Submit your health and fitness tips for the chance to be featured in our 2023 New Year’s plan!

Betty

We want to know your top health and fitness tips, especially when it comes to conquering your goals! What helps you stay consistent, see improvements, and/or reach new personal achievements?

Are you setting your clothes out the night before an early morning workout to make getting out the door a little bit easier?

Do you meal prep every week? What are your favorite, most preppable recipes?!

Trying a new, different workout or way to move your body to stay engaged and excited?

Whatever your ticket to success might be, we’d love to hear it! Share your tips for a chance to have them featured in our upcoming 2023 New Year’s plan!

Please Note: By commenting or replying in this thread, you acknowledge and agree to the use of your name, comments, replies, and/or entries, whether in whole or in part, by MyFitnessPal, including for the purpose of generating and distributing marketing materials to help inspire others. When posting, please follow our community guidelines. Any off-topic comments and disparaging remarks are subject to deletion.

azuki84

DO NOT set an end-goal. Your life is a journey, treat it like so. Always look for ways to improve and adjust as you meet obstacles. DO NOT blindly follow advice from self-proclaiming influencers or those that live in the forums for way too long (too obvious to point here). Your only adversary is yourself from yesterday.

CitrineSerene

I love music. The older the music, the more I love it. I sing when I am working around the house and dance while I make meals When I got serious about losing weight, I put my love of music to good use. As I exercise, I can only listen to music on Spotify that corresponds with my weight. When I started, I was 196 - so only listened to music from 1996! Now here I am, months later and listening to The Concert at Woodstock 1969!!! You just gotta do something fun when you exercise or it becomes a chore.

quiksylver296

What works for each person is very personalized. It is not typical for an individual to be successful long-term on popular diet plans. Find what works for you. After many attempts, I learned that I freak out and binge if I try to completely cut treats out of my overall diet, specifically ice cream and chocolate. So, I save some calories every day for dessert and it helps keep me on track.

Whydahdad71

300!
What can a 300 calorie a day food deficit and 300 calories a day burnt through movement do for you? How about change your life. It did in fact change mine. By knocking off the 300 kcal a day in eating I was able to achieve my daily eating and wasn't starving while doing it. The 300 calories through movement were obtainable because any movement such as a walk all the way up to high intensity interval training is acceptable. So, I chose my excercises and varied them (but hitting 300 kcal each day) I stayed in my small deficit and before I knew it I was buying new clothes and competing (and winning men's physique bodybuilding)! I have kept this training and built upon it. I can say if anyone is willing to yell out "This is Sparta"! Then welcome to the 300👍

Kingsthursday

Logging the food diary different than a calendar day. I am not the cook in the family and was always frustrated following the traditional food calendar because I would not know what is on the dinner menu when I got home. DH is a great cook and I want to eat what he prepares. At the beginning of August, I tried have a diary day start at each dinner time and cover breakfast and lunch the following day: so 5pm to 5pm each day. That way I log the dinner and then can know what I have left for breakfast and lunch the next day. I am just a week in to this plan, so we will see how it works out. So far so good.

clareann7055

I never needed to think about my weight , body size or calories before covid because I was slim, active and healthy. How things have changed! Due to indulgence and inactivity I have gained almost 3 dress sizes in 2 years so for the first time, I am actively working to reduce my body size 😬.

I don't weigh myself so I made a guess for the app. I prefer to focus on fitness, increasing my energy levels and reducing my waist line.

My method is to eat two healthy meals a day (brunch at 10am and dinner 7pm) and exercise for 30 minutes a day. I try to be in calorie deficit 6 days a week and break even on one day but I'm not excessively strict with myself. I figure it took two years to gain the weight so it will take time to lose it.

For the sake of all the lovely people in my life, I refuse to torture myself and I allow my monthly cycle to govern when I indulge a little. Hangry and hormonal is not a good look at any age 😉😅.

davisanele2

Things I've learned throughout my 17 year dieting history:

