From January to March I did so well. Staying on calorie deficit and no binge eating. Then I traveled for a month & it went south. Then I had an appointment for weight loss surgery. After trying the very restrictive diet I keep binging & after more research I’ve decided to do weight loss without surgery. My stats are CW 475 height 5’10” and 32 year old female. I recently joined a gym. I’m feeling overwhelmed to start again.
Hello everyone! I'm a little bit concerned about the amount of minors I've seen lately posting about weight loss. Most of them are posting aggressive/restrictive/ED plans or regiments, or are just making generally worrying posts. I know this community is for everyone, but I feel like the posts from 12-16 year olds are often along the lines of "I want to lose an extreme amount of weight in a tiny amount of time and I'm eating under 1,200 calories per day." I know a lot of teens have to lose weight too (I was an overweight teen!!!) but a lot of the discourse on this sub could be dangerous for someone with a developing brain and body. Is there anything we can do about all of these posts? I can't be the only one who's worried about them. Maybe if we had a pinned post for resources or info for teenagers specifically, or a specific flair for minors? I feel like people often comment with the same advice every time (you're growing, this is dangerous, etc) and are supportive of these young people, while still trying to caution them and keep them safe. But so often I see people commenting and somehow not realizing that the OP is a teenager, and they'll be telling OP to do something that could be dangerous for them, which is why a flair for minors could be helpful. I'm not even really sure what the purpose of this post is, other than to express concern for this phenomenon. Anyone have any thoughts?
M, 22, 5'11, 185lbs from 335lbs, 150lbs lost
My journey is pretty much entirely documented in my account history as I've used this account solely for my journey pretty much from the very beginning, but to sum things up all this weight loss is largely from the past year and half. No special diets, no cleanses, no surgery, just plain CICO, exercise, and discipline.
I still want to lose roughly 30-40lbs~, tummy-tuck and possibly leg-plasty(?) are on my to-do list (lose skin sux 🙃), but I'm extremely happy with where I'm at! I feel I owe a lot to this sub for helping me through my various rough patches, and I look forward to the day where I make my final post on here. :)
Hi Reddit! Two years ago, I lost 80 pounds by restricting much lower than I should’ve been; after seeing fast results, I got fixated with numbers and would work off most of the 1000ish calories I was consuming a day
Naturally, I gained back 35 pounds when I focused on my mental health, but I honestly don’t mind because mentally, I’m the best I’ve ever been :) however, I am now 15 pounds overweight, and it can make me feel a little sluggish or uncomfortable at times (especially at the gym). Is there any way to lose weight effectively without fasting or calories in-calories out? I haven’t been able to find an alternative that works effectively since, but ideally, I don’t want to revisit a “numbers” mindset. Thank you!
Hello, I am a 23 year old college female , 5’0 ft and I weight around 64 kilos ( 141 pounds). My weight is definitely my biggest insecurity now ( it used to be my acne but I worked through that with skincare and feel confident in it now). My weight makes me feel ashamed to go out and socialize in college and I can’t wear the kind of clothes that I want to. I have a plan to get to 50kg by November so I hope to lose 14 kilos or 30 pounds by then. I want to do this sustainably and in a way that will be healthy. I have a few questions for people on this sub: 1. I hope to change my eating habits and cravings. My unhealthy routine involved usually skipping breakfast, not liking much of what I had For lunch and then ordering something very heavy in carbs and calories around dinner time and then laying around. What would you recommend to counter this? I plan to deal with cravings by allowing myself small amounts of say chocolate or a few bites of a burger every now and then. 2. I want to get active again. I used to run on the treadmill and jump rope. What other exercises could I look into to get more toned? 3. I hope to lose around a pound every week. Would you consider this too extreme?
Give me the best advice that has helped you get off and keep off the weight.
Thank you
Years of bad habits can't be fixed in a week. It's common sense, especially on this subreddit.
However, I see it a lot... the same narrative I went through. You cut your calories to 1000 when the calculations show that based on your BMR you should be consuming a minimum of 1200. The motivation you feel on monday might get you through the week, but by Sunday you are going to feel it waning as you stare longingly at the food truck across the street as you simultaneously gag down your green smoothie for the day. You've always hated them, but they are "healthy" and you need to fast track this whole diet thing, and it's easy to pick up at the grocery store.
"i'll just get used to this" you tell yourself. You head home tired and sore and reluctantly get yourself together for the third spin class this week. You remember to bring electrolytes this time because you felt a little bit faint the last time. You scoff at yourself a bit, what a wimp I am. But as you are in the midst of Kaylee's psycho 90 minute cardio class you start to think... Geez this whole lifestyle change thing sucks. It hurts my body, and it is kinda tasteless and unappealing. You start asking yourself questions; Do i really want to be thin for the beach this summer? Is it really worth it to be off this blood pressure medication? Is it really THAT bad to have joint issues at 32?
By the time you drag yourself home you feel defeated and empty. You stare at the vegan salad you bought in the fridge with disgust and then eyeball the pizza menu tucked up the side of the microwave.
You decide that its worth it to "cheat" a little bit. So you order up a large pizza and those first few bites are glorious and cheesy and stringy. It should be no surprise as you've just spent the past week eating nothing but flax and spinach leaves as well as trying to keep up with the psychos in your spin class.
You are basically malnourished at this point, but you don't realize it... or maybe you refuse to accept it.
You slowly slip further off the wagon, and the scale goes from being your friend to your mortal enemy. 2 weeks later you step on it again and discover all that water weight you lost appears to be back on your body, and then some.
You sigh, and the feeling of failure creeps in. You just can't hack it, this whole weight loss thing. Maybe you'll try again in a month.... and in fact, you do... and once again you rush headfirst into it... perhaps even harder and more aggressively than before.
See the problem?
Often when we have an "all or nothing" mindset we are behaving like a demeaning and controlling parent to ourselves. You are observing and punishing yourself for every little wrong move you make. You put yourself on a ridiculous, high pressure schedule because you need to "pay" for the bad choices you've made. At company lunches you tell yourself to enjoy looking at the food, but you can't touch it because you aren't ALLOWED to eat that, you CAN'T HAVE sugar. You push yourself to extremes on the treadmill because "this is the consequence of all those bad choices you made, so deal with it you wimp".
Can you imagine if your own self talk was a person? You'd hate them so much.
This is often how we talk to ourselves as we try to migrate into better habits and choices. There is no room for love in that "all or nothing" mentality. There's no opportunity for us to look ourselves in the mirror, and see that wonderful, miraculous vessel of a body that we have been responsible for our whole lives. There is no room for appreciating just how much it deserves to be fed well, and cared for, and handled gently.
Try to see that inner child again, that vulnerable part of yourself that feels afraid to fail, and get to know youself again so that you can listen carefully to all your own insecurities, hold your own hand, and thoughtfully think of solutions to make yourself feel good again. When you start there, the idea of a finish line begins to fade away and eventually disappear... because the idea of there being an end goal was always an illusion to begin with.
I mean, the point was always to give yourself a better life... right? Not to simply bully and bruise yourself into getting to the end, where you'll just hate yourself as much as when you started.
Today the scales hit 90kg (198lbs), which puts me at 27kg (59.5lbs) lost total and 10kg (22lbs) since the start of this year.
I've been doing CICO with some strength exercises since end of August last year. I did an update post few months ago with more details.
