I don't think I can do it

[strawberryvanillachocolate]

And it's not because I don't WANT to. It's more I've got conflicting wants - the want to be a slim and the want to eat. And the want to eat is so very powerful.

Each season brings new temptations. I find it difficult to reign in eating once I start. There are also a lot of foods I just don't really like.

Please don't suggest SW as this definitely doesn't work for me

Am I doomed to a fatty life??

I also feel like this - I've completely lost the belief that I can do it. I'm constantly starting again and sabotaging myself - even though I'm miserable with how I look, I don't understand it at all!

Yeah same [sad\

Read Dr Michael Moseley 5:2 book, it is dropping off me and I feel back in control after years of not being, probably because I can always have what I want the next day

Really important to do it properly as per the book though, not a half arsed version of it

I am the same. I have sensory issues around food which makes life very difficult. I can only seem to lose the first 8/10lbs before coming to a standstill and eventually putting it back on again.

I feel like no matter which diet/method/slimming club I try there will always be that overwhelming feeling of being deprived which then leads me back to square one again.

I'm miserable with the way I look but at the same time I'm miserable when trying to lose weight too.

Well I hate to sound defeatist but I can't see that working mainly because of how much food I am capable of putting away on a 5 day!

Same delete

I found the Marisa peer book worked for me for a while - look it up on amazon. Limited success with slimming world, have the Michael Mosley book but never even tried 5:2, no success with Paul McKenna. I just love eating !

How about the Michael Moseley Blood Sugar diet? The recipes in the book are great - they take some prep work but if you have the time you don't feel like you're on a diet at all. After the initial period you introduce certain carbs back in and just maintain the 'mediterranean' style of eating.

The last couple of weeks I felt like you - I just felt I couldn't do it. I've planned in meals for 5 days a week for the next 4 weeks, bought the stuff and cooked them and put them in the freezer. Now I just have to buy salad and yogurt and I'm set. Taking away my option for junk seems to help.

I lost a stone on it last summer, I've slowly inched about half a stone back on but I'm back on the strict eating plan as of today and am starting to feel positive about it.

Losing weight doesn't work unless your head wants to do it. Last year I lost 2 stone (for my wedding) because I accepted the fact if I wanted to be slimmer I had to cut out food I enjoyed. However since the wedding, my head wont cooperate and I've gained it all back.

I know kool but I just am so unfocused

You can do it, you need to find a motivation. Name one thing that you would be able to do if you were slimmer that is difficult right now?

Think of it and post a picture of it in your mind (or on the fridge) and remember it when you want to eat. No diet in the world will help unless you have a goal.

Have you had your sugar tested?

Start the Tabata (HIIT) workouts. They are simple, can be done from home without all the gym equipment. 20 secs on, 10 secs off. 4 minutes in total. You can increase it daily until you've reached 8x 4 minutes which is a lot less time than you would spend in the gym.

You can still have the seasonal treats but use the less calorie versions.

In mid Feb I was seriously out of breath just walking, overeating, non active, decided as my parents are both very overweight and I'm now in my 40s it was now or never, joined a gym, go to classes (was literally shaking at my first class) I've so far since then lost 19lb and to keep me focused I've various challenges booked in over the next few months to train for. I still have another couple of stole to go to reach target weight but agree with previous poster head has to be in the right place. As you see results that then motivates you.

*stone oh and I'm eating better.

I have lost over 3 stone since Christmas (still have a way to go though). I don't cut anything out. I eat minimum 1800 calories a day but I exercise a lot. At least an hour a day and sometimes longer. Mainly just walking and I split into two daily sessions early in the morning and late at night. I calorie count on MFP. It's doable once you get your head around it.

I'm the same. There's a very powerful desire to eat which outweighs all else. It's really depressing.

I agree with Kool.
I wasn't really motivated to do it until I took some photos of myself in just underwear and decided I couldn't bear to look like that.
I've just done an interim set which have given me the boost I need that it is making a difference and the motivation to go the next step.
I'm also a compulsive eater. I'm doing eat all you want for lunch and tea but nothing else except fruit for snacks if hungry between meals. Also drinking a lot of water and squash. I find the all or nothing approach is good because it's easy to follow but not too self-denying.

For the self-sabotage you need to realise you are doing it - I will suddenly find - with all good intentions - that I've eaten 4 biccies at work, or bought chocolate etc. There is some subconscious thing with me - I wondering about CBT. I know it is down to me and this is not me trying to absolve responsibility for what I do - I need to understand what makes me do it and stop. I cannot stop (and I have a lot of motivation) and need help to recognise triggers that are obviously so deeply ingrained. any thoughts?

What helped me was understanding the drivers behind my urge to eat.

Our bodies are made to crave fat and sugar to help us survive famines. Your brain is designed to give you wonderful feelings when you eat fat and sugar. Over time we learn that we can achieve that feeling by eating and then, when we need that good feeling, e.g. when upset, stressed, bored, our brains shortcut to food.

When I crave fat/sugar I try to remind myself that it's what my brain wants me to do. It's not what I want to do. I want to be healthy.

I also remind myself that if I do give in, I'll have maybe a few mins of that good feeling, max, followed by hours of guilt that I caved.

I try to find alternative activities which give me the feelings I'm craving from food, e.g.: cuddles from a loved one, laughter, a lovely bath.

Sometimes if I just really can't get over the craving to eat something, I'll make a tea with milk instead, as it has that tiny bit of sugar you're craving, and is quite filling, without being as bad as eating a whole chocolate bar or similar.

Recently DH and I have also just banned snacks in the house outright on the premise that if we have to go out to get food rather than to the cupboard, we'll be much less likely to do so!

I am calorie counting on MFP. Am eating the same foods (the food I eat is not really unhealthy) but massive portions.

Dh has also started and given he is 6ft 2 and about 4 stone heavier than me (and I am about 4-5 stone overweight) and a rugby player so is built, we used to have pretty much the same portion sizes. I am 5 ft 2!! After working it out on MFP for us both, even with a calorie deficit allowing for us to lose 1lb a week, he is allowed nearly 700 calories more than me.

It is all about portion size for me.

On MFP I put myself down as sedentary, but then I have the pacer app on my phone and it syncs to MFP and gives me "exercise" calories. At work I can walk 4-5 miles a day over the course of the shift. I do try and stick to only eating maybe 50-70% of those exercise calories back though.

I have lost nearly 10lbs since start of March.

But I have to measure everything and scan everything. It is so easy to underestimate just how much something weighs. Even a bowl of cereal.

Try focussing on losing weight for the long term health benefits. Think of it in terms of caring for yourself properly. Consider the implications of being overweight, the effect on your heart, the strain on your joints and avoiding future mobility problems in later life. Great incentives and you hold the key.

Every single diet or eating method works if you stick to it. You've obviously given them a good bash but return to your old habits. Maybe you should consider a more mental health approach? Repeating the same cycle and returning to the same point won't be fixed with a new method. Instead exploring your early experiences with food and how this has affected you in later life might give you more control In identifying your habits. Therapy might be expensive but how many more years do you want to invest in this weight gain and loss cycle

Thanks.

I've tried thinking about my health but it really doesn't work as although I do care, in the instant I care MORE about the food, as gluttonous as that is.

Photos in my underwear - well I already know I look awful. It doesn't motivate me I just feel ashamed and hopeless.

Exercise - well I don't enjoy it so I find it hard to motivate myself. I'm aware of course one big factor in disliking it is ny size. I feel self conscious at the gym.

I don't know! Feeling a bit about it all. I've gained weight before but never been this large for this long.

OP what about starting with a small easy change?
E.g. Ten minute walk a day.