Please help me - desperately need to lose *alot* of weight to have more IVF

[drowningnotwaving]

Hi guys, I don't know whether anyone can help me but I'm really desperate for some advice http://www.mumsnet.com/te/3.gif.

To cut a long story short, I was a healthy slim teenager/young adult, but piled on a lot of weight in my mid-20s due to depression. I was overweight for eight years as every diet I started I failed miserably at as, despite my depression lifting, I was still a dreadful comfort eater.

At the age of 33 I was told I needed to lose weight to conceive and I finally discovered Lighter Life - an abstinence diet which means you're on shakes and bars and don't think about food. I successfully lost 6 stone and reduced my BMI from 36 to 25. I kept the weight off for two years and in that time I had 3 cycles of IVF, the first two ended in m/c, the third I had a beautiful son who was born 10 weeks ago.

Unfortunately, I still haven't addressed my comfort eating http://www.mumsnet.com/te/3.gif http://www.mumsnet.com/te/3.gif. During the pg and since his birth I have now put on so much weight I'm back to a BMI of 35. I desperately need to lose this weight as I want to start IVF again next Spring/Summer (I'll be 37 in June). I started WW a couple of weeks ago but as usual that was a disaster, so I reluctantly went back on LL last week. However, this time round I'm really struggling to stick to it and fell off the wagon today while my dh was out.

Now I don't know what to do. LL was the only thing that worked for me. Staying fat isn't an option because I have to have IVF and having a sibling means so much to me (although clearly not enough to stop comfort eating http://www.mumsnet.com/te/3.gif). So what do I do?

I have just been researching hypnotherapy and wondered if this is something that will help me stop my comfort eating for good http://www.mumsnet.com/te/3.gif.

Has anyone else got any suggestions? Please don't just tell me to eat less - if it was that easy I wouldn't be here http://www.mumsnet.com/te/3.gif http://www.mumsnet.com/te/3.gif http://www.mumsnet.com/te/3.gif.

[belfastgirl23]

First to say congrats on your DS :)

Second I think you should view weightloss as an all out war which you need to hit on as many fronts as possible. I think hypnotherapy is worth a go personally. I used it for fear of flying and I think it did really help. three sessions cost I think £250 or thereabouts. I also used Paul McKenna's cd for a bit (am a bit of a comfort eater myself) and I also think it helped.

But I also think you need more strategies. You need to stop having comfort food in the house and stop going into any places you associate with comfort eating (I haven't set foot in one particular local coffee shop for months cos their flapjacks are addictive).

You also need to make a point of getting some exercise. I'd recommend walking for 30 mins a day. During this time you need to think about your weightloss, how much you want to lose, how long it will take and what your goals are. Visualise yourself holding your baby and focus on that. It's like a kind of meditation really. Trust me, it does help.

Sorry if I'm sounding kind of bossy and prescriptive. I find that to lose weight (and I'm currently about 12st which is a lot if you're 5.2) I have to really focus on the fact that this is what I'm doing. this time around (cos I too have lost and gained before :( ) I'm trying to focus very hard on healthy eating - wholegrains, nuts, seeds, fruit etc. I have decided I am NOT drinking (with small exceptions for genuine celebrations) and NOT eating chocolate since this is a trigger food for me. I'm also only eating cheese as part of a meal, not as a snack since again I could work my way through a block of cheese no bother. Somehow when you take them out of the equation it makes it easier, you don't have to consider whether you want cheese every time you go to the fridge. I also gave up tea because I was inclined to snack with tea. I'd advise having a good look at what your trigger foods are and think about just getting rid altogether...

Anyway don't know if it will help, this is what works for me. Half a stone down in a month which considering I'm not going hungry I'm pretty pleased about.

And don't spend too long beating yourself up about putting it all on again - believe me you aren't alone on that one...

Good luck

[Pennylane]

Congrats on your 10 week son - you must be very busy right now! Enjoy this lovely stage :j and try not to worry too much about your weight.

