Feeling down and thinking of quitting :(

[bex]

Hi everyone,

I'm sorry to be posting something negative on this forum but I've been feeling down for a few days now and I need you all to help me feel positive!!

I'm only on day 13 of LL but I can't help thinking about food - literally ALL day long. I really don't know how I'm going to stick to this; it seems like there's so long to go with it all. Plus, I lost 9 and a half pounds last week which of course is amazing, but this week I've only lost 1 pound and it's weigh in tomorrow. I have no idea why this is either as I honestly haven't cheated at all. I keep thinking to myself that if I stuck to something like Weight Watchers I could lose the 3 stone in more or less the same amount of time and not have to go through such a major change in my daily eating habits/social life as I have done on LL for the past couple of weeks - the only thing is I've never stuck to anything like that before!!

Sorry to rant guys - I'm feeling pretty hopeless at the moment, and only in week 2! What a failure! Any positive thoughts will be greatly appreciated.

Bex

[Heaven can wait]

Hi Bex,
Poor you it can be really really hard in the first few weeks, with food dominating everything and every waking minute and even in your dreams. But believe me it will pass, you have not yet got the skills or statedgies to deal with what is essentially a withdrawal form the comfort that you gained from food. If you are anything like me, food was what you turned to when you felt upset, or miserable,like an old friend and that old friend is not there anymore so you have to learn to find somthing else to make you feel better.
I have just completed my 100 days , and belive me when I tell you it is SO WORTH IT! so just have a nice bath with lots of smellies in read a book or stay on here and click on insporation on the blue batr at the top of the page where you will see the most fantastic photos to inspire you to keep it going.
Please dont give up , you have done really well and puit your scales away I nearly had a nervous breakdown jumping on and off and getting really low like you hen I thought I hadnt lost. You will have a wonderfull weight loss this week it may only show on the last day , thats what mine did, and your counsellors scales will be different to yours so stop getting on yours it will make you feel like this!
You are goining to be a gorgeous babe really soon so keep strong hun , we are all rooting for you.

[Eileen]

hang in there it does get easier, i was fed up my first 2 weeks but stuck with it im so glad now.Keep treating yourself.Good luck.

[Cherry Plum]

Please don't give up, you will regret it.
Just persevere & it will get so much easier.
We have all found this diet really difficult at times, but also it can be very easy, we have all had bad days & good days. Thankfully the good days outweigh the bad.
This diet really is a miracle & not like any other diet I have done, I have lost on average 4lbs a week, (apart from when I gave in) I could not lose that on any other diet.
I have been doing this diet for 18 weeks & on my scales I have lost 5st 5lbs, that is nothing short of a miracle.
Please remember that we are all here for you, but please don't give up, it will get easier I promise.
Focus on what you want to achieve & what you will look like at your goal.

[Tiger Girl]

Aw, hang in there Bex. The early days can produce some corkers on the 'why am I doing this?' front. But you made the decision to do a VLCD for a reason and you need to focus on why.
you've already said that something like WW's is something you've never been able to stick too (me either!) There is no way you could lose the same amount of weight on WW's, compared to a VLCD. My sis has lost 1st 8lbs in the exact same time that I've been on LL. I've lost 6st 2lbs!!!

The best thing you can get from a VLCD is the experience of complete abstinence. It really does give you the opportunity to really examine and understand all of your issues with food. How have you felt about the counselling side of LL? Have you got into your green book or are you not getting into it?
As everyone has said above - good days, bad days - you'll have them. Throw the scales away if they're playing mind tricks on you, and remember the losses do average out. A 9lb loss is likely to be followed by something lower but then it creeps back up again before you know it and then suddenly you've lost 2 stone!!

Let us know how you're getting on and keep on going

[Cerulean]

The first 5 weeks were hell for me - I had to keep looking for people on here that had got to their goal and I made a speadsheet and graph of where I would be if I kept losing 3lbs a week on average. Every time I felt week I would read the blogs of people who had succeeded and look at my graph.

The other key is not to rely on your home scales - rely on the WI and don't worry about the numbers - of course you need to see losses to keep you motivated in the hardest weeks at the beginning, but your first stone will be gone in the next 2 weeks, I can almost guarantee that. After that you will lose another stone in the next 4-5 weeks and so on until you are done.

I have clung on for grim death and it's worked for me. I set myself the goal of sticking to it for 4 weeks to start off with (100 days was just too big a deal at the beginning) breaking up the task into 4 week chunks makes it more manageable. Also you might want a big piece of paper with the days 1-100 written on it and each morning you get up, cross right through that day and say 'I will stick to LL today' by crossing off each day when it begins you are committing to succeed for the current day.

Finally. LL is for you - this is your time. I know how hard it is - but if this were easy everyone would have done it - you won't believe how much respect you'll get when you're done.

