Yo-Yo Dieting. It has got to STOP! Topic

MRSCOTTRELL 07/19/11
Sitting here the realization has finally hit me! I cannot go on eating excessively and not exercising as I have been. It is not only bad for my health but, it leaves my brain feeling sluggish.


I recently went out and bought a new seat for my bicycle promising myself that I would ride more often. I started out well, riding my bike for 30 minutes in the evenings after work. Now, the heat is so bad I honestly cannot ride during the evenings At 8:30 pm it was 100 degrees. If I could just get myself out of bed earlier. I could exercise in the morning. I also bought that pilates DVD.... Someone Please Help!


I lost 9 LBS about 2 months ago. Doing really well for myself, I had it down to an art. Eating a good breakfast consisting of cereal measured out with a quarter cup of milk. Snacks including an apple and peanut butter, bananas, nuts or low fat yogurt. For lunch: tuna and crackers. I even ate a single piece of pizza once in awhile. As long as it stayed in the calorie range I had set. Eating every 2 to 3 hours also helped. I drank 64 oz of water.


And then...the weight loss stopped....


slowly the numbers were climbing upwards.


I completely disregarded my diet and consequently gained 5.6 lbs for my trouble.



So.. that is where I am now. Slowly climbing my self towards the goal that is further away now that I've gained.


If anyone could encourage me to keep pressing on and share their stories as well. I need support. I believe If I am held accountable by this group I think I could do a better job.



Any one else have a story to share??

KokoKringle 07/19/11
my story's pretty basic-- i've been chubby for a long time. really chubby. in sixth grade, my friend's MOM said i looked like a piggy... and i'd learned to just try and get over it. i never wore make-up, and my wardrobe consisted of about 97% t-shirts. my policy was pretty much "if i don't try, then i can't fail." i didn't want to try to look nice and still look bad, so i just didn't try.

now, though, i'm going to college this fall and getting a fresh start with brand new people. i wanna make a good impression, and not be the same person i've been since middle school. i went out and bought some make-up, got a haircut, and am slowly replacing my t-shirts with some nicer clothes. in addition, i'm also trying to lose the thirty extra pounds.

even though i just started, My Net Diary is enormously helpful. not just because it's telling me what to do and how much to eat and whatever, but mostly because it's just making me more aware of what i'm doing. when i go reach for a bag of cheetos, i think about having to log it in and what that'll mean. also, it helps when i'm working out, because i know what 200 calories means. it's not just a number anymore.

for me, it's really about feeling good about myself. my sister is working on losing weight and being healthier too, so that's also a big help that we can do it together and watch eachother. i tend to eat when i'm bored, so now instead of grabbing a cookie, i'll try to have a piece of gum or flavored water. flavored water is really my lifesaver-- absolutely no calories or anything, but still sweet and it also fills your belly. i have to remember to tell mom to buy more...

i know you can lose the weight. we all can, anybody can. i think the most helpful thing, though, is having somebody to do it with. maybe find a close friend that you can exercise with and who'll join you on eating healthier. it really almost makes losing the weight a little fun-- when you're doing it together, it's like a game. a little adventure. :)

AgGal12 07/25/11
My story started out well enough. I went away to college, became more aware of what I was putting in my body so I began exercising and I slowly began losing weight. This past spring I hit my goal weight, I lost about 50lbs, and was thrilled. I was happy all the time, I loved buying cute clothes. Everything was great, but now since being home for the summer I've started falling back into my old habits. I can only push my parents to do so much when it comes to not buying certain unhealthy options to stock in the house. It also doesn't help that I just got out of a relationship, so I'm home alone more often now. The temptation has been unreal and many days I know I shouldn't eat something because I am not really hungry but I do anyways. Then I feel extremely guilty about it. I tend to eat mostly out of boredom most of the time, and since moving home I've gained back about 8lbs. What started out as one cheat day a week, is becoming more like three or four. I am terrified that I'll get back to my old size. I wish more than anything to get back on track because my life seemed easier to handle then. Now I feel like I am losing control of my life, and turning to food to 'solve' my problems. I am hoping that by joining this site and group, I will be able to get back on track and get support when I need it.

SmileyStep 08/02/11 replied to AgGal12
Hi everyone I'm Stephanie and I'm trying to lose 10 lbs and fast!!! I'm going up to tahoe next month and want to look stunning

LunaRose 11/22/11
Well, just joined this group, & thought id give a speck of advice. All of you seem to be stress induced weight gainers. So stop it! I mean really? Is whatever that's going on in your life worth messing up your body image & health? I hate to sound cliche & say to focus on the positives. But seriously, wake up call here guys. Calm down. When you're stressed out, get the hell over it & get on a treadmill instead of balancing the stress with food. (which oh, by the way LEADS TO MORE STRESS) & when you take the time to drink a glass of water when you're hungry then run for 10 minutes, you will literally not be hungry anymore. Before you eat a meal, drink two glasses of water, wait 20 minutes. Half the time you think you're hungry, you're actually thirsty. So give water the chance to curve you're appetite a bit. If you're still hungry, eat some fruit. Then go to regular food. Don't over do it. I promise you won't starve from not eating 3 plates of food. Pace yourself when you eat. I cant stress this enoigh. Youre brain takes 20 minites to realize your tummy is full. So give it time to have the realization before downing the whole plate! I Understand that when youre hungry youd just love to rush the food in your mouth, but instead- take your time, enjoy your meal. When you enjoy your food, your body actually absorbs more of the nutrients. Take a sip of water between bites. Give up the soft drinks, or switch to diet. Thats all i drink now. I dont even like regular soda anymore. You'll be fine. Stop making weight loss harder than it has to be. Focus on rewards, stick to this site. You got this, I promise you. If you're having a day where your stresses are really getting to you, forget about it. Nothing is worth making you unhappy enough to hurt your body. It's not worth it, but YOU are.

Samieejaynee 12/11/11
Good advice =) I will try that

XoxAmbeRXoX 01/13/12
I completely agree with the person above, but it's more than that. You have to first realize why you are overweight and why your eating habits are the way they are, or you will risk the chance of "relapsing" and fall back into the same routine as you used to (as a few of you were saying). You cannot fix what you do not know is broken. I've struggled with my weight all of my life, growing up next to a twin sister who was much thinner than i was and it sucked. I've been trying to loose weight since my early teens and nothing has worked until recently ( i am now 19) when i discovered that dieting does not work. You have to change your life style, your eating habits, and everything around it. I structured my diet around the food guide pyramid and customized it to me, only drinking water (a lot of it) cutting out allergy foods, found substitutes for things like mayonnaise and milk, exercising very often and GREATLY reduced portion size. I found that eating is such a visual thing. Eat with a smaller plate, a smaller bowl. Measure out your food! You have to eat breakfast and more often. I found that eating very small meals about every two hours with water in between has made me feel full throughout the whole day and now I can't eat as much as I used to, even if I tried. I really hope this helped and if you have any questions since i didn't go into that much detail just ask :) and good luck!

Yo-Yo Dieting. It has got to STOP!