Whats the best way for me to lose weight?

Question

I have tried weight watchers before and it worked but the weight has gone back on. Now if I try and do weight watchers I get bored and give up. I only seem to lose weight now if I am really happy and I have been dealing with depression lately so been overeating. I really want to feel good about myself again and get my energy back. Please advise!

Answer 1

Some of the answers here are ridiculous, and a few are downright dangerous. To lose weight, don't go on a diet, and for heaven's sake don't take any weight-loss pills or some of the other junk that people here are suggesting!! Diets are a TERRIBLE way to lose weight -- most people who go on them eventually gain all the weight back they've lost, and then some, and I'm sure that's a trap you'd rather avoid as you've already experienced it with Weight Watchers. Losing weight is deceptively simple: consume fewer calories than you expend, and get some exercise to keep your metabolism up. Buy yourself a pedometer (a device that measures how many steps you take in a day) and resolve to work your way up to 10,000 steps a day. Make this a part of your lifestyle, not just something you're going to do for a while. Eat smaller but more frequent meals, with portion sizes no larger than your fist. Increase your intake of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains and greatly reduce your consumption of fats, processed foods, sweets, and alcohol. Finally, be PATIENT -- you should lose weight gradually, maybe a pound or two a week at the very most.

Have a great new year!

Answer 2

You will lose weight if you follow any sensible diet correctly, but once you finish your diet and go back to your normal eating habits the weight will return. Therefore an actual diet is only a short term fix. To lose weight and keep it off successfully then eating has to become a whole new way of life, full stop.

However, first of all you need to try and deal with your depression. Is your weight gain part of your depression? If so you'll be eating because your depressed, then you're depressed coz you've eaten, etc,etc. Have you spoken with your doctor? If not then do so. Tell them everything, warts and all, just bite the bullet and do it. You've got nothing to lose if your already on a downer.

Next, get out and do some walking. This does actually help with depression too as well as being a form of exercise. Start off with walking 10 mins any where, in any direction. Then obviously you have to walk the 10 mins back - 20 mins exercise done without thinking too much about it. Do this 3-4 times a week and gradually build up your time. You'll soon start to see an improvement with your mood/outlook and your weight.

Weight watchers, slim fast etc. recipes are effective and easy to follow. Everyone gets bored with then from time to time though, so treat yourself a little at weekends. Don't go mad, but don't give up on them completely either.

Stick with it and good luck.

Answer 3

Firstly, the most important thing is your health. Seeing as you have been going through depression, I think that that is the point that you should tackle first. I have and am still battling depression, so I understand how you feel. Go and see your doctor, always try seeing a counsellor before taking medication. You'll be able to find out the root of unhappiness and the true reason for why you want to lose weight.

Unfortunately oragnisations like Weight Watchers due seem to drag and aren't really a long term fix. Try joining gym, like Curves (only for women). 30 mins, 3 times a week. You'll feel like your doing something to lose weight and eventually you will, while staying physically fit. I would recommend it to you.

Most of all, make sure that your health and well-being are put first. After all, they are the most important. Don't give up whatever you do, keep your head up...

Answer 4

If you are depressed and eat more, or do not exercise because you get bored doing it, you may need to get into a buddy system.

Some people do better on diets and lose weight if they are doing this with another person...a friend or family member that you can share the burden with. They can get you through the rough spots when you are tempted to eat more than you should, or can encourage you and push you to go out for a walk or get on your bike or stairmaster when you really did not feel like doing it.

Another way to do this is to get your own exercise equipment and set it up next to the TV. A lot of people will sit down and watch a half-hour or hour long show while sitting on the couch munching. That is not helping. Instead, get on a treadmill or stationary bike, turn up the volume and just start walking or peddling during that show. Do this once a day and you will be healthier and happier.

