Is it possible to lose weight and keep it off?

[Carol in Cal.]

What I hate about tracking food is having to enter all the ingredients of each recipe.

It takes forever. 

I'm more than willing to cook for myself and make good stuff, and eat moderately if only I didn't have to spend an hour on the computer figuring it out every day.  I do that for a while, and then I just run out of steam on it.

 

It seems like there should be a program that accepts a scanned recipe instead of an entered one, and assigns points or calories per unit volume.  But no.  And if you use WW, you can't even use the cookbooks that have the calories per serving, because WW has their own points system.  It's a conundrum.

 

 

[Callie]

. If you don't fall back on your old habits then there is not many reasons (barring health problems) that the weight should come back.

 

 

 

I suspect this is the answer.

 

 

[Xuzi]

What I hate about tracking food is having to enter all the ingredients of each recipe.

It takes forever. 

I'm more than willing to cook for myself and make good stuff, and eat moderately if only I didn't have to spend an hour on the computer figuring it out every day.  I do that for a while, and then I just run out of steam on it.

 

It seems like there should be a program that accepts a scanned recipe instead of an entered one, and assigns points or calories per unit volume.  But no.  And if you use WW, you can't even use the cookbooks that have the calories per serving, because WW has their own points system.  It's a conundrum.

On Myfitnesspal.com, if the recipe you're using is online, you can put in the URL, and it'll match up the ingredients with ingredients they have in their database, to calculate the nutritional information for you. (the matches sometimes aren't perfect, but you can edit them)

 

And it's one of my no-exception requirements for any new cookbook I buy, that there must be nutritional information included with the recipes, or I won't bother. :lol:

[kiana]

On Myfitnesspal.com, if the recipe you're using is online, you can put in the URL, and it'll match up the ingredients with ingredients they have in their database, to calculate the nutritional information for you. (the matches sometimes aren't perfect, but you can edit them)

 

And it's one of my no-exception requirements for any new cookbook I buy, that there must be nutritional information included with the recipes, or I won't bother. :lol:

 

Also on myfitnesspal, if you make the same recipe frequently you can save it. I do this.

 

I also sometimes don't enter things like a single lettuce leaf or a single stalk of celery in a large recipe. I don't think anyone ever got fat from too much leafy green vegetables.

[Jean in Newcastle]

These kinds of threads tend to discourage me!  I look great on paper.  (And I'm not cheating when I put stuff down on the paper.)  I wish I drank sodas so that I could give them up and get some benefit from it.  I wish I ate a lot of processed foods so that I could give them up.  I eat a very very few gluten free foods that are processed but that's it.  For that matter, I wish I ate gluten so I could give that up and see the benefit.  Oh wait. . . I did.  I lost 3 pounds from that.  Period.  I still don't eat gluten because my pain levels are better without it but it hasn't helped my "wheat belly" or any other kind of belly.  I wish i ate huge portions so that I could cut them down.  (I don't weigh my food every time but I did for a long time and every now and then do again to make sure that I'm portioning things out correctly - I am.)  I wish I didn't exercise so that I could start.  It is true that I need to do strength training but my personal trainer and I are having some trouble finding things I can do without setting up major muscle spasms.  I wish I didn't eat fruits (moderately) and veggies (more heavily).  I don't eat 100% organic but a good portion are organic.  Even my meat is the hormone free kind.  But I have health problems that no one has been able to fix in over 20 years and here I am.  As I said in the other thread - I sincerely believe in lifestyle changes.  But our bodies are very complex.  Inflammation levels (one of my problems - and yes, I am nightshade free) can affect weight loss.  Metabolic changes.  Hormonal changes.  All sorts of things are involved.  

[kiana]

Well, honestly, Jean -- with your health issues I think having halted the weight gain so that you are not gaining any more weight is a victory of sorts, even if it is not the victory you were hoping for. :/

[Night Elf]

What I hate about tracking food is having to enter all the ingredients of each recipe.

It takes forever. 

I'm more than willing to cook for myself and make good stuff, and eat moderately if only I didn't have to spend an hour on the computer figuring it out every day.  I do that for a while, and then I just run out of steam on it.

 

It seems like there should be a program that accepts a scanned recipe instead of an entered one, and assigns points or calories per unit volume.  But no.  And if you use WW, you can't even use the cookbooks that have the calories per serving, because WW has their own points system.  It's a conundrum.

 

I do WW. We don't have a big selection of meals, we pretty much eat the same things, so once I figure points, I don't have to do it again. And to calculate points, you need the fat, carbs, fiber, and protein figures. Calories don't come into figuring points. WW has cookbooks too, which already have points calculated, but I don't follow recipes so those are useless to me although I do own a couple. FWIW, I keep a written record of WW points and carbs because I make sure I don't go over 150 grams of carbs each day.

[NicksMama-Zack's Mama Too]

I have my own "convenience" foods. And I generally eat the same things for breakfast, lunch and snacks, then change it up for dinner.

 

For example: for breakfast I make a veggie omelette, for lunch a green salad, and then have some cheese and/or pre-cut veggies for snacks.

