i need help please

21lcd21

i want to add some friends for support and suggestions. i am currently at 138 lb. at 5'2 and i really want to lose weight and get in shape! i have been running at least 2-5 miles 3-5 times a week i have been doing this for about 4 weeks but my eating habits are really bad:( i need some help! i guess what I'm trying to say is what diet/food should i start eating? i heard the more protein you eat the more muscle but I'm not sure if i should eat more protein if I'm still trying to lose weight!?

if anyone one has been in this situation how have you dealt with it ? Did you see results? or if you are currently in the same position what are you doing to deal with it?

SteelySunshine

Eating more protein will in no way make it harder to lose weight unless you eat more calories than you need to create a deficit. I happen to prefer carbs, but I don't have a phobia about any of the macros they all have an important place in your diet. Protein helps keep you full longer (with fiber it's really long lasting), carbs are good for energy, and fat is a lot like protein helps you stay full longer, it helps keep your blood sugar steady and a lot of other good things.

My advice would be to eat a good balance of fats, protein, and carbs. Find your TDEE and eat 250 less than that and burn at least 250 a day in activities, but get a minimum of 30 minutes of dedicated exercise. It's all about the math.

snoople1

Hi, a primal lifestyle with eating real fresh food, nothing processed is awesome.Want to read more?
here is a link http://www.marksdailyapple.com/#axzz2WJwOWztA

kimbtaylor1

For me personally upping my protein did the trick for me. While I was going thru my biggest weight loss I cut carbs out completly other than those found in fruits and veggies. I had no breads, sugars, pastas etc. This worked best for me. However I am not going to say it will work for you. Everyone is different! I am now in the home streach of my weight loss with under 20 lbs to go and I will allow myself carbs now. IF you do go the high protein route make sure you pick GOOD proteins just like carbs have good and evil twins so does protein. Lean meats yes even red meats are better than the fattier options.

I will tell you while I was on the carb restriction I was able to eat some really GOOOOOD steak at least twice a week. A nice steak and green veggies was the best part of the restriction. I would have loved a good baked tater but that was on the no go food list.

grimendale

For me, the trick was just watching calorie intake and getting a good variety. I'm vegetarian, so cutting out carbs is out of the question, and (for me anyway) unecessary. I do make sure I keep close to my macros and near my calorie goals, but it basically comes down to calories consumed versus calories expended (TDEE and exercise). Different approaches work for different people, and everyone tends to advocate their own approach. I tend to prefer an If It Fits Your Macros (IIFYM on the boards) approach, which means I can eat anything so long as I keep it under my allotted calories and grams of macronutrients (carbs, fat and protein). I have a friend who eats paleo and is in great shape, and there is almost nothing that we can both eat. The best approach is going to be the one that works for you, the one you can stick to. Calories are the key to losing. Keep under you limits, but not too far under. Everything else is about health or preference.

21lcd21

Thank you all for your comments they help so much! I wish y'all all the best in this journey!

BeachIron

Add some strength training to help body composition. Also, get 1 gram of protein per pound of lean body mass and 0.35 grams of fat per pound of total body weight. I'd also suggest this approach, and ditching any specific diet:

1. Commit. You have to want to lose weight and be willing to change your current behavior to accomplish that. The world is full of quick weight loss gimmicks because many people do not want to commit. They want the success but aren't willing to put in the work.

2. Spend time calculating your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) and working out a reasonable deficit to achieve a steady weight loss. This needs to be a an amount that you can actually achieve day in and day out for a long time. There is no sense in setting it low only to find yourself suffering through it for a few days and then binging next week.

3. Buy a digital kitchen scale and a good variety of measuring cups and spoons. Weigh all solids and measure any liquids that have any calories and that go into your body. And record it all.

4. Find an exercise program that you can stick with consistently over time. If it's only walking right now, then okay. But make sure you do it every day then but do not think that it every needs to be more than 1 hour a day. I sometimes hit 2 hours (split between weights and cardio) but I'm well into this and am not risking burn out by doing so. As you increase your physical capacity then increase your exercise until you are strength training at least 3 times a week and doing some sort of cardio 2 or 3 times a week (again, walking is fine). Cardio is not strictly necessary to lose weight but it will improve your cardiovascular health and it will help you by allowing you to eat a bit more. Strength training also is not strictly necessary to lose weight but it will help you retain what muscle mass you have. You won't notice the difference immediately but as you get close to your goal weight you will be very happy you did it.

5. And speaking of goal weight, don't worry about this so much. It will change as the weight comes off anyway. If it motivates you though, then have one but definitely be open to moving it down, reasonably, as the weight comes off and your view of things change.

6. BE CONSISTENT. No plan is worth a damn thing if you don't stick with it.

7. Be Patient. Weight loss isn't linear and you will have weeks where you do everything right and nothing happens. You're not alone here. It's happened to all of us.

