What was the 'diet' or lifestyle change that worked for you?

[pineappletree32]

As the thread title says... I'm curious to hear from people who've turned it all around and lost the weight. What worked for you? What made you do it? Was there a turning point? Is there anyone who's felt like me and managed to get themselves together?

Background... I'm 33 and over 18 stone (I'm 5'8) Ive been unhappy with my weight for more than 20 years - since I was about 10. It's plagued my thoughts and made me feel inadequate, not enough, ugly, second best etc for all these years, yet I can't stick to a diet to change it.

The only time I've ever lost weight was through the Cambridge diet when I was in my 20s. I lost 4 stone and felt great, but as predicted it all piled on over time after I stopped the diet. Over the past few years after I had DS in 2021, it's just piled on and on.

I work a desk based job, eat lots of fruit and veg and 'healthy' stuff but also binge eat and eat healthy stuff. I'm not in denial that I eat too much. That's why im putting on weight.

I tell myself if I just stuck to something for a few months to see results I'd feel better, but I can't seem to do it. Im So fed up of feeling this way and seeming to have this mental block between me becoming the person I want to be.

I know being thin won't instantly make me happy, but I do think it would make me significantly less depressed to not be the biggest person in the room all the time. To be able to walk into a shop and buy something I like, not something that will fit. To know I can fit in any shop and not just have to shop online.

I've been on Slimpod for twelve weeks and I've lost an average of 1.5 pounds a week - so about 18 pounds so far. I don't really understand what's happened, but I'm just making better choices (most of the time...)
The first bit is a twelve week programme where you listen to one or more nine-ish minute pod(s) every day. Some are added at different stages in the programme. Apparently it doesn't matter if you fall asleep while listening- I always do! After a free trial, the first three months cost £99 (£33 per month) and there are coaching videos and an online support group. The podcasts are there for as long as you want (not just three months). I'm a bit behind with the videos, and I tend to just lurk in the online group, but somehow - so far - I seem to be less anxious about food, eating, having enough etc.
I've got a very long way to go, but I haven't really had to think about losing just over a stone, which is a definite improvement on previous weight loss attempts!

Intermittent fasting is working for me.

I'm a chronic binge eater and meal replacement worked for me, it was actually more effective as the control element stopped me thinking about food.

I'm going to try hypnotherapy to re programme my brain to not crave and overeat.

Yoga has changed my life more than anything else. Has changed my whole mindset.

I was/am a binge eater and my key issue was the sense of guilt. I'd be on a diet, I'd crave something - cave in and then spiral into binge because 'i already spoiled it all by caving'. Nothing ever worked since I gained weight 10y ago. This year I started OMAD and have lost 2.5st - what I love the most about it is the absence of that guilt. For my one meal a day - I eat what I want. Most of the time it is healthy food, but every once in a while I'll crave and have pizza or fast food. What makes the difference is that I know nothing is prohibited which makes it easier to say no to cravings but also if I cave in - I know it won't ruin the entire diet plan, I won't have to start from scratch... I can just continue like nothing happened. That lifted the biggest weight of my mind, the physical one is just a consequence.

I used to be an absolute yo-yo dieter. Always trying the next new fad. Each time I ended up bigger than before. I ended up 18 stone at 20. After learning of lots of different health issues I found that the vegan diet was going to be the most beneficial for me.
Lost 7 stone in 12 months becoming a plant based vegan, and eating everything fresh and made from scratch. No meat replacements. I kept the weight off with very minimal effort for about 3 years until pregnancy. I put 3 stone on during pregnancy but have now lost 1.5 stone in a couple months, eating my usual diet of legumes, beans, loads and loads of veg, carbs (bloody loads of them), fruit, nuts and seeds.

paul Mckenna I can make you thin helped me.

But mostly it's not snacking at work, doing some exercise and not drinking in the week. I wasn't drinking a lot, but a bag of crisps is less enticing with a cup of tea.

More veg, more protein, brown carbs.

