Help Getting Started!!!!

Hello.

I am having a problem getting started.  Everyday, I have all intentions of eating healthy and then after dinner I just eat and eat and decide to start again the next day.  At that point, I just eat everything that I want to because I figure that it won't hurt anything because I am "starting tomorrow".  I eat a lot of sweets and some salty foods. 

I am only 4'11" and I weigh about 180 pounds.  I also just turned 40.  I really need to get healthy and lose weight, but I just can't seem to get started.  I have been under a lot of stress.  My dad had lung cancer for 2 years and he died on June 29, 2009.  He always took great care of himself and never smoked and always ate right.  He was only 62 years old. 

Does anybody have any ideas on how to get started?  It is very important to me to be healthy for my son and husband, but I just can't get started!

Thank you!

Kim

I hear ya! Sorry, I don't have much advice for you, but just wanted to let you know that you are not the only one out there feeling that way! I am too!

I am 30, 5' tall, weigh 150 pounds and was recently diagnosed wtih borderline diabetes. I don't need any medication for it presently. But to stay off medication and to not let my blood sugar get worse, I have no choice but to lose weight. The doc told me I would be surprised as to how every health related problem with that would fall away..

What I have tried to do to  curb my candy addiction was eat a piece of dark chocolate. Initially, I  didn't like it too much but now, that is the only thing I can eat. And surprisingly, one or the most two pieces of good quality dark chocolate satisfies! Unlike earlier, when I could down a whole Hershey's bar without feeling a thing. Now that is just too sweet for me! I do enjoy the occassional dessert, but I eat just a little now and eat it real slow.... Portion control really helps!

First of all, very sorry to hear about your father.  I'm sure that he would be proud of your efforts.

Yup, it's hard.  I found that I never could get started by dieting, so I started with exercise instead.  Once I remembered how hard it is to burn calories, and as I started to lose weight through exercise, I gradually improved my eating.  Popcorn is my friend after dinner.  Every night I have a bag - I try to eat it as slowly as possible to make it last.

Since I have a sweet tooth the other thing that I have very recenlty latched onto is caramel-covered rice cakes.  They're only 50 calories each, so even if I 'pig-out' and over indulge, I've still only consumed about 200 calories.

You might also want to try some non-food related rewards to help you get started.  For example, set aside a money jar that you put $5.00 in each day that you eat healthy.  It can go towards new clothes, shoes, purse...  See if you can get your husband to match you with a contribution too so you can celebrate your success together. 

My husband has been my cheering section.  He now only brings treats into the house that I greatly dislike (i.e. BBQ chips) and will definitely not eat.  If your husband is supportive, think about how he can help you.  I now tell mine when I'm feeling really hungry or wanting to eat for emotional reasons, and he helps to distract me or will fix me a healthy, appealing-looking snack.

Good luck to you!

I can really identify with your "pig out tonight and start tomorrow" dillemma. I'm a horrible procrastinator.

Some ideas I had for you were to get rid of/stop buying the stuff you can't stop eating. For salty snacks, get the  lighter microwave popcorn or pretzels. For sweet, try apples with fat free caramel dip. (They are a bit messy and hard to eat while doing other things, so you tend to eat it and then stop so you can get on the computer or fold laundry, etc.) If you have to buy food for others in the household, tell them that your snacks are "hands off!"

Another idea is to buy the Hungry Girl 200 under 200 cookbook. I just got it a few weeks ago and have already made several recipes that are really great. They have a fluffy cinammon fruit dip that is wonderful.

I'm a diet Coke fiend. I find that if I drink more water during the day, by the time I finally get a cold diet Coke with Lime, it's a real treat and a great substitute for whatever other kind of snack I might have eaten.

Here's the best tip I can offer for the late night snacking: GET BUSY OR GO TO BED. I am very susceptible to snacking at night so if I'm not busy enough to keep my mind off of what's in the fridge, I'll just go to bed.

And just log your food into this site. Even if you go a little over on one day, start that fresh slate the next day and log your food again.  Maybe each day that calories consumed will go down.

I wish you luck! This site is a great motivator.