Anyone need to lose 100+ lbs?
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I started with a major target of 145lb, which was half my weight and would bring me down to 145lb (obviously). 186 days later I'm halfway there having lost 72.5lb, only another 72.5lb to go.
But I've broken that down in to far more managable chunks. My current short term goal is 210lb, medium term is 199lb and long term is (or was, I'll be changing it by the end of next month) losing 50lb in a year.2 -
I've lost 100 before, and have another 100 to go right now after regaining some weight. I'm going slow and steady, changing my habits thoroughly and exercising to my best ability while still listening to my body. I used to be so strict, and push myself through injuries just to continue with the plan.
I'm just doing my best every day. I don't always meet my calorie goal but I do log even overages. I'm holding myself accountable and being as honest as possible with myself through the process. No crazy fads here!0 -
I've lost 120 pounds, with another 40 or so to go. I started at 290 pounds, only 5 feet tall, and 27 years old. Shameful. But, you can do it, it is totally manageable. You are stronger than you've ever imagined. It has taken me about two years to reach this point and I've never been happier. Some of my advice:
1. If you have reached the point where you need to lose 100+ pounds, there is actually some good news: There are clearly habits you have that are not healthy for you, so you can immediately spot them and change them. If you only have 10 pounds or something to go, it might be really difficult to pinpoint where you can cut calories or where you're making mistakes. But if you've put on that much weight, it's easy to see what you're doing wrong. For me, I knew I was eating crap. Nothing healthy. Poptarts for breakfast, fast food for lunch, a box of Cheez-Its or a full bag of potato chips for dinner. I would look in my grocery cart and think, "There's no actual food in here." I'd order an extra large pizza and a side of breadsticks, and eat it in one sitting. I'd go to McDonalds and get two hamburgers, a large fry, three cookies, and a milkshake. I'd eat family size bags of cookies in one sitting. Obviously, I was eating way, way too much, and if you've got that much to lose, you're massively overeating too. But that gives you a great starting point. You can make a few changes and see improvements quickly. You can easily spot, "Wow, maybe I shouldn't order an extra large pizza. Maybe I should just get the smallest size." "Maybe I should order a small fry and no milkshake." "Maybe I should get water instead of an extra large cola." "Maybe tonight, I will skip dessert." There are so many relatively minor changes you can make and see results. You don't have to immediately swear off everything except carrots and lettuce. Start by cutting back portions, maybe eliminating colored drinks or certain types of food. If you love ice cream and find yourself eating an entire tub--guess what, you can buy small half-cup sizes instead, and you're immediately cutting out hundreds of calories, just by doing that. You'll see results.
2. Find lower calorie, healthy foods you actually enjoy eating. If you try to force yourself to eat something you don't like, just because you believe it is healthy, guess what? You won't stick with the food. You'll find yourself "cheating" and avoiding those foods, and you'll feel like a failure. Do not eat something just because everyone else eats it or finds it useful. Find foods YOU like. I hate broccoli. Broccoli is pretty healthy. I don't force myself to eat broccoli. I am still losing weight. Try different foods and experiment. I never thought I'd like turnips--but I do. I could never imagine eating as much salad as I do now--but I found salad ingredients I enjoy, and that's how I make my salad. I like tomatoes, I eat them; I don't like beets, so I don't eat them. If you like beans, eat them. If you don't, don't eat them. If you like eggs, have some. If you don't, that's okay. Embrace new things. Try different fruits and veggies. Try different ways of cooking. If you don't like something, don't force yourself to eat it, just because it's something society says is healthy. You will not be successful. The key is to find healthy, low calories foods YOU ENJOY, so you can eat them for a long time and be successful in losing weight, keeping it off, and being healthy.