 

When I get home from my grocery shopping trips I start prepping my food. For the omelette I chop up a zucchinni and a red bell pepper, put them in a plastic container, and put it in the fridge. This way, when morning comes, all I have to do is scramble the eggs, grab a small handful of the chopped veggies, and add some seasonings and shredded cheese to make my omelette. It takes longer to make than a bowl of cereal, but not terribly long (about 5 minutes) and because the flavors are fresh and strong, it's far more satisfying

 

For lunches I have a big, lidded bowl to which I add 1 bag of spinach, 1 bag of 3 romain hearts (chopped), 1 chopped cucumber, and 1 bunch chopped radishes. This big bowl lasts about 5-6 days (I'll sometimes have leftovers for lunch, instead of the salad). I also dump 3-4 frozen chicken breasts into a pot and cook them up, then slice them and package them to have on hand to add to the salad, or add to my kids' lunches, or just munch on.

 

For snacks I have bags of celery and carrots that I've pre-cut (or purchased pre-cut), a block of sharp cheddar cheese that I'll cut slices off of, a constantly re-stocked fruit bowl (usually apples and bananas), and various no-sugar-added jams, peanut butter, whole-fat plain yogurt or cottage cheese (to add the jams to), and dried fruits and nuts.

 

You won't find any bags of chips or boxes of crackers in my house at. all. because I do not have the will-power to not eat them. You can't eat what's not there.

 

ETA: For what my kids and the rest of the family eats, they inhale the fruits and veggies and pre-cooked chicken breast for snacks (my middle child loves adding fresh cracked pepper to the chicken), and I have store-bought whole wheat tortillas for making quesadillas and wraps, whole wheat bread for PB&J, tuna, or grilled cheese sandwiches for lunches. Dinner is where I do my most intensive cooking, but even then I have some fall-back recipes for when I don't have time (like eggs and bacon, or quesadillas with a veggie on the side)

Um, you make the same exact food that I do...with the sole exception being the breakfast veggies. I chop a bag of mixed peppers and a red onion. Oh, yeah...we keep hummus on hand.

[mathnerd]

 

 

You won't find any bags of chips or boxes of crackers in my house at. all.

 

You can't eat what's not there.

 

This is true in my house as well. There are no bags of chips or cookies or candies because I refuse to buy them.

[Xuzi]

Um, you make the same exact food that I do...with the sole exception being the breakfast veggies. I chop a bag of mixed peppers and a red onion. Oh, yeah...we keep hummus on hand.

I wish I could keep hummus on hand, but I could (and have) eaten an entire small container of that stuff in a single go. I have no self-control around good hummus. :lol:

[Soror]

On the issue of mindfulness in eating I read some interesting blog posts the other day about under reporting calorie intakes, evidently nearly everyone under reports what they eat but the disparity between what is reported and what is eaten increases the more obese a person is, up to 300%. 

https://gokaleo.com/2014/09/05/the-real-issue/

https://gomaleo.wordpress.com/2013/11/13/calorie-underreporting/

 

An interesting fact from the studies is that most people really do burn the expected amount of calories, there are a small percentage that burn less but even then at the worst the amount of calories burned versus the expected bmr was no more than 25% different (and that was exceedingly rare- although of course not unheard of). Now that is a bit depressing or encouraging, I'm not sure. The vast majority of us are not metabolically deranged enough to make a significant difference in weight loss. Of course then there are other factors coming into play as to why we sometimes have difficulty with eating too much. I know with my thyroid issue that it is harder to loss weight, I'm not certain by what mechanism though but perhaps there is hope? Nearly everyone whom has lost weight goes through plateaus, rarely is weight loss linear, our bodies are not perfect machines, so why is this? 

 

It made me think of my current struggle and I'm now working on being much more mindful of everything I put in my mouth. Maybe I am really at the weight I'm supposed to be for now and nothing, short of extreme and dangerous methods will change it, or perhaps I will just have to be more diligent with tracking what I'm eating, like I did so many years ago. You hear talk about set-points and how hard it is to break through these, similar to plateaus, so yet again how does this work? Why do we get stuck? 

 

Another thing I noticed for myself is that sleep makes a tremendous impact, on the days I don't sleep well my hunger is drastically increased. It seems I read somewhere that a 20% increase in intake is par for the sleep deprived. My body desperate for energy would try to get it any way it could, the easiest way being more food. I don't doubt that lack of sleep plays at least a small part in the difficulty of many moms to lose weight and then of course the more a person weighs the more likely they are to have sleep problems, which makes a horrible cycle. And of course lack of sleep makes it so hard to be more active. I've found that my sleep being bad for so long it takes a solid month of sleeping well to have enough energy to be as physically active as I want to be and my body is very sensitive to pushing too hard- like the crash I had when I decided to start training for a triathlon the last time I really started feeling well. 

 

 

I also wonder about the gut biome as mentioned earlier, I think there is likely some connection but I don't think it or anything else is some silver bullet for everyone. Why have our guts changed in such a relatively short period? Is it the difference of our food, lifestyles, then why aren't those things always enough to bring weight back down to a more normal range (even if higher than wanted). What is the role of genetics? From what I've read if a child has 1 obese parent then they have a 30% chance of obesity and 60% if they have 2 obese parents, why? I've also read that the connection is the strongest from the mother, are there genetics, gut bacteria, lifestyle habits, a combo or some unknown factor? 

 

Another thing that I would agree with a pp (too lazy to look at now) is that it is much more productive to focus on those changes you can more easily control, like increasing strength and endurance, much better than those elusive numbers on the scale. I'm actually taking a scale break right now, hoping to focus more on my behaviors and not looking at the scale to get discouraged. We'll see if after this month is up if that was a good or bad idea but sometimes you need to switch things up. 

