Sick and tired of being sick and tired

Lynden74
Lynden74 Posts: 7 Member
edited March 2023 in Introduce Yourself
Recovering from belief I can only be healthy if I eat Paleo (therefore if I couldn't eat Paleo I did nothing). Wanting to just focus on whole foods, not necessarily eliminating food groups. I've also always shunned CICO but it's time to buckle down. It terrifies me because I'm not a regimented person, my schedule varies week to week and tracking food has always seems like a chore.

Working to get my life organized again so I can make tracking more doable. And also need to focus on the outcomes vs the pain. I have ~50 lb to loose and am almost 50. I DO believe a healthy, vibrant life can be my future.

Replies

  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 8,481 Member
    I may not explain this very clearly, but…..

    It strikes me that if you were organized enough to eat paleo to the nth degree, calorie counting should only be a different kind of challenge.

    I’d caution you to carefully lower yourself into the CICO waters and “whole food” eating if you’ve got a previous history of unusual eating problems. You don’t want to substitute one headache for another.

    I successfully lost 97 pounds starting at 56 using CICO. There was no “pain”.

    It did, however, require thought, careful weighing and logging, planning and follow through.

    No pain whatsoever, and in fact, a lot easier journey than I expected.

    I’ve been able to eat anything I want within my calorie goals, but I’ve found that I’ve naturally tended towards “better” foods as I’ve had to make choices of calories here versus offsetting cuts there. When I’ve gone over, I let it go the next day and don’t beat myself up over weakness.

    It’s only painful if YOU choose to make it so.

  • Lynden74
    Lynden74 Posts: 7 Member
    Thanks for your thoughts @springlering62.

    Just to clarify... I wasn't able to stay the course with Paleo for more than a few days (other than committing to a Whole30 and then falling back into old habits). But I had constant food guilt and feeling like a failure b/c I wasn't successful sticking with Paleo.

    When I've tried calorie counting programs in the past they've recommended such a drastic cut in calories I always failed after a couple weeks as I would start getting sick (hypothyroidism so very sensitive to drastic change). I've set my calorie goal here for very slow weight loss so it feels more doable.

    And ... The pain for me IS the planning and sticking to the plan!! It is not naturally easy for me to stick to a schedue. I'm trying to parent myself thru this 😁.

    I have no problem at home, but when I'm tired during a 12-hour shift my defenses are down and I'll reach for comfort vs the foods I've brought - or often can't get away for meal breaks so I'm reaching for easy foods. All a work in progress.
  • penny9121
    penny9121 Posts: 1 Member
    I'm bad with staying on track. I'm good for a few weeks then boom I'm back to old habits. Today I had a fruit cup, egg and a real tbsp of peanut butter at 9am and now I'm "starving". But I think we can do this. I'm 57, have some medical issues and I'm 255 lbs. IVE GOY TO DO SOMETHING. Add me as a friend if u like. We CAN do this. May not be pretty, but we can try.
  • Lynden74
    Lynden74 Posts: 7 Member
    @penny9121 Same here. I eat my emotions, live alone and am introverted so reaching out takes extra effort. I am a feeler so very affected by the world around me and food plays in here. So many opportunities for change 😁!

    Hoping if I stay the course, lose some weight and feel better I will have the confidence and energy to engage more socially.

    My breakfast has been a very dense, high fiber bread I make with chia, flax, teff, buckwheat, millet, nuts...and usually eat with peanut butter. Quite good at tiding me over for hours and something that's easy to take to work. I don't want to do too much at once but I eventually want to focus on getting more high quality protein early in the day.

    👊💪🤞
  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 8,481 Member
    Lynden74 wrote: »
    I'm trying to parent myself thru this 😁.

    Boy, if this isn’t the best way of putting it I’ve heard since I’ve been here!

    I, too, reached for familiar treats and comfort food to shepherd me through life.

    It just comes to the point you’ve got to have replacement foods on tap, and learn to love ‘em.

    I never thought I’d like diet soda. Or tea, for that matter.

    A good protein bar is just as tasty and more filling than a candy bar. And thankfully, they’re expensive enough that I balk at casually scarfing a whole box at once. I really love the Nugo dark chocolate bar series.

    What about having a simple low-carb tortilla wrap filled with either deli ham or a few ounces seasoned grilled chicken on hand? That would be 100 or less, the protein would be filling, and to me, “meat” signals a meal, which relaxes my brain.
  • Lynden74
    Lynden74 Posts: 7 Member
    You've got me thinking... My all-or-nothing brain tries to do 100% whole/unprocessed/from scratch and then I eventually get in trouble. Fortunately I don't drink my calories - I'm a water, tea person. But I am going to look for a good protein bar to have at work and yes, love the idea of the simple wrap. I was just thinking I need to have quick, easy 'meal options'.

    I'm starting a 5-day stretch of 12 hour shifts tmrw so today will be lots of food prep. And I know myself- if I don't have some tasty, savory options lined up I'll be grabbing bags of chips on repeat a few days in...

    Thanks for your ideas!
  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 8,481 Member
    I had the epiphany that, since I can’t just eat one serving of chips at a sitting anyway, I’d be getting a lot more bang for my calorie bucks by substituting two servings of airpopped popcorn.

    It only takes a couple minutes to make and it travels well.

    You can also make oil free popcorn in a plain brown paper lunch bag folded, in a microwave, but you don’t get as high a percent of the kernels to pop.

    Truffle salt is zero calorie and will rock your popcorn world. Someone here also put me on to mixing butter or margarine and soy sauce on popcorn. That’s next level. I use 1 portion margarine to three of soy sauce.

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