I've kinda stopped caring...

Scoobies87 · September 2011

Up until a few weeks ago I was religious with MFP. I was netting at 800-900 cals a day and eating half my fat intake. I was also exercising 6 a week and even exercised 13 days in a row once. I didn't lose anything for that month.

A few weeks ago I went to London to visit a friend of mine I hadn't seen for 2 years. She told me she had been diagnosed with Crones disease and that she has nearly died. I was so shocked to hear this, as she hadn't mentioned it in any emails or texts. She said she didn't want to make a big deal out of it. Anyway, we had a lovely weekend and we talked a lot and she really helped me to see the bigger picture and what really matters.

When I got back I found that I didn't really care that much about my diet. I didn't eat badly, I just ate more, treated myself without punishing myself and eased up on the exercise.

I have now adopted a totally different attitude towards this. I don't sweat It if I go over my cals or if an event comes up which I know will ruin it for that day. I've kinda just stopped caring as much. And the result? I've broken my plateau and lost another 3lbs

Anyway, I am curious to hear if anyone else has felt/feels the same/has had an experience similar.

Teliooo · September 2011

Don't give up, maybe you did not lose because you were eating to few cals. A net intake of 800-900 really is not enough. Sorry to hear about your friend.I never feel like giving up, I just figure out what I am doing wrong.

People often break the plateau by realising they were not eating enough x

Pangea250 · September 2011

You could have been eating too few calories. 800 a day is just not enough. But I think your new attitude is great - anything that works. Good on you!

Ezwoldo · September 2011

I had the same thing, but after a while it just stops coming off and you need to start again, I sort of yoyo between logging and not logging when I get to a point where nothing is moving.

sarahliftsUP · September 2011

I wouldn't say you have stopped caring.. but you have stopped obsessing. I think that's key to weight loss... having a healthy mind as to what your body needs including both exercise and a healthy diet! That's awesome that you've found the balance of it.

engineman312 · September 2011

stories like this make me care more. i'm more likely to survive and endure dibilitating diseases and health conditions if i am in good shape and following a nutritious diet.

rosied915 · September 2011

1. You are very close to your goal (according to your ticker) and losing those "last few" are the hardest of all.

2. Your "net calories" is VERY low for someone who is THAT close to goal. You actually have to NET MORE the closer to goal that you are. You put yourself into a Plateau.

3. By eating more recently, your body finally responded to what it was given and you broke the plateau.

4. You are blessed to have a friend who not only spared you the details of her own illness but ended up inspiring you to get out of obsessing on dieting to just "living" in your new body and enjoying it!

5. You know you're overdoing ANYthing when the thought of it makes you want to puke! And this includes exercising!! Maybe you WERE overdoing the exercise and your body was screaming ENOUGH!! (you yourself used the word "punish", sooo...)

Cathy92 · September 2011

I don't think you've stopped caring. It sounds like you still care, but you have a 'healthier' attitude about it all, as you have seen the bigger picture.

jaded_rose · September 2011

wow, that really put a perspective on things. Makes me think about a few things in my own life. I just lost my grandmother at the beginning of the week. she wasn't in the best of health but she wasn't dying either. She said she wasn't feeling good and my aunt who was with her called 911. By the time the ambulance was called and the got to her house she was dead.

Scoobies87 · September 2011

I wouldn't say you have stopped caring.. but you have stopped obsessing. I think that's key to weight loss... having a healthy mind as to what your body needs including both exercise and a healthy diet! That's awesome that you've found the balance of it.

^^ This is exactly what I mean. I think some of you have been a bit confused with what I meant. I am still trying to lose weight, I am just eating more and not obsessing. It has made me see that there really is more to life then how you look and that being healthy is often taken for granted. I was on the road to an ED and that is NOT healthy. This is a positive story guys

dlaplume2 · September 2011

You probably lost weight because you were feeding your body. When you were netting 700-800 cal your body was starting to hold onto everything it could get. I bet if you tracked what you were eating when you stopped caring, you were probably pretty close to what you were supposed to eat.

Best wishes to you

brucedelaney · September 2011

Sounds like you were in starvation... and eating the extra calories re-upped your metabolism. I have adopted a spike lifestyle where I eat 4400 calories once a week and have been netting 2 to 3 pound loss per week over the last 3 weeks since I've started it.

Sometimes your body just needs a jolt.

Scoobies87 · September 2011

wow, that really put a perspective on things. Makes me think about a few things in my own life. I just lost my grandmother at the beginning of the week. she wasn't in the best of health but she wasn't dying either. She said she wasn't feeling good and my aunt who was with her called 911. By the time the ambulance was called and the got to her house she was dead.

