Small things to change to help lose weight

Ok, so I am terribly overweight, DH is over weight too and we both want to and need to lose weight, but I am also almost 32 wks pg. I am ashamed to admit that I have hit the 100kg mark and I'm terribly embarrassed I have let myself get so big. I have thought of a few things that I can do for myself right now that won't make too mcuh of an impact, pg wise, but will help me at least be healthier.

Like:
No more sugar in tea/coffee. I only have one or half a tsp of sugar in either coffee or tea, and never any more than 2 cups of either a day, but it will make a small difference to cut that out.

Drink 2+ ltrs water a day. I usually do have that much or at least close to it, but I will keep track of it properly and definately do it each day

Eat the reccommended 2 & 5 a day of fruit and veg

Eat less butter on toast and bread! 1 tsp, measured is ENOUGH!! And only if I need to use it (liek for vegemite toast!) No more slathering on the butter with everything :(

No more juice/cordial. I don't drink alot of it, maybe just one glass a day, but it's something I don't need.

No more chocolate or junky foods every 2nd day! Make a day for having junk and ONLY have it that day!


Now I am not focusing on losing weight now, becuase that is just stupid and futile while I am cooking a baby. Especially at the end of a pg when baby grows so much!! But I do want to be healthier. I can't exercise at the moment since I have issues with my back and hips. I stuggle to do daily chores let alone go for a walk around the block! But at least if I ahve some control over my eating habbits again, I will hopefully find it easier to continue when I have bub.

Anyone have some more simple to do (but not huge impact) suggestions?

Hey Hun,

Good on you for wanting to make some healthy changes.
For me I found that cutting out alot of sugar made a huge difference for me. I've never been big but I lost 5 kg's just by cutting sugar out of my tea/coffee, not eating lollies, soft drinks etc. I also watered down juice when I had it, half juice half water. I was really cautious of the sugar content in foods and this really helped me but then everyones body is different. I remember seeing it on Dr Phil, his wife was saying that the spare tyre round your waist was caused by sugar so I gave it a go and lost it.
It's tough at first, because you're body will crave those things, but give yourself 2 weeks and you won't want them anymore :)
Good luck xo

to add to that I would say get a light butter, devondale do a good one

definitely ditch the juice..you wouldnt believe what you are drinking there in calories, sugar etc and buy diet cordial and thats fine to drink.

Oh and be careful eating diet foods, like diet yoghurts they can have double the amount of sugar.

Thanks girls, I do try to avoid diet stuff. I can't stand the taste of it mostly anyway, like yogurts. I don't like diet cordials or soft drinks if I do have that stuff it will be the full sugar stuff, just limited to once every few days or so. I don't drink alot of it anyway, I have water the majority of the time. Plus, I try to avoid processed stuff too, so the diet stuff is usually fairly highly processed. If I have diet yogurt, its the Jalna one...yummy! But pretty expensive, and we have a pretty tight budget at the mo!

I think you're fine to have a glass of normal cordial a day, I drink cordial now and it's not too bad, It's never made me put on weight. I just have one glass a day with dinner and drink water most of the time too. I find the more sugar you have the more you want. Don't go cutting out all the sweet things you love all at once or it will be too hard, but little things like sugar in your tea etc, slowly does it bit by bit. ANy little changes you make will make a difference.
Good luck hun, you can do it :)

I have just cut out sugar in the last month and without changing anything else in my life it has made a difference! I read "The sweet poison quit plan" and I was really inspired to make a lifestyle change and ditch sugar. It has been really easy now that I understand fully where sugar is hiding and why it is so bad for us. I would highly recommend reading it or just "Sweet Poison" - I managed to find a copy at the local library. I would also suggest that if you find it hard going to cut sugar out (I know that the tiredness of pregnancy made it really hard to make changes like this) try cutting back slowly rather than cold turkey. Just a little less in your tea, watered down juice etc until you don't need any anymore. If you are a hard core type person, you can certainly go cold turkey though! ;)

Congratulations on making real steps to develop healthier habits, you are really inspiring!