I weigh myself daily. Partially cause I'm impatient and also because it helps me see that there are normal variations, so just cause I was up one day doesn't mean I'm not losing anything.
But recently I may have fallen into focusing just on the most recent measurements and how my weight loss has been kind of slow over the last month (until like last 3 days).
The dots on the charts are actual weight measurements, the line is a calculated trend. So while the trend is going down, the measurements felt like they were stuck around the same values.
But then I was looking at the stats and noticed the 10kg total for this year and remembered I really should zoom out more and see how much progress I've been making.
Even if things are slow sometimes need to remember I'm still losing and making progress.
Now I just need to convince my brain that I also look different cause it still refuses to see it; But logically there is no way I lost this much weight and look no different.
I will be traveling next week for a wedding and seeing family and friends that I haven't seen since late last summer. When I last saw them, I had lost about 35 pounds and it was not noticeable. At all. I have since lost about 35 more pounds and it is very noticeable, even though it is about the same amount. I am anticipating that there will be comments and reactions. I will probably get the whole gamut.
I have mixed feelings. I dread any discussion of my physique. It is awkward and makes me very self-conscious and uncomfortable. At the same time, I worked very hard and am proud of my accomplishments and suppose it would be worse if there were no acknowledgement. Fortunately, I have the wedding as an easy topic changer.
I am hoping that many of you can relate and have some advice on how to mentally prepare for dealing with comments on my weight loss from a whole lot of people at once who haven't seen me in a long time.
I haven't had to deal with any comments, except maybe two that I can think of, since covid has kept me in a lot and my close friends are my friends and not the sort of people who say awkward things!
Both so far were easy enough to downplay and brush off. I'm worried about what happens when it's not so easy. I need some pointers and strategy for the well-meaning but misguided as well as the not-so. I need to politely shut them down and/or extricate myself from the convo. It's a wedding, I have to be nice. There will be lots of temptations and other stress too!
So I’ve been trying to lose weight for awhile now but I really struggle with following diets.
Recently, I’ve been really motivated to lose weight this summer though! I started going to the gym & exercising twice a day! I’m also going to cut off all junk food & sugar.
I was wondering if anyone had any meal plans for weight loss or a better exercise routine? I’m mostly focused on losing all my weight right now, so any advice is helpful! thank you!
28 years old 5’5 SW: 314.4 CW: 291.6 GW: 185
I’ve recently been counting calories, which I know has nothing to do with this, but I’m starting to go to the gym three times a week Wednesday morning. When I was going before the pandemic I’d usually do 30 minutes of cardio before anything, then stretch, then focus on one area of my body (legs, arms, core).
I’ve recently heard that cardio is bad before doing weights. And I also have realized I don’t have any real knowledge of what working out is besides a weird skewed version from softball 10+ years ago.
So my question is, what’s a good beginner workout with weights that will help keep my curves, have minimal weight loss, and help improve stamina and flexibility.
My goal on off days is to do either 30 minutes cardio/30 minutes of yoga.
Next week will be one year since I took my before picture. I’ve had poor eating and drinking habits most of my adult life, and my weight (5’10” man) yo-yo’ed between 170-205 for most of that time. From 2019-2021, the combination of an office job, the pandemic, and my wife and I having our first child really broke down any semblance of healthy habits and I started to tick up toward 200 again.
My sister got married early in 2021. When I saw the pictures from the photographer, things really sunk in, and I committed to make changes. I wanted to be able to keep up with my son as he got older and set a good example for him around healthy eating, responsible drinking, and regular exercise.
At the beginning of June, I took a before picture, and I went for a 1 mile run. I bought a Fitbit, and started weighing and tracking my food. I quickly realized my portion sizes had been out of control. My dinner portions were clocking in at 1500 calories, and with two to three drinks every night, it was easy to see how I’d gained so much weight.
I set a goal to lose two pounds a week, with a daily calorie allowance of 1500 calories. I ran every day, building up my endurance to longer runs of at least 4 miles every day. No surprise, the weight started to fall off. By August I was starting to see my body change. By November I could see my abs for the first time in my life.
By December, my weight dipped close to 150, despite my original weight loss goal being 170. I’d gotten addicted to the euphoric feeling of seeing the number on the scale go down and feeling my clothes fit looser and looser.
In January of this year I bought weights and started eating more (about 2800 calories a day) and lifting a few times a week. I still run every day, and I’ve improved the quality of my diet to support my more active lifestyle.
A lot has changed physically and mentally. I’m much more confident now. I have far fewer random aches and pains and morning stiffness. My physical relationship with my wife has improved tremendously, and she’s been a big supporter and very proud of me along the way. I feel energized and able to keep up with my son, who can zoom around for hours on end.
I’m starting to train for my first marathon later this year, which would have been a laughable idea this time last year. For anyone having trouble committing or getting started, I just want to say, go for it. I’ve surprised myself with how far I’ve come, and I know you can too.
If I can answer any questions or provide encouragement to anyone along the way, drop me a line. Thanks for keeping this community positive and encouraging. It’s really kept me motivated.
Last year I worked really hard (calorie deficit + exercise) and lost 26kgs. I have not yet hit my goal weight but had to stop being in deficit due to 2 surgeries (gallbladder removal + breast reduction) for the last 6 months. I’m now ready to get back into it but after 3 weeks of deficit (high protein, good macros) and exercise (yoga, hiit, running & walking) nothing has changed on the scales. I’m worried by body is in a plateau, does anyone have any experience with reactivating weight loss?
Hey all,
I used to buy a product known as Mocha Tonix to add to my coffee daily. One scoop in my black coffee was all I needed, no cream, no sugar, and it tasted very good and sweetened the black coffee enough to taste great without cream or sugar needed. But Mocha Tonix is a mixed bag of healthy/not healthy. I stopped using Mocha Tonix around 2020.
I am hard and fast on the weight loss train again and I am looking for something that is pretty healthy that I can just put in my coffee without a ton of calories, preferably something healthy. Only 60 cals per serving in Mocha Tonix was really nice. I contemplated getting Mocha Tonix here and now, but again, it's a mixed bag in terms of health, and at this point $40 for 15 servings just does not appeal to me at this point in my life.
Does anyone have any suggestions for something that is pretty healthy that I can put in black coffee that will flavor the coffee enough to not need cream or sugar, while also still being mostly healthy?
Thanks for any suggestions!
I’m only 10 pounds into my weight loss journey (started mid March), and honestly, the way I’ve eaten this weekend might have set me back another pound or two, but I want to take a moment to be thankful for a NSV.
My partner and I started doing CrossFit 10 weeks ago, and today we were able to complete the Memorial day hero workout our gym did called “Murph.” It’s a 1 mile run, 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, 300 squats than another mile.
I modified the workout to do banded pull-ups and kneeling push-ups, but other than that, I completed the workout with a time of 56:16!
You have to understand, I am 190 pounds of a heaving, sweaty mess, and there is NO WAY I could have done that in March. Even though the weight loss is slow, knowing I’m getting into better shape feels so motivating!! I 10/10 recommend celebrating those non scale victories, my whole perspective of my fitness journey has shifted for the better!
Let me just start by saying I love my grandma so much, but sometimes I can’t stand her. Every single time I see her, she won’t shut up about my weight loss. “You’re losing too much weight.” “Are you eating enough?” “I don’t want you to lose another pound.” “If you lose too much weight, you’ll look sick.” “You are eating, right?” “Do I need to be concerned?” “Eating disorders run in the family.”
