What's the right program for me???

amother

Tue, Oct 20 2020, 1:56 pm

Hi everyone,
I know I'm not the first person to feel this way about weight loss but aaarrghh! I'm so frustrated. I've struggled with my weight and been aware of being overweight and food since literally 5th grade and it's driving me nuts. I've had success at different times but never gotten thin like I'd always fantasized and given up for whatever reason. At this point, I don't even want to be a skinny minny, I just want to stop obsessing about food and self image but I also want to lose enough to be confident again and not feel gross every time I have to get dressed or go shopping. I'm like a size 16/18 and would be so happy to just lose a couple dress sizes. I don't want to be focused on food and diet nonstop for the rest of my life like so many people I know who's happiness is tied to their current clothing size. No judgement to them, it's just not what I want all my energy to be on. I like what I've read about intuitive eating but I don't really understand if you can expect to lose weight while following the philosophy? I want to sign up for some program or coaching to have someone tell me what to do but don't want to invest in a coach or nutritionist only to find it's not for me...any suggestions? Or just compassion? Confused

If you have a program or coach that you love or have been through the same thing, let me know! I don't want to feel bad for eating...but I also don't want feel out of control. Thanks!

amother

Blush

Tue, Oct 20 2020, 2:04 pm

I've been doing Noom. I found it cost similar to WW (which I'd done in the past). I've also been struggling with weigh all my life.

WW worked well for a time, but I wanted to try something new.

Noom actually focuses on a lot of other things, even though the main obvious mechanism is counting calories and keeping within a limit.

But, it gets you thinking about other things, other aspects of yourself, and does start coaching you into intuitive eating (although tbh I wasn't ready yet to only rely on that, but it was a nice experiment.)

I've lost 25 lbs in about 4 months. I have plateaued for the last 2 of those months but that's all my fault lol. I went on vacation and then Tishrei came...my goal at that point was to do my best and try to not gain. BH I was successful. (I learn in the velt that folks in Nov-Dec on average gain 10-15 lbs....so if I got through Tishrei without gaining, I feel pretty good. I also feel good that I"m not beating myself up and feeling like a failure and just self sabotaging...it's easier to get back into it....Life happened, Tishrei happened, move on.)

I have about 25-35 lbs more I want to lose. My program is about 7 months because I was setting out to lose a lot....so, I think I'll try more of the intuitive stuff later on. I still do it occasionally, but I still need the calorie counting to keep me honest for now.

One downside is you need a tablet or smartphone. There is no web application. That can be a limitation for those who do not own such devices.

amother

Black

Tue, Oct 20 2020, 2:24 pm

OP I could have written your post. I have tried many different approaches to weight loss. Some were better than others.

I have done Keto- it was effective and I lost about 40 pounds in 4 months. However, by the time I lost the weight I felt so deprived and craving all the junk food I cut for that period of time that I just gained it all back.

I have tried weight watchers but just manipulated and justified the points to allow myself to eat whatever I wanted. Did not work for me.

I have tried my own "diet" which was trying to eat healthy and exercise but it wasn't working to help me lose weight.

I have used a program called My Body Tutor. I highly recommend this. Look it up online. I lost lots of weight eating healthy, whole foods (no weird products). Minimal to no exercise. Very holistic program. But it is expensive. It was worthwhile for me at the time. I may go back on it at some point. I stopped because of some major life crises and difficulties that made focusing on weight loss or even any semblance of self care impossible.

Right now I am actually seeing a therapist who specializes in eating disorders and disordered eating. This is has been the most helpful in getting to bottom of my weight difficulties. I have not lost weight while seeing her but I have come to massive realizations about how I eat and why I eat, and all the complicated emotions associated with it. In the past, trying to lose weight has been like smashing my head against a wall over and over again trying to change who I am. Now I feel much more in control of my eating, I am able to make choices about my food and be more understanding and gentle to myself. I used to be SO SELF CRITICAL. Hating myself for being fat. Feeling guilty for eating- too much and too unhealthy. I used to be all over the place with food consumption- eating nothing at all, eating only very "dietetic foods", eating a little nosh, eating tons of nosh. My eating has become more even keel. Calmer. Not consuming my every thought. When I am ready I will attempt to lose weight again but I feel like my approach is going to be so different going forward. Definitely worth looking into.

amother

Royalblue

Tue, Oct 20 2020, 4:00 pm

Try bitesnap.
I did it last year and actually just started again.You put in your height, weight and age and it tells you how many calories they recommend with numbers for daily amounts of protein, fiber, fat, carbs...
Pros: it's free and it works. You can have whatever you want.
Cons: you need to log everything you eat into your phone
I like the fact that if you ate a pc of chocolate(more calories)you just count it towards your allowance and then have to compensate with more vegetables (less calories!)

amother

Wed, Oct 21 2020, 12:33 am

amother [ Black ] wrote:

I feel very seen as I read this. We have a lot in common.