I feel inspired now too lillias!!! Being pregnant i've slipped quite a bit, sugary foods are so easy to eat when you don't feel well.
Going to have a bit of a google on that book :)

Quick question Jackrose, does the sweet poison quit plan say to substitute sugar for artificial sweetners? I eliminated artificial sweetners because of all the health concerns, I also used to get constant migraines from them.

For me it's portion sizes. You'd be amazed at how much more you eat than your body actually needs. We started Lite N Easy recently and was blown away at how much smaller everything was. For example a bowl of pasta was literally 50% than if I had made it myself. I used to eat reasonably well but just far too much of it.

So if I were you I'd think about the quantities of what you are eating. Try and reduce your portion sizes to what your body actually needs and see if that gets you anywhere.

Good luck!

Yea I heard somewhere that it takes your body 15 monutes to register that it is full, so by the time you feel full you've most likely eaten more than what your body wants or needs.

Babyluv, pregnancy has been an excuse for me too. But it shouldn't be. While I was breastfeeding that was another excues too. But I am so terribly overweight now, I just can't ignore it any more. DH is getting really tubby too and though he's a big man anyway it's just not good. My kids aren't eating well because we aren't eating well. When they see us eating crappy foods, we can't say no to them eating it too ,it's not fair, so they eat crap too. I try to make sure they have healthy beofre crappy stuff, but they're having more junk than they should and more than I want to be giving them.

:

---

So if I were you I'd think about the quantities of what you are eating. Try and reduce your portion sizes to what your body actually needs and see if that gets you anywhere.

Good luck!

---

Ohh, yes, portion sizes!! I have done L&E too, really amkes you realise how much more youeat than you should and teaches you how much less you can suvive with!

I've been using a bread plate for all my main meals, and looking at the portion sizes. Following the recommended 90g for meat and 1/4 plate for carbs and the rest fresh veg has really made a difference to our diets and our wallets!

I know this also sounds weird - but just don't buy junk. If you're wanting snacks, broccoli / carrot / celery with hommus is good, yummy and cheap!

And menu plan, menu plan, menu plan. I'll see if I can find you one of my old menu plans and send it through, it really makes a difference. For me, just knowing that today's snacks were going to be x, y & z made a difference. If you're getting nuts for snacks (or anything else) that you're buying in large quantities, then decant into smaller servings when you get home. So if you're hungry, or DH is hungry, there's just one packet / container to grab as opposed to weighing out a "small handful" cause that never works when you're hungry ;)

Good luck!

:

---

Quick question Jackrose, does the sweet poison quit plan say to substitute sugar for artificial sweetners? I eliminated artificial sweetners because of all the health concerns, I also used to get constant migraines from them.

---

You won't necessarily need to replace with artificial sweetners, and if you have such a reaction, I would definatly not. You will have to reduce sugar the old fashioned way! ;)

The plan suggests substituting artificial sugars IF you eat a lot of sugar and are really hooked - and then only as an interim measure to help you get off 'the junk'. Eg, if you drink coke or soft drink every day and it has become a habitual part of your lifestyle such as every time you relax after work or as a reward when you get the baby to sleep etc. If it is tied to your lifestyle the author suggests breaking the sugar habit by replacing that sugar drink (or food) with an artificial substitute for the few weeks it takes you to get sugar free. After about 3 weeks of not ingesting any sugar (ie in obvious sweets but also added sugar and secret sugar in things like tomato sauce, mayonnaise, some breads, spreads, cereal, juice, etc) he maintains you will no longer desire sugar as you would have broken your body's desire for it. At that time you will most likely find that the artificial sweeteners taste too metallic and too sweet and should automatically not want them. I personally did not worry about replacing sugar in my diet as I didn't eat that much of it and found my sugar was not really related to lifestyle, more just an ongoing munching habit!! I merely avoided all processed sugar and all foods with added sugar and slowly cut down the amount of sugar in my tea day by day. After about 10 days I was easily turning down tim tams, drinking tea without sugar and for the first time in ages, seeking fruit and veggies as snacks.

