Where do I start?

IcedJade

Hi everyone,

I am desperately over weight and finding myself on a bit of a binge at the minute because losing weight seems too hard all of a sudden. I think I would do well off wheat but LOVE bread and pretty much consume it all day long. I need a replacement for it if I'm to do well.
I've done ww and lipotrim and am back as big as ever.

I feel like I have no clue where to start to get my crazy binge eating under control.

All and any advice greatly appreciated.:o

Stench Blossoms

Go to counseling about your binge eating problems. Nothing will change until you have them sorted.

SunnyDub1

Do you actually have a binge eating problem or do you just eat a lot because you are bored and too lazy to do something about it and to lazy to control it?

Not been smart or funny by asking that, but I think some people assume and think that by over eating they have some kind of binge eating disorder, in reality some people just aren't bothered and are too lazy to motivate themselves to actually do something about it.
In some cases people do actually have binge eating disorders, if you feel like it's really something you really cannot control yourself then you should visit your GP.

daenerysstormborn3

IcedJade wrote: »

Hi everyone,

I am desperately over weight and finding myself on a bit of a binge at the minute because losing weight seems too hard all of a sudden. I think I would do well off wheat but LOVE bread and pretty much consume it all day long. I need a replacement for it if I'm to do well.
I've done ww and lipotrim and am back as big as ever.

I feel like I have no clue where to start to get my crazy binge eating under control.

All and any advice greatly appreciated.:o

If you have tried these options and they haven't worked then they are obviously not for you. I'm not someone who believes that ww etc. don't work at all but I know they don't work for everyone, obviously, not everything is suitable to every person.

If you feel you genuinely have a binge eating problem then you should definitely go to your G.P.

You say "desperately overweight", your idea of desperately overweight might mean 10lbs over or it might mean 10 stone over, I don't know, if it means the latter then a visit to your G.P. is definitely in order, losing weight is all well and good but if you are significantly overweight, you might have other health issues that will have to be addressed.

Start today.

Clear your cupboards of rubbish food. All of it. Crisps, bread, cakes, cereals, ready meals etc

Then make a menu of food for the week ahead of you. Fresh food - eggs, meats, vegetables galore. 3 proper meals per day.

Figure out exactly what you need to buy in order to make these meals.

Write it all down.

Go to the supermarket once. Just once. Buy only the things on that list. No more shopping allowed this week. (Make sure you get some good lunchboxes / tupperware)

On day 1, make the meals you have planned. Do some light exercise. Sleep well.

On day 2, make the meals you have planned. Do some light exercise. Sleep well.

On day 3, make the meals you have planned. Do some light exercise. Sleep well.

Continue this until your menu is exhausted.

Rinse and repeat.

If you can do this for 4 weeks in a row, without too much difficulty, you will be on the road to success.

(You will falter, there will be snacks you didn't account for, you will have a packet of crisps at a friend's house, a biscuit with a cup of tea at another's. Don't beat yourself up about this. If 85% of your food is from the planner then you will be flying).

You have a long path ahead of you. Do not try and do it all in 3 weeks. Take your time, make correct decisions as often as you possibly can.

rubiesarered

Deleted User wrote: »

Start today.

Clear your cupboards of rubbish food. All of it. Crisps, bread, cakes, cereals, ready meals etc

Then make a menu of food for the week ahead of you. Fresh food - eggs, meats, vegetables galore. 3 proper meals per day.

Figure out exactly what you need to buy in order to make these meals.

Write it all down.

Go to the supermarket once. Just once. Buy only the things on that list. No more shopping allowed this week. (Make sure you get some good lunchboxes / tupperware)

On day 1, make the meals you have planned. Do some light exercise. Sleep well.

On day 2, make the meals you have planned. Do some light exercise. Sleep well.

On day 3, make the meals you have planned. Do some light exercise. Sleep well.

Continue this until your menu is exhausted.

Rinse and repeat.

If you can do this for 4 weeks in a row, without too much difficulty, you will be on the road to success.