 

[NicksMama-Zack's Mama Too]

I wish I could keep hummus on hand, but I could (and have) eaten an entire small container of that stuff in a single go. I have no self-control around good hummus. :lol:

They sell single-serving size packs at Costco. 😊

[kiana]

This is true in my house as well. There are no bags of chips or cookies or candies because I refuse to buy them.

 

Yep yep yep. I only buy single-serving packages, I only buy one per trip to the store, so I have to get in my car and drive to the store every time I want a cookie.

 

Usually I decide I didn't really want one that badly. 

[Soror]

These kinds of threads tend to discourage me!  I look great on paper.................................... But I have health problems that no one has been able to fix in over 20 years and here I am.  As I said in the other thread - I sincerely believe in lifestyle changes.  But our bodies are very complex.  Inflammation levels (one of my problems - and yes, I am nightshade free) can affect weight loss.  Metabolic changes.  Hormonal changes.  All sorts of things are involved.  

I agree. There are no easy answers for some. And even if we know the problem sometimes fixing it is nearly impossible. My thryoid is treated but getting it to the right levels is proving elusive, like it is for many it seems. The same can be said for so many other issues, we just don't know. Hearing what works for "normal" people doesn't help those that aren't :(

[Katy]

My DH has kept off weight permanently (at least as long as I've known him).  He was very skinny as a kid b/c he was always ill.  Then he had a surgury, got well, and got very chunky (obese but not morbidly obese) in his first two years of college.  Then he got a very physical job and lost the weight.  As an adult he weighs himself every morning.  If he's gained he skips breakfast, either skips lunch or has a chicken breast & some broccoli, and eats whatever I make for dinner. I think it helps that if he's more than 10 pounds over his ideal weight he gets acid reflux. 

 

But no, you're not going to magically get the ability to eat whatever junk you want and stay skinny.

 

I think there have been plenty of studies that show that skinny people actually eat many less calories, they just generally feel that eating normally is pigging out.   Just like how morbidly obese people think they're not eating much, but when you track their calories they can easily exceed 4000 per day.  Not that there aren't exceptions with different health issues, but generally that is the case.  Changing your view of what is a "normal" amount of food to eat will permanently change your weight.

[swimmermom3]

I have my own "convenience" foods. And I generally eat the same things for breakfast, lunch and snacks, then change it up for dinner.

 

For example: for breakfast I make a veggie omelette, for lunch a green salad, and then have some cheese and/or pre-cut veggies for snacks.

 

When I get home from my grocery shopping trips I start prepping my food. For the omelette I chop up a zucchinni and a red bell pepper, put them in a plastic container, and put it in the fridge. This way, when morning comes, all I have to do is scramble the eggs, grab a small handful of the chopped veggies, and add some seasonings and shredded cheese to make my omelette. It takes longer to make than a bowl of cereal, but not terribly long (about 5 minutes) and because the flavors are fresh and strong, it's far more satisfying

 

For lunches I have a big, lidded bowl to which I add 1 bag of spinach, 1 bag of 3 romain hearts (chopped), 1 chopped cucumber, and 1 bunch chopped radishes. This big bowl lasts about 5-6 days (I'll sometimes have leftovers for lunch, instead of the salad). I also dump 3-4 frozen chicken breasts into a pot and cook them up, then slice them and package them to have on hand to add to the salad, or add to my kids' lunches, or just munch on.

 

For snacks I have bags of celery and carrots that I've pre-cut (or purchased pre-cut), a block of sharp cheddar cheese that I'll cut slices off of, a constantly re-stocked fruit bowl (usually apples and bananas), and various no-sugar-added jams, peanut butter, whole-fat plain yogurt or cottage cheese (to add the jams to), and dried fruits and nuts.

 

You won't find any bags of chips or boxes of crackers in my house at. all. because I do not have the will-power to not eat them. You can't eat what's not there.

 

ETA: For what my kids and the rest of the family eats, they inhale the fruits and veggies and pre-cooked chicken breast for snacks (my middle child loves adding fresh cracked pepper to the chicken), and I have store-bought whole wheat tortillas for making quesadillas and wraps, whole wheat bread for PB&J, tuna, or grilled cheese sandwiches for lunches. Dinner is where I do my most intensive cooking, but even then I have some fall-back recipes for when I don't have time (like eggs and bacon, or quesadillas with a veggie on the side)

 

Thank you so much. This is very helpful.

 

 

[kiana]

Watching Secret Eaters was a real eye-opener for me. Like, in the first season, one woman had entered "four rum and cokes", but when she was actually observed, what she was doing was taking a 16-oz glass and filling it half-full of rum, then topping it off with coke. Um yeah, that's going to throw your calorie calculations off. (It was also funny watching her kids watch the video -- when she filled the glass they gasped and said "Mum!")

 

And when I say eye-opener, I mean how much *I* had been eating without realizing it. 

[swimmermom3]

What I hate about tracking food is having to enter all the ingredients of each recipe.

It takes forever. 

I'm more than willing to cook for myself and make good stuff, and eat moderately if only I didn't have to spend an hour on the computer figuring it out every day.  I do that for a while, and then I just run out of steam on it.

 

It seems like there should be a program that accepts a scanned recipe instead of an entered one, and assigns points or calories per unit volume.  But no.  And if you use WW, you can't even use the cookbooks that have the calories per serving, because WW has their own points system.  It's a conundrum.

