Diet - What next?

[DistrictAndCircle]

I’d been slowly gaining weight for a while, and I was eating a lot of crap. So six weeks ago I decided to do something about it.

I thought I’d try to go cold turkey for six weeks. No sweets, chocolate, crisps, unhealthy snacks or really any eating between meals at all. Only healthy foods, and smaller, healthy dinners. Calorie counting to make sure that I was at or under the daily allowance every day, before exercise. I already exercise quite a bit (half an hour workout every day plus a daily four mile brisk walk) and I’ve kept that up.

And it’s worked. I have lost well over a stone. My BMI has gone down from 25.3 to 23. I am sleeping better and I’ve saved money.

Today marks the six weeks point and I’m pleased that I’ve managed it. It’s been as much of a mental challenge as well as a physical one.

The cravings I had for sweets and crisps etc have gone. But MY GOD I’m hungry! Right now I could go to the cupboard and eat anything. Massive bowl of cereal, sandwich, pasta, stuff from the freezer. I am just really peckish all the time!

How can I keep it up? I don’t want to fall back into bad habits, and I think the easiest way to achieve that goal is to avoid having sweets etc in the house (which is reasonably easy, even with kids). But just the cravings to eat food! Even when I’m at the recommended calorie levels I’m still really bloody hungry!

[PushingPeopleAway]

If you’re really hungry then maybe you need to change what you are eating?
I lost 3+ stone calorie counting. I’m not often so hungry after hitting my calorie target that I feel I want to raid the cupboards.

Are you filling up with high fibre foods/lots of veg?
If you’re really hungry then high protein can fill you up, or a bowl of low calorie, home made veg soup before meal maybe? Chia seeds are filling. A couple of table spoons in a smoothie or in a pot of yogurt can leave you full as they swell. You need to drink them quick so they don’t turn to wallpaper paste in the glass though!

[PushingPeopleAway]

Well done on making dietary changes and reducing your weight though, that’s really good going in 6 weeks.

[Gloworm1974]

Well done!! I’m six weeks into my healthy eating calorie counting and have only lost one sodding pound! I could cry! I eat high protein low carb, have my last food at 5pm and then don’t eat till lunchtime the next day. I was overeating by about 1000 calories a day (I now eat 1000 or 1200 a day, I was eating about 2500 a day) I’ve ditched all crap takeaways, rice, pasta, sugar, chocolate, basically anything that’s not a natural whole food (apart from granary bread, I have two slices of toast a day with my soft boiled eggs. I’m just baffled by it. I’m 49 and post menopause so think that could be the reason. Do you mind if I bodily ask how old you are and if you too are post menopause? I don’t exercise though so I’m thinking that’s the logical explanation

[Hoglet70]

@Gloworm1974 I am early fifties and also eating under 1200 kcals a day (also quite short) and it takes me forever to lose anything. Anything over 1500 cals a day and the weight piles on. It's definitely an age thing.

[ChocolateCinderToffee]

I find it's really helping me to cut right down on carbs except for beans and lentils, and increase protein. I am a carb addict though: have you worked out what particular foods are your downfall? I could very happily eat nothing but carbs. I'm not that big a fan of most protein foods. I think it's a case of knowing where your weaknesses are.

[TeenLifeMum]

I’ve recently started calorie counting with noom because my dieting over the last year is probably best described as disordered eating where I would starve and binge so fail.

it breaks food into red, orange and green foods and you are supposed to eat a certain amount of calories split across those - it tells you the split.

I’m not hungry at all but I fill up on orange and green foods - I’ve just had a 2 egg omelette with skimmed milk and 2 cups of cooked broccoli with 20g of grated cheddar (which is red). I’m really full.

Basically, meals need to be low calorie high density foods then treats can be red foods but the meals fill you up so you snack less. Good luck and well done so far.