Why do Most People

[simmo39]

put the weight back on they work so hard to lose? So far I have lost nearly 3 stone and do have some concerns that I might put it back on.......

Because the old habits creep back in.
You can never really 'come off' your diet.

I don't mean you have to eat miniscule amounts for ever, but you really do have to watch yourself and be aware of what you're eating from now on!

You're doing really well so far, 3 stone is an impressive amount! What are you doing dietwise?

I think that once you finish a diet it is so easy to get back into your old eating habits and put the weight back on. Once you are at your goal I think you need to make sure you maintain healthy eating. I'm sure it does no harm in having the odd treat here and there but if you do have a big night out or pig out then you need to try and be good the rest of the week.
By the way 3 stone loss is brilliant.

glad you agree

The problem, I think although I have no proof to back it up, is the word 'diet'. To me that suggests something that has an end point, i.e. when you reach your target weight your diet has finished. I know my mum has done WW and lost a lot but now she is at target she doesn't go anymore and doesn't have a plan to follow and I can see that it would be easy to go back to eating anything she felt like and not spend her life counting calories and points or whatever(she hasn't yet and I hope she doesn't but I can see how it happens).

I think the secret to keeping it off is not to diet but to make lifestyle changes that you can live with permanently, so that your appepite and tastes change for healthier food in smaller portions. And more exercise more so that it becomes something you want to do and enjoy.

But that is just my theory. I have only just started losing weight (1st with several to go) and have a long way to go so I shall let you know if I am just spouting hot air or not when I finally get to my target!!

Well done for losing 3 stone - I bet you feel great.

Well done on losing the weight. But as other posters have said its all about the mentality of the word "diet". You can add in more food/treats to your daily eating but you have to balance these with more exercise. Also remember the more muscle you build the more calories your body will burn.

Thanks everyone for your comments and advice, 3 stone is the most I have ever managed to lose and I still have almost another 3 to go.

arsesandoldlace - I am doing a diet with a company called GoLower, it is Low carb, and low GI and GL. They deliver the food to me every 2 weeks. Once I am close to my goal weight they will help me with recipies and support to making all my own food again, with the plan that the weight doesn't go back on. What are you doing?

I think I need to move away from the term 'diet' as suggested, but not sure what else to call it. I have already made drastic changes to my eating habits the biggest being low carbing, and have found it surprisingly easier than I thought. No high and lows of sugar rushes.

Am looking forward now to shifting the next 3 stone!

Could you not have put the first 11 words of your op into the thread title so that people can decide whether they want to respond or not without having to open the thread?

they dont address the reason why they put the weight on the first place... so if they emotional eat, they dont address that issue...if they boredom eat, they dont address that ... etc.

dinkystinky - I hadn't thought of that, yes many people overeat due to depression and as a coping strategy of a difficult time in their life. I am sure I have done that in the past without even realising it. Reaching for the comfort foods when miserable or even when happy as a treat for myself. I am finally starting to feel in control of my eating habits, something that I haven't been able to do for a long time, I just hope it continues.

There's a good motto you might want to bear in mind if you want to avoid yo-yo-ing.... and it's 'Don't do anything to lose weight that you can't see yourself happily doing for the rest of your life'

So that means that any change you make to your lifestyle, diet, exercise regime etc., has to be something you enjoy enough to do for ever.

A word on emotional eating. Eating is and should be an emotional experience. Imagine what unemotional eating would look like. Some kind of robotic shovelling exercise... .no pleasure in it. Yuk

Part of changing your lifestyle to be healthier is consciously finding other ways to cope with difficult situations than through overeating. And it's quantity that's important. One cheery chocolate Hob-Nob with a cup of tea is not a bad stress-buster as many slim people will tell you. A packet of the things, on the other hand - not so good.

Chil - I agree about enjoying food but that's not what i understood emotional eating to be. i've always thought it meant eating because you mistake another emotional for hunger.

I've been really aware of this recently. Thought I was starving then realised it was a chilly night and as soon as I put a jumper on, the hunger which was actually cold, went away. And lots of eating can be to disguise raw emotions like stress, sadness, depression, anger etc.

It's the opposite of pleasurable eating the way you describe it. There's almost no awareness of what's being shovelled in, and very little genuine pleasure at the food. As soon as those emotions are attended to, the desire to comfort eat goes down very quickly.

There's 'eating to cheer yourself up'.... and that is extremely common precisely because a pleasant flavour does exactly that. And then there's 'binge eating'... which is overeating for no identifiable eating, hardly tasting the food etc. A binge-eater can eat to the point of illness, regardless of the way they are actually feeling.

'Emotional eating' is therefore a misnomer and leads to the mistaken idea that food should never be used as source of comfort or pleasure. This, in turn, leads to feelings of guilt in some people ('I enjoyed it so I must be doing something wrong') and ideas such as 'food is fuel', 'food is medicine' to get around it.

My DH has frequently lost 20kgs or more and then put it back on over about a 6mth period. I think it is that he always took on diets that bore no resemblence to real life - i.e, could not incorporate it into his lifestyle AND he truly LOVES food. A love that started in childhood when his parents taught him that you can communicate with food instead of words. Food means I Love You, I'm Sorry, Congratulations etc etc. I think he needs to change his perspective on food to be: It is fuel that your body needs to be healthy and you should only eat as much fuel as your body needs. I think it would help if he weighed himself more often to keep him in touch with what was happening with the excess fuel and to make adjustments as he goes along. I have lost 5kg's recently and still want to lose another 5kgs and weighing myself regularly keeps me in touch with what I need to do and the consequences of doing the wrong thing. Good Luck and HTH, Sim

I've just revisted this thread and it has been a really interesting read.

With regards to the word 'diet', that really does make sense. If I tell myself I am becoming healthier rather than dieting it always psychologically feels so much easier. To be honest though, anything that makes it easier can only be a bonus whether it is logical or not.

Also, about 'emotional eating' as I understand the term, I know for a fact I used to do this and had done for many years. Even though I was aware of doing it I found it really hard to do anything about it, probably because I wasn't emotionally ready at the time. I often work late at night and find I nibble a lot more when I am tired and cold working at night when I would rather be sleeping and I am pretty sure that is just an emotional thing as I am sure I can't possibly genuinly feel more hungry at that time of night.

Since starting Go Lower, I am so much more aware of my eatng habits. It wasn't easy to change them at the beginning but once I got into a routine with it I find it so much easier now and don't feel hungry. If I do start to feel hungry when I know I shouldn't be feeling hungry I drink a big glass of water and that often helps too. I now realise even more how much I used to eat for the sake of it.