What the . . . !!!

Ok, maybe it's me, but I'm confused and a bit pissed off.  I was following the "Izzit me?" thread from Shari yesterday and it made me curious about my calorie intake on LA Weightloss.  So, I called my counselor there and found out that the plan they have me on (the Blue plan because I'm diabetic) is between 1500 and 1700 calories per day.  No wonder I'm not progressing!!  I know I should have asked sooner than my third month on the program, but I have been putting all my faith in the fact that they know what they are doing.  The reason this ****** me off is because 7 or 8 years ago I tried Jenny Craig and I kept losing and gaining the same 8 pounds over the first 3 months.  That was a 1500 - 1800 calorie plan.  When my frustration level reached its limit, I asked them to reduce my calories and they said I had to get below 225 pounds before they could do that - - I was around 260 at the time.  How the hell am I supposed to get lose 35 pounds eating 1500 - 1800 calories a day to get to the point that they would decrease my food intake!!!  And I was really workin' the plan hard - - and working out at the gym 4 times a week!!  It was like this vicious cycle that was never going to end.  I ended up dropping Jenny Craig much the same as I felt they had "dropped" me. Now I'm worried that I made a bad decision in going with LA Weightloss and shelling out over $1200 so far.  I really feel like I need the accountability of checking in several times a week, which is why I tried yet another multi-media, publicly recognized program.  I seem to gravitate towards failure and I can't get it under control!  Thinking back, the only time in my life that I actually lost a noticable amount of weight was in my early 20s when I did my own eating plan and worked out at the YMCA regularly.  I dropped 25 pounds in about 4 months and felt pretty great about it.  Now I can't even remember what made me stop and go back to the old habits...  Problem is, that was when I was young and had stamina and ambition - - and didn't have 2 kids, 2 dogs, a household to run and a full-time job more than an hour away.  Why is it that life seems to get in the way of me taking care of me??  I'm so busy taking care of everyone else that I have accepted that I get left behind.  How do you guys get past that phase?  Because I can't seem to do it.  I am so tired of being tired.  And I allow myself to get really lazy.   Sorry - I got off track there.  Anyway, now I need to decide do I just eat the $1200 and quit LA to do my own thing??  Do I get that home equity loan and have the surgery??  I'm so confused.    

That's very interesting, because I'm on a 1600-calorie diabetic food plan, and I'm losing every month so far.  It's a slow loss, but I am losing.  I guess your metabolism needs less food to drop pounds.  Good luck to you! Denise Phares P.S.  I was on LA Weight Loss in 2001, and I was losing 9 pounds a month!  And I weighed 284 pounds to start.  I guess everybody's different. DP

I am confused. You report that you are on a 1600 calorie plan, but the Rally's lunch alone that you posted was 1742 calories and 87 grams of fat-- and contained a shake and a turnover! Is part of your plan to take occasional breaks, or was that just a "bad day"?

Without you there wouldn't be a them!  You definitely need to start putting yourself first!  Be selfish for once in your life!  You are worth it!  If anything you want to leave them a good looking corpse to deal with (Just kidding)  Everyone here is beautiful....I know I've seen the pictures and unbelievable personalities everday. I work an hour from home full time, go to school part-time, have a very high energy/needs toddler/husband (two different people but one in the same when it comes to the DNA pool), house on several acres, blah blah blah (enough about me).....darlin' I'm wid ya! After much tears and some harsh words, I finally had to sit down with my family and tell them I can't do it without them.....they give me the time to exercise by taking over responsibilities......don't be afraid to ask.....you'd be surprised of how much they will participate in getting you to your goals I kinda took a short cut and am doing (its not easy--almost done though) a program similar but more stringent and lower caloried than Optifast or Medifast.....I'm on week 9 and have lost a total of 33.5 with more to go in the next couple but I am on my own after that (other than monthly check-ups)........basically I will be going from about 550 calories TO the 1000-1200 until I hit my goal.....then it will be maintenance from then on based on my needs. YEAH BABY----------TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF

Don't be too hard on yourself! I think everyone is harder on themselves than they would be on a friend.... Anywho, everybody's body is different! I know where you are coming from. In 2005, I joined the Y and was faithfully going to water aerobics 5 days a week, walking 3 miles/day  and dieting. I dropped 90 lbs. My hubby was deployed to Iraq at that time and I totally blew my diet when he came back. I got lazy after he got back and ended up having some major stress issues going on & gained 50 of that back!  Enough was enough in April for me and I decided to go at it again. At first, I was trying to stay at 1600-1800 calories and going to the gym 4xs/week, but I wasn't losing weight like I wanted, so I had to adjust my calorie intake to 1200-1400.  If you feel that L.A. Weightloss is not helping you, then don't do it. I make myself accountable to myself by keeping a food and exercise diary.  Granted my hubby looks at it, but if I cheat, it's not him I am letting down, its myself.  For those of us who have yo-yo dieted much of our lives, our bodies don't like to cooperate and each time we diet, our bodies fight us harder NOT to lose the weight than they did before. You just have to keep on trying! I know that is easier said that done, but it's worked for me.  Remember that this weight did not sneak into your bed and paste itself to your thighs, butt and tummy overnight and you certainly can't peel it back off overnight either! Keep your head up, you will succeed!

WOW!! You guys are so awsome!    I love the support here!!  I know I can vent to y'all without being viewed as a whiner because you guys have been there.  That helps so much.  I just hope I return the favor and be an inspiration to someone else someday soon. I think I'm going to do two things about this.  First, I'm lowering my calories to 1200 - 1400.  Second, I'm going to pick up my exercise routine, which so far has just been walking here and there.  This weekend my husband and I will finish the garage organization project so I can get all of the boxes out of my "exercise room" and put my treadmill and other devices in there.  Then, come Monday I am in this room -- working my fat ass off -- M-F at 4:30 am before getting ready for work!!  I'll let you guys know how it goes.   Thanks again for all the love!!! 

Babydoll...do be careful cuz of your diabetes. Going too low is not safe.  Plus, you are in my same boat, we don't really have that much to lose, it's a slow boat to China! As to whether you should dump them, that would be your decision. I personally would see it through for a while and play it their way.  As for *you time*, it is very hard, darlin, I remember those years so well. Your family does come first, but finding time to work out, even a little a day is imperative. Your DH needs to kick in, if you dont have one of those, then pay a sitter or make time for alla ya to go out and do something most days of the week.  One last thought, have you asked your doc about byetta?  Several of my diabetic pals swear by it - it helps you lose weight too!

it is definitely possible to lose weight on 1500-1800 calories for many people but it depends a lot on age, gender, activity level, muscle mass etc. 1600-1800 was my goal during my 100+ weight loss period. the difficult thing with pre-made programs is that they aren't always individualized. i have thought about jenny craig and nutrisystem a few times but i never understood why they are different from just eating lean cuisines/pakaged meals. the only thing i guess you get in the accountability of having someone to check in with. but there may be cheaper ways to get that...either way, you need to findsomething that will work for you that is sustainable - like your Y and personal eating plan that worked for you. obviously that's one of the hardest parts of JC - having to transition eventually back to normal food. if you are not progressing, there are probably several factors you could look at, including calorie level. if you lower the cals and still have issues, i'd get a professional nutritionist involved - get your RMR and body fat tested to get a more definitive view of what is going on.  remember though that healthy weight loss is 1-2 lbs a week so you have to be patient. and unfortunately, weight loss is not an exact numbers game and can be wild and unpreictable. that's just the craziness of the human body. good luck!

Well, I went for my 3rd weigh in tthis week and I have not lost a single ounce in over a week!  I'm not discouraged though.  I asked my counselor about lowering my calorie count to help me increase my loss.  She said that because I have Type II Diabetes my calorie range of 1500 - 1700 per day would NEVER CHANGE.  I was shocked!!  I said to her, "So, even when my weight drops to 250, 200 and beyond, I still have to eat that many calories?"  Her response?  Yep, due to my "medical status".   I guess I am destined to learn life lessons the hard way.  I didn't ask enough questions or the right questions before I signed up with LA Weightloss   and paid out approx. $1,200.  I'll give it a month more on the program and then decide whether to quit it to do my own plan.  I'm still going to decrease my calories and increase my exercise to see how I do. Sonja  281/279/150