Sunday, February 14, 2021

What are your weight loss “rules”?

I’m reading a book right now on weight loss and one of the steps is making a set of rules for yourself. I’ve found them extremely helpful. I get such decision fatigue and knowing that I have a set of rules to follow, means the decision is made. Done. Nothing to debate.

My rules (so far) are:

  1. Write EVERY bite. You’ll go over on planned occasions and that’s ok.

  2. Get whatever you want at a restaurant, but eat half and bring the rest home. It’s also ok to leave it and not bring it home.

  3. No eating before noon or after dinner (per my intermittent fasting plan)

  4. While making food, only eat to taste test. No mindless eating of ingredients or scraps. (Can’t not taste something before serving it).

  5. No finishing other people’s meals/snacks/desserts. You’re not a trash can.

  6. No snacking within 1 hr of a meal.

  7. Always leave one bite. (To practice not cleaning my plate)

  8. No eating standing up. (Keeps me from standing at the pantry and snacking)

It’s not perfect and it’s not all I’m doing, but it really helps. Especially the no standing up and no finishing other people’s food rules. I catch myself tempted to do both several times a day.

I’d love to hear “rules” you’ve set for yourself that you find helpful.

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My massage therapist (who hasn't seen me in two months) got so excited and fawned over me today about my weight loss! I feel like a million bucks~

For the past couple of months I've been on a very strict low-calorie diet through a program called Optavia. I get about 1000 calories a day give or take, and while it's meant to be formulated so I get all the nutrition I need in a day, the primary goal underlying it all seems to be CICO. It's worked extremely well for me, and for the past month or so I've lost 4 lbs per week. Aside from some light swimming exercise a few times per week primarily for mental health reasons, I have a largely sedentary lifestyle, so 1000 calories a day is enough for me to subsist on. My start weight (some ambiguity due to scale differences - I started my diet at my parents' place then returned home) was around 250 lbs, and I am 23F, ~5'7.5". My CW is ~230 lbs (I weigh again tomorrow so probably less), and my GW is currently 160 lbs (although I might push for 150 - we'll see).

I went to a massage appointment for the first time in two months today with my usual massage therapist, and I was hoping she might notice a difference, because if I'm being honest I kind of haven't (I regret not taking a "before" picture for comparison). When I asked her, she got very excited, said she was actually about to tell me she had noticed, and fawned all over me about how much of a difference there was in every part of my body - even my face! She's usually relatively quiet, so it was even more gratifying that she got so excited for me about my weight loss. She told me that when next I come to her she expects to see me even thinner!

Due to the pandemic I haven't seen a lot of people, and the ones I have seen haven't commented. It was nice to finally get some recognition and validation, especially from one of the only people who knows my body intimately since it's her job. I figured if anyone was going to notice, it would be her.

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Losing weight and having treats

After 18 months of losing weight, wanted to share a few lessons learned in addition to the standard ones of CICO, the right macros, IF and OMAD.

What about you? any strategies or tips to share? Here are a couple of key ones for me:

  1. Getting motivated: At 229 pounds, I got scared. It became very clear that I could easily keep eating 3,500 calories a day or more, keep gaining weight and still be hungry. I did not want to weigh more; was tired of being hungry all the time not matter what I ate and hated clothes shopping or taking pictures. (I also took some unflattering selfies as a much-needed reality check).
  2. Learning a new lifestyle: it's not adopting a temporary diet, it's about learning and practicing a new permanent healthy lifestyle. This has meant a slower weight loss but, as a former yo-yo dieter, it is great to not be falling back into old patterns.
  3. Yes to treats! some people can totally change up their eating approach (vegan, Keto etc) but I really need (want) my treats otherwise I will yo-yo; it's hard-wired into my psyche. However, I have learned a few things about treats:
    Some treats are worth it and some are not.
    * Fast food french fries? usually not worth it, not that tasty (and leaves me craving more!) and a third of my daily calories.
    * Butter on my toast and cream in my coffee? a definite yes! but 12 grams of butter instead of a hefty eyeballed "tablespoon" and one ounce of cream instead of three.
    Some treats are too tempting. So no ginger cookies, no cheezies, and no milk chocolate in my cupboards.
    Some treats aren't satisfying: looking at you airpopped popcorn.
    Discovering new treats: roasted veggies, raspberries, avocados, shrimp, prawns, chicken skewers, lean turkey pepperoni, sockeye salmon, crisp apples, goat cheese, organic celery, dark chocolate, big green salads, delicious low-calorie lime salad dressings instead of ranch.
    Delaying treats: telling myself, not today for that treat, but for sure I can have it next week or the beginning of the month. Lol, I have had an IPA in the fridge for three months now. It's a funny diet hack but really works maybe because it doesn't feel like denial but retains agency and choice?
    Now eating treats is a conscious choice, instead of automatically inhaling two or more servings without considering the calories or if I am eating treats to cope with stress.
  4. Fast food at home: learning how to have easy delicious fast food at home: have nailed a four-minute tasty breakfast sandwich with microwaved poached eggs, buying delicious soups and adding frozen veggies and protein, excellent gourmet sour dough bread for toasted open face sandwiches.

