The "Get back on track for good" group

 I'm sure I am not the only one in this situation. I had been maintaing for only a week or so before the holidays and have fallen off the wagon ever since, gaining 3.5 pounds back (i only lost ten, so that's almost half!) So who wants to join me in shedding the excess pounds and getting back down to our maintenance weights (or just back on track to weight loss in general, doesn't have to be maintenance)?! We'll have weekly weigh-ins, but also any time anyone has even the smallest success in regaining control, post it here!

Maintenance weight: 100 lb.

Current weight: 103.5

Goal weight: 100

*small success: they didn't have the low-calorie whole grain cereal at the dining hall this morning, but instead of saying "what the heck" and eating the high-calorie sugary cereal, I grabbed enough fruit to equal the amount of calories in the healthy cereal. :)

1. Right now I am at 125 and the reason I said 117-120 is because it's a range - I'm not aiming for a number on a scale I just happen to know that the size that I am most comfortable falls somewhere along that range.

2. I don't work out 6-7 times a day, I work out 4-5 days a week and only rarely do I work out 2 times a day and that's only when I have the time, the motivation and when I mix cardio with strength training.

3. I've been 123 my whole life (without exercising) up until recently when I started exercising, lost to 116 and then gained to 128, now I've made it down to 125 and I'm aiming for a reasonable middle range around 120 where I can get back into my clothes while still being reasonable.

4. I don't think that what I'm aiming for is unreasonable. I would like to maintain a lifestyle where I exercise. Right now it's for vanity reasons but in the future it will be for health reasons. And I would like to eat only when I'm hungry for the rest of my life.

alanah, as long as you are being healthy, you do whatever you want. my goal weight is at the low end of a healthy bmi too. and i work out 6x per week so if you're overdoing it, i am too. my doctor will tell me if i'm being unhealthy and that's who i'll listen to.

Thanks Alyssa, I agree. I don't feel deprived, I don't feel lightheaded, I don't feel hungry. I feel healthy and full of energy and happy.

:) Have a great weekend everyone!

yeah new person....no one said they were working out 6-7 times a day.... i said i work out 6-7 DAYS PER WEEK... and yeah that is reasonable. ive been an athlete all my life and don't plan on stopping anytime sooon...and you girls are doing good, we just do need to make sure its on a healthy level, not too low. but we all know that

anyways, alyssa and alanah- I pray you do better than i did today!! i burned 700 calories this morning ... and then tonight my mom is a glorious cook and i ate way too much... like my stomach is sooo full and i am going to once again relax, and know that i HAVE been doing great, ive been fitting in all my jeans (hope i didnt jinx that!!!) and feeel great and muscular doing my new routine this week. I am done now with this pattern and am tired of 2 steps forward an 1 step back. sunday i am doing a 12 mile run so im pretty sure whatever i over ate today will go away lol. but still im sad because i really really made a commitment to myself. I will improve. one day at a time... ok wish you guys all the best!

Hey guys!

Wow, you all work out several times a week, well done!

I did body pump today for the first time in a month… I have done it for several years and swear by it so it felt GREAT to get into it again.

As well as walking most days, body pump once a week, and Pilate’s a few times a week, I also plan to add in one strength training session with weights.

Hah, I have the knowledge as a personal trainer to know what I should be doing, but knowing what to do does not mean it is always easy to do it!

Today I ate:

An apple

Large handful of brazil nuts and about 50 grams dried cherries

A few dates before PUMP.

Some raspberries after PUMP.

Tuna salad for late lunch

Some roasted orange sweet potato drizzled with virgin olive oil

Prawn salad for dinner

I USUALLY try and have a more normal breakfast, I like eating 4 times a day because it is less effort and I can allow myself to get nice and hungry before my meals, but there are days where I just snack all day.

I tend to eat about 1800 calories a day but eat more or less ( 1750 would be my minimum on a totally sedentary day!)

Writing down what I achieve physically each day helps to keep me motivated because over time I can look back and the more days I am healthy, the more I will want to keep it going!

One thing I need to start to improve is : TO START STRETCHING AGAIN EVERY DAY!

I used to stretch EVERY DAY, and I can do the splits on one leg, so I do not want to lose my flexibility!

yea, uhuh, i said 6-7/wk but whatever.  i dont care what u do, ull do what u want.  i only suggested that ud do ok eating more too but again, it makes no diff to me.

be well

Well, no one has been on to track their awesome progress SO I will start!

