lost and in a rut :(

Hey guys,

So here is my story:
Last July I started weight watchers...with weight watchers I lost 20 pounds by thanksgiving. THen This december I started myfitnesspal and i lost an additional 7 pounds by February. BUt not I am at this point where I am not losing weight, Im struggling to exercise and I am falling into bad binge eating habbits. my goal last July was to lose 40 pounds total, enhance my running and energy, and finally be able to feel good in my tank top and skinny jeans. But i have been in such a bad plateau for over two months now! I dont know what to do to my workout or eating or mood or what. I really want to stop binge eating at night and I really want to get back into the swing of things. I will have one good week then one bad week then a good few days and a bad few days.... the one year mark of my goals is coming up pretty quick. any suggestions?

Sam

Replies

newmein2013

The first thing I would do is to take away the goal date expectation and train your brain to realize that this is a lifestyle change, not a magic diet. Sit down and make a plan for exercise and eating. Plan your meals for the week making sure all the food is handy, especially healthy quick snacks to take to school. Knowing your meals and workout routines in advance will take away much of the guess work for the day. Once this starts becoming routine, start to educate yourself on healthier things to eat and experiment with recipes. Only weigh in once a week, same day and time each week. Every 6 weeks or so, switch up your workout routine. Hope this helps. Good luck.

Corrie_Lynn

That's tough, I think we all get to that point sometimes. My suggestion would be to try some new stuff. Try meal planning with some recipes that you've never used before, maybe even some foods you've never even tried. Head to the library (or if you have netflix, look there) and find some new workout videos or even just look online and find different types of exercises. Usually if I get in a rut with anything, making some changes and trying some new things helps a lot. Hang in there, and don't be too hard on yourself

nikkiespo

The meal plans are a great suggestion, I'd definitely do it!! Give yourself 1 cheat day a week, if needed, do 2, and then try and work it down. Do ANY exercise that you enjoy, even if you start out small with it. If you notice you tend to eat more at night, give yourself some extra calories to save for the evening, and try and make it healthy snacks.

Also, and I just realized/ learned this recently, when using MyFitnessPal, in order to loose weight, you really have to be in the negative for net calories. Even if you are eating right, and exercising, if you're not in the negative, your more or less just maintaining. You may still loose weight, but at a much slower rate.

Make friends on here!! Make sure you have a partner (in crime ;-) ) to double check you, and you double check them. Add me if you'd like and we can keep each other on track.

myogibbs

The first thing I would do is to take away the goal date expectation and train your brain to realize that this is a lifestyle change, not a magic diet. Sit down and make a plan for exercise and eating. Plan your meals for the week making sure all the food is handy, especially healthy quick snacks to take to school. Knowing your meals and workout routines in advance will take away much of the guess work for the day. Once this starts becoming routine, start to educate yourself on healthier things to eat and experiment with recipes. Only weigh in once a week, same day and time each week. Every 6 weeks or so, switch up your workout routine. Hope this helps. Good luck.

Very well said. I totally agree. You can do it!!! I chew gum at night to keep from bingeing...another thing I did for a while was knitting...I know it sounds lame but it occupied my hands & I could do it while watching TV...it kept me out of the kitchen. Not saying you should take up knitting, but maybe if you could find something to distract you while you are watching TV, it would help. You will get there...don't give up !!!

Sammi11710

thanks guys!

jennie0918

I KNOW EXACTLY HOW YOU FEEL!!!!!! i've pretty much been doing exactly what you're doing. And today i started over. Everyday you have to ask yourself. Who do i want to be? Do i want to be that person that achieves their goals and works for what they want? or do i want to be the person going nowhere on my couch with a bunch of emotional food. I binge eat all the time. And i've done weight watchers on an off since i was 10. I'm so determined to lose it now and for good. But the way i'm going to eat and exercise it's not temporary. It's a lifestyle change. You have to think of it like a car. If you fueled a car with garbage it would go nowhere. If you fuel yourself with junk you're gonna be tired and sleep. When you fuel yourself with healthy things you're up and ready to go explore the world. LIke a car drives fast when it's fueled the right way. Tell yourself YOU CAN DO IT! I know you can do it but it doesn't matter how much i tell you YOU CAN if you think YOU CAN"T then you won't . Believe in yourself. Take it day by day because YOU"RE BEAUTIFUL AND WORTH THE WORLD! Stick to it. i know you can

