Completely know what you mean - my bf gets really annoyed when I get upset about not losing anything and being really picky, when all I want is to hear "yep, it's crap, but keep going, you'll get there" Thanks for the book recommendation, I'll have to see if I can get it hard copy as I don't have a kindle!!
Tanyajp's Diary of Pain
- Thread starter tanyajp
- Start date
Completely know what you mean - my bf gets really annoyed when I get upset about not losing anything and being really picky, when all I want is to hear "yep, it's crap, but keep going, you'll get there" Thanks for the book recommendation, I'll have to see if I can get it hard copy as I don't have a kindle!!
OK, as thought I'm up half a pound on the weigh in this morning - so back to 146 which is what I was at the end of week 1.
I don't really understand what I'm doing wrong (except 2 bad meals in 2 weeks) so any help would be most appreciated.
As far as I understand I can't lower my calories below 1200, and upping them to 1300 has resulted in a weight gain this week, so do I need to up my exercise to more than 10,000 steps a day a run every other day? Or have I hit a plateau after week 1 (is that even possible!!) and do I have to sit this out and eventually the weight will start coming off?
This is the point that I really struggle as I begin to think that I will need to stick with 1200 calories for ever, just to maintain my weight - and I'm not sure I could live off that long term!!
Aggggghhhh - Help!
I don't really understand what I'm doing wrong (except 2 bad meals in 2 weeks) so any help would be most appreciated.
As far as I understand I can't lower my calories below 1200, and upping them to 1300 has resulted in a weight gain this week, so do I need to up my exercise to more than 10,000 steps a day a run every other day? Or have I hit a plateau after week 1 (is that even possible!!) and do I have to sit this out and eventually the weight will start coming off?
This is the point that I really struggle as I begin to think that I will need to stick with 1200 calories for ever, just to maintain my weight - and I'm not sure I could live off that long term!!
Aggggghhhh - Help!
espressowhip
New member
The scale never lies.
Don't worry about week 2, your body is acclimating to the new regime! Instead of adding more steps, just increase the intensity. Intensity, not endurance, sheds weight.
One piece of advice I can offer as advice is to be brutally honest about your calories. Nobody is as invested as you are in your weightloss, so when we readers see that someone doesn't lose weight we all know it's not because that person is perfectly following a low cal diet.
When you cheat, the only person you are lying to is yourself (and we all do it at some point) but the scale never lies and sometimes we get mad about that. 1200 calories adds up fast. I would suggest that any kind of sauce will throw you well over 1200 calories no matter how careful you are!
If you are genuinely confused about not losing weight, then start counting every single gram of every single food you put in your mouth, including beverages, and tally the calories. It might seem like a chore, but in the long run it helps create more awareness where the hidden calories are.
Don't worry about week 2, your body is acclimating to the new regime! Instead of adding more steps, just increase the intensity. Intensity, not endurance, sheds weight.
One piece of advice I can offer as advice is to be brutally honest about your calories. Nobody is as invested as you are in your weightloss, so when we readers see that someone doesn't lose weight we all know it's not because that person is perfectly following a low cal diet.
When you cheat, the only person you are lying to is yourself (and we all do it at some point) but the scale never lies and sometimes we get mad about that. 1200 calories adds up fast. I would suggest that any kind of sauce will throw you well over 1200 calories no matter how careful you are!
If you are genuinely confused about not losing weight, then start counting every single gram of every single food you put in your mouth, including beverages, and tally the calories. It might seem like a chore, but in the long run it helps create more awareness where the hidden calories are.
Well I certainly will up the intensity, although when I run I hit about 180 beats per min immediately so that's pretty intense!! I am hoping that as I get fitter that may go down - lol!! At the moment I look like I've just run a marathon after 5 mins!!
I shall double check the calories, but I'm pretty OCD about them. I have almost completely stopped making food from scratch (bf not happy about that!) as it's too hard to work things out, so I am relying on the cals stated on the packets. If they are accurate then I should be dead on. If anything I probably slightly overestimate as I count for half the portion, when in fact I have less than half, and give my (tall, slim - grrr) bf the bigger half of everything. I also tend to avoid sauces, only using them when they come with the food and are included in the calories (as you say, most are terrible so I end up sauceless!!) but I do have a couple of favourits that are low-cal, like Knor shallot sauce (which I stock pile when I'm in France) which is fab, and only 36 cals per portion.