I’M STILL 270 POUNDS.
Most of the time, I don’t really care that much, but today she said these things in front of my whole extended family. It was so uncomfortable. I’m nervous that everybody is hearing these things and think that I actually have an eating disorder or something. She’s probably saying these things to everybody when I’m not around as well. I don’t need any rumors or assumptions about me going around. I lost all of my weight naturally with diet and exercise. On average, I lose 1.94 pounds a week, which isn’t even that much for somebody that was my size. It just sucks that there’s always a dark cloud over my health.
Hello r/loseit! I need help. My (29F 165cm) current weight is 121kg, my highest weight was 155kg+, but I like to think I started this journey properly at 142kg in February 2022.
At first the results were really encouraging. I was losing almost 2kg per week. Great, right!? But in the last few weeks things have been dropping off. I lost 1.5kg, then 1.2kg and finally this week 0.7kg. Of course I tell myself that it’s not a race and I’m still losing weight etc etc. But there is a trend here that I can’t ignore and I’m hoping someone can help me to understand.
I eat 1200 to 1300 cals per day except once a week when I eat 1800 cals. I’m strict with weighing and counting everything so I’m pretty confident in those numbers. I also walk (~4.5km) 3 times a week and lift weights 3-4 times a week.
I recognise that my BMR will reduce with my weight loss and so I may not be in as much deficit as I once was, but it feels too soon for my weight loss to be slowing down that much! I don’t feel comfortable dropping below 1200cals and I worry that increasing my exercise will burn me out and won’t be sustainable. So basically I feel thoroughly stuck.
Is there something I’m missing here? Any similar experiences, thoughts or advice would be much appreciated.
27F 5'7 SW: 240 CW:199.8 UGW:160
I just hit Onederland this morning (199.8 counts, right?) and wanted to make a post. This has been my goal for forty pounds/seven months, and I'm finally here! I am incredibly proud of myself for setting this goal and achieving it. Weight loss for me has been part of a bigger journey of self improvement and making my life better. I had to make huge changes for it to happen, but I'm glad I did them. I will explain.
How I gained weight:
Three years ago, I moved states for a job, and I liked the job, but I didn't know anyone there and combined with covid WFH, I became very isolated and depressed. I was working hard during the day and giving it my all, and at the end of the day I would "reward" myself with food and alcohol. I didn't cook at all. I ate out every single meal. Portions were large and I never felt full so sometimes I would order two (already large) portions. I felt burned out from work and life and was on antidepressants. I drank probably every day. It felt like every day was a cycle of burning out and then "recovering" with excessive food and alcohol. I never left my house. I had angry red stretchmarks on my stomach and arms. My clothes didn't fit. I gained 80 lbs over two years.
I was miserable with work and life and something had to change.
How I lost weight:
After resisting for years, I went to therapy. Why did I resist? I didn't think I needed it, I didn't think I had real problems or trauma, I didn't think they would tell me anything I didn't already know. It turned out to be pivotal and immensely helpful. I had problems I didn't know I had (mostly involving my parents) and the main takeaway was that I am an adult and have the power and freedom to create the life that I want.
With my therapist's encouragement I made major life changes.
I had savings, and was able to quit work for three months and moved from the midwest to pacific northwest (where a lot of my friends live.) Threw all my shit in a uhaul, put my pets in the front seat and drove for four straight days cross country. It was honestly a great feeling, like I knew I was making a real change. Moving ended my isolation, and I see my friends at least once a week - something I hadn't done for years. My new place doesn't have a yard, but is very beautiful and walkable, so I am more active with taking my dog out three times a day.
I started cooking at home. I didn't have the slightest idea how to cook, so I used meal delivery kits. The fact that they are already portioned out was so helpful. The fact I was on a tighter budget and couldn't eat out every day helped keep me on track too.
I stopped drinking. It was hard at first, I would want a drink sometimes, but after a few weeks I found that I didn't even want to drink at all. It helps that weed is legal where I live - and is cheaper and lower calorie than alcohol haha. Even with weed, I probably only use once a week instead of every day like before. I find I enjoy being sober most of the time now.
I was able to get off antidepressants. I don't know if this helps weight loss - some say it might?
I went back to work after three months but did not push myself as hard. I am actually a remote contractor now for the same company I used to work for, but now I make my own hours and work a little less. I make a little less money but my quality of life is better. I am less stressed which gives me more energy at the end of the day to focus on myself. It ended the "burning out/reward" cycle I had going before.
What I've noticed:
Not going to lie, I mostly wanted to lose weight in order to be more conventionally attractive. But I'm surprised that the weight loss has been more noticeable in the way that I feel than the way that I look. I remember being out of breath constantly, feeling like my neck fat was always choking me and making it difficult to breathe. I don't feel those things any more. I often walk with my dog for a mile with no problem - sometimes I think about how difficult it would be to wear a 40 lb backpack and do the same thing.
As to how I look - it's hard to judge because (I'm sure this is relatable) I did not look at myself in the mirror and avoided having pictures taken of me at my highest weight. I don't have much reference to compare my current self to. What I do know is that my old clothes that I couldn't even get on my body now fit very comfortably.
My weight loss journey involved pretty drastic life changes that won't work for everyone. But I am thankful I did them, have no regrets, and wanted to share in case it helps anyone else. I really feel, for me, in order to lose weight I had to completely change the way I was living. Sometimes you have to just get out of the situation that is making you miserable. And if you're scared, my therapist's wonderful advice is "People dumber than you have figured it out."
All that being said, I am only halfway to my ultimate goal. But I think these are truly lifestyle changes - I don't even feel like I am really "trying" to lose weight, I am just living life and the weight is coming off. I may end up having to incorporate more exercise as I get lower, when weight will start coming off slower. But right now I feel like I am in a good place.
I am 6w postpartum, 5’6, and 175 lbs. I was 160 lbs before getting pregnant, and gained 30 lbs in a year after college.
I would like to get to 140 lbs, so I’d lose 40 lbs. I use MFP, lightly active, lose 1 lb per week.
I walk an hour a day and do 1-2x a week of gentle barre and Pilates.
My BMR is 1450, my TDEE is 2100 for maintenance? (Seems high).
MFP says I should eat 1650-1850 per day (lightly active vs active).
Is this reasonable? Will it effect my pumping? Currently 80% formula feed 20% pump breast milk.
Hi ya'll, I'm new here and could really use some advice.
I started my weight loss journey 3 years ago as I was absolutely defestated when I saw the scale tipping towards the 150kgs. I got my wakeup call. Few months after starting they also found that I had hormone imbalance - basically my body thinks I'm pregnant. I have meds for that and it's been going well but there's some not so pleasant side effects.
In the 1st year I lost 45kg so yay me! I was really proud of myself. Then covid started but I was able to maintain it and even lost some more and knocked it down to 96kg. I couldn't be happier as I've never been under the 100kgs but then the worst thing in my life happened... I torn my ankle ligaments in December. It's been really rough with depression playing up again. I gained 10kgs of weight even though I've been sticking to intermittent fasting throughout these 3 years, I still gained and gained more.
I rarely eat candy nor cookies, I barely eat stuff that's dense such as potatoes (actually hate them) and I've been trying out loads of different stuff in particular veggies as I'm a very picky eater but that didn't help. I'm back to 104kg. I'd be lucky if I ate 1k kcal a day - that's one of the side effects I mentioned above. The medicine silences any feeling of hunger or thirst, I have to force myself to eat and every time I do I feel incredibly full like I've eaten a pizza.