And that is what I have found to be really interesting! I have never dieted but have often tried to take a healthier lifestyle approach. I've stocked the house with fresh foods, thrown out the chocolate and sweets etc and attempted but have always failed. The right stuff just did not cut it when it came to satisfying a craving. I found I would inadvertently be eating sugar without realising it as an added in other foods. Reading the book really highlighted how sugar controls your food intake, your mindset and your health. Now the restocked fresh fruit and veggies are cutting it and I am finding it easier and easier to hear my 'inner voice' when it comes to food intake. It helps with portion size too. As the others have mentioned we eat far too much really and really need to cut back on portions. I always found this incredibly hard as I was able to just keep eating. Sugar does that too. It throws off your satiation point so you don't register when you are full. Plus it causes you to always have that gnawing hunger feeling, 'I'll just eat this biscuit to tide me over' sort of mentality. Once you have been without sugar for about 3 weeks (I think the book suggests) your on your way to rebalancing your inner measure of hunger and can make it between meals without the over the top need to snack, plus, when you are full, you naturally desire to stop eating.

I've been getting off the stuff since the end of October and finally I am beginning to see changes in my appetite. In the interim I kept nuts and seeds around to control those sugar cravings. It is really cool to not feel the need to have a cake with my coffee every day, to walk past aisles and aisles of sugar packed products in the supermarket and not be interested and to be proud of myself too. My eyes have also opened to how much processed sugar there is out there!! I have a whole new appreciation. I walk into a cafe and half the products are off the list for me! The glittering packets of chocolate and gum in a service station or the checkout at the supermarket look like a hilarious joke rather than a temptation, it is so liberating!!!

I'm sorry for going on a bit about this but the book and the idea of sugar free has really been cool!

if you feel hungry, have a drink of water, and then see in 10 mins or so if you are still feeling hungry..I've read/heard that a lot of the time when we think we are hungry, your body is actually trying to tell you it's thirsty. Of course since you're pg you'd still need to make sure you were eating enough for the two of you :)
I'm trying to lose all my post-baby weight and have been walking every day since she was born but hadn't lost anything. I've now cut out soft drink/juice and only have water, plus a cup of tea at breakfast. Trying to not eat horrible snacky junk food (gets hard with chocolate cravings though!), and to not buy it in the first place! DF is terrible though, he just doesn't care and will bring home whatever. Going to buy some nice fruit today so I can eat that instead of a biscuit or something else.

I'm reading the Sweet Poison Quit Plan too, sugar is my biggest, biggest weakness - I knew that for ages, but this book is a real eye-opener.

Artificial sweeteners I only use when i have to, I have gone cold turkey in my coffee, no cordial or juice at all, and diet soft drink only when I really have to. That stuff is not good for you either, but I have to break a cycle first, you know? Then I will kiss all that good bye as well.

You can get a no added sugar, low fat icecream (but it is Peter's, which is Nestle :()

I am reading more & more labels above all, it's amazing what you don't realise you are putting not your mouth (well it was for me anyway ;p)

Also portion sizes, I have huge protion sizes & this is actully the hardest thing for me to cut down, not what I eat but how much of it.

ETA - re the sugar - I had done really well at cutting it out, but after a yucky couple of days I slipped up... and it was AMAZING how much my want's / cravings for certain foods reappeared, like nothing had ever changed.
It is so so true that after a little while off it you won't miss it as much, and equally true that if you go back, the desire for certain foods will reappear.

There is a really good book called "I can make you thin" by Paul McKenna. He looks at only eating when you're hungry, eating slowly and enjoying your food and stopping when you feel full. So simple but it works so well. I lost heaps of weight that way years ago and have stayed much slimmer than I ever have been. It's not about changing your diet as such (although, he does say that eating healthy is important - which is a given) but it's more about the cognitive and emotional side of eating. It's excellent and I still refer to it even now. It's so easy to get into the habit of snacking when bored, upset etc.

