How to get started and stick to it

TelleBelles

Hi all, I have for a long time had MFP on my phone, occasionally logged, more frequently over eaten...........now i KNOW that I have to make life changes, very few of my clothes fit and with no money to purchase new something has got to give!

I just wondered how the more successful have made the necessary changes and managed to stick at it? How do you overcome friends and family who would encourage a trip to the pub and not a walk around the block?

Am open to any suggestions, ideas and kicks up the rear!!

xx

lambchoplewis1

Glad u r now getting serious. I lost my weight and maintained for over a year and then stopped using MFP every day and slowly put back on 10 lbs. I actually re-committed by deleting my profile and starting over. It has been 8 days and today is a little hard. My new clothes are all tight as 10 lbs is apex. 10% of my body weight!!!

The things that keep me moving forward is logging in every day. I do weigh myself every day as this stops me from shoving things into my mouth. This is controversial as u have to be able to handle a 2-3 lb wt increase even if following your plan. Not weighing myself like this is one of the main reasons the weight crept back on. I log my food and exercise and read these post (many times a day) to stay motivated. It is not easy but that is my advice.

bwogilvie

I just decided that I was sick of being overweight, and concerned enough about the long-term consequences that I had to do something.

I also realized that I was not embarking on a short-term diet; rather, I was making a lifestyle change. So I haven't given up anything that I didn't want to give up forever. What I have done is to make changes: eat less meat and cheese, and more vegetables; drink one pint, not two or three, at the pub; limit snacking, not cut it out; etc. The only really significant change I made was to get more serious about weight training, in order not to lose too much muscle while losing fat.

So how about walking to the pub and having a half? As long as it fits in your calorie goals, there's nothing wrong with it.

You mention on your profile that you want to become a runner. If you don't know about the Couch to 5K (C25K) program, check it out:
http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml

There's a subreddit devoted to the program, and I think an MFP group too:
http://www.reddit.com/r/C25K

I love running; I'm just getting back into it after years away, because when I was obese, it was too hard on my joints and ligaments. Couch to 5K is challenging but not too hard for those who are already walking a lot.

concordancia

I try to keep the main focus on my fitness goals: eating well is just one of the steps to being able to do many marvelous things.

I eat a wide variety of foods and allow myself treats. On Wednesday nights, we go to board games at a local restaurant. My husband likes to get a milkshake, so we share the milkshake. I put it in my diary early in the day to make sure that I leave room for it. If he works late and we miss board game night, I just erase it and have a snack and let myself be under for that day. If I bake something, I figure out what a serving is and take that, rather than sitting down with the whole pan.

4realrose8

Realizing that I am now 40 and my dad passed away at 48. If I don't do something now, that could be my fate and I have three young children who need their mom in their lives for a long time.

HawkeyeTy

You have to want it bad another, there is no other way...

lisawinning4losing

Those damn trips to the pub. Kryptonite.

hibou_89

Hi,
my wau to stick to it is mainly to not freak over it. If I go over, I exercise more. If it is still over, well, I 'll do better tomorrow. I eat whatever I like as long as it is reasonable. If I feel I lack of energy, I eat at meaintenance for a day or two. I plan my meals over the week to balance the calories on the week so I can have meals that are more calorie-dense that I like very much. I am loosing. Slowly, but I don't feel I am doing very much for it, which is good as weight does go away. I started in being strict for the first month or so though, time to learn about portions and calorie.

glassgallm

It has to be a change in your lifestyle.
You can never stop. If you do, you will gain it back eventually.
Each day is a new day to stick to your alotted number of calories. If you mess up one day, you start fresh the next day.
Stay away from packaged foods and try to eat mostly homemade meals. Include fresh fruits and vegetables, nuts, lean meats, some dairy, whole grains everyday.
If you go out (to pub or restaurant) try to choose before you leave what you will eat/drink and how it will fit into your daily calories.
Try to get at least a walk in daily. A heart rate monitor will show you how many calories you are actually burning during exercise. Don't trust gym machines' calorie counts to be very accurate.
You are in control of what you eat or don't eat, and how much you exercise. You need only to be accountable to yourself.

chezjuan

The best advice I can give is to be diligent with your logging, and do your best to stay within your goals. Log food before you eat it (you can do it right before) so you know what your getting and you won't be surprised later. That can help you make choices, like if you are thinking about having another pint but want a snack, seeing the calories can be helpful.

Mjreiman

My philosophy was simply to set a goal for weight and stick to it. I lost 35lbs from kickboxing without changing a single thing in my diet. Then I thought to myself, if I change my diet I could lose even more weight. 10 months later I've lost even more weight then decided to add muscle weight. So I cracked down on a 200g protein, 250g of COMPLEX carb, healthy fat diet. It helped me develop a lot of self discipline. After a while, dieting becomes very simple and it will seem abnormal to eat outside of it. The key is just get anything at the grocery store that is in the fresh fruit and veggie aisle. Switch from regular milk to soy or almond milk. Don't worry about doing the diet that is the latest fad. I am training to do MMA Fighting for sport and everyone told me to do Paleo. Not only is it expensive, but detrimental to your skeletal system. Everyone wants the to have either the miracle weight loss pill or the miracle weight loss diet it. It does NOT exist. It only comes from hard work and dedication and a serious amount of self control. I used to eat McDonald's almost 5 days a week. Now I haven't been to a fast food restaurant in probably 4 months or so. If anyone ever needs any advice on some good things to eat or good ideas, don't hesitate to ask. I always am coming up with ideas for healthy meals for a nice romantic dinner or a very nutritional smoothie on the go. #FITNESS