 

When I use SparkPeople, I enter favorite foods and that works well for both breakfast and lunch. I can copy a favorite meal to another day. For dinner, we do use a lot of the SparkPeople recipes and those get entered automatically.  Set-up can take a while and I am having to go through it a second time, but once you are there the logging's not too time consuming.  I am sure there are similar apps.

[swimmermom3]

On Myfitnesspal.com, if the recipe you're using is online, you can put in the URL, and it'll match up the ingredients with ingredients they have in their database, to calculate the nutritional information for you. (the matches sometimes aren't perfect, but you can edit them)

 

And it's one of my no-exception requirements for any new cookbook I buy, that there must be nutritional information included with the recipes, or I won't bother. :lol:

 

That is a very cool feature.  How do you like Myfitnesspal?

 

I joined emeals a few months ago and it has helped with dinner planning, but there is no nutritional information. Irks me to no end, but then I just cook for the guys and eat an earlier dinner that works for me.

 

[kiana]

That is a very cool feature.  How do you like Myfitnesspal?

 

I joined emeals a few months ago and it has helped with dinner planning, but there is no nutritional information. Irks me to no end, but then I just cook for the guys and eat an earlier dinner that works for me.

 

 

I realize I'm not the same one, but I love MFP. I don't really track my food anymore but I still login to cheer on my friends and track my weight. 

[Mom-ninja.]

I think that woman is bat shit crazy.

 

If you just go off her TV personality, yes. She's actually really down to earth and understanding when you listen to her interviews or read her books.

[ktgrok]

 

I think there have been plenty of studies that show that skinny people actually eat many less calories, they just generally feel that eating normally is pigging out.   Just like how morbidly obese people think they're not eating much, but when you track their calories they can easily exceed 4000 per day.  Not that there aren't exceptions with different health issues, but generally that is the case.  Changing your view of what is a "normal" amount of food to eat will permanently change your weight.

 

But why do naturally thin people feel full eating a small amount, and uncomfortable eating more, when obese people don't? That's where the science is looking now. Gut bacteria and bile acids seem to play a big role, but I have no idea where that will lead. I have a naturally thin son, his father, my ex, was also naturally thin to the point of underweight. He didn't stay underweight by denying hunger or tremendous self control. He just naturally regulated there. For an obese person to get to the point of underweight they would be hungry, always thinking about how to stay in control, having to plan exercise, count calories (or carbs or whatever), etc etc. That's what drives me crazy about the whole thing. It's like me telling an alcoholic, I don't know why you drink so much, I have no problem stopping after one. Well duh, I'm not an alcholic, and don't have a drive to drink excessively. I can't compare my experience to someone elses. Same with food. For me, eating a "normal amount" takes TREMENDOUS will power, but it doesn't for a naturally thin person. Trying to sustain that level of will power is incredibly difficult. 

[Xuzi]

That is a very cool feature.  How do you like Myfitnesspal?

 

I joined emeals a few months ago and it has helped with dinner planning, but there is no nutritional information. Irks me to no end, but then I just cook for the guys and eat an earlier dinner that works for me.

 

I really like it. If I have a recipe that already has the nutritional information to it, I can just add it to the date base, entering in it's name and the information, and *boom*, it's there to add anytime I make it again. It also has a neat search feature so you can see if your recipe has already been added by someone else (if you cook from well-known cookbooks and magazines like I do, it's very handy, as about 90% of the time somebody has already entered in the recipe you're making. This also includes many restaurant foods.)

 

I've never used SparkPeople, so I can't really compare it to that. I've been using MFP for years though, and am satisfied. :)

[swimmermom3]

These kinds of threads tend to discourage me!  I look great on paper.  (And I'm not cheating when I put stuff down on the paper.)  I wish I drank sodas so that I could give them up and get some benefit from it.  I wish I ate a lot of processed foods so that I could give them up.  I eat a very very few gluten free foods that are processed but that's it.  For that matter, I wish I ate gluten so I could give that up and see the benefit.  Oh wait. . . I did.  I lost 3 pounds from that.  Period.  I still don't eat gluten because my pain levels are better without it but it hasn't helped my "wheat belly" or any other kind of belly.  I wish i ate huge portions so that I could cut them down.  (I don't weigh my food every time but I did for a long time and every now and then do again to make sure that I'm portioning things out correctly - I am.)  I wish I didn't exercise so that I could start.  It is true that I need to do strength training but my personal trainer and I are having some trouble finding things I can do without setting up major muscle spasms.  I wish I didn't eat fruits (moderately) and veggies (more heavily).  I don't eat 100% organic but a good portion are organic.  Even my meat is the hormone free kind.  But I have health problems that no one has been able to fix in over 20 years and here I am.  As I said in the other thread - I sincerely believe in lifestyle changes.  But our bodies are very complex.  Inflammation levels (one of my problems - and yes, I am nightshade free) can affect weight loss.  Metabolic changes.  Hormonal changes.  All sorts of things are involved.  

 

Jean,I am so sorry. It's a royal PITA to struggle with your weight, it has to be much worse when the cards seem stacked against you. :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug:

 

Our bodies are indeed complex and they are all different with different needs and sensitivities. I hope for you that there is an answer that is still being explored. We know so much more than we did thirty years ago and we'll keep learning.

