I'm finally ready to do something

[Opus17]

Good morning everyone,

I've made this thread with a new username so it can remain completely independent of my other posts as I'm not sure how personal it will get 😄 I'd like to use the thread to hold myself accountable and just share ups and downs, because I really am fed up and unhappy of constantly battling this.

Back story is that I started putting on weight as a child, my eating was never regulated, I was allowed to go into the fridge whenever I wanted and I often got given processed foods for dinner. I started becoming aware of the fact that I was overweight when I was around 9 years old. I have yo-yo'd my entire life, I'm now 32. I have a really weird relationship to food and until I was 23, it was complete ignorance. I knew eating a lot and eating rubbish was bad but I was completely ignorant to calories. I didn't understand about calorie deficit etc. Nor did I weigh myself. So I don't actually know what I was, I just remember the sizes.

I learnt all about calories and deficit through the fasting diet. I did this for a few months and shifted 20lbs when I was at my heaviest. I then lived a very happy, calm 2 years where I naturally lost another 20lbs without really making a huge effort because I was very busy. I was still overweight but much happier and healthier.
Then a complete shit storm came. 2 family deaths, pregnancy loss, secondary infertility and a cancer scare for a close family member. I fell into a very dark place and of course, the weight crept back on. I started to reach a number I said I'd never reach again so this prompted me to start focusing on getting it off again. I danced Zumba at home and counted calories and I found RH fitness. They helped me get off some pounds and my clothes fit again! But we started IVF, I got pregnant straight away and I didn't count anything as by now, I knew how to eat well and I just walked. I maintained my weight throughout pregnancy. I put on 40 lbs but it was all baby and water weight (I had pre-eclampsia in the end). So a week after giving birth, I was exactly the same weight as before I got pregnant.
Breastfeeding had me starving so I ate whenever I was hungry but I still didn't put on any weight. The problem is, I've now fallen back into some old habits and breastfeeding much less but still eating loads! (DS is just over a year now) and I'm back up again at a high weight.

I'm completely fed up with this yo-yoing. I want to live longer, I want to be healthy and I want to feel comfortable in my body. I want clothes to fit and I want not to feel self-conscious when I go out. I want to do martial arts again but I feel so embarrassed about my weight, I don't go. So it's stopping me from living.

I'm going to do Team RH again. I'm going to gradually get back into it so for the next two weeks, I'm going to focus on hitting 10,000 steps and hitting my calories.

Then I will up my steps to 15,000 and focus on the macros. This is the best way for me. I can't stop everything cold turkey, and rh allows you to still have your two chocolate digestives a day, and I'm not very consistent with working out but I love walking.

So here goes! I'm not going to state my final goal weight as I personally find that demoralising. So I'm going to do it in increments. Nor am I giving myself a time limit.

32 years old
Starting weight: 210.6lbs
1st goal weight: 199lbs

I'm using this to document my days, reflect on how I'm doing (also bad days and why), to hold myself accountable and maybe wake myself up to why I fall back into old patterns and try to recognise anything that I maybe haven't before.

Feel free to ask any questions or if you're doing something similar to jump on the thread.
Good luck everyone and I really do feel like something has finally clicked with me so here goes!

Hi OP can I join? Today is the first day for me (again!). I’ve had this planned for several weeks and I’m feeling good about it. I have a very similar amount to lose initially. I gained weight on my teens then lost a lot at around 17 years then put it back on and then lost it again in my early 20s, then put it all back on and more - after my third child I was nearly 18 stone. Then I lost 6 stone 7lbs and felt great but then put on 3 stone again and I’m really fed up with it. I remember how good I felt when I had lost all that weight and I want that back. Also I want to be healthy for my kids.

My starting weight is 206lbs
My initial goal is 182lbs
I’m 44.

Let’s do this!

It is my plan to start tomorrow. I'm going to try keto.

I was 210 lbs and have dropped two stone using my fitness pal. I try to stick to 1200 calories a day.

@Bigbus of course, come join! Yo-yoing is just horrible, it feels like a constant battle. I'm with you...I also want to do it for son. I want to be around longer for him (I also would like to have another, and we'll need ICSI again so I'd love to even get a couple stone off for that for next summer!) Are you counting calories? How's the day going so far?

