Day 1? Starting your weight loss journey on Saturday, 11 January 2020? Start here!

Today is your Day 1?

Welcome to r/Loseit!

So you aren’t sure of how to start? Don’t worry! “How do I get started?” is our most asked question. r/Loseit has helped our users lose over 1,000,000 recorded pounds and these are the steps that we’ve found most useful for getting started.

Why you’re overweight

Our bodies are amazing (yes, yours too!). In order to survive before supermarkets, we had to be able to store energy to get us through lean times, we store this energy as adipose fat tissue. If you put more energy into your body than it needs, it stores it, for (potential) later use. When you put in less than it needs, it uses the stored energy. The more energy you have stored, the more overweight you are. The trick is to get your body to use the stored energy, which can only be done if you give it less energy than it needs, consistently.

Before You Start

The very first step is calculating your calorie needs. You can do that HERE. This will give you an approximation of your calorie needs for the day. The next step is to figure how quickly you want to lose the fat. One pound of fat is equal to 3500 calories. So to lose 1 pound of fat per week you will need to consume 500 calories less than your TDEE (daily calorie needs from the link above). 750 calories less will result in 1.5 pounds and 1000 calories is an aggressive 2 pounds per week.

Tracking

Here is where it begins to resemble work. The most efficient way to lose the weight you desire is to track your calorie intake. This has gotten much simpler over the years and today it can be done right from your smartphone or computer. r/loseit recommends an app like MyFitnessPal, Loseit! (unaffiliated), or Cronometer. Create an account and be honest with it about your current stats, activities, and goals. This is your tracker and no one else needs to see it so don’t cheat the numbers. You’ll find large user created databases that make logging and tracking your food and drinks easy with just the tap of the screen or the push of a button. We also highly recommend the use of a digital kitchen scale for accuracy. Knowing how much of what you're eating is more important than what you're eating. Why? This may explain it.

Creating Your Deficit

How do you create a deficit? This is up to you. r/loseit has a few recommendations but ultimately that decision is yours. There is no perfect diet for everyone. There is a perfect diet for you and you can create it. You can eat less of exactly what you eat now. If you like pizza you can have pizza. Have 2 slices instead of 4. You can try lower calorie replacements for calorie dense foods. Some of the communities favorites are cauliflower rice, zucchini noodles, spaghetti squash in place of their more calorie rich cousins. If it appeals to you an entire dietary change like Keto, Paleo, Vegetarian.

The most important thing to remember is that this selection of foods works for you. Sustainability is the key to long term weight management success. If you hate what you’re eating you won’t stick to it.

Exercise

Is NOT mandatory. You can lose fat and create a deficit through diet alone. There is no requirement of exercise to lose weight.

It has it’s own benefits though. You will burn extra calories. Exercise is shown to be beneficial to mental health and creates an endorphin rush as well. It makes people feel awesome and has been linked to higher rates of long term success when physical activity is included in lifestyle changes.

Crawl, Walk, Run

It can seem like one needs to make a 180 degree course correction to find success. That isn’t necessarily true. Many of our users find that creating small initial changes that build a foundation allows them to progress forward in even, sustained, increments.

Acceptance

You will struggle. We have all struggled. This is natural. There is no tip or trick to get through this though. We encourage you to recognize why you are struggling and forgive yourself for whatever reason that may be. If you overindulged at your last meal that is ok. You can resolve to make the next meal better.

Do not let the pursuit of perfect get in the way of progress. We don’t need perfect. We just want better.

Additional resources

Now you’re ready to do this. Here are more details, that may help you refine your plan.

• Quick Start Guide - Build your foundation!
• Loseit Compendium - Frame it out!
• FAQ - Answers to our most Frequently Asked Questions!

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Lost 50+ pounds since Sept. 1, under 200 and feels great

Last summer I was 5’11” (well I am still am that tall) and over 250 lbs. and I decided to lose weight but didn’t really “know” how. I put that in quotes because I think we all understand at a basic level you need to eat less/exercise more, but there are obstacles in really getting it.

For me: I like food and eating a lot in one sitting. Also, I don’t work out. I bought a scale that’s wifi and zaps my weight right into a chart automatically (google fit). I just wanted to make progress, no matter how small, so I opted for just small changes to see the results.

First thing I decided was I would stop eating out and cook my own food/sack lunch it to work. Boom, progress I could see on a chart almost immediately. I couldn’t tell looking in the mirror so I really believe this wifi scale gave me the motivation and I use it daily but I lost 5 pounds the first month.

September 1st I was 250 pounds, I just kept going then I then plateaued for a week so I replaced food with other food. I didn’t go full healthy, I was shooting for MORE healthy. Not hard to do for me. I replaced steaks with chicken or potato salad with rice. I just kept doing this and it kept working.

