What do you do to lose weight?

mkwow

I am just curious as to what programs people do/have done and what they find works best for them. I am a person that like the structure that a program provides, but I want something that is not crazy restrictive. I did one that was great called slimgenics, but I just found that it really was not realistic for long term. I need a happy medium. I normally focus on making healthy choices and exercising, but am looking for a boost. What works for you?

psuLemon

I follow iifym or if it fits your macros.

Btw it's not so much a structured plan but a methodology. I eat the same amount of calories daily with a specific macronutrient breakout. I eat whatever I want as long as I hit that profile most of the time.

Restricting foods make me fail.

SezxyStef

I follow iifym or if it fits your macros.

Btw it's not so much a structured plan but a methodology. I eat the same amount of calories daily with a specific macronutrient breakout. I eat whatever I want as long as I hit that profile most of the time.

Restricting foods make me fail.

This...

and as you can tell by my ticker it worked for me quite well.

for exercise I lift heavy weights and do walks/biking and some HIIT (in the winter and on my bike)

FoxyLifter

I follow iifym or if it fits your macros.

Btw it's not so much a structured plan but a methodology. I eat the same amount of calories daily with a specific macronutrient breakout. I eat whatever I want as long as I hit that profile most of the time.

Restricting foods make me fail.

Another vote for IIFYM! :drinker:

Branstin

Another one here for IIFYM!

cwolfman13

I eat food...all kinds of food...for which I just hit my calorie goals and try to hit my macro goals within reason. It worked pretty ****in' good to lose 40 Lbs or so...this **** really isn't complicated.

RaspberryKeytoneBoondoggle

I track what I eat and eat iifmm.
I do have diet books, however, that have meal plans and recipes. Sometimes I browse through and plan a few meals in the day according to a diet. My favourites are the carb lovers diet for simplicity and well, loving carbs (think potato chips!!!!!), vegan and vegetarian cook books for filling, spicey recipes, and I like making soups from the digest diet book with coconut milk, lentils, peanut butter and greens.

WBB55

To lose weight, I've gone on a number of diets, including only having one meal a day, and to only eating every other day.
The one I'm currently on (and that has worked the best) is to count the calories in the food I'm eating (mostly fruit and fish) then burn them off before I eat again, doing so every time I eat until dinner. This usually leaves me at under 500 calories a day.
This may sound crazy but the calories that would've added up to more than that have been burned off already. Drinking ten cups of water a day is also part of my "diet", I suppose. Hopefully this helped!

You're netting under 500 per day? I don't mean to go off topic here, but if you were my sister or someone I loved, I'd urge you to net a bit more than that each day on average.

megsmom2

No program, no diet, no restrictions I refuse to live with, no weigh-ins unless I want to, none of that stuff. What works is logging what I'm eating, eating reasonable, mostly planned amounts of whatever I want...including "fattening" things. Life's too short not to enjoy my food, So, basically..it's eat less, move more, and keep a grip on what I'm doing. I never say I can't have something, but I frequently say I am deciding not to have it NOW.

melsinct

No program, no diet, no restrictions I refuse to live with, no weigh-ins unless I want to, none of that stuff. What works is logging what I'm eating, eating reasonable, mostly planned amounts of whatever I want...including "fattening" things. Life's too short not to enjoy my food, So, basically..it's eat less, move more, and keep a grip on what I'm doing. I never say I can't have something, but I frequently say I am deciding not to have it NOW.

This. I eat healthy most of the time (meaning plenty of veg, balanced protein and carbs, healthy fats) which means I am free to work in demonized foods (like pizza, cake, etc.) in moderate portions. Portion control is everything.

shabaity

I'm eating smaller portions of the things I like cept my veggie portions those haven't changed.

StaciMarie1974

I don't do any 'programs'. Personally I can't really afford to buy into them, especially not long term.

So what I do is based on logic. I am aware of what I eat (weigh everything, log everything, be 100% honest) and make a concentrated effort to move more.

I do use gadgets. Got a Fitbit for Christmas (at my request) and use that to measure my daily activity. I eat in a reduced calorie range. Nothing extreme. For most of this year I aimed for ~500/day deficit and now ~250. I eat what I want, but I think about it. Plan it out. No more random, mindless eating. And of course MFP is a useful (free) tool - have the app on my phone and it goes everywhere with me.

I do have my struggles. Strength training is my weakest area. (Ironic, don't you think?)

seltzermint555

I follow iifym or if it fits your macros.

Btw it's not so much a structured plan but a methodology. I eat the same amount of calories daily with a specific macronutrient breakout. I eat whatever I want as long as I hit that profile most of the time.

Restricting foods make me fail.

Another vote for IIFYM! :drinker:

Yep..another one here too. I've lost 131 lb total, the 86 in my ticker is since joining MFP.

cottonta1l

I've never followed any kind of program. I know what works for me personally, so I'd rather stick with it. It's pretty simple in my case - I eat lots of whole foods, mostly plants plus eggs/greek yogurt/cheese/fish and I treat myself to something less healthy once a week usually. I eat however much I feel like I need to. Some days I'm hungrier so I'll eat more, some days I need less, but overall I stay in a deficit. I try not to stress about anything food or exercise related because I find that most often leads to failure.

RHachicho

Personally I found what worked for me was not being very restrictive on the calories. I ate 2k and now eat 2.5k And really burn rubber in the gym. I Anecdotally believe that a deficit created through activity is less harmful to your body than a deficit created through excessive calorie restriction.

JaimieAG

myfitnesspal + fitbit is a useful combination.

IMO genetics plays a huge role in how your body processes food & what it craves. I grew up in the tropics and my family comes from that climate. A diet like 80/10/10 (only much less strict... with avacados, nuts, etc.) seems to work best for me when I'm not calorie counting. Even when I am calorie counting they're my go-to foods. But I genuinely love fruit & veggies of all kinds.

AmyRhubarb

I eat a bit less than what my body burns all day long. Calorie deficit for weight loss, exercise for fitness. Similar to what others have said about IIFIYM, my plan is similar. I eat foods that I love and fit them into my daily goal.

No programs, no diets, no restrictions - just logging cals and staying within my reasonable goals. Been working great for me for over two years. :drinker:

yopeeps025

Another one here for IIFYM!

I use if it fits your calorie more than macros.
All to try to get a balance of micro nutrients.

icrushit

No program the main two times I lost weight in my life, just persistence and an accumulation of good habits. In fact even though I'm eating lower carb now, I am losing weight via the same habits that I used before. I definitely find this works for me, as I find the power of habit incredibly effective, and when you get into the right ones, its easy to be dragged along by it, even on the days its hard going.

I am definitely in the good habits for life category, and think making such habits part of your lifestyle even after you lose the weight, is the only way I can see myself maintaining the weight loss.