1. Do your research. Do not follow trendy diets (I gained 70 lbs as a vegan once, thinking I was doing something). Don't eat 1200 calories just because someone said you should. Learn your BMI, BMR, and caloric needs. Learn what your healthy weight should be based on age and gender, don't just pull that number out of thin air. Educate yourself on hunger hormones, fasting, different macro ratios, different types of exercise, as well as glycemic index, processed vs. unprocessed foods etc. There's still a lot we don't know, and even scientists can't agree on what the optimal nutrition looks like. That doesn't mean you should go into your weight loss journey blind.
2.Your diet plan is only as good as your exit strategy. Anyone can lose weight, not everyone can maintain it. If you can't see yourself eating this way for the rest of your life don't use that method to lose the weight. I learned this the hard way, by losing a huge amount of weight 3 times in my life and then gaining it all back. Save yourself the trouble and do it right the first time.
3. There's no single "correct" way of eating. That said, I wouldn't recommend super-low calorie diets, or focusing solely on calories. Satiety and keeping your cravings at bay is far more effective long term than staying at some ridiculous caloric deficit (and then inevitably binging out). Eat closer to your maintenance, especially when you start out. Cut down on sugar and processed foods. Experiment with macro ratios. I found that increasing fat and protein intake, and reducing my carbs, has done wonders for my hunger and sweet cravings.
4. Get enough sleep. I can't stress this enough. Tired people make poor choices. Tired people overeat.
5. Meal prep. We can avoid making poor food choices, if the need to make a choice is taken away. Despite how busy you might be, make sure to find time at least once a week to shop for groceries and prepare healthy meals for yourself. Prioritize protein, experiment with spices, measure out all your servings. Over time you'll discover healthy recipes you enjoy. It makes weight loss so much easier!

Mikeruns2021donotaddme

Progress is made when you focus on two things.
1. Setting goals about actions you can take not a number on a scale or tape measure. If you focus on taking the correct action you’ll start motivated and keep working towards your goals.
2. Change your habits is key. It’s all about finding things you can do everyday. Find things you can do based off time cues and creating routines. It’s all about making the healthy choices easy and the unhealthy choice difficult. In society, it’s naturally slanted the other way so a little work up front will keep you going the right way

Coach7Matt

Get on a consistent meal schedule, your body will thank you. If you are sporadic when it comes to eating (skip breakfast, skip meals, eat late at night, eat a single large meal, etc.) you are not doing yourself any favors. If you really want to lose weight, you need to make your relationship with food a top priority. The human body functions optimally when it's on a consistent schedule in terms of eating, sleeping, exercise, and recovery.

surf723

Consistency tops all, just being consistent will get you to goal more than anything you can do. Focus on getting one habit at a time then trying to do a major overhaul. Find something that you are doing well and work on doing it a little better each day.

Unknown

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drtradecraft

I’ve been a member for roughly four weeks. My membership was 100% provoked by the upside I felt the food tracker offered me. My opinion is the exercise tracker is in need of upgrade. My activity is rules-based, and now I have a rules-based nutrition plan. My nutrition intake was front of my mind, but I was not tracking it. Tracking food has shown good results. My starting weight was 204 and now stands at 192.2.

In the past four weeks, I have read several member BLOGs and I replied to a few. I notice that most of the inquiries are similar: What should I eat and how should I exercise? One of the problems we have in our society today is this: 50% of what we are taught is wrong. The problem lies that most of us don’t know which 50% it is.

Facts of the average American diet: 60% of all calories come from 3 foods: wheat, corn, and rice. Whether lightly processed or ultra-processed, these three foods are calorically dense, not nutrient dense. They cause internal inflammation. They send levels of blood sugar up and this results in elevated insulin. Insulin is a chief fat-storage hormone AND is turns fat cells into a one-way flow of calories meaning they let calories in, but they do not let them out. Many MyFitnessPal bloggers want to burn fat for weight reduction but we all need to burn fat for fuel. In fact, several internal organs need us to burn fat for their survival. The brain is one of those organs that needs us to burn fat for it to reproduce new cells. Spoiler alert, we need new brain cells to inhibit the onset of dementia and/or Alzheimer’s.

How to get in a low-insulin state? (1) Fasting. We are in a low insulin state when we sleep so why not book-end sleep time with a few hours of fasting. Try partial weekend fasting. (2) Eat nutrient-dense foods. Eat a high ratio of nutrients-to-calories and these include dark leafy greens, kale, and spinach. (3) Other foods to eat: eggs, some quality red meats, fatty fish such as salmon, wild salmon and sardines. Avocados and almonds - both of these are good fruits. Avoid modern, cultivated sweet fruit which has been bred to contain starch and sugar for taste.

