Today marks 4 weeks of doing LC, and I find that I'm becoming obsessed about two things: calories and weighing. I think it's because I'm not seeing a lot of difference in how my clothes fit, like I thought I would, and that makes me afraid I'm not doing it right, stalling, i.e. "failing". Today, I caught myself writing down every bite that had gone into my mouth, and counting not only the carbs, but the calories as well.

Any advice on how to overcome this?

You have a long way to go. And at the weight you started 20 pounds is not going to make that much difference in how your clothes fit. Especially if you're anything like I was and was stretching your clothes a bit anyway.

Relax. Be easy on yourself and have some patience. It's a long hard road. It isn't easy but if you persist you'll get there. Do not count calories. Do not go hungry. The weight will come off. You need to throw the diet mentally out and eat for your health.

I don't even think I'm qualified to answer this because I do count calories and do pay attention to everything I put in my mouth. I don't think that in itself is necessarily bad. Of course I don't think I obsess about the numbers really. I just use it as a guide to help me make the best choices. However, if you are the type to obsess about it then I maybe I could make one suggestion. Put some blinders on. Don't look for big changes but look for little ones. Maybe use the tape measure once every two weeks. By the way, always measure in front of the mirror and pull snug but don't dent the skin. This is the best way to make sure you aren't pulling too tight and skewing your results. And do relax. You need to make this for the long hall. It's a marathon run not a sprint. Ya know what i mean?

Hope that helped at least some

Julie Huck
318/277.4/160

Exactly, I am starting to think I'll have to lose 50lbs before my tight jeans are no longer tight. But look forward to the day that they'll actually fall off! Right now they just feel a little less tight every time I wear them and I'll take that! Celtinore give it some time. I get feelings like this too but I just wait for them to pass. I am not eating out of control like before I started Atkins. So I see it as things can only get better. I don't count calories because I generally know the round about calories in most foods I consume, if not I check on www.fitday.com. I can be obsessive about things but my weight loss can't be one of them. I am concentrating on how I feel the knowing physical changes will come. They will for you too! Good Luck Ellen

You have to think broader then this.... I mean if you are going to be at your goal weight eventually and have the body you wish... don't you want to keep it?

This is a way of life!! You are finally allowed to eat until satisfied and no more guilt. You should be enjoying that fact and getting used to the patterns of eating healthy while still losing weight.

This isn't a quick weightloss plan - this is a healthy way to live and lose weight. Because it takes so long and your body creates so many natural stalls this is how we learn to maintain it.

You can do this!

Thanks bunches for the advice and the reminder that this is not a DIET but a WAY OF LIFE. I think I'll ignore the scale for awhile, and concentrate on building more exercise into my life! Thanks, guys!

As someone who is in your weight range, my experience is that it takes about 30 pounds to completely change a clothing size. I have some pants that were tight when I weighed 320 (size 26); at 290 I have just put them away and stopped wearing them because they are too big. Similarly, I have some pants in the next size down (size 24) that I mailed ordered when I weighed 300. When they came, they were quite tight and I couldn't really wear them. Now they fit comfortably. I expect that when I lose another 20 pounds they will be too big.

I remember years ago when I weighed in the upper 100s, I would go up or down a size if I gained or lost 20 pounds. Now that I weigh around 300, it takes 30 pounds to change a size. Based upon that, my best guess is that you need to lose about 10 percent of your current weight to change a size.

From what I have read it is about 30 pounds a size in the plus sizes and 10 to 15 in the skinny sizes. I know with me I have lost it everywhere so it took some time to see a difference. I cant remember how much though.

I doun't think that I can add much more to the good advice you've already received on this subject, but I'll reiterate from my own expereinces...

I think you're smart to watch carefully and record everything you eat until you are further along and are more comfortable with this WOE. Obsessing isn't good, but staying focused and making healthy eating a priority is good.

I don't recall exactly how long it took for me to feel a difference in my clothes, but it will happen. Rather than a quick change, allow for a slow and steady comfort in your current clothes to occur. Things that were tight suddenly loosing up and such. Changes to new sizes will take more time, but it will happen.

As for the scale, I prefer to weigh in when I feel certain there is a change. I don't know how to describe it, but some days I wake up and just know my weight is down. That's when I weigh in.

But the best advice I can give/reiterate is to be patient. Just stay the course and in another 4 weeks you'll be here recording how well you feel! And don;t forget to factor in how much more weight you would have GAINED in those four weeks....

Be good to yourself...you're changing habits that caused you to gain weight. It takes a bit of time...

Donald

Thanks! I'm finding the Fitday site really helpful -- it helps a lot to be able to see exactly where my food energy is coming from, and what I need to work on. It really is a process, isn't it? Like building a house ... a brick here, a brick there, working toward a finished product.

Great way to look at it! I would say that I am in the process of building my basement or foundation. It is truly a brick by brick process and some of the bricks I lay don't fit quit right and I have to re-lay them. But after 9 weeks, I can truly say that the foundation is becoming solid, and I don't think a tornado/donut would wreck the whole foundation now. A few weeks ago it would have, but now I am far enough along on the foundation that I am starting to feel a little more secure. Feeling like I really can finish building this. Keep building and soon we will have a temple in which we can worship our new bodies and health!

Okay, I am a cheese ball with this! Someone stop me!

Amy