What is your secret to weight loss?

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Replies

  • powered85
    powered85 Posts: 297 Member
    Determining how many calories you burn each day.

    Then having a food scale, weighing food and ensuring my entries match the nutrition labels to create a calorie deficit. Mastering nutrition and calorie tracking are the biggest piece of the puzzle.

  • rankinsect
    rankinsect Posts: 2,238 Member
    Plan in advance, and eat to the plan.

    Doesn't really matter so much what you eat - as long as you get your nutritional needs. My plan includes donuts, ice cream, cake, etc., just in set portions that are made to fit into the full day.
  • BiggDaddy58
    BiggDaddy58 Posts: 406 Member
    My mind..I made up my mind..

    Low Calorie..Ride my stationary bike..lift light weights..stick to my diet..stay with it..stay mentally tough.

    It is a lifestyle change..not simply a diet & exercise program.
  • tabbyblack13
    tabbyblack13 Posts: 299 Member
    Don't forget to get plenty of sleep. When you're tired, you don't make good choices. People tend to gravatate towards the higher calorie food.
  • rainingoverstars
    rainingoverstars Posts: 348 Member
    Drugs

    Jkjk
  • BarbellzNBrotein
    BarbellzNBrotein Posts: 306 Member
    rainingoverstars wrote: »
    Drugs

    Jkjk

    How can I take you seriously when you come out with nonsense like this? C'mon girl.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    Ignoring fads and rules and must dos and diet plans and evangelists

    Cutting calories
    Moving more

    Consistency
    Allowing for mistakes and social lives and just getting back on it immediately
  • Redwineandmuscles
    Redwineandmuscles Posts: 46 Member
    Just keep going. Sometimes I gain a bit, and don't stay on track so well, but I just keep at it. A bag of potato chips on Friday night does not cancel eating healthy and exercising on Saturday.
  • Dory_42
    Dory_42 Posts: 3,578 Member
    Martial arts, specifically Brazilian Jui Jitsu! It is what worked for me. I found an activity that I really enjoyed doing and wanted to do as often as possible. That got me burning calories and improved my mood, which made the healthy eating choices so much easier. I focused on quantity and choosing the healthy option the majority of the time and it worked.
  • Varamyr38
    Varamyr38 Posts: 258 Member
    edited July 2016
    Just simple math. Burn more calories than you consume. Make sure you put down everything in your journal so you're keeping track even if you go over.
  • cinnabondelights
    cinnabondelights Posts: 121 Member
    For me, at least 1000-1200 cals a day, mostly protein, and portion your meals. Whenever I eat out at a restaurant, I always box half of it to go to eat the next day. Also, do physical activities that you love so that exercise isn't boring to you! I recently tried Zumba and I love it, I'm not much of a dancer and it's also a good way to start.
  • BarbellzNBrotein
    BarbellzNBrotein Posts: 306 Member
    It's funny, once you've been involved in this fitness jazz for a while, the more you dig the more you find. When I was just starting out the concept of one being able to fast or carb cycle were not even in my consciousness lol. I think sometimes it can be a good idea to zoom out and do the basics well. Train your butt off and eat real food, pure and simple. I'm a nerd so I'm always gonna be researching new hacks etc. I love this.
  • kendahlj
    kendahlj Posts: 243 Member
    I'm glad people can lose without restricting. I'm not one of those. I love too many delicious foods. I might eat a few of those in moderation once I hit my goal, but while I'm losing I'm not eating any sugar, bread, pasta, rice or potatoes. Anything with grains like crackers falls into the no breads category. It's working and I'm finally losing weight. I like watching the pounds fall off more than I want to eat those things. It's not easy...and it won't work for everyone. But it's working for me.
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
    To be honest... for me, breastfeeding ;)