8. Be willing to reevaluate if you do hit a plateau for a couple of months. The problem could be any one of the above issues. If it's not then talk to your M.D.

9. Have fun. Find ways to get your exercise in that you really enjoy. If you hate getting out of bed in the morning then that morning run is going to suck. Don't do this to yourself.

10. Dont' be unreasonable with your diet. Allow yourself to eat some of the foods that you always have, just in true 1 serving size portions. Some people are better than others with this. If you do have a true "trigger food" then you need to avoid it, at least for a while, but if you constantly deny your cravings, by eating yogurt rather than ice cream for example, you're going to eventually binge. At least most people will. The idea here isn't to punish yourself but to teach yourself how to eat proper portions and balance your diet. Many of us find success while still eating pizza, hamburgers, ice cream, beer, french fries, donuts and pop tarts. We just don't eat them all the time and when we do we have a portion. Not a box or a carton.

11. Forgive yourself for bad days. You will have them. We all do. Just make sure that you get right back on track rather than beating yourself up for a week and then releasing your stress about it in a box of donuts.

CoachTara71

Totally needing to keep track because I UNDER calorie all the time and that IS not working LOL I love meal replacement shakes or smoothies. I am here to track what I eat to see if even come close to the calorie intake I should be doing. My goals are to lose over 100 pounds, but during my 84 day challenge my goals are to lose 15

upandover34

excellent advice

Add some strength training to help body composition. Also, get 1 gram of protein per pound of lean body mass and 0.35 grams of fat per pound of total body weight. I'd also suggest this approach, and ditching any specific diet:

1. Commit. You have to want to lose weight and be willing to change your current behavior to accomplish that. The world is full of quick weight loss gimmicks because many people do not want to commit. They want the success but aren't willing to put in the work.

2. Spend time calculating your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) and working out a reasonable deficit to achieve a steady weight loss. This needs to be a an amount that you can actually achieve day in and day out for a long time. There is no sense in setting it low only to find yourself suffering through it for a few days and then binging next week.

3. Buy a digital kitchen scale and a good variety of measuring cups and spoons. Weigh all solids and measure any liquids that have any calories and that go into your body. And record it all.

4. Find an exercise program that you can stick with consistently over time. If it's only walking right now, then okay. But make sure you do it every day then but do not think that it every needs to be more than 1 hour a day. I sometimes hit 2 hours (split between weights and cardio) but I'm well into this and am not risking burn out by doing so. As you increase your physical capacity then increase your exercise until you are strength training at least 3 times a week and doing some sort of cardio 2 or 3 times a week (again, walking is fine). Cardio is not strictly necessary to lose weight but it will improve your cardiovascular health and it will help you by allowing you to eat a bit more. Strength training also is not strictly necessary to lose weight but it will help you retain what muscle mass you have. You won't notice the difference immediately but as you get close to your goal weight you will be very happy you did it.

5. And speaking of goal weight, don't worry about this so much. It will change as the weight comes off anyway. If it motivates you though, then have one but definitely be open to moving it down, reasonably, as the weight comes off and your view of things change.

6. BE CONSISTENT. No plan is worth a damn thing if you don't stick with it.

7. Be Patient. Weight loss isn't linear and you will have weeks where you do everything right and nothing happens. You're not alone here. It's happened to all of us.

8. Be willing to reevaluate if you do hit a plateau for a couple of months. The problem could be any one of the above issues. If it's not then talk to your M.D.

9. Have fun. Find ways to get your exercise in that you really enjoy. If you hate getting out of bed in the morning then that morning run is going to suck. Don't do this to yourself.

10. Dont' be unreasonable with your diet. Allow yourself to eat some of the foods that you always have, just in true 1 serving size portions. Some people are better than others with this. If you do have a true "trigger food" then you need to avoid it, at least for a while, but if you constantly deny your cravings, by eating yogurt rather than ice cream for example, you're going to eventually binge. At least most people will. The idea here isn't to punish yourself but to teach yourself how to eat proper portions and balance your diet. Many of us find success while still eating pizza, hamburgers, ice cream, beer, french fries, donuts and pop tarts. We just don't eat them all the time and when we do we have a portion. Not a box or a carton.

11. Forgive yourself for bad days. You will have them. We all do. Just make sure that you get right back on track rather than beating yourself up for a week and then releasing your stress about it in a box of donuts.

