Exercise, burnout, depression, etc.

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First, I'm not sure if this is the right forum, but since it mainly involves exercise, I'm putting it here...
Feel free to tell me if I'm in the wrong place.

Over the last 2-3 years, I have gained probably 50 pounds. I'm not happy about it, and would like to get rid of it. The problem is, I've done all kinds of things to try and lose the weight/get fit. I took up running (more like "lumbering" at my weight, but still covering distance). I participated in 3 half-marathons in a year and numerous 5 and 10k's. I hired a personal trainer, lifted weights, logged my calories, and even did a Whole30... I lost a little weight (around 10 pounds), not not nearly what I expected to lose.

I went full-out and ended up not wanting to do any of it. I burned out. Stopped going to the gym, stopped running, eating like crap again. Too many big changes at once, I guess?
Now, I'm depressed, fatter than ever, and pretty hopeless.

So, After all that, my question is - does anyone have advice? I know I need to make smaller changes, but what should I work on first? I don't want to burn out again.

It is difficult to provide a definitive answer without knowing your precise diet...

... but have you fully taken into account that exercise increases appetite, and that you will eat more while exercising? If you increase your intake of food from an already high calorie combination of foods, it is entirely possible to completely offset the calories burned through exercise...

For instance: Two standard size pizzas contain more calories than the average person burns while running a half marathon. This is why diet is much more important than exercise if you want to lose weight.

What, when, how, and why you eat will determine how quickly you recover from exercise, and how you feel in general. Most Americans do not eat nearly enough leafy green vegetables, other non-starchy vegetables, and fresh fruits. Very few of us eat nuts, which are a good source of badly-needed healthy fats. Most of us consume massive quantities of sugar and processed flour, fried foods, and many of us drink a large proportion of our calories.

All of these things add up to poor recovery rates and a general feeling of malaise, which, if you are exercising strenuously, will ultimately lead to a crash. Exercise adaptation comes from physiological adaptation which is ultimately about change in the body's tissues (all of them, muscles, nerves, connective tissue, circulatory system). Your body needs specific "materials" (nutrients) to build up tissues and do repair work.

It also needs time in 'parasympathetic' mode to do things like digestion and repairs, which it will not get if it is loaded with metabolic burdens placed on it by excessive consumption of sugar and fat (among other things). It needs for you to be able to sleep, because that is when much of the building and repair happen, especially in the gut and nervous system.

What you do for exercise, and how you do it, are only part of the picture. The whole picture needs to be reviewed and addressed in steps. It may be much more useful for you to build up a habit of walking everywhere throughout the day, than to try to push yourself in a 'hard' exercise program 1-2 hours several days a week. As little as 2 days of strenuous strength training can confer benefits, if combined with a daily practice of moving as much as possible throughout the day. Hard training increases stress, and 'easy' walking reduces it, so they work hand in hand to help with the recover/rebuild cycle.

But none of this will get you anywhere until you address diet - not so much 'how many calories' but rather, the actual eating habits that bring health, as these will actually reduce cravings and help stabilize your appetite to match your true energy needs.

The diabetes web sites are full of good information on nutrition and diet. You may want to investigate a low glycemic index diet. For me it means, no bread, no potatoes, no rice, no noodles and no sugar. I eat a small meal every few hours, lots of lentils, cabbage, salad, vegetables, tofu, fruit, seeds, nuts, yogurt and whole grains.

I have a 30 minute morning floor exercise routine and a 1 hour gym workout three time a week. It works for me.

Hey! I hit that point too, about six months ago. Here's what helped:

- Getting up 30 minutes early and taking 20 minute fast walk. I was lucky enough to be able to add hills as the time for my loop decreased.
- Going to bed at the same time each night, so that you get enough sleep. Geting up at the same time each morning.
- Identifying when your one biggest problem out-of-mealtime eating occurs (for me it was late at night)
- Realizing that carbs trigger your body to store the sugars that make them, as fat. Lower carb foods don't do that. Change your diet - even a little - and you'll reduce storing as much of what you eat. Think about triggering insulin any time you choose food.

