Any tips on loosing weight when you've got ADHD?
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Have a calorie tracking app and track everything. You will start to learn how somethings are more calorie dense than others.
Don't have junk food. You will want to snack. Have veggies like carrots or fresh fruit on hand.
Drink water first. So many times I "feel" hungry but I am actually thirsty.
Load up on broccoli. If you over eat, then have lots of broccoli. It's filling and not calorie dense.
When possible plan your meals ahead of time. It's brutally hard to make the better diet choice when your hungry. It's easier to just follow through with a decision you already made.As a fellow ADHD person, this is a really hard one to maintain, but the really important thing here is just being conscious of the difference in calories between different food groups, then learning for each ~100 calories you eat, you have to walk a mile just to burn it off.
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The things that get in the way for me are: getting instantly bored with any weight loss strategy, an inability to do things if I'm told I have to, forgetting that I need to lose weight, needing the sensory input of food, inability to recognise when I'm full, hyper-focusing on weight loss for a month and losing a ton of weight and then putting it all back on the next month because I celebrated the weight loss with cake...
I just wonder if there are any ADHD behaviour hacks where I could use my neurospicyness to actually help me lose weight consistently.
I'm about to try Nutrisystem. Here's hoping.
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I hear Jonatan and Karl took care of them so it should all get better now
Well, they got to dip out to Nangilima while I'm still stuck here in the cave, being force-fed tiramisu >:'(
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The things that get in the way for me are: getting instantly bored with any weight loss strategy, an inability to do things if I'm told I have to, forgetting that I need to lose weight, needing the sensory input of food, inability to recognise when I'm full, hyper-focusing on weight loss for a month and losing a ton of weight and then putting it all back on the next month because I celebrated the weight loss with cake...
I just wonder if there are any ADHD behaviour hacks where I could use my neurospicyness to actually help me lose weight consistently.
Use the focus sessions to meal prep and work on portion control. That's all i got. I'm a wreck as far as a routine or schedule goes lol
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As a fellow ADHD person, this is a really hard one to maintain, but the really important thing here is just being conscious of the difference in calories between different food groups, then learning for each ~100 calories you eat, you have to walk a mile just to burn it off.
Yeah, you can't outrun your fork.
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The things that get in the way for me are: getting instantly bored with any weight loss strategy, an inability to do things if I'm told I have to, forgetting that I need to lose weight, needing the sensory input of food, inability to recognise when I'm full, hyper-focusing on weight loss for a month and losing a ton of weight and then putting it all back on the next month because I celebrated the weight loss with cake...
I just wonder if there are any ADHD behaviour hacks where I could use my neurospicyness to actually help me lose weight consistently.
For me it's about planning. If I know what's for dinner I can handle it even if I'm not in the mood for whatever I've got planned for dinner. If I'm hungry and then start looking for food I'm far more likely to fail.
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I know. I'm saying I'm weird and have never had side effects from any medication whatsoever. I WISH I personally had that particular side effect from ADHD medication, but alas, I do not. Sucks that people who are already underweight get it and I do not.
Hey, just be happy that your meds are not out to kill you. I once had pills (non ADHD) that made my heart stop. 0/10, can't recommend. Luckily, my heart recovered, and I got some different pill instead.
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I've found it's easier to create a set of rules that define my lifestyle than it is to commit to a diet. Like, think of strict keto as a way of living rather than a diet. Eat all you want, but sugar and carbs are no longer food. Don't focus on losing weight, focus on following the rules. The weight loss will happen in its own.
Exactly this. Being able to eat unlimited amounts is liberating and doesn't feel like a diet. On Keto there will be sugar withdrawal for the first few weeks, and that will be rough, but being able to stuff yourself with allowed food (cheese, meat, 100% chocolate, etc) makes it much more manageable.
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A lot of focus on diet in these comments but almost no mention of exercise.
For me, I found the couch to 5K running program for beginners highly engaging. With a running tracker app I could see my progress and really enjoy fixating on the details. If you do decide to get into running here are some tips:
- Really good running shoes are a must. Take your time trying on shoes until you find the right pair. They should feel extremely comfortable in the store, like a pair of bedroom slippers, and there should be no rubbing of parts of your feet/toes while walking around. They’re expensive to buy but much cheaper than any gym membership
- Other nice to haves are good shorts and shirts made of breathable material
- Don’t try to skip ahead on the C25K program. You really do need to take it gradually or you will feel a lot of pain and give up
- Some pain is normal though but eventually it all clears up and starts to feel amazing (as your distances go up)
- If the pain gets worse and worse then slow down or stop. Some level of soreness / fatigue is normal until you’re an experienced runner. Severe pain is not normal and could indicate or lead to injury
- If you’re running out of breath then you’re running too fast. The goal of running is to run, not sprint, which means staying entirely in the aerobic zone. Learning to regulate your pace and your breathing is challenging at first but soon becomes natural
- If you’re overweight then you probably need to go even slower than the C25K program recommends. Spend a lot more time walking than running and be mindful of your joints. You should not be taking big running strides or striking your heels. Try to be very mindful of your joints and if they hurt then slow down or stop. You can lose weight just by walking a lot while improving your diet but trying to force yourself to run while overweight can harm your joints or cause other injuries
So why run at all? Well, besides the obvious exercise and cardiovascular health benefits, running is a lot of fun. It actually feels amazing to be running on a beautiful morning/evening and seeing the world go by at a rapid pace, the wind blowing gently in your hair. Running releases endorphins which feel amazing and give you a “runner’s high”.
