Starting out? Restarting? Basics inside

sunnyside1213

Don't bother with a detox. Drink water. Then drink more.

blankiefinder

Have a great day!

Elaine352962

Have a fantastic day everyone on your weight loss journey.

aliciamariaq

Great post!

joycemt729

Thanks for the insight...points me in the right direction!

veleaton

Great post and thread. Thanks

cherishlove84

blankiefinder wrote: »

Whether you're just starting out on your weight loss journey, or restarting for the second, 5th or 20th try, remember the golden rule to get the basics down first. Sometimes people get mired in the details and lose the big picture, which is that a calorie deficit will result in weight loss. So let's get back to the basics!

I've posted this in other peoples posts when they were asking for help, but now that the formerly best stickies are no longer stickied, I think it's time to put it here by itself.

My MFP 'How-To'

Buy a food scale, weigh and log everything.

Do cardio if you want, and if you do, only eat back 50% of your calories (if you are losing faster than expected after logging for a few weeks, then up the % you eat back). Lift weights and hit your protein goal to help maintain muscle mass while losing.

Cheat meals that take you over maintenance will sabotage your efforts. Log the cheat meals too (falls under the 'log everything' rule).

Eat anything you want in moderation, keeping in mind that your diet will be easier to stick with if you chose foods that make it easier to stay under your calories without feeling hungry.

Also it would be a good idea to read some of the best forum posts such as:
Calorie Counting 101
Logging Accuracy, Consistency, & You're Probably Eating More Than You Think
A Guide To Get You Started on Your Path To Sexy Pants

Weight loss is not linear, and if you see a brief stall, that is not the time to freak out! That is the time to go back and look at your logging, and make sure that everything is accurate (choosing diary entries that have the correct calories, making sure you have all your settings right including activity level - hint, this does not include exercise, and most people are sedentary), and if it is, then give it a few weeks.

This is great! Thanks for the post

Orphia

Bump!

diannethegeek

Just want to give this a bump. Could be useful for a lot of people tonight.

myheartsabattleground

buuuuuuump.

blankiefinder

Thanks, ladies!

So many posts asking about miracle pills tonight, makes me sad

Elaine352962

cherishlove84 wrote: »

blankiefinder wrote: »

Whether you're just starting out on your weight loss journey, or restarting for the second, 5th or 20th try, remember the golden rule to get the basics down first. Sometimes people get mired in the details and lose the big picture, which is that a calorie deficit will result in weight loss. So let's get back to the basics!

I've posted this in other peoples posts when they were asking for help, but now that the formerly best stickies are no longer stickied, I think it's time to put it here by itself.

My MFP 'How-To'

Buy a food scale, weigh and log everything.

Do cardio if you want, and if you do, only eat back 50% of your calories (if you are losing faster than expected after logging for a few weeks, then up the % you eat back). Lift weights and hit your protein goal to help maintain muscle mass while losing.

Cheat meals that take you over maintenance will sabotage your efforts. Log the cheat meals too (falls under the 'log everything' rule).

Eat anything you want in moderation, keeping in mind that your diet will be easier to stick with if you chose foods that make it easier to stay under your calories without feeling hungry.

Also it would be a good idea to read some of the best forum posts such as:
Calorie Counting 101
Logging Accuracy, Consistency, & You're Probably Eating More Than You Think
A Guide To Get You Started on Your Path To Sexy Pants

Weight loss is not linear, and if you see a brief stall, that is not the time to freak out! That is the time to go back and look at your logging, and make sure that everything is accurate (choosing diary entries that have the correct calories, making sure you have all your settings right including activity level - hint, this does not include exercise, and most people are sedentary), and if it is, then give it a few weeks.

This is great! Thanks for the post

This really is food advice that we should all follow. I am going to re-check everything again. Thank you for re-focussing me again.

Twinmamamarion

THANK YOU FOR THIS!! I'm so excited to get fully back on the wagon.

kimmyt_72

SuperSueg1 wrote: »

starting over is hard but I am going to give it another go!

I have been off track for a few months...but not anymore...meal prepping and gym this week...good luck I know how hard it is

SapphireMoon23

nicolebaugh518 wrote: »

Interesting read. I had a food scale (got broke), but I could get another one. I need to get a food journal to write down what I ate and how much exercise I've done.

Why not use the food diary on here?