That's it. Just make one small change to your daily routines. Then after two weeks, make one more. It took time to add the weight and change your habits; fixing that will require time and gradual change, too. But you can do it.

You wanted too much, too fast.
It is not uncommon to see your weight *increase* when you just start out exercising. Get a liscenced trainer and dietary advisor, and focus on increasing your overall health while seeing weight-loss as a side-effect of becoming healthy.

If you have weight loss as a primary goal, especially with a target in mind, you will only get disappointed and prone to giving up.

Muscles are alot denser than fat, so any change from a more sedentary life style to alot of fitness will make weightloss seem slow, one way to counter this is to get a measuring tape and log the changes over time, you can either just measure your waist, or use of the the tons of online measurement guides if you want to be more detailed.
I hope this wont offend anybody but ill demonstrate with my own (shirtless) progress pictures:

Before and after picture

The difference between the left and the right is only 8 kg or so (For you imperials thats approximate 16 pounds).

While exercise is great, the main weightloss battle should be fought in the kitchen, and it takes alot of time.
But if you are 50 pounds overweight and still able to run a half marathon, then i tip my hat to you, and it is definately just a question of keep doing what you are doing, it takes time.

If you are worried about burning out again, then i would suggest start by changing your diet (assuming thats a problem): Increase protein intake, cut down on sugar (carbs in general), try to avoid carbs the last couple of hours before you go to bed, and drink water whenever possible (not only does it contain a slight calorie deficiency, it also boosts your metabolism).

I've got the diet angle covered, all I need is tupperware, a blender, and a produce store. Every morning I've been eating a thawed tupperware container full of blended produce. I'm basically getting all the nutrients I need, plus water / fiber content in a serving.

I can't say much for exercise, but if you eat as much produce as I do every morning, your body won't work against you so much.

Hey Amy, I am sorry to hear you are having such troubles. I do want you to know that you have taken the right steps, but a LOT of this is a mental lifestyle change. I think for you, you will have to really want to get healthy bad enough. Logging everything you eat on a daily basis, weighing yourself, exercising and weight lifting will really help you. Keep track of what you eat, watch what exercise and diet does for you on a weekly basis. All that really matters to lose weight is that you burn more calories than you consume. Try to aim for a 500 caloric deficit per day (don't go too crazy it will mess up your emotions trust me). Watch and see what your weight does week by week and make proper adjustments. Aim to hit your protein goals as protein will sate you (also theres great protein bars/shakes out there very tasty). Use this website as a starting guide to gauge your daily calorie and macronutrient intake ( you really only need to focus on protein/carbs/fat although when dieting just aim to hit your protein and calorie goals) (I cant post links so please google search "Calculate Your Macronutrients Intake!" and click the first link)

Also drink a TON of water. You will see a big weight drop right away because you will lose water weight, then aim to lose 1-2 pounds per week.

I weigh myself about once a day (I skip some days) and chart the weights so I can see the trend. I've noticed that the weight can fluctuate by up to 5% of the total, from day to day. It tends to go up by 5 pounds or more in the days following a heavy strength training session, then drop back down. I'm currently fighting a tendency to lose weight slowly over time.

I recommend doing the same thing if you are trying to lose weight, because it will allow you to respond to trends rather than feeling let down or upset about a single number. Weight can fluctuate by a lot more than 5% depending on several variables, including inflammation, digestion, water retention, and changes to diet. Focusing on a trend and getting familiar with your own patterns can help you evaluate the success of whatever program or set of habits you're currently employing, while protecting you from scale-related mood swings (and I have had a LOT of experience with those).

If you weigh every day; make sure to even out the situation as much as possible:
every morning after using the toilet and shower, but before breakfast is the best time, for consistent weight.
(make sure you weigh without clothes; those weigh a lot more than you'd think, and it differs a lot)