Is this the answer?

[JaxieD]

Hello everyone

I've been reading your posts and congratulate u on your successes so far.....I've been a member of Minimins for several years now and think I've posted on nearly every forum and tried most of the eating plans. Obviously nothing has worked in the long term and I'm still after that elusive goal of permanent weight loss....in fact it has got to the stage now that I would be delighted with SOME weightloss :-(

I've struggled with my weight for years (Although i was a slim child and young adult) and have lost weight previously with Weightwatchers (only to regain all of it) and about 4 years ago Cambridge (regained just over half). Since then my life has consisted of strict calorie watching and when this didn't work various failed Cambridge attempts, Dukan, 17 Day Diet, Slimming World......the list goes on. In December I put about 9lbs on within a couple of weeks and this was despite fasting for 2 days a week and really not going crazy the rest of the time. So I bit the bullet in January, started slimming world....tracked everything I ate, stuck to it rigidly...went spinning 3 -4 times a week and in 4 weeks I lost absolutely nothing :-(. In despair I then started Weightwatchers.....did the same, weighed all my food, tracked everything and in the first 2 weeks I lost 5lbs and was delighted.....however since the middle of February I have lost nothing!!! So now ive once again lost heart as it seems that sticking rigidly to a diet plan doesnt work and there is nothing more i can do to try and lose this flab. I need to lose 3 stone but in reality I would be happy with less than that. People have told me to stick with it....it takes a few weeks for your body to get used to what you're eating....well, I've had 10 weeks of so-called healthy eating with a 'balanced diet' and how long do I have to wait??? There's people have lost nearly 2 stone in that time!!!!

I then read Why we Get Fat....by Gary Taubes which was pretty amazing.....I could really relate to that......could this be my problem....is it carbs that are my enemy? I know that my body doesn't like too many carbs (I'm sitting here feeling awful after a heavy weekend, dodgy tummy, loose bowels....I always have loose bowels sorry TMI.. No energy.....and a general feeling of malaise)

I have tried low carb before.....Dukan worked 2 years ago but last time I did it I lost nothing. Also the 17 Day Diet (u can eat some fruit on it) I did it and lost several pounds but didnt stick with it. did it again recently and lost nothing......I haven't tried Atkins for years but maybe staying off the fruit and the yogurts are the answer?

It appears that everything I have been told may be all lies.....maybe the very food that we've been told is the most healthiest for us is the stuff that's been doing all the damage......maybe I shouldn't feel bad when I try tell the doc that I really don't eat that much and regularly exercise and he looks at me as if I'm lying...maybe all my digestive problems over the years are caused by this 'healthy' lifestyle. Hell!! Maybe my arthritis, psoriasis, thrush, IBS et al is ALL to do with my diet.....? At the end of the day I've always failed to understand why I was fat....yes I did have times where I ate too much but so did my slim friends.....I know people who eat more than me and are thin.....people who are able to eat chocolate and crisps and stay slim.

What a minefield!

So this time I'm going to try and stick to low carb as best as I can....I can't promise total abstinence......I can't see me never eating a potato again or a bar of chocolate but if I see results and feel better for it I will be able to do it most of the time.

Sorry for the long post.......I'm hoping that some of you will have gone through the same issues as me. I thought I was going mad until I read that book......

 

[tazbabe]

give it a go....

i am like you, i don't overeat, never have done, have always eaten 'healthily' don't use readymeals, always cooked from scratch etc.....
and always been oveweight.
the only 2 things that worked for me was cambridge, and taking (now illegal) diet pills. but of course neither of those are long term fixes.
now atkins.....is working for me.
i lost 24lb in 3 months, then i just stopped losing. so of course i got silly and didn't stick 100% to the plan as i was disheartened, but i have never gone back to full on carbs.
and i feel so much better!
so, now more than a year since i lost that initial 24lb, i am finally in that right place in my head to get serious again, as of last monday. lost about 4lb last week, ready to start another week, feeling better about myself too for sticking with it.

i really think that as well as finding the right way of eating for yourself, you also have to have your mindset ready.

let us know how you get on!

 

[reluctant_whale]

Your story sounds just like mine Jaxie. It's sad in a way because when you look at it long term you have spent most of your life restricting yourself in some way or another. I am only on week 2 of Atkins - so hardly an ambassador but finally the weight (and certainly inches) are coming OFF and once you are in ketosis hunger becomes a thing of the past and you ENJOY the meals you have instead of longing for the next carb fix (for me it was always a cake at 3o clock ... pudding after tea .. etc) I feel better than I have in years, and although I found some of the initial side effects unpleasent they are plateauing now and (I am just as gross as you ... NO IBS for 2 weeks .. it's like being released from a cage!)

Hope that helps - and do give it a go ...

 

[JaxieD]

Thanks girls.....

I'm starting this morning and will stick with it. You know I have been so proud that I eat only complex carbs, lean protein and fresh fruit and veg....weigh my portions and exercise regularly. The perfect food pyramid follower (most of the time) but I do feel crap quite a lot....especially with my insides. When I do low carb all my digestive problems (heartburn, constant whooshing and gurgling, horrendously offensive wind, SORRY!! Lololol and toilet troubles) all disappear so there's obviously some issues with my 'healthy' lifestyle.

I'll let you know how I'm getting on

 

[boggins]

I'm loath to label low-carb/paleo eating as a cure-all (vegans would say the same thing about their diet, and doctors about low-fat diets), in fact I think if we expect any way of eating to be a "magic bullet" we'll be disappointed- the world doesn't work in such a way. However, it is a darn sight better for you than repeatedly starving yourself of both essential fats and calories. If you stay off the processed foods (sweeteners, preservatives- anything with an ingredients list, and NO grains) you may have excellent results with some of your conditions.

Be patient with your body, it's been through a lot! I hope this works for you, I'm sure it will. Stick to it for a month and see. Best of luck, keep posting!

 

[JaxieD]

I'm loath to label low-carb/paleo eating as a cure-all (vegans would say the same thing about their diet, and doctors about low-fat diets), in fact I think if we expect any way of eating to be a "magic bullet" we'll be disappointed- the world doesn't work in such a way. However, it is a darn sight better for you than repeatedly starving yourself of both essential fats and calories. If you stay off the processed foods (sweeteners, preservatives- anything with an ingredients list, and NO grains) you may have excellent results with some of your conditions.

Be patient with your body, it's been through a lot! I hope this works for you, I'm sure it will. Stick to it for a month and see. Best of luck, keep posting!

Thanks Boggins.......I agree with you. I will never say that one diet, WOE, fits all because I've experienced that......whilst on SW, I was constantly told that it works for everyone.....well it ruddy didn't for me and the counsellors could give me no answers......but I know it's excellent for others and I would never knock it.....fab if it works and u feel great. Likewise WW....went on it 10 years ago....lost 3 stone....great....but now I've gained back most that I lost (lost it again with CD and regained half since) and now that I'm 10 years older.....WW doesn't work for me anymore....

I shall see how it goes....maybe this is just the way I am and there ain't anything to be done :-( but I seriously hope not