To think I'm destined to stay bloody fat?

[Batwomanrisesagain]

I would really appreciate some help on losing weight. On paper eat less and exercise more should be simple but I'm getting fatter by the day and it's making me miserable. I really could do with some ideas on how to get going and even lose a pound!
I have 2 stone to lose. It's not happening on my own, I've been trying for over a year and have just got heavier so I think I need some kind of accountability/structure.
I have tried slimming world and weight watchers in the past. I found slimming world encouraged me to eat lots and I couldn't bear the meetingsand all the muller light talk. Weight watchers conversely made me think about food all the time!
I think low carb may work for me.
I love exercise and run half marathons but this does not help my weight loss but I want to continue and up the exercise.
I'm thinking some kind of online plan where I have to 'check in'?
AIBU to think I'm just fat and forty now or is there something I can do?

Look at Diet Doctor website. It's a nice sensible low carb, lots of recipes, lots of explanations about the science and there is an excellent video which explains why it's not just 'eat less move more'.

I've lost over a stone this year and I'm 39 and fat. I've had a break but it's still off and I make better decisions now.

Good luck - it's so hard. If it were easy everyone would be slim.

Try my fitness pal app it is very good for monitoring calorie intake, exercise and progress. It links to a useful forum for support too.

I was just going to say the Diet Doctor site as well!

Well done Moany! It is a helpful site isn't it.

Stop with the fads. Just less food and move more. Eat unprocessed food, eat good fats and lean protein (which make you feel full), lots of greens and moderate amount of whole grains. Limit sugary carbs in the form of white pasta and bread. Drink 2-3 litres of water a day. stop drinking diet or artificially sweetened drinks as they make you crave sugar.

I think my fitness pal has a check in option, or you can connect with others to stay accountable.

I think the whole "eat less do more" is very simplistic. I also believe that different people respond to different diets and sometimes it is about finding your one. I had the same issue with slimming world- unlimited pasta to me = unlimited so unsurprisingly I did not lose weight! Other things to try are definitely low carb or clean eating which is basically about eating no processed foods pretty much... That has been the most successful for me when I actually stick to it! I feel your pain though. It drives me crazy when e.g. people change from coke to diet coke and lose 16 stone or just cut down by 200 calories a day and become a size 8... Good luck :) (just about to head to this Diet Doctor site as it sounds like somewhere I need)

Losing weight is all about burning more calories than you eat. Slimming world etc is a con - there are no secret magic formulas to losing weight, it really is all about calories in vs calories out.
Get a Fitbit so you know how many calories you're burning and log your food into my fitness pal. The two sync up so you know exactly how many calories you have to play with.

Will look at diet doctor, thanks!
I'm fairly sure it's not my thyroid as I don't have any other symptoms apart from being knackered but that's down to lifestyle I think.
Typical day is eating on the run and probably mindlessly so I couldn't say exactly but for example-
Saturday I had- 2 boiled eggs, a Leon chicken and chorizo salad, a handful of almonds and a fruit salad from Starbucks. Then some mixed seafood tapas (fried) and 4 glasses cava on a night out.
Yesterday I had- orange juice and 2 pancakes and scrambled eggs for breakfast in a hotel.
A muffin and baguette for lunch.
2 packets of sushi and a bag of crisps and an orange for tea.
I haven't been trying to 'diet' this weekend. I think my portion sizes may be too big?

I've just realised that as well as being unbalanced and shit my diet over the last few days sounds wank and middle class.
A more typical day would be overnight oats, some kind of salad for lunch, pat cakes snacks and then a family meal and wine on the evening. Family meals tend to be pancaked affairs due to working long hours so pizzas, noodles etc. This is where I need help I think, planning nice food.

How about the blood sugar diet? I've heard people raving about it.

Diets don't work. The long term success rate for any diet is about 5%.

You have to consider the calories in wine though. A large glass is 200+ calories so if you drink every night you either have to save calories from within the day or drink less. From your eg above you are simply eating too much.