My calories are under control today, my steps are only at 4000 (it's been bucketing down all day but I went out in it this morning for 20 minutes and I plan to do 40 minutes this evening).

@WonkyWoo good luck for starting tomorrow! I've heard of keto but not actually sure what it is, have you done that before?

@hopeishere that's a great loss, well done! I'm using myfitnesspal too but connected to Team RH. They have me on 1900 calories with 10000 steps. I need those calories or else I'm starving haha

@Opus17 thank you! Steps so far today about 12,000 and 700 calories so far. I use an app that adapts calories based on exercise and will be doing more walking later so will likely have about 900 left. I am really bad in the evenings so need to keep calories for then or else I’ll go way over!

I’m sick of yo-yoing so I’m going to make a target that is more sustainable for me and so hopefully more able to stay at it!

Hope you’ve all had good days

12000 steps is great so far and good idea keeping the calories for the evening. I'm all out now so I need to stay away from my usual evening Weetabix 😆

I only had 4500 steps after dinner so DH took DS for a bath and did the evening playtime and I went for a 50 minute walk. I got over my 10000 so I'm happy! Cals are at 1917 so good start all round it sounds like :)

So for holding myself accountable, I'm only sitting at 1547 steps today! I have spent the entire morning and early afternoon on my butt writing my dissertation as DH was out with DS at playgroup. There really is no excuse why I didn't go out for a quick 20/30 minute walk this morning. My calories are however under control so that's a plus.
DH always takes DS out for a walk after his nap while I continue studying, so this time, I will head out with them when he wakes up and then go on another walk alone after dinner.
Usually, I'd have the attitude of "ah well, I'll just do 10,000 tomorrow" but this time, I'm telling myself that this attitude is why I'm putting on weight! So, I'm not allowing myself to talk myself out of the steps this time (makes me sound crazy when I put it like that haha).

Hope you're all having a good day today!

I’ve been at work today and I can’t have my phone do steps at work aren’t counted! And it’s a large site. But even without that I’ve done 6000. Calories sort of under control - I had to have dinner at my mothers tonight but I managed to stay way from too much wine or any chocolate at all!

Keep going!

Ah it's always difficult when eating at other people's. Well done for staying away from extra wine and chocolate!
Sounds like you are hitting your steps no problem which is great.

I have hit around the 8,500 mark for steps the last two days. I was leaving most of the steps until the evening which I realised wasn't ideal as I'd just be exhausted. The positives are, I was really low on steps both days at 6pm and I would usually just convince myself it's not important and it doesn't matter, "I'll do better tomorrow" so the fact I got off my butt and walked on the spot and jumped around for 40/50 minutes while watching TV is a big change for me, and ending on 8500 steps is much better than 3500! That being said, my goal is 10000 and I want to hit that today and tomorrow without fail. The realisation that something has changed mentally is giving me the motivation to keep going.

Team RH wants the 10,0000 steps a day on average so as long as I hit 70,000 for the week, it's not an issue. DH and I plan to do a massive walk at the weekend so I can make up the missing 3,500 steps then. Today, I'm going to make sure I get half my steps by lunch. My calories have been on point the last few days, I just need to incorporate more veg into them.

I weigh myself every day in the app which gives a weekly average, so I'll just post weight updates every week. I know I won't see a huge loss this Monday as AF came back yesterday... the first one in 2 years! So to say I'm bloated and feeling extra sluggish is an understatement
DS has for the most part stopped day feeds now, so I was waiting on it returning but still thought I might've had a few more months haha.

Good luck today!

Please may I join in? Another yo-yo-er. I lost a good few stone a few years back but have ended up heavier than ever, and age / peri is not helping. Low carb is the only way for me, plus cutting down on the wine. I generally do my steps but no other exercise so I am trying to do something else on top.

I am 223lbs.
I need to see some quick progress so my first target is 200lbs.

My overall aim is to get my hair cut short and I need to be a lot thinner in the face to achieve that.

I use the Fitbit to track steps and I might start logging food on there too. But to be honest, I know how to do this. I just need to do it!

