Encouragement for weight loss and healthy eating

[Doolhof]

Hi Everyone.

I am just going to put this title out there and see what happens. Later on I will try to add old thread titles relating to this issue.

People may have wonderful weight loss stories to share, ideas on exercises that are beneficial, reducing binge eating tips etc.

Healthy recipes will also be welcome. Maybe even healthy foods you enjoy but your family consider to be rabbit food! Ha. Ha.

Unfortunately for depression sometimes means binge eating and comfort foods. A carrot just is not comfort food to my brain! I need to find ways to rechannel that way of thinking!

All ideas and thoughts are welcome here!

Cheers for now from Mrs. Dools

[Guest_5218]

Well done Carol. Despite everything, you're still doing great.

Narelle - Look forwards not backwards. Forget what you cant change, and strive for improvement next time.

Sherie xx

[Music_Freak]

Yep, I know 🙂

I'm hoping for next week, hopefully I'll be done with MYOB by then ... I have to stick to one thing at a time

[Airies]

Shape Diary pro is another app for monitoring weight and drawing graphs and the like.Really helpful in the past but if was to log today to say I was peaking is an understatement. Before I had my mega meltdown last year I followed Paleo. I was flying .Years ago it was the Raw Energy Diet, growing mung beans, alfalfa sprouts and living very healthily.Ran a few marathons young and bomb proof. As a coping mechanism over the years I'd wip down to the supermarket , buy Cadbury roast almond block of chocolate, pack of milk coated bullets , 1 dozen cinnamon donuts or a pack of snowballs and eat the lot at least 3 times a week and then run or cycle it off. Warped logic will use ADHD and bipolar as an excuse.Early last year I was 78 kgs , now I'm about 106. Come September 1 plan to don my Lycra ( will look like a blimp), start riding again and start healthy eating. I've always had a love hate relationship with food. could eat what I wanted and burn it off running 100 km weeks or cycling 300km weeks oh yeah and my psych says Len you have to learn to do moderate. I intend doing it. Good luck in your journey. It's amasing how well you feel with the plusses and minuses in your life depending on what it is.Nowadays there is more and more evidence stating shorts sharp bursts of energy that elevate the heartbeat are the way to go as opposed to the junk miles we once used to do.Its a matter of finding what works for you and not being too hard on yourself.i used to do a lot of comfort eating and yo yo dieting which isn't healthy.Once the weather warms up, days are longer, plant a few lettuces it's a win win. Well done folks for losing weight in Winter. That's takes some serious willpower:)

[Lost_Girl]

Hi Len,

It really is about finding something that works and is sustainable. I used to be a size 8 and could eat anything and never gained weight. How things change. I was doing so well before I had an accident and broke my shoulder in 3 places. I was eating well and doing zumba 3 times a week and I loved that.

Being injured and then subsequently having a constant chronic headache has really limited exercise and movement. I used to binge on chocolate when I felt down and I felt down a lot on the last few years.

All good though, onwards and upwards. I am really pleased with the understanding that the tool gives me on knowing what is in foods.

The cycling sounds like fun Len. I have a lovely new bike ready to go. I got it just before my accident. I have had a try since my shoulder healed but it is still aggravating my back and neck. Worse still, I just can't tolerate the helmet. Something to look forward to.

Thanks for sharing your weight journey Len. Goodluck to you too.

Go willpower!

Carol

[Airies]

Hi Carol,

good on you for persevering and finding something that works for you.A size 8 sounds like a 37 inch waist equilavent for a bloke. I threw out all my fat clothes early last year. I now have a very limited wardrobe. My wife is one of those people who never puts weight on .Then again she does everything and is really disciplined food wise.ouch your shoulder and associated pain sounds painful.

have you considered an indoor bike. I've got a spin bike upstairs ( very dusty at the moment), but it was great after my hip replacement a few years ago or when it was raining outdoors. I had swimming lessons a few years ago and the pool is the bees knees.Helmets are a pain. Magpies get attracted to them and it distracts from the whole experience. Throw in cars,punctures and road rage. Trust me ,this cycling Caper is

not what it's cracked up to be. Those Tour de France riders make it look so easy.What sort of bike is it? Hybrid, road or mountain? I m just one of those Mamil thingies (middle aged man in Lycra).the tools in understanding foods are fantastic. Paelo and the 5/2 day diet are what was working for me before my meltdown last year.Plus the relisation that excercise wasn't the end all or be all and the old adage You are what you eat.i can't do 1 timtam.its either a whole pack or nothing at all.

Hope things improve for you and before long you are pain free:)

keep those calories @ 1200 and your home and hosed

cheers Len

[Lost_Girl]

Hi Len,

I hadn't considered an exercise bike, that's a good idea. I will look into that.

The bike I have is a road bike. We have a large network of purpose built sealed bike tracks that run adjacent to motorways and link many suburbs near where I live.

Hahaha I hadn't heard of Mamils, terrific!