Here is a weird thing about me, I don’t mind eating the exact same thing (almost) every single day. So when I made an improvement I really got a benefit from it because it wasn’t one meal….it was an everyday meal. I knew then, and I still know now, that it’s good to get nutrition from a lot of different sources but my rationale is the way I was eating before made me fat so that’s unhealthy too. So I kept marching on.

The problem came in when I didn’t get full. Some foods just don’t do it for me. Rice for example. I didn’t know then but I have since learned that there are foods with high satiety levels, as in they make you feel full. So I started just replacing my foods with foods that are high in satiety.

So I just kept replacing food until I am here now. January 8th this year I hit 200 lbs. and I am still going. I am aiming for 170 lbs. I even have a goal date now because I feel I am more knowledgeable about this now: May 13th. If I miss, oh well, it’s ok because I will still be much better off I just like doing this sort of thing.

This is what I eat everyday:

Breakfast: One steamed full broccoli (the whole thing), one huge potato cut into 16 pieces and air fried (so baked really, no oil), 2 roma tomatoes cut into 4 pieces each.

Lunch: 2 hard boiled eggs (I eat one when I get hungry then eat the other when it happens again).

Dinner: Quarter cup of chickpeas (because my scoop is 1/4 cup), one huge potato cut into 16 pieces and air fried (no oil), 2 roma tomatoes cut into 4 pieces each.

Other: I drink a lot of diet cola and black coffee, I also often salt my food but try to do it lightly.

As you can see breakfast and dinner are almost identical, just replace the broccoli with chickpeas. I am sure I am unusual that people can eat the same thing every day but it works for me. I actually like my food...because I know I lose weight and I get to fill full. In fact, potatoes and eggs are super filling, potatoes are super foods in satiety levels. What I am giving up is really taste and I feel its a small price to pay. I also now know that there is lag between eating and feeling full. I used to shove food down my throat so fast that I never got the chance to feel full. So I try to eat slow then wait 15 minutes before I determine if I am full or not. Eating slow is actually the hard part for me!

Also, I cheat. Once a week (approximately) I eat something else but I make a decision to make it healthy-ish but often it’s not. One full rack of ribs? Yep, done that a few times. I am ok with it as long as I know I am back on track afterwards. Since I am absolutely obsessed with the ups and downs of my weight scale chart I don’t see it making any real difference once a week. Sometimes I do everything right and the scale doesn’t move at all, I think the most important thing I learned is to just keep going.

Goofy info: I buy the exact same brand and type of jeans one size too small. Two reason: 1. I know I will need them eventually (all my last summer clothes don’t fit). 2. It is an insane boost of motivation when they just slip right on, as soon as that happens I buy the next smaller size to small.

Super goofy info: I debated putting this part in my long post because I don’t want to discourage anyone from starting right now but this has been something I definitely noticed. I work 50% at desk/50% walking around and I wear a jacket most of my day. Winter coat has hidden my weight loss from my co-workers and as I am pretty shy it has saved me from…people noticing. I am laughing as I write this but it’s true for me.

I’m just a guy on reddit please check with a medical professional or nutritionist or something, I am just one guy that is losing weight but I really don’t know how healthy I am doing it. I am excited because it’s working and I wanted to share. Do I miss some foods? Oh heck yeah, but I like losing the weight more than the temporary taste of my former regular food.

Next step is one I really get some anxiety about thinking about: going to the gym with actual other people there and everything. Not in that mental space yet but I am working on it!

I am still on my journey. If you made it all the way to the end of my super long post then thank you, I don’t know why but having my weight start with a “1” is really a big achievement for me and I just felt the need to tell you folks. I really wish you all the best.

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New to this: Cardio/Healthy Eating for to lose weight more effective?

Hi ya’ll - 25 make, 270lbs, trying to get back into the swing of things again.

I’m not trying to break into this and a body builder, I just want to be able to walk a mile without sweating and get rid of stretch marks, my gut and face fat.

So my question is would it be better if I focus on eating healthy and focusing on cardio to get slimmer quicker just to start to lose a couple pounds to get in better shape or should I still stick with the weights with cardio?

Sorry if this is obvious first time I’ve ever had to start doing weight loss like this, but I’m ready for it! And thanks for your help in advance

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Raspberry Ketones?

A while back, I had a friend who used Raspberry ketones in both pill and liquid form (pill is taken 3 times a day with/without food, liquid is dripped under tongue 30 minutes before meals) and she lost a lot of weight in a decently short period of time. She sent me links to the products she used, but she dropped weight so rapidly that I'm afraid of combining them (I have a LOT more skin that will droop than she did, but also, is it really safe to use two weight loss products at once?). Has anyone used both at once? The pills have 1000mg ketone per serving and the drops don't specify.