What about Slimming World? Healthy way of eating & losing weight.;)
Get baby out in his pram and do loads of walking - I took mine out every day whatever the weather and we all loved it.
There's a good book by Allen Carr "Easyweigh to lose weight" (see ebay)
Belfastgirl gave some GREAT advice - don't even buy comfort foods - tell yourself it's YOUR choice and you don't need them - tell hubby too and then there's no excuse to bring them through your doors at all!!
;)
Best wishes.

[glitterycloud]

Hi, i am overwieght by about 4-5 stone and will be looking to start a family in the next few years im 28. I have lost weight in the past in my early 20's with WW but due to depression and comfort eating i have put it all back on and a bit more. I am starting ww again this week but i am not telling anyone as the pressure gets to me and i usually fail. My husband isnt very supporting with healthy eating as he is stick thin and does'nt "get" me, i plan not to have bad food in the house and take some exercise on my own, he loves me what ever, which still doesnt help lol
(hubby did use to work out with me but now is too lazy to bother)
The difficult part is sticking to it but i dont want to be fat any more. I am determined to be selfish for a while and just do things for me, if i dont i will always look like this and worse if i have children without loosing the weight.
Good luck and you know if you take it day by day rather than stone by stone it will be much easier, say to yourself today its going to be like this.........
you will have a sense of achievement at the end of the day to help you with the next day ( i am going to take this advice for myself too!!!)

[Alexandria]

Have a look for Marissa Peer's book/cd on Amazon etc its called You can be thin. It has some fantstic reviews so I have just ordered it myself. It seems to use NLP language and I know just how powerful that can be so looking to give it a go.

[belfastgirl23]

The other thing I meant to add is that thinking about the big picture (ie I have 4 stone to lose) is often unproductive since the task can seem so overwhelming that you give up before you start. Focus on the fact that every lb lost makes things better. I know for myself that's easy because I have dodgy knees and ankles and can literally feel the difference with every lb - half a stone means I am walking A LOT more comfortably than I was. And my clothes are fitting a lot better.....

How are you feeling about things anyway OP?

[Saint_Chris]

congratulations on your baby son

i've tried all sorts of diets, and all the daft ones.

i have to say that the best one for me is the cambridge diet, i just love it.

1st few days are hard, but after that, hey presto it's weight loss all the way

the hard part then is maintaining the loss

but only you can do that,

[npsmama]

(((HUGS)))

you've been through so much!

I'm also a comfort eater who battles with depression and had 2 miscarriages. I haven't had any experience of IVF but have seen friends go through it and the stress seems huge.
You've lost an amazing amount of weight in the past - I wouldn't have lasted a week on a shake diet!!

I say I am a comfort eater and in depression bc for me these are long-term issues.

The thing that works for me is to follow the Slimming World plan. I go to group with my baby every week and although I still lapse I find it great. My group is very supportive and I love food and eating so it's a great plan for me. WW is too much faff for me, I don't want to have to count points all day.
I do need to lose weight but I try to look at Slimming World as healthy eating rather than weightloss.
I truly enjoy it and would recommend it. I think it's worth going to group each week - and I'm not a group/club person but it really does help a lot.

PM me if you need a chat. :-)

[drowningnotwaving]

Thank you all so much for your congratulations, your support and your advice. I was really touched.

Belfastgirl, I didn't think you were being bossy at all, and you've given me some really good tips which I have made a note of.

Pennylane, I have tried SW before without success - I just eat too much! Good luck with your weight loss though.

glitterycloud, good luck with the WW. I really would advise you to try and lose as much as possible before you try for a family - not only is it harder to get pg when you're overweight it's also a hell of a strain on your body. Best wishes with it.

Alexandria, that book looks amazing - I've ordered it. Even if I continue to lose weight with Lighter Life I still need help with kicking the habit of eating too much and bread and chocolate are two of my major trigger foods. If I can give up those then life would be much easier. Hope it works for you too.

Saint Chris - LL is the same as CD. I've tried the Cambridge Diet (I really have tried everything!) and it didn't work for me, but I know what you mean about keeping the weight off.

npsmama - thank you for your support.