If you are disrupting other people who are watching or do not have expensive gym equipment, try doing some aerobics, sit ups, push ups, or other exercise moves in between the commercials. Every time a commercial comes on, you just stand up and start doing a rigorous workout for the 2-3 minutes on that channel. You then relax and watch the rest of the show as soon as it comes back on. You will get a approximately 17 minutes of workout in a one hour show, and the frequent rest periods in between will actually help the body continue to burn off fat.

Of course, most diets are not helpful if you then stop them and return to your old ways after you've lost the weight. Diets are meant to lose the initial pounds, but then you must continue a regimen of healthy eating and exercise to keep the weight off.

And remember not to starve yourself. You think by not eating you would lose pounds, but your body actually reacts in the opposite manner...It thinks you are going through a lean period and tries to store more of the fat when you get less food so it can make up for the low intake. Small meals with a variety, and staying away from deep fried foods and soft drinks will help enormously.

Answer 5

Apart from the usual eat sensibly and exercise more try getting a group of like minded friends together and a set of scales. Weigh yourselves and keep a record of your weight. Do the same each week. Those who maintain the same weight put 50p in a box. Those who gain weight pay £1. Every few months blow the kitty on a slap up meal with the one who loses the most weight eating for free. Its good fun and cheaper than weight watchers.

Answer 6

You will get a lot of answers to this question, and some will be factual, and some will be mean or funny.

If you are serious about losing weight, then you have already made the biggest step! Wanting to change is the first step on the path to change!

Forget diet pills and other quick-cure remedies. You will lose lots of money, and self respect, when they fail.

There are two proven methods to losing weight, and they work BEST when used in tandem, hand in hand.

Diet, and exercise!

Both are difficult even for people who dont have weight problems. But, the good news is, for people who are overweight, even modest changes in diet or the start of a basic exercise program, can have immediate and good results.

Consult your doctor before undertaking any serious change to your diet, or starting an exercise program.

Join a free support group, there is safety in numbers, and you will feel more reassured when you are around others in the same situation! You can research support groups in your area by performing a simple seach in Yahoo or another web search engine.

Good luck!

Answer 7

Two things have worked well for me. The first was Body for Life, it is an incredible program that is diet and exercise (nobody's favorite weight loss advice) that is actually pretty easy to stick with once you get going and once you commit. I did it for 6 months and it took me over 2 years to gain back the weight I lost once I stopped.

Another book that worked well for me, but it is hard to stick with, but I have to say after the first week, I felt like a kid again. The Fat Flush Plan. It is more of a detox book than a weight loss book, but the idea is to flush your body of toxins. I know that is still a bit taboo, but I promise, you will feel fantastic, especially if you are a woman.

Answer 8

Try adopting the Mediterranean diet that is full of lots of fruit and veg, oily fish but little red meat and sugar.
We came to live in Spain about 15 years ago and naturally stared eating the local produce and over time, without even really trying, my weight just dropped off and stabalized at a very reasonable 8st. 7lbs. something it hadn't been for years.

Answer 9

Eat a balanced diet, with the reccomended daily amounts of ALL vital nutirients such as protiens, carbs, fat and sugars.
Couple this with an active lifestyle which includes regular exercise and you'll be fine.

Also, ENJOY your food - the flavours and textures. Try new foods and don't be scared of learning more about them. By that, I don't mean the science of it but the culture behind it. In other words, be a foodie. If you enjoy your food and savour it, then your attitude towards it will be healthier. But do all this in MODERATION (there are, afterall, plenty of thin food critics). Treat yourself but don't go overboard. Keep to your RDAs.

An most importantly, don't rely on plans and sciences. Just eat sensibly.

Answer 10

You are an emotional eater and if you don't fix that, your weight will always go up and down. Everyone should eat to live and not live to eat. You have an eating disorder (you don't have to be anorexic, bulimic or obese to have one). You are an addict. How about trying Overeater Anonymous? Everyone there has been were you are. They can tell you how they get through good times and bad without turning to food.

Find a meeting near you:

http://www.oa.org/all_about_meetings.htm