Giving up.

[needapushgirl]

Hey guys, Im 17 years old and im super insecure about my body. I feel overweight walking down the halls at school. I tried only eating three meals a day no snacks and no pop/juice only water. ive been making my step count everyday and im seeing no results. Im 200 pounds and extremly upset about it. Everytime i feel as someone is judging me i break and go back to the junkfood. Anyone  have tips? Help i need you guys..

[Natty1230]

Hey! I don't think you should give up so soon. I know it's easier said than done but it's going to take some time for you to see some results. Please don't be offended by what I'm about to say because in no way shape or form do I mean you any harm but you have to realize it took some time for you to gain the weight so it will also take some time to lose it. BUT if you stick with it I promise you will see some results and feel better in the long run. As women, majority of us are insecure about onw or more thing on our bodies. I personally am working at flattening my stomach but it seems like the hardest thing to do. You should try "clean eating", it's really effective and is a healthy way to eat and it doesn't limit you like most diets do. I would also recommend the "whole30" as well, it's pretty tough but it helps build habit plus if you like to cook it's a fun way of creating meals around what you can eat. Well I hope you stick with your weight loss journey and don't let a day or two of weakness stop you from a healthy lifestyle.

[reuel]

just last night i watched a Tedx Talk video that said "stop focusing on your goals, and start focusing on the behavior you need to achieve your goals."

it does make sense because a lot of our goals, we really have no control over them; what the scale says, people's comments, the way our body looks, etc.

and if you keep on focusing on the reward, you will just get burnt out - like what you are feeling now. these things take time, and sometimes they may not even show the results we expect. if we work just to get a reward, we won't get very long because "rewards" have their own timing, and they usually do not agree with the times that we need it the most.

i suggest you not to give up. you are young, your metabolism is faster than most of us here, you have free time. and if you give up now, you will be back on this path anyway - unless you want to die early a few years down the road.

a few suggestions though, do not deprive yourself. when you deprive yourself you will feel depressed and miserable. eat everything you like but log them in over MFP or loseit. that way you will know whether the calories are worth whatever it is you are eating.

i wish you luck. btw, i was also a fat kid. i was the bench mark of fatness in my school back then. i first lose weight through martial arts. i did not think of losing weight, i just trained cause i was getting ready for a fight against a bunch of guys. the fight never happened. i lose a lot of weight (80 lbs! lol) without noticing it. so i guess it does make sense to "not focus on your goals" ...

[BurdsNest]

Like I said....never give up.  You are much more important than that.  Marathon....NOT a sprint.  Slow and steady wins the race  I know I'm sprouting out lots of sayings, but keep them in mind when you want to give up or throw in the towel.  You are not in a bubble.  All of us here are striving for the same goal, at different points, sure, but we are all in this together.  🙂

[Shortsbysummer]

Like others have said, take it slow, so it stays off forever and becomes a lifestyle change.  All the magazines and tv shows talk about people losing it fast, but most of them gain it back plus more.  At 17, you are still growing and you don't want to mess around with that by having a poor diet.  Do you have a support system through friends or family?  Is your family on board with making some changes and supporting you?  When I was a teen I managed to switch my family from 2% to skim milk, white bread to whole wheat, less fatty foods, etc. small things but they make a difference over time.  Are you invoved in a sport or other daily physical activity?  Getting active every day keeps my cravings in check.  I've finally returned to exercise after a long time away.  It's been 10 days and I'm not even craving the junk I used night-eat.   6 small meals a day, or 3 meals and 3 snacks is better than the old "3 meals, no snacks".  I find the best snacks are 1 fruit/veg + 1 protein/carb (cottage cheese & tomatoes, peanut butter & apple).  Never ever skip breakfast!

Tosca Reno has some great books about Clean Eating, recipes, exercise ideas and they are sensible.  I also listen to Fat2FitRadio podcasts while I workout, you can download them on iTunes.  They have an excellent website with advice from a personal trainer who is very into research.  Unfortunately they aren't making anymore podcasts but their website is great for tools and info.  Good luck!

[SunsetRunner]

When exercising, but sometimes not feeling up to it, don't force your wonderful body to do more. It's a sign your body needs to rest (can be several days) and muscles can recover, grow stronger.

Don't see as a diet, rather changing food habits (eat more food which are nutritient rich, contains less calories overall but our bodies feeling satisfied for longer). While having anything else in moderation, there's no need to forbid any food, when craving for a piece of chocolat for example, allow to have some with care. Eating slowly, just for the taste (if not being really hungry)..