I'm feeling a little better today. After I posted I had a very long chat with dh. He really wants me to continue with the LL as he knows how hard I find it to stick to any other diet - we've been together 15 years and he has seen me at all weights. I think part of the problem is that he always tells me he loves me no matter what - so I don't have that pressure to worry about. That sounds daft I know, but maybe if I knew it was an issue for him it would give me more incentive to be slim. However, he does remember how happy I was at my goal weight and he also wants us to be good role models for our little boy so he's going to do all he can to help me.

So, I'm sticking with LL for a while longer, but with loads of back up plans thanks to all you lovely people.

Thank you again.

[Birdie85]

Hi, I don't know what your thoughts on Low Carb are but it's a good diet for those who like to eat 'real' food rather than rabbit food and still lose stacks of weight.I'd recommend 'Neris and India's Idiot Proof Diet', the first half of the book is like a self-help book, focusing on why you over eat and how to treat yourself in other ways than cakes when you feel you deserve it! Even if you decide that the diet isn't for you, the book is a good read as it helps you to come to terms with your relationship with food. It was written by two women who were overweight and lost 10st between them so they know what they're talking about!For now, enjoy your DS and I hope you lose the weight you need to lose, however you do it!

[Alexandria]

My Marisa Peers book/cd arrived today so looks like we will be doing this together then! Am quite excited about it and intend to spend tonight relaxing in bed having a good read of it! Fingers crossed for both of us.

[LillyJ]

Try weightlossresources.com, it is sooo good. I use it for working out if I have eaten enough calories in the day rather than to lose weight, but a girl at work used it to lose weight and it really worked.
You can sign up for a day free trial - then sign up again the next day!
You just type in the food that you eat (it has every food for sale in the UK, own brands, branded, restaurant food etc) and it works out calories, fat content etc.
You can really see how some foods are "costly" and other foods aren't so bad. When you can see it in numbers on the screen it makes you see that that digestive at supper time is a bad idea. You can also put in excercise cals - great for me as I do lots of excercise and therefore can eat lots of food!

Might as well try it, it is quite elightening when you see how much you have eaten, and there is no calculating involved, it does it for you. It also counts portions of fruit and veg for you.

And the trial is really free - no credit card details needed.

You put in your weight, height etc and it works out how many cals you need per day to lose weight, stay the same etc.

I am fairly slim but put on weight VERY easily, and I am pretty tall so can look "big" if I'm not careful. So for me I have to be really careful and only eat what it says. If I eat too much then I put on weight. It isn't a lot of calories, but then that is what your body needs and what you have to do to lose weight (as you know having lost it before).

Is there a chance that you could conceive naturally? Because being a healthy BMI is often the trigger the body needs to conceive on it's own.

Good luck!

PS having "fun" in the bedroom is great exercise!

[belfastgirl23]

Try weightlossresources.com, it is sooo good. I use it for working out if I have eaten enough calories in the day rather than to lose weight, but a girl at work used it to lose weight and it really worked.
You can sign up for a day free trial - then sign up again the next day!
You just type in the food that you eat (it has every food for sale in the UK, own brands, branded, restaurant food etc) and it works out calories, fat content etc.
You can really see how some foods are "costly" and other foods aren't so bad. When you can see it in numbers on the screen it makes you see that that digestive at supper time is a bad idea. You can also put in excercise cals - great for me as I do lots of excercise and therefore can eat lots of food!

Might as well try it, it is quite elightening when you see how much you have eaten, and there is no calculating involved, it does it for you. It also counts portions of fruit and veg for you.

And the trial is really free - no credit card details needed.

You put in your weight, height etc and it works out how many cals you need per day to lose weight, stay the same etc.

I am fairly slim but put on weight VERY easily, and I am pretty tall so can look "big" if I'm not careful. So for me I have to be really careful and only eat what it says. If I eat too much then I put on weight. It isn't a lot of calories, but then that is what your body needs and what you have to do to lose weight (as you know having lost it before).

Is there a chance that you could conceive naturally? Because being a healthy BMI is often the trigger the body needs to conceive on it's own.