(You will falter, there will be snacks you didn't account for, you will have a packet of crisps at a friend's house, a biscuit with a cup of tea at another's. Don't beat yourself up about this. If 85% of your food is from the planner then you will be flying).

You have a long path ahead of you. Do not try and do it all in 3 weeks. Take your time, make correct decisions as often as you possibly can.

I’d like to second this!

I dropped 2½ - 3 dress sizes in about 12 weeks a few years back and have kept it all off (plus more). I’m saying that because I had tried every diet under the sun first. I lurked on here for about two years and could tell you how to have the perfect diet/body while I sat at home getting bigger and sadder.

It’s so hard to start but, believe me, when you start seeing the results you feel like you’re on top of the world, like you could do anything if you put your mind to it. Remembering that feeling is what keeps you going when you have a bad week. I love the saying “the hardest lift is getting your butt off the couch”.

I’m one of those people who can’t eat just one biscuit – I’d rather eat none than one because one always turns into a whole packet. If you have a particular type of food that triggers your cravings then don’t have any of that food in your house. If its there, you will find an excuse to eat it!

If you are actually very overweight (rather than just being a little overweight), the weight will fall off you very quickly at the beginning which will help to motivate you to keep going.

Every Sunday I do my food shop for the week (off a list) and then I make up my meals for that week. Loads of vegetables, chicken, fish, lean steak, eggs, brown rice, sweet potatoes, oily fish, avocado…. It’s not about eating cardboard and starving. If you want some recipe/meal ideas, I’d be more than happy to give them to you.

Also, I think it’s very important to have a planned cheat meal once a week (not a cheat day!). But only buy enough of whatever it is for one meal.

If you are full up from good healthy food and you don't have any crap food in the house, you won't want to binge eat nearly as much and it will take that much more effort just to get whatever it is you are craving.

Chancer3001

you cant eat the rubbish if you dont buy it.

DONT PUT IT IN YOUR TROLLEY

dont fool yourself "oh ill eat this treat over the week", itll be gone in a day.

Just dont buy it.

I also found a great help was I set myself a time limit after which i couldnt eat. say 7pm. absolutely no eating after that time.

Cuts down on pointkless snacking

thegreatiam

write down everything you eat and the time and how many calories you think it is, even if it's just one cracker, for the course of 2-3 weeks.

You will then be able to see if you're snacking for no reason. You will ask yourself why you ate that at that time.

Then start weighing your food and accurately measuring calories. you can then see exactly where you can eliminate food from your diet.

After a month or so your diet will be more structured and you will know more about how many calories everything is.

Once you are familiar with this info you can know, without thinking, how many calories your dinner is and you will know if you can afford a treat that day.

rubiesarered

thegreatiam wrote: »

Once you are familiar with this info you can know, without thinking, how many calories your dinner is and you will know if you can afford a treat that day.

With the greatest respect, if the OP is the type of person who can't stop after one treat and ends up on a binge (which I am also!) then, for at least the first few months until she is into a routine of eating healthy, its not a good idea to be eating a treat every day. Having those treats in the house / going to the shop every day to buy the one treat will lead to a binge.

Step 1 is to eat real food for a month, and do some light exercise.

baby steps. Don't worry about portion sizing & counting calories for a bit. That will happen further down the road. If you genuinely are desperately overweight, these small differences will help you make real progress and get interested in taking care of yourself again. Walk before you can run.

Form a habit, then improve it.

thegreatiam

pawsandheels wrote: »

With the greatest respect, if the OP is the type of person who can't stop after one treat and ends up on a binge (which I am also!) then, for at least the first few months until she is into a routine of eating healthy, its not a good idea to be eating a treat every day. Having those treats in the house / going to the shop every day to buy the one treat will lead to a binge.

I never said have a treat every day. I said track what you eat for 2-3 weeks then count calories accurately for at least a month.
Learn to recognize what foods are high in calories and what foods are unnecessary in your diet.

but yes, Emmet is right, start eating whole foods not packaged junk foods.

IcedJade

Deleted User wrote: »

Start today.