Today I ate all over the place but when I do that, I make sure I balance my carbohydrates fats and proteins out so I have a balanced day that will release energy when I need it;

Pre breakfast midnight snack (SO BAD I know!)

LARGE apple and some organic sugar free dark chocolate (100% raw, not cooked of heated, only has raw cocoa powder and cocoa butter plus goji berries and natural flavor BEST CHOCOLATE EVER YUM.)

About 59 grams of carbohydrates, 16 grams fat, 356 calories

Breakfast

Tub of sugar free goats milk yoghurt (I don’t need to go low fat dairy because it is the total daily grams of fat that count, the amount in individual meals does not matter if the daily total is in your range)

12 grams carbohydrates, 7 grams fat, about 200 calories

Lunch

Salmon salad

A little more chocolate

About 60 grams protein, 18 grams fat, 10 grams carbohydrates, about 450 calories

Snack

Roasted sweet potato (orange color) cut into sliced and spread with avocado

About 60 grams carbohydrates, 14 grams fat, 385 calories

Dinner

Piece of grilled fish with seasoning.

About 60 grams protein, about 15 grams of carbohydrates from all that seasoning I imagine!, 350 calories (Usually try to stick to under 10 grams carbohydrates at night though)

SO, even when I wake up early and eat before breakfast, I DO NOT let it turn into a binge where I think “ I am so disappointed in myself for not waiting until breakfast so I may as well seek more comfort in the taste of more chocolate”

Even when I do things that I would not ideally do, such as eating at night or early morning, I still manage to balance my calories fats, protein, and carbohydrates through out the day.

Fortunately for me, I have worked hard and can now naturally balance out my day without thinking about it - I just know how much of each carbohydrate protein and fats are a good amount to have through out the day.

It was Sunday so I had a lazy day, although went for a one hour walk with friends in the evening and did a a minute or two of abdominal work - threw in a few crunches and Pilate’s moves before lunch!

I feel GOOD that I can still be healthy DESPITE some bad decisions, such as eating at night before breakfast.

My friends said my skin looks great and that I look the best they have ever seen, so I AM SO HAPPY that I have managed to deal with my insomnia (I am recovering from it and it caused weird eating habits)

I still automatically wake up early and want a snack, because I got into that pattern for so long (it has nothing to do with not eating enough - it is a habit that formed)

I usually just have a piece of fruit if I HAVE to have something - in the past I would be so disappointed that I had blown it, and go on to eat more (not binge) but I would let myself sit and eat more then I needed to feel better about not being able to get through the night without my night eating syndrome.

SO I hope to keep improving from the last few bad months, and feel much better already!

I want to GET THROUGH UNTIL BREAKFAST at about 6.30 earliest. I HAVE NOT DONE THIS IN A LONG TIME!  always have some fruit at about 4 - 4.30 am first. I CAN DO THIS.

well i wish i had progress to report. i am really upset right now. i did amazing all week, felt all my clothes starting to feel better, saw my goal in sight and then i came home and ruined it. 

Yesterday I had my friends birthday thing (the reason I came home) so i was with all my friends I hadnt seen in so long, and we went wine tasting, i didnt drink much, but i ate, and ate, and ate. pasta salad, chips, brownies, cookies, cake, fruit, veggies. And friday night i had that semi-binge already. i was down to 122 and now the cale says 127 this morning, and my pants already felt tight again last night. HOw can my body be THAT sensitive? i just dont get it. i came home and knew i wanted to do well and i know how badly i want to lose weight but then its like i just look for an excuse to eat. i dont know what to do anymore. im sick of counting calories and sick of thinking about this to the point of going crazy. i know i work out a lot, i know i probably didnt gain any (real)weight. but it doesnt make me feel any better to know that i let myself down and that i have now postponed my goal that much further. 

i hope you guys feel better than me. i need to figure out what to do. 

Hey julie, I know how you. I'm sick and tired of thinking about this crap too. Sometimes I envy my friends who don't know how many calories are in a tablespoon of jam or a cup of rice...

I'm sick again and it's put me in a really bad mood. I HATE not having the energy I usually have, it drives me crazy. All I want to do is workout and focus on my weight loss but instead all I'm able to do is rest and it's infuriating. I did pretty well being home this weekend, watched what I ate, I was reasonable (I splurged on chocolate this afternoon though) but all in all it was a successful weekend. I know I'll continue with how I've been doing for here on out.