Additionally, while I know that these products work because I've SEEN it, I have no idea what exactly it does.

I've been battling depression eating as well as weight gain due to a back injury back in April '19, but I'm trying to respawn. Sitting at 244.4 right now. I don't know if being bigger affects any of the numbers... my weight loss education is minimal, I'll be honest. I just joined this subreddit a couple days ago.

Thanks for any help you have.

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Losing weight is more "mental health" related than you might think

How many of you have experienced problems with emotional and binge eating either currently or in the past? (I raise both of my hands)

I've known this for longer than I would like to admit, but it still never stopped the bully in my head beating me down every chance it got. I would tear myself down until I really didn't care about how I looked or felt. I self deprecated and stuffed my face until I'd get new scars on my stomach, and then I would go on a "diet".

I would keep myself from eating foods that I enjoyed all together during these "diets". And behind closed doors I would binge on "low" and "no-calorie" foods (lots and LOTS of jello, lean cuisine, diet soda). Nothing could have been more detrimental to my mental and physical health than the literal ups and downs on the scale. My brain was constantly foggy, and my joints constantly hurt. Because of my emotional trauma, I would fill myself with anything to drown my sadness from the inside out-- Or so I thought. Eating wasn't always comforting, a lot of the time it was punishment and self harm.

I had binged since I was 8, and I never even thought about getting help in that aspect of my food addiction. I thought "I'm just fat and lazy" Yes I was fat, but I have never been lazy, I just have ADHD and depression. I was always one of the hardest workers at UPS-- And at the gym I would work out so hard that I would injure myself. I KNEW it wasn't true, but I thought that it was. I thought that restricting calories and working out would be the best and only solution to me being unhappy with my physique. I thought I wasn't making progress, EVEN WHEN I WAS. So I just convinced myself that I would fail, and I always did. So when that didn't work for 20 years, I had to look inside of myself for the answer.

That's when I realized that I wasn't dieting for all of those years. You might have not been either, not until now. I was caught in a binge-restrict cycle. It was an eating disorder that I knew I had for as long as I can remember, but I was so unwilling to admit that to myself. I wasn't ready to hear it.

If you are reading this and you're tired of failing time and time again, just trust me on this-- YOU WILL NOT SUCCEED PHYSICALLY UNTIL YOU ALLOW YOURSELF TO DO SO MENTALLY. Something in your brain has to click-- and for me, it was understanding that I needed mental help in order to make my dreams and goals a reality. If this is the case for you, admitting you have a problem and getting help DOES NOT make you weak, it makes you stronger.

The light bulb turned on, and my weight loss has jump started my entire body. I felt so good to see my progress, but there was still my depression nagging me nonstop. So I saw my psychiatrist and he prescribed Prozac to me for my binge eating disorder. Not only that but I am back on my ADHD medication for the first time since choosing to stop taking it when I was 18. I believe in myself more than I ever have, and this support group helps me every day.

Don't get me wrong, weight loss is always about the food you put into your body-- but it's not always just about that*.*

Never give up hope, believe in yourself and I promise you will be the best version of yourself you have ever been. Stay well my friends!

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I lost 45lbs and it feels great

May 21st, 2019 I weighed 261lbs, my blood pressure was high so I was put on medicine for it. I started going to the gym and started dieting (high protein body building style diet) that very night. Honestly I went along with the diet and going to the gym for a few months and I lost around 20lbs during that time. I stopped going to the gym and stopped dieting so hard but luckily I continued with the good eating habits that I had picked up. I still continued to lose weight and today I am at 216lbs and I had to change blood pressure medicine because my medicine was slowing my heart rate too much because of the weight loss. Im on cloud 9 today and I couldn't have done it without the inspiration of this sub and many other weight loss subreddits.

Thank you for reading and have a good dayhttps://i.imgur.com/ppI26an.jpg

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I Thought I Gave Up On Weight Loss.

Well, I feel strange writing this. A little excited.
At 256 lbs, being 5"5.5, having a failed relationship and losing my job I felt that I had nothing to work towards and nothing to lose.
I was already depressed so I didn't feel I became 'more depressed' just more hopeless if that makes any sense.
I always wanted to lose weight, but it never happened for me, and I WANT TO SAY that I tried everything in the book, and truth be told I did though I was never consistent, or put forth more than 3 days effort at any given time. That was a huge reflective shock for me.

Accepting that I have no discipline and consistency I gave up on weight loss.

Several months back I was having medical issues with fluid retention in my feet and ankles. I went to the doctor, everything was inconclusive. (To this day I still have some symptoms)

Went back later as the pain was going through my leg, nothing wrong they said. Then my knees starting hurting severely (they still hurt today) and I never visited a doctor for that. No Doctor ever told me to lose weight, or checked my blood pressure.