shedoos

Also, and I just realized/ learned this recently, when using MyFitnessPal, in order to loose weight, you really have to be in the negative for net calories. Even if you are eating right, and exercising, if you're not in the negative, your more or less just maintaining. You may still loose weight, but at a much slower rate.

This is inaccurate and actually a little scary.

boston6

I'm in the same situation. I've been in a rut for about 2 months and put back on about 3 lbs. Last night I had a "come to Jesus" moment with myself and I am re-committing myself to get back on track starting TODAY!

Yes we CAN DO IT!

nikkiespo

How is that inaccurate and scary??? You have to burn more calories than you take in to loose weight. I eat 1200 calories a day, and I burn 1400-1500... Perfectly healthy...

Also, and I just realized/ learned this recently, when using MyFitnessPal, in order to loose weight, you really have to be in the negative for net calories. Even if you are eating right, and exercising, if you're not in the negative, your more or less just maintaining. You may still loose weight, but at a much slower rate.

This is inaccurate and actually a little scary.

kayteesb

Hello.
I've had the same issue. It seems that when I lose weight I ended up gaining it back and not even realizing it until too late. Well, now that I am back on track I will need to network here to help keep me motivated and disciplined.

@ Myogibbs - Not setting a goal or date will be difficult b/c I really want to be in better shape in 2 months. I am increasing my cardio to go along with my CrossFit but maybe I do need to train my brain differently and plan all of my meals.

@ Jennie0918 - I am starting over today as well. You ask some excellent questions. Most of what I have done in my life has been goal-oriented. When the biggest goal (last degree) seemed like it was going to take me down, I asked similar questions and BAM it was done and I was walking across the stage. I didn't think about dates. I set small goals to "do" something everyday to ensure i completed the dissertation. That worked. I was no longer stressed or anxious. I need to apply that same thinking to my weight loss journey to ensure I am more fit and healthy. I love who I am as far as character is concerned. I am just in a spot where now that weight is a problem and I need to ensure I do not end up with diabetes and high blood pressure, which runs in my family, I need to make some changes. So I will ask similar questions every day to get motivated.
Great advice. Thanks

shedoos

How is that inaccurate and scary??? You have to burn more calories than you take in to loose weight. I eat 1200 calories a day, and I burn 1400-1500... Perfectly healthy...

Also, and I just realized/ learned this recently, when using MyFitnessPal, in order to loose weight, you really have to be in the negative for net calories. Even if you are eating right, and exercising, if you're not in the negative, your more or less just maintaining. You may still loose weight, but at a much slower rate.

This is inaccurate and actually a little scary.

Not healthy - but your choice. Just please don't spread the notion that is healthy...

nikkiespo

How is that inaccurate and scary??? You have to burn more calories than you take in to loose weight. I eat 1200 calories a day, and I burn 1400-1500... Perfectly healthy...

Also, and I just realized/ learned this recently, when using MyFitnessPal, in order to loose weight, you really have to be in the negative for net calories. Even if you are eating right, and exercising, if you're not in the negative, your more or less just maintaining. You may still loose weight, but at a much slower rate.

This is inaccurate and actually a little scary.

Not healthy - but your choice. Just please don't spread the notion that is healthy...

Ok seriously.... More words on WHY would be helpful.... I have noticed that when I don't do that, I maintain and not loose weight. Also, even within my goals MFP says i should be -490 calories a day. Any doctor or fitness trainer ( i have asked both...) and basically ANYONE always says to lose weight you need to burn more calories than you take in. So, if I'm doing something wrong and its unhealthy, please tell me how and why... I'm not trying to be a "know it all", I'm seriously curious and would like to understand your point of view on this...