I'm sorry to hear

cedarhurst2006 · September 2011

Sounds like you were in starvation... and eating the extra calories re-upped your metabolism. I have adopted a spike lifestyle where I eat 4400 calories once a week and have been netting 2 to 3 pound loss per week over the last 3 weeks since I've started it.

Sometimes your body just needs a jolt.

Can you explain more? How do you eat 4400 calories in one day and how does that help in losing 3 pounds per week? What is your exercise regime?

stanley12345 · September 2011

Up until a few weeks ago I was religious with MFP. I was netting at 800-900 cals a day and eating half my fat intake. I was also exercising 6 a week and even exercised 13 days in a row once. I didn't lose anything for that month.

I have now adopted a totally different attitude towards this. I don't sweat It if I go over my cals or if an event comes up which I know will ruin it for that day. I've kinda just stopped caring as much. And the result? I've broken my plateau and lost another 3lbs

UGH.. YOURE NOT EATING ENOUGH !!!
800 cals a day is killing your metabolism.... the body has gone into starvation mode and thinks whatever little it gets, it has to store... cutting your fat intake doesnt count for **** when your total cals are this low... eat upto 1800 cals ATLEAST for the first 3 weeks .. gradually reduce it by 100 cals and hold it at 1400... try and burn a total of 4500 calories in 6 days.. look at the entire cals vs exercise from a weeks viewpoint and not daily..

and please overindulge once in 2 weeks.. order your favourite pizza.. dip them bananas in nutella

and have fun in the process... if youre not enjoying it, it isnt worth it

cedarhurst2006 · September 2011

I don't think you've stopped caring but maybe just have taken a step back for perspective. 800 calories net seems pretty low and you are pretty much pushing it on the daily exercising. So focused - that happens to me but hard to maintain for continued periods of time. Maybe come to a happy medium and think about making healthy choice on a broader scale.

LorinaLynn · September 2011

I wouldn't say you have stopped caring.. but you have stopped obsessing. I think that's key to weight loss... having a healthy mind as to what your body needs including both exercise and a healthy diet! That's awesome that you've found the balance of it.

This!

I feel the same way. I log my food most of the time. I exercise like a fiend. I make healthy choices... I mean I choose healthy foods. I haven't microwaved a Healthy Choice meal in ages.

But enjoying life comes first. The world won't come to an end if my weight fluctuations a little. I don't need to grasp the reins quite so firmly. I don't need to be so rigid. I can relax a little.

For most of us, it wasn't a dramatic lifestyle change that made us gain weight. It happened slowly, over time. And it doesn't take a drastic change to undo it, either. A more moderate change, that doesn't feel like punishment and allows the weight to come off slowly, is a lot more sustainable.

I'm going to a birthday party tonight, and I'm definitely going to have my cake and eat it too.

hbrittingham · September 2011

It sounds like you had the lightbulb moment where you realized that you didn't want to diet anymore and instead wanted to change your lifestyle. It would great if everyone here could have that same realization. I really worry about the young women (usually it's the young women) here who are netting 700-800 calories a day and exercising like crazy because eventually they are going to burn out and fall off the diet and exercise wagon.

meerkat70 · September 2011

[ I was on the road to an ED and that is NOT healthy. This is a positive story guys

Well done. I'm really glad that you recognised that. I see so many young women (particularly) on this forum eating under 1000cals and exercising themselves into the ground, and it seems like no matter how many times you point it out, and no matter how kindly you suggest their behaviour might be harmful, they just seem to coat your posts in invisible paint and don't listen.

Thank goodness you're one of the sensible ones. Yes, it took a crisis to help you see it. But you saw it. I'm really delighted for you.

Scoobies87 · September 2011

Up until a few weeks ago I was religious with MFP. I was netting at 800-900 cals a day and eating half my fat intake. I was also exercising 6 a week and even exercised 13 days in a row once. I didn't lose anything for that month.

I have now adopted a totally different attitude towards this. I don't sweat It if I go over my cals or if an event comes up which I know will ruin it for that day. I've kinda just stopped caring as much. And the result? I've broken my plateau and lost another 3lbs

UGH.. YOURE NOT EATING ENOUGH !!!
800 cals a day is killing your metabolism.... the body has gone into starvation mode and thinks whatever little it gets, it has to store... cutting your fat intake doesnt count for **** when your total cals are this low... eat upto 1800 cals ATLEAST for the first 3 weeks .. gradually reduce it by 100 cals and hold it at 1400... try and burn a total of 4500 calories in 6 days.. look at the entire cals vs exercise from a weeks viewpoint and not daily..

and please overindulge once in 2 weeks.. order your favourite pizza.. dip them bananas in nutella and have fun in the process... if youre not enjoying it, it isnt worth it

I'm sorry, but you have completely missed the point. This wasn't a whine about me not losing anything last month. This is a positive thread sharing my experience of my change in attitude, which I had hoped would reach out to others. I do not need preaching to about how much to eat, if you read the post properly you will see that I am already eating more.