Furthermore, the cardio fitness benefits of running extend to everything else in life. You’ll sleep better, you’ll feel better all the time, you’ll develop a slower resting heart rate which allows you to relax much more deeply, and you’ll feel more awake and better able to focus rather than being in a fog for much of the time.
but almost no mention of exercise.
For most people weight is 90% diet and 10% exercise. There is a reason the phrase "You can't outrun a bad diet" is often used in health contexts. Can it work for some people, sure! However, for most people getting the foundational of health straight first (the food) has the biggest impact.
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but almost no mention of exercise.
For most people weight is 90% diet and 10% exercise. There is a reason the phrase "You can't outrun a bad diet" is often used in health contexts. Can it work for some people, sure! However, for most people getting the foundational of health straight first (the food) has the biggest impact.
My best shape as an adult was when I was running 12k 3x a week. I felt amazing. Since then I had a bad ankle sprain (at work, funnily enough, not related to running at all) and haven’t recovered properly enough to get back to running, though I still hope to.
I remember reading once that Michael Phelps would eat something like 12000 calories per day during training. That’s far more than I’ve ever eaten in one day, even at my heaviest. I probably haven’t even eaten half that much in one day.
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My wife tried to tell me the same thing but with fiber and carbohydrates in general. She still believes it, it sounds like nonsense to me. Do you have a source?
fibre reduces the absorption of nutrition in the gut, but it doesn't erase bad nutrition.
This is very easy to test at home, get a glucose meter and eat your favorite fibre and sugar together and see what your blood sugar will do... it will still spike.
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Usually what I do is just stop eating/barely eat at all. Keep this up for weeks and weeks and you will lose weight fast. And its easy. Its less work to do this than to workout or change your diet (in a different way). You can also distract yourself so you don’t focus on the hunger that you feel. Give it a shot and lmk
wrote on last edited by [email protected]Tbh I also do this. While my body is in ketosis (eg just woke up) it's way easier to ignore food drive. The second I taste any good though, my body wakes up like "oh its FOOD time now??" and my appetite rages for the rest of the day.
It's risky to completely abstain for a long time though, because fat is only calories, not nutrient. You'll end up with a lot of deficiencies the longer you do it.
I recommend eating a proper meal every now and then, or at least do research on fasting and drink lots of water (prevent kidney stones) and take multivitamin supplements. Consider also asking to your doctor about what you're doing so they can inform you of risks and how to mitigate them
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Hey, just be happy that your meds are not out to kill you. I once had pills (non ADHD) that made my heart stop. 0/10, can't recommend. Luckily, my heart recovered, and I got some different pill instead.
Oh yeah, I'm only pissy about this one side effect being missing. In general, I'm happy not to have side effects lol
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I get tremendous joy from riding my bike. I bought a used one but a good one and it feels like flying. I go out 2-3 a day if I'm not working. It doesn't feel like exercise.
Me too but I'm in my 40s and exercise alone isn't enough anymore.
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It's easy if you can hyperfocus on something all day and neglect eating.
Wait can other ADHDudes just turn it on like a faucet? For me it's like an hourly lottery.
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My ADHD had me writing a cooking blog intro about how I discovered this but I'll spare you:
The catch-all answer is water. But for ADHDers with oral fixations (both of us, apparently), the real answer is powdered drink mixed.
You'll stop wanting a snack if your 0 calorie drink tastes good.
I didn't buy it for weight loss but my water bottle has electrolyte powder every day. I use half the recommended amount (don't wanna overdose) and it completely replaced food as my go-to when I'm not sure if I'm bored or hungry.
I'd like to try this strategy. Hey Lemmy, is there a "hydro homies" community yet?
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Tbh I also do this. While my body is in ketosis (eg just woke up) it's way easier to ignore food drive. The second I taste any good though, my body wakes up like "oh its FOOD time now??" and my appetite rages for the rest of the day.
It's risky to completely abstain for a long time though, because fat is only calories, not nutrient. You'll end up with a lot of deficiencies the longer you do it.
I recommend eating a proper meal every now and then, or at least do research on fasting and drink lots of water (prevent kidney stones) and take multivitamin supplements. Consider also asking to your doctor about what you're doing so they can inform you of risks and how to mitigate them
At a minimum electrolytes: magnesium, potassium, sodium
The big danger when fasting is actually getting off the fast. If it's a prolonged fast there is the risk of refeeding syndrome where the body can mobilize too many electrolytes too quickly.
If someone fasts for more then 5 days they should be under medical supervision when they stop fasting (at least the first time).
The protocol is basically eat a tiny amount of zero carb food for a few meals increasing the amount very slowly and supplementing with electrolytes. Like half a hard boiled egg, then 4 hours later a whole egg, then two, etc
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Vyvanse is an ADHD drug, but also is prescribed and approved as a weight loss drug, too. I lost a bunch of weight on it.
Just make sure you drink lots of water. It also suppresses your thirst response in your brain, so you can get dehydrated easily.
I eat less during the day, but will stuff my face in the evening when it has worn off.
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I eat less during the day, but will stuff my face in the evening when it has worn off.
Yeah I've had late night cravings with it. Usually mine wears off around bed time, though, so I just go to sleep. Lol