My biggest problem is when I'm eating out, as it's very hard to gauge and know what's in things - social life has reduced dramatically so I can avoid this, but occasionally it's unavoidable - In those cases I try and find out from websites what their food contains, and I stick to low cal food such as sushi (yum yum) or lean steak. The alcohol is my main downfall, VERY hard to give that up, but my intake is much reduced.
I'm certainly determined to keep up the routine, and I really enjoy eating healthier, so in the long term I am sure the weight will gradually drop off - I just hope that I can incorporate some of my old favourites (pizza!) further down the line without worrying that one bad meal will require a week of diet to counteract it!!
Thanks for the advice, I am also going to note down the fat/protein/carbs when I can to keep a tally of that too.
I shall double check the calories, but I'm pretty OCD about them. I have almost completely stopped making food from scratch (bf not happy about that!) as it's too hard to work things out, so I am relying on the cals stated on the packets. If they are accurate then I should be dead on. If anything I probably slightly overestimate as I count for half the portion, when in fact I have less than half, and give my (tall, slim - grrr) bf the bigger half of everything. I also tend to avoid sauces, only using them when they come with the food and are included in the calories (as you say, most are terrible so I end up sauceless!!) but I do have a couple of favourits that are low-cal, like Knor shallot sauce (which I stock pile when I'm in France) which is fab, and only 36 cals per portion.
My biggest problem is when I'm eating out, as it's very hard to gauge and know what's in things - social life has reduced dramatically so I can avoid this, but occasionally it's unavoidable - In those cases I try and find out from websites what their food contains, and I stick to low cal food such as sushi (yum yum) or lean steak. The alcohol is my main downfall, VERY hard to give that up, but my intake is much reduced.
I'm certainly determined to keep up the routine, and I really enjoy eating healthier, so in the long term I am sure the weight will gradually drop off - I just hope that I can incorporate some of my old favourites (pizza!) further down the line without worrying that one bad meal will require a week of diet to counteract it!!
Thanks for the advice, I am also going to note down the fat/protein/carbs when I can to keep a tally of that too.
Good day today:
Breakfast
Fruit - 150 (F 0.4, C 34.6, P 1.8)
Tea and skimmed milk x 2 - 30
Lunch
Low fat lasagne - 395 (F 10.5, C 48.8, P 26.9)
1 falafel - 50
Dinner
Battered scallops - 230 (F 12.0, C 18.7, P 11.8)
Aubergine bake - 160 (F 10.0, C 3.7, P 0.3)
75g Cabbage with 1tsp low fat mayo and mustard - 30 (F 0.3, C 4.2, P 1.2)
Total 1045
Steps - 11,000 and about to go for a run
I haven't done quite all of the Fat, Protein, Carbs as didn't have all the info (this is hard work - I'm not sure I can keep this up!) but today was...
Fat -33g (18%)
Carbs - 110g (59%)
Protein - 42g (23%)
Breakfast
Fruit - 150 (F 0.4, C 34.6, P 1.8)
Tea and skimmed milk x 2 - 30
Lunch
Low fat lasagne - 395 (F 10.5, C 48.8, P 26.9)
1 falafel - 50
Dinner
Battered scallops - 230 (F 12.0, C 18.7, P 11.8)
Aubergine bake - 160 (F 10.0, C 3.7, P 0.3)
75g Cabbage with 1tsp low fat mayo and mustard - 30 (F 0.3, C 4.2, P 1.2)
Total 1045
Steps - 11,000 and about to go for a run
I haven't done quite all of the Fat, Protein, Carbs as didn't have all the info (this is hard work - I'm not sure I can keep this up!) but today was...
Fat -33g (18%)
Carbs - 110g (59%)
Protein - 42g (23%)
espressowhip
New member
Balance
It's equally important to have balanced nutritional ratios. I don't know how many calories you are on based on your calculations(?), but compared with a Moderate 1200 calorie a day diet:
That's a normal reduced-calorie diet, the ratios for low-fat and low-carb diets are different, but the protein at 75g is the minimum for all.
Protein is extremely important. You've got only 46g! When you have enough protein, your body feels satisfied (full), which kills cravings for sweets. It will also give you energy you never knew you were missing, which of course makes exercise less painful! Athletes are on high-protein diets, can't you understand why?