I've been to the doctors multiple times but they refuse to do anything. After much complaining I've been put on the waitlist to have a look at my intestines but that's a waitlist of 12 weeks currently.
I don't know what I'm doing wrong and what I'm supposed to do now to lose that extra weight. I know I'll never be the perfect weight according to the BMI but I just want to feel good in my body when looking in the mirror which I don't. I'm hoping to pick up exercises again once my injuries healed but until then...
Thank you for reading.
Hi, everyone! Any tips on how to create weight loss milestones? I feel like this will be a big motivating factor to me and will make my weight loss journey more fun. I think I saw a post a while back that says when she loses x pounds, she’ll treat herself to something, when she loses another x pounds, she treats herself to another thing, and so on.
Recently lost 10 pounds and aiming to lose 60 more. Any tips on creating a healthy one? Would you advise to have it per 10 pounds?
If you have one, please share yours too! Looking for inspirations! Thinking about rewarding myself with new workout clothes, still planning to when ❤️
I'm not done losing weight but I am down about 50lbs from last year. I thought I would document some symptoms I had from the excess weight and how I feel now.
If it helps someone else recognize the warning signs I was ignoring all those years then I would be happy.
Before: 1 year ago. 302 lbs 6'3" man. Gurd: acid reflux. Tums every day. High blood pressure. Even on meds it spiked a lot. Low sex drive Night sweats Sleep apnea Acne. Dry patch skin General joint pain every day. Knees all the time. Knee surgery Neck and back pain Insomnia on occasion Anger issues due to alcohol use. Poor stress management Poor self esteem Ignored my other health issues. Gas and other fun intestinal issues. Bloating. No endurance. Winded easily. Hard to tie shoes and clip toenails. No flexibility.
Now: 252lbs. Goal weight is 220lbs. Good sex drive No reflux. Only get heartburn if I overeat spicy foods or greasy stuff. Or drink beer dang it. Blood pressure under control Joint pain is minimal Sleep well Most of my back and neck pain is gone. Can tie my shoes easily. Great endurance. I can walk miles and work in the sun all day without feeling like I am dieing. Getting more flexible. My dermatologist commented on how much better my skin looked after 6 months of weight loss and getting off alcohol.
Goals: Continue to improve joint health. Improved mental health as that is what pushed me to drink my calories and overeat. Stress really is a killer. Build some muscle through weight training.
I hope this isn't coming off as a humble brag. I know I can fall back into my old habits if I am not vigilant. This subreddit has made me realize I need to own all of my reality and writing it down helps solidify my thoughts in a way that just thinking about it doesn't quite jell in my brain.
I started having very bad acne the second I went off of birth control pills many years ago.
I may still be in the 300s. I’m only weighing in once a month but have been doing great with sticking to cals and making progress in my fitness journey, so maybe I’m clear on my way to the 2s. When I get there I will certainly celebrate and post!
Anyways, my acne has been horrible over the past few years. Worse than ever. Acne on my neck. Shoulders. Chest between the twins. Some of my face. It’s actually mostly body acne.
I’m curious if anyone had body acne while SMO and then it went away or at least mostly cleared up after a big loss.
I know acne is very individual and is a good mix between genetics and hormones. So, curious!!
Started noom about 3 weeks ago after getting weighed at the doctors office and a bit of a come to jesus moment. I'm 5'2" and 180. I put on roughly 40lbs between the March lockdowns and now. Went from a very active job to inactivity and now I'm in a fairly inactive job.
So I started noom because several friends had success with it. I would say this is my first time calorie counting/ monitoring movement for weight loss but not my first time doing it. I've done it while going through mental health issues to make sure I'm getting enough nutrition and not just lying on the sofa for 3 weeks....
I think that makes a lot of the articles kind of useless because I walked in knowing water and unprocessed foods are good for you. And that restaurant portion sizes are ridiculous in the US. And moving more is good... etc. I just feel like it's almost always talking down to me and making me feel bad if I eat too many "red" foods (like sunflower seeds and peanut butter...). Anyone feel similarly or is there something I'm missing?
Not saying that the gym isn’t fantastic and those who use it as their happy place shouldn’t, but I was under the impression for years that I had to go to the gym and just be consistent and build the habit every day. But every time that I would be consistent for two weeks, I would get bored or unmotivated and was just not happy. I didn’t understand how these fitness influencers on Instagram and YouTube could go to the gym for years.
Then one day I decided to try something that I liked and just be consistent at that. So I took a walk every day during my lunch break at work. Did that for six whole months; was the most consistent I’ve ever been. The weight loss was slow and it didn’t tone me the way I wanted to, but I realized that I don’t have to look like I go to the gym, I just want to be healthy and enjoy food. I’ll never have a six pack or rock-hard calves, but I like the way I look and I enjoy food, and that’s all that matters in my opinion.
Just a pure steaming raging rant/vent. I weighed on Sunday at 112.8kg. Came broad on holiday to Turkey. Since Tuesday I've been doing 1.5hr walks in deep sand under 30 degree heats, drinking tons of water and eating ultra clean. I've been averaging 1450 calories this week (circa 1400 calorie deficit). I bought a cheap set of scales here and weighed today and came in at 113.1kg :(
My only guesses are, that im drinking tons of water and retaining most of it. I noticed that I'm going to the bathroom 50% less than I would back in the UK.
My other guess is the climate change. As I believe the body retains water in heat? I feel super bloated and swollen.
I dont know. Its so detmoviational. I will be here another few weeks and im considering not weighing myself at all until I get back home.
Anyone else changed to a different climate and struggled with weight loss?
Note for background context: Prior to this I lost 5.5kg in 3 weeks.
Showered at work today for the first time since Covid. I've lost about 30 pounds in the last few months and have been patting myself on the back and marveling that this is MY body, all the good things that come with significant losses. But in the big mirror, from 12 feet away, I looked exactly like I did two and a half years ago.
It sent me into a big honking midday depression at work.
Logically, I know the following things.
So, smug goeth before a fall, and nothing really bad actually happened, and I'm dusting myself off and getting back to it.
And I'm grateful for this place to write about it and read about everyone else's ups and downs. Thank you all for reading and writing.
Ive tried to lose weight so many times over the last six years and I always lose motivation because I don’t let myself eat out or eat “bad” food. This time, I decided i can eat anything I want as long as I log it and stick to my calories…
https://i.imgur.com/ewhRAS3.jpg
Obviously I don’t do this every day lol, but some days that’s just how life goes! I usually don’t eat lunch at work since I get off in the early afternoon, and I eat lentils/chicken/something healthy at home. But today was a coworkers bday, and I still have 900 calories left for my lentils… which is a lot of lentils.
My weight loss has been WAY more sustainable this way, and I don’t have to decline dinners out with friends. I know most of you probably already do this, but it took so long to click in my head. Without the complete restriction of any “non healthy” food, I actually make better choices and eat smaller portions of unhealthy stuff.
Hi all,
a bit of background. I lost around 30kg in the last year or so going from 82 to 53 (180 to 117). For reference I'm 1,68 m ( 5 feet 6 inches) and did the loss with an heavy calorie deficit diet and some exercises.
I know I'm very close to underweight and I'm in the process of trying to build muscle and convince myself to maybe gain some weight.
