Am I setting myself for failure with this plan?

Holla4mom

What's the use of 1 month of maintenance?

Knowing your true maintenance calories is incredibly useful information - once the weight loss phase is over that's what you will be doing for the rest of your life. Building habits that make maintenance sustainable is far more valuable than rushing your weight loss.

Yes, that's what I was thinking. I've never paid attention enough to calories to even know how to maintain my weight. I usually gain, get sick of it- than lose. Also, I'm not only changing how much I eat but trying to eat some very specific healthy things so I need time to get those habits together- measuring and logging food, shopping consistently for food and preparing meals ahead of time. With back to school and four kiddies to care for, I know it might not happen overnight. If I find I only need maintenance for 2-3 weeks, I'll move on to next step. Thanks for your feedback.

SLLRunner

Make sure you include 30 minutes of cardio movement 5 days a week.

That's what makes the pounds go away.

No, exercise is just an added bonus. Do exercise if you like to, but if you don't all that is needed is a calorie deficit. I love to exercise but I do it because of how it makes me feel, but it's not at all necessary to lose weight.

Holla4mom

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Creating a mental environment where not only binging is less likely but reasonable early success confirms intention, reduces risk of depression, etc (note OP is taking a treatment) and where new habits are being structured is excellent.

OP, my only suggestion is that you consider a larger step down after your initial equilibrium state. Seeing change will also help in confirming that things are moving forward. Don't double guess yourself once you start.

Slower programs sometimes fall into gumption traps - know them and avoid them....

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gumption_trap
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That is the term I was looking for. I know it's a balance because early successes do breed more motivation. I want to go slow, but want to make some progress while my excitement is still up. I will consider staying in maintenance as long as it takes for me to get the habit of logging/ meal planning down, which may be 2-3 weeks instead of a month. I think I'll consider going down to 1800 next instead of 1900 so I can see a little loss and keep up belief that this plan can work. If it's too much of a drop, I"ll adjust up a little. Thanks for the feedback and info.

SLLRunner

I m not sure it's gonna work as calculated. Firstly there is no room for an error , secondly, too slow might leave u unsatisfied with result.
20% deficit out of tdee is golden rule IMO. Besides last few pounds of fat will take a lot of time to get rid of. Include weight training too

It depends on how much you have to lose. If you have only 25 pounds to lose, .5 pounds is very reasonable.

There is no reason for fast results.

Holla4mom

I m not sure it's gonna work as calculated. Firstly there is no room for an error , secondly, too slow might leave u unsatisfied with result.
20% deficit out of tdee is golden rule IMO. Besides last few pounds of fat will take a lot of time to get rid of. Include weight training too

Thanks for feedback!

Holla4mom

I want you to know I'm fully in support of your plan. I love it that you're putting your mental health first. Eating the fish and whole grains will support your mood while you start decreasing calories. I LOVE this plan.

Thanks for the support!

Holla4mom

Make sure you include 30 minutes of cardio movement 5 days a week.

That's what makes the pounds go away.

It definitely helps me to feel better. I do exercise but haven't been able to exercise my way out of the extra calories so looking forward to tracking them and lowering them.

WBB55

If the OP is taking SSRIs, then this means she is being treated for some emotional/brain chemistry issues.

I don't know the whole story, obviously. However, sometimes, for someone like this, just shopping every week for healthy foods, preparing and eating normal, healthy foods every day, and just getting out of bed can be a struggle. Creating a stable, reliable habit of eating, exercise and sleeping IS A GREAT GOAL for someone. Just achieving that _IS_ an accomplishment. Making sure you have the support structure in place before you put your brain thru the stress of cutting calories _IS_ a good plan.

ckholland3: if you can afford it, get a FitBit. I've found it helps me a lot with the day-to-day need for stability and accountability, even in maintenance.

doctorregenerated

Sounds like a great plan. Slow weight loss for sustainable results.
But just want to add that you may want to try for weight loss but be satisfied with maintenance for the holidays. That's a rough time to lose weight. Shoot for the lower calorie range and if you don't hit it on celebration days, be kind to yourself and understand. Then get back to it for the rest of the week.

Holla4mom

Thanks for the heads up. I'll try to up the workouts around the holidays, but I do know that not gaining is typically a good goal during that time for some weeks.

What's a Fitbit? I'll look into it.

itsbasschick

as long as you're not currently eating less than 2000 calories per day, your plan is healthy, won't put a strain on you and will work if you stick with it. it's very refreshing, actually, as most people i know want to lose weight fast and either give up or lose the weight and gain it right back. good for you for coming up with such a sustainable plan.

i didn't get as much out of my fitbit as i had hoped, but it can be fun and somewhat motivating. that being said, if you don't remember to turn it off while driving, it will count hundreds or thousands of steps as you drive your car, and the fitbit flex counts arm gestures as steps. still, it may help you notice how much you walk in a day, and might motivate you to walk more. and the dashboard is always fun, plus it will give you calories burned when you do things like go to the store.