3. Depending on your fitness, start VERY slowly with exercise. In the beginning I just wanted to walk around my apartment complex. I was so out of shape, I could hardly do that. I remember not being able to vacuum my apartment in one go, because I was so unfit. I remember I would carry my groceries into the apartment, then have to sit down and rest before putting them away. I never would have imagined I would be someone now who exercises six times a week, who regularly runs 5ks and does yoga three times a week, someone who can spend a day walking around outside and not have my feet and hips hurt. It's taken time to get to that point. Start slowly, really, just start with walking around your neighborhood, or taking one flight of stairs. Just get used to moving your body. Explore your body. Stretch and see how flexible--or inflexible!--you are. Touch your body, explore how far you can reach to your toes, or not. See how far back you can reach your hands. See how low you can squat. Experiment and get a baseline, and then work, very slowly, on improving it. DO NOT immediately jump into some crazy routine. Don't immediately join the gym--I waited several months before making that commitment, and a whole year before joining a yoga studio. Don't immediately purchase a ton of workout equipment--you can always walk outside, you can always lift a milk jug, you can always start with jumping jacks or planks, something that requires no equipment at all. If you over commit, you will get burned out, feel like a failure, and quit. Don't punish yourself like that. You deserve better. Start very slowly, with very brief and simple workouts. Really, walking is a great way to go.
4. Get used to discomfort. I hate being sweaty, but guess what? When I'm in the gym for 90 minutes, I am going to sweat. And I sweat like a disgusting, huge, nasty man! I sweat like you wouldn't believe! When I'm done in the gym, I look like I just got out of the shower. I hate that feeling...but I told myself, "This is temporary discomfort. This doesn't last forever. Get used to be uncomfortable." If you start even very minor workouts, like brief walks, you will experience pain. You will be sore. Your knees might ache, or your back. You will easily get out of breath and develop side stitches. You will feel uncomfortable being sweaty around others, and worry about how you look in workout clothes. This discomfort will not hurt you. It is all mental, it is all in your mind. We become obese and out of shape by avoiding discomfort. It feels so good to sit on the couch with a bag of potato chips. It doesn't feel good to climb stairs or lift weights--at least, at first it doesn't feel good. We avoid discomfort, but it will not kill us. It will benefit us. Accept that, "For this twenty minute walk, I will feel discomfort. It will not last. When I am done, I can sit. I am strong enough to tolerate a few minutes of discomfort."
5. Accept that this is going to be a time commitment. A lot of people say, "I don't have time to cook. I don't have time to exercise." The average American watches 5 hours of television every day. There is your time, right there. If you truly want to lose weight and get healthy, you are going to have to make some sacrifices. I love reading, and I miss the 90 minutes of reading I've sacrificed to the gym every day. It's been worth it. (I mean, I still get in three or four hours of reading, but I do miss that 90 minutes.) Monitor your day, evaluate how much time you're spending on the computer or playing games on your phone or watching Netflix. You have more free time than you think. And don't forget--a lot of gyms have televisions. You can always take your phone with you and listen to music on it. You can cook while listening to the radio or while having the TV on. This will take effort on your part, and that might mean sacrificing a 30 minute rerun of "Keeping up with the Kardashians."
6. Accept that this will be slow, and you are not perfect. Mistakes will be made. This weight is not going to fall off you overnight. At the beginning, you will see quick improvement, but it will slow down. When I first started, I was losing about 10 pounds a month, for maybe the first four or five months. That has slowed down now to about 4 to 5 pounds a month. That is still an incredible loss and fairly speedy. As you lose, it is going to take time. It's been two years and I'm still not at my goal of 130 pounds. But I look at it this way: time is going to pass whether you like it or not. Would you rather be 300 pounds today and 300 pounds a month from now? Or 300 ponds today and 290 pounds a month from now? If I had chosen, two years ago, to do nothing and stay on the same path, I'd probably weigh more than 290 pounds. I chose to work hard, and now I'm 170, and I am thrilled. I am much happier now than I was two years ago. Aim to be happier every day than you were the day before. Aim to be lighter than you were the same day last month. If you do that, you are winning, even if you are still 100 pounds overweight. Some days I still eat too much. Some days I don't feel like working out. The way to be successful is, don't let one mistake derail you. Say, "Wow, I ate too much last night. But I can choose differently tonight. I haven't thrown my progress in the garbage." Every minute, you get a new chance to make the healthier choice. Sometimes you will, and you'll take the stairs. Sometimes you won't, and you'll take the elevator. The trick is, if you took the elevator this time, you can still take the stairs the next time. Do not give up.9 -
I started at 292 back in late September, currently down 65 pounds at 227. I have a deadline I need to meet (220 or less by June 30), but intend to keep working after that. An even 100 pounds would put me at 192, which is my eventual goal.