Good luck!

PS having "fun" in the bedroom is great exercise!

I've used WLR too and I did lose a lot of weight with it. Then I stopped using it - my bad :)

It does really help you to understand the relationship between what you eat and what exercise you do...why not sign up for a 3 day trial?

[LillyJ]

I've used WLR too and I did lose a lot of weight with it. Then I stopped using it - my bad :)

It does really help you to understand the relationship between what you eat and what exercise you do...why not sign up for a 3 day trial?

Sadly they have cut it down to a 24 hr trial now! :(

THere is also a great forum on there, you can post when you feel like eatin rubbish and someone will post quickly encouraging you not to!

[teaspoon1]

I was hoping you could help me, you all seem to be very knowledgeable.

I am considering hypnotherapy for weight loss, the therapist recommended 2 sessions at £50 each and said that they had a full money back guarantee if it didn't work.

Does anyone know anything about this?

I am also considering buying the Allen Carr 'Easyweigh to Lose Weight' book - has anyone read it and did it help?

Thank you.

[belfastgirl23]

I've read Allen Carr and he does make some good points I think but I don't think it had the effect on me that the smoking book did on smokers. You can see he's just following a formula in it.

To be honest if you can afford it I would go for the hypnotherapy. I've had it for fear of flying and while the fear is still there a little, it is much much better than it was. What harm can it do?

Would be really interested to hear how you got on if you do go by the way!

[grey_lady]

I've tried Alan Carr, Marissa Peer, Paul Mckenna, hypnotherapy and none of them worked for me for more than a week so back at weightwatchers but finding it much harder to stick to this time round, but at least you can eat what you like with WW as long as you dont eat to much of it, dont think i could last more than a day or two on shakes.

WW is working for me just much slower than i'd like - about a pound a week.

There's a book called the Beck Diet Solution, which i'm using
its not a diet plan though its a workbook of cognative behavioural techniques
to train your brain to stick to whatever diet your on, takes about 5 minutes a day for 6 weeks, its got some good reviews on Amazon - has anyone else tried it?

[Ted_Hutchinson]

You may be interested in my posts here (http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.html?p=15786843&postcount=536) and here (http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.html?p=15773733&postcount=532) if you want more detailed examples of the research that supports those ideas then do ask.

Similarly the science to support a low carbohydrate way of eating is considerable and growing rapidly. I personally found it extremely easy to follow this plan (http://blogg.passagen.se/dahlqvistannika/?anchor=my_lowcarb_dietary_programe_in) there are others who find they need the induction period suggested in the Atkins diet but it certainly wasn't needed for me. The main advantage I found was it cut my cravings for food almost straight away and once I wasn't craving for my next meal as soon as I finished my current meal the temptation to snack or booze was gone and therefore it was as easy as turning off a switch. I just don't eat those foods that disrupt blood glucose levels or raise insulin. The fat came off at 2.25lbs a week until I reached my target weight and I returned to having a regular glass or 2 of wine.

The only times I've cheated badly and put on more than a couple of lbs I've skipped a breakfast /lunch on a short Intermittent fast (http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/search/label/Fasting) and that has dropped the extra LB off straight away. So not only has eating this way allowed me to lose weight quickly without having to exercise but it's also kept the weight off.

I do eat plenty so am never hungry. so never need to snack between meals.

I seem to have found this way of eating more successful than some others who have tried. That maybe because I have corrected my Vitamin d status with 5000iu/daily/D3 (I've recently raised this to 7000iu/daily) 1.5g of omega 3 daily (that's 3 concentrated omega 3 capsules daily or 6 normal ones) and I take 600mg daily magnesium, I also drink Green tea as my main beverage.
All those have some impact on insulin resistance and it's raised Insulin that drives fat accumulation.

So to cut insulin you need to
1)Avoid grains (especially wheat and its derivatives), keep carbohydrate intake low for weight loss.
2)Avoid all sugar in any form (look for ose on the ends of words in the ingredients list ie fructose) except occasional fruit.
3)Exercise. ( I know I've posted a lot about not NEEDING exercise for weight loss but extra exercise is good for those who don't HAVE to avoid it)
4)Intermittent fasting. A 24-hour fast once a week is a good way to start.