To get to the question, I do 60/90 minutes of mixed strength and cross-fit exercises 3 days a week and recently I added 20 minutes yoga sessions in the morning every day. I'm quite "bony" now and people comment on my lean look kinda negatively, however i still have some "flabby" skin on my belly which i can grab with one hand when sitting. So I'm quite disappointed with that, although standing i can see my abs. To tighten/lose this loose skin would it be better to add more cardio type exercises (walking/rope skipping) or core exercises?
Thank you very much for any help
First, thanks for taking the time to read this. I've been a LONG time lurker on loseit and have gotten so much great advice over the past 18 months. I will start giving some back soon.
I'm a 5'10" male, mid 30s. In November 2020, I hit my absolute highest weight of 205lbs. It was due to stress of COVID, parenting, work-from-home, drinking too much craft beer, and simply eating too much. I decided I needed to make a change. After some plateaus, ups/down, half marathons, diet changes, and a million other things, I finally hit my goal weight of 169lbs earlier this month. Seeing the first two digits of the scale read 16_ nearly made me tear up... it's been years!!
And yet, I've found that I now feel kind of sad. This goal I've always had in the background for the past 18 months is now gone.
Has anyone felt this before? How did you get through it? Any strategies or advice for dealing with this? Thanks!
Hi everyone! This is my first post on here, but I’m 24M, 5’10” and roughly 270lb looking to lose weight. I had eating disorder that yo-yo’ed from extreme restriction to bingeing for a good 3 years, which I have gotten help for and I’ve been in recovery for the past year and a half thanks to some intense therapy. In that time, I have gained about 60lbs and I am looking to lose that weight to just be happier with my figure and have a healthier body.
With that being said, I am INCREDIBLY nervous about counting calories since I was a crazy calorie counter in the height of my ED. I have successfully lost weight before too, but it was because I was restricting like nuts and saw that as “success”. I would love to start 220lb as a goal weight and reassess from there if I want to lose more weight. Does anyone have any tips they can give that helped them if they had a hard time with food, especially if they are wary of calorie counting? Thanks so much!
I feel like I already know the answer is yes. I also understand that regaining your health is a LOT more important than worrying over loose skin, but I still have to admit the thought of what I will look like after I lose the 115lbs is daunting.
I gave birth 2 and a half years ago and am now starting to make progress on weight loss. I weigh 255lbs roughly right now and my goal is 140lbs. I'm going to take it as slowly as I can...but I still feel like losing that much weight will make my skin hang off me regardless.
Is there anything I can even do about it other than post-weight loss surgery? Just feels weird to think I may want to start saving up for a tummy tuck or something. I definitely have taken my appearance into account as to why I want to lose this weight. It isn't the MAIN factor but it's a big one. So losing all that weight just to feel shitty about how I look with loose skin seems counterproductive.
Again, I KNOW my health is the most important thing in this scenario but I'm just curious how others deal with the loose skin afterward.
(this is some background)
I’ve always been fat my whole life. I’m 16f and decided that i’m really gonna change bc i’m tired of feeling terrible about myself.
I’m very self aware of myself and actions and I noticed i would project my feelings on to others in my head. I’d say like “they probably hate me because of my weight” “Or they think i’m a slob”
I know better then to actually act like they feel that way. Like i know better then to actually let those feelings manifest in real interactions. I know they are just what i think about myself and to keep them to myself.
Anyways, i always made attempts but it’s hard when u are embarrassed abt loosing weight. If you are latino you might understand. Family will laugh when u tell them and it’s hard to like “count calories” when idk how many are in my family’s homemade salsa.
With all this being said i’ve been working out and i noticed that i’m sore all day after. Is this normal for someone just beginning there weight loss journey?
I’m not really like super concern more just curious.
I kinda like feeling sore and it makes me feel like there is progress to my efforts.
I am a 22M that weighs around 220 (I have sustained this weight for around 3-4yrs) and wants to loose 40-50 lbs before focusing on muscle. Do you think I will have loose skin?
For better context, I had a cousin who lost around 50-6Olbs and has no loose skin, not sure if the I'll be same but hoping that genetic is shared since our moms are sisters.
I know I need to lose weight to get healthier but I don’t know why loose skin deters me. I know I’m young and with my cousin having success with no loose skins means I have a chance, but I guess I’m asking outside opinions on it since I tend to overthink a lot.
Edit: I am also concerned with how I have to go in a Keto diet (I think permanently) for a health reason, which I know might cause fast weight loss since I plan on doing a lot go cardio.
I'm 19F, 180, 77 kg (lost 10-15 kg) and I feel absolutely estatic. I'm not close to my goal yet, but this morning I had a massive confidence/motivation booster.
I've been trying to walk to my university since I took my weight loss seriously, and at first, what should've been a 30-minute walk, was prolonged by at least another 30 minutes. Well, today I walked to my university in exactly 30 minutes and I only felt slightly tired and out of breath. My heart wasn't pounding out my chest, my legs weren't shaking, I feel so healthy.
I even traced along my legs and felt the newly formed muscles underneath the skin and fat. I still have a long way to go to achieve my goals, but I feel so motivated and confident to continue. It's the little things that have such an enormous impact.
26F 5’9 HW: 305 CW:220 GW: 180’s
I don’t know exactly what I thought my body would look like once I lost weight but this wasn’t it. I thought I’d look normal, more attractive, and overall smaller.
I thought I’d get a societally acceptable body.
Instead I just have tons and tons of loose skin, that I know with more weight loss won’t improve dramatically.
It some ways it feels worse than when I was bigger, being fat and looking fat naked is more normal that looking average in clothes and fat/flabby and gross naked.
While I’ve definitely gained confidence emotionally, and have much more freedom since the weightloss. (I went from a size 20 to a size 14). I feel just as insecure about my body, if not more so.
I can tuck my stomach almost flat in pants, but the reality is I’m just a drooping loose mess.
I have reduced how much I ate, but not by a lot, and I did cut out soda for the most part. If I used to have 3 12oz sodas a day, I now only have one. The only big difference between January and before is I changed jobs. I used to work in a kitchen, two days a week for 6hrs a day. Now, I'm the baker for the same kitchen, working four days a week for maybe 3hrs a day, if I take my time. Did any of those things contribute to the weight loss? Yeah, probably. Do I feel like I'm doing enough to have lost weight? Not at all. Regardless of how the weight is gone, I'm just happy that the number on the scale is going down and I'm now 15lbs closer to my goal.
I'm an older adult that has been significantly overweight my entire life. Borderline morbidly obese (or morbidly obese?) as a child, but then significantly overweight as an adult. Weight maintenance has always been a struggle as has food addiction and self-medication with food.
Stunningly, that has all changed with the birth of my twins. The first month was a serious struggle and I was drinking beer and eating Snickers to get through the nights with them. Near the end of the first month, I realized that I wasn't even enjoying what I was eating. I thought "why am I eating all of these calories and this unhealthy crap when I'm not even enjoying it?".
Around the same time, I was taking my dog for a walk and saw some children running nonstop in a game of tag and thought "I could never keep up with them" and that made me sad. I want the stamina and endurance to keep up with my children (a challenge already for older parents, but more so when one is overweight).
