Do you find dieting easy? (as in counting calories and exercising)
cyaneverfat
Posts: 527 Member
Did you come up with a plan to reduce how many calories you were taking in, such as fasting or starting your day off with a walk?
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Replies
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It's not clear from your title what you're asking. Did you what to know how people got started? Or how they made it easier on themselves?
Small changes are better for most people, so your suggestion of committing to a small walk each day is a good idea if you can do that consistently.
Most people have a big learning curve just working out logging their calorie intake accurately, so my best suggestion for anyone getting started to make it easy on themselves would be a) don't set it to lose more than 1kg a week (less if you have less weight to lose, why make yourself miserable? b) spend time working out how much your actually eating before turning things around too much C) don't change everything at once.1 -
It's not clear from your title what you're asking. Did you what to know how people got started? Or how they made it easier on themselves?
Small changes are better for most people, so your suggestion of committing to a small walk each day is a good idea if you can do that consistently.
Most people have a big learning curve just working out logging their calorie intake accurately, so my best suggestion for anyone getting started to make it easy on themselves would be a) don't set it to lose more than 1kg a week (less if you have less weight to lose, why make yourself miserable? b) spend time working out how much your actually eating before turning things around too much C) don't change everything at once.
The title is missing a word. It should say do you find dieting easy?1 -
Yes, it is. Just eat a bit less. Exercising is not necessary, but so good for general fitness and health.4
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The concept is simple. However, I do not find it "easy".3
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Not easy but doable That's what I keep telling myself - this is doable.1
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hard... but then again i have no idea what im doing
I am 5'2 so being short as alot of disadvantages lol.
like impssoble to lose weight without exercise.1 -
Relatively easy execution-wise. I just eat whatever I want when it's worth it, I don't have to keep up with any convoluted rules. Mentally, more challenging but doable. Sometimes I'm tempted to eat something even when it's not worth it.
I play games for exercise/play games while I exercise, so I don't find that part challenging to keep up at all.
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I find it very easy, most of the time.
So easy that I'm angry at myself for not doing it earlier (I could have saved myself many stretch marks).
The trickiest part for me is eating out/family dinners, especially in the evening: aside from having to guess my calories, evening meals make it hard to compensate for higher than estimated (or sometimes lower than estimated) calories.
I think a key factor in my success was the fact that I chose a weight loss rate of 0.5lbs per week, so I didn't feel too restricted.5 -
It began to get easier for me once the voice woke up in my head and said "discipline". Everything you do in life will require some discipline.3
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I find it very easy, most of the time.
So easy that I'm angry at myself for not doing it earlier (I could have saved myself many stretch marks).
The trickiest part for me is eating out/family dinners, especially in the evening: aside from having to guess my calories, evening meals make it hard to compensate for higher than estimated (or sometimes lower than estimated) calories.
I think a key factor in my success was the fact that I chose a weight loss rate of 0.5lbs per week, so I didn't feel too restricted.
Yes! I believe going easy was the reason I could do it sustainably. I went for 1 lb when people my weight go for 2 lb, then 0.5 when people go for 1. I also took maintenance days/weeks/months when I needed them (I needed to lose nearly 150 lbs, so I had to think long term and give myself breaks)4 -
No. It would be simpler not to log what I eat and sit like a couch potato all the time. I'm very familiar with that way of living. It's how I got to have a circumference roughly equal to my height. I also felt weak and incapable of doing much so everything else seemed hard.
Changing the eating habits of a lifetime is hard. Getting exercise established as a regular thing to do is hard. But I feel better and everything else is easier.
Basically, making eating choices to fit within a daily calorie limit is not terribly hard. I just make choices. I just schedule gym/pool times. And I get rewarded with lower numbers on the scale and more energy.5 -
It will come with some discomfort, yes.
Anything worth having has some of that.
It is so worth it.
Just do it.7 -
For me, I tried to make it as easy as possible...I didn't follow any named "diet plan" that would restrict the types of foods I could or could not eat. I didn't limit myself to eating only at certain times of the day. I kept eating most of the foods I always ate, just reduced the amount I was eating. I hate when things are over-complicated for no reason...that just annoys me and stresses me out.
Doing it this way has enabled me to maintain after I reached my goal weight. I didn't feel deprived to the point of needing to go back to old habits. If you torture yourself to lose weight, there's little chance that you'll be able to maintain your loss in the long term.
To be clear, I'm not saying it's "easy", but there are ways to make it less difficult.2 -
I do not think this is an "easy" thing to do, though I believe it's different for each person. The concepts are simple- move more, consume less calories and/or more nutritious things- but working to change a lifetime of habits can take a great deal of discipline and consistent effort. It's so easy to fall into old habits when you're tested by stress, social pressure, or even just burnout from all the effort you've been expending.
