Help! I'm gaining and out of control!

Thank you, thank you to all you gals! I really appreciate you! I feel better with just venting out and then reading your good responses! I'm really not questioning what I'm doing wrong because I know what I'm doing wrong. What I'm totally concerned about is my lack of eating right and my lack of wanting to exercise, because it's push, push, push, but once I get going with it, it feels so good! I really am making good choices when eating out. I get mainly lettuce salads with some additions but watch them and also really watch my salad dressing and count it all. The more separate things are, the better I do. My sweet tooth can be a problem. Nummy Cool Mint Oreos are a no-no but I count them but that's not good eating because with everything else healthy for the day, that's why I can go over. I eat potato chips sometimes and count them but realize again that I am easily going over because of doing that. I know that I can't eat some things and control myself, so I need to do what I did in the beginning and just don't eat them or stop at just one portion. The 100 calorie packs are my cup of tea more. I lack good discipline so the pre-pkgd, measuring techniques are for me. I will go back to measuring my rice, pasta and realize that I just can't have tons like I used to. I have to think back like I did in the beginning. I have to do it for me, for my health. I began to be concerned about my weight when my sister died at age 54 with Type 2 Diabetes and she never took very good care of herself. She was single and I couldn't do it for her!! I'm 54 now and I want to become more healthy for myself and my husband and kids. My Mom and Dad are gone along with my only sister sibling, so I'm all that's left and I have to become a picture of health. Also, the reason for my health scare was because I was starting to show some same symptoms that my sister had for years and didn't do anything about it. With diabetes, you can get circulation problems in your lower extremities, legs and arms. I had redness that looked like a sunburn rash on my lower legs and my Rheumotoligist said that he could see it on my forearms and hands too! That was it! I had had enough!! I weighed 232# in the Dr's office. That's when I started to go more low-carb, not real strict, but limiting simple carbs and turning more to complex carbs, which I didn't eat as much of either. I cut out lots of sugar everything, knowing too that potatoes, pastas, rices, breads a;; eventually turn to sugar. My MD also told me that I was showing signs of the Metabolic Symdrome, so I had alot of strikes against me! Also, I've been on Prednisone since 2008, and everybody knows all about that drug as far as wanting to eat the bark off of a tree, but I also have found out that losing weight is possible!!!! My Rheumy told me when he started me on Prednisone, that I would just have to eat less. Ha, I said!! But it's true. I don't like to be hungry, so that's when I make sure I get my lean protein in and I know that I have to work on that more. I do tend to gain 3-4# during my TOM too and I take that into cosideration but even with being done with that, I'm still up, so I know it's because of overeating! Now is the time for me to turn this climbing weight around! I'm so thankful that I want to do something about it and that I have my friends to try to help me! I won't beat myself up too much about these 5# but just enough to get turned around! Thanks again Spark Buddies!

Hugs, Karen

Hi, Karen !

Let's put a positive spin on your situation. While you might have gained five pounds, you've still kept 62 of that 67 off. That says you are doing something right. Why are you gaining weight ? My first question would be what have you been eating ? When it comes to weight loss, what matters most is what we eat. Good nutrition is what takes the weight off and keeps it off. You mentioned that you eat better when you eat out. Here's the thing, while you may be ordering a salad, how "healthy" is that salad ? Some restaurant salads could contain 1,000+ calories. So, if you've been eating out, that might be the reason for the regain.

Also, try not to freak out too much about that five pounds. Ever notice your weight goes up during TOM ? Most women tend to "gain" weight during their menstrual cycle. Is that a fat gain ? Nope. it's nothing more than a temporary water weight gain that passes in a few days. I can gain or lose as much as 3-4 pounds because of a shift in my water weight. So, it is possible that some of that five pound gain may be water retention.

What to do ? I would start by taking a closer look at what you've been eating while out. Check online to see what the calorie counts are for those meals. It is possible you may be eating more than you think.

Be patient with yourself as you would with others. You really are doing just fine.

How did you lose the 67 pounds the first time? I doubt it had so much to do with motivation as it did with caring about yourself. How about small steps? Maybe it's making sure you eat a good breakfast every day. Or you won't have anything sweet until you get your freggies in. I think it's these small habits that make us feel good about ourselves and want to continue on. Success breeds success.

I was like you and started gaining a few pounds. Mine didn't stop at a few and after keeping 60+ pounds off for 3 years, I gained 30ish back. So here I go again. Believe me, I wish I would have caught it back at 5 pounds. I think what it comes down to is I didn't make me a priority and I stopped caring how I felt. This year is my year to stop the negative self-talk, replacing "can" with 'can't" etc. I'm going to do that with small steps because I know that is what worked before.

You can do this!! Maybe write down all the reasons you want it and carry that piece of paper around with you for awhile. It'll be a nice reminder that you are worth the effort!

Hi Karen - I think that you will find that a lot of people will have put on weight at this time of year (Festive Season) and you are also in the middle of winter which is when a lot of people gain, as well. It's great that you are getting in a fair bit of exercise considering your physical condition. You do a lot more than me (Scoliosis and Arthritis of the Spine) but I get some - basically just walking putting my groceries and laundry away one at a time. Exercise is only a fairly small component of a lot of people's exercise. It is what you eat/drink that most of the problem arises. You mention drinking plenty of water, but that isn't going to lose the weight, EXCEPT that it may be saving you from eating/drinking even more calories.

My strong suggestion is that you weigh all of your food for increased accuracy, and continue to track it, BUT make sure that you don't go over the calories - in fact, you may find that you may need to be a little closer to the lower end than the higher end. Try to get your pie chart looking fairly much like the one on the Daily Report Page - then you will have a good balance of carbs/fats/protein which can help you to remain fuller for longer without the excess calories.

The other thing is that I had a little peek at your SparkPage and see that you belong to the Hypothyroid Team - have you had your Thyroid levels done recently? If not, it might be beneficial to have them checked!

Good luck, but remember, you don't actually NEED the luck - YOU have the power to do this - you just have to have faith in yourself!

Kris


Edited by: SLIMMERKIWI at: 1/22/2013 (23:29)

I've been struggling ever since the holidays it seems. Holding my own or gaining a little all along. So far I've gained 5# back of my 67# loss! I can't keep being like this or I'll gain it all back. I continue to exercise most every day and that's not a whole lot. I do 25-35 min. on my recumbent bike and sometime it's at a vigorous pedaling! I can't do much more than that because of my Rheumatoid Arthritis and the pain and risk of harming joints. I'm hoping to do more once this storng medicine that I'm on, kicks in. As far as eating, I try every day to eat healthy and I would say though that I'm over on my nutri. trackers every day. I'm drinking my water plus! I get my freggies in most days. To tell you the truth, it seems that I do lots better when we eat out! I order good healthy salads and other healthy dishes and get my veggies in for sure those times. I'm one of the worst planners and always have such a time knowing what to cook. I have chicken thawed out for tomorrow, so will do something healthy with that. I just feel that I've lost my motivation and when things don't altogether work for me, I get discouraged. Please help me to feel better about it all once again! Thanks for listening!

Karen