Clear your cupboards of rubbish food. All of it. Crisps, bread, cakes, cereals, ready meals etc

Then make a menu of food for the week ahead of you. Fresh food - eggs, meats, vegetables galore. 3 proper meals per day.

Figure out exactly what you need to buy in order to make these meals.

Write it all down.

Go to the supermarket once. Just once. Buy only the things on that list. No more shopping allowed this week. (Make sure you get some good lunchboxes / tupperware)

On day 1, make the meals you have planned. Do some light exercise. Sleep well.

On day 2, make the meals you have planned. Do some light exercise. Sleep well.

On day 3, make the meals you have planned. Do some light exercise. Sleep well.

Continue this until your menu is exhausted.

Rinse and repeat.

If you can do this for 4 weeks in a row, without too much difficulty, you will be on the road to success.

(You will falter, there will be snacks you didn't account for, you will have a packet of crisps at a friend's house, a biscuit with a cup of tea at another's. Don't beat yourself up about this. If 85% of your food is from the planner then you will be flying).

You have a long path ahead of you. Do not try and do it all in 3 weeks. Take your time, make correct decisions as often as you possibly can.

This is brilliant. I feel like I could tell you how to lose weight but just don't know where to start myself. Hubby and I are both about 8 stone overweight.

I do shift work, 8-8 on random days so finding time to exercise on those days is very hard. Any suggestions?

Does anyone know much about replacing gluten? What are good alternatives? Maybe I should leave that for a while and just get eating more healthily first.

Btw thanks everyone. It's all been so helpful.

The Big Red Button

IcedJade wrote: »

Does anyone know much about replacing gluten? What are good alternatives?

Quinoa and rice are both good alternatives, if you're used to having something with your meat and veg. Potatos too.

Personally I'd be more inclined to just bulk up the meal with loads of veg.

What would your regular daily diet consist of?

Mr.Fred

I might be handy to share some figures.

Height,weight,gender.

There's no easy solution to weight loss it's a case of "MOVE MORE EAT LESS"

When you say you eat bread all day long. Do you actually eat bread every waking minute or do you eat a lot of sandwiches/soup/rolls.

Wheat could be affecting your diet but it's all to common for people to blame one ingredient on them being overweight.

Do you drink much water 2Litres+ a day?

Do you drink a lot of sugary/carbonated drinks?

When you binge eat, what are you eating? chocolate/sweets/crisps/savoury foods.

Chancer3001

youre going to have to prepare to avoid the crap on work days.

too easy to blame the working hours, take the easy option and go unhealthy.

invest in lunchboxes!

IcedJade

I'm 5ft7 and over 19st now.
My mom and sister are off gluten lately which has made big difference to bowel health and bloating. So figured it maybe a genetic thing. I read up about it and described a mind fog. You know? A groggy clouded mind. That's me all the time.
I also had high sugars (but not gestational diabetic) during pregnancy 2yrs ago. Meaning i already have insulin resistance, which is why I wanted to go more protein less carb approach.

When I say I eat bread all the time. It's 2 or 3 slices at breakfast. Get hungry again, sandwich or more toast. Have dinner and in evening might have more toast. This is when I'm having a non motivated day and I'm staying in the house and there's nothing else quick to have.

IcedJade

Chancer3001 wrote: »

youre going to have to prepare to avoid the crap on work days.

too easy to blame the working hours, take the easy option and go unhealthy.

invest in lunchboxes!

I'm not blaming work hours. It's the irregularity of my days. Like joining a class can't happen because one week I'm free but next I'm not.

They r the easy days for not eating crap because you eat what you bring. It's the exercise on those days I'm asking about.

Mr.Fred

Is it white bread you're eating, have you tried switching to whole meal.

Have you tried drinking green tea, it's a great antioxidant and helps boost metabolism.

Do you do any form of exercise and in your situation exercise can be considered walking up the stairs or taking a walk. Some folks are put off the idea of exercise because they think that involved running races and hours in the gym. It's all about putting in the baby steps first.

Drink plenty of Ice cold water, eat berries as a snack(I prefer blue berries myself) You can also eat nuts as snack not roasted or salted ones. They're a good source of fibre and healthy fats.

