Feeling uninspired/stuck in a rut/blah!

[Holly88]

I wasn't quite sure where to put this little rant so I apologise in advance if this is totally the wrong place!

I just wanted to get some stuff out I guess. I have been all over the place for a couple of months now when it comes to weight loss.

I just can't get myself into a consistent routine. I have this overwhelming feeling of having tried so much now and being a bit sick of going nowhere. I want to be inspired/excited about getting healthy again but I just can't seem to be.

I have a confession too ... I hate calorie counting. It's so bloody boring. I spent 6 months of my life in 2007 writing down everything I ate, weighed out precisely and calculated as accurately as I could muster and it just made my life so bloody dull! There's a big part of me that would have to be dragged kicking and screaming back to that way of life... but it was the only way I've ever lost significant weight. I hate that!

Has anyone here lost weight without the ole calorie counting? I'm not sure I could ever be trained at 'moderation'.

I'd like to try something new but I know that really nothing is new - it's all the same trick played in different ways and I'm a little tired of playing! I had thought that buying a gym membership or a membership to a slimming club (ie weight watchers) might help but I know that I'd probably only be wasting my money in the long run (I own a bike, I can run outdoors and I know how to count calories!)...

Anyway, because of all this I have been yo-yoing 10lbs or so for months now and it's just not good for myself mentally and physically. I'd take a break from it all but there's no such thing as maintaining my weight for me - I'll only pile on more lbs!

I know that truly you can't get motivation/inspiration from anywhere but inside yourself... but that doesn't stop me from wishing something would come and smack me in the face and get me going again!

I thought maybe I could read some self help/motivational books? Does anyone have any recommendations?

I'd also like to hear that other's have felt like this and got over it?

I know it's tempting to say 'PULL YOURSELF TOGETHER WOMAN' or 'IF YOU WANT THIS ENOUGH YOU'LL GO OUT AND GET IT' or some sh*t like that. I mean 'cause that's what I'd wanna say if I was reading this self indulgent BS... but I'd appreciate if maybe I could get something back a little kinder than that. Or at least not in caps? lol

OK so I guess I'm done ranting now. Thanks a lot if you've read all this. It's helped writing it.

 

[TheyCallMeRed]

For me, learning about nutrition really woke up my senses. It wasn't about counting calories, it was about knowing everything you put in your body will benefit it.

I was 30 lbs. heavier, lathargic, and unhappy. Food makes a huge difference!! I do not count calories because like you said it is tedious. However, I know that I'm not over doing it because I only eat one portion of each thing.

Our bodies are temples and if we build them up with crap they will crumble, but if we fortify them with nutrients they will reward us in so many ways.

Food can taste good, be healthy, and even satisfy. (On a side note, exercise is also important to a healthy lifestyle. Find what works for you though. Not everyone is meant to go to a gym, if hikes are your thing find a cool place to frequent. I have a friend who lives in LA and she hikes up Griffith Park four times a week. Make it your own).

I'm not on any specific diet because only my body can tell it what it needs. Start listening to your body, it knows what it needs.

Red

 

[Sunflower2]

Sweetheart,

I know the fucking feeling. Fo realz. It sucks. I'm the exact same as you. Hate calorie counting, don't really like exercise after the first few weeks of doing it. And as soon as I lose a few lbs I get bored and put it back on.

Read Paul McKenna's, "I can make you thin". It's pretty inspiring. I'm done with my copy--Can send it to you if you don't want to buy it new.

Honestly, how I lost weight the first time was with Weight Watchers. The meetings are boring as fuck and all they do is tell you stuff you already know--BUT, they keep you accountable. Weighing in with other people is a HUGE motivation. My meeting was on Tuesdays, if I slipped up weds, thurs and friday, the fear of putting on weight and being told by someone else and having other people ask and having to tell them that you'd put on MADE me get back on track the rest of the week.

With WW you don't have to sign up..Just try a few meetings and pay weekly..It's worth a shot, yeah?

You're such an awesome, pretty girl Hols. And you're lovely the way you are--But you know that buzz you get when you lose weight and feel amazing. Just need to get the fire under you again.

Hugs, Hana xx

 

[Spinner19641]

I don't calorie count either. I haven't the discipline and I hate feeling deprived or hungry.

My solution was to go back to basic ingredients. Now I eat fresh fruit, vegetables, meats, nuts, olive oils, eggs, wholegrain rice, skimmed milk, coffee, tea, water, etc. I can eat any combination of these foods in any volumes. It's just a question of how creative I can be.

