On the verge of giving up...

Many people here have been sharing their success stories. I am in need of help too. I am feeling like giving up now, after struggling for almost 5 years. But even if I want I can't give up on this. I'm stuck in my own mindset, lost all hopes energy and motivation but still can't accept myself this way. Any help and words of kindness is appreciated.

Here's a little background about my journey.

I have been on a weight loss struggle since age 21. I'm turning 26 in January. Back then at age 21-23 I couldn't take any action but see myself getting heavier as I was too caught up in my education. I did't had any time for myself, no friends and no social life. I had to study upto 14 hours a day and there were exams after every 6 months. I was a meritorious student since my school and due to immense expectations and pressure accompanied with exam failures I developed anxiety, anger issues and depression. I had a terrible relationship with me and with my parents, being an only child made matters only worse for me. At this time I developed binge eating disorder. I used to remain at my home and study day and night for months and food was the only variety in my monotonous life,so it became my boredom killer. When I turned 23 I was finally able to dump that course and found success in another, more qualitative career which I really like.

I came out of depression, and so ended all that continuous phase of binging, but I still have occasional emotional eating/binging and overeating episodes, and a terrible relationship with food to this day. I also have been suffering from a severe acne for the last 12 years, and have developed severe inferiority complex. Despite on receiving compliments on how I look but I cant seem to accept them. As a person having social anxiety, my weight and my acne is making matters only worse for me.

Now, I have been on a weight loss journey on and off since 2018 july and till now I've managed to lose just 22 lbs.My SW was 187 and GW is 121. I weigh 165 lbs as of today.

Initially my only motivation to lose weight was to be able to fit into my favorite clothes, while this remains the very core of my driving force to this day, but weight loss for me is now elevated above this thing. I see this as a failure on the part me me as a person, I often question myself, If I cant do a small thing like this for me what else I can do in life ? I still hate myself for doing wrong to me, my relationship with myself has improved but, I'm still having self hatred issues just because of my weight. I'm getting older and I just don't want to live like this.

I just want to ask that how you remained positive when your weight loss struggles don't seem to be successful despite doing everything right. Plus how do you manage to remain consistent over the time, what made you keep going ? My problem is that I cant remain consistent, I am an all or no approach person, either I give my 100% or -100%, which means at times I do everything that I shouldn't, No matter how intense my desire to lose weight is, it still can't fuel me up to remain consistent. I can't understand what makes me do self sabotaging behavior, I continually hate myself but cant change this behavior over the years. Because of this I get results but very slowly. I have tried many diets and approaches. Exercise is no more a problem for me, I have managed to change my perspective over it, from a kind of punishment for my heavy weight to a form of self accomplishment and a hobby. But my relationship with food is still keeping me away. I'm just fed up of myself now. I don't want to spend the rest of my life hating myself.

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Get Toned Arms for Holiday Parties—Fast!

It’s that time of year: You’re starting to receive invitations to holiday parties. And as soon as you say yes, you ask yourself, What am I going to wear? Well, this year, thanks to all the hard work you’ve put in on your weight loss program, you’re ready to show off with a little black dress. And why not? You’re looking great, and you have the confidence to carry it off. You can be sure you completely rock the look by starting to do some toning exercises for your upper arms now. You’ll have toned arms in no time if you perform some of these simple moves each day. Start with just one minute, then work your way up to a total of five minutes each day, total.

Overhead Arm Circles: This is for your upper arms and shoulders. Put both arms straight overhead; lock your elbows. Pointing your fingers toward the ceiling, slowly make 1o small clockwise circles with both arms. Then slowly make 10 large clockwise circles. Repeat until you’ve done fast, slow, large and small circles in both directions.

Side Arm Circles: This is also for your upper arms. Put both arms straight out to your sides, level with you shoulders, so you make a giant T. Do the same exercises described above: big and small circles, fast and slow, backward and forward.

Can Curls: This is for your biceps. Head to your kitchen cabinets and grab two cans of soup or vegetables. Hold one in each hand, and hold your elbows in tight at your sides. Slowly curl both cans up to your shoulders, then lower. Repeat 10 times; build up to 20 repetitions before increasing the number of sets. Too easy? Use bigger cans, or fill a water bottle and curl that.

Kitchen Dips: This is for your triceps, the back of your upper arm. Stand with your back to your sink, and reach both hands behind you so you’re gripping the edge of the sink. Put your feet a comfortable distance in front of you, and put as much of your weight as you can on your heels. Slowly bend your elbows and lower your butt toward the floor, then push back up. As this gets easier, move to lower surfaces, like the bathtub.

 

 

The post Get Toned Arms for Holiday Parties—Fast! appeared first on The Leaf.

