Weight Loss By Diet Alone Success Stories?

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Hello, all! I am aware that weight loss is almost entirely diet, and so I am trying to start small (as I have a LOT to lose!) by just adjusting my meals before I move on to exercise beyond going for walks.

I feel slightly discouraged though because I'm not moving as much as so many of you are - does someone out there have some success they can share with me about how they lost weight by diet alone before adding in fitness? I know slow & steady wins the race, but sometimes slow & steady wants to be fast & furious and that'll lead to burnout! :(

Thanks!
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Replies

  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
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    I went from 187 to 137 once with no exercise, outside of normal daily activity. Then from 170 to 135 with just a lot of intentional walking (and calorie counting). You can do it!
  • pixelatedsun
    pixelatedsun Posts: 165 Member
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    I went from 187 to 137 once with no exercise, outside of normal daily activity. Then from 170 to 135 with just a lot of intentional walking (and calorie counting). You can do it!

    Thank you!!!
  • LaReinaDeCorazones
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    I've lost 64 lbs by cico (calories in, calories out) and walking....I do get in about 2~3 hours in daily, but still...
  • pixelatedsun
    pixelatedsun Posts: 165 Member
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    I've lost 64 lbs by cico (calories in, calories out) and walking....I do get in about 2~3 hours in daily, but still...

    Way to go!!! Thank you. :)
  • soozy_q
    soozy_q Posts: 56 Member
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    I lost most of my 57lbs with very little exercise. Did some weights but not very consistant with exercise...I'm a lazy girl.
  • VeryKatie
    VeryKatie Posts: 5,952 Member
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    I lost about 20 of the 30 lbs I wanted to lose though only diet. You can do it if you want. Exercise became easier after that... my body just felt more ready to move once I'd dropped weight.
  • Kari121869
    Kari121869 Posts: 180 Member
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    I'm having the same issue - I 'have intention' of working out - then get lazy..lol... although I take the stairs at work and walk when I can.
    I originally lost 25lbs since I started 'regularly' here in April 2013 (slow I know.. almost depressing sometimes lol)... I reset my 'ticker' after coming back from my July wedding...

    Feel free to add me.. check my diary and give me observations... I'm willing to 'give and take'.. that's what MFP is for right?? A support group and guidance.
  • LaReinaDeCorazones
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    I've lost 64 lbs by cico (calories in, calories out) and walking....I do get in about 2~3 hours in daily, but still...

    Way to go!!! Thank you. :)
    Thank you :) if you want you can send a friend request
  • HeyMae75
    HeyMae75 Posts: 18 Member
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    I lost 62 pounds over 9 months without changing my activity level only changing my diet. I added regular excercise in March after I began to plateau & added MFP in June to try to stay morivated. Good luck :)
  • ThatMouse
    ThatMouse Posts: 229 Member
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    I went from 155lbs (probably more - didn't step on a scale for quite some time) to 145lbs without calorie counting or exercise (outside of my 2x a week karate, which was usually pretty easy and not a hard push at all - also offset by how many potlucks we had a year). That was in the span of maybe two or three months. It was just the result of reading more about nutrition and slowly, slowly identifying what I could and couldn't eat to lose weight.

    With exercise added in, I lost 10lbs in the first 6 weeks just doing 3x a week work outs and my diet (which I was still playing around with).

    You can definitely make significant progress without exercise, but I'd encourage you to consider starting out with some soon. It doesn't have to be at the gym - if you have something you want to try like rock climbing, or dance, or, heck, aerial acrobatics classes, give it a shot! I'm partial to martial arts, so I'd recommend kick boxing or any other martial art - it's a fun way to stay fit, make sure you retain muscle while losing weight, make friends (avoid "McDojos" and go for real clubs), and you learn some amazing skills. But do whatever you think is fun! There's so much that can happen just by trying new things out. :3
  • kbkeats
    kbkeats Posts: 103 Member
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    I've gone from 174 to 153 since March on mostly diet alone (added more walking and small at-home workouts in once I got my fitbit).
    For me the key is really watching the calories as well as the ingredients in food I'm eating.
    Best of luck! :drinker:
  • Great_Mazinga
    Great_Mazinga Posts: 214 Member
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    Don't discount walking too soon! It's a great place to start, and when we're bigger we're burning more calories than someone smaller. Instead of thinking of official exercise activities, are there more active things you can do with free time? Cleaning, gardening, walking a dog, taking kids to a park, dance lessons, etc. etc. All will give you activity, but also be fun!

    Get plenty of veggies, greens, fruit, protein. You won't have room or appetite for junk, and your blood sugars won't spike nearly so much. Want to see you do this!

    That said, I've had past weight loss bouts, but none of this magnitude or on going. I was trying to simply "eat less" of the things that were making me fat. Like in your blog, I was programmed on ding dongs and cola as a kid. I didn't know what a vegetable was until well into adult hood or that they could taste good.
  • tracie_minus100
    tracie_minus100 Posts: 465 Member
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    I lost 63lbs in 7 months through Weight Watchers and the only exercise I did was 10-15 minutes on the elliptical 2-3 days a week which is not much at all. (Disclaimer: I gained it all back, but it was because I "fell off the wagon" and fell back into my old eating habits).
  • pixelatedsun
    pixelatedsun Posts: 165 Member
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    Thank you so much everyone!!!
  • leahraskie
    leahraskie Posts: 260 Member
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    I started out by working out 5 days a week for like an hour, it was probably less but sometimes I'd go slow watching the tvs. I didn't lose hardly anything so I stopped, but now the weight is falling off. 4lbs in like 2 weeks basically ._.
  • newdaydawning79
    newdaydawning79 Posts: 1,503 Member
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    Walking is my exercise of choice. It's easy on your joints and can be done anywhere and with anyone. Previously, I had lost like 40 pounds with still being a couch potato...I decided I didn't want to do that this time around. :D
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
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    Walking counts as exercise by the way, especially if you are going for a walk with the intent of doing so for your health and you would not have otherwise walked.
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
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    Walking counts as exercise by the way, especially if you are going for a walk with the intent of doing so for your health and you would not have otherwise walked.

    This ^^^
  • graysmom2005
    graysmom2005 Posts: 1,882 Member
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    You can...and you don't have to do cross fit for it to count as exercise...THAT BEING SAID....there are many more benefits to exercise than just losing weight. It's healthy to move your body and lift weights for strong muscle, bone density, cardiovascular health..just to name a few. The key is finding something you find FUN....aka not the dreadmill. LOL.

    Plus you can afford to eat more food. And food is yummy. :happy:
  • nancy10272004
    nancy10272004 Posts: 277 Member
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    The only exercise I'm allowed to do because of some medical issues is walk 5,000 steps/day according to my FitBit. I've lost 30 lbs (well, 34 before that binge but that's another story for another day).