One month on, one month off? UPDATE @ post 24

[allye]

I totally agree with SpottyDoris and was about to post something similar.

Your responses sound very much like you are trying to disguise this decision as an excuse to cheat. I'm sure the majority of people here who have struggled for a long time with their weight will understand; it is so easy to find excuses to avoid something or self sabotage for whatever reason (for me, it was being afraid of not liking myself slim, or not being able to reach an 'acceptable weight' and putting off getting to that point).

If you want this diet to work for you, you have to stick with it. Maybe spend the time you are on the diet reassessing why you crave carbs so much - you say you aren't hungry so the craving is an emotional one. Wouldn't it be great to beat that and never have to feel like you just had to have that bowl of pasta/sandwich/bag of chips to make you feel better after a bad day?

Personally that is the hardest thing for me on this plan, I am a total carb craver and if I could, would eat an entire loaf of bread on a bad day if it didn't make me sick! But I have recognised that that is not a healthy attitude and need to address that.

I do wish you the best of luck, but remember, only *you* can do this, and you are the only person you are accountable to. :bighug:

 

[Lord LuLu]

I think eating carbs is a mistake - particularly if it's down to "I fancy pasta and tomato soup rather than low carb"... which is essentially a craving and probably the reason you've eaten what you fancy until now, and have 50lbs to lose. It mustn't be about what you feel like, but what your body needs to be healthy and lose weight (if that's your goal).

Sorry to sound brutal - I've been exactly where you are, and my advice (like absolutely everyone else that has replied) is this won't work and will set you back... but you already know that, because you've done low cal/low fat and you're in this position.
Spotty xx

Trust me, carbs as in pasta and tomato soup weren't the reason I gained weight - a combination of steroids and chinese/Indian/KFC/chocolate etc in mahoosive (and I mean mahoosive!) quantities were what caused me to pile the weight on.

As you say, I have done low fat/low cals in the past and the reason that I am in the position I am in now (ie obese) is not that it didn't work but that I simply didn't stick to it for much longer than a month! I came off the 'diet' and went back to my old ways - this is what I'm determined to get right this time! I don't class eating a low fat/low calorie diet as cheating

I totally agree with SpottyDoris and was about to post something similar.

Your responses sound very much like you are trying to disguise this decision as an excuse to cheat. I'm sure the majority of people here who have struggled for a long time with their weight will understand; it is so easy to find excuses to avoid something or self sabotage for whatever reason (for me, it was being afraid of not liking myself slim, or not being able to reach an 'acceptable weight' and putting off getting to that point).

If I was looking for an 'excuse to cheat' I would be cheating today, seeing as I have already made the decision to try 4 on/4off - the very fact that I am continuing until I have completed 4 weeks of Exante proves to me that's it's not an excuse to cheat! What's better 4 on/4 off (as in low cal/low fat)... or six on Exante then crack and gorge myself with takeaways?

Like I said, I promise to post the results - good or bad and then you can all say I told you so. I will be a month further on but will already have my Exante so will go back on it and never mention low fat/low cal again

 

[renekot]

I do agree totally with all that the others have said but the ultimate decison is yours to make. l am waiting to see the results of your outcome.

 

[Lord LuLu]

As promised here's an update....

Well, I hate to admit it but it seems that you were all right!

I came off Exante and stuck religiously to a low fat/low cal diet (around 1200 cals per day and no food with a higher fat content than 5%). I somehow thought that my low fat/low cal would counteract the fact that I was eating carbs again but No!

I put on around 5lbs in the first week, now I know this was down to carb regain but nonetheless it was extremely demotivating and caused me to think 'well, if I'm putting weight on AND eating healthily' then I may as well eat some naughty things too and put the weight on! I didn't give it a full month of low fat/low cal, as I had intended to, as I don't want to risk putting more weight on.

I realise that when I get to goal weight I will regain some carb weight which I'm fine with but I have an issue with regaining carb weight when I still need to lose weight. Soooo, back on Exante as of the 1st Feb

 

[Alex_1978]

Good on ya for coming back to update this thread Not many people would've had the guts to do that, unless they were coming back to tell everyone how brilliantly they'd done.
And well done for doing something about the gain before it turned into anything major.
Good luck for your re-start
x

 

[Mia]

I agree with Alex. Well done for letting us all know how it went, not many people like admitting they are wrong so goon on ya'.

Well get back on the wagon and the weight will begin to drop off. Good luck and stick in

 

[skupio]

I feel your pain. I also love my carbs. My diet before I started this consisted mainly of bread, potatoes and pasta but I am going to do it properly this time.
losing this weight is important to my health and as I'm getting married this year I want to look my best as well as perhaps starting a family later in the year.
I'm doing TS at the moment and have set myself a goal of 1 stone from now, where i'm going to see how I feel but I think i'm going to go onto the WS. Weight loss will slow down but it will still be coming off. I'm going to stick with this until my flab has gone and then it is NOT coming back.
I have already started compiling a list of recipes that are low carb that are going to be my staple diet once i'm off the diet as I don't ever want to be this big again.
Set yourself some sort of goal and stick to it.
If you think you're going to cave in then have a slice of ham and glass of water. Don't reach for the pasta or bread.
Good luck!

 

[DustQueen]

Good luck with the restart x

 

[Lord LuLu]

Mini update: Of the 6lbs I gained when I came off Exante to try healthy eating... I've lost 8lbs - in just 5 days

 

[DustQueen]

Mini update: Of the 6lbs I gained when I came off Exante to try healthy eating... I've lost 8lbs - in just 5 days

Wooooo hoooooo!!!