[Mutter]

Hi drowningnotwaving, congratulations on the birth of your son.
Have you discussed losing weight so soon (10 weeks!) with your GP or Health visitor?
I have no medical knowledge but your body has been through a lot and hormones are probably still all over the place. Also, has your specialist
said it's ok to start IVF as soon as next Spring?
Lighter Life seems to work as total abstinence does to a drinker, or smoker. Perfectly until one lights a single cigarette, has one drink or in the case of food tastes the real stuff again.
A young person spent a weekend staying with me recently, she was on LL. I was dreading serving good food in front of her, but she didn't care. She stuck to the bowl of Veg soup and a glass of water.
Quite what will happen though, when she tastes "real food" again", I've no idea.
As for Hypnotherapy? Why not, as it seems you have an underlying issue with comfort eating.
Research a good one though, make sure they are a member of a recognised body and question them first on the phone. How long have you been practising, what is your success rate, do you offer any guarantee?
Some more thoughts on LL. I see Anthony Worral-Thompson has jumped aboard the LL wagon. He who "wrote" and sold a book on Low HG and lost loads of weight. Tart I say, like so many celebrities, go where the money is and Hell to principles.
Daily Mail carried an article on LL here,http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1085217/Dying-The-diet-craze-sweeping-Britain-allows-just-500-calories-day.html
Yes I know they love to scare us, it sells more copies, however the low calorie versus teeth health would scare me.

Oh, just a thought. How are your muscles? The more muscle, the leaner you will be. My OH started indoor rowing three times a week,4 months ago, he is only half a stone lighter, but his body is transformed. http://www.concept2.co.uk/rower/?gclid=COrp_c_39JYCFQXtlAod6GkWXw
We purchased ours when they did an interest free payment installment. Looks like that's finished.
I never intended posting so much, but good luck. I'm off to my "Body by Jake" machine and then the rower. I have 3 dress sizes to lose.

[Mutter]

Just re-read the OP.
It's admirable that your husband loves you no matter what. However, this from your OP.

"and he also wants us to be good role models for our little boy so he's going to do all he can to help me."

Drinking a bowl of soup from a packet or eating a bar is not setting a good example of healthy eating to your son.

One thing that I discovered on parenting.

We dont teach them. Our children learn by example.

For instance, I never taught my daughter to say please or thankyou and nor did I ever have to prompt her to say the same.

She grew up saying those words in context, as I'd always used them with her.

A last word DNW, promise I'll go.

Do you walk? As in precious son in the buggy and WALK. Walking not only uses excess calories but releases vital Endorphins, a stimulant that helps relieve depression and gives a good feeling.

[Idiophreak]

every diet I started I failed miserably at as


I know this probably sounds somewhat patronising, is contrary to most advice on this thread etc, but I'm surprised nobody else has said this yet....the whole idea of "dieting" is probably as much the problem as the "comfort eating" is. Just in the other extreme. Yoyoing is not the way forward.

There's no substitute for proper healthy diet and plenty of exercise - a more sensible long term solution (which I'm currently working at).

As someone else said, start by removing the temptation. Get everything bad out of the house - and get yourself out of the house, too...but away from food...if you're busy, your mind won't wander to food so much...leading neatly onto:

More exercise - use your OH's support to allow you to get out of the house to exercise as much as possible. Either join a gym or start running/walking/cycling/swimming/dancing/sports - anything that gets your heartrate up a bit for a min of 40 minutes at a time. Importantly, find a kind of exercise that you enjoy...you'll keep doing it more.

There are plenty of threads on here you can pop into for support and advice to keep your motivation up.