Chicken, eggs etc are a good source of protein. You will have to take a look at the portion sizes eat to the point you're satiated not stuffed.

Cut out any goodies. Make one day a week a day for a cheat meal be it a take away or a pizza or something along those lines. No point being good if you can't spoil yourself the odd time.

As another poster pointed out get a lunch box. Plan your lunches for the week and prepare them the night before. In work get a 1L water bottle and try empty/refill it every couple of hours.

It takes time to lose weight but you have to be proactive it wont fall off (I'm sure you know this) but you will get there. Set yoursellf a target have you got a wedding coming up or a big party. I want to be 17st for a wedding in Aug that's in and around 1.5llbs per week easily achievable.

Good Luck and as the saying goes. "The longest of Journeys begins with the first step."

Hullothere

Hey OP,

Just reading through all the posts, some great advice.

Just wanted to add my 2 cents, I was 19st 10lbs in Jan & have lost 2st 2lbs so far this year, so it is possible. I am following Slimming World but to be honest its not rocket science, I find SW helpful for myself as its a weekly weight in and find the structure and plan good for me, but everything that has been said on here is what I do, gotten rid of all the crap food in the house, get organised and only buy from a shopping from a list, purchase only whole foods, fruit, veg, lean protein, low fat dairy, rice, pasta etc. Now from time to time I do go off the plan, but I think you have to do this as you cant avoid nights out/meals out/weddings etc, but for 90% of the time I aim to stick with healthy eating.

I would also find it difficult to avoid bread, but since Jan I have cut bread out entirely, it is difficult, but I am the same as another poster, I cant just have one slice of bread, so just cut it out entirely. I have substituted it with rice, pasta etc, and for lunch and dinner have lean protein and plenty of veg, and a small portion of rice or potato etc. About once a week I do have brown bread which I now enjoy. SW does allow bread, but I just felt that it was a problem area for me so had to curb it, and feel a lot better for it.

I have a very long way to go I know that, but I have made a good start and I know this time its for keeps, I am very motivated and I want to do it for myself. I am not suggesting that Slimming World is the way to go, and I do appreciate that a lot of people are under the impression that people put the weight they have lost back on when they come off the plan, and as I said I am under no illusion, really all of these weight loss plans are more or less the same just with slightly different variations, but if you wanted some structure I can send you on some details of SW if you feel it would help to follow a plan.

I have also taken up a sport (well I used to play years ago but had left it lapse), and although it is extremely tough as I was SO unfit at the start, I am getting there, and with training 3 evenings a week I can already feel that my fitness is increasing bit by bit. I find walking on my own very boring, and find I cant keep motivated to do it, but with joining a sport it has a social aspect, and you dont want to let a team down by missing training etc, so find that helpful. You would be surprised that teams are glad to get new players, and you can work away at your own level.

I have been down about my weight for a few years now, and have talking about it and wanted to make a change or a long time, but once I decided to do this I feel so much better. Lately people have started to comment on the difference in my appearance which is the best motivation of all. I think if you are motivated and want to do, you can do it. As I said I have a long way to go, but after just 3 months 2 stone is gone, and you will be the same, the weight does fall off once you get started. I have learned that this is a long term process and wont happen over night, or even in a few weeks or months, but my goal is December 2013, I know if I stick with it I will be significantly lighter and slimmer by then.

Best of luck with everything, if you need any info on SW please just let me know

IcedJade

I spent, what felt like, the whole day devising a menu plan on meals I know we'll all eat. It helps that hubby is keen too. I've planned things like easier dinners on nights i'm working late.
I dusted off the exercise bike and did 20 mins.
Then went to tescos a filled my trolley with the list I'd put together. The fridge looks so good. I attached a photo. Not sure if it'll work.

Thank guys so much. Hullo thanks for posting your sw experience. I'm happy st the min but that could change. And well done you on your weight loss.

Should i worry about calories yet? My menu is all low cal but as for portion I've no idea. What size is too much etc.
With the bike I can do exercise regularly(without excuses!) How much should I be aiming for?