Your body needs enough protein to perform daily tasks, including losing fat, efficiently.
Trust me, when you balance this out, you'll feel so much healthier and "dieting" won't be such a big deal.
A weight counselor once said about eating out; only order foods you know you can calculate. Over time you'll get a better feel for food weight.
Nutritional contents on packages is not without risk. You're better off cooking yourself, then you have total control over the ingredients. I know it's a chore, but that's only in the beginning. Before you know it you can look at any ole recipe and calculate in your head how many calories are in it. Make your own reference list, of things you use often, that'll help. And another list for full meals, that way the next time you cook xxx, you'll know without recalculating it.
Like with most new things, there's a learning curve. It's a life skill that will help you stay slim forever!
And last, but not least, just because it's healthy (sushi-my personal fav) does not mean it's not high in calories. 1Tbsp soy sauce (10cal, 1.5g carbs, 600mg (25%) salt). Measure a tablespoon of soy sauce, then see how far it goes with your sushi (not far)! 10Tbsp is 100 calories and 15g of carbs!! Horrifying! ha! ha! (not actually funny...
)
It's equally important to have balanced nutritional ratios. I don't know how many calories you are on based on your calculations(?), but compared with a Moderate 1200 calorie a day diet:
Fat 33g 25%
Carbs 150g 50%
Protien 75g 25%
Carbs 150g 50%
Protien 75g 25%
That's a normal reduced-calorie diet, the ratios for low-fat and low-carb diets are different, but the protein at 75g is the minimum for all.
Protein is extremely important. You've got only 46g! When you have enough protein, your body feels satisfied (full), which kills cravings for sweets. It will also give you energy you never knew you were missing, which of course makes exercise less painful! Athletes are on high-protein diets, can't you understand why?
Your body needs enough protein to perform daily tasks, including losing fat, efficiently. Trust me, when you balance this out, you'll feel so much healthier and "dieting" won't be such a big deal.
A weight counselor once said about eating out; only order foods you know you can calculate. Over time you'll get a better feel for food weight.
Nutritional contents on packages is not without risk. You're better off cooking yourself, then you have total control over the ingredients. I know it's a chore, but that's only in the beginning. Before you know it you can look at any ole recipe and calculate in your head how many calories are in it. Make your own reference list, of things you use often, that'll help. And another list for full meals, that way the next time you cook xxx, you'll know without recalculating it.
Like with most new things, there's a learning curve. It's a life skill that will help you stay slim forever!
And last, but not least, just because it's healthy (sushi-my personal fav) does not mean it's not high in calories. 1Tbsp soy sauce (10cal, 1.5g carbs, 600mg (25%) salt). Measure a tablespoon of soy sauce, then see how far it goes with your sushi (not far)! 10Tbsp is 100 calories and 15g of carbs!! Horrifying! ha! ha! (not actually funny...
)
Snezy
New member
Good job so far, looks like you're really committed! Don't worry too much about the day to day weigh ins, look at the trends. If week by week you are still going down, or at least staying the same, there's nothing to worry about. Just keep eating well and exercising and you'll be at your goal in no time!
Good job so far, looks like you're really committed! Don't worry too much about the day to day weigh ins, look at the trends. If week by week you are still going down, or at least staying the same, there's nothing to worry about. Just keep eating well and exercising and you'll be at your goal in no time!
Thanks!! I always swear I'm not going to get obsessed about weighing myself, but I always fall into the same trap
I try and just weigh weekly, but weigh over a couple of days to check that it's not water/normal fluctuation. Although I am keen to lose weight I am more interested in changing my lifestyle to a healthier way of eating generally (5 portions of fruit/veg a day) as well as less on the starchy carbs and my downfall - cheese!! But most of all I want to make exercise a part of my life, so that I can have the odd nice meal and know that I'll work off those extra calories.I'm very excited about learning to run (god that sounds silly!) and although I am on the very early stages of "couch to 5K" I can already feel my stamina increasing and I'm looking forward to being about to run for 10 mins in one go - something I couldn't even do when I was 12.
And last, but not least, just because it's healthy (sushi-my personal fav) does not mean it's not high in calories. 1Tbsp soy sauce (10cal, 1.5g carbs, 600mg (25%) salt). Measure a tablespoon of soy sauce, then see how far it goes with your sushi (not far)! 10Tbsp is 100 calories and 15g of carbs!! Horrifying! ha! ha! (not actually funny...