The good news is, the longer you do it, the easier it gets. Exercise starts to feel good, and eventually it becomes part of your daily routine like taking a shower or brushing your teeth. Nutritious foods become part of your average, everyday diet. I agree with everyone who said to start slow- these changes don't happen overnight.
I grew up eating many things I would eat only very small portions of now. There were lots of fast foods, processed crud, and sweets. I ate ice cream every single night. I did very little exercise and struggled with physical activities that my peers seemed naturally good at. It took me years of stopping and starting to make changes to finally feel like physical activity is just part of who I am now and to make nutritious foods my default.
I never thought I would be the kind of person that others look to as athletic and healthy, but now I am. It was not an "easy" journey, and I still struggle anytime I try to make a new change. But I am a thousand miles from where I was, and it has all been 100% worth it.
Figure out what you can realistically accomplish for the next week- is it going for a walk some mornings? Is it accurately tracking what you consume? Is it swapping sugary soda for sugar-free tea or sparkling water? Find a small change you think is doable, and concentrate on that. Once that feels natural and you're ready, add something else. At some point you will "fall off the wagon" or not meet the expectations you set for yourself- that's OK. Accept that you are a human and try again. Consistent effort will eventually yield change, and one day it won't be so much of a struggle.
You can accomplish SO MUCH with time and effort. If it were easy, everyone would do it. But trust me- you can.2 -
The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new. - Socrates -
One day, I rid myself of my books about dieting. I flipped the switch. I am focused on long term weight stability. Permanent weight stability. I no longer care about diets or dieting. I edged my way down slowly, ever so slowly.
It gave me time to defy my brain every step of the way. Tiny steps for tiny feet. I lingered long on the process. It made my brain mad but it made me glad. Pleasure always comes from the outside but joy arises from the inside. I had to dig deep to find my answers so that rebound weight gain with friends wouldn't show right back up on my doorstep. Again and again and again. Starting over and over and over.
Think waaaaay into the future. There's no such thing as the Finish Line. Thinking about everything in short time increments only teaches the brain that constant starts and stops will get there. You can always start later and find that magical time to begin. Constant starts and stops build limited skill sets. Short term success or progress followed by long term frustration.
If we don't build the ability to get fit under real life conditions it won't stick. Life has no pause button. Life has no reset button. Life keeps going. Find the deeper reasons for doing all of this and you'll no longer have to go on another diet. The brain will throw fits.
Just allow your heart to give you the answers, answers, answers that your brain refuses to see and listen to.6 -
It's getting the motivation to start the uphill climb that is hardest. Once you're on the way it's not as bad as you thought it would be.
Personally I find it very, VERY hard to get going with calorie counting/ exercise, but once I have started and can feel some small results, it gets a lot easier to stay with it.2 -
The danger of assuming that it will be hard is that you may make it harder than it needs to be and/or accept hardships you do not actually need.
Assume that it will be easy and question the things that make it seem hard. You will have to live with some of them.
Realistically expect to have good days and bad days because life works that way even when you are not trying to lose weight.8 -
It's getting the motivation to start the uphill climb that is hardest. Once you're on the way it's not as bad as you thought it would be.
Personally I find it very, VERY hard to get going with calorie counting/ exercise, but once I have started and can feel some small results, it gets a lot easier to stay with it.
This is me.
Once I got started and especially once I got an exercise routine going, I found it easy and I tried to make it as fun as possible. But during maintenance I struggle off and on (and currently need to get my exercise habit back to where it was).
Logging can be bit confusing at first, but I've actually found it mostly fun when I'm doing it (just started logging again). It can be quite interesting to learn what you are eating and the cals and macros in it, etc.
My plan was just to understand what I was eating and then cut back on higher cal foods/portions in a way that wouldn't leave me feeling like I was eating less volume-wise or enjoying my food less. I tended to get extra cals from snacking (boredom or emotional eating or just "it's here, so I should eat it"), so I did strictly cut that out, which was good since I'd generally have and feel satisfied by the same cals at meals whether I snacked or not. But how many times a day to eat, IFing or not, breakfast or not, all those things are just personal preference so find what works for you.0 -
The exercise part for me is very easy...my primary exercise is road cycling or trail riding on my mountain bike. I also do some hiking here and there, usually when I'm out camping. I enjoy these things very much, so they are easy.
Cutting back on calories, while simple enough is more difficult for me from a discipline standpoint. A modest deficit is pretty easy to handle, but it's a matter of discipline in skipping that snack or desert or whatever.