Ive totally left bread off the plan. Its just a trigger, i guess, for me.

maidie

Great start, best of luck, what are the breadcrumbs for?? Anyway just keep going one day at a time and you will get there

Orla K

Well done your off to a good start but I've a few things for your to consider.
A low calorie diet at this stage, esp if it's too low will lead to a binge. At the moment you'd be better off focusing on better quality food, you'll still probably lose weight doing this and it'll get in good habits before you step it up a notch and lower the calories.
The other thing is the mullar light are full of sugar and not that great, if it has any health clams on the packet it probably isn't good for you!

Good call on getting avocados too.

Magenta

IcedJade wrote: »

Hi everyone,

I am desperately over weight and finding myself on a bit of a binge at the minute because losing weight seems too hard all of a sudden. I think I would do well off wheat but LOVE bread and pretty much consume it all day long. I need a replacement for it if I'm to do well.
I've done ww and lipotrim and am back as big as ever.

Tbh the binge eating could be a psychological thing. In my experience, I get sad when I binge and I binge when I'm sad. If you're similar, definitely address those issues.

Deleted User wrote: »

Start today.

Clear your cupboards of rubbish food. All of it. Crisps, bread, cakes, cereals, ready meals etc

Yep. I don't keep any food in my house, I buy my dinner in the shop every evening and only buy what I will eat. I would literally eat an entire pack of tortilla wraps in one go if I had them in front of me. The only exception is lettuce, cucumber and the like as they are so low-calorie.

IcedJade wrote: »

I'm 5ft7 and over 19st now.
My mom and sister are off gluten lately which has made big difference to bowel health and bloating. So figured it maybe a genetic thing. I read up about it and described a mind fog. You know? A groggy clouded mind. That's me all the time.
I also had high sugars (but not gestational diabetic) during pregnancy 2yrs ago. Meaning i already have insulin resistance, which is why I wanted to go more protein less carb approach.

When I say I eat bread all the time. It's 2 or 3 slices at breakfast. Get hungry again, sandwich or more toast. Have dinner and in evening might have more toast. This is when I'm having a non motivated day and I'm staying in the house and there's nothing else quick to have.

Bread is carbs and they are less filling than protein. Try baked beans or eggs instead. If you are eating mostly carbs to lose weight you will be a lot hungrier.
Also, definitely try giving up wheat. I have IBS and my symptoms literally disappeared overnight the day I gave up wheat. It's like I've got a new stomach!!!

IcedJade

I agree with you Orla about the muller light. My hubby hasn't done as much research as me and in his egarness wanted these so I figured we'd address that later. I bought Glenisk 0% fat natural yoghurt. It was only a euro in tesco and I strained it to make it more like Greek yoghurt.

The breadcrumbs are for a large batch of black bean burgers I'm making this week. I'll freeze the extras.

I get the point about going too low cal. I won't be to rigid at first. This is a change for a lifetime of living. I'm very excited but I'm not naive. I know we have a huge battle ahead and most for me will be mental.

I have addressed the the issues for overeating/binge eating but have relied on it for soooo long that it is a behaviour I have to change. Hating the way I am was just feeding (pardon the pun!) the bad habits. So its mind over matter at the minute in order to break the cycle.

IcedJade

Orla K wrote: »

Well done your off to a good start but I've a few things for your to consider.
A low calorie diet at this stage, esp if it's too low will lead to a binge. At the moment you'd be better off focusing on better quality food, you'll still probably lose weight doing this and it'll get in good habits before you step it up a notch and lower the calories.

Do you reckon that we should eat what I'm making till we are full and let the fat that its healthier food be the change. Then when we are used to that look at refining the portions?

LeinsterDub

IcedJade wrote: »

Do you reckon that we should eat what I'm making till we are full and let the fat that its healthier food be the change. Then when we are used to that look at refining the portions?

Not if your planning to lose weight.
I'll be blunt if your base metabolic rate requires you to eat 2000 calories to maintain your weight then you can eat 1600 calories in pure butter and lose weight.