At first I did miss the more exciting flavours of fast food but I learned to emulate some of my favourites: burgers = homemade chicken burgers; chips = homemade fries in olive oil, you get the drift. It takes more effort to prepare so I never have the time to over indulge!

That plus a tough training programme and I eventually got to a size (I never weigh myself) I was happy with. It took awhile but it was a lifestyle change so I figured it would.

Since I got where I wanted to go in terms of health, size, fitness I have eased up and now I will eat chocolate, the ocassional dessert, a bag of crisps and I eat out a little more. However, my taste and appetite for these foods is pretty limited so although I may indulge I quickly get bored and continue with my usual style of eating.

For me it has been a question of behavioural retraining rather than punishing diets.

 

[Holly88]

Thanks a lot for the replies guys, it's helped.

There's this cycle of change theory in psychology and I always end up thinking about it when I'm feeling like this. I'm definitely in the contemplation stage at the moment, following a relapse, and I need a good shove into preparation and action!

Han, I've read that book before but I wouldn't mind reading it again. I remember it being very common sense but in a good way.

I think I'm going to concentrate my efforts on getting motivated again, rather than losing... Do some reading etc.

 

[fortyfour]

Holly i don't count calories either. But i do measure my food so that i know how much i am eating.

As you already have a good grounding in how many calories are in things, you really don't need to do it anymore.

Take another look at my diary.

But i also strongly suggest you buy one of the CSIRO books. They have a new one out . If you google csiro and diabetes diet you will get the link and see a good sample of the book.

I have used their first book which is called CSRIO total well being diet.

Anyone can use both books. The first book is targeted at diabetics because diabetes is becoming a major public health concern in this country and probably around the world but you don't have to have diabetes to use this book.

They don't count calories. Calories have already been factored into the menus and portion sizes. And by following the plans for a few weeks, you will get a feel for the right amount to eat. One thing though, when i followed their book, i found i was a bit hungry on 5500kilojoules per day 1375 calories. I think the new book has menus with different calorie levels so i would strongly suggest that if follow this, adjust the daily meal plan to fit in a few extra calories to meet your chosen daily calorie target. The books explains how to do this without actually having to count calories or kilojoules. eg they will say if you want more have another cup of milk, which is equal to, a 150ml glass of wine, or x number of nuts, and so on.

They do refer to kilojoules because we are a metric country but its actually not hard to go between the two measurements. There are approximately 4 kilojoules in a calorie. So just take a quarter the number of kilojoules and that will equal calories if you really want to know or if you are looking at a packet in a shop just multiply by four if you want to understand what it is in kj. But as i said, being able to understand what they are talking about is not the same as having to count calories.

I've adjusted to calories from kj since coming to this site and its not that hard.

There are some other links on my page regarding how much to eat of different types of food that mean you don't have to count calories. Counting calories is quite important when people are starting out and have no idea how many calories exist in things. This is a method i've learned initially from using the CSIRO total well being diet book and other nutrition sites use this method too.

Eg on my diet i go along the lines of this per day:
2 serves of diary a day
4 serves of vegetables a day or more
2 serves of fruit or more
4 serves of complex carbohydrates a day
2-3 serves of protein a day.
3-4 serves of good fats a day

To learn how much is a serve

dairy 1 cup of milk, 1 cup of yoghurt, 2 slices of hard cheese
vegetables - half a cup of cooked or salad vegetables, 1/2 cup of cooked lentils or beans
fruit - i piece of fresh fruit, 4 pieces dried fruit such as apricot or prunes
good fats - 1 tsp. 20g nuts.
protein - 2 small eggs, 1 duck egg, i don't know off hte top of my head what it is for meat or fish. i just go with something that looks modest, 1/2 cup cooked lentils or beans
carbs - not sure of the official deal off the top of my head but this is what i do - 100g spaghetti or 1 cup cooked, 1/2 cup rice, 2 slices bread, 1 cup of wine, 1/2 cup rolled oats or museli, 1 cup at least of other less dense types of cereal such as flakes and rice bubbles, 1 medium sized potato, 1 cup cooked rice noodles.

If i was eating a pizza, i would consider that say 2 slices of a large pizza or 1/2 a medium pizza or 1 whole small pizza would equal
2 serves of bread,
+3 serves of cheese,
+1 serve of vegetables if its a bought one (more if its home made and you piled it up iwth vegies),
+1 serve of protein if you have chicken on it or seafood. I'd ignore it if you had other types of meat on it because they don't usually put much. Ok maybe 1/2 serve of protein.
+And finally maybe 2 serves of fat just in case they put oil on it somewhere.

I really don't find it very hard to work out my meals for the day. Its become very easy in fact. As you may know, i list everything i eat on my diary. Take a look.