Has Anyone Lost Weight Without Dieting?!

Yolina

cherryblossomzel wrote: »

But I stand by what I said: if you make the right decisions MOST of the time, then a slice of cake is not going to do any damage.

I agree. I've never been on a diet in my life, I just eat sensibly a bit of everything and that includes the occasional cake or whatever (but I do cook and bake pretty much everything so at least I know exactly what goes in it!). I'm 5'3, now in my early 40s and I still weight the same 52kg I did when I was 18.

gsymoo

After having my children I wanted to lose weight but didnt have time (or energy!) with a 6 month old and a 24 month old.

I decided to be honest with myself about what I was eating and change one thing a week. The weight came of slowly, but it also stayed off. Things I changed were -

No cheese at lunch time, to easy to make a cheese sandwich so made sure I had soup or lean protein instead.
Exercise - doesn't mean hitting the gym, just trying to be more active
Glass of wine or pudding in the evening - not both!
Always having a pile of veg or salad with every meal
Not sugary cereal for breakfast but something with slow release carbs, eg. porridge.

If I'd changed all of this in the first week it would of failed. As it was changed slowly (there was other stuff I altered as well) it worked. Some weeks, if I was in mood, I'd change two things. When the whole household was full of a cold no new change was introduced.

Good luck!

purpleshoes_2

The problem with diets such as slimming world is that it encourages people to eat smaller amounts of the junk that made them fat in the first place.

Everyone is different and no it can't be easy having conditions that make you put on weight or slow your weight loss down but I have a friend who has fibro and other issues and she's a fitness instructor. She has her good days and bad days but she rarely cancels classes.

If you need support for your OCD then try and get it. Diet coke is full of rubbish, whether it's free or not on slimming world, it's chemical laden crap.

It's not always easy when you don't have health issues either. Some people can't stop at that one slice of treat cake. Basically, it's not just what's on the outside that matters, it's the fat wrapped around our internal organs that's an issue as well.

I was almost 4 stones heavier a year ago. I cleaned up my diet, ditched low fat products. Cut down on alcohol. Reduced portion sizes. And are treats very occasionally.

Slimming world might work for some people but it can be white carb heavy and on the whole I don't think it's that healthy.

Health issues aside, it's a matter of how much you really want to overhaul your diet. I may have cut down on junk but I'm not deprived and there are other ways people can treat themselves without that treat being cake, chips, chocolate etc.

If people want the chocolate, have it, but I wouldn't reward myself by eating a slice of cake. I'd have the cake because I wanted it.

[Deleted User]

I completely agree - it fills me with horror when I hear my 'dieting' friends talking about eating 'light' yoghurts and packet noodle things in a cup just because they are 'free'! They may be low in calories but they are full of artificial chemical additives and aren't good for your health! Then they say they can 'reward' themselves with a hideous pink wafer biscuit because they have been 'good'.

In the end, a healthy diet which means eating food in as natural a state as possible and regular exercise is the only thing that will release you from being a slave to the scales and constantly having to plan your food intake. And I do speak from experience. Like most other women my age I tried all the normal 'diets' but it was only when i changed my eating habits totally and took up an exercise regime that I could stop having to constantly utilise 50% of my brain worrying about my weight and what I was eating.
(And I eat chocolate occasionally too!)

Anoneemoose

purpleshoes wrote: »

The problem with diets such as slimming world is that it encourages people to eat smaller amounts of the junk that made them fat in the first place.

Everyone is different and no it can't be easy having conditions that make you put on weight or slow your weight loss down but I have a friend who has fibro and other issues and she's a fitness instructor. She has her good days and bad days but she rarely cancels classes.

If you need support for your OCD then try and get it. Diet coke is full of rubbish, whether it's free or not on slimming world, it's chemical laden crap.

It's not always easy when you don't have health issues either. Some people can't stop at that one slice of treat cake. Basically, it's not just what's on the outside that matters, it's the fat wrapped around our internal organs that's an issue as well.

I was almost 4 stones heavier a year ago. I cleaned up my diet, ditched low fat products. Cut down on alcohol. Reduced portion sizes. And are treats very occasionally.

Slimming world might work for some people but it can be white carb heavy and on the whole I don't think it's that healthy.

Health issues aside, it's a matter of how much you really want to overhaul your diet. I may have cut down on junk but I'm not deprived and there are other ways people can treat themselves without that treat being cake, chips, chocolate etc.