Julie, just get back to what you were doing. You know it felt too good, it feels too good when you fit into those pants or see yourself in a swimsuit! Don't let it go, and don't use it as an excuse to just eat your heart out! It's not worth it!

I'm desperately trying to stay away from food right now even though the weather here and the fact that I'm sick just makes me want to eat everything comforting, thankfully I don't have anything like that in my house!

thanks alanah, im really trying. today while i was driving back i really was in a state of self-hate. not good. i see pics and just think I STILL look fat. how and i know last week was so great, and i am just so mad at myself for not doing well at home because i am clearly an emotional eater and realize when im frustrated, because of food, i eat! stupid cycle and i need to focus on breaking it.

im glad you did well at home! luckily i did work out a lot. today i didnt have time for my usual hour at the gym so i did Jillian Michael's 30 day-shred work out video. pretty good workout for 20 min! so yeah. 

anyways, i am still feeling depressed and let down with myself, but im trying to focus on school and my 1/2 marathon and im hoping that the rest of my weight will just fall off while im not being overly obsessed about it. 

I have that Jillian Michaels dvd, I love it! I'm trying to convince myself to spend the money on her two new dvds!

Well so let me give you my update. I'm sick, again. Which is frustrating and now I'm on antibiotics and cough suppressant and it's a drag. This weekend and yesterday I ate at around maintenance but I figure that I had been eating such low cals last week for working out so much that I kind of "tricked" my body into believing that it wasn't starving so it could rev my metabolism back up? Today I'm back to eating reasonably and working out moderately. I was able to do a slow walk on the treadmill for over an hour and I just finished a 20 minute lower body workout off of my Workout DVD (the Bravo tv show one).

Anyway... all in all it's been okay. The weather has been dreary and I've been not sleeping too well and feeling discouraged but... I was able to wear shorts tomorrow. And on my calendar I have it written "36 days until your 21st birthday - remember your goal!" and I see it everyday and it actually really helps!

:)

Alanah,

That's a great idea about the "countdown" on your calender. I'm gonna try it, keep it in my school binder lol.

I did want to point out something thou... I know you've heard this before b/c I've heard it A TON... Are you sure you are getting enough calories?

You may be pushing your body too hard on too little calories and that could be why you're getting sick so much??? If you don't want to eat alot, you should definitely try taking a multi vitamin or two? Just make sure you are taking care of yourself.

:-)

Hahahah so I ate an entire 175g jar of raw chocolate/coconut spread over the last 24 hours (about 800 calories, over 70g of fat which is the amount of fat I usually eat in one day)

I didn’t binge, I just let myself have it; it is suddenly VERY cold in Tasmania, Australia, and my body tends to suddenly crave food for comfort. I just let myself eat too much.  I have no desire to do it again,  I was just one of thoese things where I just felt like doing it, so I did it...which is why I don't have the urge to do it again hah.

I am proud that I was still able to balance my over all day out, 40% fat/30% protein/40% carbohydrates

I have a 40/30/30 ratio any way so I do not mind if fat is the 40% once in a while!

Other times I am about 34/34/34 ratio, I like to mix things up so my body does get too familiar!

So, I just look as days when I eat too much of something as something “ different” for my body which is actually good! Haha…

Every one is saying I look so healthy lately, I have been 104 - 110 for years and this year I decided to gain a little, just to 114.

I was actually sick of being too “ perfect”, I had no body fat and my body was as thin as a celebrities, yet I still had the same problems in my life and I was not any happier so I rebelled against the fact that a THINNER body did NOT make me happier!

SO YAY I feel great today, that I was able to sit down, eat too much chocolate spread, and STILL balance the over all 48 hours and I go to body pump today too.

How do YOU GUYS cope when YOU eat too much of something?

Personaltrainer, I had no idea you lived in Australia! I'm in Brisbane so can't really say that our cold snap would rival yours in Tasmania though... but it has been getting rather chilly at night. Yay for doonas!

When I eat too much I... don't cope very well. The optimist in me says "well, it's all water under the bridge. All you can do now is go for a big power walk and continue on with your diet as though it never happened." The pessimist: "you're a stupid fat idiot and you will never get to your goal weight." It usually depends on what I ate too much of and where I am (ie. with friends or raiding the fridge by myself at home) as to how I eventually react.