At this point, I just made the change. I literally have zero time in the day for exercise so aside from forcing 10-15 pushups at least once per day (I didn't even have a chance yesterday for that!), I have no formal exercise. I'm always running around the house, taking care of my babies, cleaning, walking the dog, and so on, but there is no gym, my weights are stuck in a corner without room to be laid out (and I wouldn't even have time for them anyway). So, I'm already working with a very low "calories out" baseline. Seems unfair, but oh well.
However, the lifelong struggle with food is absent and that bewilders me. I used to be damn near haunted by food. How to force myself away from pizza, wings, how not to eat chicken skin, how to resist this, that, and the other deep fried thing. You get the idea. It's not an issue. It's not self control, it's not finding those foods disgusting, I've just become entirely apathetic about them. I now just order or make the lowest calorie item possible, and go through the laborious, tedious job of chewing and swallowing before returning to real issues of importance. I even leave food on my plate intentionally (e.g., rice) when I feel the portion is too large! My beautiful wife still has cupboards and fridge brimming with unhealthy snacks, but I've no interest in them - even if they are expiring. They can go in the trash if she doesn't eat them. There is zero craving for any of it. No interest in any bad food (or food, in general).
Even without the exercise, the weight has melted right off. I expect that I am going to be average weight (if not underweight) within 2 to 3 more months. It's astounding. Not the weight loss, per se, but the complete lack of power food has over me. Imagine being a lifelong alcoholic and waking up one morning realizing that you could socially drink without any additional temptation! That your spouse can drink wine at dinner and keep alcohol in the fridge and it has no influence on you!
I'd think I was depressed except that I'm full of happiness and love with my life, my family, my work, and everything else. I guess that explains that the food addiction was food filling holes in my emotional self?
Anyway, just wanted to share with some community. Food addiction is horrible and I wouldn't wish it on anyone. I don't think I "deserved" to lose this addiction after so many decades of this food monkey on my back, but I'm so thankful that he's gone. No more looking at pictures of food, imagining the taste of foods that I can't have, trying to achieve the taste of unhealthy food with healthy ingredients, and so on.
Side note: Excuse any typos, this was quickly typed out before I move onto things that need to be done (i.e., time is a very limited resource).
Hooray!
EDIT: I should also add that I was struggling for a few years with gout and the past year with severe dry eyes and the weight loss seems to have eliminated the former and greatly reduced the latter. Tremendously wonderful!
Why is it that when you reach each milestone in your weight loss journey and want to celebrate it your friends and family either act like they are sick of you talking about it, act like you are trying to rub it in or that you are better than them, or are just plain jealous or your success.
It has me second guessing if maybe I am talking about it too much or if I need to re-evaluate the relationships in my life.
Have any of you experienced this and if so how did you deal with it?
So starred my weight loss journey in December of 2021 weighing about 230 pounds. This morning I saw that I dropped down to 189 pounds making my total weight loss around 41 pounds in the last 6 months. When I looked in the mirror this morning I saw such a significant difference and even though it took me 6 months to see these results I'm so happy I've made it to this point and now have learned healthy eating habits in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Having clothes that fit me again feels like such an accomplishment and has given me a tremendous boost to my confidence. The keys for me have been eating roughly 2,000 calories a day, staying super active with work and cutting out meat and following a pescatarian diet (no meat but will consume fish). Overall I'm about 2/3rds of the way to my goal weight of about 170. I feel by the end of summer I will be back to a healthy weight for the first time since 2018 and to be honest I couldn't be happier! Super proud of myself this morning!!!
i was 190 last summer, currently 154. (5’1) i was doing amazing last year, obviously i know you lose weight quicker when you first start but randomly during jan/feb my weight loss just stopped. one morning i’m 151, then 154, never under or over. ive been doing calorie deficit and been lowering my calorie intake, but if i go even lower it’ll be too low. i also started working out in my room, doing around an hour worth of work outs. and still no progress this month.
i just got an apple watch so i can track the calories i burn, but i feel stuck. like i’ll always be big. i really want to see results this summer. i’m tired of seeing the same weight and feeling powerless. i’m also sixteen (almost 17) , so i really want to lose the weight before i’m an adult. my biggest fear is never being able to reach my goal and it feels like it’s impossible right now.
i would love any tips so i can reach my goal, im very motivated just confused right now.
Hello everyone, I am very proud of my journey so far and I'm just 10.2 lbs away from being under 300 lbs for the first time in over a decade (I know that isn't a big deal for a lot of people, but it really is for me).
I'm a retired marine that was injured on my 2nd combat tour in Iraq which although hard to believe is now more than 15 years ago. Fatigue, injury, and lack of motivation got to me and I let myself get up to 388 lbs. (something that was a number I couldn't have even imagined at one point in life but fully realize and take accountability for that was entirely my fault) I couldn't believe it when I saw that weight after not weighing in for a considerable amount of time, but I made a vow with myself that for my family, myself, and to try to help ensure that I can avoid as many health issues down the line as possible that when I began this new chapter I wasn't going to stop until the book was complete.
I set my ultimate goal at 200 lbs (we'll see where it goes from there when I cross that line), and while I still have a LONG way to go I am taking things one step at a time. Through very strict diet and added exercise (as much as I can) I have now dropped nearly 80 lbs. (78) and although it has been tough I'm never looking back. 310.2 was my weight this morning and I almost got a tear in my eye because for the first time in such a long time I was truly proud of myself. I'm just about at T-minus 10 for the 300's.
I started the Keto diet about three months ago and I feel that it has also helped immensely not only with my appetite but also my energy levels and maximum weight loss. (I was eating healthier and watching calories for a couple months prior to that)
I didn't make this post to brag (if somehow that could even be the case in my situation) but as motivation to others to let you know you are worth it, your health is worth it, and you CAN do this. I know I am, and I'm NEVER looking back. Part of this process for me is a promise to myself that I will NEVER let myself go over the weight thresholds that I am putting behind me. I am down 20% of my total starting body weight as of today. I'm feeling good, starting to look good, my energy is up, I'm playing basketball with my kids again, and today I'm going to go look at dumbbells and a straight bar.
I've kept my exercise to a minimum so far almost exclusively focusing on my diet (outside of some cardio like walking, jogging, and light basketball), but I am ready to take the next step. Today is the day I start lifting again (or very soon if I can't find what I want at Walmart and have to order online).
I wish everyone on this journey the best of luck, and just remember the BIGGEST part of this story is taking responsibility for yourself. Accountability is the key to success. Don't beat yourself up, but always remind yourself that you can do this. One day at a time, one step at a time. You can always put things off (like I did for so long), but you can never get back time.
I'm sorry for the long winded post, but I am so proud of myself I just had to share my story with others that may be struggling, about to give up, or are on a winning streak themselves. Motivation is progress and progress is motivation.
Keep it up. You've got this.
I (28yo, f) have always wanted to lose a significant amount of weight, but now I really need to because I'm hoping to get a breast reduction. Insurance will most likely require that I lose about 20lbs before having the surgery. That amount puts me down to my pre-covid weight (180lbs), and even then I wanted to lose another 20 lbs.
Losing weight has always been hard for me, and now, I also have a lot of food sensitivities. In the last 6 months I've stopped eating gluten and soy, along with other things here and there. I can just barely tolerate eggs sometimes. Raw foods (like a big salad) usually ruin my day with stomach ache because it's too much to digest. I thought after giving up gluten I'd lose weight naturally, but the scale hasn't budged.