[bernie]

Hi Bex i thought it was just me, as i started about the same time as you, and i am on day 11, i had very bad headaches for 2 days, i knew it was because i hadnt had enough water and i must admit that i had some food for two days, but then decided that i needed to keep going even though i had
failed for two days, i knew i couldnt give up, i wont get on my home scales as they are often wrong from the LL class ones, keep going. i have succumbed for 2 days but will be right back now, as i have never felt better knowing that i was losing weight, keep your chin up, i am dreading my weighin on tues, but i know i chose to break my plan, and i have to take whatever the scales say, keep the goal infront of you, try some of the recipies, they are great and feel like treats, lets help each other along the way, good luck,

[katie_oxo]

Bex I hope you're feeling brighter and more on an 'up' this morning.

Please do stick with the diet, this really is the quickest way that you're going to reach your goal, even if you did stick to WW it would take you a good few months to lose 3 stone and on LL it's only going to take you a couple.

Everyone feels bad at times and there are times when most people may think of quitting but you've got to think that if you do quit you're going to feel the same way that you did before you started the diet - which is probably bl**dy miserable.

I've found the diet to be a lot like giving up smoking - it takes over your mind. At first you do find that you can't stop thinking about food but that soon passes and changes to the fact that you can't stop thinking about your weight loss. People only have to mention a date in the future and I automatically think 'oh by then I could have lost ?lbs'.

So please stick with it and you'll soon find yourself at goal

Cath

[In search of me]

The first few weeks for me was hell but I posted on here & had baths, early nights, listened to my body & painted my nails alot -anything to distract me!! It does get better & the best advice I can give (on day 104 & not cheated once) is to take it a day at a time & set yourself some goals. A blog is also a great idea to keep you busy & it will help others too!! Hag in there - its worth it & so are you! When your chatterbox tells you you must eat tell it to f-off! Trust me going from a 24 - 14 is better than any food I would shovel in my mouth & a size 12 will be incredble!

[whatsnewpussycat]

Just saying the same as the others really - don't rely on your scales at home. I have my weigh in on a Saturday morning (I've just started Week 3 this Saturday) and on Friday afternoon I got on my scales at home and it looked like I'd only lost 1lb. I was gutted. I hadn't lapsed, and I'd been to the gym 3 times in the week. However, when I got on the LL scales on Saturday morning I'd lost 4.86lbs!

Also, it depends on what you've been doing just before you get on the scales. So for me, if I've just been doing some exercise or just had some water, I sometimes look like I've put weight on - which if you're in ketosis just isnt possible. Apparently if you retain 1 litre of water, that masks 1lb weight loss. So even if you do have a week where you havent lost as much as you'd hoped, just think that you have lost the fat, it's just that the loss is being temporarily masked by something else going on in your body and it will disappear the following week.

Throw the scales away - or at least put them up on a very high shelf so you have to do some exercise to get them down! Good luck at your weigh in.

[Isobel1965]

Hun - do hang on in there!

I know it's hard - and it's ok thinking about phood - it's actually eating it that does the damage lol!

Have a look at the bephore and aphter photos on the Inspiration thread - that can re-motivate you!

xxxxxxxxxxxx

[SandraEG]

Bex

I hope you are feeling a bit better with this support.

VLCDs are hard work and the first few weeks are an emotional roller coaster. I also think they are not for everyone - you ahve to be in a special place mentally to be able to see it through.

BUT before you give up on yourself, go to your weigh in and talk to your counsellor about how you're feeling. I am sure you are not the only one feeling this way. Read your green book and plan some goals and treats for yourself.

At the very least, give yourself another week to see if this is really for you.

I speak as someone who has struggled and lapsed BUT I am getting there. I'm sure you can too if you set your mind to it.

[In search of me]

How are you doin Bex?

[bex]

Hey everyone,

Firstly I want to say thank you all for your support - it really helped me to pull myself together and I don't know whether I could have carried on if I hadn't had your messages!

I went to my weigh in on Sunday and I'd lost just under 4 pounds - so much for thinking I'd only lost 1 pound! I'm definitely throwing away my bathroom scales! I'm so glad that I didn't give up now - all I can say is thank god for this forum!

Anyway, I've re-discovered my determination and feel much better this week, especially now that I've lost 13 and a half pounds in just 2 weeks. I went shopping today to treat myself - I bought 2 dresses both in a size 10-12 so that I have something to look forward to when I have down days.

Thanks again for helping me out, and the inspiration pics at the top of the page really gave me something to think about! I've been upset over my weight for a good 3 or 4 years now, so I guess 3 months of abstinence isn't that long in the grand scheme of things!

Bex

[In search of me]

Great news! Just take it a day at a time and you'll be at the 100 days before you know it! Plus you'll feel a million dollars & its a feeling you cannot beat! Not for all the chocolate cake in the world!