 

[Callie]

For an obese person to get to the point of underweight they would be hungry, always thinking about how to stay in control, having to plan exercise, count calories (or carbs or whatever), etc etc. That's what drives me crazy about the whole thing. It's like me telling an alcoholic, I don't know why you drink so much, I have no problem stopping after one. Well duh, I'm not an alcholic, and don't have a drive to drink excessively. I can't compare my experience to someone elses. Same with food. For me, eating a "normal amount" takes TREMENDOUS will power, but it doesn't for a naturally thin person. Trying to sustain that level of will power is incredibly difficult. 

But people who maintain a healthy weight do have to plan their exercise, count calories or carbs and have self control.  It doesn't just happen.  Trust me I want homemade bread & cookies & ice cream.  I'd love a big bowl of mashed potatoes smoothered in cheese. I just can't eat them and stay at a healthy weight and keep my diabetes under control.  Eating food portioned & weighed DOES take self control.  

[kiana]

But people who maintain a healthy weight do have to plan their exercise, count calories or carbs and have self control.  It doesn't just happen.  Trust me I want homemade bread & cookies & ice cream.  I'd love a big bowl of mashed potatoes smoothered in cheese. I just can't eat them and stay at a healthy weight and keep my diabetes under control.  Eating food portioned & weighed DOES take self control.  

 

Right. And there are people (to continue ktgrok's analogy) with a natural tendency towards alcoholism who nevertheless manage not to drink to excess by a variety of coping mechanisms, and there are others who have tried and failed over and over again. 

 

Some people are naturally lean and never have to worry about it -- that's where they self-regulate.

Some people's setpoint is at a higher weight, and they successfully fight to keep it down.

Some people have a setpoint at a higher weight, and they have not yet been successful in their fight. 

[swimmermom3]

I realize I'm not the same one, but I love MFP. I don't really track my food anymore but I still login to cheer on my friends and track my weight. 

 

Thanks for the info and I meant to tell you last night when I read your first post, thanks for sharing your story. At least for me, after the other thread, this helps.

[VeganCupcake]

But why do naturally thin people feel full eating a small amount, and uncomfortable eating more, when obese people don't? That's where the science is looking now. Gut bacteria and bile acids seem to play a big role, but I have no idea where that will lead. I have a naturally thin son, his father, my ex, was also naturally thin to the point of underweight. He didn't stay underweight by denying hunger or tremendous self control. He just naturally regulated there. For an obese person to get to the point of underweight they would be hungry, always thinking about how to stay in control, having to plan exercise, count calories (or carbs or whatever), etc etc. That's what drives me crazy about the whole thing. It's like me telling an alcoholic, I don't know why you drink so much, I have no problem stopping after one. Well duh, I'm not an alcholic, and don't have a drive to drink excessively. I can't compare my experience to someone elses. Same with food. For me, eating a "normal amount" takes TREMENDOUS will power, but it doesn't for a naturally thin person. Trying to sustain that level of will power is incredibly difficult. 

 

What I have found is that if I "reset" to more mindful eating, I am more satisfied with that. Eating more makes me want to eat more. Eating less, I realize that I am actually physically satisfied eating less. It's a vicious or virtuous cycle. Of course, there are nice squirts of dopamine that come from eating processed carbs, which makes the vicious cycle more appealing, in a way.

 

I read an interesting book called Switch about how change happens in individuals and organizations. I found it easy to imagine how it applies to eating and fitness. Several WTMers on the Book a Week thread read it as well. Effective change doesn't have to be about willpower much at all. It does have to do with planning and decision-making though.

[SparklyUnicorn]

Right. And there are people (to continue ktgrok's analogy) with a natural tendency towards alcoholism who nevertheless manage not to drink to excess by a variety of coping mechanisms, and there are others who have tried and failed over and over again. 

 

Some people are naturally lean and never have to worry about it -- that's where they self-regulate.

Some people's setpoint is at a higher weight, and they successfully fight to keep it down.

Some people have a setpoint at a higher weight, and they have not yet been successful in their fight. 

 

It's exhausting to me.

 

It just doesn't seem like it should be THAT hard.  And I don't eat desserts or sweets or tons of junk food.  I cook most things from scratch.  I'm not super overweight, but I'm not the weight the charts say I should be.  If I want to get to that weight, and I have, I have to spend a lot of time being very hungry.  That's hard to put up with quite frankly.  I'd rather be overweight than hungry all the time.  So not like I'm really asking for advice, but just saying it like it is for me. 

[hornblower]

I sort of count calories but only loosely & mostly I count the carbs & the rich protein/fat things.

What I try to focus on is 8-10 servings of veg & fruit - & at least 1/2 of that but preferably 2/3 should be veg, not fruit. I don't calorie count veg at all, but I count fruit.

easiest for me is green smoothies - doesn't even require chopping, just rinse, dump & turn the machine on. A green smoothie before every meal when I'm actively nudging my weight down. Before dinner for maintenance.

Add 4 servings of grains/day

3 servings of legumes

some nuts & seeds & we're done for the day.

I'm the laziest cook in the world. Either oatmeal or a whole grain cereal + soy milk for breakfast.  Rice is either leftovers from dinner or a roll with (vegan) ham/cheese/hummus  + whatever fruit & veg fresh or in a smoothie

dinner is curry, pasta, wraps, veggie burger, tacos, or soup & all based on bean & lentils & tofu or Yves cuisine Just Like Ground for filling tacos and wraps.   This is pretty much it, in constant rotation. Sometimes we get Gardein faux chicken breasts & use those for wraps or bake them & serve with potatoes & mushroom gravy.