Last time I tried to lose weight, I lost about 10lbs in a month on WW. Then, I got off-track, and also developed bulimia. I'm past that, and don't think it will happen again -- my mental health state is much better -- but I feel overwhelmed between that past ED and my new sensitivities on how to start with a new weight loss journey. I also have chronic pain (endometriosis) that makes any HIIT workouts impossible.
Any tips, tricks, resources, or affirmations would be so appreciated. I'm nervous about starting but I want to do this!
Hi All! 28F here, I have been maintaining an ~80lb weight loss for the past 2 years now. I have a bit of loose skin hanging, which has definitely gotten worse overtime as I build muscle and decrease my body fat percentage.
Does anyone have any compression underwear recommendations to help keep the loose skin in place and mitigate chaffing? I've only really seen the full torso shapewear and I don't want all that, just like normal underwear that keeps everything in place lol
After losing 80 lbs, I’ve noticed that I’ve been matching more on tinder, however, no guy looks at me in real life. The only 2 guys I’ve ever wanted and I cannot get over, have friend zoned me, they wont ever fk me and will never find me attractive; it’s like I’ll always be the fat and ugly chick to them. With one guy i have an intense emotional/mental connection and the other guy it’s pure sexual big D energy he transmits to me. Before my weight loss, I would only be attracted to a more deep connection, and with these guys I have that connection that goes beyond physical attraction. But on tinder, I’ve been matching with these really hot, perfect gym body dudes that I never thought would look at me; sometimes i think I’m either being catfished or they’re trying to play a joke on me, as I still have 40 lbs to go to reach my goal weight. Maybe I’m a more socially acceptable fat, but I’m technically still fat. But part of me wants to know what it feels like to be with a socially acceptable hot guy. I’ve always searched for a deeper attraction in all my unrequited pursuits, and all it’s gotten me is disappointment, frustration, and friendzoning. Maybe I should just become shallow and just date based on looks.
So I just started my weight loss journey. And I was super worried about my diet since I love sweet, and fast foods.
I however discovered something that really really helped with my cravings and because of this method I am able to keep my diet in check and daily calories under 1500 usually.
The trick is candy. I know seems like I’m trolling right? Lol. But no I’m serious. I’m not talking about chocolate or gummy candy though. I mean candies like ice breakers, tiktac, stuff like that. Each piece has less then a gram of sugar and only 1-3 cal.
Now this doesn’t mean you can eat a box every day. But I tend to consum roughly 4 pieces a day one time in the morning and during the day when I’m super hungry or have cravings. It seriously helps a lot. Specially that one in the morning.
I hope this helps someone and if it doesn’t you can ignore it lol.
In 2019 I already started a diet where I went from around 194 lbs back to about 169 lbs. But after that Covid came, and we moved to a new house. A period where the snacking and ordering food for delivery came back. In this period I gained back to around 194 lbs.
But for a few months, I am trying to make it a more permanent weight loss. The previous time I went to the dietician I didn't lose any weight yet, but when I went to the dietician yesterday I finally lost a bit of weight (I am 193 lbs now). And I am looking to start a procedure with weight loss medicine!
Losing weight is an important thing for me since I have a muscle disease/muscle weakness. I am happy I made the decision to start losing weight again because with my muscle disease I don't want to get to the point that I already need a wheelchair at my age!
So I'm not exactly on a weight loss journey, but I am making changes in my life due to some family issues that made me look at my impulse control/lack thereof lol. Part of that is making healthier choices for my body like stretching before work, working out in my room, eating proper portions, etc, so weight loss should end up being part of the changes down the line. I had a pretty specific question and hope this is a good sub to ask it in.
I realized one night that I had been drinking two to three beers/drinks a night standard, and in social situations I frequesntly lose track after five. Since that night I've stopped drinking. Alcoholism runs in my family, and believe it or not, this is an early warning.
Tonight I was thinking about what kind of weight loss I could expect to see just from cutting out alcohol. Can anyone tell me what differences they saw after they stopped heavy drinking?
I’m feeling a bit discouraged in my weight loss journey right now. I went from being a normal weight in my teens, to anorexic, to a normal weight again, to now 40ish pounds overweight. I’ve acquired SO many stretch marks the last two years, my body is sagging in places, and I know it’ll never go back. The medications I’m on make gaining weight easy, and I haven’t been successful at dropping any pounds since I started my journey. My exercise is there, but food quality / quantity, sleep deprivation, and extreme stress is tripping me up. Are there any advantages of going from fat to fit that might cheer me up? Mostly looking for some motivation and kind words. Thank you.
19F, CW: 180 lbs, SW: 179.4, GW: 120 lbs H: 5’3
Hello, I first started my “weight loss journey” in January of 2021 and my starting weight was 179.4. I lost 8 pounds between the beginning of January ‘21 and the end of February ‘21. I was weighing out all of my food & eating 1,200 calories. I fell off track & everything went downhill since then. I’ve been trying to go back to my caloric deficit routine but it has been very frustrating & I kind’ve feel burnt out from this whole “weight loss journey.” I’ve been tracking my calories on and off for about 6-8 months now. I’m getting discouraged because my weight loss has been really slow since February ‘21. I went to the doctor, thinking that something hormonal was going on but nothing. They did blood work and everything. The most amount of progress I made since then is only 3 pound loss in 2 months. But that didn’t last forever, I’ve been binging & I think the number on the scale is triggering it. I’m right back at my starting weight. I have tried multiple things like reverse dieting & incorporating exercise. Right now, I’m eating 1,400 - 1,500 calories with no exercise. I weigh myself almost everyday and want to cry when I see it’s the same number as the day before or a little less than that. I’m thinking about all the progress I could’ve made if I stayed consistent when I first started. I’m even considering weight loss surgery such as gastric bypass or something similar. I don’t want to give up but I have little amount of motivation & I’m stating to accept the fact that I’ll be fat forever.
I've lost about 120lb over the last two years, and I am finally at the stage where I want to transition from losing weight to building muscle.
I am planning to start hitting the gym much harder than I have been and I realize I need to eat accordingly to make the workout worth it.
However, I am terrified that once I stop eating at a deficit, I will put the wrong kind of weight back on.
I don't know enough about the science to know where to begin.
Any advice?
I am back! Short background time: I joined and was active in the sub back in 2020 when husband and I were actively losing weight together and I needed the encouragement and motivation of the community to keep me going. I dropped down to about 152 lbs (close to but not at my goal weight) that summer and then started gaining slowly. I got pregnant and suddenly gaining weight was way too easy again. Lol.
Fast forward time!
I’m now almost 10 months postpartum from my third baby. I think I was close to 200 lbs at my heaviest during pregnancy, which is really big for me. Sometime in March, my husband and I decided to shed the pregnancy weight (sympathy weight for him - lol). For him, it’s super easy. He adds in more exercise and manages to somehow outrun his fork (as wild and rare as that seems, it works).
Me? I can’t outrun my fork. And I breastfeed. Contrary to many, many schools of thought and many other peoples’ experience, breastfeeding doesn’t just melt the excess weight off of me. I struggle. I’m hungry when I nurse. The weight just hangs out and creeps up slowly.
I know logically how to lose weight. I know CICO and have done it successfully before. But with nursing a baby in the mix, it is so hard for me to figure out my calorie count that will work without disrupting nursing. And I am not about to enter the fray of frantic parents in need of formula and add to that mess if I can help it. (I mean that sympathetically because I have friends who are struggling to find formula, and I honestly am grateful I don’t need to add to the panic of being another person hunting it down.)