As others have said, don't concentrate so much on that big number. Focus on the goals for each day and the rest will take care of itself.2 -
I am also in the 100+ club and just seriously started on this journey. Loved reading this thread! Really inspiring. If anyone wants to friend me then please do. It would be great to have some friends on here.1
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To be at a healthy BMI I would need to lose about 150lbs but I'd be happy to be back in the 100's -- which means ~80 lbs. I'm only a few weeks into my journey and am just shooting for mini-goals. At the beginning, it was to lose 5 lbs, and then I've altered it since. Make mini goals for yourself that are achievable in a weeks-month time. It keeps you motivated and gets your confidence up. You can do it! Feel free to add me!1
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I do. I seem to be losing the same 5 pounds over and over0
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When I joined MyFitnessPal in November I needed to lose 130lbs to get close to an "ideal" bodyweight.
Today I'm just a little bit beyond half past that goal with 66lbs lost and 64lbs to go.
It may sound daunting -- it sounded so daunting to me that I made my weight loss goal only 95lbs, but I'll be adjusting that soon as I've realized this isn't impossible, I just gotta keep doing what I'm doing for like the rest of my life.
Feel free to add me if you like. I log regularly and have an open diary. If my fatass could do this, you can too.1 -
I started with 200+ to lose 1 year ago. I have 40+ to go to get into a normal BMI. I plan to lose 20 more and then switch to a small deficit and see where that slowly takes me over time.3
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I have one friend that lost over 100 already. I've just started, but have well over 100 to lose.1
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I felt the same way until I started taking through some posts in the community. I realized that I am not the only one with 100+ to lose. We are not alone. We can do this. One day at a time.
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I need to lose close 70 to 100 pounds. Feel free to add me as a friend. I need to find people that are motivated because it gets hard sometimes1
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I have 100 pounds to lose. I am 9 pounds in and struggling due to injury and PCOS. It seems impossible at times, but I have to keep reminding myself to not focus on the number so much, but how I feel. I have only lost 9 pounds in 60 days, but I feel a huge difference in my joints, my energy and my flexibility. I avoid the scale except for once a month so I dont get discouraged, and instead of a regimented exercise plan, I just make sure I do one active thing a day. Usually a hobby, like swimming, horseback riding, walking my dogs, rollerblading, shopping..etc.1
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How do I add a friend0
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Not anymore!!!
