Can I just share some purely anecdotal findings that may help some people with weight loss?

[DelilahBucket]

Of course my personal findings are completely anecdotal, but four weeks ago I stopped having any artificial sweetener in my life. I was having it in coffee a few times a day and low sugar products that we are told are supposed to be better for us (anything from drinks to snacks and swapping sugar in recipes for sweeteners a la Pinch of Nom). I cut it out after reading how it affects our insulin levels in the book Ultra Processed People and it just seemed to fit. I was constantly hungry, really struggling to control my appetite, and had piled on a stone and a half in less than a year. I wasn't sleeping, up half the night needing to wee no matter when I stopped fluid intake, and that was contributing to my need for food.
Within a day of stopping it I was no longer starving all of the time. I was able to eat less, at longer intervals, without being raging hangry! I also started sleeping through within a couple of days. I can count on one hand how many times I have woken for a middle of the night wee in those four weeks.
I have majorly cut back on sweet treats too and I don't eat fruit as I don't want sweet stuff at all. I'm finding it easier to calorie count (my preferred method of weight loss) after spending 18 months cross at myself for not sticking within my allowance day after day and just putting more weight on.
I just wanted to share because sometimes it's just a golden nugget of information that can help someone else with their battle.

Thanks. That’s great.

Sugar is so addictive!

But I love Diet Coke

Competely share your experience @DelilahBucket Sweeteners and sugar cause me cravings too.

My recent lightbulb has been having the same meal on multiple days it saves me cost, time but most importantly I’m not thinking about food as much as the choice for my upcoming meal is already decided a lot. I’m doing same breakfast and lunch for 3/4 days running only changing dinner.

It is also easier to track on calorie counting apps.

Coca-Cola want you to love it too. Your addiction lines their pockets.

Yes I do this for breakfast and lunch for the same reasons. I'm still on salad related stuff for lunches so will switch to something warm as the weather gets cooler.

What do you drink? This is where I struggle because water is dull and the alternative is alcohol. If I could find a compromise drink I’d stop Pepsi Max. Not even sure I really like it but I drink it because it’s low calorie and not water.

What about fizzy water?

Or accept that you only want to drink Pepsi Max. It is not the fault of the rest of the world if you are not willing to persevere with something.

Yes, I've had the same experience as you. I think we are very late to the anti-UPF party though!

I'm not evangelical about it but have cut out as many UPFs as I reasonably can. My appetite is genuinely much smaller and I've only overeaten once in the last couple of months and that was after a truly spectacularly awful day. I forgave myself for that and immediately returned to healthy eating. That's completely new for me as somebody who has struggled with yoyo dieting and binge eating.

When I read the weight loss injection threads (out of interest) there's a lot of talk of 'food noise'. And I believe avoiding UPFs has helped to reduce the food noise for me.

Huh? Where did I blame the rest of the world? What a bizarre comment. I was just asking for recommendations of alternatives. Sorry for asking and engaging in the conversation.

I do tend to drink a lot of water but I also like soda water with freshly squeezed lime juice in it. You could put other squeezed citrus fruit in it as well). I know it's not the cheapest way to have a nice drink, but there are also more grown up cordials you can buy (not the sugar free ones). You don't need a lot of them for it to taste nice.

Yes I think the same about food noise. I'm no longer thinking about what I can snack on next.

@DelilahBucket @Not2identifying

I'm late to this thread but I just wanted to say thanks for mentioning "food noise" as I feel like a lightbulb went on when I read your posts.

I have embarked on a change of diet and I've planned so that I have salad for lunch and soup for tea during the week. I still get the choice of what kind it is, but this seems to have defeated the food obsession I get when following Slimming World or similar, when I'd be constantly thinking about how to stay within points, or what treats I could have, or what weird ingredients I needed to shop for.

So far my mind feels calm and I am sticking to my plan, and feel better already after a couple of weeks.

thanks again

I definitely think planning helps. It just takes all the thought away, as does eating the same things every day. Today I've put my meals into my planner and I have calories left for a little snack after work (when I'm always starving) and a biscuit with my evening cuppa (I've been having shortbread as it isn't ultra processed and it doesn't seem to set off my sugar cravings so I can have one and that's it).

@DelilahBucket can I ask what planner you use please? Really need some help with calorie counting and being more organised!

@benid What you describe is exactly what it's like for me too. I have successfully lost weight (a few stones each time, which isn't trivial) loads of times but I can't 'reach goal' and I can't maintain.

Now, I don't have a goal and what I'm doing day-to-day (eating healthily with as few UPFs as I can reasonably manage) is what I would do if I were maintaining. So I'm not on a diet.

I'm very slowly losing weight but without all the 'head space' I'd normally devote to calories. In a way, what's going on with my weight is almost irrelevant because it isn't something I directly control. My focus is on healthy eating and this indirectly impacts weight. I'm trying very hard to weigh myself as few times as possible because what I see on the scales can really mess with my head (whether it's 'good' news or 'bad').

I can reach 'goal' every day by focusing on health. I'm really, really hoping I've ended the yoyo cycle.

I bit the bullet and paid for a Nutracheck subscription. I was using My Fitness Pal which is good, but I was having to double check all the calories all the time as it is wildly inaccurate. Nutracheck confirm all the values so it saves me loads of time. I did it for a year, although I don't have that much to lose really, but I thought it will motivate me post Christmas as well. I've lost 3.5kg with it since the 29th July without too much effort and I haven't denied myself things either. I have really upped my walking though, I do at least 3km a day, every day.