Hello, Last year I managed really well for the 12 weeks and then carb and treat creep has just been growing. I am my own worst enemy now and struggling to start again, I am self sabotaging. Does anyone have any ideas of how to do the headology so my critical voice doesn’t win. Thank you in advance.

Hi Beattie, just try to remember how you did it the first time round. I am coming back to it after quite a weight gain and I am easing myself into it slowly. Started on Thursday, ate perfectly but had a couple of wines and have still lost 2.5lbs. That just proves this works so tomorrow is a new day so lets start together and do this properly again. My one tip for myself is to have a menu planned and everything in I need and nothing that I dont need. Eat something different every meal every day. Tomorrow I am having miso chicken soup for lunch and a mince mix (bolognaise style) and on Tuesday Spanish chorizo soup for lunch and chicken stuff with pesto wrapped in parma ham. Always enjoy the variety so I never feel like I am on a diet. Plenty of planned for snacks (I am diabetic and need to eat) and lots of lovely water with lemon or lime slices. Good luck.

Thank you I think I do fail at planning so will give that a whirl. Hopefully get through today without hiccups

Hi Beatrice – planning and recording everything is useful and another tool might be to making it a rule not to write off the day if you slip up, just get right back to doing what you know you should.
And of course, everyday is a new beginning, so don’t waste energy beating yourself up if things have not gone so well, as this just feeds negativity. Forgive yourself for being human and forge ahead. You know you can do this and we know you can too.

Hi Beattie I have had a week off of plan and have not been weighing or measuring. Today it all stops and I have started my TRE again. I ate last night by 8pm and have had nothing since. I am waiting until 12.30 to eat brunch then I will eat my supper between 7-8 tonight. Plenty of water for me today as well as two long dog walks. We can do this and we are all here to help you and everyone succeed. Sunny is right it is a new beginning and can’t waste it by beating ourselves up❤️ Instead let’s plan what we want to eat within the BSD and put it into our apps and see how we fare.👏🥰. Best of luck Birdy💞🦜

Some people find it easier to focus on the many nutrient dense wholefoods they can and should be eating – albeit in moderation – rather than being super rigid about the foods they cannot or should not be eating.

So try to eat as many food groups/ types as possible, and a variety within each of those groups/ types. For example you might focus on eating the full rainbow of vegetables and fruit (blue/ purple, orange/ yellow, red, green) and/ or try to include a couple of options from each ‘family’ (cruciferous, berries, squashes, alliums, leafy greens, legumes, roots).

HTH!

Thank you for some good thoughts to get me started again. I hope to get started and get myself sorted. Thank you again

Hi Beattie,
You need to get your mojo back, like sunshine says. Have a good think about what made you succeed before. I think it’s easy to start following this woe because most of us experience high loss in the first few days. This is, of course, very motivating. When the scales go down our moods soar. You’ve clearly got willpower and all the tools to continue since you’ve done it already for 3 months.
Remember how pleased you felt and stop dwelling on the last few weeks. You can do this!

Planning definitely helps.

You mention treats being a problem. They don’t have to be. There’s a thread here on non food treats, so have a look at that and reward yourself in ways other than eating.

Hi Beattie, how has your week been. After one week of reboot I have managed to drop 1.5lbs although it was 2.5lb until I opened the wine at the weekend. This week is week 2 and I have realised I have gained 11lbs since Xmas. So, keeping on keeping on I am 100% back on plan. Shout up if you have any questions and I am sure I will be making some mistakes I thought I had sussed so will help me to reboot.

Hi there,
Just thought I’d weigh in here (groan, no pun intended)

The headology has cursed me time and time again. I am 56, and a high achiever from a very dysfunctional family. I have appallingly low self esteem – and had anorexia as a teenager (Dr threatened to section me unless I started eating) and then bulimia because it was cleverer and you could do it on the quiet. When I was young I stole food, etc, etc, etc.
I made a problem out of my weight and my looks and told myself I wouldn’t find love until I was thin. My family were happy to help me make a problem out of my weight because it explained away all sorts of dysfunction in their relationship to me, for which they were responsible.
I told myself my weight was the problem because it deflected the truth – that I was so screwed up I was unable to form loving, equal relationships.
So, it was easier to have a weight problem and hanker after unattainable men than it was to look at my family’s role in screwing me up.
Cut to many years, and several therapists later and I am now at my heaviest ever, married very happily to a former fighter pilot. The girl done good.
However…..the headology is only starting to fall into place…..

I overeat to tell my family that I can have what I want, when I want, if I want.
I overeat to tell my family that they are wrong about me and I am right
I overeat because I was taught, or experienced, no other way of self soothing
I overeat because I’m damned if they’re gonna be right about eating less and exercising
I overeat because I want to punish them
I overeat to rebel
I OVERATE because my father was so overbearing having a sex-life would have been unthinkable.
I could go on.
I had to admit was I WAS WRONG.
I’ve had a teenage, juvenile, hurt toddler attitude to food all my life. It wasn’t my fault. Food was the only thing I had and I had to admit that food for me, played a similar role in my life as alcohol to my alcoholic father.

So, I was wrong. Became aware of the attitude. Dropped the attitude and am now 10lbs lighter in three weeks without even wanting to self sabotage.

Don’t wait till you’re 56. Be gorgeous, mended and brave now!

Hi, Thank you all sooo much I have read and digested ( no pun) all your posts and have hopefully got myself into a better place. Thank you thank you.