CNA work and losing weight

leekaitlin105

Okay, I work as a CNA on first shift and am generally constantly walking during my shift. The only MEAL I usually eat is dinner at night but I snack on my lunch break. My question is, will the walking and lifting I do at work help contribute to weight loss?

L1zardQueen

Are you counting your calories?

kk_inprogress

Being active will burn calories, but will only help with weight loss if you are counting your calories and making sure you are not eating more than you are burning.

AnnPT77

leekaitlin105 wrote: »

Okay, I work as a CNA on first shift and am generally constantly walking during my shift. The only MEAL I usually eat is dinner at night but I snack on my lunch break. My question is, will the walking and lifting I do at work help contribute to weight loss?

Of course the walking and lifting at work can contribute.

When you set the values in your MFP profile, you should consider your work as part of your "activity level" setting.

Set the other profile variables (height, weight, age, loss rate goal, etc.), log your eating, and try to eat approximately the calories MFP tells you. If you do other intentional exercise/workouts, log those & eat some of those calories, too (maybe 50% to start). Try that for a month and see whether your results match your goals; if not, adjust accordingly.

For weight loss, it isn't essential to do extra exercise, but it can be good for fitness and health. And the timing of your eating isn't of major importance for weight loss - the total number of calories is. Eating nutritiously (enough protein, enough fat (especially healthy fat), plenty of fruits & veggies) is a plus for your health, too. With an active job like yours,

I'd suggest trying for a moderate rate of weight loss for starters, maybe 1 pound a week, less if you have less than 50 total pounds to lose, so that you are sure you'll have plenty of energy for your job and life. If you have quite a bit of weight to lose, you can increase the rate of loss after the first month or so, as long as you're still feeling excellent, but it's a good idea to lose no more than 1% of your body weight weekly, and even less than that once you're within 25-50 pounds of goal.

Best wishes!

terbusha

Yes it will contribute. The most important thing is the overall context of your diet. When you can, be sure to eat so you have fuel to get through the day. If you really have no time to eat, then try and get in a bunch of calories for dinner. There's no problem in that if your overall calories for the day are on point.