WHERE do I start!?

revkhyler

Welcome!
I'm using a combo of strength training and cardio (strength 3-4x a week, cardio 5-6x a week) and just logging every bite I put into my mouth. My overall goal is to be back into my happy jeans and to get back into the 160-170 range where I'm at my peak. The weights and cardio are the only things that really truly work for me.
You can and will do it - and we're here all over the world backing you up. There's strength in numbers!
(And venison and elk are wonderful meats, aren't they? I'm drooling just thinking of elk steak with onion and a little garlic...) :bigsmile:

littlelexical

Im 28 and have PCOS also (thyroid and heart problems to boot!)
Firstly - what is working for everyone may NOT work for you - PCOS makes it a little different - learn about it - learn what is happening to your insides - what foods affect it & what foods can help it -DONT take your drs word (or them telling you to take the pill) as a cure - Get yourself educated & question everything - if someone tells you you should/shouldnt eat something ask why? What does it do? Dont just accept it.
Be aware your loss may be slower than someone without PCOS (sometimes teeth grindingly slow) and even when you cant get a scale or measurement victory - measure your progress on how you feel... PCOS symptoms are awful - but if you are eating right & doing right to help correct that - you will start feeling better, even i the weight doesnt fall off immediately.

Happy to be a 'friend' if you need a fellow PCOS'er for support.

haymancm

My goal is to lose a total of 106 lbs & have lost 71 so far in 9 months. What has worked for me: eating bunny food daily, drinking more than half my body weight in oz, wearing a hrm & a fitbit (walking more than 10k steps daily), and logging everything-even if I go over-every day.

Add me if you'd like.

jojo86xdd

I can only say what has worked for me.

Be honest. Log everything, even the junk, the binges, the oil you cook in and that snack you had at work. If you eat/drink it, log it. This is imperative. It is the only way you will be aware of what exactly you are consuming. Many use a food scale and swear by it. I never have. I'm sure it would come of great use to you if you'd like to be as accurate as possible, but like I said, I've never used one. I do measure and convert to grams or ounces as necessary and if that's not available, I eyeball and overestimate when logging. Personally, I do this on purpose. There's no way I'm weighing everything for the rest of my life, so I chose the more realistic route and trained myself to aim for moderation.

I eat "healthy" 80-90 percent of the time. I buy my groceries and I prep and cook at home. If I have to get up 30 mins earlier to get in a good breakfast before heading to class, I do that, and I plan my meals the day before. If I don't have time to fix something I make the best choices I can, log it, and move on. But I have to say, moderation is everything. Do not deprive yourself. Ever. In my opinion, this is the best approach to weight loss and keeping the weight off. Eat what you like, but tweak it if you can. If you like burgers, make your own. There's always a healthier alternative. And if you just want a burger from Wendy's, eat it. As long as it fits into your calorie goals, log it and, if you must, throw in an extra workout if you'd like. I've eaten burgers, pizza, ice cream, cookies, alcohol throughout my entire process, but I always try to plan ahead and always in moderation. Parties, weddings, the holidays. You should be prepared for them and be able to have enough of a healthy relationship with food that being in those settings will not throw you off. This for me, has honestly been the reason I've made it this far.

As far as exercise, I started off doing P90X religiously (this was at 325 lbs mind you) not a pretty sight but I did the program twice but I focused on the cardio workouts mostly and modified as needed. Later I incorporated Insanity here and there and after that point my workout regimen became a hybrid of many things. I do tennis, Turbo Fire, Chalean Extreme, Youtube workout videos, kickboxing (my fav), Zumba, P90, P90Plus, and pretty much anything I find that calls my attention. I do weights at home, a couple of reps after every workout and I've taken up running as well. I go to school full time and work full time so I have no time to hit the gym, so I do all my workouts at home usually at night after work and before dinner and studying and if I run, my neighborhood is my track.

You already have the heart rate monitor which is a great tool. It is the best thing I've purchased. To keep myself motivated i try to hunt for new workouts, or I compete with myself (like try to beat yesterday's calorie burn during a workout) or others, I sometimes shop for new work out attire, research new recipes, ask others what has worked for them (what you are doing), and I measure and weigh myself to track my progress.