In April, I signed up for a weight loss program I found on Facebook. I was looking for something to help me, and I found this group that originated with a physical trainer mom who was trying to figure out how to lose weight while nursing her baby. No gimmicks. No MLM nonsense. No “quick fixes.” I would definitely nope out of all those. I signed up for the month of May and then June because each month’s meal plan sells a month ahead of time.
I am so, so glad I found something that works for me. I just don’t have the mental capacity right now to try to put meals together for myself and focus on CICO. This program provides me a meal plan based on my stats, exercise activity, and nursing. I don’t have to think so hard. I just look at the day’s meals and go.
So far I’ve lost almost 9 pounds this month and can’t wait to see June’s menu. And this morning I ate apple cinnamon roll casserole for breakfast, so I can definitely attest the food is tasty.
Anyway, I just wanted to say that sometimes you need help, and that’s okay. I needed it and continue to need it. Wish me luck as I keep heading towards my goals!
I've been seeing this sentiment a lot lately around the sub:
"Exercise is pointless for weight loss""Exercise is a horrible idea if you're trying to lose weight""You can't outrun your fork. Lose weight first then workout."
I'm honestly mystified that people are giving this advice. While it's true that it's significantly more time-efficient to create a calorie deficit by eating less rather than exercising more, doing both is really helpful for a number of reasons. But my primary one is this:
I can eat more when I work out. And I like eating more.
My biggest hurdle to losing weight was eating so little compared to how I ate before. I'm a person who loves big, satisfying meals. I derive a lot of enjoyment from my red meat, rice, potatoes, cheese, beer, and wine. But my 1350 calorie budget didn't leave a lot of room for joy. It was pretty miserable and as a result: hard to see myself sticking to.
But then I realized that the app I was using (the free version of Noom) would add back half the calories racked up by my phone's pedometer to my budget. So I started taking walks! A 40-minute walk, at my weight, would inflate my budget by about 150 calories when halved. And god, 1500 was so much better than 1350. The extra 150 meant 8 oz of steak instead of 6! Or a guilt-free hard seltzer with a friend! The next month I increased my activity level. I had gotten an Apple Watch and started going to the gym. 20 minutes of interval training on the stair climber and getting my 10K steps in brought my budget to ~1700 calories on my workout days. A couple of months later, I added lifting weights and rock climbing. The habits added up and I kept going to the gym and kept going longer. What started with "if I pop on a podcast and go on a nice walk in the park, I can eat nearly twice as much mac and cheese" evolved into a legitimate lifestyle change.
Yesterday, my watch logged 169 minutes of exercise and 1,108 calories burned. Cut it in half, added it to my budget (which is now 1450 since I'm aiming for 1 lb of loss a week now), and I had a full 2,000 calories to eat while safely in deficit. Insane! I certainly don't do that much exercise daily, but the fact that my activity level could ever be this high in one day is shocking. If you asked me in November, I would have said it was impossible.
Now obviously I'm the type of person that is so motivated by food that I fell into being a gym rat quasi-unintentionally. This is NOT going to be true of everyone. But there is something to be said for how exercise can give you enough wiggle room to make your deficit less frustrating and more sustainable. That extra biscuit or bit of ice cream or chicken wing might be what you need to feel a little less gutted by this whole process. And it might snowball into some really great fitness habits as it did for me.
Some other benefits of working out while losing:
Now, this is certainly not to say you NEED to work out while losing weight. You really don't if you don't want to! CICO works and simply eating at a deficit will get you losing weight. But I really wish I'd stop seeing people hate on exercise or insist that you can't meaningfully inflate your calorie budget with it. It can be an exceedingly useful tool for sticking with your diet. It's what enabled me to lose 30 lbs!
EDIT: Some important things to remember: approach exercise in whatever way is accessible and (more importantly) safe for you. This is not a post to preach that you have to exercise or that it will absolutely supercharge your weight loss. This is just to say that adding movement to your day to increase your calorie budget is a very viable strategy. Just remember to only add back half of what the tracker tells you! They famously overestimate actual calorie burn. And start slow if you want to start! I started by walking!
Hi All,
I am currently on my weight loss journey. I started in March 2022 and I have lost just about 40 pounds. I have been feeling a lot of dizziness and headaches in the past 2 weeks and I wanted to know if anyone else who may have lost weight rapidly has experienced something similar?
I also sent my doctor an email this morning about how I have been feeling but thought I'd post this here for additional insight.
Some other info
Starting my weight loss journey tomorrow currently weight around 16 and a half stone I have a tendency to stress eat and I have a really bad sweet tooth I can’t remember the last day I didn’t eat a packet of biscuits or a share size chocolate bare after my dinner and I’m really bad for fizzy drinks I can’t get use to diet alternatives just wanted to ask for some tips to help me sustain a healthy weight loss and to just feel better
I hope this isn't a stupid question. Please let me know if this is not the right place to post.
I've struggled with my weight for years. I have always been strong and could run long distances (half marathons), but have struggled to lose weight, specifically around my core. I had been rigorously going to a training gym for 1.5 years 5 days a week (combo of conditioning /heavy lifting) and have noticed more muscle, but no real fat loss.
I started going to a different gym that also provides nutritional planning and have lost about 7lbs since joining. I also noticed that the fat around my core is much softer than it was before. Is this normal when one is going through weight loss? The workouts at the new place are not as intense as the last gym I was at, and I just want to make sure I'm not losing muscle mass instead and am regressing.
Thank you for any guidance and good luck on your journey.
So prior to last year I was quite fit and healthy, not perfect but I was a size 10 (Australian sizes), weighed around 55kg, ate plant based and minimal sugar and gluten, I jogged at least three times a week.. enjoyed my body and fitness.
Then last March I was vaccine injured and went into multi organ failure, a week in ICU and a month in hospital, I came out at 67kgs. I also developed a host of chronic health conditions that left me struggling with basic tasks like cooking, meal prep, and my health conditions meant I developed exercise intolerance (literally had allergic reactions to exercising).
It’s been 14 months now and I weigh 85kgs, I’m severely overweight, and I’m really struggling with my body image. I desperately want to lose the weight but I don’t know what I can do. I can manage very light and short periods of exercise (30 minutes three times a week is my limit, even then it’s slow walking and gentle Pilates) and it’s not helping with weight loss, but if I up it (amount or intensity) my body goes into a massive flare up and I can’t do anything for a week. Cooking has become incredibly hard, I struggle to follow steps in recipes, meal prepping, cooking, all of it is more than I can manage mentally and physically. I also have bad reactions to foods now and I’ve noticed that the biggest reactions are to fruit, legumes, gluten, and a lot of vegetables.. being vegan this makes it really hard to eat. I’ve been relying on plant based microwave meals and cereal that my body can tolerate but because I’m not burning the calories off they’re contributing to weight gain.
If I cut calories to an amount where I’d lose weight then my body can’t cope and I end up in a flare, if I eat the right amount to keep my chronic illnesses fairly stable then it’s adding to weight gain. One of my illnesses is also known to cause weight gain and obesity.
I’m so confused about what I can do and where I can start. Doctors all have different opinions, some have told me not to focus on the weight and just keep myself stable, others have said that I need to lose some because if I continue gaining then I risk more conditions being diagnosed. How would others manage this and start weight loss?