Nutrition wise...I started with 3 meals a day, cutting out everything else but the odd bit of fruit here and there. I try and make the meals healthy, but don't worry about it too much. I have the odd curry/chinky/meal out...If I start eating stuff I don't enjoy all the time, I won't sustain it...Sustainability long term is more important than short term gains. I try and control portion size, but again - I don't worry too much. If I fill up on, say, veg, it's a lot better than being hungry again and eating the same weight of chocolate/cake. I'm being sure to drink enough water - makes me feel full more of the time. Have ditched other drinks, especially fizzy ones...Even switching from beer to scotch is a step in the right direction (in some ways ;))

Holding to this routine, just being more aware of what I was eating, whilst upping the exercise (probably a total of 3 or 4 hours a week, initially) - I lost something like 2 and a half stone in the same amount of months. Since then, I've felt much happier with my weight, so have relaxed things a little..I have the odd mocha here and there, allow myself a pudding every day (although I don't always have it...)...the occasional beer...and I'm still maintaining my weight / losing slightly - although I now run something like 20 miles / week, as well as playing football once a week, and sneaking in golf / the odd bike ride at weekends...I guess it's an hour a day, on average, my exercise costs me - but I think it's sustainable and a price worth paying for a healthier, thinner, me long term :)

[consultant31]

Drinking a bowl of soup from a packet or eating a bar is not setting a good example of healthy eating to your son.

We dont teach them. Our children learn by example.

Do you walk? As in precious son in the buggy and WALK. Walking not only uses excess calories but releases vital Endomorphins, a stimulant that helps relieve depression and gives a good feeling.

Spot on - a healthy diet is not one where you have minimum calories. At the end of the day you can't live on soups and shakes for ever and getting back to real food could well trigger your comfort eating all over again.

Incidentally, I think it's endorphins which are triggered by exercise - endomorphins are an opiate (having just the opposite effect, lol).

[tinkerbell84]

Hiya -

I've been on the Idiot Proof Diet since January and I love it. ;)

One of the reasons this way of eating is working for me is because the book makes you address the reasons you overeat/eat the wrong foods etc. So now I know that I don't have to reach for the chocolate after a crappy day at work - it feels better not having it than the short buzz of having it (if you see what i mean).

Give the book a read ;) It helps to sort out your head before you get into the weightloss programme

[Mutter]

Spot on - a healthy diet is not one where you have minimum calories. At the end of the day you can't live on soups and shakes for ever and getting back to real food could well trigger your comfort eating all over again.

Incidentally, I think it's endorphins which are triggered by exercise - endomorphins are an opiate (having just the opposite effect, lol).
Thanks consultant31, have been back to edit.
Had you not stepped in with the correction, drowningnotwaving, might have felt very tired indeed.:D

[tsstss7]

I read the idiot proof diet - thought it was ace and then realised that I just couldn't do it ....I could eat that way for a few weeks or a few months even but I would never stick to it for ever....

I've got baby weight too and imoh now is not a good time for you to be worrying about dieting ..baby's are very hard work and when you are regularly losing sleep you will really notice it if you try and diet too much.

I breast fed which is supposed to help you lose weight but did the opposite to me LOL.

My boy is now a year old and I've just started to lose weight naturally as we are now more active together (you spend lots of time feeding and not seeming to do much when they are very little don't you) - I've also stopped most snacking - which was my downfall really as it's so easy to eat the calorie equivalent of another 1 or two meals a day just by having a few high cal snacks.

If I was you I would try to take baby steps and healthy up your life, activity and food wise, bit by bit at least while your baby is in the demanding stage eg if your usual drink every day is squash or juice and you find water too austere try to switch to herbal tea (which is nice when you get used to it my fav is grapefruit) or watered down juice (I like mine with fizzy water).

As another poster mentioned walks with the baby are great exercise and exposure to natural light during the day will help the baby sleep better at night too.

Another thing that I realised about my diet and am trying to change (although not dieting as such) was that I normally eat and am drawn to loads of carbs - easpecially when I am tired...in fact I really piled on the weight when pregnant (both times) because of this. Mostly I think because I am a veggie and carbs are just easier to get in you when you are tired and in a hurry (eg meals were often pasta/potato based with a bit of veg but often no proteins other than a bit of fat/cheese/butter). I'm now making a conscious effort to eat more proteins such as fish and pulses and have correspondingly found that I'm just not eating as many carbs as I feel more full because I'm balancing my meals better...that may or may not be a problem for you but as a comfort eater if you often graze perhaps snacks are more often than not carb based?

