How on earth can I lose weight when I have NO willpower?

[Dancergirl]

So I am 5'3" and I was about 9.5 stone but lately it's been creeping up towards 10st. According to the BMI calculator this is still within healthy limits but only just.

I would like to get down to just over 9st. Problem is, although we generally eat healthy dinners and I cook from scratch most nights, I know I eat too much unhealthy stuff during the day.

I know a healthy breakfast should consist of protein and low in sugar and carbs. So what do I end up eating - a bowl of cereal and a mini pain au chocolat

I have always loved chocolate and have to have some every day. Going without it would just make me miserable and I wouldn't last.

I know this probably sounds pathetic but I'm being honest. Any tips please?

I found hypnotherapy worked for me

Are you me? Watching with interest and a whole lot more to lose, too.

You don't have to go without. I've lost 6 stone over a year and a half with having at least one chocolate something a day. Could have been quicker admittedly but life gets In the way!

I did it by cutting back on carbs in other meals so that I could have this. I don't miss the carbohydrates but I would definitely miss the chocolate. It finishes off my meal

Also watching with interest

Have you tried the 70% cocoa solid chocolate? Gives you that chocolate fix without needing to eat more than a couple of squares.

sponge I don't know if it would cut it when I want a walnut whip or a lion bar!

If you can find the willpower for a limited period of two weeks, try stopping all sugar.

It needs to be all sugar i.e. no sugary drinks, cereals,snacks etc and it will cause withdrawal symptoms (cravings and headaches) but at the end of a fortnight you will have broken the back of any sugar addiction. You will feel clear headed, will have stopped craving food, will have masses of energy and will be losing weight.

They reckon sugar is more addictive than Heroin !! It certainly causes blood sugar spikes, hunger, cravings etc which leads us to snack unhealthy foods and store fat.

Honestly it is worth trying. There are loads of books around explaining the science behind giving up sugar if you need some support and two weeks is a relatively short time to have to find real willpower. Once the two weeks are up you will be so pleased with the results that the willpower to maintain your new healthy eating will be automatic.

What do you eat for breakfast if you go sugar free?

I have lost 3stone with SW.

I have porridge with courgette and frozen fruit and ff yoghurt.
Or bacon, eggs, bean and tomatoes.

I really don't like porridge. A cooked breakfast may be a possibility but I presume you can't have any bread with it?

You can have 60g bread for a healthy extra.....

Kingsmill Wholemeal crustless bread - you can have 3 slices!

Porridge with courgette ?
I have mixed berries for breakfast
Salmon and vegetables or a chicken breast for lunch
Salad or soup for tea

The plan I followed restricted Fruit for the first two weeks, but now I eat mixed berries for breakfast with plain yoghurt.

I also have bacon and tomatoes (you will be stunned at how sweet tomatoes taste after you have been sugar free for two weeks) or scrambled egg. If I am in a hurry plain porridge with berries or sugar free granola with berries.

Going forward sugar free you are steered away from high sugar fruits like Banana or Pineapple towards berries.

If I were in your shoes I'd try not to look at it as "losing weight" but as making healthy changes. Losing weight shouldn't be your goal, not eating pain au chocolait and cereal for breakfast should be. Don't buy it. Look up some quick easy breakfasts that are healthier. Start making slow, easy, healthy changes and focus on that.

I know lots of people have done it but going totally sugar free seems extreme to me and in some way 'faddy' (sorry don't mean to offend anyone but to cut out completely something such as fruit does seem extreme).

If you're sugar free isn't it hard when you go out? Holidays? Visiting people, restaurants? No ice cream, biscuits, a piece of cake if it's someone's birthday?

I really admire people who have done it but I don't know if I'm ready for it yet. There must be other ways to lose a stone...

Don't buy the crap then you can't eat it!!

Fresh fruit and yoghurt
Salad, potato wedges
Steak, salad, chips, jacket potato, savoury rice, couscous

Eat as clean as you can.

There was an article in the Sunday Times a few weeks ago which said this clean eating thing is a bit of a myth.

Anyway, going sugar free only works if the whole family does it surely, otherwise you end up making different meals for everyone? I haven't been blessed with unfussy children and two of them love pasta. Some things are just impractical - lilaclily I cook dinner for the family in the evening, I'm not going to cook chicken or salmon at lunchtime.

I calorie count. I use WLR but a lot of people like MFP (free). The good thing is that you can eat anything you like - I have to have chocolate every day but have 2or 3 squares of good chocolate rather than a big pile of crap. You can also easily see where you are going wrong and adding in loads of calories.

This is what I have had today:

Bowl of Oats and more cereal and glass of orange juice for breakfast (not great I know, but that's all I had, no breaded goods!)

SMALL bit of plain popcorn with dd at cinema

Takeaway salmon and avocado sushi for lunch

Salad for dinner, sort of nicoise - mixed leaves, cucumber, red onion, spring onion, green beans, tuna, hard boiled egg with balsamic and EV olive oil

NO chocolate (so far!)

You can't really.

And neither can I.

To lose weight, we have to put less nice stuff in our mouths.

Sigh.

Your salad sounds very nice :)

Does the fact you have put some weight on bother you that much? If you have no will power you won't lose weight - I struggled for months trying to find motivation. It may just be that you just need to keep an eye on your weight to make sure it doesn't creep up.

Could you just look at making a few small changes - use fry light instead of oil, watch your portions, skimmed milk, healthier breakfast (I usually have overnight oats but may not appeal if you don't like porridge), calorie free drinks?

I try and motivate myself to keep going by trying out different low calorie recipes and weighing myself so I can see my progress.

Does the fact you have put some weight on bother you that much?

Yes it does because firstly I feel bigger, and secondly I always said I would nip any weight gain in the bud before it gets too bad. Actually I feel quite motivated today and have definitely cut down on what I normally eat. I only work very part time and am at home a lot, I think I pick at things out of boredom sometimes. And it doesn't help that I just LOVE food, all of it (except porridge )

A lot of my friends have had success on SW as it works on healthier choices with lots of fruits, veg and protein. I am trialling the free meal plan you can grab from the website and I am struggling to eat everything recommended - it's a lot of food. I also understand you get a certain amount of leeway with "syns" so you can still enjoy some chocolate or wine etc.

Personally, I think relying on willpower is a bit misleading. You are better off targeting your habits - if you know you always reach for a chocolate bar at 3pm each day because your blood sugar crashes, you can plan ahead and substitute it. That's one of the reason why My Fitness Pal does well - by recording your food, it forces you to think about it.

Good luck with the weight loss.

Very true about habits ABC, the last couple of days I have been careful and thought more about what I eat. If I feel peckish I do something to distract myself. Today I've had breakfast and lunch and am going to try not to eat anything else until dinner time.

Update - I seem to have found my willpower

My diet hasn't been perfect this week but I have massively cut down on eating chocolate and snacks. I've just been really careful and thinking about what I put in my mouth.

Feel hungry though!

I know I don't do enough exercise so tomorrow morning I am doing an aerobics type class and will try and keep that up regularly.

And I haven't lost any weight yet, how long until I see a difference?