zombiemomjo

I have been chunky since my 20's. My dad had died at 38, and I was approaching that age. I had two little boys, and I didn't want to put them through what the loss of a parent at an early age did to me and my sister. I had completed a 10 week extreme program that cost me $400. I never missed a workout or cheated on the diet, and I only lost 7 lbs. Very discouraging. Tried WeightWatchers, and it was so easy to make poor choices. So I gave up. The day after I hit the same age that my dad died, my friend told me about MFP. I thought, why not check it out. I had no expectations, and I didn't jump in with thinking I was making any changes whatsoever. Just curiosity. I logged that day to get an idea of what I was eating. Then I got up and popped in a workout DVD. I simply saw that by adding in activity, I could eat more. So I started working out a bit more and realized that I was enjoying it, and the weight was coming off faster than with the extreme program or WW, and it wasn't costing me a penny! I would plan for big meals out and just burn more calories before we went so I could splurge on a burger and fries. I quickly lost 20 lbs, and I couldn't believe how much I liked exercise! But I had found the workouts that made my smile, and I kept up with them. I had REAL LIFE accountability friends as well as the friends on here. I set mini goals with that friend to reward us for sticking with it. 30 days of logging, we went on a double date. First 10 lbs down, we went shopping. After 3 months of logging, we got makeovers. After a year, I eased up on the logging and gained 10 lbs of my 30 I lost, but I never gave up on exercise.

So long story short, extreme changes are too easy to give up on, and the simply formula of burn it to earn it was the ticket for me.

Momjogger

First of all, you have to allow yourself to BE SELFISH. Think about yourself. Make YOUR food, exercise daily like it's your job and you can't let anything else get in the way. Spend money on fresh fruit and LOTS of veggies. Buy yourself a nice outfit each time you lose a size and then give it away as you lose to the next size. Use the journey as a learning experience to treat yourself right.

HappyNewTamera2014

NM

wannakimmy

It has to be a change in your lifestyle.
You can never stop. If you do, you will gain it back eventually.
Each day is a new day to stick to your alotted number of calories. If you mess up one day, you start fresh the next day.
Stay away from packaged foods and try to eat mostly homemade meals. Include fresh fruits and vegetables, nuts, lean meats, some dairy, whole grains everyday.
If you go out (to pub or restaurant) try to choose before you leave what you will eat/drink and how it will fit into your daily calories.
Try to get at least a walk in daily. A heart rate monitor will show you how many calories you are actually burning during exercise. Don't trust gym machines' calorie counts to be very accurate.
You are in control of what you eat or don't eat, and how much you exercise. You need only to be accountable to yourself.

Well said

TelleBelles

Thank you for the advice everyone. Tomorrow will be my official restart. Need to get some meals planned and some good food in the house!

Wish me luck!

lambchoplewis1

Tomorrow is now here!! Start by logging food and exercise. Read these motivational posts and stay the course. U can do it!!

Susie_1

The best advice I can give is to be diligent with your logging, and do your best to stay within your goals. Log food before you eat it (you can do it right before) so you know what your getting and you won't be surprised later. That can help you make choices, like if you are thinking about having another pint but want a snack, seeing the calories can be helpful.

This is how I am approaching it, I know there is no quick fix, and probably like over 90% of people on MFP I have at some time tried every diet going! I joined MFP a year ago but didnt have the motivation or the inclination to do anything till this January,.A few years ago I lost over 6stone but it crept back on, the idea was when I gained half a stone I would go back to my healthy eating plan and lose it but that didnt happen so here I am back again, last time I was at a heavier weight when started and didnt reach goal so I still have to lose just over 6 stone but then I will be at my goal weight and this time I AM going to do it, I find reading the success stories and the motivation I get from reading different posts really does help me, I log in everyday and intend to keep doing so, if anyone wants to add me please feel free I hope that friends can encourage each other, in October this nyear I will be 60 and when I think of all the years I have wasted, with my weight holding me back I could cry, however there is nothing I can do about the past, but the future well I can do something about that and I fully intend to.

christa279

I tried MFP in the past and can admit that I was not serious about it at all. I wanted to lose weight, but not bad enough to put in the effort needed to achieve my goal. I didn't want to make any changes and wanted change to happen.

Last year, I wasn't focused on losing weight as much as I wanted to just eat healthier. I made some small changes here and there, and one day someone congratulated me on my weight loss. From that moment on I realized that I didn't need to diet, but that I needed to change my diet!

So that has been what has helped me to get started and stick to it. I made some changes to what I eat, but I haven't cut out anything I can't live without. I like my sweets, so I work them in. I plan my meals ahead and log the main meals, then work in my snacks. I log everything, even bad days and weight gains, to keep myself accountable. And the biggest change yet has been that I stopped making excuses. I don't tell myself that I am to tired to exercise, I tell myself that exercise will help energize me and make me feel better in the long run.

You can do this!

Sunshine2plus2

You got to want it! It's all up to you! I don't avoid trips out with friends. I eat out just not as much. Moderation is key! Don't stop doing the things you enjoy that is why most people fail bc they believe you got to cut everything out and that's not true!

MyPureSteez

#1 Plan those days out.
#2 When you want your goal more than "X" it becomes a lot easier to say "I'll pass"

That's what works for me

kburcham38

I am just getting restarted in my weight loss journey because I wanted it before but always found myself slacking. But this time I found myself more determined so I rejoined back up here at MFP and I am determined not to let my family and friends undermine by goals.