:hug:

Fleur what's wrong with Nestle?

1. No softdrink, juice etc
2. Eat smaller meals more often - always have breakfast lunch and tea but make sure your having good healthy snacks in b/w - fruit, carrot sticks etc etc
3. Go for walks if you can

I'm not PG but for me right now i found i was not eating enough or regularly enough to get my metabolism working so i was storing anything i took on.
For anyone who wants to check out the Summer health challenge thread, it's not all about loosing weight, it's about maintaining goals and feeling good about ourselves.

https://www.bellybelly.com.au/forums...ge-146633.html

:

---

Fleur what's wrong with Nestle?

---

Too much for me to post here :lol:

Check these threads out

What started the Nestle boycott...and should we just get over it?

What's the Nestle "hate" all about?

HTH :D

MummaSue, that sounds like a great book, will be having a look for that!

always eat BREAKFAST!! no matter what. it fills you up for the day and stops you from picking at food all day. :)

They just brought out a study from Denmark that shows that when you eat low fat diary (yoghurt, milk, etc), the body absorbs less fat from your food, as it lines the stomach and reduces fat absorption. So add some dairy to most of your meals! (Low fat products though!!)

Also, it has been proven that soup keeps you fuller for longer, even when it has the same calories as a normal meal. So go for soup, but avoid the cream based ones!

:

---

Also, it has been proven that soup keeps you fuller for longer, even when it has the same calories as a normal meal. So go for soup, but avoid the cream based ones!

---

Oh yeah! In the first tri, I made a thin vegie soup and froze it in coffee cups, so it was always ready to go. Awesome, easy to keep down, and keeps you full for ages. Best snack ever. And a great way to keep your fluids up.

On that... water water water. I know everyone has said it, but it's key. If you're craving something in particular, drink a half litre of water (it might not have to be so much, but I can throw back water like it's a sport) and wait half an hour. Also, drink a glass before every meal, it will help you to notice when you are full.

As for breakfast - always have some protein. It gets you through for so much longer. So baked beans on toast, or eggs, or even peanut butter or cream cheese on toast. Keeps you full for ages. I can get to midday on a protein breakfast, and barely past 10am if I don't have one.

Wholegrains, of course, and low GI foods, are waaaay better than their refined cousins. Look for high fibre pasta, eat a wholegrain bread, use longer grain rice etc etc.

Use a knife and fork to eat everything - even toast. Sounds silly, but it slows you down, so you will notice if you're getting full.

If you have more than one food issue, or addiction do not try and conquer it all at once.

A wise woman said to me once... "How do you think a heroine addict would go if we told them, you can't have anymore heroine but you have to have it 3 times a day to survive."

So the best plan is to do everything slowly. Start with one habit and once you have chipped away at that one then start with the next. If you attack all at once you'll be left feeling deprived.

I swear this works, it's how I have done it and I haven't even felt the changes because they are gradual. If you were going to start exercising you wouldn't automatically just expect to run 4 k's a day... the same goes for habitual changes. They will last longer this way too because you won't feel the need to "fall off the wagon" because it is a way of life.

Wow, thankyou everyone! These are all realistic things I can do for now :D

Well, it starts today. The plan of attack is:

*Slowly does it! If I need to have a bit of a sugar hit, I will have some diluted juice or cordial. I figure that's the easiest and best way to do it!
*Drink 2 litres of water
*2-3 serves of fruit and 4-5 of veggies (I might struggle with this a little, I don't have alot of room in my tummy any more! Yesterday I went all day with just a big breaky I stuffed into my tum until dinner!)
*No more junky stuff like chocolate or chips until I think I can handle just having a normal serving (rather than scoffing a whole block of chocolate!)
*Smaller portions (which won't be a problem! I have been eating less naturally as my stomach gets less room to expand anyway, lol!)
*More healthy protien like tuna, legumes/beans, low fat dairy, egg, nuts
*Cut out added sugar and butter! No more buttery toast or sugar in tea and coffee!