I'm not sure meal replacement work long term, otherwise there wouldn't be such a market for them...

Calorie deficit is the only thing that has ever worked for me, and I have only ever been able to stick to a calorie deficit by using Ozempic.

It has changed my life.

Initially, following the Scarsdale diet. An old diet from the 70s. The weight fell off abd I lost 4 stone. It completely changed the way I eat.

Later years, WW. The app is amazing.

I was never huge, but lost about 2.5 stone v slowly just from mindful eating and kept 2 stone of it off.

More recently, went gluten and dairy free and lost 1/2 stone without trying.

To maintain - intermittent fasting, slightly limited carbs, and not much alcohol.

As above. A combo of intermittent fasting, low carbs and no alcohol.

Six Pack Revolution for me. Goes totally against IF and finally resolved issues with eating, diet etc. posting because I k is the desperation and yo-yo and this was the only thing that helped. Personal trainers were great but they didn’t help with nutrition at all

Hi OP,

I recommend Noom!

I tried literally everything else. And I find it very difficult to lose weight normally. Intermittent fasting, low carb, meal replacement shakes, fasts, you name it, and either they didn’t work, were dangerous, make you more stressed around food or only work short term and you put the weight back on which is completely pointless and a waste of time and energy you could be putting into other things!

Noom is about changing habits long term. It’s not a diet. It also instructive, helps with psychological attitudes and is even quite fun. I found it quite relaxing. It lifts the burden somehow and becomes a relaxed and simple part of your life rather than a short term obsession. The weight I lost (early last year) I have not regained.

You can do a free trial for 2 weeks and see if it’s for you.

Best of luck.

Three things:

1. Low carbing. When I get into the swing of it all the binging disappears.

But if I'm not low carbing and I do get into a binge,

2. Forgiveness. If I faceplant into chocolate I no longer berate myself. OK, it happened. Move on.

3. "I'm looking after myself." If I struggle to resist something I no longer feel that I am depriving myself. Instead I either actively choose to have some (try to have some, but if some becomes a lot then see point 2) or I praise myself for my self-care.

One of the nice things about eating low carb is that it goes hand-in-hand with eating high fat, so it can be very enjoyable.

SPR really messed up my eating. I very rarely snacked before trying their programme. I didn't find it sustainable with young kids but I quickly got used to eating six times a day. When I went back to more normal eating rather than eating their meal/snack replacements and cutting out everything, I found I was snacking all the time. It's made it really hard to shift weight because I've had to force myself to cut out the snacking first when it was never an issue before.

The only diet which works is the one which YOU can stick to for the rest of your life. The main problem is that people choose unsustainable diets as a short term measure to loose weight and then 90% revert to their old eating pattern and the weight piles back on and more.

OP you need to find something which you will be happy to stick to forever. For me it was cutting out UPF and most sugar which has reduced my cravings, for other people it might be a shorter eating window or choosing fats over carbs or vice versa.

I agree with this wholeheartedly. I yoyo dieted for 25 years, would lose weight but always put it back on. Different things wirk fur different people. What finally worked for me was 16/8 and 10,000 steps a day. I've been doing it maybe ten years now and will continue forever (or as long as I can still walk 10,000 steps). It's not a diet (I don't diet) but it's a lifestyle change that makes me feel great, manages my weight and is just good for me.

What worked for me was calorie counting but not having a low deficit,I eat 1700 calories a day. I eat high protein and lower carbs just because I found that eating lots of carbs make me hungrier later. I lost almost 3 stone 2 years ago and I’ve kept it off. Exercising also helped me because it makes me feel good- when I am low I want to eat.

Oh @redavocado sorry to hear that. As so many have said it’s so personal & individual to a person. Hopefully some of the other suggestions here will help you be it lowcarbing, Noom or sthg else

Thank you @Adelesky! My current method is BFing DD2 and that's going pretty well! I'm making sure most snacks are healthy and in time I'll hopefully manage to reduce them.

There's such a range of approaches to eating, there's certainly something out there for everyone!