I'm hungry from the moment I wake up till about 3pm & then I'm not hungry any more, so actually I often skip dinner altogether.  Whichever way it goes, I just keep on eating from my daily 'plate' until I hit about 1700 cal.
 

snacks for me are nuts, carrot sticks or very occasionally pretzels. They're my 'thing'. I love pretzels.  But what I try to do is think if I'm actually hungry - if I'm hungry, I should eat more of a meal, rather than a snack....

My dd likes to bake desserts so there are often baked goods here. I will usually have one but that counts as one of my grain/starch things so I better not have been hitting the Squirrely bread that day.

I try to weigh myself weekly but usually it's every 2 weeks & sometimes more. I use the Wii for it - I like that it keeps tracks & gives me a nice chart but I hate that it takes time to turn on. (Also its obsession about  L & R balance. It's never satisifed. I got 49.9% once & still got the lecture about working on my core strength.. )
 

[Callie]

It's exhausting to me.

 

It just doesn't seem like it should be THAT hard.  And I don't eat desserts or sweets or tons of junk food.  I cook most things from scratch.  I'm not super overweight, but I'm not the weight the charts say I should be.  If I want to get to that weight, and I have, I have to spend a lot of time being very hungry.  That's hard to put up with quite frankly.  I'd rather be overweight than hungry all the time.  So not like I'm really asking for advice, but just saying it like it is for me. 

So I guess I am really lucky that after I eat I am satisfied and never hungry.  I eat three meals a day and most days a cup of hot tea in the afternoon with a small amount of almonds or macadamia nuts.  Occasionally I'll add one square of 90 % Lindt  chocolate (a serving is 4 square but I limit to 1).

[SparklyUnicorn]

So I guess I am really lucky that after I eat I am satisfied and never hungry.  I eat three meals a day and most days a cup of hot tea in the afternoon with a small amount of almonds or macadamia nuts.  Occasionally I'll add one square of 90 % Lindt  chocolate (a serving is 4 square but I limit to 1).

 

See, I don't even eat chocolate because I don't like it!  LOL

 

I don't like sweets of any kind.

[Carol in Cal.]

I do WW. We don't have a big selection of meals, we pretty much eat the same things, so once I figure points, I don't have to do it again. And to calculate points, you need the fat, carbs, fiber, and protein figures. Calories don't come into figuring points. WW has cookbooks too, which already have points calculated, but I don't follow recipes so those are useless to me although I do own a couple. FWIW, I keep a written record of WW points and carbs because I make sure I don't go over 150 grams of carbs each day.

See, I have cookbooks already, and I really like them.

I just don't want to enter all those freakin recipes one by freakin one, LOL.

 

I also improvise a lot.  That means that I put in a little of this and a little of that until it tastes good.  Then I try not to eat very much.  Hey, it's a start.  I used to do that, and pig out.  But honestly I feel like once I start cooking I'm more or less flying blind when it comes to WW.

[Soror]

Watching Secret Eaters was a real eye-opener for me. Like, in the first season, one woman had entered "four rum and cokes", but when she was actually observed, what she was doing was taking a 16-oz glass and filling it half-full of rum, then topping it off with coke. Um yeah, that's going to throw your calorie calculations off. (It was also funny watching her kids watch the video -- when she filled the glass they gasped and said "Mum!")

 

And when I say eye-opener, I mean how much *I* had been eating without realizing it. 

Yes, it is a video example of the fact that we underestimate how much we eat, all of us. I was reading somewhere that even registered dietitians that have been trained extensively in food tracking aren't accurate (perhaps that was on one of the articles I posted- I don't remember). 

 

It does take a tremendous effort for *many* people to keep their weight levelized. I mean I took a whole year to lose 20 lbs, I don't know how I kept with it so long, except that I didn't keep the focus on the scale but on the changes that made me feel good. I also refused to go hungry, I only ever kept a very slight calorie deficit- according to the math not quite 200 calories a day. I couldn't have maintained a super low cal diet, I believe I generally ate around 1800 calories back then but it has been so long I don't even remember. I know for certain it wasn't under 1500- and I did measure and track extensively. Now, after having to lose weight after each of 4 kids while dealing with my thyroid I'm weary from it and it is harder to be motivated especially when it is increasingly harder. I so get that. Just because I'm relatively thin doesn't mean I'm not putting a fair amount of thought and effort into it though. 

[Katy]

But why do naturally thin people feel full eating a small amount, and uncomfortable eating more, when obese people don't? That's where the science is looking now. Gut bacteria and bile acids seem to play a big role, but I have no idea where that will lead. I have a naturally thin son, his father, my ex, was also naturally thin to the point of underweight. He didn't stay underweight by denying hunger or tremendous self control. He just naturally regulated there. For an obese person to get to the point of underweight they would be hungry, always thinking about how to stay in control, having to plan exercise, count calories (or carbs or whatever), etc etc. That's what drives me crazy about the whole thing. It's like me telling an alcoholic, I don't know why you drink so much, I have no problem stopping after one. Well duh, I'm not an alcholic, and don't have a drive to drink excessively. I can't compare my experience to someone elses. Same with food. For me, eating a "normal amount" takes TREMENDOUS will power, but it doesn't for a naturally thin person. Trying to sustain that level of will power is incredibly difficult. 

 

I have a feeling gut bacteria have more to do with this than we realize, and probably in 20-30 years there will be a probiotic pill you can take a two week course of and it will reset your metabolism to someone thin.

