Has anyone ever thought, 'Right, I'm going to eat healthily and exercise' and it's actually worked?

[Pinkjenny]

Just examining my options. Am currently doing SW for the fourth time. Weight not really shifting. Am wondering whether it should be more of a lifestyle change that I need to focus on, rather than a diet.

But without the discipline of the classes, would it be realistic?

I couldn't get on with classes - I have a mental block about counting sins/points/calories, I just can't remember any of them!

I have an app on my phone which I use to record everything I eat which was a really good way of me being aware of what I eat (I'm a grazer) so helps a little but to shift weight I find that low carbing and exercise work for me better than anything else.

Do you exercise much? The SW one I went to the leader was almost anti-exercise! Put me off a bit.

Yes, I have, and yes it has. But same as for those who diet with SW or WW or whatever, when I have let go of the new lifestyle and slipped back into old ways, I become fatter and less healthy again. So here I am working on those lifestyle changes again, and hoping to keep them this time. But at least I've not paid £££££ to a big corperation in the process of losing weight and then putting it on again :o

Thanks for replying

I don't exercise at all.

Jammy - encouraging!

I haven't - I need the discipline of a weekly weigh in at WW class.

But my DP has, last November he was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and they ask that you try to lose 10% of your bodyweight as a first goal. He started exercising (a little, brisk walking) and healthy eating following low GI principles really and obv avoiding sugar in drinks and snacks, but not keeping a food diary, not counting calories. He has stuck with it lost 2 stone now, I am very impressed with what he has done. And a tad too.

I do count calories, but I do it on a "eat pretty healthily and calorie count as a back up to check I'm not going off track" basis (I use myfitnesspal.com to record intake) so I get to choose what I eat, not follow a "plan".

And exercise helps SO much. Personally I find if I've put that effort in I don't want to eat unhealthily. Part;y because I've put that effort in and don't want to waste it, and partly because the natural "high" just makes me not want to. Additionally of course, the exercise burns the calories and helps build muscle that in turn burns more calories. So it's win win win all round.

I think you need to start thinking about exercise then.

I started off with walking, progressing to around 20km running per week. I also do shred and swimming if its rainy or cold.

Yes, and I lost just over 2 stone. It's learning you can't go back to eating the way you did before that worked for me, and weighing myself every day (still do) to stop the slippage up the way. I did use Tesco diets for a while, just to help me work out my portions and stuff. I'm a lot more calorie conscious now, have pretty much given up mince for quorn, only one 'bad' night at the weekend, cut right back on alcohol and also try to do hard exercise 3 -4 times a week.

My turnaround came in tears on the end of the bed one day when I just couldn't hack being fat any more. I had to face up to the fact my so-called healthy eating and exercise wasn't enough and I needed to take drastic action. I started running again (killer, can now do 10k reasonably easily), zumba-ing (which is great, loads of classes at loads of times), doing My Fitness Coach on the wii (none of your SportActive or Wiifit nonsense) and also my Davina DVD. Got a heart rate monitor to ensure my exercise really was getting my heart rate up, it helped filter out the home exercises which are rubbish! I also did spin for a while which was awful but accounted for 1lb every time I went!!

So, I didn't really go on a diet, I changed my diet. Hope you work it out too!