Finally, move your body as much as possible. Do as many activities as possible. Do movements from an athletic position, meaning not sitting or lying down. Do push and pull resistance movements from a standing position. Move during commercials by doing sit-ups, push-ups, high knee lifts while walking in place, straight arm body-weight squats. Do something. Move more. The Cooper Institute has documented research showing how much walking one needs to do to lose weight. Look it up.

Fatigue is an emotion created by our brain. Recover, then enjoy it again. Find something you enjoy so that you will do it again tomorrow and the next day and the day after that.

CPStansbury22

Find yourself recipes online, change them to meet your taste and save them in MFP. That great chicken you once made can soon become a family favourite.

Don't forget to walk around town to buy your ingredients, an easy few steps and you may find some food gems.

cameomag

I love the idea of changing my "day" to begin with dinner and then move to breakfast, lunch and snacks the next day. I wish there was a way for me to change my "view" but of course my food diary is tied to a 24 day that ends with dinner. Once I have dinner, which is often created and prepared by my partner, then I know how much I can have for lunch and breakfast - but that is of course the next day.

AM_Canadian

I keep breakfast consistent, sugar-free, high-fibre and healthy so that I don't start the day with sugar making me crave more sugar and so that I don't use up too many calories in case I go out for a meal later. I make steel cut oats in large batches in my pressure cooker, adding some flax seeds for more nutrition and fibre. Then I heat it up in the microwave every morning with some frozen berries thrown in and top it off with pumpkin seeds, goji berries, and cinnamon. I'm vegan so this gives me some needed iron and C vitamins.

snpatt

Find a group of people who seem to incorporate physical activities into the majority of their social life. I am an avid bicyclist and started riding in group rides with a few other area bicyclist. These folks not only bike, they do all sorts of activities that will have you burning calories: Kangoo bounce, pickle ball, weight lifting, sprint triathlon (I'm actually going to try this), indoor cycling....you name it. They have motivated me to try other activities and even drive to organized bike rides across the country. It's been a lot easier for me to get excited about an activity that burns calories, when I know that many of my friends will be doing it with me.

chaniluv

Start your day with three positive thoughts. One rule: You're not allowed to use the word "but" or "if" when thinking these thoughts! This might not sound like it's related specifically to weight loss, but I always find that it's easier to stay on track when I start the day in a good headspace. Be good to yourself.

cinapanina64

I’m two weeks in on a second do-over with MFP.
Starting out at 211 lb exercise is not coming easy. Realizing I’m using the car for everything, even the smallest distances, I bought a rolling utility bag for laundry and groceries. It is helping me to choose walking over car to get things done and simultaneously aid in my exercise, health and fat loss. 💫

AnnPT77

Instead of thinking about how to lose weight fast, focus on how to lose weight (relatively) easily.

Losing any meaningful amount of weight is not a quick project with an end date, after which things "go back to normal". That's the recipe for yo-yo dieting. Losing substantial weight will take weeks to months, for some maybe even multiple years. That puts a premium on figuring out reasonably happy new eating and activity patterns that can continue almost on autopilot when life gets complicated . . . because it will.

Then, beyond goal weight, there's the issue of staying at a healthy weight long term, ideally permanently. Figuring out those relatively easy, relatively happy habits during weight loss helps that go smoothly, too.

Personalization is key: Things that work for an individual. We each have different preferences, strengths, limitations. That implies that different activity and eating patterns will work for different people.

Find your personal formula, ways of:
* moving more in daily life, or exercise, that are enjoyable, and let you have good overall life balance - enough time and energy for family, job, home chores, and any other things important to you.
* eating that are enjoyable, practical, let you fit in a social life and the occasional celebration with special foods.

landshark2007

Don’t give up. You may have to start a number of times, but starting is the east bit. You need to make change a habit. Check out your “streak” for motivation. Keep at it, and you will find that as your streak gets longer, your changes and habits become easier to manage. Baby steps, but keep going. Weight loss is fickle, but don’t give up even if you plateau, keep going. You will do it, and you will progress through those plateaus and you will lose weight again. 3150 days and no resets, but I’m not giving up! If I can do it, so can you!

Mandylou19912014

Be consistent! I lost just under 2 stone at the start of last year and the main thing for me was being consistent with my calories, macros and workout plans. If you make your exercise and foods fun, then you will not feel like your dieting. I love finding new macro friendly recipes and new workout plans. Try not to compare your journey to anyone else’s and just focus on yourself. Also, I like to imagine how I look and feel as my best self, and manifest this every single day! Surround yourself with like minded people who will motivate you! Too often we get comments from friends and family such as “oh don’t be boring and order a salad” or “go on, have a drink! Don’t be boring” etc, I try to make sure that my friends and family encourage me to stay consistent and understand how important this journey is for me.

