To ask for your help with diet

[JaceLancs]

Posting here for traffic
I have dieted on and off for most of my adult life
Yo yo'd between 9 stone at lightest and 18 stone at heaviest
Currently am around 13 and would like to get under 10
I have recently lost 1/2 a stone but it gets harder the older I get
I am gluten/wheat intolerant and not keen on rice or potatoes so manage low carb naturally
Whilst I am not strictly doing 5:2 I do have a couple of evenings when I just have soup so that I can go to a later exercise session
I think we eat fairly healthily anyway
Generally I have fruit or porridge for breakfast
Lunch some days nothing, others salad, soup, sushi or whatever I can find depending on where I am
This week I decided to try as hard as possible - total alcohol ban, drinking lots of water, been to gym 4 times, samples of evening meals include salmon with stir fry veg, chicken with roast veg, chicken salad,
I jumped on the scales this morning full of excitement and........have gained 2 pounds!
I do have a sweet tooth but try and manage that with fruit and v small quantities of dark chocolate

A 2lb gain could be water weight, muscle gain or something else. It would be hard to gain 2lbs of fat in a week. Don't you need to overeat 3,500cals per lb of gained fat? So don't panic! If it's causing you stress then leave the scales alone for a while maybe? See how you feel rather than what you weigh.

Have you always eaten like this or is it a recent thing?

If I wasn't past menopause I'd hope it was hormonal
I've been eating like this for past few years (lost 6 1/2 stone) originally then have crept up a bit again
I do a fairly sedentary job and with the sweet tooth and enjoying a drink it doesn't take much for me to gain
Only started going to the gym 3 years ago and I manage between 2 and 4 times s week depending on work commitments
Had thyroid checked a few years ago and was told it was a little bit within normal range - asked again 12 months ago and GP refused to test and said metabolism slowing down was to be expected at my age!

If I were you I would do two things to start with

1. Keep a food diary for a week writing down everything that passes your lips - it's so easy to have things and completely forget about them e.g that mid morning latte
2. Look at your portion sizes - perhaps trying weighing like your oats and salmon/chicken to see if the issue lies there

A couple of other questions - what are you having in your lunchtime salads and what sort of soups?
How much fruit are you eating per day and what fruit is it?

I need to start doing my fitness pal again
Fruit can be anything from an apple or banana to strawberries or raspberries depends what I find on the reduced counter
I've been stewing rhubarb or damsons with canderel and having that with 0 fat Greek yoghurt