How to lose weight when you love food and booze

[surejan24]

I'm hoping there is an answer to this but realistically I know I need to make some changes.

I'm late 30's and have had two c sections so I have the inevitable overhang as well as quite a lot of extra belly fat. It isn't a good look and I'm at the point where I am dreading summer because I live in leggings and baggy tops/jumpers to hide my middle. I'm actually about 12 stone but I look much heavier and my shape is all wrong.

My issue is I love food and booze. I don't eat particularly badly but I eat a lot. I tried eating in a calorie deficit and did ok but then binged on snacks. At the weekends I love having a takeaway (plus leftovers the next day) and a bottle of wine. Occasionally in the week I'll have a gin once the kids are in bed. I treat these as rewards and things to look forward to. I don't get the option to go out much so it's "treats" like this that make life bearable.

But they are contributing to my weight gain and consequent shit self esteem. I don't know what to do. I've tried and failed with dieting so many times because ultimately I enjoy food and fall back on 'life's too short' mentality.

I'd love to hear from anyone who has overcome this sort of thing because im going round in circles at the minute.

I love them, Jo is my favourite 😂

I lost 4 stone on slimming world and 4 years on, I have kept the weight off.
I used to drink wine at the weekend but swapped it for gin/vodka with diet mixers. I only drink at the weekends. I will eat all foods, have treats, take-away but my diet is much healthier and I make better food choices.
I love bread but will only eat nimble loaf. Still get my fix but had to stop eating crumpet/bagels. Don't miss them at all.

I excerise alot, I work out with weights, LTB's, body attack, boxing and circuits classes. Walk everyday with my dogs. I used to hate excerise but I really enjoy my classes I attend. It was a life change for me and I feel better for it. I was on holiday years ago and I literally collapsed at the top of the hill we were climbing when sightseeing. It was extremely steep and I was embarrassed by what happened. I couldn't breath properly as I was so out of breathe. When we returned home I decided I had to do something about my weight. It took me 18 months.
I started HRT over a year ago, I am in my fifties and haven't put the weight back on. I have a photo of me at my heaviest in my kitchen and it keeps me motivated.
I also don't fret when I have a few drinks, take-away, treats. I enjoy them and not feel guilty. The reason it has worked for me as I haven't cut out any food groups.
Goodluck with your weight loss journey. I am sure you will smash it. Start with little steps.

Binge eating is very hard to break. I'm currently in to my third week of a vlcd to break the binge cycle - removing real food from the equation is helping to reset my brain. I'm not hungry and I don't feel the urge to pick/eat, even when I'm serving up various yummy things to the kids. They aren't for everyone, but with my bmi at 32, and my knee protesting at the extra weight, it's already made a massive difference. I have a motivating factor, like a pps holiday, to help drive me along.

Thank you for that suggestion, @Cathyt90, I've downloaded it, the recipes look interesting, filling and enjoyable. I'm going to give it a go, combined with intermittent fasting, so lowering my calorie intake by skipping breakfast, which I know works for me.

You know what to do, but you aren't doing it.

No magic answer.

Eat less, mainly plants, with lean chicken, lots of fish, a little red meat, lots of fruit, veg, some dairy, nuts.

Cut out all white and beige food- bread, pasta, rice - unless it's wholegrain and a portion is about 2 tablespoons.

Stop buying rubbish (sweets, crisps, biscuits, cake, etc) and don't have them in the house.

And drink less.

I walk about 10,000 steps a day, sometimes much more,

When and how are you walking 5 miles a day?

You can't lose weight whilst drinking booze (wine is like liquid cake calorie wise) and eating what you want is the sad truth.

I love food and booze. For the last two years I've pretty much eaten and drunk what I wanted. Not huge amounts, but not being careful either. Consequently I've gone from a 10/12 to a 14.

I've cut out carbs and booze the last three weeks and lost 7 pounds.

It's not fun. But you have to choose between eating/drinking and being the weight you want.

You can't , you have to be in a calorie deficit across the week / month to lose weight ..

So if you like snacks and alcohol you need to eat less at your mega times ..

Have a look at volume eating where you eat a lot but it's low calorie so you can have more treats ..
Also try to up your steps / exercise / movement .

Also you don't need to be eating 1200. Cals .. work out your tdee and just reduce it by 200... you should see a weight loss in a month if you stick to those rules

Sw , there is loads you can eat without feeling you are missing out

I do intermittent fasting. I don't eat until 12:30 on a weekday but I drink peppermint tea and water ( to keep me going and to help with bad breath from not eating) I then eat a healthier lunch but if I want a biscuit/ bun/ cake I'll have it. I then find I'm really not hungry but I'll have a small meal at 5 then I stop eating again. As I write this im realising how strict it sounds yet I'm honestly finding it so easy as the protein and fat keeps me full.