If people want the chocolate, have it, but I wouldn't reward myself by eating a slice of cake. I'd have the cake because I wanted it.

Thank you! This is exactly my thinking. I do get help for my OCD and it doesn't rule my life as such but it does mean I tend to overthink everything (including 'diets'). I also find my OCD goes hand in hand with perfectionism which explains my 'all or nothing' approach.

Re: the fibro and exercise - I know that movement is good for the pain which is why I enjoyed swimming. It is the post exertional malaise that really affects me more. It is awful. I literally crash energy wise to the point I have to lay down for hours. It also makes me very tearful when I am feeling so low and drained - the total opposite of how exercise is supposed to make you feel. Before anyone says depression, I only really get like this after any exertion. As I mentioned earlier, it can get so bad that I lose days to my bed! The example I gave of having to lay down after taking a shower is a good one.

I have always been active until the onset of the fibro symptoms a few years ago. I swam, gymmed, ran around with the kids etc and was always a size 12/14 which was comfortable for me.

I suppose I just want to find the right thing for me.

Anoneemoose

victoria61 wrote: »

I completely agree - it fills me with horror when I hear my 'dieting' friends talking about eating 'light' yoghurts and packet noodle things in a cup just because they are 'free'! They may be low in calories but they are full of artificial chemical additives and aren't good for your health! Then they say they can 'reward' themselves with a hideous pink wafer biscuit because they have been 'good'.

In the end, a healthy diet which means eating food in as natural a state as possible and regular exercise is the only thing that will release you from being a slave to the scales and constantly having to plan your food intake. And I do speak from experience. Like most other women my age I tried all the normal 'diets' but it was only when i changed my eating habits totally and took up an exercise regime that I could stop having to constantly utilise 50% of my brain worrying about my weight and what I was eating.
(And I eat chocolate occasionally too!)

Thank you too! I totally agree with the whole 'low fat, sweetener laden' thing which made me actually reluctant to join SW again. I just got desperate!! I also used to only drink water really but have noticed since I started the diet coke/pepsi again, I just want more and more.

This thread has shown me that the people who have stopped counting carbs, calories, points etc and just eat a bit of what they fancy now and again, but as a small part of a wholesome diet, are happy and healthy.

Thanks again!

Yolina

I've always refused to touch the reduced-fat-replaced-with-some-other-rubbish stuff. If I'm going to eat some cake, then I'll bake it anyway so proper butter and all however I put less (real) sugar than recipes state as I'm not used to overly sugary stuff. I've never put sugar in my tea or coffee and don't like Coke and soft drinks. Same with salt, I barely use any and don't particularly like crisps and stuff like that.
My parents and grandparents always cooked and baked, so to me ready-meals and supermarket cakes taste, erm, not great. We also always had water and soft drinks were only a very occasional thing.

Edit: I also do not own scales. I can tell if I've put on or lost weight by my clothes, in which case I'll just hop on the gym scales. I was 52kg at 18, still am 52kg at 42... biggest variation over the years has been +/- 2kg so neither here or there really.

YORKSHIRELASS

Hi, I can sympathise. My teenage son has Crohn's Disease (with OCD too btw) and he tells me that when he feels rubbish he wants to eat rubbish! When you are trying to manage a chronic illness its harder for you because of whats going on with your body.

I know everyone has their own view on this but I dont believe in diets and I dont believe in cutting out or banning certain foods.

I do think its important to have a balanced diet with 3 meals a day and nothing in between, other than maybe an odd piece of fruit. Cook from scratch as much as possible and try to limit the amount of processed food, caffeine and alcohol. Keep it simple.

As for exercise, just do what you can. Can you manage to take your daughter swimming? Splashing in the water with her will be good for you.

trailingspouse

That's interesting - the idea of craving rubbish when you feel rubbish. My OH has been a bit under the weather this week - gastric flu. When he was starting to get his appetite back, what he really wanted was a can of coke, and a cup-a-soup with white bread. This in a house that only stocks wholemeal and where the soup is always made from scratch!! I did manage to find some coke - left over from last Christmas!!!

Rummer

Please will someone who is following a sensible approach define what they mean by occasionally when it comes to eating unhealthy foods? This is always mentioned in relation t dieting but is so vague. What do you actually mean? Weekly, monthly, every few days????