Posts by heyale

Dieting is least of all about food. No, really. Cronic dieters (like myself) are obsessed with food, so we become obsessed with counting and weighing and all the nonsense that goes into dieting.

Humans are the only animals that can eat ourselves in the grave. Other animals over eat when they are put in to extremely stressful situations, and with our high tech brains, we can simulate a high stress situation. This makes us eat!

I read this all in an article and realized that every time I had a "bad diet day" was after I felt a like it wasn't working, looked a little bloated (etc) and told myself "what's the point?" I was creating high stress situations for myself by putting so much pressure on myself.

Try this:

Practice the "So Far" Technique

1. S is for Stop.

Whenever you're anxious, when you hate your thighs and you've just eaten dinner for four and your canary is sick and the obvious next step is to inhale a pie—freeze. Stop doing anything. If you're with other people, shout "Nature break!" and head to the bathroom. No one will ask why.

2. O is for Open.

The physiology of your fight-or-flight response is very tight: tight focus of the eyes, tightening of the muscles, short, tight breaths. Once you're alone and still, toggle over to your R & R nervous system by opening up. Widen your visual field by softening your eyes. Open your muscles by stretching. Open your lungs with deep breaths. Open your mouth in a luxurious yawn (no one yawns while fighting or fleeing).

3. F is for Forgive.

This is the most important step. Since you can't create a relaxation response while attacking and being attacked, you must forgive yourself, and your body, for all supposed imperfections. It helps to make lists of things you've done right (raising a healthy cat, posting on Facebook, not stealing many cars...) and ways your body has served you (letting you sing, laugh, hug, read...). Please, make such lists. Make them very long. You'll eventually reach self-forgiveness—however grudgingly—and the "calm observer" part of your brain will then be online.

4. A is for Accept.

If you've gotten to the point where you're able to forgive yourself, it's time to drop all resistance to things as they are right now. You don't have to love or sustain what's happening, you simply have to allow it to be as it is. You can live with that. Want proof? You are living with it. Breathe that in.

5. R is for Renew.

From a place of stillness, openness, forgiveness, and acceptance, you can renew your commitment to any eating plan you like. Go ahead, stay on the Key lime enema program—though I doubt you'll want to. Such diets are unnatural, like throwing that porpoise through a hoop. A relaxed porpoise often jumps for pure joy. A relaxed human eats healthy foods in healthy portions, and stays active because it's more fun than lethargy. The result? Healthy weight, with little effort. It's that simple. Bottom line: It's all mental! And "I think I can" really does work!

I read in Self magazine this weekend that for every pound you lose during a workout (wish is all sweat/water) you should drink 3 cups of water to make up for it. So yes, it's all water and make sure you get that water back!

Thanks for the tofu tips! My roommates are NOT vegetarians, but they said if they knew how to cook tofu they would, so let's see if they live up to that!

I'm sure egg whites will work just fine. They aren't exactly like pan-cooked scrambled eggs, but they'll be just as good for what you have to work with :) I'm glad I could help!

ok, I'll go ahead and admit right away that I don't have any ideas.

BUT... I was wondering how you cook your tofu!!! I'm a vegetarian, and a I always rely on pre-made meat substitutes or canned beans, etc and never really broke into the tofu thing. I've been meaning to, but I just don't know how to cook it (and I've been a veggie for over a year! shame shame). If you could let me in on what you do with it that would be awesome.

Oh, and I guess I do have one idea. My sisters and I used to make scrambled eggs in the microwave when we were kids. You prepare it the same way (eggs and a little milk mixed up in a micro safe bowl) and just microwave for a few minutes, stopping to stir them half way though. Add a little salsa, tomatoes, cheese, spinach, or whatever and you have a great meal for any time of day!

I had that same problem, but maybe not as drastically as you seem to. I lost my weight first in my butt (one of my prized features if I do say so myself), then in my breasts, and needless to say I was very concerned! I've always been proportional, even at my heaviest (200 lbs). 

The more I dropped the more evenly it came off and underneath it all, I was still the same shape. I think there will always be awkward stages, but if you keep losing you'll still have the same figure/proportions you always did, just smaller. If you tend to be top heavy and carry your weight mostly in your breasts and stomach, (or vice versa), no matter how you lose you can't change your natural shape.

And, as my jazzercise instructor once told me, you can't target weight loss. Even she had a little belly "pooch" when he job was doing workout routines 3x a day! It's just the way she is shaped. When you lose fat you lose it where ever you got it, and there's no way to hang onto the fat you like (unfortunately).

So don't despair. If you keep losing, you stomach has to come off some too, and you'll have the same proportions you always had, just healthier (and sexier!).

So... when something bad happens to other people in the world, God is condemming them for being evil. But when their church is set on fire (hell reference anyone???) it's just a hate crime...

Looks like someone can't take a divine hint!

I think the thing to remember is that pounds on the scale doesn't always mean pounds of fat lost (it could be some water weight, etc). I noticed comparetively early it seems. After only loosing 5 pounds, I saw a difference (very small of course) because I tend to lose weight in my midsection first (lucky me you say... you should take a look at my thighs! I'll be damned if I'm caught dead in shorts).

Now that I've been losing for a while now, I seem to notice in sudden bursts. I wake up one day and look at my self in the mirror and think "have I always been this skinny?!", it's a great feeling. But eventually I get used to my new weight and don't feel accomplished anymore. However, that's just more motivation to keep pushing to the next time I feel "suddenly" skinnier!

I definitely eat my fill of natural protein, but I wanted that extra "boost" that a supplement could give me. Putting a little in my cereal in the morning is a great idea (because there isn't much protein in Honey nut Cheerios!).

Thanks for your help and suggestions :)

• Gender- Female
• Age- 20
• Height- 5'8"
• Weight- 170lbs (down from 200!!!)
• Goal- 145 by graduation May 2010

Freshman year I started building a healthier me, and drop 30lbs flying solo. I want to keep on that track and healthfully lose weight. When I graduate, I want to hit the ground running! And for me, the first step is a healthy mind and body. I'm also a vegetarian, if that matters :)

haha, this made me smile! :)

I've lost 100 sticks of butter so far, and I'm looking to lose 100 more!

My grandma used to say the food you eat today won't show up on the scale for at least two weeks. I'm not sure how true that is, but one day of a large pizza and a couple donuts won't kill your diet. I agree with the others, probably no more than 0.5 lbs of actual fat.

I once weighed myself 3 times in 20 minutes and got 3 different weights. The first time with clothes on pre-bathroom break was a whole 4LBS greater than the last time, naked post-bathroom break. You should weigh yourself once a week and try to be as regular about it as possible, same time of day, same clothes (or naked), after going to the bathroom, everything the same.  My mom goes to Weight Watchers and they weigh you in once a week and she makes sure she's wearing the same clothes and she certainly makes sure that she (excuse my potty mouth) poops before she goes!

Besides, healthy weight loss is 1-2 lbs per week. Weighing yourself everday won't speed the process anymore. For me (because I used to do it too) it was just discouraging.