Frustrated at well.... (and a bit long winded)

[Melora]

Seems to be a bit of frustration going around so figured I could add my own whine. Please forgive my lengthy novel.. I just got writing and couldn't stop!! (Better writing than eating!!)

So as I mentioned before I tried the Atkins plan (even having Atkins deliver premade food for me daily to my door so I wouldn't have to try to figure out what to eat.) My weight loss was slow and I wasn't losing inches at all. I lost maybe 6-7 pounds in the month I did it. My hubby who is studying to be a full time personal trainer did a ton of research for me and at first was supportive of Atkins because what he read made sense. But as the month went on my knee (that had been injured earlier in the year but was healing) began to ache something fierce. Hubby too was having severe knee problems (he was doing the program with me to be supportive). His knee has torn cartilidge and he is trying to hold off on repair surgery until he grades for his full black belt in September. His knee became SO sore and painful he said we would have to cancel our trip to Sea World because he couldn't even walk. And it looked like he would have to move the surgery up because there was no way he could grade with how bad it was. As he was researching he found that stiff, sore and painful joints can be a side effect of a high protein diet. (I think it is uric acid that settles in the joints). He quit doing the Atkins (shifted to "body for life)" and within 3 days his knee was tolerable again. (Sea World here we come) I continued to stay on Atkins because I loved the food (hard to say no to meat, real butter etc). My energy level though became next to nothing and when I would climb our stairs, my thighs would burn SO bad and I would have to sit down to let my muscles recover.

My hubby (Jeff) had a long talk with me and said if I really want to get in shape (real shape not just lose some excess weight) I would have to try a different eating plan. It was almost impossible for me to exercise while on Atkins because I did not have energy. Burning fat is great for endurance but any short intense type of exercise really requires buring carbs. Don't get me wrong.. Atkins does work and its great for a lot of people.. it just wasn't working for me.

So I gave up Atkins and began his program which includes 6 meals a day and working out 6 times a week. 3 times on weights and 3 times for cardio. Also on day 7 of Body for Life (if you've stuck with the program all week) you get a free day... no exercise and you can eat whatever you want. (I suppose it would be bad if you went out and ate 6000 calories that day) but if you want a pizza, fried chicken, ice cream..whatever you want go ahead and eat it. This fools your body into thinking its getting enough calories so doesn't go into "starvation mode" and allows you to keep losing weight. If you cut back on calories too severely your body will stop allowing you to burn fat.

Well that was last week and I have had every obstacle possible thrown at me to keep me from exercising. Last Friday I got sick... sore throat, headache etc. Almost a week later I still feel cruddy. Jeff keeps telling me "You won't see results if you don't exercise".. So I finally bit the bullet and exercised on Tuesday (upper body workout) it felt great! But then on Wednesday I tripped on my 8 year olds wet shoes he left outside the front door (OK so I'm blind too!) and fell over and overstretched the back of my calf to the point it hurts to walk. And the same day I got my period and got all bloated. I had lost 2 pounds right away but it came back on in water weight and it hasn't gone away and even though I know I am eating well (not too much and healthy) the scale hasn't budged. My ring is tight, always my indicator to whether or not I am boated. It is SO upsetting because I want to feel like what I am doing is going to make a difference but when the scale doesn't move it's disheartening.

I suppose this is one of those reasons that you shouldn't weigh yourself every day... ***SIGH*** Jeff has lost more than 12 pounds and has gone down 2 belt notches..... Why do men lose weight so much better than women???

Anyone else out there have the bloaty period blues but when thats over and done with the scale is kinder to you??

Once again.... sorry for being so long winded, and if you made it all the way through my ramblings.. Thank you

 

[Melora]

(Title should be Frustrated AS well.... )

Just as an inspiration if any of you think you can never get in good shape take a look at http://www.bodyforlife.com/ and look at their before and after pix...

It keeps me going when I wonder if I can ever realy shape up this body!!

 

[CrzyforPiglet]

I'm so sorry you're feeling down Melora!!! I think we can all relate to getting frustrated or side tracked when it comes to losing weight but it sounds as if you've got some great support from your husband and sometimes that's half the battle.

The important thing to do is not to dwell on the past but to look at every new day as a new opportunity to stick to your diet and get out there and exercise. Don't think about how you didn't do it the day before - think about what you can do today, right now. Maybe you can only do a 15 minute walk or a couple repetitions of weight training - something is better than nothing and when you have more time you can do more.

Don't give up - you can do this!!

 

[Mom2Princesses]

I know how you feel about TOM (your period) My 1st week on Atkins I lost 10 lbs, the second week (TOM) I lost nothing! But as soon as it was over, I lost 2lbs and then 3 lbs this last week. So I am already prepared for a no loss week in a couple more weeks. But, I refuse to let that get me down..I am probably losing inches while I am not losing weight and it is only one week per month, so that gives me three other weeks to lose! You can do this, it just takes some time, you will not lose it all in one week! Make some mini goals, even 1lb per week to start.

I know everyone is different, but I have to do Atkins. Any program where I can occasionaly eat something like ice cream, or a donut would do me in! I cannot have that kind of food, I just can't handle it once per day or month. I am better with nothing than a little something. Of course, that is just me, everyone has a different body and different weaknesses....

I wish you luck, keep looking forward, not behind you!

 

[raidermatt]

If you cut back on calories too severely your body will stop allowing you to burn fat.

Just wanted to add to this a bit. When you go into a consistent calorie deficit, particularly a significant one, your body will eventually try to adapt. It doesn't realize you are dieting, and just knows you are taking in fewer calories than you are using. So, your body tries to compensate by slowing your metabolism.

That's why having a "cheat day" once in awhile doesn't really hurt. Unless you really overdo it, its hard to undo several days of healthy eating in one day. Also, your body doesn't go into "starvation mode".


With respect to excercising, for me the most important thing in gaining some consistency was making sure I developed the HABIT of excercising every day. So, rather than starting right in with a tough excercise program, I literally started with 30 seconds of excercise (and it was only the warmup of an aerobics program, so was VERY easy). The only goal I had from that point on was to add some amount of time each day. Didn't matter if it was only 5 seconds... if I added, my goal was achieved. (I usually added more than 5 seconds, but frequently only 30, and rarely more than a minute)

This eased the process of making excercise a habit in several ways:

1- For several weeks, there was never an issue with being tired or sore, yet I still was excercising everyday.

2- It decreased the possibility of an injury, because the intensity was built up VERY slowly.

3- It allowed me to make gradual adjustments to my schedule to accommodate the excercise time.

4- While the idea for the first month wasn't to really see any tangible benefits from the excercise, it did give me a feeling of making progress each and everyday.

5- It took away the intimidation aspect of trying to start with a full-fledged 1 hour a day training program. Its tough to go from 0 to 60 in one day...

I didn't bother adding any weight training (i.e. lifting weights) for about a month, but then took the same approach.

I knew that if I was going to finally make some real long-term progress, a slower start for the first month or two wasn't really going to make much of a difference. Admittedly, I did try this approach several times over the years and had only managed to succeed for 3 or 4 months at a time. However, this time, I've been going strong for over 6 months, and really think I've found a groove.

If you've had trouble developing the habit of excercising, I suggest trying something like this "slow build" approach.

Sorry for rambling, but just trying to help...