18st 3lbs and Getting Married in 18 Months Time.. Help Me.

[SlimbobJones]

I've NC'd for this, new start and all that.

This is a massive cry for help, I'm completely broken and I'm not sure what I need from you, but help me :(

Last Christmas I weighed 19st 1lb, the heaviest I've ever been although I've never been under 15st. I'm 5ft 5. I'm 25 years old and have no children.

The photo is me at 19st vs me at my current weight, 18st 3lbs and I managed to shift that with weight watchers and keep it off mostly, although that was nearly a year ago now. The photo is just to illustrate how much of a problem I have on my hands more than anything.. I'm not shy about it, it's a body I feel completely disconnected from at this point.

I weight 18st 3lbs at the age of 25 and I'm getting married in 18 months time. I don't want to be uncomfortable on my Wedding day with everyone looking at me thinking "oh god isn't it a shame she's so fat"... the thought of that makes me feel physically sick.

SO I figure I've got 18 months now to turn my huge backside around.

Right now, my body fat percentage is 52.7%. I'm currently more fat than human.

I've re-signed up for weight watchers so I'm tracking my food, but my problem has and will always be binge eating. I can happily put away a tube of Pringles and half a pack of biscuits in 1 sitting.

How on earth am I going to do this?? When should I eat and what? There's just so much to get my head around I guess I just need some hand holding :(

If you're still with me after all that rambling, thank you. Sorry, and help :(

[Helloheyhi]

Congrats on your upcoming wedding. Sorry you are feeling down.
18 months is 58 weeks away. At a rate of 1 pound a week, that's 58 pounds.
As you are starting at a high weight, you will lose more in the beginning so it's entirely possible to lose a good amount of weight in the timeframe you have.
Could you post what you normally eat in a day?

I hope someone wiser will come along soon with better advice. Hang in there, you can do it.

[Ihopeyouhadthetimeofyourlife]

18 mths is actually 78 weeks ago. At a pound a week that's about 5.5 stone. You could be 12 stone 7 for your wedding easily.

[Ihopeyouhadthetimeofyourlife]

Away not ago! Ffs!

[Helloheyhi]

Omg I can't count! And I am a fucking chartered accountant! Shame on me!!

[Rintinminniebin]

Sounds like you're not getting enough protein? I eat 5 to 6 times a day and that keeps me from binge eating. Filling foods such as avocado, cottage cheese and various others really help to make me feel full. I also drink 3 litres of water a day. Next time you feel like eating prickles or the like then drink a glass of water and wait a bit. Xxxx Good luck, don't forget your 'why'!

[Rintinminniebin]

Pringles, not prickles!

[cookielove]

I shed 3 stone to get married and feel comfortable in my dress! What helped me was having a goal (the wedding) and buying a dress that was too small for me! Nothing felt better than being able to zip up the dress! :)

You can do this

[ScarletSahara]

You can do this. I find SW much easier than WW to get my head around and you're likely to loose 2 pound a week and double in the first. Even with a few nights out and celebrations etc, you'd be at a great weight in 18 months time!

[SlimbobJones]

Hi :)

I can't really tell you what a typical day is like, there isn't really a typical because my eating is so disordered and I'm always on one diet or another that I'm ignoring but convincing myself I'm sticking to if that makes sense?

When I'm left to my own devices though:

No breakfast

Sandwiches/ ready meals/ bread and soup for lunch

Home cooked meal for dinner, usually healthy-ish (DP cooks) and takeaway twice/ three times a week if I'm honest. If I'm vaguely on track it's takeaway once a week or not at all.

I'll quite often binge if he's working late though on takeaway/ "stash" which is crisps, chocolate etc and I'll go to petrol stations on my way home from work and eat them in the car on the way home. Disgusting.

My relationship with food is appalling :(

[SlimbobJones]

Wow. I never thought about it being a pound a week. That sounds like nothing.

[Cguk81]

Congrats on your upcoming wedding. My top tips are:
Put a photo of yourself that you really hate as your screensaver/background on your phone so you see it all the time and keep you motivated to change.

Do you exercise? would you be willing to try a class? I find a group class less intimidating than the gym and more productive too...it's too easy to not really work hard at the gym. Or buy a dvd you can do at home...the 10 minute solution ones are good as you think surely I can managed just 10 minutes and then you find you decide to do another and another...

Before eating any rubbish brush your teeth/have a cup of tea or drink lots of water and then wait 10 minutes to see if the craving passes.

Agree with PP about eating more protein...fill yourself up on eggs, chicken and other lean meats etc. Weightwatchers should hopefully help with this although I've never done it.

I'm afraid the bottom line is its going to come down to swapping bad choices for good ones. You have to find the willpower to just not eat all the fat and sugary treats but that's the hardest part.

[SlimbobJones]

Cguk81 hey :) yes funnily enough I do exercise a lot, I have 2 dogs so walk for an hour every day :) I do have an office job though!

[princessconsuelabannahammock]

I started at nearly 16 st and same height as you. 8 months before my wedding I low carbed and lost 1.7st. Then I hadn't lost enough to fit into my waaayyy too small wedding dress so 3 months before I did the Cambridge diet. It was awful and really hard, I made so many sacrifices but it worked. I got down to 12st for my wedding and the dress fitted. I was so happy.