Im down about 75#, with 15-25 left (not exactly sure). 1 -
Close...I need to lose almost 90. Looking to get back (or close to) to my happy weight when I was in my twenties! I'm just getting started now. My focus is on eating healthy during the day...I wrecked my metabolism by eating nothing all day & overeating at night. New to this site as well! 1
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I got lots to lose, like 140+. feel free to add me1
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My goal is a 100 but I am pretty sure it will be upped as I am closing in on the 60 lost, still a ways to go so if you'd like to add me I am game. I started in February and if your mind is ready, your body will follow!1
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I started with over 130 to lose... I'm down almost 90. Look for lifestyle changes not "diets". Eating healthy and exercise needs to be part of your daily life forever, not just until some magic number is achieved. It takes a while to lose a lot of weight.... but it doesn't take long to feel better physically and mentally for losing some of that weight. Even though I have about 40-50lb more to go until my goal, I feel a million times better than I did before.1
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@poppejennifer to add someone as a friend first click on their profile then click "add friend". Then click "send request", filling out the message box if you'd like.1
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I was recently diagnosed with crohn's disease I don't understand how I can be sick all the time and not lose weight I eat very healthy and clean however the scale does not seem to but I am generally within 100 calories of my goal which are calculated to be at or around 1500 calories any advice would be helpful. I have a very hard time eating fruits and vegetables so I have to eat what my body will allow me I'm so frustrated and overwhelmed I just want to cry I am a relatively active person except for when I am in a flare up which is very debilitating and painful0
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I'm in this 100+ club and taking my time. It's a life-change, not a diet. Whatever I chose to do, I have to be comfortable enough to live with it. I've been at it for just over 1 year, started at over 300 pounds and lost 57. In my head, I'm aiming for another 50. From there I'll reach for the next 25.
It goes in bursts and spurts, I've fallen and picked myself back up. Perhaps the best advice I've seen - and witnessed through other's actions - is to keep logging. Even on those days that clearly *sucked*, keep coming back. Anecdotally, the people who have been the most successful are those that keep coming back to MFP and logging.
Feel free to cry, complain, moan... you're not alone. Set small milestones for yourself. Time will feel as if it's crawling, but these little steps in the right direction *do* add up. I've seen it.
I live by the analogy "how do you eat an elephant? one bite at a time."2 -
poppejennifer wrote: »I was recently diagnosed with crohn's disease I don't understand how I can be sick all the time and not lose weight I eat very healthy and clean however the scale does not seem to but I am generally within 100 calories of my goal which are calculated to be at or around 1500 calories any advice would be helpful. I have a very hard time eating fruits and vegetables so I have to eat what my body will allow me I'm so frustrated and overwhelmed I just want to cry I am a relatively active person except for when I am in a flare up which is very debilitating and painful
Where as healthy and clean eating may be a priority for some.... it's not required for weight loss. Many people will say get a scale and weight EVERYTHING to the gram. I first thought this was extreme, but when I started doing it I was shocked at what I thought I was eating and the weight started coming off. It takes some effort (and can be frustrating) at first... but we are worth it and a healthy life is worth it! Best of luck. Also, best to look at exercise at a plus to weight loss and the added physical benefit of exercise... it's hard to create most of ones calorie deficit via exercise.2 -
I started with 204 to lose. I have restarted the journey recently and I have lost 17 lbs so far. I have a very long way to go, but this took decades to gain and it's not going away overnight. For me, I do a combination of paleo/mostly "clean eating" and calorie-counting (so I don't eat too little and crash my metabolism. I wouldn't necessarily recommend for everyone (most should lose with just reducing calories), but I have insulin resistance and PCOS, and this has not only worked for me so far, but has cut my sugar cravings significantly and I have more energy. In any case, losing a lot is daunting, but every "small" loss is going in the right direction on the scale, which is definitely a win.0
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I started May 11, 2015 at 280 pounds. Today is May 11, 2016, and I weigh 178.6 lbs. It is definitely doable. Just keep at it, take it one day at a time.2
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I am with you, I have 100+ to lose!! Feel free to add me if you are in it for the long haul, like I am!!!0
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I need to lose 80.. 100 wouldn't either. I'm with you..I've lost 6lbs so far..80-100 seems like a dream.0
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I meant 100 wouldn't be bad either...smh
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I have 100 lbs to lose as well. My advice to you is don't be too restrictive, allow yourself a small treat, find exercise that you enjoy (I started going to a boxing gym, and I have so much fun I don't even realize I worked out for 90 minutes! It makes all the difference when you're having fun), try new exercises until you find something you enjoy) and take it one day at a time. You can do this!0
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I've got 70 - 80 to go. Maybe a little more. I'm down 80 so far.
Slow and steady!0
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