CheleJG

I would recommend a very nutrient dense meal plan. It's not about depriving you, which I find works against long term weight loss because you end up pigging out on the bad foods at some point. To start, write down the healthier foods you really enjoy first. This will help the process seem less overwhelming because you may find you eat a lot of healthier foods but just not enough or maybe not in their healthiest form. The goal is to eat more of the nutrient dense foods and less of the foods that don't really benefit to your overall health and weight loss goal. Check out this link, http://www.glamour.com/health-fitness/blogs/vitamin-g/2010/02/the-top-10-most-nutrient-dense.html. The higher the numbers the better. Protein is essential but be mindful of the type of protein. Beans pack the best type of protein for you and they are lower in fat i.e. lentils. Give yourself a cut off time at night where you know you cannot eat beyond that point, make sure to eat breakfast and pack some healthy snacks (fruit, nuts, veggies) to munch on throughout the day (that will boost your metabolism). Oh yeah and of course be flexible. It's okay to have your cheat food here and there, but everything in moderation. More of the good stuff, less of the not so good. Hope this is helpful!

Mainebikerchick

Add some strength training to help body composition. Also, get 1 gram of protein per pound of lean body mass and 0.35 grams of fat per pound of total body weight. I'd also suggest this approach, and ditching any specific diet:

1. Commit. You have to want to lose weight and be willing to change your current behavior to accomplish that. The world is full of quick weight loss gimmicks because many people do not want to commit. They want the success but aren't willing to put in the work.

2. Spend time calculating your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) and working out a reasonable deficit to achieve a steady weight loss. This needs to be a an amount that you can actually achieve day in and day out for a long time. There is no sense in setting it low only to find yourself suffering through it for a few days and then binging next week.

3. Buy a digital kitchen scale and a good variety of measuring cups and spoons. Weigh all solids and measure any liquids that have any calories and that go into your body. And record it all.

4. Find an exercise program that you can stick with consistently over time. If it's only walking right now, then okay. But make sure you do it every day then but do not think that it every needs to be more than 1 hour a day. I sometimes hit 2 hours (split between weights and cardio) but I'm well into this and am not risking burn out by doing so. As you increase your physical capacity then increase your exercise until you are strength training at least 3 times a week and doing some sort of cardio 2 or 3 times a week (again, walking is fine). Cardio is not strictly necessary to lose weight but it will improve your cardiovascular health and it will help you by allowing you to eat a bit more. Strength training also is not strictly necessary to lose weight but it will help you retain what muscle mass you have. You won't notice the difference immediately but as you get close to your goal weight you will be very happy you did it.

5. And speaking of goal weight, don't worry about this so much. It will change as the weight comes off anyway. If it motivates you though, then have one but definitely be open to moving it down, reasonably, as the weight comes off and your view of things change.

6. BE CONSISTENT. No plan is worth a damn thing if you don't stick with it.

7. Be Patient. Weight loss isn't linear and you will have weeks where you do everything right and nothing happens. You're not alone here. It's happened to all of us.

8. Be willing to reevaluate if you do hit a plateau for a couple of months. The problem could be any one of the above issues. If it's not then talk to your M.D.

9. Have fun. Find ways to get your exercise in that you really enjoy. If you hate getting out of bed in the morning then that morning run is going to suck. Don't do this to yourself.

10. Dont' be unreasonable with your diet. Allow yourself to eat some of the foods that you always have, just in true 1 serving size portions. Some people are better than others with this. If you do have a true "trigger food" then you need to avoid it, at least for a while, but if you constantly deny your cravings, by eating yogurt rather than ice cream for example, you're going to eventually binge. At least most people will. The idea here isn't to punish yourself but to teach yourself how to eat proper portions and balance your diet. Many of us find success while still eating pizza, hamburgers, ice cream, beer, french fries, donuts and pop tarts. We just don't eat them all the time and when we do we have a portion. Not a box or a carton.

11. Forgive yourself for bad days. You will have them. We all do. Just make sure that you get right back on track rather than beating yourself up for a week and then releasing your stress about it in a box of donuts.

QFT!!!! :flowerforyou:

hello2shellyc

I love all the great advice you gave. But my problem is getting started. I am up to 260 pounds and am miserable.

BeachIron

I love all the great advice you gave. But my problem is getting started. I am up to 260 pounds and am miserable.

Then decide that you're going to stop being miserable. Move more and eat less. Start that now and develop your plan as you read more and figure out what works for you. Push away from the computer, get up now and go for a walk.

chelstakencharge

Ok, I am 5 feet tall and started this journey at 196...I am now 114 with another 10 pounds to hit my goal that I WILL maintain!! I run and do cardio everyday 60-90 minutes and started lifting this week as well. I do not eat "diet" food but I do eat healthy. Feel free to send me a FR!

_chiaroscuro

Then decide that you're going to stop being miserable. Move more and eat less. Start that now and develop your plan as you read more and figure out what works for you. Push away from the computer, get up now and go for a walk.

YES!!!

21lcd21

thank you all for the comments:) they really help me in becoming more aware of how to stay healthy

Debmal77

I bought a book by Jackie Warner called This is Why You're Fat (And How to Get Thin Forever). It has really helped me. The book is great and you don't have to go without your favorite foods. I love it! Good Luck!!:happy: