One year into my Unsuccessful diet (food diary included)

[weightloss21]

I'm looking for advice on where to go next as I feel I have hit a brick wall and not sure what else to try.

I'll try and make this as short but informative as possible.

I have always struggled with my weight. From last January I decided to track my food more carefully and start intermittent fasting by not eating breakfast and having black coffee instead. Within this time I have done the strict keto diet but didn't lose any weight.

Instead of going over every diet I have tried etc I will just write down my food diary more recently. Snacks can be from 0-3 per day and / means or.

More recently:
Pre - 2nd lockdown - work full time 5 days a week, on my feet all day job.
Breakfast = black coffee
Lunch = nothing/apple/babybell
Dinner = soup/stew/jacket potato/salad/meat&veg
Weekends = roast/spag bol/pasta etc - higher carb food

2nd lockdown - wfh sitting down most of the day. Upped exercise to 2/3 days a week (at home) either exercise bike or HIIT.
Breakfast = black coffee
Lunch = Salad/omlette/soup
Dinner = meat & veg/ fish & veg/ salad/ soup
Snacks = fruit/cup of tea,coffee,hot choc/babybell/boiled egg

Since last Monday (25th Jan) - reduced eggs as was eating a lot before.
Breakfast = black coffee
Lunch = Protein shake
Dinner = meat,fish & veg/ salad/soup
Snacks = apple,orange/sugar free jelly/teaspoon of peanut butter/cup of tea,coffee

I have a cheat meal once a week which usually consists of something like = lasagne/cottage pie/pizza/pasta and bowl of ice cream and a choc bar eg twix, mars bar etc

Since last January I haven't lost any weight. The first lockdown I didn't have a cheat meal but it didn't seem to make a difference (or I was losing it and then putting it back on).

My current meal plan isn't working so I am not sure where to go from here. Please do you have any suggestions/share your food diaries as I am at my wits end!!

If you’re not getting regular periods, you’ve struggled with weight gain and losing weight is hard, I’d consider PCOS.

I agree that your relationship with food sounds worrying.

Don’t feel embarrassed about talking to your doctor. That’s what they’re there for.

There's so much missing from here it's impossible to tell.
Portion sizes/ dressings etc/ cooking methods/ your daily TDEE.

@weightloss21

I'm definitely going to focus more on nutrition and cooking from scratch rather than skipping meals or seeing them as the enemy.

I will definitely read those books you recommend thank you.

allCodenameVillanelle

How did you work out how many calories you need? And do you stick to them or go under?

My calories allowance on MFP is 1200 but I try not to go over 800 so I can use them on my cheat meal.

I worked out my TDEE and I make sure I'm active daily and workout 3 times a week (pre covid, it's 1-2 at the moment) to keep my calorie output high I'd never cope on such a low daily calorie intake. You need to get more active.

Have you ever followed something like Slimming World or WW? They can help you focus on healthy eating habits every day, not binge and famine as you seem to be doing now.

I would also be honest with the doctor about your disordered eating, eating as little as 2/300 calories some days and then having blow-outs, plus losing your period suggests you need some help and advice, eating disorder charities might also have good resources on when to get help.

If you need help, you need help. Doesn't matter what's happening in the world. You deserve help. Remember that.

Yeah, even overweight people can have eating disorders. It can happen to absolutely anyone and there is no shame in it. Remember that too.

Hope you will now block weightloss forums and get on with some horror stories and just healthier eating not for weightloss😁
(I can highly recommend Stay focused app for blocking away the temptations online)

@thenorthernluce

This thread is making me so sad. So much disordered eating disguised as healthy lifestyles.

OP, if you’re ready to get off the diet rollercoaster, look into Intuitive Eating (IE) and Health At Every Size (HAES). It’s so scary at first when you challenge the years/decades of ingrained diet culture and rules, but my God, it’s also freeing. I’m less than a year into it, so I’m relatively new, but I’m already feeling more peaceful and accepting, and I’m thankful that the brain space given over to counting calories, meal planning, agonising over every single thing I ate is now focussed on other, more enjoyable things.

Don't advise intuitive eating or advocate HAES to someone with disordered eating. IE is a licence to binge and HAES is dangerous bollocks

Hi OP, have you considered hypnosis? A friend of mine has lost an enormous amount of weight in the last few years following hypnosis sessions. She was so inspiring, I tried it myself and lost 1.5 stones very easily over a few months. Before the sessions I kept a food diary. An honest account of what I ate which was an eye opener. The sessions get you into the habit of eating well 3 times a day and knowing when you are full (which sounds ridiculous but I had a real mental issue of clearing my plate even with massive portions). You just don't crave the 'treats', you don't need to calorie count and it will stop you just having coffee for breakfast. It really did work and is a real boost for your self esteem.

I've never done WW or SW world as you have to get weighed there and I couldn't cope with that although now with Covid I might look into an online session.

I will definitely go to the doctors after covid is but I'm not sure what they would suggest. Hypnosis is something I have never thought about but it is worth looking into as I do need to re-set y way of thinking.

I think I go on these restrictive diets because I tell myself once I have lost the weight then I will start eating properly but it doesn't happen.

The horror stories may help me lose weight just by sweating and shaking

I think I go on these restrictive diets because I tell myself once I have lost the weight then I will start eating properly but it doesn't happen

And this is your problem. It's also why you're so focussed on your "cheat day".

You have a very unhealthy eating pattern and you need to address your lifestyle, not your weight.

@weightloss21

The horror stories may help me lose weight just by sweating and shaking

The creepypasta workout😁

I would leave ww and any weightloss programmes out of your mind at the moment and just did greengrocer visit programme and no calorie, carb or whatever counting. Just eat good food, don't have seconds, eat good portions (you can find recommended portions online or on packets, they are a good guide) and see where it takes you.

You’re not eating enough. Do a tdee calculator and subtract 300-500 from maintenance.

No one should be eating 1200 and below a day.

1500 cals is what you’re meant to be eating. Give it a go for a couple of weeks and see how you get on!

I genuinely can’t believe people are claiming a tin of soup and a three egg omlette is too much, OP is a grown adult, not a toddler.

I’d try and get a full health screen at the GP, I know covid may make this more difficult right now. You could also seek out a nutritionist who can provide a food plan that suits you as an individual, not someone on MN who recoils in horror at an adult eating a tin of soup.

@SimonJT maybe they are talking industrial ones😁
www.marfast.co.uk/ambient-food-products/soups/knorr-chicken-soup-200-portions-tub.html

maybe they are talking industrial ones

No-one asked me what size tin

[quote SchrodingersImmigrant]@SimonJT maybe they are talking industrial ones😁
www.marfast.co.uk/ambient-food-products/soups/knorr-chicken-soup-200-portions-tub.html[/quote]
Now that’s my sort of portion.

I would lose weight if I ate what you do and I'm 5'4" menopausal and a few stone lighter. So I second getting your thyroid and vitamin D levels checked. This has been a stressful year for everyone, so we may have extra cortisol adding to our weight loss woes.
One interesting experiment would be to not have your cheat day for a month, drink more water every day and use Renpho body weight scales to see what happens with your body composition.
I assume you are fasting clean in the morning - no sugarbor sweetener in your black coffee. So at least your gut is getting a rest and insulin production turned off.
Thyroid and vitamin D check.

1500 cals is what you’re meant to be eating. Give it a go for a couple of weeks and see how you get on!

I would be really worried about putting on weight if I am not losing on what I am eating now . Obviously what I am doing now isn't working so I might try it for two weeks and just see.

You could also seek out a nutritionist who can provide a food plan that suits you as an individual

A nutritionist would be a good idea. After covid I might go to the doctor and ask if they can recommend a nutritionist.

Without having read the whole thread - OP if you have struggled with weight issues the best option is to consult a dietician/nutritionist.
Diets do not help with sustained weight loss - you will put it back on once you resume a 'normal' eating pattern.
Also not all exercise is created equal. During exercise sessions you need to be pushing yourself hard enough to hit the 'calorie burning' zone.
If you're looking for resources to live a healthier lifestyle I this website:
www.fitnessblender.com/

Losing weight is easier for some than it is for others.. and if it's harder for you paying a professional is well worth it

@weightloss21

Have you tried IF? I know that everyone bangs on about this, but it is really effective

Yes this is what I do now. But not found it very helpful. I don't eat between 8pm and 12pm.

Have you tried switching your fasting schedule, I find an 18:6 with the odd 20:4 (and a more relaxed day at the weekend) is working.

I know there are very mixed opinions on it, I don't overeat during my window or spend all day starving despite what people may think.

And definitely take a look at Fast, Feasr, Repeat and the studies it points towards.

@SimonJT I agree, I am on a calorie controlled diet at the moment, lost 53lb since last August and currently 12stone 12lb.

I have 1440 calories a day, when I was around 16 stone I was having 1690 calories but TDEE drops with weight.

I would happily eat a standard full size tin of Heinz chicken noodle soup for lunch. I do try to keep my lunch at 300 cals or less because that way I can have pretty much anything I want for dinner including really sinful stuff like Mac n Cheese 😂

I also choose 2 egg rather than 3 egg omelette as that way I can add veg and cheese in to make it a bigger tastier meal without as many calories. I find a big handful of mushrooms and another of onion and some sliced pepper more filling than that 1 egg would be.

OP you wrote this about keto:

No it wasn't it was around 1800-2000kcals a day which mentally I really struggled with but I cut out the breakfast completely and then would do the lower kcal meals. But I didn't lose weight which I thought it was because my body wasn't used to having so many kcals but it could be because I didn't do it right.

I find there are a number of different varieties of keto popular online and then even more varieties of low carb. You can count both calories and carbs and eat your TDEE plus a deficit such as 300-500/day (similar to other diets) or you can just count carbs and rely on the reduced appetite you get on keto to naturally reduce calories. Then if you don't want to count or track carbs you can just stick to a food list of very low carb foods like they do on the MN bootcamp.
There is a style of keto where you eat high fat, reduced protein and eat to TDEE but this is an unusual, experimental one based on some people's own theories that have not been widely studied so it might be easier to stick to the mainstream styles.
I'm not saying you should do keto but if you do you can certainly stick to a sensible calorie deficit based on your TDEE.