Now I'm not suggesting this is healthy in any way shape or form but you will lose.

Calories, calories, calories are all you need to think about

Sala

My tip: if you're making enough dinner to use the leftovers for lunch, portion the lunch out BEFORE you serve dinner- if it's all on the table in front of you you'll eat the whole lot!!

rubiesarered

IcedJade wrote: »

Do you reckon that we should eat what I'm making till we are full and let the fat that its healthier food be the change. Then when we are used to that look at refining the portions?

If you want to go on a short time "diet" then yes. However, if you want to change your eating habits long-term, I'd recommend eating healthy whole foods for one month (I'd be shocked if you didn't lose any weight doing this) just to get into the habit of eating healthy and then look at refining the diet re calories, etc.

Best of luck with it.

thegreatiam

dont be afraid of fat.

Lo-fat food, skimmed milk etc tend to be very high in sugar compared to the full fat versions.

Basic rule of thumb if they take the fat out they put something else in.

dietary fat (that you eat) is where the flavor lives, so if they take fat our they need to add taste. which is usually sugar.

You need some amount of fat in your diet, and if you are going lo carb then you need to raise your fat intake to compensate.

Try to avoid food which make a big deal about having 0% fat. often it is worse than the full fat alternative. A full fat natural greek yogurt will be much better choice than a muller light, add a little fruit to it throw it in the blender and it tastes much better too. Plus, they tend to be much cheaper.

Same with full fat milk.

eating whole foods which have been minimally tampered with is the real trick to eating healthy.
controlling portions is the key to losing weight.

Orla K

IcedJade wrote: »

Do you reckon that we should eat what I'm making till we are full and let the fat that its healthier food be the change. Then when we are used to that look at refining the portions?

Yep your totally right, for you I think it would help, get into the habit of eating the food that's better for you, do as much as you feel comfortable with but at the same time push yourself a little, when you feel confident that you can keep up that change with little effort than move on to the next change. Somewhere down the line of changes your going to come to looking at portion sizes, calories, macro ratio when you feel confident about the changes you've already made.
I'm just thinking it's similar to working out, you wouldn't have an unfit beginner start out doing snatches but you'd start off easy, which may not feel easy to them.

I can already see a change a change in attitude from the first few posts to the last few. Also it'll help a lot if your willing to read up info about eating healthy, there's always links to different sites thrown up around here.

Hullothere

Hey, well done on your great start made, I agree with the above, from your posts you seem more positive and determined to succeed! I also agree that you should get into healthy eating first, and then move to calories counting if you want when you are in the swing of things.

As I said I am doing SW since mid Jan so I am basically eating 3 healthy meals a day, with at least 1/3 of my plate filled with fresh fruit & veg. I am careful with carbs, but do have baked potatoes, then plenty of lean meats, eggs, fruit & veg, beans, etc and a small amount of healthy fats. On SW you are allowed syns per day, which are basically butter, mayo, chocolate etc, everything has a value & you count per day. Also I drink plenty of water, something I wasnt doing before.

I feel now that I have cracked my unhealthy eating habits, and feel like I am in a routine, with weekly shopping, cooking healthy meals, getting plenty of fruit & veg, and I feel so much better! I think getting organised is the key, having healthy food in your fridge and press, and just not buying the rubbish, if its not there then you are not tempted. Also if you know you are going to be away, or not have time to cook etc, look ahead to this and get your meals ready in advance and freeze them. There are literally thousands of recipes on line you can use and adapt, and plenty of cookbooks. I do find that i stick to the same recipes and can get repetitive, so I try to cook at least one new receipe a week, and try out different foods where possible. You dont want to get bored as you will be more tempted by unhealthy options!

I started off slow with exercise and am working my way up. Once you see the scales start to move it will keep you motivated, and now people have started to notice and mention it to me, and I have gone down a clothes size so that it great motivation. I know it sounds corny but you just have to believe that you can do it and you can stick to it, if you have a bad day draw a line under it and start fresh the next day. There is no point having a bad day and then writing off the week, or saying Ill start back on Monday, just keep going! I use the libra app to monitor my weight, and you can enter a goal and after a few entries it tells you the expected date of arrival, again something that keeps me motivated!