Good luck OP! I'm a little further along the path you were heading down- 52 years old, and yoyo'd until I stabilised, then very gradually got bigger with each passing year.
I started last autumn 269lb.
I'm now down to around 194lbs.

I'm doing slimming world, with a bit of IF, and have learned a lot about how I eat and how I need to eat!

I'm pretty sure this is a stable way of eating for me now. I'm going to settle at about 187lbs and maintain there for a while. After a year or so, I'll decide if I want to go slimmer.

I totally hear the getting bigger every year! I think I have put a stone on per decade effectively. Hoping I can get this turned around in my early 50s!

Good luck everyone today!

Could I join please? Yesterday I weighted myself for the first time in a long time and am at my all time heaviest at 210lbs. Until 6 years ago I was about 150lbs, even after having two children. Dealing with life events by drinking too much wine in the evenings and eating entire packets of biscuits has resulted in a body that I am not at ease in. I get back ache and sore knees and live in frumpy clothes. I avoid having my photo taken and am aware that my children will look back at family photos and wonder where mum was!

Anyway, I just signed up to HealthyWage and bet that I will lose 45lbs in 9 months. If I do it, I'll make over £500 profit. I've bought will power!

I'm just going to use MFP to try to lose 1.5lbs per week. I'm not cutting out anything apart from alcohol. Once I'm used to the reduced calories, I'll start adding in more exercise. I already walk the dog but will attempt 30 day shred again.

Good luck everyone.

Hello all. Feel free to tell me to piss off but those of you who are or have been yo-yo dieters might want to have a read of 'Why We Eat (Too Much)' by Andrew Jenkinson, which explains exactly why going on repeated calorie-control diets makes you lose weight, plateau, give up, put the weight back on (often plus extra) and then repeat, and why virtually nobody keeps the weight off permanently.

His advice includes: don't count calories, throw away the scales. Avoid processed food, sugar, wheat and vegetable oils (except virgin olive oil), eat 3 filling meals a day with plenty of veg, meat, fish, eggs, dairy and non-vegetable fats. The science behind it is very convincing and sensible. But a main point is that by restricting your calories, you completely mess up your metabolism and your body fights very hard against being starved. Your hunger always wins in the end!

So I've decided to ditch the yo-yo-ing. I've ditched my scales, so I don't know how much weight I've lost, but I had to go down a dress size when clothes shopping this week, and I don't feel like I'm on a diet.

Exercise-wise I do a daily (very) brisk 40 min dog walk and 15 mins of yoga or weights and squats.

@lazylinguist that's why I stopped initially, and stabilised for a few years. I ate mainly whole foods. However, I still crept up over time. The emotional eating takes a bit of time to unravel, and in the meantime the weight piled on.

I'm finding SlimmingWorld works by restricting all the things you mention, gives me time and space to understand my triggers, and is sustainable for me for the rest of my life. I'll gradually switch eating plan- ditch the last few processed foods and introduce more seeds, nuts and whole grains when I'm managing maintenance with a slimmer me!

That's great - I hope it keeps on working for you! I'm always a bit suspicious of organisations like Slimming World, because of how many people seem go back to it again and again (which is bad for the customers but great for the company's coffers of course). But if you can use it in a way that's sustainable for you long-term, eating healthy, nutritious foods then that sounds good.

Don't do it! If you diet like that it will slow your metabolism and cause you to gain more weight.
Read "why we eat too much" but basically eat plenty ( inc lots of fat) but no wheat, sugar, veg oils or processed food. It will automatically lower your weight.

I have tried every diet club going. Is RH one where you get set calories and eat anything within that?
What does today look like for you food wise.
I am 266 lbs and don't know where to start.
A patient family said nasty comment to me yesterday and I burst into tears.
I don

I was your weight last October @25yearsnhsworker

Don't be too down hearted, eating is complicated. Things just came together for me, at the right time. I've tried before. This time I've lost a lot of weight, but more importantly worked out at attitude that will allow me to keep it off. Essentially it's not everyone else first, me later.
We have to meet our own needs for healthy food, rest, comfort, reassurance, de-stressing etc. When we do that, we can eat better (which for me is SlimmingWorld) and lose weight. I'm happy to chat if you'd like that.