I would suggest making a proper start now- low carbing is brilliant for controlling your appetite and helping prevent binges imo.

The thought of not fitting in my wedding dress and waddling down the aisle was my inspiration. Good luck you can do it. Also buy a proper corset- have me a tiny waist, great boobs and amazing deportment!

[SlimbobJones]

This is my plan for the day today, it leaves me with WW points left over:

Breakfast - Quaker Oats super goodness Original (flaxseed, red quinoa and barley added to the oats)

Snack - Weight Watchers yogurt

Lunch - Tesco Healthy Living Salmon in watercress sauce ready meal (comes with 3 new potatoes, green beans and broccoli)

Snack - Celery stick with whole earth peanut butter

Dinner - Mackrel fillet in a soy and star anise/ garlic sauce with 60g brown rice and broccoli

*This is all the oily fish I'll have all week, hence 2 meals of it in 1 day.

I'm trying to up the protein I eat and reduce the sugar, but not keen on any extreme diets just because I know I'll never stick to it! If I'm going to do this it's going to have to be slow, steady and sensible!

[princessconsuelabannahammock]

I had a fat pic as my screen saver so every time my resolve weakened at work I would look at it. Weight training and callanetics changed my shape. I walked up a massive hill every single day and recorded all my exercise in my phone so I couldn't lie to myself. I also planned on exercise everyday - sometimes going out for my big walk at 10pm. Thinking about it now I was a bit obsessed! I am not anymore but weigh 15st!

[SlimbobJones]

princessconsuelabannahammock

Gosh that's amazing!

If I could get rid of 7 stone for my wedding day I'd be completely and utterly thrilled. That's not even the word for how I'd feel, I'm excited thinking about that!

[Hiphopopotamus]

Have you thought about trying low carb? I found it really good for changing my whole relationship with food. Really helps with the binging and you can eat seriously yummy food on it!

[Helloheyhi]

Bob whichever diet you choose, it's the one you can stick to which will work for you. And whatever you choose, you have to do it with the understanding that if you fail one day, you won't beat yourself up but draw a line and restart again. In the famous words of Michael Jordan "I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed".

If you manage to cut down on the take aways, that would automatically decrease your weight. The issue to tackle is the binge eating. If you eat enough and leave no room to binge, that would work in your favour. I appreciate it's not an easy thing to overcome but you can get help to deal with it. Make your health your priority and you will get there slowly but surely. All the very best

[Cguk81]

Replace the takeaways with a high protein, low carb meal (that's not a fad diet - just a rebalancing of proportions. You can still eat potatoes, pasta etc) and cut out all the evening snacking and you're there!
I totally understand that it sounds so easy in theory but that's is so hard in real life but just a few days of eating well will spur you on to continue. Just focus on your today and what you can do to eat well.

[SlimbobJones]

Thanks guys,

In theory my diet is pretty easy to sort out because it's just binging mostly rather than not knowing what to eat if that makes sense?

Any advice for overcoming cravings? I get really bad cravings in the evenings and at weekends :/

[Helloheyhi]

Can you take up walking in the evenings? so when the craving strikes you can go for a long walk and by the time you get back, you will be too exhausted to give in iyswim?
Alternatively, healthier things to snack so you can do damage limitation.

[Runningupthathill82]

My top tip for cravings is not having "junk" food in the house. Ever. When I was bigger, I'd nibble on chocolate in the evenings, if we had it in, so now we don't. If I wanted to snack, the most tempting option in the house would be a bit of cheese, or natural yoghurt and blueberries...so I may as well wait for the next meal, or til morning.

As I'm so used to not snacking now and have completely got out of the habit, I can now quite happily ignore a packet of biscuits that's in the cupboard, until they're so old they've gone soggy. But DH can't - so we still never have it in.

We might have a dessert if we go out to eat, or an ice cream if we're out for a walk with the kids on a hot day, but it really is a rare thing. And in those situations we'll make a conscious decision to eat that stuff rather than just mindlessly snacking, IYSWIM.

When you go to the supermarket, don't go down the crisps/chocolate/cakes aisles - or shop online if the temptation is too much. You CAN do this, you just have to start eating like a slim person, and then you will become one - here's a cup of herbal tea for starters!

[OliviaBenson]

You say you buy stuff on your way back from work- could you leave your purse at home so you can't do that?

I think the binge eating is the issue for you. You also need to restrict the takeaways, 3 per week is a lot.

[BendydickCuminsnatch]

I am no expert, I myself have thread running here, but just wanted to add my support. We sound similar, I'm 26, 5'5.5 and 15stoneish. I've had loads of help through my thread, maybe have a quick look through.

Luckily for me I'm a SAHM so I can eat whenever and whatever I want quite easily. Typical day for me:
7am Green smoothie
1pm - salad
5pm - normal dinner, trying not to eat after 6 but lately that's been slipping.

Lots of protein and low carb!!!

Gym a few times a week.

[BendydickCuminsnatch]

And congrats on your engagement :)