BTW I'm not advocating going carb free here - it works I know but it's a lifetime commitment I just couldn't make.....;0)

[tinkerbell84]

I read the idiot proof diet - thought it was ace and then realised that I just couldn't do it ....I could eat that way for a few weeks or a few months even but I would never stick to it for ever....

You're not meant to. But you don't go back to eating toast and cereal for breakfast, then sandwiches for lunch and pasta for dinner 7 days a week (like I did before IPD).

I eat an amazing range of foods now despite being veggie and almost carb free!


BTW I'm not advocating going carb free here - it works I know but it's a lifetime commitment I just couldn't make.....;0)

I'm convinced I won't ever eat more than 100g of carbs a day again (I'm on about 20g a day at the moment). Once you have the mindset you're well on the way ;)

[cupid_s]

Spot on - a healthy diet is not one where you have minimum calories. At the end of the day you can't live on soups and shakes for ever and getting back to real food could well trigger your comfort eating all over again.

Incidentally, I think it's endorphins which are triggered by exercise - endomorphins are an opiate (having just the opposite effect, lol).

Actually endorphins and endomorphins are both endogenous opioid peptides and they act on the same opioid receptors so should have similar biological effects. It is endorphins that are released during exercise though.

I completely agree with the first bit though, dieting non stop is not heathly and you can't keep it up forever. Maybe an entire change in lifestyle is needed - more exercise and not necessarily less food but more healthy food.

[firesidemaid]

just thought i'd try and help with my tuppence-worth!

i have always loved my food/drink (i am a similar age) and have never been able to lose weight until recently - i had decided enough was enough and for me i wanted to wear the clothes i liked rather than what i HAD to wear, plus there was also a health issue too.

i have just changed my mindset and gained willpower where i have never had it before, which has in turn given me some control. i am also reducing portion size (we just do not need it) and eating really slowly - it is amazing how little we actually need. i also like variety. i have lost a stone in a short space of time.

it's about eating to sustain or if i feel hungry, rather than eating for comfort etc. for example, i used to eat (and would still like to:rolleyes:) 3 weetabix for b/fast plus a couple of biscuits - now i have just one weetabix. it is much easier to control and i am not hungry before lunch. i find having an early lunch and early dinner help too. if i start to waver over the biscuits i just think 'is that biscuit really worth it?' and the answer is no!

again, lunch is a couple of ryvita with philly plus a yoghurt. or o/wise i will have half a sandwich and half a low-fat pack of crisps. make everything as yummy but as low-fat/cal as possible. just because sandwiches are supposed to come with 2 slices of bread and crisps are 30g packs, it does not mean we have to eat it all. by halving everything it means you can have a rich tea later.

i literally halve every thing/treat and eat everything slowly/nibble it. if it takes ages to eat i think that i have eaten lots! so i break my rich tea in 2 and pretend that i have 2 biscuits to eat.

but for tea i eat with my partner, i just have less and of the healthy but yummy variety - use herbs/spices etc not fats. i also have to have some choc after my meal. again i control this with half choc bar portions ie. half a twirl, one finger - i break it in half and nibble slowly with my cup of tea.

by having half of everything, if you do have a bad day and eat 2 halves at least you have only eaten one choc bar and not two!

when i go out i really like beer etc but it is full of cals, so i have started drinking spirits and diet mixers - i hate artificial sweeteners but i feel it is a necessary evil so that i can enjoy myself without the cals.

on top of this i walk as much and move as much as possible - just think every little extra move etc you do is losing you weight! walk up and down the stairs 10 or 20 times - it's free, quick and inside.

make your own yummy soups for lunches too - entirely out of veg and so good for you. also, the baby can have pureed veg when he starts eating.

i do feel for you, but you need to eat proper healthy food and address the reasons/trigger why you comfort eat. be happy with yourself and become strong by having the power to change your own weight/life.