Never Again

[fitnan]

A number of years ago I was feeling really fed up with myself having put on a lot of weight as a result of a period of inactivity and comfort/boredom eating following a major operation. The day finally came when I decided I had to do something about and because I thought I needed moral support and a few tips I joined a well known slimming group. NEVER AGAIN.
Firstly I found myself feeling really deprived of the things I liked most and the things that they really pushed were things I hate.
Secondly the whole thing about weighing everything and turning every meal into a maths problem was a real chore. The trouble with things feeling a chore is I get fed up with them.
Next there was the way I’d get quite stressed about the weigh in on a week when I wasn’t sure how things had gone. I got enough stress from my job and being a working mum without needing any extra.
There was also the way I was made to feel that I had to keep going to reach my ‘target weight’ even though I had already passed the point where friends and family were telling me I looked ‘drawn’ . I look back at photos of myself at that time and don’t like what I see but at the time I was so pleased that the lady running the group was pleased with me. I find that disturbing now, I can’t believe I was so worried about what somebody I barely knew thought about how much I weighed. It goes to show how vunerable you can become in such situations.
I also found it hard to stop losing weight even though I had reached my target and I was on the maintenance program. After that my weight kept going up and down all over the place my body didn’t seem to know what it was doing any more.
Finally the day came when I realised just how much weight had crept back on even though I didn’t seem to be living on chips, or chocolate or junk food etc. When I eventually decided to take action again the one thing I was sure of I was never joining another slimming group.
I didn’t know back then that low calorie diets don’t help you lose weight in the long term they just screw up your metabolism and I didn’t realise that how I feel is more important than what the scales say. If I feel healthy and have a reasonable amount of energy and my clothes feel comfortable then that’s good enough for me, and the only person I would listen to about my weight is my doctor not a virtual stranger who thinks‘a few more pound and I’ll be just right’.

 

[bobl15mps]

care to explain the low calorie diet messing up metabolism thing?
How low are you talking about? If i am a male and i eat like 1700 calories a day, is that consider to be a low calorie diet? ( i should be eating 2500 calories a day to maintain weight)

 

[Ria.]

Slimming groups can work really well for some people and not for others.

Ive never been to one as i dont feel comfortable sharing my weight with others, maybe once i get to a point when i only have 1/2 stone to lose ill join one for a few weeks.

I use my own weekly weigh in as motivation and then i dont get stressed about it.

 

[devotchka]

It sounds like you had a really bad experience.

What diet program was it?

I am with Slimming world and the consultant is fantastic! She does not pressure you to lose anything, she doesn't judge you, she simply encourages you to set your own realistic goals and helps you get to them.
When I hit my first target, I text her asking if it would be a good idea to set the same target again (weight wise) and she replied saying that now I had reached that target, I shouldn't worry about setting more because I'd made such a big achievement.

Slimming world also promotes no weighing, measuring or maths!
And, your weight is never ever discussed in class, just your losses. And they rarely say what your gain is unless you instigate it.
You should have a look. And so sorry to hear what a bad experience you had *hugs*

 

[hchappyh]

I never enjoyed going to a Slimming club. I always hated having to sit there and clap everyone else on their weight loss, and it made me feel bad when I only lost a 1lb and they were all losing lbs.., or worse if I put on...I found it more demotivating than motivating - but it really is each to their own. That's one reason why I like Go Lower so much. It's no club to go to on a weekly basis - I weigh myself, and yet if I need help, encouragement or have a question I just pick up the phone and speak to my consultant.

xx

 

[Isabel B]

i never really liked the slimming club thing, i went to one but felt abit unconfortable sharing why i was fat etc.
I started Go Lower last year and i lost over 5 stone doing a weekly weigh in at home and sometimes i was a few days late never put too much pressure on myself i just knew that the only person i really had to answer to was myself and i spoke to my consultant if i needed to she was lovely.

 

[fitnan]

What I mean by low calorie diets messing up your metabolism is simply that when you cut your calorie drastically your body goes into 'starvation mode' . This means it lowers your metabolic rate so you burn calories more slowly because your body is being tricked into believing there is a food shortage so it conserves fat so you won't starve. This makes it even harder to loose weight. There are lots of calculators you can find on the net that allow you to work out your basal metabolic rate ie. the number of calories you need just to stay alive if you did absolutely nothing. If you know that you can see how much you will need to do everyday activites. If you then consume something between the two you should lose weight steadily and healthily.