What causes 'The Spell' to start?

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You know, the magic weight loss spell?

I've been under it so many times. When dieting is easy, calorie counting is a breeze, my appetite is controlled, I have no cravings, and pounds just tumble off.

And then the spell breaks. Whether it is a week later or 6 months later, and the diet spell is broken.

I can't lose weight without the spell. I cannot summon the spell. It just happens. Who casts the spell? What breaks the spell?

These are eternal mysteries.

In my case it's called Mounjaro.

For me I need a few weeks of success in a row and then I will be motivated to continue. What usually happens is I have one week of success, I don't lose in week 2, I think Fuck this, it's too hard and quit.

Brilliant!
I try all sorts to induce the spell but it seems it has to find me of its own accord. When on it, I literally melt, entirely effortlessly. But stress (like insane stress) definitely breaks it and there's no reviving it.

I saw it described as holding your breath underwater, and that resonated.

I’d pay a fortune for this spell.

Ive had it in the past, but not lately.

I know exactly what you mean. Sometimes it takes me more than a year to get in the right frame of mind, several false starts and then I get in the groove of healthy eating, weighing myself, keeping track etc.

I feel like a could carry on forever!

Then equally the switch flicks and I pile all the weight back on.. I must have lost the same 2st about 5 times!!

I'm in the zone now and really hoping I can keep the weight off, need to do it for health reasons so hope that's more of an incentive!

A jab of Mounjaro in my thigh has done it for me.

It's magic stuff! 🪄

My friend suggested that we start cycling at home. I have an exercise bike but I find it boring. Instead I started running. My friend has lost several kilos by biking but I have only lost one kilo after running every second day for two weeks. I also stopped drinking which was excessive. But the weight just doesn't go down :(

Anyway I need to get fit too because we are going hiking in August. I also need to get my blood pressure down. It's borderline now.

I was going to say Mounjaro for me too.
Those that would pay for 'the spell' you can!

I have been under the spell and successfully lost 3 stone. 3 times. 2005, 2011 and 2014. In fact DH and I both did it in 2014, we call it "the thin year".

Sadly my need to self-soothe and procrastinate using sugar eventually breaks the spell, and then the magic goes far, far away.

It's not that I stop trying, I really do - I fast, I count calories, I try to eat healthful foods and not too much, I cut out processed foods and eliminate as much sugar as possible, I walk every day. It's just that the sugar gives me a hit that nothing else can, it lifts me and makes me feel happy and without it I feel grey and joyless.

Ok, FAT grey and joyless. With high blood pressure, aching joints and an aversion to mirrors.

This is SO true! I say 'the switch has flipped' and suddenly weight loss is a dream! Weirdly though, the last year things have been far more stable for me and I've been slowly losing weight, without the spell breaking so to speak. Not sure why but I'm happy

Gosh how true is this.

I think the spell for me is cast after a "low" where I've eaten a lot of crap .. it takes a while of being SICK of myself and then one difficult day of pushing through and then I seem to be in the rythm of the spell ...

I'm in the spell right now. Things I think might trigger it: being unwell- a couple of days of a stomach upset or flu means food seems less appealing and then I can carry on. Sometimes it's a feeling of 'hitting rock bottom'. Not sure those things always work though, it's mysterious

I was saying to DH the other day that the switch has flicked, and I’ve gone from eating crap every day to eating healthily. I’ve had some over indulgence at weekends, brushed myself off and got right back on it on Monday.

I have no idea what flicks the switch on, or off again, but like others I seem to keep losing the same 2 stones. Every time I promise myself it will be different, and I’ll find some sort of balance, but I never have.

Would love to try mounjaro but my BMI was not high enough.

I’m under the spell and have been since November. Started out well and lost about 13kg and have now majorly stalled which has coincided with new medication. I think I would be up about half a stone were it not for being in calorie deficit which I am trying to console myself with but it is actually annoying when I think about it.

What a great way to describe it! I was under the spell last summer and lost 2.5 stone almost without noticing! The spell is currently firmly broken, I really hope it comes back soon!

That'll be the stress hormone cortisol, responsible for the munchies and retaining fat, especially around the middle.

Sorry if this has been mentioned upthread but I’ve been pondering this since first posting a few days ago… and I’ve realised The Spell is often linked to falling in love, being in love or making love! Not always, but I think any of these can start The Spell in a serious way. I do sometimes think overeating is linked to a lack of sensory satisfaction in other areas, if you know what I mean…

Now we all need to try it and report back 😃

I put on so much weight during Covid n really struggled to gain any momentum to get it off. I think boredom n depression really played a huge part. I fell pregnant last year and in the first few months just didn't have much of an appetite n lost more weight in pregnancy than I could over the previous two years. I weighed less at full term than I did at my heaviest and now post child birth I weigh less than before I was pregnant. I wasn't under a spell that time I just genuinely wasn't hungry n felt a bit sick if I overate. It felt so easy at the time to not eat n I wonder as I wasn't obsessing over food n just ate small healthy meals as they didn't make me nauseous thats why the weight just fell off (baby was very healthy btw ha). Now I'm not pregnant anymore I've started obsessing about diet n food again n it's hard and slowly the lbs are creeping back on. It's like our minds work against us!

@ferntwist interesting, I have found my libido has returned (after a 6 year plummet) with DH of over 20 years. I think my weight loss has helped my body confidence, feeling feminine. One has helped the other along. Your theory of overeating possibly because of sensory deprivation in other areas does ring bells for me so to speak.

I know what you mean OP, but for the spell to work for me then I have to have a focus/goal, it could be a holiday, wedding or just your health but I have to have something to work towards, I've just had a fabulous holiday in Barbados and up until then I was laser focused and now I'm home....well you can imagine! It will come back I'm sure..

Interesting thread! I completely relate to the “The Spell”, for me it only seems to happen in the spring/summer. I just have less of an appetite and am generally more active so I find it much easier.

I’ve been tracking my weight for years and when I look back, my lowest weights were usually around September and the highest were February/March.

Mine was slimming world. I went to keep my sister company and didn’t think it would work for me. But there was a huge amount of enthusiasm in the room which was contagious. I tried hard for a week and it worked. I enjoy it because it’s something I do for me. I like to see the other people at group succeed too. It’s a really positive couple of hours each week

I can get under the spell sometimes. Then I sort of start to feel the end of the spell coming up and then bam, it's gone again.