The one thing you did that made the difference?

Options
2»

Replies

  • 1JenMilam
    1JenMilam Posts: 108 Member
    Options
    I stopped thinking of losing weight as a diet and embraced it as a Lifestyle change.
  • acoustictones
    acoustictones Posts: 47
    Options
    I have been all about diet, exercise and rest (all 3 working together is important to me), BUT if I had to pick just one... wow, I would say the first few months were all about diet (just what I'm allowing in my body - including a full gallon of water per day), and then after the initial loss it started to be a lot about my exercise (burning calories).

    But still I believe that all of the exercise in the world won't do much for someone in their 40's if their diet is off. So I'll stick with diet being my primary answer.

    Yes, that is my final answer ;)

    David

    P.S. - Setting realistic goals that I was excited to work towards and believed I could achieve was pretty big too. Many have told me that my goals seemed pretty agressive for my age, but they always just seemed to be a bit of a strech for me, but realistic to reach and stretch for... and I'm getting there :)
  • mundaetraversa
    mundaetraversa Posts: 21
    Options
    Portion control. When I was getting in shape for my wedding a few years back, I was so frustrated because I worked out all the time, but my weight loss was PAINFULLY slow. After the wedding, we both gained 20 pounds that we said we wouldn't gain - and are now working on honoring a healthier life together. With daily intake hovering around 1350 cals. (I am only 5'2"), I've lost four pounds in two weeks. Huge difference.
  • Mia_RagazzaTosta
    Mia_RagazzaTosta Posts: 4,885 Member
    Options
    I stopped lying to myself and making excuses all the time.

    This. And I picked up a barbell.
  • M22KY
    M22KY Posts: 60 Member
    Options
    Eating home-cooked meals. I used to spend $150-$200 per month on fast food!
  • christinepeterson505
    christinepeterson505 Posts: 7 Member
    Options
    1. Being fanatic about recording what I eat so that I can accurately trace my calories.
    2. Not worrying about both exercise and diet at the same time. Instead, I focused simply on calorie counting first and just got used to eating less.
    3.Not eating fast food.
    4. Keeping my eye on the long game--I have no set date that I need to lose this weight by. Just happy to see that I've lost an average of 1-1.5 lbs/week since July.

    I know that's four things.

    I'm glad that exercise works for so many people, and I intend to add that to my routine to keep my weight from creeping back on, but I know myself well enough to know that if I failed at keeping both programs going (diet and exercise), I'd drop both.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    Options
    But still I believe that all of the exercise in the world won't do much for someone in their 40's if their diet is off. So I'll stick with diet being my primary answer.

    This has some truth to it, but I imagine some of the others giving exercise the credit may be like me. I gained 30 lbs over 6 years. I ate healthy foods, but just a little too much. Very little too much (do the math). All I had to do was add exercise and that 30 lbs came off easily with no diet changes at all.

    And not that makes much difference, but I am 52 years old.
  • JeannaJermaine
    JeannaJermaine Posts: 1
    Options
    The 2 things that I did that made a big difference was I stopped drinking pop and I stopped consuming cheese and breads.
  • lisa35120
    lisa35120 Posts: 230 Member
    Options
    Portion control. I love food too much but logging calories helps me really see how much I am eating and motivates me to cut back.

    I also started couch to 5k the same time I came back to mfp. That has really helped motivate me to get outside and start running 3 days a week!
  • ElliottTN
    ElliottTN Posts: 1,614 Member
    Options
    One thing I did: Stopped sucking at life. No seriously...I guess I still suck sometimes BUT I generally suck at life a whole lot less now.
  • oc1timoco
    oc1timoco Posts: 272 Member
    Options
    The purchase of a food scale. < 15 $. I was over estimating my food portions
  • KenishaFitness
    KenishaFitness Posts: 161 Member
    Options
    Congrats on the 20lb weight loss. So far since I started back up working out at the end of July, I have made a commitment to get in my daily nutrition every single day & workout minimum of 4 days. I have struggled through the progress, but I did over looked it eventually and kept it moving.
  • Elif84
    Elif84 Posts: 287 Member
    Options
    One thing that made the difference was that I started to actually want to lose weight, meaning that I finally had the discipline and drive to work out and change my eating habits after several, failed attempts. After I was successfully losing weight, I couldn't believe it; I thought to myself, I must have really wanted this time around. That meant getting up early in the morning to work out before work (I switched it to after work) and changing the way I ate. If I went out to eat and splurged I would get right back into it either later that day or the next day (the old me would have just been like, well I screwed it up today, might as well screw up the rest of the week).
  • rrcorleto
    rrcorleto Posts: 13 Member
    Options
    Just some background. I started this journey on 5/5/2013, exactly 6 month to the day tomorrow. When I started I was at 350ish pounds, didn't exercise, and work at a desk for 12 hour shifts. Today I am at 288, down 66 pounds, and still going strong.

    Without a doubt portion control was what made me lose what I lost. I look back now at not necessarily what I was eating, but how much, and I can't believe the amounts I used to intake. I try to walk at least 3 times a week for 3 miles or so, and I have stopped and started running (the stops and starts were medical malfunctions, not for lack of trying), but I think that even if I didn't change my exercise habits I still would of had sucess, maybe just not to the degree that I have had. I haven't really changed the food types that I am eating, although I have elimated fast food and what little soda that I did drink. I like to think that I have modified the foods that I eat. Turkey Burger instead of beef, chicken sausage instead of pork, a portion appropriate sirloin steak instead of a 16oz ribeye, brown rice instead of a white rice in sauce, whole wheat breads & pasta instead of bleached flour when possible, etc. Once in a while I have an "old style" food as an treat, such as a beef burger when I hit the 60 pound loss mark, but I can't say that I want for anything or am depribed certain things. If I want it, I have it, just in moderation.

    So far what I have do has been without any surgeries, diets, powders, pills, shakes, or any other dramatic changes, so it can be done if you just eat at a deficit. I just had the longest stall of my journey so far at 15 days, but the scale is moving in a downward direction once more so I can stop worring that it was never going to move again- :smile: I have not done any strength training because both of my knees are wrecked from playing ball, but I think once the new year comes around I am going to work in some low impact strength training to get me going down that path. We'll cross tat bridge when we get to it though...
  • marko320
    marko320 Posts: 84 Member
    Options
    I audited everything using MFP. My doctor told me to pick a calorie counter and shoot for 1500 calories of food per day. I thought I knew what portion control was until I counted everything. I eat less now than ever before. I've lost the weight listed in my sig since May, and I'm 19lbs less than my highest weight. So it worked.

Categories