I'm starting to change my life....again... for the 7th time. Hopefully this time i'll get somewhere. To clarify, I'm a yo-yo dieter and i started since 7th grade. I was about 13 years old and now i'm 21. At my highest weight, i think i weighted 210. At my lowest i think i weighted about 165. And now i feel like i'm back at square 1, weighing in at 196lb.

I tried everything i possibly can to shed these pounds but it always seems to come back on. I tried not eating. Eating nothing but veggies. Eating everything but carbs. Exercising 4 hours a day. I would do all these extreme crazy things until i would be too tired or too hungry to do them anymore. Then I would just give up and go back to old habits. Yeah, its pretty bad.

So here i am once again starting my weight loss crusade. This time i'm gonna do it right. Healthy eating habits and healthy way of exercising. And this time i'm gonna make it!

So here are my stats:

Height: 5'8
Current Weight: 196 lbs
Goal Weight :125 lbs (consented by my doctor)
Weight to lose: 71 lbs

Meal Plan:
Breakfast - Bowl of Cereal
Snack - 1 fruit
Lunch - Sandwich w/ whole grain bread (no mayo)
Snack -fruit
Dinner - Chicken or Fish & Veggies

Exercise Plan:
Mon. - 2 Hr of Basketball
Tues. - Strength training / aerobic
Wed. - 2 Hr. of Basketball
Thur. - Strength Training / dancing
Fri. 2 Hr. of Basketball
Sat. - 1 Hr Aerobic
Sun. - Pilate

My goal is to lose 1 lb every week. Which equals to 4 lbs every month. I have 71 lbs to lose so it would take about 18 months to reach my goal weight. Nice and steady. I look forward to a new and improved me by January 2008. Right on the start of a new year.

I'll be updating my progress every week. However, I will not weigh in every week because my doctor told me that I might gain some muscle and water weigh before actually losing any. So I won't depress myself by weighing in every week. I'll weigh in every month instead.

If any one has some tips on proper dieting please give me a reply. I'll be happy to hear from anyone.

Hi, and welcome. NEVER give up on getting healthy. I'm 49, and I've been "dieting" since I was in my 20s. Suddenly, THIS time, something worked; I don't know why, but it did. It will happen for you, too.

After looking at your plans, I am afraid you might be eating too little food for the amount of exercise you are planning. I'm not sure how many calories you need for your weight and activity level, but I'm sure someone here can help with that. You just make sure you are giving yourself what you need to reach your goal!

My eating habit is actually the biggest obstacle for me, not the exercise. I don't really know what is considered a good portion and after a while i always seem to be hungry. Is it normal to be hungry all the time? And what exactly should i eat so that i stay healthy and get all the vitamins and minerals that i need? Can someone help me out on this one?

Thanks silversonnet for your support.

Hi Changing
Welcome to the forum.

I have found that the best thing I could do is to keep track of my calories, (as much as I didn't want to!) By doing that, I was able to see and get comfortable with knowing what a portion or serving size really is. Surprisingly enough, a serving size is NOT the entire can of pringles like it used to be for me

Since I've been losing and watching my calories & portion size, I do find that I am hungry about every two hours. So I just make sure I have snacks (fruit, power bars, etc) with me. If I eat about 200 calories or so, I'm good until the next "meal" and I don't binge eat anymore because I haven't starved myself all day.

As for starting back at square 1, you're not. You're 14 pounds lighter then you were at your heaviest - you didn't gain it all back and then some.

As for what SS said regarding the amount of food you'll be having and the calories burned, I guess it depends on your total daily intake...but based on your current weight, you could eat 2352 calories to maintain, 1852 a day to lose 1 pound a week, and 1352 calories a day to lose 2 pounds a week - not counting your excercise. Do you have any idea how many calories your current plan will give you?

Good luck and this is a great place to start your journey!

Hi M2M

Thanks for the quick reply and the encouragement. I don't normally count calories so i'm not too sure. Most of the things i'll be eating will be prepared fresh except for the cereal so i don't really know how much calorie there is. My doctor suggested 1200 calories a day plus exercising. But i'm trying to eat in moderation. Lots of my skinny friends tell me not to eat till your completely full just about 80% is good enough. I think i'll try doing that.

By the way, I always tend to lose a lot of hair whenever i'm on a diet. Am i the only one having this problem? If any one else also have this problem let me know how to resolve it.

Thanks for the support

Years back I tried Susan Powter's Stop the Insanity diet -and it really worked while i was on it... the diet was veryhigh in carbs and very low in protein... that diet caused my hair to fall out in handfuls... it was awful... so I gave that up and gained back twice what I lost...

If your hair falls out- up your protein.. and you shouldn't have a problem -- or mention it to your doctor-I think vitmans A, E and D are good for your hair - so popping a multivitamin should also help with that.

Oh and welcome to your diary.. nice to see you here

Today i didn't do so good.

I miss my breakfast and ended eating a heavy lunch. I went to a Hawaiian Fast food place and ate barbeque chicken, pork and beek with two scoops of rice and macaroni. Thank god i didn't finish the macaroni. But still not a good idea. Now i feel bloated. For dinner today i'm gonna eat nothing but vegetables. Never gonna do that again. But damn do i feel guilty.

Ahhh, gotta hit the treadmill. I think i'll workout a little longer today. I've been so good to myself for the past few days too.

guilt doesn't burn any calories, nor is it aerobically effective... don't bother with guilt... you are aware you didn't make the best choice, so now you learned from it... what would you do differently next time? Probably have breakfast?

The mistake was made, and it really wasnt that bad, move on from it...

And have a great day

Hello and welcome to your diary!

Don't beat yourself up for slipping. Instead, take it for what it is, learn from it and move on. That's all you can do. *hugs*

I didn't think I was going to count my calories either, but then I decided to and it really really helps me. There are calorie calculators on the internet that can help you figure out what your veggies and fruit and such are approximately worth. I'll post the one I use next time I post in your journal.

Glad to have met you and keep up the good work.

Thanks Maleficent and Miss Kallie for your major support.

Next time I will definitely remember to eat breakfast. Never gonna forget that again.

Ok i know i said in my first post that i won't pound myself until after a month. But i can't help myself. A week has passed and i just wanted to see if i made any progress. One month is a long time to wait in suspense.

So this morning i decided it was the moment of truth.

And i found that i had lost 3 lbs. YEAH!! 3 lbs is a whole lot more than i expected in one week. Golly! Now i am reinspired. Gotta keep working at it.

And the best part is i get to move my ticker down.

Congratualtions on your 3lb loss!!!!!

It's a great motivator! Keep up the good work!

Let's hear a big woohoo for moving that ticker --fly little butterfly

Congratulations to you

Another week has passed. I tried really hard to eat right and exercise. Unfortunately i didn't get as much exercise as i want. There were some days when i just wouldn't budge. And i went out to eat a sushi buffet. I love sushi. I knew i shouldn't have.

All and all i lost 1 lb despite some bad days. Well next week i'm gonna eat healthier and exercise more.

a book i read recently said that if you are serious about weight loss, then you should be more specific in your goals... Eat healthier and exercise more are very vague.

How are you going to exercise more.. what are you going to do.. take a walk 3 days a week? go to the gym twice? Be specific and make your goal attainable.

How are you going to eat healthier? Pre-planning of your menus help... at least on a daily basis so you can have splurges if you know what you calorie counts are...

Good for you for losing 1 pound - that's terrific