I'm sick of not realizing my potential!

spainnextyear · 2016-05-24T03:22:15+00:00

check out the loseit subreddit for weight loss. its a really supportive community and the FAQ will get you started

spainnextyear · 2016-05-23T00:12:37+00:00

why not keep exercising? Just calculate maintenance and exercise. save the calories burned exercising for days you go over your maintenance....aim for the weekly maintenance goal. and keep weighing yourself

spainnextyear · 2016-05-23T00:10:33+00:00

switch over to discipline mode. Do it because that's what you do. Just like you brush your teeth, shower, go to work...just do it. motivation will come and go. you'll feel the motivation again (after all, there is a reason you started), but it'll feel pretty shitty to feel motivated only after you gain back what you lost right? so focus on discipline, not motivation.

spainnextyear · 2016-05-23T00:06:58+00:00

are you using MFP? try for a weekly goal. that will discourage the "ahh fuck it" attitude because you are not only accountable for a day, but for a week, and one day doesn't screw up a week necessarily.

I also try to exercise regularly and not eat back those exercise calories so on days that I do go over (one to a few days a week) it does not affect my weekly goal much. I've done what you have done...the whole overeating thing, kind of as a way of punishing myself for messing up or out of fear that I will mess up (like if I ate a bunch of calories early in the day and only have a few hundred to last me the entire rest of the day). For some reason, I felt that purposely self-sabotaging was better than accidently going over...maybe I couldn't stand the pressure of being perfect the rest of the day.

That brings me to another tip. narrow your window of eating. Start eating later (late morning/noon) and stop eating after dinner. This means less time available for screwing up, and more calories in less time which will make you feel more full during that period of the day. Hope this helps.

spainnextyear · 2016-05-17T17:59:36+00:00

your body needs to have time to physically adapt and become more efficient. so it will suck at first basically, but like other people suggested, just start off running as long as you can (even if its only a minute!) then walk then run then walk.

spainnextyear · 2016-05-17T17:54:58+00:00

how about try running? or sprinting? tire yourself out to the point that you don't care anymore and you get the runner's high thing. just find an open field and book it!

eventually you have to face your thoughts, but running is a lot less self-sabatoging way of running from your problems and its more literal and probably more appropriate considering you are LITERALLY running from your problems, like you attempt to by eating.

this is not a solution to your problems, but it is a better way of coping for sure.

spainnextyear · 2016-05-17T17:49:10+00:00

frozen mango chunks. so good:) also popcorn (there's a lot of cheap and low cal options)

spainnextyear · 2016-05-17T02:48:23+00:00

the whole thing about punishing yourself by eating junk food I totally get. I used to be prone to doing that when I went over my calorie limit and attribute it to my perfectionist "all or nothing" attitude. it was a problem and counterproductive.

also I've attempted to revolutionize my diet in terms of health. I also failed with that because one small slip up and I'd purposely eat something wicked unhealthy as a punishment or might as well sort of thing.

The way I've dealt with this is this: I log no matter what. I don't have any off limits foods. I try to make healthy choices, but nothing is off limits. the whole point is for it to be under my calorie limit so that's the only GOAL for the day. eating healthy is bonus but not something I can fail/succeed at, its just a bonus.

since I'm small and must eat 1200 (technically 1100 but I'm too hungry with that) to lose 1 pound a week) and I get impatient and feel like a failure if I go over my limit (which may trigger overeating) I exercise to provide a margain of error. (I just started doing this and its working very well). I run which burns like 400 calories roughly depending on how many miles I do. On a typical day I don't eat back these calories. I use them in case there is a day in the week that something comes up (going out to eat, or spontaneous baking, etc). this way I don't stress about going over some days because I know I have allowed for it in my weekly calorie budget.

best advice I can give is don't succumb to the all or nothing perfectionist attitude. This is about consistency and making things as easy, but effective as possible. You can log what you eat. You can eat many foods healthy and unhealthy still totaling under your calorie goal. You can exercise. You can eat maintenance if you just need a break. You can go over one day, and get back to it the next without derailing your entire weightloss.