Atkins, blood sugar, slimming world, slim fast etc etc - all crap and all unsustainable. Keep it simple and take it back to basics. Burn more than you eat. It's a guaranteed way to lose weight. It's simple science.

It can be a bit depressing! Two things to think about outside of the 'eat less, move more' mantra. first are you building enough muscle, or are you only doing aerobic exercise? Muscle burns calories just sitting there, so if you do a bit of resistance exercise each morning it will help increase your metabolism. Also I've read a bit recently about how the microbes in your gut can affect how you store weight and 'live' foods can help with the balance of this. Fermented foods like sauerkraut (but not anything that has been radiated and put on the supermarket shelves) and also things like fresh goats cheese are said to help with the bacteria you need to help maintain a healthy weight. Worth a try?

I am not sure this will help you, but I have been fat for years (size 14). Nothing worked. Then a few months ago I went vegan and the weight is falling off at the rate of about a kilo a week.

I am not even trying to lose weight, I eat big meals and drink like a fish. I am also much healthier, cholesterol is at the bottom of the chart and I feel great.

It might be worth considering.

I don't do any resistance training at all, just running so I will look into that. I think HIIT may work too.
However, you can't outrun a bad diet so I need to change my diet and volume of food. However, I don't seem very good at sticking to it, which is why I was thinking of a plan with some accountability but where I don't need to turn up to a class (impossible with my working hours).
Is there anything where I have to send a picture of my weight on the scales each week?

one more thing, I believe the simple calorie counting behind the 'eat less than you burn' idea is now out of date science as our bodies are way more complex than that. There is a theory that is gaining traction that has weight gain down to insulin storage after your blood sugar spikes after too much carbs or sugar. This is the thinking behind diets that advocate no processed foods or sugar. And also behind the whole 'war on sugar' at the moment. This was the only way I have ever successfully lost weight. Also try eating protein with everything.

I've recently lost a stone (have another to go) simply because I moved house and we did it ourselves...that catapulted me into action because it was HARD work for a week and I found I felt a bit slimmer...I'd lost a few pounds.

That made me think....if I have lost weight simply by moving more, but not changed what I eat...then that's the key!

I don't eat huge amounts at all but was very, very, very lazy.

SO I've been walking more and doing more gardening and that's how I've lost a stone.

Just read your food descriptions and it's quite similar to mine OP...maybe just move more? Walking has done wonders for me.

ARGH I'm so bloody sick of seeing calories in calories out. IT'S NOT THAT SIMPLE. Every other process in the body is tightly controlled why would your weight be anything other than a tightly controlled mechanism? CICO is far too simplistic for what really happens and moreover has never ever been shown to be effective long term especially with people who have hyperinsulinemia and metabolic disorders.

www.scientificamerican.com/article/6-years-after-the-biggest-loser-metabolism-is-slower-and-weight-is-back-up/
authoritynutrition.com/debunking-the-calorie-myth/
www.caloriegate.com/calories-in-calories-out/11-experts-demolish-the-calories-in-calories-out-cico-model-of-obesity

I have a lot more links should anyone require them.

OP I was like you this time last year. I started using Diet Doctor and lost 7 stone in the year but cutting out sugar, starch, grains and cereals. I always thought I was destined to be fat because I ate low fat and low calorie as we're told to do. It never worked and I got fatter. I'm on a full ketogenic diet now and I'm slimmer than I have ever been at 10st 6lbs. NO CALORIE COUNTING

www.stephanguyenet.com/thehungrybrain/
Also read his blog

Nobody is saying calorie counting in that sense, it's just hard to talk about why wine is a killer when trying to lose weight without pointing out how easily a few glasses could easily take your daily intake to 50% over what you actually need.

I swear by jogging at least 3 days a week and using weights, It worked wonders for me! I just need to get back into it, also just generally eating well, being mindful of what you eat and how much.