Hopefully this helps you come up some ideas that might work for you )

jackaroo1223

WOW! So much amazing encouragement and advice here! It cracks me up that someone has been to Dubois- small world! In the summer we do get out and 4wheel and fish but coordinating schedules is tough- my boyfriend is a cop so his schedule rotates.

I do have snowshoes and got some new snow pants so we ARE going snowshoeing with the dogs this weekend! Last night I REALLY, REALLY did not want to go to the gym, but I told myself, half the battle is showing up. So I showed up. I put on my gym clothes and heart rate monitor and music, and I did something. I formulated a "plan", of following the couch to 5k program for my cardio workout. I may have only done 15 minutes of cardio last night, 10 of that within my target. So while it wasn't really a workout to write home about, I went, and burned 130 calories.

I have already cut out coffee, and replaced it with decaf tea with honey. I still have my nasty diet coke habit, but I had my last one this morning and am trading that out for water and decaf tea as well.

Our next big grocery trip I am going to stock up on frozen veggies and do some research on crockpot freezer meals, and utilize leftovers for my lunch, but also get some lunch meat and cheese to have as lunch to switch it up.I am also going to work on planning 15 meals out at a time, so it covers us for a couple weeks. With my PCOS, I am going to start weaning sugar, and processed carbs OUT as much as possible- those are weaknesses and also I think, what causes weight to pile on BAD. My body just doesn't handle them well.

Once I get my stamina up more, I plan to use the Nike Trainer Club app thats been sitting on my phone for months to switch up my workouts and incorporate more strength training, and build up an arsenal of workouts for strength training. I've been half assed committed for years but I just turned 28, I know a wedding will be happening within a year or 2, we are planning a Bahamas vacation for my 30th birthday, I want to be in the best shape of my life! I am treating my gym time as my "ME" time and making it a priority. I think for every 10 pounds I lose, I will do something to treat myself... i just need to stay focused and motivated, track my calories, show up to the gym and kick *kitten*!

_HeartsOnFire_

Read this...
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/975025-in-place-of-a-road-map-short-n-sweet?hl=short+sweet+<span class=

And most definitely read this!!!
http://www.vicmagary.com/blog/fitness-motivation/#comment-10883

janesmith1

Plan ALL your meals out and write them in advance, including your snacks.

judyde

Honestly, just plug all of your goals and info into MFP and eat the calorie goal it gives you plus exercise calories.

You can hit that calorie goal every day with whatever foods you choose. If you eat what you like, you're more likely to stick to it long-term, but aiming for a balanced diet is always good from a nutritional perspective.

Do whatever exercises you enjoy. Having a HRM will make it much easier to log accurate calorie burns.

Really, just keep it simple.

Calorie deficit for weight loss.
Exercise for fitness.
Log everything accurately and consistently.

It works.

^^ I'm proud to say that this very very smart lady is on my friends list!!

lyzmorrison

Keep it simple is GREAT advice...and log into MFP EVERY DAY! That's great advice.

My additional advice....realize that losing weigh is HARD WORK and requires DEDICATION and DENIAL.

If you are willing to do the work, you will see results!

elainecroft

Congrats on working towards your goal! Lots of good advice on here, but I would add the following: You will not do this perfectly. Whatever steps you outline for yourself, you will mess up, and there will be bad days along with good ones. Don't kick yourself too hard though - just get up and keep going, and you'll get there eventually!!

Ninkyou

Honestly, just plug all of your goals and info into MFP and eat the calorie goal it gives you plus exercise calories.

You can hit that calorie goal every day with whatever foods you choose. If you eat what you like, you're more likely to stick to it long-term, but aiming for a balanced diet is always good from a nutritional perspective.

Do whatever exercises you enjoy. Having a HRM will make it much easier to log accurate calorie burns.

Really, just keep it simple.

Calorie deficit for weight loss.
Exercise for fitness.
Log everything accurately and consistently.

It works.

All of this.