I upped my calories today. I'm 5'1", 121lbs and wanting to get down to 105ish. I've been eating 1200calories but don't think that's healthy for me to continue. It's scary, but I'm going to 1300, and maybe 1400cals eventually. I aim for at least 6hrs exercise per week, if not more. Does this sound like a reasonable amount to be eating? (My diet is pretty balanced. Plenty of wholegrains, fruit, veg, protein in the form of eggs, lowfat dairy, beans and nuts as I am a veggo).

Anyway, I am so proud of myself. Since starting my diet on 12 April I have not binged ONCE. I think this is a major sign that a) I have had enough with upsetting myself via massive binges, and b) I am finally eating a diet that doesn't leave me starving and deprived. Before joining CC I was dieting at 800cals a day, plus a lot of exercise. I would lose my control every week or so. Not good, very unhealthy and I felt disgusting. Now I feel great. I know I'm losing weight slower than I hoped to but I actually enjoy eating now and who knows, maybe one day eating won't be such a scary thing for me.

Have a great week everyone!

Wow, 12 days with out binging, WELL DONE!

105 lbs is very slim, so don’t get too carried away! Be careful!

Rather then aiming for a number, it helped me more to aim to tone my body and decrease the fat mass and increase my muscle mass as much as possible

Basically, instead of a number, I turned all the focus on getting my body to LOOK its best; aiming for a specific number tends to put more emphasis on a number, rather then the important physical reasons you should be aiming to achieve, such as the most toned, fit, attractive, and healthy body; aiming for a number never allowed me to want anything more then a number.

1200 calories CAN be enough for a very small person 5 ‘ 1 or shorter if you are COMPELETELY sedentary, but with the exercise you do, it is almost certainly slowing your metabolism by making it conserve energy and store fat more efficiently - give it a little more so it will work faster and not think it has to hold on to fat/calories! It works, even if you gain a lbs initially!

The thing with binge eating, is that I have learnt to just let myself eat too much and accept it, I knew I was eating too much chocolate spread but I did not let it turn into a binge, I just ate too much of it and left it at that. I did not write off the whole day, and I made sure I did not have so much chocolate spread/calories that I could exceed maintenance, so I would still feel okay about eating normally for the day

Learning to let your self eat too much occasionally AND NOT turning it into a binge is THE HARDEST THING to learn to do; it does not always feel great to eat too much, but it sure feels liberating to stop caring, because you can trust yourself that it will be a one off thing.

Basically, if you let yourself have an off meal/too much of something if you just feel like it, it is not likely you will want to do it again any time soon, as you have just let yourself do it.

Hey guys so here's the thing:

1. Andrea, I totally would agree with you if I didn't know how to trace this sickness of mine. For some reason when I drink a lot, combined with a lack of sleep, I get sick. About 3 weeks ago that happened to me and it hit me hard. I thought I had recovered and had a second weekend of drinking and little sleep and then I fell ill again. Now I'm on meds and trying to rest myself (haven't done any real exercise in about 5 days, I'm going crazy!)

2. I haven't gained or lost a single pound in a week, I'm still at 125.6 (I'm 5'4") and I have to say that I am... not disappointed? I mean. I ate at maintenance from about Friday-Monday and I didn't exercise so I'm glad to not have gained. Obviously that week I can't have back and I'm one week closer to Barcelona and to my birthday so I need to get better so I can get back to exercising hardcore!

3. I completely agree with personaltrainer. I'm weighing myself right now because I'm aiming to drop quite a few pounds, the kind that will be noticeable on the scale (from about 128-130 to about 120) but when I get into the lower 120s I know that the number on the scale will be irrelevant because I'd rather have a few more pounds in muscle than weight a little less but have more fat. It's about how I fit into my clothes, how I look in the mirror, how I feel about myself. Right now I'm feeling like I can breathe a huge sigh of relief. I finally fit into my shorts this weekend. Not the way I'd like to, and certainly not the way I was last semester when I was 116 but they fit. So now it's just a question of staying on track and exercise exercise exercise (when I get better, of course).

I have to say... I'm excited to finally be maintaining my social life, be going home, going to work and being able to control myself and enjoy myself while being reasonable and not throwing caution to the wind. I've realized that I need to be aware of what I'm eating at all times because it's SO easy to just consume 100s of calories.

Keep up the good work guys. Summer is coming (even though it's been really really rainy here lately, I want the sun! I want to go tanning!) and I bought a new bathing suit this weekend and I can't wait to get back to the gym and into it!

when i eat too much (like last weekend) i cope 2 ways too... i either hate myself, or if it wasnt too bad then i just pick up and keep going and exercise a little extra. i have decided not to weigh myself more then 2-3 x's per week. especially this week because i overate so much last weekend and because of TOM! so the scale has less meaning for me right now. I feel better after exercising again and eating well. 

alanah, my goal is to be as consistent as you in all situations. i play head games with myself and im done with it! im a normal freakin human being and can do it and want to get out of these 120s. im on a 30-day count down to memorial day and i WILL feel and look beautiful by then.. i hope. im staying between 1200-1500 cals a day and working my ass off in the gym to decrease body Fat and increase muscle. and running of course because my 1/2 marathon is soon!!! ok hope everyone has a good day

Hey guys, everyone's been gone for a while so I hope we're all doing okay and not going too insane from the end of the school year (and here's to hoping no one has the swine flu :P)

I'm pretty frustrated... Yesterday and today I've just felt really fat, I know it's all in my head and that I haven't actually gained anything but my inability to work out and my lack of progress over the past week is just really annoying. I worked out today for the first time in a week and it was tough - don't know if it's because it's been a week, because of the meds I've been taking, because I'm still sick, because I haven't been sleeping well - or a combination of all those things. I'm really watching what I eat... maybe now as an experiment I'll up my calories to 1300-1400 instead of trying to stay under 1300. I can't justify to myself how eating more will help but... I guess I have nothing to lose and the next week, if I really focus on working out, I can see if eating a little more will help.

The girl sitting next to me who is quite big just ate a twix. How do some people just not care? I don't get it.

Breakfast was yogurt with berries and two slices of whole wheat toast (50 calories each) with PB

Lunch will be a nice big salad with all those good veggies and hard boiled eggs along with pita bread and hummus.

I just took a step class and tonight I'm going to take a strength training class. Tomorrow is Friday (!!!) and I'm going to try and get some cardio in before enjoying a night out with the girls of dinner, X-Men and MODERATE drinking!

alanah, good plan! im sorry to hear you're still sick.. my allergies are CRAZYY sneezing and itchy eyes all the time. i am feeling better after being back on track, and am printing out a calender to hang and keep me on track for when i go home. i have realized i need to stop being "crazy" seriously. i am in control on my mind, and if something else is bothering me i should not eat. and if im so hungry when i go home every few weeks then i need to eat more while im at school, because obviously something is triggering it (besides frustration). does this sound ok to you guys? lemme know. feeling good about my workouts and training. running feels great and i can see an improvement. i know my weight will go down with consistency!!! 

Hey Julie, whatever it takes for you to not binge and feel like you're going crazy at home is a good idea! Maybe eat at maintenance levels those days and keep it in check? I'm not sure what works for you... I used to go home and it used to be an eating fest, not binging but rather just eating a lot at each meal. Now I watch what I eat and eat at maintenance levels. It takes a lot of strength since my family doesn't hardly know what a calorie is, they just eat in moderation naturally.

I'm getting super frustrated at my slow progress but I'm also an extremely impatient person so I'm trying to remind myself that it took me 3 months, 1 lb a week to gain these 12 lbs and it's going to take probably 3 months, 1 lb a week to lose these 12 lbs! So I'm taking a deep breath... It's been almost a month (3 weeks I think?) and I've lost 3 lbs, I think (I think I started at 128 but at one point my scale said 130 but I was in denial and told myself it must be broken so I can't remember when that was :/ lol).

Anyway the point is.... patience is a virtue. And time is going by fast, it's like I said. I take one day at a time, making good choices and reach that balance of being reasonable (yesterday I shared a cookie with a friend after dinner and it was both nerve racking and exhilirating to be able to do that). And as each day goes by all of a sudden a month has gone by!

I can't believe tomorrow is May! 19 days until Barcelona and 37 days until my birthday.

My goal for the next month: eat reasonably and get my butt to the gym as much as possible. Be patient, be reasonable and understand that it all will take time.

On my birthday I hope to have lost 2-3 more lbs at least, fitting into my clothes that much better, and continuing to live healthily not only for diet purposes but because it makes me feel good, makes me happy and is good for me!