10fairywings · September 2011

You go girl!!! Brilliant story, I am so pleased for you! Sorry for your friend but glad to hear that she is ok too and hopefully over the worst now diagnosed.

xx

fairygirl716 · September 2011

I applaud you! Recognizing that you were in ED range is a huge step. I wish more people would see the value in being HEALTHY! not SKINNY!

You could be in the higher ranges of body mass and still be healthy. It is about what quality you put in your body and the movement it has!

Good luck on your journey, and prayers for your friend!

Scoobies87 · September 2011

It sounds like you had the lightbulb moment where you realized that you didn't want to diet anymore and instead wanted to change your lifestyle. It would great if everyone here could have that same realization. I really worry about the young women (usually it's the young women) here who are netting 700-800 calories a day and exercising like crazy because eventually they are going to burn out and fall off the diet and exercise wagon.

That is exactly what happened. I am thankful to be happy and healthy and not have to be on medication for my whole life as some do. I wanted to share this and hoped that others would come forward and that maybe it would reach out to some people. It is easy to take things/people for granted. This is definitely a lifestyle change. I am now eating 1,200-1,300 cals a day and loving it!

brucedelaney · September 2011

Sounds like you were in starvation... and eating the extra calories re-upped your metabolism. I have adopted a spike lifestyle where I eat 4400 calories once a week and have been netting 2 to 3 pound loss per week over the last 3 weeks since I've started it.

Sometimes your body just needs a jolt.

Can you explain more? How do you eat 4400 calories in one day and how does that help in losing 3 pounds per week? What is your exercise regime?

It's by no means my system but basically I eat 1700 calories a day for 6 days of the week and 4400 for one day.

The "Spike" day does a few things, It boosts my metabolism, and deals with cravings.

If you look at the math, you can't help but lose weight with it anyway.

2700 x 7 = 18,900 (Cals to maintain)
1700 x 6 = 10,200 (Cals eaten on normal days)
4400 x 1 = 4,400 (Cals for Spike Day)

Weekly Deficit = 4,300 Calories plus the deficit created from any exercise

There is science behind it that I'm not really that capable of explaining but if you're truly interested go to www.spike84.com.

I bought the kindle version of the book from Amazon, but if you enter your email address and confirm it through the website you 'll be mailed a PDF that gives the overview of how it works as well as a chart that gives you your calorie goals to basically try it out.

I was skeptical at first until I looked at the math you see above.

dad106 · September 2011

Good for you.. and I understand what you are talking about. It's not that you stopped caring about losing weight.. you stopped caring about obsessing over every little detail in life.

I get that way sometimes where I get so obsessive and every little calorie drives me absolutely crazy and then I stop enjoying life.. but then I remember why I'm doing this, and suddenly it's ok to eat that treat and enjoy life again. Sometimes you just need to step back and re-evaluate why your doing this.. and it sounds like you did

Goal_Seeker_1988 · September 2011

That's a really good thing to do by not being so hard on yourself. I've stopped being so hard on myself and still have managed to maintain my weight, however, I haven't been able to drop them last 10lbs. Grrr, 3 year plateau!

fixeruppper · September 2011

YES, I really understand what you're going through. I was literally side swiped with an ovarian cancer diagnosis about 6 months ago and suddenly I went from being a very strong woman to a mental cripple. You're going to need some help to cope with this shock. I'm doing very well today because I'm in remission and I have a wonderful support group I but still need to take the odd lorazepam. Let me know if there's anyway I can help you.

MIMITIME · September 2011

A near death experience for yourself or someone you care about does change your out look on life. It can be negative or positive. Sounds like you have gone the positive route. I understand exactly what you are saying as I have had a near death experience that involved seeing the light and dead relatives! Since that event, I no longer find material things important. I no longer trade vehicles every year or go nuts buying clothes and shoes. Basically, it left me being happy with what I have and not wanting more. I guess for a few brief fleeting seconds I realized what you have doesn't matter in the end. Good luck to your friend and take care of yourself.

I've kinda stopped caring...

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