Also want to say a huge thank you to this community (and progress pics) for sharing lessons learned, progress made, and encouraging and supporting healthy weight loss journeys.

Would love to hear your favourite tips and strategies.

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9 months, 10 pounds

26F 4'11. Today I weighed at 193. Ten pounds down from when I lost the first pound June 2020.

Part of me is really disappointed that I'm basically only losing a pound a month. But I've managed to do it without making much "lifestyle changes" I have ADHD so I don't do well with change.

There's something satisfying about not making any real changes and losing weight without gaining any back. Usually at this point I've gained all of it back. But I have been able to keep the pounds off!

I'm basically playing the long game with weight loss but this is the least stressed I've ever been about losing weight so I'll call this a win!

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Any advice in order to lose weight would be greatly appreciated

F 21, Height : 5'4 (164cm) Weight: 265 pounds (120kg)

Hi!

I've been losing weight for a little bit, since before Christmas of 2020. So far I've lost 28 pounds (12kg) and I've done this just by cutting down and eating healthier, so little to no exercise.

I find it extremely hard to exercise due to a combination of laziness and anxiety, but I feel I'm starting to get to a weight now where I have to exercise if I want to continue on my weight loss journey.

I was just wondering if anyone had any advice for really basic exercise I can do, I currently try to go for a long walk at least once a day, but that's pretty much the extent.

Thank you very much!

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When I stopped trying to follow famous diet advice and started making my own rules within CICO, my life changed

i’ve been trying to lose weight my entire life through different programs. sometimes i’m more successful than others, but usually i lose about 20lbs and then give up. this time though, i’ve stuck with it and have lost over 40lbs and am still feeling super motivated!! for the first time in my life, it doesn’t feel like a diet and it actually feels sustainable. i’m doing CICO, but i’ve added in a few changes from my past diets that have made all the difference in the world to me this time around... my favourite thing about CICO is that it’s just basic math so it’s so adaptable to everyones individual lifestyles and choices.

after years of reading books and magazines that tell me exactly how i should be dieting and then failing miserably, here’s some of the personal “less traditional” changes i’ve made for me that have changed my life:

  1. i’ve stopped eating breakfast. for me, i hate breakfast. i’ve been this way my entire life, i am never hungry in the mornings and don’t even think about food until lunch time. when i’m not dieting, i never have breakfast, i usually start eating around 12-1pm. but for some reason, every time i start a new diet i think “okay i’m dieting and society says that breakfast is the most important meal of the day so it’s time to force down 300 calories of oatmeal every morning!” WHY??? it made me miserable, i never enjoyed it, and it just felt like wasted calories to me. and it was. this time around i decided i wasn’t going to force breakfast on myself. now, i have my coffee in the morning and start eating at lunch. not only am i much happier, but i have more calories to spend later in the day now AND i’m losing weight!

