My Last Chance?

[jayjay]

Ok, so here it goes.....

My problem is that I use food for comfort. I eat when I'm stressed, unhappy or just bored. The thing is, I am always either stressed, unhappy or bored. My life has become a mess. Losing control of what I eat has just made things worse.

I am in my final year of college, which is stressful in itself. I have relationship problems, bills, exams, work and my suffering health. I'm 21, I never was particularly healthy with what I ate but I was pretty slim. Now I weigh 266 pounds (19 stone). I even have hideous stretch marks from gaining weight so quickly. Those scars will always remind me of this period of my life. However, the scars may remain but I don't want the fat too.

I think if I can take control of my weight I will feel more empowered and have more confidence in taking control in the other areas of my life. I have tried atkins before and it worked, BUT I STOPPED AFTER A WEEK!!!

So here I am, my last chance? If I don't do it now I never will. Problem is I share an apartment with students, eat only take-out food and I eat lunch in college. I am full of good intentions but don't have the motivation to back it up.

What do I do?

JayJay

[Moochiecat]

I hear you about the comfort food, I know exactly where you are coming from with that, my friend. Food was my comfort, my solace, my reward, my celebration and I never really realized that until I was a few weeks into Atkins.
Once you realize what your problem is, you are better prepared to overcome it. :yes

The best advice I can give you is to prepare and plan ahead as much as you are able to.
Think about those moments when you've been on Atkins for a while, and then you make the choice to go off of it (because it is your choice, isn't it?)....what were the circumstances? Not the proper food in the house to turn to? A time of greater stress? Is it a certain time of day?

Setting yourself up for success will involve some work, but it's going to pay off big time.
Eating out a lot as a student can be a bit of a challenge, but pretty much everywhere you go, you can get a salad and ranch dressing, and grilled chicken on top. Or look for a chef's salad. Print out the Acceptable Foods list and learn to think in terms of "If it's not on the list, I don't eat it"
Think before you eat...not after. Be a conscious participant during those times when you are seeking out something to eat...be in the moment.

At times when you are feeling particularly challenged, recognize that you are fighting a battle and think "This is one of those moments that I could easily let go, and fall back into old habits...but I'm not going to! I'm choosing to do the right thing and I'm going to win this battle!!"

You have an apartment....with kitchen facilities? Use them!! Boil up some eggs and have them ready to go in the fridge. Buy veggies and ranch dressing and have them handy for snacks. Deli meats wrapped around cheese or pickles are great as snacks, and if you make a whole whackload of them and have them ready in the fridge you can pop some into a container and take with you for lunches.
Teach yourself how to cook! (this goes over like gangbusters with the ladies you know... and'll come in handy in the years ahead!)
A few minutes work a day preparing foods will be time well spent. It's an investment in your health.

Prepare, plan, and stay aware. You have waaaay more power and control over this than you realize, and I wish I had a magic wand to use on you so that you could fully realize this. :hug

[not2late]

hi.

First off, you have to sit down and really think over some things.

1. Is this a relatively "good" time in your life to add on the extra stress of a weight loss plan? Atkins is more than restricting carbohydrates. You have to exercise and develop other healthy lifestyle things as wall. So think: is this a relatively good time for you or are you just setting yourself up for another failure?

2. How much do you love yourself? Do you love yourself enough to wholly commit to a lifestyle change? Do you love yourself enough to wholly take charge? Do you love yourself enough to not let yourself down again?

3. How serious are you? Are you serious enough to spend the extra time to prepare legal foods for yourself? Are you serious enough to take a hour or so every day to get exercise?

You are the only one who can answer these questions. If you can't answer, "yes" to them. Then I suggest you hold off dieting and start working on not gaining additional weight until you can give "yes" answers.

I know, I'll have a lot of people here think I'm mean, nasty and unsupportive to write a reply like this to you. But I'm being honest with you and I don't want to contribute more to your ambivalence by feeding you a pack of false hopes and lies.

[calichick]

Hi Jay Jay,

I was doing atkins a few years ago while I was a Junior in college. It was pretty rough in the begining ... all my roomies kept "off limits" food around, midnight pizza eating, dealing with dining halls & eating out etc. Plus, no one really knew about Atkins and if they did, they certainly didn't agree with it ("How can you eat all that FAT??? It's discusting!!") So I spent a good amount of time defending myself and my new way of eating. But after the first month of ordering chicken wings instead of pizza (or only eating the topping), eating Jello w/ whip instead of cookies and ordering things in the dining hall MY way and not being afraid that the chef would raise an eyebrow, I started to lose weight and everybody shut their mouths!! :nod My roomies were so impressed that they all got aboard the Atkins train!! haha

And you know what else I found - that even though college is stressful, you aren't as hungry so you're not focused on food which frees you up to focus on other things (exams or chicks). That said, I also agree with not2late, you really have to be comitted 100% make the change. It was no small task to go up against all my roomies, and if I would have been half-assed about it, I would have been swallowed up by all the peer preasure to eat the way they were eating.

[jayjay]

Just wanted to say a quick thanks fthe support.

I really apreciate it. I think i sure must get into the right frame of mind before i start atkins again. i want to do it whole heartidly this time. Will deffo work on not gaining more wait at the moment


thanks,
J