Oh yes - it's amazing where those calories hide!! I don't tend to both with the soy sauce, it's all about the raw fish for me - I'm not even that keen on the rice, always sashimi rather than nigri for me - ooh yum, I'm salivating just thinking about it!!
espressowhip
New member
I salivated the entire rest of the day!! I think I might have sparked a craving with my effort to help you! ha! ha!
Last edited:
Whoa, I'm WAY behind. Have to be a summary....
Wed - good day, had some alcohol in the evening, but didn't really eat anything for dinner (bad girl!) - total 1400 cals, 10,000 steps
Thur - good day, 1300 cals, 10,000 steps
Fri- good day (even managed to avoid alcohol on a Friday night end of the week!) - 1100 cals, 12,000 steps (including a run)
Sat - good day (another one without alcohol - whoop whoop) 1200 cals, not so good exercise wise, only 5,000 steps as was feeling a but grim and lazed around/slept most of the day
Sun - a mixed day - cals 1500 (friends 50th birthday bbq so alcohol consumed, but did lay off the bread and stuck mainly to veggy fingers rather than sausages) and just about managed 10,000 steps including a run
SO, I kind of think that I should have lost something this week (after only a half a pound loss in the last 2 weeks) but I'm not holding out much hope as I've thought that for the last two weeks lol!!
Will keep at it though....
Wed - good day, had some alcohol in the evening, but didn't really eat anything for dinner (bad girl!) - total 1400 cals, 10,000 steps
Thur - good day, 1300 cals, 10,000 steps
Fri- good day (even managed to avoid alcohol on a Friday night end of the week!) - 1100 cals, 12,000 steps (including a run)
Sat - good day (another one without alcohol - whoop whoop) 1200 cals, not so good exercise wise, only 5,000 steps as was feeling a but grim and lazed around/slept most of the day
Sun - a mixed day - cals 1500 (friends 50th birthday bbq so alcohol consumed, but did lay off the bread and stuck mainly to veggy fingers rather than sausages) and just about managed 10,000 steps including a run
SO, I kind of think that I should have lost something this week (after only a half a pound loss in the last 2 weeks) but I'm not holding out much hope as I've thought that for the last two weeks lol!!
Will keep at it though....
Good day yesterday, resisted all the cakes and biscuits that were brought into work
Brekkie
2 1/2 slices low fat bread and marmite - 200
Tea with skimmed milk - 15
Snack
Tea with skimmed milk - 15
Lunch
Hummus and pitta - 350
Snack
Tea with skimmed milk - 15
Dinner
Venison burger in foccacia bun - 300
Salad - 150
Roast tomatoes - 50
Total: 1095
Steps: 10,000 (just!)
Weigh in this morning - 10, 5.8 (up .2 of a pound) so as suspected, no loss yet again
Brekkie
2 1/2 slices low fat bread and marmite - 200
Tea with skimmed milk - 15
Snack
Tea with skimmed milk - 15
Lunch
Hummus and pitta - 350
Snack
Tea with skimmed milk - 15
Dinner
Venison burger in foccacia bun - 300
Salad - 150
Roast tomatoes - 50
Total: 1095
Steps: 10,000 (just!)
Weigh in this morning - 10, 5.8 (up .2 of a pound) so as suspected, no loss yet again
Second weigh in today - down to 145, so looks like I'm down half a pound this week if that weight is right - it's slow but I guess it's heading in the right direction.
Yesterday was mixed - good breakfast, no snacks, but a rather large omelette with goats cheese for lunch (yum yum) due to lunch out with work. Left all the chips though and could have chosen something far worse. Dinner was good, fishcake, salad and cabbage. Oh, and did 12000 steps, and a run
Today will be higher as I'm out for dinner tonight, but it's seafood so hopefully not too calorific and I'll try and stick to two drinks - hmmmmmmmmm....
Yesterday was mixed - good breakfast, no snacks, but a rather large omelette with goats cheese for lunch (yum yum) due to lunch out with work. Left all the chips though and could have chosen something far worse. Dinner was good, fishcake, salad and cabbage. Oh, and did 12000 steps, and a run
Today will be higher as I'm out for dinner tonight, but it's seafood so hopefully not too calorific and I'll try and stick to two drinks - hmmmmmmmmm....
