everything I could ever imagine wanting to do (all completed now), and have painted two of the three floors in the house. I stay on my feet cooking and washing up three meals a day (I usually only cook one), and when I do sit, am doing a lot of crafting.
I am doing my utmost best to keep my hands busy and out of my mouth.
When I do sit and surf the internet, I try to have a cat in my lap demanding to be petted (hands busy, remember?!) or have a nice low cal chai latte at hand. Hot drinks keep me from craving and chai is comforting and satisfying.
Have enjoyed the extra time with my husband, too, especially the painting. We’ve been laughing and giggling.
I guess I’m tragically boring, but I’m having the time of my life. It’s been like playing a challenge with myself. It’ll be four weeks tomorrow for me.
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Maintenance via my default when I’m stressed or something changes in my routine. If I can maintain my weight during this period I reckon I’m on to a winner.7
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It's always about habits and routines for me. When some results in a dramatic shift in those routines, they fall apart. Early on in this mess, I lost my eating habits and exercise. So reestablish some routines. Walking 2 miles every day is more important than walking 5 miles every few days. I started with that and the other routines started to fall back into place.8
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I'm up and down. I have days where I workout to a few different videos or lift weights. Next day, I'm craving sugar and very tired. I have still been able to lose a bit or no gain some weeks. It's an energy rollercoaster for me. Hang in there.4
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dave_in_ni wrote: »Lost 60lbs 4 years ago, kept it off until now. I knew I was gaining in lockdown but didn't want to admit it. I stepped on the scales this morning, up 10lbs in 2 weeks. I need to nip that in the bud before it gets out of hand. Okay I am not working, however, as those in the UK will know we are allowed out to exercise and I have been out every day walking or running. Yesterday was a 5-mile walk for example. Its the amount of junk food I have been eating and not tracking that's the issue, not much else to do when around the house.
I do need to lose the weight but I know my mindset isn't in the right place to do it at the moment. I guess junk food brings comfort at the moment with the way things are. Then we have Easter coming up and the house is full of Easter Eggs.
Anyone else going through this at the moment? Or how do you get yourself in the right mindset again?
If your mindset isn't in the right place to do it at the moment, I'd say at least log your food honestly right now. When you mindset catches up to realizing what you need to do, you'll have all the data that you need to do it. That can be very powerful to you.
Everyone is feeling stress right now, cut yourself a bit of slack(not too much!)
(j/k 😁)
...and you'll be fine.
4
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