When our weight decreases, slowly our energy we need daily decreases as well.. (our bodies require less energy to move with carrying less and less.. body fat..).

Listen to your amazing body when feeling satisfied and use the food plan as a guidance (food habits), when not feeling hungry and the food plan says to eat x hundreds calories more, it's perfectly possible our bodies are satisfied with much less and have all nutritients it needs.

It's not only the calories that matter, but also the quantity (nutritient wise), which food makes us feeling the most satisfied in the moment, and our internal hunger feeling (am I truly hungry, feeling satisfied? feeling eaten to much? (stuffed?), am I eating just because the food plan tells to eat more but actually not hungry at all?).

Honor your body by not eating more when not being hungry. Eat slowly rather than quickly to feel being satisfied quicker and having more bites / taste from the same food. Possibly leaving food left on the plate, opposite to faster eating and not feeling satisfied yet, but the plate can be empty instead, taking more food (at for example dinner), this can lead to feeling stuffed afterwards..

When feeling (uncomfortably) stuffed, it means having eaten to much, aim to eat until satisfied, not stuffed.

When listening to our bodies, not eating out of boredom / loneliness.. eating mostly nutritient rich food, while having anything else in moderation, our bodies naturally revert to the weight range they are most happy at.

It's possible to log food, use the Aria Scale to know where your body likes to be and if weight loss comes from body fat rather than muscles,..

To see a trend over time with https://trendweight.com (weight, body %, body fat mass, lean mass).. instead of a daily measurement (can go up or down by even a few percentages: body fat.. due natural fluctuations).. when used to check the trend, rather than the daily number.. it's a awesome way to check when getting leaner..

Weight for example can stay about the same.. or just a little of weight loss.. looking further there can be lots of body fat mass loss, however the weight loss in body fat can have been compensated (mostly) by a increase in muscle mass, while there's actually not much weight loss in weight itself, but getting leaner.. and that's a great sign.

Enjoy

[ksiz1966]

You could check out flylady.net for some positive motivation & what they call fly washing. Removing the negative thoughts & replacing them with positive thoughts. I know it's tought, people can be really cruel & motivated by their own jealousy. I recently started going up & down the stairs at work & someone reported it to my boss & I was told I can't use those I have to go out in the hot shop to excercise the stairs. Everytime I get upset about the thought I just have to think to myself how sad it is for them to be so jealous, but it's probably a better workout for me.

Kathy

[ksiz1966]

I was just thinking about these things today. I've been basically trying to eat probiotic food, organic farmer's market food, nothing packaged or processed & the little meat I do eat from a local farm & grass fed. It's been almost a year & I still have a protruding stomache. I'm hoping with the motivation of the fitbit I'll start moving more & hopefully fix that part of my problem.

Kathy

[ksiz1966]

This is very sound advice.

Kathy

[Mcore]

Hi there @needapushgirl! You are such a brave and beautiful girl, it's a shame that others find satisfaction in making other people feel insecure, frightful or even intimidated. What you need to keep in mind is that if you go back to the junkfood, you are giving them more power or saying, Ok, you guys win. Don't allow this to happen, show them what you are made of, show them your girl power and fight back by taking care of yourself. You can do it! 

I wish you the best!

[bklynite]

You might need to focus on why you want to lose weight in the first place. Walking down the street, the halls at work or even in line at the checkout I feel fat because I am. However, I don't hang my head. I want to be healthy for me. People will always find a way to belittle or demean you, if you let them. Make a goal for yourself and say I want it. The compliments and jealousy will come but so what. If you live your life on the whim of the non essential person in the hall or in the line, it will truly be a life most miserable. Live for you!!!!

[EdsonFitbit]

@needapushgirl It might be a good idea speaking with a nutritionist to start a food plan. It will be better getting the advise of a person that has experience recommending what you need to eat to start loosing weight on a healthy way. You can make it! You are strong enough to reach your goals! All of us trust in you!

[Giftie]

@needapushgirl add me as a friend. I've been where you are. At 15 I was already 200 lbs. I increased my weight until I was 24 because I didn't know or think to create a support system of just positive people that knew a lot more about the journey than I did. Three marathons later I'm still working on giving up bad habits. It literally is going to be a journey but YOU HAVE COME TO THE RIGHT PLACE! There are so many people on here that offer encouragement, inspiration and the right tools that you need, all you need to do is remember this: keep coming back.