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From SAD to Good: Combating Seasonal Affective Disorder

Feeling a little more tired, a little less patient and a whole lot of blah? It’s understandable—the combo of colder weather and shorter days can dampen anyone’s spirit. But for some people, this time of year triggers changes that go way beyond a funk: Experiencing significant fatigue, feeling sad on most days and sleeping more than usual all point to seasonal affective disorder (or SAD), a clinical form of depression, according to experts at the American Psychological Association. The symptoms are exactly the same as those of major depression, and can include losing interest in activities, having a hard time concentrating, more irritability, cravings sweets and starches, and weight gain. The only difference is SAD follows a seasonal pattern, with symptoms starting in the late fall and early winter, and improving in the spring.

How to Banish a Bad Mood

Read More

If you find yourself struggling around the changing season and suspect you suffer from SAD, talk to your health provider. Your doctor may run tests to rule out underlying medical conditions, or refer you to a mental health profession for a psychological evaluation. The bright side: There are things you can do to ease symptoms; here are some to consider:

Light Therapy
How it works: You sit near a specialized light box that shines a controlled amount of bright light mimicking natural outdoor light, and appears to help re-balance brain chemicals linked to mood, explains the Mayo Clinic. A mental health professional can help adjust the timing and dose of light to your specific needs and body rhythms. This is important because if used incorrectly, light therapy may strain your eyes, give you a headache or make you agitated.

Talk Therapy
It helps you first identify, and then change, negative thoughts and behaviors that make symptoms worse; plus, you learn healthy ways to cope with SAD and manage the stress of the condition. Research published in the American Journal of Psychiatry found that a SAD-tailored version of cognitive behavioral therapy, or talk therapy, was more effective at preventing relapses in future winters, when compared to light therapy.

Are You Getting Enough Vitamin D?

Read More

Get Outside
Take a long walk, even on brisk or cloudy days—and try to do it in the morning within two hours of waking up for the most benefit, according to the Mayo Clinic. Outdoor light can help ease milder symptoms.

Work Out
Physical activity can help reduce stress and anxiety, both of which increase SAD symptoms.

Ask About Medications
Your doctor may prescribe an antidepressant if your case is severe; he or she may also recommend starting treatment before symptoms typically begin, and continuing past when they dissipate. It may take several weeks to notice full benefits from an antidepressant.

The post From SAD to Good: Combating Seasonal Affective Disorder appeared first on The Leaf.

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I've been frustrated that the scale hasn't been moving, but I found out today that there was a reason for that

This past month I've been really frustrated with my weight, especially since I've put in more effort into monitoring what I eat and exercise more. Yet, the scale hasn't moved much, at one point I was even back at my heaviest and I couldn't explain it.

2 weeks ago I noticed that my belly was getting bigger, even though I've definitely been eating less, doing IF and working out 3-4 times a week. I thought maybe I needed to work harder on losing belly fat so I decided to challenge myself to doing 100 sit ups before going to bed.

Less than a week ago, while I was lying on the ground after completing my 100 sit ups for the day, I felt a hard mass in my lower abdomen/pelvic region. At first I didn't think about it too much, as I thought maybe I'm just a bit gassy. But in the next few days, that mass was still there. I shouldn't have done this but I googled my symptoms, and let me tell you, GOOGLE IS NOT A DOCTOR.

I finally got the courage to tell my mom that I needed to see an OB-GYN, and that's probably the best decision I've made.

Just got back from the hospital not too long ago, and turns out I have a giant fibroid (kinda like the size of a giant water balloon) thats sitting in my lower abdomen, and I will have to undergo surgery to get it out. At least it's good to know that it's not cancerous and it's not causing any pain. I still have a few checkup to do before scheduling that surgery but I guess it's a relieve to know that there's a reason why the scale hasn't been moving.

​

Hopefully this surgery will go well, so that I can resume my weight loss journey. For now I think I need to be less harsh and take better care of myself first.

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Day 1? Starting your weight loss journey on Tuesday, 03 December 2019? Start here!

Today is your Day 1?

Welcome to r/Loseit!

So you aren’t sure of how to start? Don’t worry! “How do I get started?” is our most asked question. r/Loseit has helped our users lose over 1,000,000 recorded pounds and these are the steps that we’ve found most useful for getting started.

Why you’re overweight

Our bodies are amazing (yes, yours too!). In order to survive before supermarkets, we had to be able to store energy to get us through lean times, we store this energy as adipose fat tissue. If you put more energy into your body than it needs, it stores it, for (potential) later use. When you put in less than it needs, it uses the stored energy. The more energy you have stored, the more overweight you are. The trick is to get your body to use the stored energy, which can only be done if you give it less energy than it needs, consistently.