 

I used to naturally be muscular but low fat.  Then I went on 8 courses of prednisone and gained 80 pounds. If I exercise HARD several hours a day and don't eat anything I want I get back to the weight I was before, but my set point is now 80 pounds higher than it should be.  I'm physically hungry a lot to stay at my current weight.  And I don't mean the pleasant, I'm hungry, I could eat or I could skip a meal because I'm so busy I forgot to eat sort of hunger I used to have.  I mean more the hangry, ravenous, don't bug me until I have something to eat sort of hunger.

 

I did read recently that having the equivalent of a couple granny smith apples per day profoundly changed the gut bacteria of obese mice to be very similar to that of thin mice, but it hasn't been tested in humans yet.

[ktgrok]

But people who maintain a healthy weight do have to plan their exercise, count calories or carbs and have self control.  It doesn't just happen.  Trust me I want homemade bread & cookies & ice cream.  I'd love a big bowl of mashed potatoes smoothered in cheese. I just can't eat them and stay at a healthy weight and keep my diabetes under control.  Eating food portioned & weighed DOES take self control.  

 

You misunderstood, I think. I'm saying, I wonder what the science is behind why you have to count carbs, but another person doesn't and is just as thin. I can promise you my ex husband, my son and my mother never counted a carb/calorie/or anything else in their lives. They didn't practice discipline. They just weren't hungry. They didn't want the food, period. Even when they should be gaining weight, they weren't hungry enough to do so. We need to explore (by me, I mean science) why that is.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Before I got my last infection which has left me with tummy problems if I try to eat anything other than rice and chicken, I was using a 40/30/30 plan - also known as a Zone diet or The Formula.  The 40/30/30 has to do with ratios - 40% carbs to 30% protein and 30% fat.  I found that getting a Formula diet book and cookbook from the library was very helpful.  I also found it difficult to eat all the food on that diet!  As dh said, "That's a lot of chewing!"  

 

Drinking water can help some with the craving to eat because some of what we interpret as hunger is actually thirst.  

[ktgrok]

Yes, it is a video example of the fact that we underestimate how much we eat, all of us. I was reading somewhere that even registered dietitians that have been trained extensively in food tracking aren't accurate (perhaps that was on one of the articles I posted- I don't remember). 

 

It does take a tremendous effort for *many* people to keep their weight levelized. I mean I took a whole year to lose 20 lbs, I don't know how I kept with it so long, except that I didn't keep the focus on the scale but on the changes that made me feel good. I also refused to go hungry, I only ever kept a very slight calorie deficit- according to the math not quite 200 calories a day. I couldn't have maintained a super low cal diet, I believe I generally ate around 1800 calories back then but it has been so long I don't even remember. I know for certain it wasn't under 1500- and I did measure and track extensively. Now, after having to lose weight after each of 4 kids while dealing with my thyroid I'm weary from it and it is harder to be motivated especially when it is increasingly harder. I so get that. Just because I'm relatively thin doesn't mean I'm not putting a fair amount of thought and effort into it though. 

 

But you had to lose weight. I'm talking about people I know and am close to, who never had to. Who are naturally,with zero effort, slim. 

[SparklyUnicorn]

But you had to lose weight. I'm talking about people I know and am close to, who never had to. Who are naturally,with zero effort, slim. 

 

Damn that's lucky.

[ktgrok]

So I guess I am really lucky that after I eat I am satisfied and never hungry.  I eat three meals a day and most days a cup of hot tea in the afternoon with a small amount of almonds or macadamia nuts.  Occasionally I'll add one square of 90 % Lindt  chocolate (a serving is 4 square but I limit to 1).

 

Yes, you are very very lucky. 

[SparklyUnicorn]

After I eat I'm satisfied.  But then I might be hungry 2 hours later.  It's not necessarily that I'm not satisfied after a meal.  It's just not always long lasting.

 

 

 

 

[Soror]

But you had to lose weight. I'm talking about people I know and am close to, who never had to. Who are naturally,with zero effort, slim. 

I think those people are fairly rare and becoming rarer. I think our ever more sedentary lifestyles mean we can't make up for our our bad eating with activity anymore.

[swimmermom3]

But why do naturally thin people feel full eating a small amount, and uncomfortable eating more, when obese people don't? That's where the science is looking now. Gut bacteria and bile acids seem to play a big role, but I have no idea where that will lead. I have a naturally thin son, his father, my ex, was also naturally thin to the point of underweight. He didn't stay underweight by denying hunger or tremendous self control. He just naturally regulated there. For an obese person to get to the point of underweight they would be hungry, always thinking about how to stay in control, having to plan exercise, count calories (or carbs or whatever), etc etc. That's what drives me crazy about the whole thing. It's like me telling an alcoholic, I don't know why you drink so much, I have no problem stopping after one. Well duh, I'm not an alcholic, and don't have a drive to drink excessively. I can't compare my experience to someone elses. Same with food. For me, eating a "normal amount" takes TREMENDOUS will power, but it doesn't for a naturally thin person. Trying to sustain that level of will power is incredibly difficult. 

