DrDrew, only read your post now - had replied after reading first few pages!
Had to reply when I read yours. You sound like I am/was. I have tried everything - and most of them more than once. I was successful to a point with lots of them. I lost weight with CD about 20 years ago, but didn't stick it past about 3 weeks - I think it's changed alot since then. My major success was about 12 years ago with WW - I didn't get to target that time, but I got very close and in fact was probably too low for me to maintain. Put that back on, but during that time, I lost some with Motivation, Herbal Life, WW again and probably more that I can't even think of. Between all of these, I wasn't too bad for a few years, but I was putting on some, losing a bit, putting on more, losing a bit etc etc until I was back at weight joined WW and then got bigger. After some miserable times, managed to get my head around something again and managed to loose alot again with Unislim. I didn't go as low as I'd gone with WW, and again I didn't get to a target. I kept it steady for about 6 months - although I was trying to loose! Then I met my now-husband and abandoned attending classes. By the time we got engaged I was up about 1/2 to 3/4 stone. By the following year, I was up another bit, then went on crash diet and dropped down to where I'd been aroudn the engagement. Bought wedding dress then. Over the next 8 months, I went to various WW classes, would drop about 10 lbs, then give up. By the time the wedding came around I was probably 1/2 - 3/4 stone up again. My dress didn't fit when I had my fitting - it got adjusted and I looked great - and relatively okay weight-wise, from the time I'd met him, I'd probably put on about 1.5 stone - between losing bits here and there. But then I went mad. We were on honeymoon for 16 days - the jeans I wore on the way out wouldn't even go on me to come home!!! I continued to eat like this - I used to go to WW or Unislim every so often and again just give up again. I joined a gym - I went twice! I bought some clothes in NY, one pair of jeans that I needed to loose a few pounds to fit into - they've never been worn. That continued on for over 2 years, until I was seriously big - far bigger than I'd ever been. I was so so depressed, hated myself, hated being like that, wore baggy clothes and big jumpers - and I hate being too hot. Eventually last year, I joined Unislim - again! This time, I found a leader I liked and quickyl dropped a 1.5 stone, then stuck and stuck I stayed for ages, up a lb, down a lb etc etc. But for once I stuck it out. Eventually, something clicked again and I flew along until Christmas, I was 4 lbs off 3 stone just before Christmas, when the leader decided she wasn't coming back after Christmas - very depressed me! I never quite got back into it, put on 3 lbs over Christmas - after copious eating, managed to loose that alright, but then went on holidays for a week in Feb, put up 11 lbs (yes, 11). Managed to finally loose that by about June, when I went on another week's holiday - and again managed to put up 11 lbs - I just couldn't loose that, I'd drop a bit, back up a bit and on and on until at the end of July, I had enough, I was 10 lbs heavier than at Christmas and totally depressed and obsessed - I couldn't dtop eating junk, even when I was feeling motived, if I saw something around me, into mouth - we seemed to have takeaways at least once a week - often pizza - 12 inch each, plus garlic bread. We had garlic bread with dinner a couple nights a week - a whole roll each - with a very big dinner - and I often had seconds. Found myself shovelling in cold chilli in morning before going to work!! Ate chocolate, biscuits and crisps like they were going out of fashion - no problem having 4 or 5 packets of crisps in a row - after dinner (or before!) Your word "addicted" strikes such a chord with me - that's how I described it to my husband. Thing was I hated it - hated how I felt, hated how I couldn't stop eating, hated anyone to see me eating like I was.
The first week was hard on this. I had bit of blip end of week 2, start of week 3. Nothing major, but still not a good idea - definitely slows the whole thing down. But since then I've been fine and I really don't miss food - well smell of garlic bread cooking is hard, as is takeaway pizza, but not so hard that I'm even remotely tempted to indulge! When I'm freezing leftover chilli, I take a big smell!!
If you're like me, this will work for you. Don't focus on the 8 stone, focus on the first one - it'll be gone inside 2 weeks - I lost a stone in 1st week. After a couple of weeks, your clothes will start to hang and smaller ones to fit. Not sure if you've lost weight before and have a wardrobe of smaller clothes - I have and I've noticed that they now fit me at a weight heavier than they used to - I seem to have dropped inches faster than pounds! Also, once you get past a couple of weeks, your body will change fast - I have clothes that are snug on Monday and fitting by Friday!!! Honestly.
I hope you do it. Even set yourself a target of 4 weeks and then decide to reassess. Bet you'll keep going at that stage!