I did some self research and it said that these symptoms and issues could be because of my weight. The doctors never said anything to me, so it couldn't be. It was okay though, I gave up on weight loss. I googled remedies for the pain and I told myself I would make small changes to help my symptoms.

Still kind of failed at that.

I never said no to things that were bad for me, I never stopped eating until I was full, and I never stopped eating at whatever hours I was hungry.

I had a lot of goals for new years, but I figured I may as well start early to get myself into the swing of things. Though I was a lot more lax.

Fast Forward To Today

Today, feeling upset with myself, another long night staying up late watching videos on charisma, femininity, educate and whatever else I wanted to 'hone my skills' in to make myself an overall appealing/better/successful person (by my standards of course) I knew that I would never be complete unless I lost this weight. Being 5"5.5 and 256LBS, I knew I wanted to weight 135-145 lbs, or be a size 6-8.

So I got up, weighed myself to reconfirm my starting weight and... I weight 230lbs on the mark.

I was confused, how could I have lost weight? I looked at myself, saw virtually no changes. Discouraged, I got dressed, and noticed something now that I was paying attention.
My pants didn't hug me skin tight, and my jacket had some give. Odd.

I didn't understand how I lost 26 lbs WITHOUT TRYING, then I reflected on my changes in the past 6 months. (Please note that these changes only happened in the past 6 months, and I have only been consistent with them over a month and a half, though everything I described prior (job loss, breakup) happened over the course of a year and 1/2. I last weighed myself at 256 in July 2019)

1. I ate when I was hungry, and ate until I was content but never BLOATED or SUPER FULL, or gut blowing. (I did this because I was having stomach pains and acid reflux, as well as other digestive issues, my logic was to eat in smaller amounts at a time to relieve pressure on my system, this totally has been working for those who may be curious.)
2. I ate in 1s instead of 2s or 3s. (I did this so I could enjoy the treat/snack later if I wanted to, save money)
3. I didn't restrict, if I wanted something I ate it. (I did this because I have a huge sweet tooth, and I didn't want to deny myself of my favourite things.)
4. I made meals I enjoy. It was easy to make healthy meals and to stick to it when I enjoyed it. (I did this because I was watching a lot of good cooking on youtube that I wanted to try, mostly about soups and what not)
5. I ate out and ordered in less. (I did this to save money)
6. If I ate out, I made sure I REALLY WANTED IT. Maybe a healthy option, or if I wanted a burger, I made sure it was something delicious and gourmet, not a cheap burger. (I did this to get my moneys worth)
7. I walked, nearly every day. If not 10 minutes, then 20, then 30. Usually 2000-3000 steps a day. *Past 2 weeks about 6000 steps* & Gradually more and more (Up to 9000). (I have a dog, usually I would just let her run through the backyard. I walked her to socialise her more)
8. I drank water and tea. Usually any time I was 'hungry' I would eat, having very little water (never had an issue with juices or sodas), sometimes no fluids at all in a day (even fainted sometimes) now I always reach for water or tea first. Since getting a water filter I just always drink water, and I have a tea with every meal.
   (I did this to help with my severely dry skin, body pains. and digestion.)
9. I ate smaller portions. I ate on a smaller plate. (I did this because my brother hoarded dishes in his room. also to aid my digestion)
10. I said Yes more. When I was invited out, or to go places, or help, or do something I said yes (I did this to help my depression and anxiety)
11. I got ready every day, even if I had no where to go. (This made it easier to say YES! To take care of my hygiene and skin. ^{WHICH IS VERY HARD TO DO BECAUSE OF DEPRESSION} Also, apart of my educate learning)
12. I didn't eat late. (Basically by the time 1:00AM came around, where before I would eat, I just didn't. I just sipped tea and water. )
13. I cleaned when cleaning needed to be done. (A lady is never lazy, and never dirty. I learned that through my educate research, so it was a step for that direction)
14. Added more fruits and veggies (Did this solely to help with body pains,swelling, skin and hair care)

My new years resolution(s)? To finish at least 2 songs and upload them before the years end, and to practice learning a language every day. To have better skin, hair, and to gain confidence socially. To walk my dog and play with her every day. To save money, and better my skills. I even made a map to outline how I would incorporate a little of each goal into my every day life.

Every year since I was 14 my new years resolution has been to lose weight. I didn't want that toxic cycle to continue for myself this year, but I woke up today wanting to make it my main focus.

I don't think I will though.

Cause you see,

Now it's coming off... but it's just collateral.

TLDR; Set goals for myself not related to weight loss, and weight has become coming off slowly, though unintentionally.

5"5.5 256 lbs start currently 230lbs

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