Kick start to MFP

Jimster1981

Hi Guys,

Does anyone have any tips or tricks to kickstart my weight-loss journey. I have started MFP today and I will be following a short fitness regime each day too. I am thinking to cut out bread for the first week which should make a huge difference and kickstart mu journey.

Any tips would be appreciated.

Annesoucy1957

Hi, there are no tricks per say. Reduce your calorie intake to stay within your goal. Dont know how many calories you might reduce by stopping bread, but if you eat it in excess it might make a difference. Exercising is good to get your body fit.

Just be sensible and make sure that whatever you change you can continue doing for the rest of your life.

Jimster1981

Thanks for the advice.

Could I ask your opinion on sweeteners and sugar-free drinks? are they okay or is it best to avoid them?

Thanks

_Zardoz_

Thanks for the advice.

Could I ask your opinion on sweeteners and sugar-free drinks? are they okay or is it best to avoid them?

Thanks

You'll get views from both sides on this. There is no reputable peer reviewed science saying that there is anything wrong with them. I have a pepsi max most days and as you can see it's not effected my weightloss in any way. As for sweeteners personally in food I normally don't bother I find stevia has a back taste so I'd rather have sugar in things. There is no reason why you can't have sugar in things as long as you know how much your eating. As with all things moderation is the key. Too much of anything no matter what isn't going to be the best for you.

Good luck

AndyMcMahan

Water is the way to go for drinks. If you have a hard time transitioning to "water only", perhaps start by putting a lot of squeezed lemon or lime into the water to give it some taste. After a year or so, you'll only want water at meals!

(I went from a "no water"/"coca-cola only" diet in 2004 to "water ONLY" now. It took about 2 years to fully lose the craving for sugared, carbonated drinks. Losing the craving for orange juice took a lot longer, but it finally happened around 5-6 years after I started trying.)

lisamac62

bump

kgeyser

You do not need to avoid or eliminate any foods unless you don't like them or they make you physically ill. You do not need to "kickstart" your weight loss. All you need to do is stay within your calorie goals, hit your macronutrient (carbs, fat, and protein) goals, get enough fiber, and get enough micronutrients (vitamins and minerals), and you will lose weight and improve your health, provided you don't have some kind of underlying medical condition. All foods are fine in moderation.

You can also incorporate exercise, which will improve your cardiovascular health and fitness. Lifting weights is good retaining lean muscle mass as you lose weight, so you keep your muscle but lose fat. If you exercise, add those calories to your MFP goal and eat back a portion of those calories.

These links are helpful:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1235566-so-you-re-new-here

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

You don't need a kick start, just start logging accurately and trying to hit your calorie goal/macros (protein and fat especially).

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819925-the-basics-don-t-complicate-it

Annesoucy1957

I dont know I do not eat or drink food with artificial sweetener, I dislike the excess sweetness and after taste, dont have a sweet tooth either. Not a soft drink or juice drinker also.

If sugar is a big part of your regular diet, reducing it will make a difference, just compare using your food diary you will get a better idea of the impact.

Galatea_Stone

The links above will give you a lot of good guidance. As for what to eat to get there, that is up to you. One thing I will say is that to preserve lean mass (bone density, muscle mass, etc.), eat protein-rich foods and do some form of resistance/strength training.

If you lose 1 pound the first week, 2 pounds the second, none the third, and 1/2 pound the 4th, you're still on track. Weight loss won't be linear. You could lose in fits and spurts.

Lastly, don't give up. Slow progress is progress, and slow progress leads to great progress over time.

Welcome to MFP!

sijomial

My tip would be don't attempt to kick start anything, just start in a sensible and sustainable way.
You can shift a load of water weight quickly but then you could easily get frustrated that weight loss (real fat loss) has slowed down.

Make small changes to your diet but don't exclude anything that you intend eating/drinking for the rest of your life.
Add exercise you enjoy. Resistence/strength training is really helpful to maintain your muscle mass while in a deficit.
Cardio is great for fitness and also earns you more calories to make weight loss less of a deprivation.
Add as much activity into your daily routine as you can, replace car journeys with walking or cycling, use the stairs not lifts....

Set a sensible weekly weight loss target, think long term.

Set goals that are not weight related, health, fitness, strength etc..

SunofaBeach14

The only kick start you need is to accept that the gimmicks are gimmicks. The links above are an excellent place to start.

cardbucfan

I use Splenda in my coffee every single day and have the rare diet soda (I've never been a big soda drinker) and neither of those has hurt me.

You've received some great advice already but I will add that I get where you're coming from about having a kick start. I personally don't do well on low carb (ie cutting out breads) diets-I'm ravenous, *****y and want to eat everything in sight because I'm so unsatisfied. However, when I have an event to get ready for, I will cut out the processed foods (pasta, chips,etc) for a week before hand because it makes me less bloated. Otherwise, no food is taboo to me.

I personally choose not to eat some things because I don't think they are worth the calorie hit but I eat chocolate, bread, pasta, ice cream and all those other "bad foods" and the only reason I'm not at my goal weight is because I'm eating too much of everything lately lol!