 

Katie, I live in a family of "naturally thin" people and not every one in that category under eats. I have a couple of tiny girlfriends, and yes, they under eat and truly are not hungry. For two of them, perpetual stress shuts down their appetite, while for me, it cranks it up. My dh has 6 siblings and they range in age from 54 to 63 and all of them are thin and they eat "normal" portions and beyond. Trust me, as a calorie counter, I have easily watched my BIL down 5000 calories in one sitting. They metabolize food differently.  On the other hand, the generation after them is all slim, but also what I would term "under eaters."  That includes my kids and some of their cousins. We used to have to pick up our daughter when she was little and get some protein into her because her hands would shake. When they swam competitively, it was a nightmare trying to get enough calories in them.

 

I could be way off base, because I only have my own experience to go off of, but I have found that playing with different ratios of fat, carbs, and protein can make a huge difference in my levels of control. Also, many diets offer set amounts of calories that may or may not be appropriate given one's actual weight.  If you weigh 250 pounds, then a 1200 calorie diet is, I think, a recipe for disaster. That is barely enough to keep your body going at a resting rate. You may need 1800 to 1900 calories a day to lose slowly, but not be so hungry you fall off the wagon.  I tend to work with 1500 to 1600 calories a day and if the quality of the food is good and if I try to stay at around 25% fat, then I can lose 1-2 pounds a week and I don't hate my life. Oddly enough, after the first big drop, on Medifast I lost at the same rate, but at half the calories and I truly hated my life.  Our bodies are so much smarter than we are. :tongue_smilie:

 

I probably didn't tell you anything you didn't already know, but I do want to send :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: , especially after the other thread.

 

[Peaceful Isle]

Yes, it's possible. Check out my blog. I've regained some this last pregnancy, but over 60% of it is still gone and I'm working back down. From super morbidly obese to a normal weight for my height and build. It's hard work, constant vigilance, permanent changes, and the right plan for my terrible, energy dysfunctional metabolism.

What blog? I don't see a link? :)

[SparklyUnicorn]

So I guess I am really lucky that after I eat I am satisfied and never hungry.  I eat three meals a day and most days a cup of hot tea in the afternoon with a small amount of almonds or macadamia nuts.  Occasionally I'll add one square of 90 % Lindt  chocolate (a serving is 4 square but I limit to 1).

 

I don't know if I'd call it "luck", but plenty of people are hungry all the time.

 

I'm actually not hungry constantly.  I'm not a stress eater.  I don't eat when bored. 

 

I'd probably drop a few pounds easily if I could take a damn walk. 

[swimmermom3]

See, I don't even eat chocolate because I don't like it!  LOL

 

I don't like sweets of any kind.

 

Geez, Sparkly. I knew there was something suspicious  about you and that dancing bacon. :D

 

[SparklyUnicorn]

Geez, Sparkly. I knew there was something suspicious  about you and that dancing bacon. :D

 

 

Haha...well I'm a good friend.  I'll never make you share your chocolate with me.

 

Then there is DH and my younger kid.  They could live on chocolate.  My older son is just like me.

[Barb_]

But you had to lose weight. I'm talking about people I know and am close to, who never had to. Who are naturally,with zero effort, slim.

Honestly, I don't know of any adult who doesn't have to put in some effort at maintaining his or her weight. I'm a good weight only because I pay attention and don't let it creep up too much to begin with. I postpone breakfast because I only eat when I'm hungry, not by the clock or because I'm afraid I might not be near food later. I weigh every day. Fluctuations of a couple of pounds are fine, but when my weight creeps up four or five pounds I start wrestling it back down again. I walk at least 10k steps a day and that gives me a couple hundred extra calories to play with. I weigh everything with a good scale and only eat the listed portion size or less. I find that I'm happier with half sized portions of a variety of higher calorie foods (few almonds, half piece cheese, one slice whole wheat, one egg, etc) than one big portion of one thing. I fill in with produce as much as possible. Mindful eating as mentioned above.

 

I went to Chicago for five months because that's where my husband lives year round and in spite of doing a lot of walking everywhere I managed to gain 15 pounds without a scale. It took me nine months to take it back off again. Not going to do that again!

[hornblower]

What blog? I don't see a link? :)

It's on her profile page :)

[mathnerd]

Honestly, I don't know of any adult who doesn't have to put in some effort at maintaining his or her weight. I'm a good weight only because I pay attention and don't let it creep up too much to begin with. I postpone breakfast because I only eat when I'm hungry, not by the clock or because I'm afraid I might not be near food later. I weigh every day. Fluctuations of a couple of pounds are fine, but when my weight creeps up four or five pounds I start wrestling it back down again. I walk at least 10k steps a day and that gives me a couple hundred extra calories to play with. I weigh everything with a good scale and only eat the listed portion size or less. I find that I'm happier with half sized portions of a variety of higher calorie foods (few almonds, half piece cheese, one slice whole wheat, one egg, etc) than one big portion of one thing. I fill in with produce as much as possible. Mindful eating as mentioned above.

 

I went to Chicago for five months because that's where my husband lives year round and in spite of doing a lot of walking everywhere I managed to gain 15 pounds without a scale. It took me nine months to take it back off again. Not going to do that again!

Mindful eating, adding variety to our diets every single day (I never repeat the same food in a week if possible), cooking from scratch, avoid simple carbs, more fruits and nuts as snacks and deliberate movement in addition to daily exercise (I park my car far away and walk to appointments, stay on my feet etc.) helps a lot in my weight control. I also only eat 3 meals - never stay close to food sources (fridge and pantry) and get more vegetables into my meals.

 

I don't weigh myself anymore - if my favorite pair of jeans is a little too tight, I know that I need to lose weight.