That's it for now. I don't want to overload myself and get frustratedif I don't manage it all. But these things are fairly easy to start with since some of them are happening naturally anyway, as with the smaller portions! I am also drinking more because the weather is heating up, eating more fruit because it's small and my tummy can manage it. I just have to cut the junk most importantly!
I can't exercise at the moment, it is getting way too hot out here and I am starting to swell terribly in the heat, plus I have some issues with my back pelvis and hips, so can't do much at all at themo! When I can manage it I will be walking or maybe swimming though. But that won't be for at least 3ish months!

i agree with the 'taking it slowly' advice.

i've been seeing a trainer & the training side is going pretty well but i haven't really been losing weight. for the last few weeks she's had me keeping a record of food & exercise & each week i cut something out of my diet. so far i've cut out things like soft drink (i only ever had diet softdrink, but there's just no nutritional value, you know?), chocolate (has killed me!), hot chips, white carbs & a few others. by doing it one thing a week i haven't felt so deprived & i am feeling so much healthier overall.

I agree with the 'take it slow'ers! Small changes are good changes!
Don't stress about low fat yoghurt- go with normal full fat yoghurt with cultures- it'll help you stay fuller for longer and give you a good protein hit at the same time!
Go BROWN! Brown bread, brown pasta, brown rice- all have better nutrients for you and your bub and will help you stay fuller....for longer!
Veggies as snacks are my life at the moment
Capsicum- especially red is a great healthy snack you can eat whilst boosting your metabolism (ever so slighty LOL)
I haven't gone off chocolate all together- I've switched to dark- means I don't eat so much of it because I don't like it AS much, but I still get a choccy hit

And I know it's easier said than done, but don't stress, you're growing a bubs and you'll be needing the energy to take care of one too- it's a long journey puytting the weight on, and it'll take just as long to take it off- but...you can do it!

hahaha... wrote that last part as a reminder to myself as well! LOL

When you *do* indulge in something, make it something AWESOME. So if you have treat day on Thursday, for example, and this week you fancy chocolate cake as a treat, you need to make sure it is the thickest richest densest wickedest bestest ever chocolate cake. Not a stale vaguely cocoa flavoured piece of junk - you'll be left unsatisfied. Chips? Make it your favourite kind. Custard, ice cream, whatever it is, it has to be the bes knees.

Also, indulge at a time when you won't be interrupted. Take your time, and fully surround yourself with the experience. Drag it out for as long as you can - it's another 7 days until next treat day!

I only skimmed thru the other posts so dont know if this has already been said, but ALWAYS ALWAYS keep a water bottle with you. You will drink it without realising just coz it's right there! Refil it as soon as its empty, and keep ice cube trays stocked so you can always have cold water in it. On the days i have my water bottle on hand, i drink around 5L of water a day, if i dont have it i dont think i even reach 2L, and the water will keep you full between meals and give you loads more energy - it's mostly oxygen!!!

Good luck to both you and your other half :)

Redue the size of your plate, I actually eat off a small plate, I also put my cutlery down between mouthfuls.

We eat our meals around the "wrong" way, huge breakfast, medium sized lunch, dinner is small and eaten early.

I didn't have time to read the previous replies but what helped me go from75kg to 50kg was making my meals smaller, the meat portion only the size of my hand ( that's all that is recommended per meal ) and five small meals a day rather than three big ones,,,, also don't eat after 8pm, if you go to bed late or 7pm if you go to bed early....

Best of luck, it's always hard but you just have to stick with it :)

M2R - do you mean the size of your palm or the hand with the fingers for the size of meat?

I too was going to say don't eat after 8pm. Another tip is to get enough sleep - it makes a difference to your ability to focus and stay strong.

One other tip is to eat what you actually feel like eating (not just what's convenient) and enjoy every mouthful. Only eat when you're hungry - not at 'mealtimes'. :) Good thread! :clap: