When does it end????? Please help me

Hi everyone!

I'm having a bad day and I need a little help.

I've been dieting now for 3 weeks and trust me its been no easy task especially for a choc-a-holic like myslef. I started at 9st and I want to get back to my "happy" weight of 8st 6lb. To date I've lost 2lb (next weigh in is Friday) but I'm really struggling the last few days, when does it end? I've been dreaming about pasta with a creamy sauce for a week now and I crave chocolate all day every day.

Will I ever be able to eat these again? Must I get down to my target weight before I'm allowed a treat? Whats the correct dieting ethos in these situations?

Advice and success stories are greatly welcomed, please talk me out of my rut!

XXXXX

It's no use simply depriving yourself of all the foods you like to eat in order to lose weight..... Because the second you see 8st 6 on the scale the first thing you'll do is down a chocolate bar and some creamy pasta by way of celebration.  Three weeks later you're 9st 3....

Find a middle ground.  You can make creamy pasta sauces by stirring in a little low-fat fromage frais at the end of cooking, for example..... serve it in a moderate amount, bulk up the rest of the plate with lots of lovely vegetables and 'voila'... you've got a filling, nutritious, low-cal meal but you are enjoying pasta with a creamy sauce.

If you're craving chocolate there's a good chance your blood-sugars and energy levels are low.  Chocolate is not only nice to eat but it's a very 'quick-fix' energy boost for tired or hungry bodies.    Make sure that you're getting the right amount of calories for your size, age and level of activity.  Too little and you're setting yourself up for cravings.   BTW... a small square of intensely flavoured dark chocolate can sometimes satisfy a big craving.

Be flexible, keep treats in the mix now, when you're losing weight, rather than waiting until you're at your target.  Enjoy your healthy lifestyle and then you'll be able to keep going past your target weight and on into maintaining it.

I don't know where you are from but I have found a hot chocolate from Skinny Cow that only has 37 calories per mug :)

Now..... I haven't tried it yet, being used to Green and Black's but I am hoping it will be nice enough to deal with the choccy cravings.

i agree options hot choc and skinny cow are a chocoholic dieters friends.

But to answer your original question:  It DOESN'T end.  Not really.  You will be able to have some of your old favorites every once in awhile, but they should be special treats, not every day occurrences.  You find delicious substitutes for some of them that you will make willingly.  You keep trying new things and maybe some of them will become new favorites, and new healthier ones.  This shouldn't be a diet, not if you really want to stay at a new lower weight.  It has to be a lifestyle change, or any changes you manage will be very fleeting, and what is the point of that?

It is all about choices.  It is all about how badly you want to get back to your "happy" weight. 

Best wishes on achieving your goal.

Every time I have gone "on a diet" to lose weight and given up all my favorite foods, I have lost weight (not as much as I needed to), gotten bored/tired of being "good"  all the time, started eating "normally" and gained the weight back, usually with interest.  Although at the time, it seemed like a waste, I now realize that this helped me get to the point I am at now by making me realize what doesn't work for me.

Now, I am trying to make an new "normal" for me that includes more movement, smaller portions, fewer "treats" (but not "no treats").  Once I am at goal, nothing will really change except that I may be able to add in a few more treats, but I know that it will be sustainable for me, because I am finding that I am perfectly happy right now.  I don't feel deprived, I am not obsessed with perfection, and I am able to eat a few "treats" without going overboard.  Good luck finding your path to success!

I know that it was a lot easier to lose when I was 'overweight' and now it's really tough going, in fact 2lbs in three weeks is really good for a person already at a healthy weight. I don't know how tall you are but with that goal I'd guess you must be my height or shorter (5'4''). 

The only thing I can suggest is be happy with a loss of 0.5lbs a week and then there is a little room for a treat. And yes you will be able to eat those things again, but only as much as you can eat them now.

Small people have to eat less than bigger people or get bigger. If you had pasta with a creamy sauce every day you'd put all the weight you lose back on very quickly if you have it one night when you ate sensibly all week you'll stay thin. Smaller, shorter people can find the difference between losing and gaining to be a 1 or 2 hundred calories every day..... but it's the every day bit that's important.

The other thing you could do is only have your 'cheat foods' once you have created a deficit via exercise of an equal value, so go for a good run get half a chocolate bar. Knowing the work that went into earning it might put you off actually eating it though!

Even at the low end of the calorie equation (1200 calories) I have found room for an occassional treat.  If I am feeling guilt food deprived, I will budget for one of those 100 calorie packs of oreos or nutter butter granola bars and Special K makes a nice chocolate crunchy bar.  Also, a cup of hot cocoa is 80 calories, which can be folded into a (mostly) healthy diet.

I haven't tackled the creamy stuff, but it could be that you are feeling low in oils.  I find that cooking in even a small amount of olive oil keeps me from craving oily foods too much.

Also, I budget for a nice (but healthy) dinner out with my son once a week.  Last Sunday I went and had a petite steak and twelve grilled shrimp for dinner.  I was stuffed and felt like I had sinned and gotten away with it by the end of dinner and I still only went about 5 calories over my target (I allow myself to go all the way to maintenance on Sundays because Sunday with my son is a tradition I am not willing to give up).

In order for this to work, you have to figure out what you can live with.  Getting too harsh on the diet leads to bingeing and remorse.

When does it end?

Only when they slam the casket shut. Weight control is forever.

We all fall into a rut, you just can't give in.  I crave chocolate everyday too.  Just try and find healthier alternatives.  I find that Emerald's Cocoa Almonds and Kellogg's Chocolate Chip Fiber bars satisfies my chocolate craving.  I still eat candy bars, but I eat 2 miniature ones instead of a whole regular size one.   You can eat everything that you love but just smaller portions.   I eat pasta, buffalo chicken, and enchiladas thanks to recipes I have found from Cook yourself thin.  You should check it out.

I found that after a few months my sweet tooth got much less "sweet".  Now fruit tastes like dessert, and candy makes me nauseous and give me a stomach ache.  I think the key is to cut out sugars, and even cut down on artificial sweetener.

But in the  meatime try this.  After dinner have one square of very dark chocolate like Intense Dark - Twilight Delight 72% Cacao.  It's only around 70 calories, nice and crunchy, and full of chocolate flavor.  Plus dark chocolate is loaded with antioxidants!