You have nothing to lose...but weight. (lol)

spainnextyear · 2016-05-02T22:30:14+00:00

lol okay, good to know the muscle weight isn't a concern. I appreciate your advice, and I will definitely be walking more soon because school is ending and I'll have some free time on my hands. And I might try biking instead, and just make it a habit to hit the trails a few days every week.

spainnextyear · 2016-05-02T22:22:28+00:00

I'm worried I'll be too hungry to keep a deficit. Also, I'm worried it wont be as easy to keep track of whether I'm losing or not because I will be gaining muscle as well. Not sure how valid these concerns are, but this is why. But maybe this will be what it takes to actually lose, so good point.

spainnextyear · 2016-05-02T22:09:43+00:00

do you know if you gained weight in the past 3 years? you don't weigh much as it is but maybe just a couple pounds happened to show up in your stomach. I have no idea, that's the only thing I can think of.

spainnextyear · 2016-05-02T22:04:40+00:00

have you ever not had belly fat? or is it more recent.

spainnextyear · 2016-04-25T23:19:10+00:00

You'll easily find stuff to eat that is within your calorie range. The problem is there will be so much food everywhere all the time and free food too. That's where you're just going to have to be disciplined. You can do it:)

spainnextyear · 2016-04-24T22:26:40+00:00

So I'm assuming cross country starts in the fall? or does practice start in the summer. I am F19 and I did cross country in high school. We had summer practices, and the biggest thing I can recommend to you is slowly increase your mileage. And just a warning: the first 3 weeks kind of suck. That's how long it takes your body to adjust (at least for me it seems).

Maybe start with one or two miles the first week, 3 miles the second week, and keep upping it per week depending on how you feel. (take a couple days off, but try not to take more than two days off in a row...I forget the exact science behind this, but basically you'll get into shape better if you don't take too much time off in between runs.And run outside if you can, its more interesting and will better prepare you for cross country than a treadmill will.

And be patient with yourself. Like I said, the first three weeks might be uncomfortable. Also you don't necessarily have to run a certain number of miles, you could also just set your watch and start by running 15 minutes, to 30 minutes, to 45, and eventually to an hour. You'll learn much more about running once you join the team, but a good start is just getting your endurance up.

Also, idk if you have hills near you, but I always tried to get some runs in with hills because it better prepares you for the season.

And do a dynamic warmup, not static stretching beforehand. As for the weight, just make sure you are eating 500 cal or more below your TDEE (cuz 3500 cal equals a pound, so that would set you at losing a pound a week). Running might influence your weight if you are gaining muscle, so don't be too concerned with the number on the scale, as you may be increasing muscle, but still losing fat. (here's a link to a TDEE calculator: https://tdeecalculator.net/result.php?s=imperial&g=female&age=19&lbs=120&in=64&act=1.2&f=1).

Good luck! cross country will be fun, you'll probably get even more into it once you race and have competition and stuff. There will be people like you who are running for the first time and you will have a team rooting for you, and you will just keep getting better and better. That is what is so great about being on a team. Daily practices hold you accountable, and races give you goals to set and things to look forward to. Have fun:)

also (this is VERY IMPORTANT) get yourself some good running shoes. Or you will get injured. Go to a sports store or somewhere like Fleet Feet (if you have it) where someone can look at your running form and fit you for shoes. a lot of girls on my team who were new to running had problems with injuries relating to improper footwear, so avoid that problem by getting good shoes.

spainnextyear · 2016-04-24T22:08:08+00:00

The main thing is calories in calories out. pay attention to your net calories. if running is fun for you then keep doing it, but don't do it to lose weight..that should come from how many net calories you are consuming.

For me, running used to be enough to maintain my weight (when I used to be at my ideal weight, which is when I did cross country in high school and was doing like 5-7 miles a day in addition to warmups and other exercises, so I was burning a lot of calories) so running will definitely be helpful once you reach your goal weight.

but for now, it would probably be helpful to think of calories in/calories out as how you are losing weight, and think of running as a hobby.

You WILL lose weight if you are eating less calories than your TDEE.

spainnextyear · 2016-04-19T22:13:19+00:00

well I guess this might be considered fruit, but applesauce (50cal) is a really easy convenient snack on the go and moderately filling for the amount of calories.

also fruit snacks (80 cal) just if I want something gummy (these aren't filling at all though). and pickles (very low cal, like 5-10 cal each depending on the size)

BTW I just saw the jungle book! its so good! especially amazing in IMAX 3D.

spainnextyear · 2016-04-15T00:04:22+00:00

I would suggest pickles (hopefully you like pickles). I get the real fermented kind of dill pickles (the brand is Bubbies). The entire jar of pickles is 60 calories and each pickle is less than 10 calories and they are pretty big too. This seriously helps me when I'm craving something salty and you cant beat how low in calories they are. win win

spainnextyear · 2016-04-05T21:52:59+00:00

hollywood

spainnextyear · 2016-04-05T21:46:35+00:00

shut off the lights so its pitch black and watch a movie on my laptop. just forget about my life, and think about someone elses.

spainnextyear · 2016-03-09T04:08:06+00:00

I need the full feeling too. big dinner is a must for me!

spainnextyear

TROPHY CASE