I need some freakin' help!

[saintsixx]

Helloo,

First time posting in these forums, bit nervous lol. Sorry for the ramble!

So, I'm a 22y/o female at 5ft 2 and I weigh around 67 - 68kg. This is totally unacceptable for me, because it does mean my BMI is classed as overweight.

Now, I'm on JuicePlus (no trolls please), as I find I can fit it in easily around my one year old son, it's easier for me to make a shake every now and again, and grab small snacks, than preparing meals all the time - especially since he's now walking.

I actually started exercising today - which is a BIG step for me as I've got postnatal depression, and I recently found out I'm anaemic due to low ferratin levels - so I'm always tired, exhausted and fatigued.
I only did about ten minutes, because of said issue - and I'm very inactive normally, and then I smoke too which obviously leaves me lacking in breath quickly.

I drink a lot of water every day, about 2 litres if I can, and one coffee in the morning with a sugar or two, and soya milk.

Here's my problem, I just cannot stop craving takeaways! I always say "today will be the last one", but that just goes on and on and on, and even thinking about how I want to look doesn't help, I just think "Oh I'll try again tomorrow".

I need some help, or advice, or something! I used to be around 56kg before I got pregnant, and I'd love to be able to be there again, and fit into my old clothes - I know it isn't much to lose, but it feels like a huge challenge.

Thanks for reading, and sorry about the wall of text

[Mongo42]

Some quick points:

1) Diabetes research has shown that chronically elevated insulin levels can lead to insulin resistance, obesity, and type 2 diabetes. Try eating one low carb meal a day just to give your pancreas a break. It'll give your body a little time to reset and catch up.

2) Research with rats has shown that Cinnamon can reduce fasting glucose levels. Other benefits to controlling blood sugar have conflicting results in studies, but one constant is reducing fasting glucose levels. Fasting levels are important because high levels of glucose when you haven't eaten for a while can indicate diabetes. So Cinnamon is helping insulin do its job there.

3) If you have a 1 year old, then stress levels are going to be a big problem for you for about the next 3 or 4 years. Just try to not have a psychotic episode when the little darling hits their "terrible 2s". My kids were able to climb surfaces that Spider Man would have fallen off of. Stress is going to put a serious dent in any efforts to control bodyfat levels.

4) Along with stress from kids, sleep deprivation can affect fat loss. We pretty much get to sleep when the baby sleeps.

Hang in there. Pace yourself. You'll be fine.

[saintsixx]

Thanks Mongo.

I do eat a proper meal once a day, and have snacks such as couple of eggs or fruit pieces, twice a day, and I always plump out my shakes with fruit too - this morning was strawberries, pineapple and water.

He is quite stressful, he is in the ignoring me stage at the moment, and stropping!

I sleep quite well to be honest, he pretty much sleeps through - minus the odd occasion he will wake in the night for his dummy back, and now I am on iron tablets I'm feeling less fatigued than before.

Thanks for your insights!

[Xariste]

You just need to be consistent. I see lots of people advocating tricks for weight loss but the most grounded method is just reducing the calories you consume and increasing activity.
Set 3 (more or less, depending on what you're doing) days a week for exercising, at least 45min. At first it doesn't even have to be that intense, just get used to setting aside a devoted hour or so a few times a week. Schedule it like an important event that you'd feel guilty about missing.
Track your calories manually or through myfitnesspal. If you really don't want to do that, you can just eat less in general and focus your food on protein-dense sources. As far as cravings go, I'd suggest incorporating a cheat meal once or twice a week. This is basically a meal where you can eat whatever. For example, maybe dinner on Friday is your weekly cheat meal so you get some pizza or Mcdonalds that night. Then you follow your diet for the rest of the week.