A whole lot to lose and feeling somewhat overwhelmed!

earlnabby

I am overwhelmed too! I need to lose 40lbs and have been trying for the last 4 months but have lost nothing. I have just started logging in my food, I joined months ago for the weightloss graph which is pretty much a straight line. The amount of calories in "healthy" foods is shocking. Losing weight is overwhelming because there are so much contradictory information, what is a healthy food nowadays seems kind of mixed up too. Gluten, sugar, GMOs! What are you supposed to eat? I've heard it's normal to be a little hungry that's how you know it's working, but also have heard you should not be hungry or you will binge eat. My husband overheard a trainer say losing weight is 85%what you eat and the rest exercise! but I've heard lots of people say they work out a lot so they can eat whatever they want and not gain weight. Trying to figure out how many calories are in meals you cook is very crazy. Do you weigh raw meat or cooked? How are you supposed to know the serving sizes of the meal? I have been measuring it in measuring cups before anyone eats it, but if my husband gets a plate before I measure it....well I get overwhelmed!

To break down your questions/concerns:

1) "Healthy foods" are nutrient dense. The majority of what you eat should be lean meats, whole grains, fruits, veggies, and fats that are not trans fats. Gluten and sugar are only a problem for a few people who either have celiac disease or diabetes. Exactly how harmful GMO's are depends on who you talk to but you probably can't avoid them.

2) You can lose weight without exercise. You fit the calories in based on your energy expenditure. Sometimes exercising in order to eat more can develop an unhealthy attitude where food is used as a reward rather than fuel. Exercise DOES help retain muscle mass and releases endorphins that can make you feel better. It really helps to figure out a way to move more but is not critical to losing.

3) Figuring out meals can be easier if you weigh everything raw before putting it together. If you cook up a large piece of meat and everyone takes a piece of it, then weigh what you took cooked. Just be sure you use the proper database entry (rew or cooked). Use the recipe builder to figure out how many calories are in the entire recipe before making it, then decide how many servings you will divide it into and enter that into the recipe. You now know how many servings it has and you can then take 1/4 (or whatever serving size) for yourself. This is much easier than trying to weigh or measure after preparation.

I hope this helps. Like I said to the OP, baby steps. Get into the habit of weighing, measuring, and logging what you eat, then tweak it to fit your calorie and macro goals. Try to switch home cooked nutrient dense foods for fast food or over-processed less nutritious foods. Find ways to move more. Assuming that is your child in your avatar, take him/her to the park more and play, walk the long way to the mailbox (like leave the back door and walk around to the front). Someone else said that this is not a big lifestyle change, it is a series of little changes so start by making one little change, then adding in more.

SeptemberLondon

It's important to narrow your focus. Just do the NEXT, RIGHT THING. Don't think any further ahead than a day or two, max. When there are a lot of steps to accomplishing something, an any area of life, it's easy to get overwhelmed.

Narrow your focus. Knock out that workout today. Plan your next meal. Log today's calories. Eventually, these things will become routine and you'll do them automatically, then you won't be so overwhelmed.

There's tons of support here - utilize it! I've only been here a few weeks - but always love having new friends for motivation & support. Anyone is free to add me & Good Luck!

Elizabethgulick93

Thanks everyone! I've tried to friend some of you but it's being weird. I've lost 21 pounds now, and it's great! If you want to friend me, please do so!!

jgnatca

It's so cool that you've checked in now, several months later. Your post sounds more...confident! Twenty pounds down is huge!

Do you ever pick up a twenty pound bag of potatoes, just to remind yourself of what you used to carry around?

Veg_Runner94

Add me if and I can motivate. I had to recreate my account and lost all my friends.