RhondaRimarcik1

I have compared my last fitness report with my fitness today. It will help me keep on track and know what I did to lose weight.

ckish

Self-care was an important part of my recovering from depression, PTSD, and a full mental breakdown. In order to recover from PTSD I was never supposed to be anywhere close to feeling even the mild hunger pains telling you that you need to eat lunch. I ate nutritiously but still gained a lot of weight. I want to lose weight but not trigger my daughters into an eating disorder or a sense that your weight is intrinsic to your value as a human being. I sometimes feel that if I am hungry my PTSD will magically consume me so maintaining my mental wellness is my highest priority. Therefore in order to successfully reduce my weight to a place that best suits my life goals I needed to recognize eating wisely and actively moving must become a loving act of self-care and not an unbearable deprivation so I hit my goal weight. My goal is to be mentally stable, physically capable, and emotionally healthy so I must be compassionate with myself. Depriving myself is the emotional equivalent of the abuse I experienced in my past that contributed to my depression. This shift in my approach means that eating an apple and going for a 10 minute walk enhances my self-care and fuels my next good decision to actively improve my life. On occasion I can still enjoy a donut and a movie when that is a conscious decision to feed my wellness. I no longer feed my illness. I fortify my wellness. As a chef this mental shift in my perspective inspired me to make tasty yet healthy treats I can eat guilt free. I love hollandaise sauce and Thai peanut sauces so I created tasty versions with a fraction of the calories. While my family enjoys ice cream or pudding for dessert I enjoy a version I make myself that has under 20 calories. When my "dieting" friends eat a Jenny Craig frozen pizza for lunch I enjoy a Chicago style homemade thin crust pizza with real cheese and all my favorite toppings that has ½ the calories. Even taking a jar of Costco pesto sauce and blending it with an entire package of spinach and a bit of water in my Vitamix until it's smooth and creamy increases the nutrition while decreasing the calories substantially. I fought too hard for my mental well-being to risk losing it by "dieting"

Lastly if you or anyone you know is suffering from a mental illness, addictions, trauma, or abuse of any kind please know recovery is possible it just takes work to find it. There is no shame in recovery so I will not be ashamed that I gained weight in my recovery process. If I can face the challenges of PTSD and emerge stronger I am confident I can face the challenges of weight loss and become stronger through the experience too. I look forward to celebrating our mutual successes as we achieve our goals and live our most magnificent life. Good luck!

willboywonder

Here are my top three tips.

1. Plan all your meals. Always be thinking about your next meal (including between-meal snacks) ahead of time so you don't do any mindless eating. Work on thinking of your meals several days in advance. There's a lot of talk about meal prep these days. That's a crucial step in maintaining good health and nutrition so you don't over eat or so you don't eat the wrong things;

2. Drink plenty of plain water throughout the day. Some people will say you don't need to drink a lot of water if you eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables. But I think water is important to keep you hydrated and to cleanse your system. Try to learn to enjoy water without adding flavors to it. If you can't enjoy it that way, drop in small chunks of fresh fruits rather than using any artificial flavorings; and

3. Have a buddy or two you check in with to help keep yourself accountable. It also can help you stay inspired and motivated. You can be helpful to your buddy too. Some people may not have anybody in real life to fill that role. It's very hard if you try to improve your diet but other members in your household aren't as conscious of it. If you don't have someone in real life to fill that role, that's a benefit of online communities such as Myfitnesspal. The connections you establish will help you stay focused. Your buddy may also provide tips that you might not otherwise have thought of, especially if you hit a plateau.