As many have said it is not a quick fix, for me it will take many months to get to where I want to be, but if by the end of year I am near my goal I will be delighted, and its only one year after all!

Very very best of luck with it!!

IcedJade

So our first week is over. We've done really well considering how bad our diet and habits were. I used to love to cook and food just became such an effort. If I'm hungry and need food NOW. So this past week I needed to make sure I never got hungry or let the blood sugars get low. I built in snacks after breakfast at before dinner. This helped so much because I could be rational about the choices I was making and had the energy to go cook something wholesome.

I'm on Pinterest and saved loads of recipes that someday I'd make. This week I really enjoyed making healthy food that was packed with flavour. The hits were chicken stir fry, quinoa salad and black bean burgers.

The major fail this week was exercise and sleep. I think if I get to bed earlier I won't be so tired and lay on the couch after work. That is this weeks goal.

Any idea what the balance of exercise should be to make a difference?

Any exercise. You don't need to worry about that too much about what types yet.

The sleep / exercise balance is important to resolve. While you think that sleeping might give you more energy to exercise, you'll actually be better off doing some light exercise when you're mentally tired after work.

This will help you sleep better, and the cycle will continue!

Baby steps. Say to yourself that three nights this week. Monday, Wednesday and Friday, that you'll go for a 40 minute brisk walk after work. Or a cycle, or go swimming. Whatever you have available to you really. Get some air, don't just take it handy though, you should come home flushed and tired.

Put that in your schedule now, don't have anything that can interfere with it. Just making time for exercise is tough for some people to organise. Preparing is the important part.

On Monday, when you think you're tired after work and you are having negative thoughts and making excuses, just think about how great you're going to feel on Tuesday after a great sleep on Monday night, how your energy levels will be higher, and go and stick to your plan!

You've made the biggest step already, stay on the path and you will see real improvements in your quality of life within 5/6 weeks.

IcedJade

Interesting you should say that exercising when i'm tired will help. I think your onto something here! lol But it makes sense. I'll do it this week. I'm making my plan today and then I can slot in my exercise times too. I'm saving my shopping lists and menu plans with recipes so I can rotate them. Its taking so much time planning at the minute but after a while it'll become second nature.

Emma Thank you so much for the encouragement. They are huge steps that I've taken so far. Mentally getting going and doing it definitely was the hardest. I am afraid of the motivation burning off and it just being another attempt that failed.

Emmet *

like this guy!

shortstuff!

Would you be able to fit in a brisk walk during your lunch hour? Might be a good way to fit it into day's your doing long shifts... Nice to get a bit of fresh air during the working day

Hullothere

Well done on a great start! On the exercise, I found it very difficult to get motivated too, you get home and are wrecked, the last thing you want to do is get out exercising, but honestly if you make yourself do it you feel so much better for it! You sleep better and have so much more exercise and once into this cycle you will want to exercise more and more. For me the key is to not sit down after work, get home get changed and get straight out there! Also why not download an app like Endomondo which tracks your walks, so after a week or two you will see that you are walking for longer and your speed is increasing, that is good motivation. In my previous job me and another girl used to go for a 45 minutes walk at lunch, chatted all the way around so it flew by, and when we got back had a quick lunch, would this be an option? Also if you have someone with you ye can keep each other motivated.

As I said I joined a local team and its a real help so would you consider that at all? Its early in the season so everyone is still a bit unfit. We train 2 or 3 evening a week, and although sometimes I dont want to go training I make myself go and feel so much better for it. Also you have the added incentive that you dont want to let the team down by missing training. Just a suggestion!

lazeedaisy

Hi,

I have a similar thread here http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056923025

and feel that maybe we could buddy up? at least via email? or how ever suits.

if you are interested, just PM me - we can share our experience together and maybe learn frmo each other?

Hullothere

Hey, How is this week going for you?! I recently starting using the MyFitnessPal App and find it great for keeping track of things & what you are eating, have you tried it?