I think everyone has their own way that works for them. I’ll certainly give that book a go and see if it helps me.

The book is great. It potentially makes you quite angry though! Angry at the government and the food industry, and angry at the fact that you've been blaming yourself for years for not having the willpower to stick at diets and lose weight permanently. When in fact it's not really your fault at all, because fighting biology, genetics and your environment every day for the rest of your life and expecting to win is unrealistic! Fortunately there is another approach...

Good morning everyone!
I've been dealing with a teething baby and the start of my first AF in two years the last few days so I've not been on MN so much!

@SergeiL and @MsRedhook yes, feel free to join! Post whenever you feel like it :) I know what you mean about knowing what to do...I'm the same, I just need to do it! I just think I wasn't in it mentally and didn't care but I personally love the winter time and that's actually a big motivator for me, as I love going out and enjoying all the winter activities so I just want to be comfortable.
Ah, I've never heard of HealthyWage, I didn't realise you could bet for yourself! That's a good way to motivate haha.

@picklemewalnuts thank you! and wow that's an inspiration how much you've lost so far, well done. I think taking time out to maintain is actually the best thing to do, we get so caught up in the loss that we end up stalling and going backwards, so taking it slowly is the best way

@lazylinguist and @Mn753 I'm always open to learn so thanks for the tips and I will check out the book. The good thing about Team RH is they don't actual restrict calories, but instead tell you what your body needs. Example, I'm on 1900 calories a day and I never feel hungry on it. However, I'm still breastfeeding and for that, they tell you to eat another 500 cals but with a 14 month old, I'm not full time BF anymore so I will eat a bit more if I'm feeling genuinely hungry (like yesterday) but not the full 500 cals.

@25yearsnhsworker I'm so sorry someone was rude to you yesterday, that is their problem for being such a horrible human being. Don't letit get you down, we all have our own struggles. Yes that's the one. Team RH set you cals, focus more on protein and fibre, and tell you to get your steps in. I don't do the weight training yet but they recommend that too although it's not necessary. My food on an example day is this:
Breakfast: 2 chocolate weetabix, 170ml Oat milk, 15g of protein powder - coffee with milk and one sugar
Snack: Nectarine, Apple, coffee with milk and half sugar
Lunch: Chicken salad ( cucumbers, peppers, cherry tomatoes), slice of wholewheat break with marg and ham
Snack: coffee with milk and half sugar and 2 digestives
Dinner: homemade tuna and pea pasta bake
Supper: 2 weetabix and 170ml oat milk

That was all 1925 cals. I
Team RH set you calories based on which number of steps you decide to go for. I'd recommend looking at their facebook page, watching some videos and seeing if it's right for you!

@Bigbus I've realised this too... we all have what works for us and it's just different. I need to count calories or I'll always just have "one more biscuit", "one more helping".

So, the last few days have been both good and bad! Thursday was a great day calorie-wise and I got in 11,000 steps so I was happy happy. Then yesterday, calories were spot on again but my steps were only 4,333. I will say that my husband is on paternity now (3 months - he goes back to work next week so he had a couple of appts yesterday so I had DS all day...Husband forgot to leave me the garage key to access the buggy so I couldn't get out for a walk!) Then I was so exhausted from being up half the night with DS teething that I went to bed early. I'm writing a dissertation too right now so I needed sleep lol. Usually, I would let that one day affect me and beat myself up but I'm learning through counselling not to do that anymore. It was a setback, it's not worth throwing away the rest of the good work this week. I will aim for the usual 10,000 today and tomorrow, and if i get more then it's a bonus :)
DS was up at 5am this morning, so I've had a crap night of broken sleep but it means we can leave for a walk nice and early!

Lots of luck today, everyone! We can do this!!

Sorry, yesterday my calories were not spot🙄I went over by 150. I blame tiredness this morning 😂

Hello I hope everyone is doing ok. I took my daughter away for a night and we had a lot of treats so back on it now! I’m doing Noom again which did work before - I just have to ignore the over-cheerfulness! I have a much better coach this time. The last one only spoke in soundbites and motivational quotes!