Have a Question and need to vent

lovedtorun · May 2012

I wish I could eat anything I want without worry. It takes so much mental work to lose weight. I wish it was subconsious for me but its not. I struggle everyday, every meal, every snack with what I should and shouldnt put in my mouth. I worry if I will be over my caloric intake for the day. I try to plan my meals, but My family and I live with my parents and they WONT eat the things I need to eat. Not trying to make excusess but if I make something different my children want what they want to eat. And I am NOT making 3 different meals. Also I cannot eliminate the junk food thats in the house. (some people dont have to worry about their weight or just dont care) I have cut down on my protions and added healthier snack and eliminated alot of junk. But when I wanna eat that cookie I worry.

This leads me to a question. Can weight be lost with a little exercise and a slight change of diet? Until I can move out of my parents house I am afraid I will not loose the weight.

tigerlily8045 · May 2012

Sure it can. Start by cutting portions and excercising a bit. Your weight will come of slower maybe but it will come off. I make the same exact dinners as I did before but now I either just eat less of the dinner or excercise more if I know that I am fixing something that might put me over the limit. I have a cookie now and then as long as it fits in my calorie count for the day. Good Luck to you!

Tzippy7 · May 2012

This is a really difficult question to respond to. I felt that I couldnt lose weight at school with an unhealthy boyfriend and I was incredibly frustrated. Then something clicked and it got easier. I dont know how to help you get to that point though. For me I think watching the biggest loser helped me get to a point where I was in charge of what i was putting in my mouth. You are asking if you can lose weight without doing what we all know we have to do, diet and exercise. Its possible to do diet and no exercise, or exercise and no diet. But not doing either is probably not going to give you the results you want. If you dont change anything you cant expect to change.
So my questions are, how slight is the slight change and how little is the exercise?
remember, if it was easy everyone would be thin.

Grimmerick · May 2012

start small, check out the book deceptively delicious it's great. Offer to make a meal your whole family would like that maybe seems like a not so healthy meal. Using this books techniques you can make something that tastes delicious but is full of healthy stuff they don't know is there. Really lol check it out. Jerry Seinfeld's wife wrote it. My fiance just loves the spaghetti and pizzas I make him, he has no idea how many vegetables I am putting in them lol

AnninStPaul · May 2012

The mental effort required declines as the habits take root. Slow and steady will get you to the finish line.

CookieCrumble · May 2012

Your children will eat what you give them and, just because they don't have weight issues now, doesn't mean that they or you can be complacent about it. Irrespective of weight, junk food, on a regular basis doesn't have enough nutrition in it to be healthful.

I certainly wouldn't cook three different meals but it is possible to add in a salad and/or some extra vegetables and double up on those portions for you, reducing the higher calorie/fat foods.

No, it's not easy, it's not easy for anybody, but it's what we have to do to be healthy and I'm too scared ever to let myself not come here to log because I now how easy it is for a day off to become a week off and then a month off and so on... frightening.

Good luck, because that's part of it - but you need to want this enough to meet yourself halfway and at least be mindful of what you put in your mouth because you'll suffer for it mentally - and physically - if you don't.

You can do this... rinse and repeat.

Curry0724 · May 2012

We are in the same boat girl! My husband and I are living with his parents while we can save up some money for a down payment on a house. His family eats the same way. What I try to do is keep my own healthier snacks in the house ie, chocolate animal crackers instead of cookies and pudding instead of ice cream. I also have my 'emergency meals'. Those are for when his family orders pizza for dinner. I just have a Lean Micheleana meal in the freezer and I am good to go.

It really is such an irritating struggle though! I understand!

Jacwhite22 · May 2012

but My family and I live with my parents and they WONT eat the things I need to eat. Not trying to make excusess but if I make something different my children want what they want to eat.

you can eat anything...just less of it. You might be hungry...but you can do it.

Andie_loops · May 2012

I have that problem too! my fiancee can put anything in his mouth and he will not gain one pound!! i on the other hand if i put that donut in it'll make me blow up like a ballon! we're not all the same and we dnt all work the same way so its hard to respond to a question like this from the outside, what works for me is following my diet and portion control checking every label when i'm grocery shopping and adding in some exercise everyday. Its hard in the beginning but with a little bit of exercise you'll be able to fit that cookie in with no worries. on a good workout day after dinner and all my meals i can still have a glass of milk and a couple of cookies and still be on my green numbers. try a couple of different things and see what works for you

DoozerDMB · May 2012

There are 6 of us in my house... my in-laws, my hubby and I, and my two tween girls. I completely understand where you are coming from. I cook regular meals, protein, starch and veggies. I now make sure there are extra veggies and a salad. I no longer fry foods and have managed to "trick" my family on many occassions. They eat lentils now whereas before i couldn't get them anywhere near it. I started adding more beans (red, black, kidney, etc) to dishes and started cutting back on the meats in chilis, casseroles, etc. So, you can make the changes that are best for you.
As for the snacking...having m1 cookie, or a small bowl of ice cream isn't going to be detrimental to your weight loss. Sometimes depriving yourseld completely, does more harm then good. So, have a cookie....but savor every bite. Make each bite count and actually taste it. A lot of times the snacking we do is mindless eating. Pay attention to every morsel and you will notice the cravings will start to subside.

cygnetpro · May 2012

That's a tough situation, but you absolutely CAN do this. Yes, it does take some mental toughness. My parents are coming over tonight and bringing lasagna. My mom already knows that I'm not going to have any. It's hard, cuz her lasagna is AWESOME!

