Motivation and support

I like to physically leave the food I'm not supposed to have in a different room. If I get too hungry later, I can eat carrots or something, which I have near me.

I don't have to do that forever. But I'm especially hungry as I start out and on random days! I think my stomach will shrink as I go; I've heard it literally gets bigger as you eat more over time. I figure that's why I'm so darned hungry at first when cutting calories? It growls, lol. I don't even cut many calories per day.

Oh, don't cut too many calories per day, either, if you can avoid it. That's much, much harder.

Yes, it has to! As long as you can tell you are eating less than before and you move at least as much as before, it'll happen 🙂🙂

I just "gained" a couple of lbs that are completely fake. There's no way it's possible. It's my muscles storing fuel from using them more. It'll go away within a few weeks. I feel like saying screw it today, but I know better because I remember how the scale can be!

Purplestuff102 wrote: »

How do I remember to slow down when I eat so I can stop overeating it’s like I do okay for a week then I slip up then conviently forget to keep doing it?

Be patient with yourself. It takes time to establish new habits.

When you notice you're eating too fast, remind yourself. Use techniques like putting down your fork (or whatever) between bites, or counting when you chew so you don't swallow so fast, or something like that.

As others have said, don't try to cut calories super far (and it's OK to taper slowly into a sensibly moderate calorie deficit by starting with a very small cut then cutting a little more daily once a week until you're at target intake, if that helps). Any calorie intake below your current maintenance calories will result in weight loss, just a little slower or faster depending on size of deficit. Think more about how to make loss easy, rather than fast.

Some other things you could experiment with:

Choose foods (and an eating schedule) that you find are the best for making you feel full and keeping you full.

Avoid multi-tasking while eating. Set aside a place to eat, and make it pleasant. Use nice dishes, sit at a table, etc. Focus on tasting and enjoying each bite of food, paying attention to the taste, texture, etc. (This kind of thing can be an antidote if previous habit has been to eat while watching TV or playing with phone or something, so just shoveling in the food at speed, not paying much attention.)

Consider drinking a cup of something no/low calorie and warm before eating a meal - some people find that blunts appetite, so could make it easier to slow down. One thing I did while losing weight, since I'm the household cook, was to start by cutting up a plate of low-cal filling finger-food veggies (celery, carrots, cucumber, radishes, cherry tomatoes etc.) and munch on those while cooking. By the time I got to serving the meal, my appetite was blunted.

If part of the issue is that you're busy and stressed the rest of your day, so tend to power through meals/snacks at that same routine, frantic pace, create a ritual for yourself where you intentionally slooooow yourself down before you eat. Do a couple dozen slow, deep breaths (slow inhale, slow exhale, maybe a hold in between, counting to yourself) just paying attention to the breath. Or, stretch slowly a little bit in ways that feel good, release some tension/stress in your body. If you're religious, do a longer prayer (spoken or silent) before eating. When you've calmed, take that calm into eating.

Good luck!

Only put on your plate what you have weighed and measured and deemed appropriate for that meal. Then eat as fast as you want! I am also a fast eater.