PAR1251

Like many people, I find indoor cardio extremely boring but I've found that having one TV show that I only watch while on the treadmill to be very helpful. Try to choose a show with several seasons - I'm currently watching ER on Hulu and find I look forward to my daily catch-up.

umijan

(1) I tried intermittent fasting and cut out breakfast for 6 months, but found I snacked too much between lunch (noon) and dinner (6:30). I probably wasn't satiated. MyFitnessPal daily nutrition chart was always soaring in fats and carbs, and I often ate way more than the allotted 1200 cals. Trying to eat 3 meals instead, more or less equally spaced out, between 11 am and 6:30 pm, has worked wonders in reducing the amount of snacking, particularly high carb, sugar and high-fat snacks, and restoring balance. (2) I have Osteoporosis and need to track my calcium intake. Upgrading to Premium is helping me view this under Nutrition Reports until I get a handle on eyeballing calcium consumption. I'll then revert to the free version since paying for Premium indefinitely is a bit steep for this retired senior's budget! Health is important so it's definitely worth it for a year though - and a nice break from annoying ads! Whichever version you use, staying organized and prepping in advance is KEY!

Steeperslounge

For me personally, my healthy nutritional plan is a lifetime plan.
I have lost many pounds in the past only to regain them as maintenance is just as important as the loss journey.
I paid for a resting metabolic rate test.
Years of yo-yo dieting, injuries, and failure to research led to my resting metabolic rate being 1160 calories for my body to function in a 24-hour resting period.
Prior to the Basal Metabolic Rate test, as a very active person in cardio, I adjusted my calorie range to reflect my cardio. So I keep up a very fast pace and could not get past an eight-year plateau.
What I learned from the test was that I needed to incorporate weight training to build my metabolic rate back up. I have now passed the plateau.
I am working with a dietician at Loyola University to rebuild my metabolic rate.
Learn about nutritional health, take the time to research for example if you're thinking of an all-vegan plan (wonderful) but, make sure that you supplement especially with vitamin B12 as our bodies do not produce the vitamin.
If you're not gluten intolerant do not stay on a strict gluten-free plan. Switch it up from time to time. Food allergies are not fun so if you do not have any food allergies try to enjoy all food groups as it makes life more interesting and your body will love it nutritionally. I mention these things as I have done both and both times tanked which required doctors visits, B12 shots, etc.
Now I eat all food groups except shellfish as I carry an EpiPen and have learned in the past that eliminating food groups can harm you more than help you lose weight.
In 2010, I damaged both legs in an accident that required six surgeries to walk again! I am very grateful for my legs and used them to drop the 100 pounds I gained while in recovery. Slow and easy and still a work in progress.
Staying motivated is a key to my plan- set goals- start small ( 10 minutes a day) and work your way up.
Goals can be anything ( build a garden) it's great exercise and you reap the benefits of growing and canning. It took me years to build my garden but now I am grateful.
Plan meals ahead of time. Make enough to freeze portions so that on those days when you're running behind or have a full schedule you have a backup plan, you already know what the calorie count is as well as the nutritional value. Try new recipes.
Most important is to not allow others to sabotage your plan. It's ok to be selfish and to say "no" to people that do not understand your goals. You do not have to explain yourself around the water cooler at work. Just say thank you but no thanks to the treats brought in for parties etc.
Food is not a social gathering!
We as a society have made eating and socializing normal.
Every day is another holiday - birthdays, retirements, baby showers plus normal holidays that we do dine with friends and family that make it difficult to sometimes lose the weight needed but we do not want to be the downer at the party so we need to plan our eating around these scheduled activities as that is life and life is to be enjoyed. Be smart about your food choices and portion control - enjoy a beer or glass of wine.
Finally, drink water every day!

DHussli

Hi, I am new to this. I will be having my gallbladder out later this month. I need to lose 20 lbs. and follow a Low Fat meal plan. Any suggestions and help is going to be greatly appreciated.

CertifiedPersonalTrainer

1. Have your weight loss goal be bigger than just a desire to lose weight. Really! A desire to lose weight is easily trumped by hunger pains. If the thought of achieving your goal moves you emotionally, you're on the right track. If not, keep working on this piece. It will play a major part in getting yourself to keep going once you go off track.

2. Adjust your expectation of your weight loss journey to know that you will not be able to stick to your plan 100% of the time (no one can). Everyday life will always have other plans. A great strategy (and easier to do) is to not have two bad days in a row.

3. Have the courage, discipline and motivation to weigh yourself daily and track your calories. The myfitnesspal app is a great tool for this. When you don't do this refer to #2.

4. Make a game out of the entire process where you give yourself daily thanks (gratitude) for being the winner of your created game. Give your game a name. The more playful the better.

5. Do not take the game (or yourself) too seriously! (Have fun!)

snpatt

I like to think of the healthy decisions I make today; drinking water, taking a 20 minute walk, tracking meals, as a gift to my future self.