I have been using Dietbet for a couple of years now. I've won some, lost most. But this year, something is clicking with me and I decided to join the Transformer since I'm going on that path anyway.
Here's the thing and the difference I'm finding.
First, I lost 40 lbs a few years ago after I had my son. I used weight watchers. I got down below my pre-pregnancy weight but the lowest I got was 172. I got so many compliments that I kind of got complacent and within a few months was back up to the mid-180s. Hmmm. And then lost and gained the same 15 lbs for a couple of years.
This year, I started tracking with Myfitnesspal on January 4 and haven't looked back. Something has clicked and finally gotten through to my thick skull. Weight loss is not easy. It's not fast. There is no quick fix.
Looking at a healthy weight loss of 0.5 to 2 lbs a week has been working for me. I've lost 14 lbs since January 4 and am 29% of the way to my goal of 150.
I have no grand expectations to meet this goal at a certain date or time. I cannot control the scale. But I can control what I eat and how often I move. I can focus on goals that are truly under my control. Like training for a 5k and soon after a 10k. Like walking more and reaching my step goals on my fitness tracker. Like staying under or at my calorie goals. Like not snacking at night or reaching for things that are nutritionally void. And like tracking EVERYTHING. And every day.
And also knowing that there are good weeks and bad. I was actually "stuck" at 190 for about 3 weeks this February. I weighed in frequently and had my official weigh-in day every Monday morning. I tracked. I didn't let it discourage me because I knew eventually the scale would reflect things.
I'm still far from my goal but the message I want to share is that for anyone who thinks they have hormonal issues or just can't lose weight like everyone else. No, get that crap out of your head. You are not a special snowflake. Be consistent with what you do. Very consistent. You can't track most days and have a cheat day. You can easily undo a whole week with one meal, let alone a whole day.
I did that before. I would say "I'm trying so hard" but the truth was that I wasn't tracking things and I wasn't being at all consistent with something for longer than 2-3 weeks. And if I lost maybe 3 pounds in those 3 weeks I'd think that was nothing and just feel like I hadn't made any progress. Now I kick myself because if I really looked at it, a pound a week is 52 lbs in a year. At the time, it sucks because you work your butt of and feel deprived of food and over, let's say 2 months, you may only see 5-6 pounds gone. But that's great progress.
I digress, my point here is that I think we can all meet our goals with the Transformer diet bet. But at the same time, if you don't meet a goal, don't think it's bad or that you lost- you are winning by truly being consistent. Aim for 0.5 to 2 lbs a week and celebrate those losses! Find whatever works for you- for me it is calorie tracking. I highly recommend not going for a fad diet or cutting out favourite foods. Enjoy food still, but track it and in moderation. If you feel deprived, you will not be consistent and it won't work.