    Or just plain ol calorie deficit
  • MetalJags
    MetalJags Posts: 1 Member
    Caloric deficit through intermittent fasting and cutting back on processed foods. Track your calories. Workout.
  • lauraesh0384
    lauraesh0384 Posts: 463 Member
    I eat less calories than I burn. Plain and simple. I don't restrict anything. I still drink pop. I don't eliminate sugar. I eat "junk food". Any kind of food is game. I just eat less of it. There's no secret to weight loss.
  • RainaProske
    RainaProske Posts: 636 Member
    At age 60, 5'3.5", weighing 237, I quietly decided to lose the weight and told few other than my husband. Instead, being a believer, I prayed for help then started reading about ideas and methods, choosing some and tossing out others. I did not keep any account of what I ate, especially since I discovered this site after I'd lost about 110 pounds.
    First thing I did was add fruit to my diet and cut out all sugar-pop. I ended up grazing all day every day -- just grazing on vegies and fruit. I bought and used smaller dinner plates. I ate less beef.
    I didn't buy new clothes until the ones I had were literally falling off me, but I don't suggest doing this. It was hilarious, though, when three of the men at the office stood at my desk with their mouths hanging open, silently staring, when I first rose from my desk in clothes that were several sizes smaller (!). Then, I started enjoying the new clothes.
    I just relaxed about the weight loss and didn't rush it. I didn't care that my first and second 50-pound loss each took a full year or that the last the last 23 or so took more than a year to stabilize. I still fluctuate between a weight of 112.5 and 115 at age 67. From size 22W - 24W (3X), I now wear size 6 and don't want to go smaller. I even wear smaller shoes.
    None of the other diets worked for me, because I didn't maintain my losses, but gained them all back. This was a life style change -- something permanent as far as most of its elements -- but I was not afraid to call it a "diet" when I was losing the weight.
  • PamelaW41
    PamelaW41 Posts: 287 Member
    I watch my calories and carbs. I exercise on average 2 hours a day at the gym. Cardio and strength.
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,179 Member
    It's not much of a secret. Have a breakfast, not too much and not too little. Have lunch. Have supper. Have a snack. Call it hard work.
  • jessef593
    jessef593 Posts: 2,272 Member
    annie_858 wrote: »
    No sugar, low carbs, high protein, lots of chicken, veggies and smoothies!

    Ahahaha. I eat 150g of sugar a day from fruits and other sources along with 350g of carbs easily. Doing that I dropped from 13% body fat to 7% over 2.5 months losing a total of 12lbs.

  • lolwtfisthis
    lolwtfisthis Posts: 7 Member
    edited July 2016
    I eat whatever I usually do, but I add in some sled drags and farmer's walks.
  • Anabug81
    Anabug81 Posts: 161 Member
    Portion control and limiting sugar, carbs, and high fat foods. Increased exercise intensity.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,611 Member
    CondoQueen wrote: »
    Curious to know what the most effective diet for you has been in successfully losing and keeping weight off?

    CI<CO

  • fitgirldc
    fitgirldc Posts: 55 Member
    For me, no fast food, the least amount of processed food possible (often makes me retain major water and bloating), measure my portions, pay attention to labels, green stuff is my friend and plenty of water! Oh and exercise! No secret huh?
  • Jruzer
    Jruzer Posts: 3,501 Member
    Conservation of energy.
  • sgt1372
    sgt1372 Posts: 3,997 Member
    Here's what I do. Eliminate alcohol and processed sugars/grains my your diet, consume cals below my maintenance needs (2k in my case), shoot for a daily macro of 40% protein/40% carb/20% fat and engage in at least 30 mins of moderate cardio activity (shooting for 200-250 cals burned) at a target heart rate of around 110-120 bpm.

    Lost 40 lbs in 5 months 3 years ago (198 to 158) doing this and have just lost 18 lbs in 8 weeks (196-178) doing it again this time around. Target weight is currently 175 which is only 3lbs/2 wks away at the current rate of loss. So, it obviously works for me.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    I never did any kind of diet plan. I cut way back on the crap I was eating and started eating much more healthfully...I observed the things that my really lean, healthy, and fit friends were doing and I did those things.

    I rock my nutrition...I eat 8 servings of veg and fruit daily (most days)...I eat a lot of whole grains and legumes and whole starches like potatoes and sweet potatoes...I eat a lot of lean sourced protein from things like chicken and fish and leaner cuts of pork and beef...I eat a lot of healthy fats from things like avocados and nuts and good cooking oils. I also take time out to just enjoy some pizza (like last night for my kiddos birthday) and other good stuff from time to time...this stuff doesn't make up a large % of my diet and is pretty irrelevant to the whole.

    I also exercise on the regular...it's a huge part of my life. Outside of my desk job I just try to be generally active...I don't watch much t.v...maybe 30 minutes per night, and I don't really just sit around...I'm always fixing something or cooking something or prepping for the next day or cleaning something or working in the yard or chasing my kids, etc...I sit enough at work, I don't need to do it at home.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    edited July 2016
    Machka9 wrote: »
    CondoQueen wrote: »
    Curious to know what the most effective diet for you has been in successfully losing and keeping weight off?

    CI<CO

    ^^^

    Also believing in stuff like this..succinctly made into a meme by James Fell from Body for Wife

    l94sfpe3sfdr.png

  • Stronger4_life
    Stronger4_life Posts: 29 Member
    Know what your MACROS should be daily--I don't agree with MFP's -- go to www.iifym.com and use their Macro Calculator to calculate your daily % for Fat /Protein/Carbs

    It truly helps knowing these and you can adjust/set your calories & macros on MFP. Tracking is KEY!!

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