Before You Start

The very first step is calculating your calorie needs. You can do that HERE. This will give you an approximation of your calorie needs for the day. The next step is to figure how quickly you want to lose the fat. One pound of fat is equal to 3500 calories. So to lose 1 pound of fat per week you will need to consume 500 calories less than your TDEE (daily calorie needs from the link above). 750 calories less will result in 1.5 pounds and 1000 calories is an aggressive 2 pounds per week.

Tracking

Here is where it begins to resemble work. The most efficient way to lose the weight you desire is to track your calorie intake. This has gotten much simpler over the years and today it can be done right from your smartphone or computer. r/loseit recommends an app like MyFitnessPal, Loseit! (unaffiliated), or Cronometer. Create an account and be honest with it about your current stats, activities, and goals. This is your tracker and no one else needs to see it so don’t cheat the numbers. You’ll find large user created databases that make logging and tracking your food and drinks easy with just the tap of the screen or the push of a button. We also highly recommend the use of a digital kitchen scale for accuracy. Knowing how much of what you're eating is more important than what you're eating. Why? This may explain it.

Creating Your Deficit

How do you create a deficit? This is up to you. r/loseit has a few recommendations but ultimately that decision is yours. There is no perfect diet for everyone. There is a perfect diet for you and you can create it. You can eat less of exactly what you eat now. If you like pizza you can have pizza. Have 2 slices instead of 4. You can try lower calorie replacements for calorie dense foods. Some of the communities favorites are cauliflower rice, zucchini noodles, spaghetti squash in place of their more calorie rich cousins. If it appeals to you an entire dietary change like Keto, Paleo, Vegetarian.

The most important thing to remember is that this selection of foods works for you. Sustainability is the key to long term weight management success. If you hate what you’re eating you won’t stick to it.

Exercise

Is NOT mandatory. You can lose fat and create a deficit through diet alone. There is no requirement of exercise to lose weight.

It has it’s own benefits though. You will burn extra calories. Exercise is shown to be beneficial to mental health and creates an endorphin rush as well. It makes people feel awesome and has been linked to higher rates of long term success when physical activity is included in lifestyle changes.

Crawl, Walk, Run

It can seem like one needs to make a 180 degree course correction to find success. That isn’t necessarily true. Many of our users find that creating small initial changes that build a foundation allows them to progress forward in even, sustained, increments.

Acceptance

You will struggle. We have all struggled. This is natural. There is no tip or trick to get through this though. We encourage you to recognize why you are struggling and forgive yourself for whatever reason that may be. If you overindulged at your last meal that is ok. You can resolve to make the next meal better.

Do not let the pursuit of perfect get in the way of progress. We don’t need perfect. We just want better.

Additional resources

Now you’re ready to do this. Here are more details, that may help you refine your plan.

• Quick Start Guide - Build your foundation!
• Loseit Compendium - Frame it out!
• FAQ - Answers to our most Frequently Asked Questions!

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Tantrum Tuesday - The Day to Rant!

I Rant, Therefore I Am

Well bla-de-da-da! What's making your blood boil? What's under your skin? What's making you see red? What's up in your craw? Let's hear your weight loss related rants!
The rant post is a /u/bladedada production.

Please consider saving your next rant for this weekly thread every Tuesday.

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Good habits make good maintenance

Progress Chart

I started my weight loss journey last year. My weight had increased slowly after college thanks to way too much beer and a diet heavy on pasta and tortilla chips. I decided I wanted to enter my 30s in a healthy place. My deeper motivation was somewhat less wholesome: I wanted to look good for a guy I liked. And I started the journey because he went on a date with a pretty girl. But hey, burning jealousy is a hell of a motivator. I can’t complain too much - it got me here.

That motivation kept me very consistent for the first two months of dedicated CICO and 3x/wk lifting. I rarely cheated on my diet. I quit alcohol. This was the time when I learned new recipes, read every nutrition label in the grocery store, changed my typical grocery run, and formed new habits.

I lost 15 pounds in 5 weeks, which achieved my main goal. I lost another 3-5 gradually over the course of six months and have been maintaining around that weight since. You’re never really off the wagon in maintenance, but happily I’ve let pizza, pasta, and beer back into my life (occasionally).

The best changes I made in that initial phase were the changes to my typical grocery run, because those became habits. I eat more chicken, fish, and frozen veggies than I ever did before. I drink less alcohol than I did in my 20s (a real money saver!) and I snack on fruit, popcorn, a packet of tuna fish, or a protein bar if I’m really hungry. I generally know how many calories are in things I eat, and I keep myself generally in check, but I don’t stress too much about it.

Find the low calorie foods that work for you, and make them a habit! It will serve you well in maintenance. Good luck with your journeys. And may you turn your jealousy into productivity :)

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