Hi there... I really need help :( questions.

kaitpaveyxo
kaitpaveyxo Posts: 2
in Food and Nutrition
I just started using this app, and I more than anything want to lose weight. I'm wondering how long it takes before you start to see weight loss, and do I need to exercise a lot? I'm also having a hard time with motivation, especially because of all the Christmas foods. Should I start in the new year? I've been using this app for a week. I didn't weigh myself before I started, I just guessed, and I woke up this morning thinking I had lost weight, and I am 3 pounds more than I thought I was to begin with. I was also under my calorie goal all week. Please help. So confused :(

Replies

  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,097 Member
    I just started using this app, and I more than anything want to lose weight. I'm wondering how long it takes before you start to see weight loss, and do I need to exercise a lot? I'm also having a hard time with motivation, especially because of all the Christmas foods. Should I start in the new year? I've been using this app for a week. I didn't weigh myself before I started, I just guessed, and I woke up this morning thinking I had lost weight, and I am 3 pounds more than I thought I was to begin with. I was also under my calorie goal all week. Please help. So confused :(

    Since you really have no idea what you weighed when you started, you don't know whether you gained or lost, so there's no point in being upset about those 3 pounds. You could just log for now, without being worried about hitting a specific goal, if you're not motivated now (because, quite frankly, it's not likely to work if you're not motivated). Logging is a skill and a habit, and and it gives you information (as does occasionally weighing and measuring yourself, and taking pictures), and information is power in the pursuit of weight loss. So just getting in the habit of logging could be a positive step.

    However, you say "more than anything" you want to lose weight. Is that really true? Do you want it more than a second helping of everything on the table at the holiday meal? Do you want it more than your 10th cookie? Do you want it more than you want to put off doing anything about it until January?

    As to how long it takes, if you stick to a plan that has you at a calorie deficit, in most cases you should see some results in the first week or two. For a lot of people, the scales move faster than predicted in the first week or two, because they're dropping water weight, not just fat and (unfortunately) muscle. What's your deficit?
  • kagevf
    kagevf Posts: 509 Member
    weight fluctuations is normal.
    You just started, be patient. Its not magic. Rome was not built in a day.
    Weigh once a week. Start your base weight in the morning you wake up after you peed and empty your stomach. this will be your actual base weight.

    to find out if you are healthy, calculate your BMI here ... http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/obesity/BMI/bmicalc.htm
    aim for normal weight of course.
    once you get your ideal BMI, calculate your BMR here and put it on your MFP ... http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/

    eat on 300-500 calorie deficit 5 days/week and just enjoy your weekends but dont binge. Its ok to go over your calories but dont BINGE!
  • aufond
    aufond Posts: 18 Member
    It's technically possible to lose weight through diet alone, but speaking for myself, that's not the easiest thing to do. I'm aiming for about 1500 calories per day, and my breakfasts and lunches are usually pretty light, just a few hundred calories. It's dinner where I consume a lot of calories (part of it is a few beers!), so I balance it out by riding my bike pretty hard, twice a day for 30 mins. That kills over 600 calories pretty easily!

    If I weren't exercising, I would find it a lot more challenging to hit my daily target. For me, cycling has been a gold mine discovery, I never thought exercise could be so pleasant and yet burn so many calories. (I used to go regularly to the gym for weight machines and ellipticals, but now I enjoy lifting free weights at home along with the cycling.)

    It's turned out that I like cycling, but if that's not your thing, some form of exercise can really help you meet your goals. You'll also feel better, not just in the physical sense, but also mentally because you'll feel like you've accomplished something through exercising.

    kagevf is right, find out how much of a calorie deficit to aim for by figuring out your BMR. This website can be a big help in helping you track your progress through the day (I log everything I eat soon after eating it), especially when you throw exercise into the mix.

    Good luck, all is totally possible, hang in there!

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