Right - yesterday.....
Breakfast
Strawberries, low fat yoghurt and small handful of special K - 150
Tea - 15
Lunch
Prawn wrap - 390
Tea - 15
Dinner
Seafood platter, small amount of bread - 300
1 x small proscecco, 1 x large white wine, 2 x small bloody marys - 700
So - didn't quite stick to the two drinks - lol - that was NEVER going to happen!!
Total: 1570
Steps - 15,000
Not bad, considering!!
Today I've felt very hungry (hmmm, maybe that's the drinking last night!!) but so far not too bad, should've had a smaller lunch but really needed the larger portion!!
Breakfast
2 x toast, marmite and cheery tomatoes - 200
Tea x 2 - 30
Lunch
Hummus and pitta - 480
Not sure what's on the dinner menu tonight, hopefully a stir fry which will be quite low, and I'm hoping to do a run.
Breakfast
Strawberries, low fat yoghurt and small handful of special K - 150
Tea - 15
Lunch
Prawn wrap - 390
Tea - 15
Dinner
Seafood platter, small amount of bread - 300
1 x small proscecco, 1 x large white wine, 2 x small bloody marys - 700
So - didn't quite stick to the two drinks - lol - that was NEVER going to happen!!
Total: 1570
Steps - 15,000
Not bad, considering!!
Today I've felt very hungry (hmmm, maybe that's the drinking last night!!) but so far not too bad, should've had a smaller lunch but really needed the larger portion!!
Breakfast
2 x toast, marmite and cheery tomatoes - 200
Tea x 2 - 30
Lunch
Hummus and pitta - 480
Not sure what's on the dinner menu tonight, hopefully a stir fry which will be quite low, and I'm hoping to do a run.
Dear dear, behind again!!1
Thursday ended ok, stir free in the evening and I managed a run.
Friday was good - 1200 cals and 10,000 steps
Saturday - food wise ok, 1200 cals, but had a glass and a half of wine (felt I deserved it after depressing visit to the dentist in the morning) so probably 200 at least on top of that. Steps pretty low, about 7500, but I did go for a run too (which wasn't counted on the pedometer) so almost 10,000.
Sunday - oh dear!! Well I knew that Sunday was going to be a disaster!! Bf's family over for the day so I had cooked quite a spread. Didn't really have anything for breakfast, just nibbled a bit whilst finishing off the cooking and prep. Lunch was chicken/onion filo pie, salads, guacamole, hummus, lamb filos, bitteballen (yum yum, my best yet - almost as good as the originals in Holland), meats etc. And then finished off with a chocolate brownie, cream and ice-cream. All washed down with far too much sparkling wine. And then leftovers as well as some cheese for dinner....I couldn't even begin to count the calories, but lets say 2500!!
Back on the wagon today - Need to get a good few days under my belt before drinks on Thursday night and then a trip to Lille with my girlfriends on Friday/Saturday for some shopping, eating and drinking!!
Looking forward to a run this evening, although I will have to wait until it cools slightly, we finally seem to be having a summer!!
Thursday ended ok, stir free in the evening and I managed a run.
Friday was good - 1200 cals and 10,000 steps
Saturday - food wise ok, 1200 cals, but had a glass and a half of wine (felt I deserved it after depressing visit to the dentist in the morning) so probably 200 at least on top of that. Steps pretty low, about 7500, but I did go for a run too (which wasn't counted on the pedometer) so almost 10,000.
Sunday - oh dear!! Well I knew that Sunday was going to be a disaster!! Bf's family over for the day so I had cooked quite a spread. Didn't really have anything for breakfast, just nibbled a bit whilst finishing off the cooking and prep. Lunch was chicken/onion filo pie, salads, guacamole, hummus, lamb filos, bitteballen (yum yum, my best yet - almost as good as the originals in Holland), meats etc. And then finished off with a chocolate brownie, cream and ice-cream. All washed down with far too much sparkling wine. And then leftovers as well as some cheese for dinner....I couldn't even begin to count the calories, but lets say 2500!!
Back on the wagon today - Need to get a good few days under my belt before drinks on Thursday night and then a trip to Lille with my girlfriends on Friday/Saturday for some shopping, eating and drinking!!
Looking forward to a run this evening, although I will have to wait until it cools slightly, we finally seem to be having a summer!!