I usually put on about 8 to 10 pounds over the winter and take it off in the spring when my exercise increases...I don't necessarily "diet"...I basically have the same eating pattern, but with more exercise. It is difficult for me right now because I've been laid up most of the summer with injury so I've been able to do very little in regards to exercise and have had to watch my calories just to maintain and not add to my winter weight that I put on.0 -
It's all a matter of opinion and habit. I DON'T find it hard. I have lots of clients who struggle. I don't party, drink wine, or socialize a lot outside of the gym. And when I do go to parties or gatherings, I CONTROL how much I consume.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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It gets easier as time goes on.2
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I found the process simple, but the doing not always easy.
Set a calorie goal, count the calorie intake to the best of my ability/willingness, estimate the calories out, eat them back, watch the scale, adjust the goals, repeat for months: Pretty simple, as a set of practices.
Figuring out how not to feel hungry, how to minimize cravings, how to make myself move more when I don't feel like it, how to be happy living in a different way over the long term, etc.: Not always easy.
If the problem is with paragraph 2 above, then start with this thread (ignore the joke/click-bait title, it's OK):
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1
. . . then read other posts in the "Most Helpful Posts" part of the "Getting Started" and "General Health, Fitness & Diet" parts of the forum, as you have time. Direct links to those:
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10300331/most-helpful-posts-getting-started-must-reads#latest
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10300319/most-helpful-posts-general-health-fitness-and-diet-must-reads#latest
That's the easy part. Then there's the stuff in paragraph 3 above, the potentially hard behavioral part. That's all about considering your own needs, strengths, limitations, challenges, etc., persistently trying things, learning from mis-steps rather than being defeated by them, and sticking with it until you have a process that fits you, is sustainable, and that requires as little willpower as you can make it require.
Best wishes!1 -
By and large each step has been easy. Where it has been hard has been behavioral triggers that I discovered, and emotions hidden under the poundage. But even when it's gotten hard, it's never been more than I could handle. And, worst case scenario, I engage in harm reduction; I eat a little more, and go to bed, because tomorrow is a new day and I'll feel better then, and I always do.1
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I think this is different for everyone. But for me, it's hard. But I love it. I'd much rather be working hard on myself than sitting in a recliner watching Netflix (although both have their places).
Being motivated and putting the work into a goal is so rewarding. Not just in the long term, but during my workouts, and each day. The sacrifices don't really bother me. Alot of it is about perspective and what you focus on.1 -
Yes and no. Once I am in the routine, and have set in what works for me, it is pretty easy. However, all it takes is one small slip up to fall off the path, and when I fall - I fall.
It's so hard for me to get back into a good thing, and that is where I'm at right now, unfortunately.0 -
cyaneverfat wrote: »Did you come up with a plan to reduce how many calories you were taking in, such as fasting or starting your day off with a walk?
I find it easy to record all my meals, and they mostly come in under my calorie goal.
I find it hard to sustain a proper exercise program, but I walk fairly often.0 -
cyaneverfat wrote: »Did you come up with a plan to reduce how many calories you were taking in, such as fasting or starting your day off with a walk?
I started by logging my food for a week just to see exactly how many calories I was putting in my body. I didn't pay attention to the calorie amount that MyFitnessPal gave to me; i weighed whatever i ate, wrote it down, then logged. Once I had a grasp of what kind of foods I was putting on my body (I wasn't getting as much fruits and vegetables in my diet. It was also very meat and starch heavy), i began to incorporate what i needed to and adjust to it slowly.
While doing that I was trying to exercise as much as I could. I was doing some weight lifting and I would jog or run for cardio. I didn't log exercises as i didnt have anything that tracked the calories burned. I eventually bought a vivoactive 3 to help me with that.
About three or four months after I did all that I started to follow Autumn Calabrese diet recommendation for 80 day obsession while doing 80 day obsession. I just completed day 48.0 -
For me, I don't find it difficult. I don't track so I just reduce portion sizes or cut down on snacks. I am always working out so that doesn't change.
Now gaining on purpose, that can get hard for me.1 -
Counting calories can be time consuming, especially with meals with many, combined ingredients. This is true even when loading the recipe into mfp, when the database has ingredients with different measurement units, not mentioning the accuracy of some entries.
Exercising takes obviously takes time, as well. I love to take my three mile morning mountain hike/walk everyday for a multitude of reasons. And, most mornings, I usually think that I don’t want to. This thought is often followed with a self-admonishment that I’m retired and I have the time and with me, impressing upon myself, that I need to do this.
The level of difficulty or amount of time something takes can be overcome with goals that are important to you enough for you to be willing to work towards them.1
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