When I was your age I would try to diet, try to eat all the right things, and the second I messed up I did exactly what you did. What I had to do was to find my triggers. At first when I ate something I didn't feel I was supposed to, I just gave up with the mentality of "Well I blew it, might as well eat some cake and ice cream now."

But that isn't the answer. Get on here and find one easy recipe. Go home and take the time to make that recipe. Get comfortable with that healthy recipe. Once your ready, get a couple more. Get snacks that you like that you can reach for when your triggers hit. (mine are the cool little cheese wedges, oranges or bananas and these awesome KIND bars they have now)

For exercise, start with walking 30 minutes a day at least 5 days a week (you can break it up into 10 minute intervals at different times of the day if you want.)  It will be hard at times, but trust me, if you stick with us here you are going to be so happy you did.

As far as results are concerned, don't look at the scale, don't rely on any of that for now. For now make it your goal to be consistent. Consistently make better food choices so you can eat more than three meals a day (I eat 5 or 6). Consistently get 30 minutes of activity in so that it becomes part of your routine. Throw the scale out the window for now! Make up in your mind TODAY that your in this for the long haul and that giving up is NOT an option! Make that decision again every morning before you even get out of bed. It is empowering. Write it on a piece of paper and put it on your ceiling so its the first thing you see if that's what it takes. Before you realize it you are going to be on your way to reaching your goals, but the battle starts in your mind.

Let me tell you we are ALLLL insecure about our bodies, the people here are just ready to do something about it. Congratulate yourself for being one of those people! Replace the negative self-talk that tries to creep in with one or two simple phrases. One of them should be I AM BEAUTIFUL. It sounds silly and you might think it won't work at first, but stop yourself. Look at yourself in the mirror and say I AM BEAUTIFUL. If you don't believe it repeat it until you do! You are your own worst critic and your best motivation. Choose to be your best motivation everyday.

I'm going to be part of the many people here available to support you, all you have to do is continue to log on.

I'll be looking for you.

[Mcore]

Very inspiring post @Giftie, thank you for sharing your story as well. You are right, we all have insecurities but the important thing is doing something about it and change what we don't like. I congratulate you on your achievements and your motivation.

Keep up the good work! 

[EdsonFitbit]

Great words @Giftie! Very motivational. Keep up the great work! 

[juliagrant_]

I'm 16 and feel the same way! It's so hard to get into shape, but you just have to remember that getting fit is 80% diet and 20% exercise. Be sure to eat lots of fruits and veggies (about three times more veggies than fruit), and foods in high protein like lean meats. Don't give up so soon! You can do it, even if it doesn't feel like it right now.

Eat some snacks to get you through the day (make sure it's healthful!). I prefer Kind bars or a piece of fruit around 11 and a small smoothie at 3 or 4. I promise you can make it through, and when you've met your goals, you'll look back and thank yourself that you kept going. I'll add you and maybe we can help motivate each other. 🙂

[HelenaFitbit]

Excellent advice @juliagrant_! I am sure @needapushgirl needed that push (pun intended) 

Healthy eating and exercise are very important to achieve your goals; also never forget to love your bodies and treat them right since they are the only ones you've got 

[mail_debaser]

Great advice here. Just wanted to add, the whole 'three meals a day' thing shouldn't be an aim at all. It's better to have multiple small snacks throughout the day to maintain your energy (fruit, nuts, popcorn), then later have a healthy dinner (salad, veggies, fish, chicken). This will make it so you're never famished, as you'll constantly be feeding your body good nutrients, so should lessen your desire for large meals a 2-3 times a day. Also, drink plenty of water. Your body will retain when it doesn't regularly get the nutrients it's needs. For example, when you consume more water, you'll lose water weight, because your body wlll learn it doesn't need to retain as much, because you keep inputting that H2O, etc...
That's why diet sodas are horrible. We crave a soda, when the body wants sugar. BUT, diet sodas contain a substitute, so never really satiates that want. It's better to have one soda with sugar, than multiple cans of diet.

And, understand muscle weights more than fat. Don't watch the scale and use that as the sole determinant of your progress. Work on walking for time. not for speed or distance; those will come as you continue to progress.

But please, don't give up. Many many people have been in your shoes, and succeeded. You can too!!!

[Mcore]

Well said @mail_debaser, you have a good point here! Thank you for sharing your comments.

Have a great day!

[Mcore]

That also helps @splatz. I wish you the best!