8 Years ago I was 270 lbs (M, 6'1", 49yo now). Not long before that I'd had a much more active lifestyle but always have struggled with weight. Around that time I stopped walking daily due to some changes in my social life, and also settled into a more sedentary job. Over time, my job has changed from classroom teacher to a district level administration, where basically I'm sat in a desk 8-9 hours a day and don't even have time to walk around for more than just a few minutes at lunch. I'd like to also blame a rough case of Covid for reducing my endurance. But looking at my weight chart honestly, that could simply have been coincidental with reaching a critical point on weight.
As of August of this year I hit my highest ever weight at 307. Currently I'm sitting at 291.
I have tried "eating better" many times which can be seen in my weight chart, it's not uncommon that I would drop 10 or more pounds, but then put it back on. Typically I would eat better, then the school year would start, work would get busy, life would intervene, and then I would be "too busy" and starting eating fast food again. Preparing food for a single person is a royal PITA when you're in a rush and looking for quick food.
My major issue, like a lot of people, is I cannot be trusted when hungry to make good food decisions. When I am hungry, and especially if I'm tending toward a hypoglycemic drop, I will chow down on whatever I can get the fastest, and have a hard time estimating portions. Not to mention if you buy fast food or restaurant food, it is never portioned reasonably.
I tried earlier this year a service which delivered fresh ingredients and I cooked them at home. That was great except for 2 huge problems. As soon as my routine changed briefly, and I didn't have time to cook, I went right back to easy/fast. Getting back on the "I'm spending 2 hours prepping/cooking/cleaning" train didn't happen. Yes the meals advertise "20 minutes to prep and cook" but that is always a lie. It's faster to hit up Whataburger on the way home.
So now I'm back at it but this time I'm tackling it more from the "convenience" side than from the "eat better" side. From this viewpoint I signed up for Nutrisystem a month ago. I'm on week 3 and have been very satisfied. They sets a calorie goal and then provides prepackaged meals and snacks at appropriate portion sizes. Going from "I don't eat breakfast because I don't want to eat too much, and I only eat 2 big fast food meals a day because 3 will make me fatter" to "I'm eating constantly but in very small portions" is taking a mental adjustment. I really feel like I'm eating a LOT more than I did - because it's 150-200 calories at a time instead of 1400 calories or more per meal. And suprisingly, I am NOT ravenously hungry like I have been anytime I try to use fasting, or eat "rabbit food" that some people push for diets.
I feel like this can work. It's easy. It's convenient. If I get off the wagon all I have to do to get back on the wagon is right in front of me as the easiest option, not something difficult.
As a lot of you know, when you go on a diet, there are naysayers around. I've had family/friends who maybe think they're being helpful essentially try to derail the whole thing. Things like "Yeah that's too expensive, you can meal prep and save money" or "Can't you just buy all that stuff at the store"? They don't get that I cannot be trusted with food. One of the issues I had when I was cooking from meal kits is the smallest portion sizes they sold were 2 servings. I bought plastic containers thinking "Ok, I'll save the second serving for lunch" and no, I would eat both servings in a single meal. Didn't help that freshly cooked food often wasn't designed to freeze and keep. If the food is in front of me, I eat it. Therefore I need to make sure that when I go to the pantry or fridge, the package I pull out and open is something that I don't have to trust my hungryassed self to stop halfway through. Because I won't.
The great thing with this is if I eat something and think "Ok I could have more" I just tell myself "2 hours, then you can". Not "Tomorrow then you can". That's doable.
It seems to be working. I've lost the "easy" first 10 lbs and it looks like weight is going down by decimal points now, but 2 lbs a week seems realistic from what I'm seeing. I'm supposed to be eating 1600 caolories, but I find some days I even have to eat extra just to get past 1400. So, I think I can do this as long as the "fucking hungry" mode stays away.
Wish me luck bros.
(weight chart 2015-2023) https://i.imgur.com/43EuyPD.png
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from loseit - Lose the Fat https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/18lwuvr/getting_serious_can_i_lose_the_last_8_years_of/
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