losing weight without dieting

I have been here since august and have lost 10 pounds. But I'm not dieting. I'm just more aware, but at the same time I have not really thought about things the way I did before. I'm sure many of you have made the same connection- you lose when you eat better! Of course I exercise, use portion control. But the eating better thing was a biggie. Another thing I realized is that traditional dieting- you often eat worse. Have you seen the stuff that goes into south beach bars and all the rest?

Mon. Oct 29, 10:18am

Just like you, I have released 53.5 lbs practically effortlessly. Simply by changing my perception of what is actually food. I eat as close to the bottom of the food chain as possible. Fresh, natural, organic & free range whenever possible. No additives, preservatives, chemicals, unpronounceables, sugars, high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated anything.

These days I pretty much eat wehatever I want, whenever I want it. The differences are: I don't want the same things I used to. What I do want is fresh & healthy, and I don't want as much of it, or as often.

Feel free to take alook at my profile & logs to see what I've been doing.

workinit

Monday, October 29, 2007, 10:51 AM

Some us had to learn the hard way ;-)

Oh I started off dieting - most miserable 2 months in my life. Lost come weight too (or enough to feel like I had made a difference). Simply couldn't keep it up, was hungry all the time, cranky, got tired of always turning things down. I decided to stop dieting, but try to eat more fruits and veggies as a way of keeping the weight off. I started getting my 5-7 a day, few servings of lean protein and 2 servings of LF dairy. I figured if I cooked healthy the fat would pretty much take care of itself. Well, that's actually a lot of food. It's hard to fit in junk when you have to eat all that first, and pretty soon I realized I had lost my taste for junk. That was sort of a shocker.

Soon I realized I wasn't just maintaining, the weight was just gradually continuing to melt off. I joined a gym and started doing 45 minutes of moderate exercise every day - nothing extreme, just several miles on whatever piece(s) of equipment looked interesting. If there was a good song I'd bump up the intensity and then I'd bring it back down - or I might get interested in a TV show and wouldn't even notice the miles passing by. Gradually my body began to change it's shape, my pants drooped under my shaplier, firmer, higher behind, my thighs didn't jiggle so much, when I wore t-shirts, the arms coming out he sleeves where much thinner and the shirt no longer clung tightly to my midsection. Eventually a leaner, athletic body started to show itself.

As soon as I stopped trying so darn hard and just lived it - it stopped being work and just happened. I think the key was changing the focus from what I couldn't eat if I wanted to lose weight to what I need to eat to be healthy. Thanks OP, it was good to reflect and I understand completely where you're coming from.

Monday, October 29, 2007, 11:29 AM

Great post, 11:29! My boyfriend had a similar experience. Once he stopped eating out at restaurants and eating at home more, the weight just melted off. He still doesn't feel any loss or desire to go back to how he used to eat. Yay!

Monday, October 29, 2007, 7:21 PM

I too have lost a lot of weight by eating healthier, but I did find that I needed to measure portion sizes after years of eating huge platefuls of food. I had to reteach my body what it actually needed, and it took about a month for my body to realize that it wouldn't actually starve to death with smaller portions! But now I'm eating similar to the above posters, I'm not overly hungry, and the weight just keeps melting off. But I don't think I would have been able to do it without changing my perception of what a portion of food is.

Monday, October 29, 2007, 8:49 PM

I've just stopped counting calories after about a year of doing it. I did lose 18 lbs. counting calories...but it just doesn't feel completely right. Now, I am listening to my body. I eat when I'm hungry, stop when I'm full. I eat very healthful and I'm feeling better and better every day.

What a great post.

Monday, October 29, 2007, 11:32 PM

No more skipping breakfast and lunch.....

I have never "dieted" and rarely ate breakfast (usually just a couple of cups of coffee in the mornings) or lunch and frequently ate out. Since starting PT on 9/28/07 I have lost 8 pounds, I have not skipped breakfast, lunch or dinner and added a snack during the day. I take a multivitamin and drink lots of water every day; both things that I would always forget. I have always been active but actually added a "workout" every day also since starting PT. I stop eating when I am content and not full or overstuffed. I eat more now then I did before and am making healthier choices too. Oh! What a difference it all makes!!!

Tuesday, October 30, 2007, 2:00 AM

There is a team called Ex weigh down workshoppers that is using methods like this if you are interested.

Thursday, November 1, 2007, 12:21 PM

I was standing in Barnes and Nobles to buy a diet book and there were SO many of them. As I was contemplating what do buy, it occured to me that I know how to lose weight. I know what is healthy and what is junk. My not eating any meat, or any carbs, or whatever for the next week is not going to change how my body reacts over time. I should not cancel my vacation with my husband b/c I know that I will be tempted to eat the prohibited food.
so no more diets- just healthy living for now on!

Thursday, November 1, 2007, 1:46 PM

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