Things you wish you knew at the start of your weight loss journey

claireeeyc

Hi everyone, i am currently 5 weeks into my weight loss journey and have lost 8lbs so far. I am calorie counting and exercising but i’m just wondering if anyone has any advice for someone starting their own weight loss journey.

cmriverside

Log food. Log all the food. Even on those days when all I do is keep going back in the kitchen for more.

• Be patient (with the process, with myself)
• Be kind (sometimes it's two steps forward, one step back)
• Make small changes. I don't have to only eat lettuce and chicken breast. Maybe this week just drop the Coke. Next week, sub Greek yogurt for sour cream.
• Step on the body weight scale every day and record it somewhere. The trend is more important than any one daily reading.
• A binge night of ice cream and popcorn doesn't ruin the whole thing. It just delays the Goal. Get right back at it. (Be patient, be kind)
• Take a walk. Ride a bike. Get on the stand up paddle board. Just do something that's fun and active five out of seven days every week for an hour. It makes the life better and easier.
• It's not that hard to lose weight. Seriously, it's not.
  

Rockymountainflyer

Log everything and be honest even if you gorged that day. Move daily, even cleaning on snow days. After 15 pounds or so "reset" by maintaining for a month or so (you'll gain a couple), then lower calories again and get to it.

mtaratoot

I wish I had made a point to take more pictures and measurements when I started. I didn't begin taking body measurements until part of the way along. It would be great to look back and say, "Look what I did!" I do have a couple pictures; one of them is the reason I finally got serious about losing the weight after sort of pretending to try for several years.