I was fed up being fat so anything was worth a go in my eyes. But you can't have it all, you must choose between what you want now and what you want long term. I want long term slim and healthy!

My GP told me u can't lose the post kids jellybelly overhang. I haven't. But I've lost 1.2 stone since Easter and it's smaller . No food more than 5 carbs per 100g,total net carbs v low, use Carb Manager app, can drink gin or vodka n tonic but body burns that first. Keep up ur protein

I'm not sure if that was meant to sound accusatory but it did a bit...

Anyway, I do the school run twice a day which is about 3000 steps there and back (twice a day makes 6000). Also try to have a lunchtime walk and rarely sit down til about 7pm after running around after the kids, admittedly this is pottering rather than exercise but I'm still on my feet.

I think you really need to break the binge eating habit. You can't outwalk a bad diet. Walking is great in many ways, but it hardly burns calories. I do way more than 10 k a day and I only burn about 300 calories. Your snacks would probably be more.

Yeah they are definitely more. I think since having my second c section (and also the fact I'm getting older) the weight looks and feels a lot more noticeable on me. I need to reduce the belly fat and then probably tone up a bit too. I try clothes on and am genuinely shocked at how far my belly sticks out now. Today I've been in thick leggings and a long top in 30 degree heat because I'm so self conscious.

I’m in a similar position to you OP, it’s very difficult. I’m trying to reduce portion sizes, eat healthier snacks, and only drink alcohol at the weekends.

I did couch to 5k and that helped and I definitely lost weight but my knees and pelvic floor can no longer cope with the running.
I’ve now joined a gym, got a PT and am learning how to lift weights. I still have a belly, but feel stronger and healthier. I am trying to think of ways to treat myself that isn’t based around food and drink.

I think the belly is the hardest to shift because the muscles have already been stretched from pregnancy, and the body seems to hand on to the fat there.

I tried My Fitness Pal after lots of recommendations on here, but found it so much hassle logging the calories all day long, and it actually made me think about food more, so had the opposite effect!
Also I found it frustrating that it would log my steps but I couldn’t log my weight training.

I don’t agree with all these very low calorie diets or going into keto, I just don’t think it’s a sustainable or healthy way of living.

Thank you for posting @Circethemagician I'm thinking of getting a PT too. I need someone to guide me and hold me accountable.

This week I'm going to work on stopping the snacks. At my usual 4pm fridge raiding time I will stand firm and distract myself. This in itself will save me at least a few hundred calories a day. After that I'll work on lowering the rest of my daily calories and getting more exercise thrown in too. It's going to have to be slow and steady progress otherwise I'll just fail. I honestly don't think I'll ever give up booze and takeaways but I need to find ways to make my lifestyle at least 80/20 healthy and balanced.

At my usual 4pm fridge raiding time I will stand firm and distract myself.

Do you need distraction techniques?

What about something like tackling a cupboard tidy with rubber gloves on - if you've slathered yourself in hand cream before putting on the gloves, your treat will be lovely soft hands!

You only need to do a few minutes worth until the craving passes.

My weight has fluctuated over my 41 years.
I can tell you something that I saw that put excess weight on me and that's dairy.

I went very slim when I was vegan, that was 7 years, and my tummy was flat and no flab anywhere, not in a bad way. I still guzzled junkfood but I was a dairy addict and it made a notable difference. I enjoyed vegan cheese alternatives that had fat but not the lactation kind of fat, which is totally different, I mean it's a baby food for cows so literally designed to pile weight on.

That's not a vegan lecture. I've abandoned veganism but as soon as I went back to the cheese the tummy bulged and arms flabbed once again. It's led to me to a foregone conclusion.

I'm still not vegan but cutting back on the rounds of camembert and my figure is coming back.

There's a million reasons and a million variations in each person, but dairy is a huge culprit and if you can cut that down I think it can make all the difference.

I've not cut down in wine or beer, these don't seem to have an impact on my weight. The amount I eat doesn't either. It's literally all about dairy, perhaps it's just me but I would suggest giving it a go if you're able.

At 12 stone? Don’t be silly. Unless OP is five foot nothing that’s a ridiculous and irresponsible suggestion.

She would be obese at 12 stone exactly and 5 foot 2. Why not have some help in the form of a very safe and well tested drug?

Do OMAD and low carb. I love food and haven't missed pasta/bread/rice etc.