The pain is something I am trying to work through. I am organising to see a pain specialist soon as I am finding it hard to get past the constant pain in order to be physically active. I will conquer it though! Just need some expert help 🙂

A size 8 would be a mens 29 inch waist but I am aiming for size 10, around mens 32". I looked too thin at size 8 and used to get called skeletor haha.

Thanks for the encouragement Len, you're a good egg!

Carol

[Airies]

You are more then welcome Carol. You are a good egg as well. I'm down in Cadel Evans territory by the coast. Nothing like a ride by the sea

I've a full carbon Trek road bike. Great car with a crummy engine. I picked up my spin bike relatively cheaply second hand. There's lots of workouts on You Tube as well. So much for the saying You got to get back on the bike.

..wow that's skinny.I would die to be a men's 32"

I'm sure you can do it.

Theres nothing worse then being in constant pain - I'm sure the pain quack will have the perfect anecdote..

Also a positive attitude which you have in abundance

holds you in good stead.

Keep up the great work!

cheers Len

[kbkman]

Hi there. Just my 2c, a theory I have that might help, or not

I find that a good diet/eating habits really goes hand in hand with exercise. I know that's patronising and a cliche and obviously doing some kind of exercise helps more than good eating on its own, but what I mean more specifically is the diet can actually feed off the exercise and turn into a cycle.


I think (and I used to do this too) a lot of people feel like they "need to lose weight", so they cut calories and start running a lot, and then they don't enjoy the running (for example) - it becomes a task, not a challenge, there is a difference - and they don't enjoy the food, and the benefits are slow to appear, if at all, and then the whole thing
falls over. I think you should find a form of exercise that you like, and stick with it. Maybe join a local sports team or gym (or without spending money, if you do enjoy running, play with different styles, maybe go to a local track and try sprint training, see what is the most fun, or start cycling) and when you find something you like, I really believe everyone has a competitive streak - you will want to improve at it! A good diet will help you.

I'm at a point in my fitness personally, after loads of ups and downs and all over the shop, where I impulsively eat to feed my athletic performance. The key i think is wanting to perform well at what it is you do. You will find a poor diet really significantly impacts (on mental processes too). once you experience the contrast with good food a few times it changes the way you feel about certain foods. I used to drink like a v8, smoke, eat all the terrible crap I could find, but I turned it around... this was partially through necessity (I was fatigued all the time, it as detrimental to my mental state, I was hurting my back a lot) but mostly because I developed a drive to do well in my training.

cont...

[kbkman]

cont:

I still love to eat, and I still enjoy a bit of crap. I am a bit
different to you, I have a high number of calories I aim to achieve
(4000 or 5000 per day) because of the kind of training I do. This
intake is impulsivley made up of the amounts of carbs, protein, serves
of fruit or veg that I have figured out I need. It has developed into
an "addiction". *I use the term very carefully! In the past I guess I
could say I was addicted to eating rubbish, but I have turned it on its
head and now if I feel I haven't eaten well enough on a particular day
it can be a source of anxiety! On the flip side, as I enjoy eating, and
I eat a lot, I know I need to train to keep my fitness levels up and
maintain my weight. It's this kind of perpetual cycle that has become
an inherent part of my days and weeks, and I feel like I can maintain it
now for as long as I want. I think anyone can achieve this, as long as
they have something to drive them.

Time can be an issue. Since I
went back to uni and am working I have had to drop a day or two of
training, and change my diet a bit accordingly, but it's still
manageable. Find a gap in your week and give it a crack!

One
last thing - and I am not qualified so take with a grain of salt - it's
not fat you should be wary of in your diet. It's simple carbs!
processed sugars, sugar syrups in snacks and drinks etc. And drink
plenty of water. Tap water, bottled water, as long as it has nothing
added (flavoured waters have heaps of sugar). I'm not a fan of coconut
water like someone else suggested. Just plain old tap water. Ignore
silly stuff about detoxes and speciald rinks, water detoxes you and it
will keep you sharp.

Exercise and diet have been absolute pillars of my mental recovery from anxiety, depression etc.

[Lost_Girl]

Hi kbkman,

Great advice there. I agree wholeheartedly that it helps to love what you are doing.I used to do zumba 3 nights a week and loved it. It was helping me in all the right ways.

The biggest problem I have is getting past the chronic pain I have had 24x7 for over a year now. I have a long term treatment plan with my neurologist and physio but it doesn't help in the short term. They keep telling me to be realistic. I have never been a particularly patient person. I have a referral to a pain management psych so hopefully they can help with some strategies to move past the pain and depression enough to exercise. Crossing fingers.

In the meantime the 1200 calorie target is helping. Yes, you're right about the fats and carbs. The myfitnesspal app helps track total carbs, fats, sugars and gives warnings if you go over. I try and predict my food for the day so I can juggle it to get the right balance because even fruit puts the carbs over 🙂

I drink carbonated mineral water. It took a long time for me to stop drinking diet coke. The carbonated water helps.

Thanks kbkman, I am sure there are other silent participants in the forum that will benefit from that too. Top info.