Back After Several Years
 

After many years away from the forum I am back to try and lose the weight I initially lost but gained again after many personal disasters, including the loss of both parents, 1 sister, the illness of 2 brothers and mental health issues within my family.

Meals for many years where what I could grab on the go without thinking of content and clothing was restricted to comfortable and useful. But now aged 75 I am back to lose the pounds I have put back on.

My starting weight in the middle of May was 237 lbs and I am now 207 lbs. So on my way. But I feel in the need of a bit of support and to have the ability to see how others are doing.

I am going on low carb, but not necessarily no carb, as I know that if I do not have a weekly treat it will all go pear shaped and I do not want to risk that happening.

I look forward to reading other people's stories and picking up tips and hints. Thank you.

Hi there, well done for biting the bullet, rather than the bun, hee hee.

I'm on a very slow road at present. I lose weight easily until 169lb, but thereafter it is painfully slow.. I've managed to lose 1/2 a pound in the last three weeks - I am so grateful for that now.

Thank goodness for this forum. It is a great place for info and support. The friendship and support here are very special.

Good luck with your journey. :)

Welcome back!

Thank you both for you welcomes.

Kirsteen, I don't think that I could ever get down to your current weight but that's fine for me. As long as I get down to around 180 and stay there with the help of the correct food and exercise then I will be happy. This will keep my blood pressure stable and give me some of my energy back.

Welcome back :wave:

It looks like you're already off to a good start, and this forum is definitely a great place to find the help and support you need to keep it going.

Hello from Canada, Alex. There are quite a few Aussies here.

I'm a low-carb hedonist and enjoy my treats, too, though I try to keep them as low-carb as possible because I don't like that hangover feeling later on ;)

Best of luck.

I've found substitutions for what I consider a comfort food to be good for an occasional treat - things that recreate the texture and flavour without the carbs and not ultra-sweet. They are quite decadent by normal "dieting" standards but hit the spot. If I get a desire for crispy & salty, rather than diving into a family-size serving of chips or crisps, I salt & air-fry some chicken backs & legs with the skin on, eat and enjoy the skin, and save the meat for later meals and bones for bone broth. Or if I have a desire for thick & creamy, I'll buy a package of full fat cream cheeze, soften it & stir in real vanilla and a few drops of liquid stevia. Instead of pumpkin pie, I buy a can of 100% pumpkin puree, mix it up with cinnamon & other favourite pie spices, divide it into single servings of <10g carbs each, and put all but one in the freezer. Then I warm one serving in the microwave with a pat of butter and savor it. Putting my favourite full-fat blue cheeze or caesar dressing on my salad also feels decadent compared to years of low-cal, low-fat, low-flavour dieting before I found LCHF. Or making faux fettuccini Alfredo with steamed strips of cabbage for the fettuccini and Alfredo ingredients in carb-controlled amounts. All of my "treats" fall within my optimum carbs level (<30g/day and <10g/meal). These may not appeal to you, but try thinking up "legal" carb-level versions of the kinds of things you consider comfort foods. I stick to real foods, with zero to minimal processing and nothing bread-like. Because I allow myself these "treats" and could eat them every day, it puts me in the mindset of not being deprived by my WOE. I rarely actually want them now that I can have them, probably because my meals are full of protein & fat, so I'm not hungry, and feeling really good most of the time means I rarely need comfort foods. And because they are so filling and satisfying, one serving is all I want. As a former binge-eater of junkfoods & grains, this is the most incredible part of making LCHF my WOE.

Thank you everyone for your support and thank you deirdra for the hints. I can go for a couple of days and behave myself :-) but when I have a fancy for something sweet it is hard going because I know what I am like. I cannot eat one or two biscuits - I will eat 3 or 4 and then think, well they only have x carbs in so another 2 won't hurt. Then I have the taste of sugar and a couple of squares of chocolate won't hurt etc etc etc. Because of that I bought some Atkins coconut chocolate bars and eat them nibble by nibble - they are not as easy to inhale as sweet biscuits are and take longer to eat, also not as sweet. So I am getting there, but I do know that I will have to fight the sweet tooth in me all the time. What do they say? Slow and Steady Wins the Race.