  2. i’ve stopped eating calories i don’t enjoy. when i think of healthy food choices, i think of yogurt, granola, egg whites, kale, fish, oatmeal, smoothies, etc. i don’t like any of those foods and yet i would always force myself to eat them because they’re “healthy” and i’m “dieting”. this time, i let myself eat whatever i want so long as it’s in my calorie range. it doesn’t mean i’m always eating crap, i love chicken, beef, broccoli, potatoes, bell peppers, quinoa, etc. i’m just not forcing down “super foods” that i don’t enjoy. this also comes into play when i’m having treats. if i don’t really want it, i won’t bother with it and i’ll save my calories for something that i really want. example: the other day, my roommate was making waffles and offered to make me one. i like waffles (who doesn’t) but they’re not my favourite. so i decided to pass because it’s not something that i really want. literally that same day at work someone brought in donuts (which are my favourite food in the entire world) and so did i have one? hell yes. and i enjoyed every bite! in the past i would have just eaten everything and it’s such a big step for me to be a bit more mindful of whether or not i actually want what i’m eating.

  3. i stopped trying to force myself to love salads and i found a new way to love veggies. i just don’t like salads. never have, never will. it’s not my thing. in the past i would always force myself to eat salads or to at least have a salad on the side and i hated it. now, i never force myself to have salads. but i’ve learned that i LOVE roasted veggies. throw literally any veggie on a pan in the oven with some salt and olive oil and omg it’s so delicious to me. so i’ve been doing that instead and i’m getting tons of veggies in and enjoying the salad-free life. this girl has not touched one salad this entire diet and i’m down 40+ lbs, y’all.

  4. i work my favourite treat into my calories once a week, so i never feel deprived. i LOVE going out and getting my coffee. i’m talking about those starbucks iced coffees that cost half your paycheck for a shot of espresso and a pump of vanilla, but they’re soooo good. in past diets starbucks was on the banished list of foods. i would see pics of people with sugary coffees from cafes and think “they don’t even know how lucky they are...” (dramatic much?), however now once a week i look forward to my treat and i just work it into my calories. it’s all about moderation.

anyways, i know health experts would probably cringe that some of the stuff i said, but the reality is sustainability is so much more important than anything else. i don’t eat the perfect foods, i don’t eat at the perfect times, and you can’t pay me to eat a salad. but i’m happier, i’m healthier, i’m losing weight, and most importantly this doesn’t feel like a diet. for the first time in my entire life-long struggle with dieting and weight loss, i feel like i’ve figured out a healthy relationship and routine with this.

just thought i would share my story and encourage everyone to really take the time to individualize their plan to what works for THEM.

good luck everyone!

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Being Sexually Harassed and Cat Called Is Preventing Me From Losing Weight

I realize I have this problem.

From age 10-18, I was obese. At age 18, I lost half my body weight. I went from 300 pounds to 150 pounds.

Once I reached 150 pounds/size 7 from a size 18/20, I blossomed looks wise. This caused LOTS of unwanted sexual attention and made me very uncomfortable. At the height of my weight loss, I experienced:

  • Being followed home from work by a customer from my grocery store
  • Being cat called on the streets repeatedly
  • Having a guy get out of his car and proposition me for sex while I waited for a bus
  • Having men openly ask me for sex
  • Having ride share drivers ask if I had a boyfriend
  • Being harassed at work by coworkers and customers
  • Having sexual remarks made to me on a regular
  • Having other women act jealous of me because I was getting attention from men
  • Getting out of my car and being cat called and followed into a store
  • Being approached at a bus stop by a random man who was driving and being asked if I had a man and wanted to take a ride with him
  • Having guys honk the horn at me while I walked down the street
  • Having a man reach into his pants and grab his dick and massage it while walking toward me
  • Having women hit on me and one time a woman cornered me in a bathroom

I never experienced any of this prior to weight loss. Before I lost weight, I was invisible and safe. I have gained an unhealthy amount of my weight back over the last few years. I feel that on a subconscious level, I don't want to lose the weight again because I don't want all the unwanted sexual attention. I can't handle it. At the same time, I not only want to look good but be healthy. Some of my weight gain has been due to medication but i'm about to wean off that medicine soon and am wanting to start a new weight loss journey. The issue is I realize I have this mental blockage.

How can I overcome my feelings and shame? I feel that if I get back in shape, i'll put myself in danger and will invite unwanted attention but I can't walk around being unhealthy. I also don't want to wear a trench coat everywhere. I dress modest but still attract lots of unwanted sexual attention when i'm at a low weight and that scares me. What should I do?

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