Any helpful tips?

micaelacookie

I'm just starting this. My names Micaela, and I'm 21. I need to lose roughly about 40 pounds ultimately but just trying for 5 pounds at a time so it doesn't seem so overwhelming. Any tips on motivation? I've been pretty depressed most of my life and just now overcoming that. Any tips on how to not give into temptations? Any work outs that help, especially in the stomach area?

suzesvelte

hi - I am 58 and been needing to re-set my weight all my life. I am good at losing weight in sensible ways, but not so good at the micro-managing to keep it off, so I am here again trying something new here with MFP.

My best tip that works for me is that this is not a penance. This is caring for myself. This mental attitude is easier for me to work with than the idea that I am denying myself the sugary sh^t that routinely undoes my progress every three or four years. In making these good choices we are taking care of ourselves.

Funny enought, I am aiming to lose about the same as you. I have set myself short term goals of a certain weight by a couple of dates and also the long term date. There is some evidence that being specific in your goals is helpful. I set a goal for one month's time, a goal for the Easter holidays and the overall goal to reach my total loss by July. These dates / amounts are set by targetting a 2lb a week loss.

I can / will review them but it makes the whole thing very concrete for me. Let's enjoy it x

micaelacookie

Yes I think it's much easier to lose weight if you set small goals and bigger goals. Thanks for the feedback!

suzesvelte

Good luck with it - this is do-able and things like this blog will help us.

Shutterbuggg

I would start with setting your calorie goal for the day. MFP has a decent calculator and can set your daily target. Once you have done that, I would log your food every day to get an idea how much you are consuming. Be honest about what you are eating or else you are only cheating yourself. Adjust your food choices as you need to in order to meet your goal. There is no need to start a restrictive diet or cut out foods you enjoy as long as you stay under your calorie goal. I will often pre-log meals to see how it fits in my day and go from there.
If you feel your calorie goal is too low to meet, you can eat above that but you will need to do some type of exercise to earn more calories for the day. Again, you don't have to stick to a certain program if you don't want to. Fitting in a couple long walks is good for a start. If you are looking for guidance on a workout, I highly suggest the app SWORKIT. You can create no equipment (body weight) workouts that can motivate you for any where from 5 minutes to an hour.
Another thing is to be patient with the process. You didn't gain it in one week, so you wont lose it in one week.
Best of luck!

Shutterbuggg

As for motivation, it is different for everyone. My Fitbit keeps me motivated to move. And the message boards and groups on MFP help my motivation as well. There are a few challenges on here that help keep you accountable to logging and exercise. I highly suggest joining them and staying active with them. One I have joined is the Ultimate Accountability Challenge each month for the last 3 months.

Jruzer

Hi OP,

Please check out this thread on getting started:
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1

and this one on motivation:
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/818701/the-myth-of-motivation-and-what-you-need-instead/p1