But I'm eating the healthy meal that I prepared a day or so ago.

Part of the trick for me is finding things to eat that don't taste like punishment. I found some veggies that I actually enjoy, and dip them in hummus. I make fat free refried beans and heat them with salsa. I love veggie eggwhite omelettes with light cream cheese. It's easier to stick with if you can find delicious, healthy things, so that you don't feel so deprived.

Also, remember that once you get "in the groove", the idea of eating a cookie (or in my case, Panang Chicken and egg rolls) won't have nearly as much appeal.

But yeah, small changes can make a huge difference. I saw a guy post photos on here the other day of a HUGE weight loss. He just started walking. I think it was two miles a day. As the weight started dropping, he changed other things, too. Now he is a runner, I think, and his whole life has changed. I think it took a year.

I do wish you the best!

Spanaval · May 2012

Small changes are easier to sustain. Make them. Smaller portion sizes, eating more fruits and vegetables, lean protein, etc. Have a cookie if it is within your daily allowance. Don't deprive yourself to the point where you're obsessing over the unhealthy stuff, and therefore, likely to binge.

Cook one meal, a healthier one for everyone. Or at least have healthy options for you that you can load up on while eating more modest portions of everything else. I've never understood cooking separately for children (except if they have health issues or have a completely different eating style, like vegetarian/vegan). They eat what you give them. If they don't want to, they can either go hungry, drink a glass of milk, or make themselves something they want to eat (I say this as the mother of a 2 year old). You can be setting them up for good eating habits by being their role model.

Annie_ga · May 2012

I'm no guru on healthy eating, but I have found that just changing breakfast to a healthy, low calorie choice (like oatmeal) can kick start you in the right direction. It has really helped me keep me more satisfied. Also, I make healthy meals every night for my kids and if they don't eat it, they go hungry. But that never happens, they eat what we serve. For example, last night I made salsa chicken in the crock pot. Very healthy. I ate it with some brown rice and lettuce I had already made and the girls enjoyed some cheese, tortillas and a touch of sour cream and thought it was awesome. The third thing is that I'm going to take a long time to lose 10 more pounds. I'm trying to stay under the calories of my new weight, which isn't that hard to do when I'm exercising every day (tennis or kickboxing on On Demand). I have bad days, but I'm trying to take it as an 80/20 rule. Your life sounds very busy - please take your time. Good luck!

skittles8810 · May 2012

I pretty much eat what I want but in small portions and its usually not everyday that i eat to fattening of food! Just mainly portion control and moderation.

lovedtorun · May 2012

We are in the same boat girl! My husband and I are living with his parents while we can save up some money for a down payment on a house. His family eats the same way. What I try to do is keep my own healthier snacks in the house ie, chocolate animal crackers instead of cookies and pudding instead of ice cream. I also have my 'emergency meals'. Those are for when his family orders pizza for dinner. I just have a Lean Micheleana meal in the freezer and I am good to go.

It really is such an irritating struggle though! I understand!

I dont feel so alone in this problem now. You just lifted some weight off my shoulders.

astrampe · May 2012

Why have you cut down on proteins?? it keeps you full and keeps cravings away.....
As for your kids, YOU are the adult, and they should not be running the roost....
And what others said, you can still eat the same food, just less of it...
But the cookie is YOUR choice - just because it's there does not mean that you should eat it.....

roachhaley · May 2012

Why don't you just have everyone make their own dinner and choose what the kids eat? I'm not a parent, but if I ever am one, my kids will eat what I give them. ugh

lawmama_ · May 2012

You will lose SOME weight by doing a little exercise and slightly modifying your diet. I did almost no exercise but changed my calorie intake, and within a month I lost 10 lbs. Once I lost that first 10 lbs, I had a lot more energy to start exercising. Then I started exercising and the weight came off even more, while I kept up with the healthy diet. What really changed the shape of my body was not so much the food, I think, but the exercise. My legs, stomach, butt, everything looks different because I started to lift weights a little bit and do some squats. So just because you have a hard time with completely changing the food you eat, you can still lose some weight and change the shape of your body. And for us ladies, it's not necessarily all about "losing weight" we want to just change the "shape."

smantha32 · May 2012

Sure. I'm in a similar situation to you. I live with family, and I'm not able to cook. I live off mostly frozen and fast food.
However, even those have healthier options, and I walk as much as I can.

As long as I stay within my calories the weight still comes off.

Snikkee · May 2012

Yes, but it will be a very very very slow loss. You need to burn more calories then you eat to lose weight. If you burn what you eat you will maintain your current weight. If you eat more calories then what you burn you will gain weight. losing weight is 80% diet and 20% working out. yes working out is key to a lot of things, but it seems like you have a very busy life and have a lot of people to please around you. I understand that. My trainer recently told me that she can handle it if her clients dont work out sometimes, but eating clean is key if you dont work out.

Catahrine · May 2012

Dealing with your children's tastebuds is a hard one. My kids went through a phase where they refused everything I made (aged 5-6). I finally said "Fine, I will make you a peanut butter and jelly sandwich when I am done with my delicious meal". After a few nights of pb&j's, she came around. I consciously chose something they weren't fond of. Also, harsh though this is to say, a kid will survive if the don't eat a dinner. A few nights of that is hard on everyone (tantrums, crankiness, and I'm not just talking about the kids), but it certainly helps them come around. DO NOT cater to them. Chances are they won't remember this in 10 years.

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