Penlan's Journal, 13 February 2019

Hi, I've been a FS for 5 yrs. Not so active nowadays but still check in to remind self of the effort and commitment required to be mindful of the relationship between food and exercise. Its a daily battle for me but now I don't sweat small stuff. 10+ kg off, and determined to keep it off. FS gave me range of tools, chose things that worked. Everyone is different which is why 5 yrs of FS is just the beginning of a lifetime relationship. Good luck with your journey. 

I reached my target last March so it's nearly a year. I think if I stick to my 'have whatever I like on Saturdays only' strategy, that should work. I'll always have to monitor my weight because I have a sweet tooth and pretty much like all the things I shouldn't.  

Even though I have not reached my target weight loss yet I do believe it is sustainable as long as you don’t think it will take care of itself you still have to work on it on a daily basis like anything worthwhile does 

I agree with Ray. I haven’t yet reached my goal but I know it can be achieved. With sensible eating & exercise I don’t foresee a problem. However, my weight gain was gradual so I’m not a “yo-yo dieter”. 

it took me a while to drop the kilos. But it's not that difficult to maintain the loss. As long as you monitor your weight and continue with your new eating habits. biggest thing for me was reducing my alcohol intake. difficult at first, but surprisingly easy now  

I’ve been on FS since August last year but before that I’ve always gone to the gym and balanced what I eat (watching my calories) for me it’s just normal I love the gym always have but I don’t let it rule my life if I want a piece of cake then I have it or what ever else I may fancy at the time I just try and count it into my calories but if it goes over then so be it I just try and burn off more calories, I’m in pretty good shape but like everything else we always want to be better never satisfied so it’s probably down to vanity. I have noticed on FS since I started it seems that you get a lot of people trying to make themselves popular by getting lots of followers then you never see them again like it’s a buzz thing, me I just use the app to keep a eye on what I’m eating. 

I don't think a lot of the food we eat nowadays is really what we should be putting into our bodies. A lot of processed food, sugars and additives which we would never be consuming (or at the quantities available to us) when we were cavemen. It is so readily available as well that it is hard for those of us that struggle to avoid it. If we had to go out an hunt for an hour before eating I bet things would be different. 

Willie Gallacher it took me a while to drop the kilos. But it's not that difficult to maintain the loss. As long as you monitor your weight and continue with your new eating habits. biggest thing for me was reducing my alcohol intake. difficult at first, but surprisingly easy now Definitely agree with this. Once you use FS and realise the calories you are putting into your body and continue to use it as a tool to keep you aware, you shouldn't return to your previous weight. I guess in that respect it is a so called "constant battle" but, for instance, I know that I was drinking too much beer and it was the major contributor to my weight. Even when I hit my idea weight I will not be drinking beer too regularly again, and will have to be more disciplined with my drinking as well as consume over types of alcohol. 

Neanderthal Man or cavemen use to eat a lot of red meat raw but we eat steak rare now so we’re probably not that far away from it but everyone keeps telling us too much red meat is not good, you can still follow the the diet it’s called the paleo diet but if you look at the foods they used to eat there high in calories but what they did do was plenty of exercise ie running down (hunting) there food. Avoiding alcohol sugar etc... is a good start but what a lot of people avoid is exercise not everyone but many which is the most important thing how ever you look It food is the fuel to our natural fuel tank our belly and it has to be burn off.  

Pretty much the same as others, difference now is I’m SURE I’ll reach my goal now. 

Maybe fix a target weight you don’t want to raise above because sometimes if you don’t watch it the weight will creep up on you then you’re back to square one  

My thoughts are: For many thousands of years. humans had to work hard for the food they ate, and often food was scarce. The relatively rare times that food was plenty it was important to eat as much as possible and our bodies would store the excess as fat, which sustained us when times were hard. That's what our bodies adapted to, and we are still adapted that way. It wasn't until relatively recently, in terms of history, that for most of us food is readily available in abundance and excess. In evolutionary terms our bodies handle food in the ways that helped us to survive throughout history, but now, at least in the developed world, we have more than enough to eat. Too much food, often processed in ways that make it less healthy...plus sedentary living, equals an increasing percentage of the population that is overweight. For myself, I've been on FatSecret about 7 years. Got down to goal weight, but found maintaining at goal more difficult than getting to goal was. That's because I slacked off in doing the things I did to lose the weight in the first place. We have to remain diligent and keep on the path, at least that's what I need to do for myself, in order to keep at a healthy weight. I'm happier, healthier, and have a better life doing that so it's worth the effort...this I have learned!  

It is only in the past 50 years that food has become abundant. There are always contributory factors too. lifestyle choices are habits that people have become used to over the years, so it is not all about loosing weight. We also have facts that we are bombarded with food adverts at every turn with biased reports from research done by one company or another to support their claim that food X is good for you. Simple solutions are of course, eat less so that your gut is not over extended, exercise more, stop watching TV, Close your eyes and ears and get the correct amount of sleep, or face reality with the sure fire knowledge that you have to stop making excuses to eat so much. The common factor with people here is they are willing to try, try, try and keep trying. Most others try once, fail, then give up. 

jmb3450 totally agree with your comment. To put it bluntly as a result humanity has grown greedy and lazy... because of how we've advanced. we're our own worst enemy in a way.