Question for people who have lost a lot of weight and kept i

defygravity531

A question for people who have lost a lot of weight and kept it off:

What are your top 5-10 tips for losing the weight? Everyone is TRYING to lose weight but you've really done it and stuck with it. I want to know how you did it; I want ground level, real world tips for how you made it work.

I'm (thankfully) having success (slow but sure!) but I'm always looking for new ideas.

Whatchya got?

godsgiftjcp

Bump

redefiningmyself

Bump for me too - Great question

polo571

Get a HRM and its all about calories in and calories out. If you take in what you burn you will maintain.

Amcantar

You know the answer.
Eat a healthy, balanced diet and exercise a proper mix of cardio and resistance training.
That is how I've lost weight, that's how people do lose weight.
That's really it.

Lindsay7360

Bump!

missyjane

bump

iinnocence11

Hey there!
I haven't lost A LOT of weight, but it's the most that I've ever been able to!
My top 5 tips for taking it off and keeping it off are:
1. Keep at it. The longer you do it for, the easier it will get!
2. Be kind to yourself! If you feel like having something, go for it. Everything in moderation. I find that if I start saying no to myself, then I want that sooo much more, and end up bingeing. NEVER label anything as a "bad" food.
3. Do what you can. Even once you've lost the weight, keep up what you normally do. You don't need to do it as hard or as often as you did to lose the weight, but just try to keep it up.
4. Throw away the scale. It's so much more important to go by how you feels, how your clothes fit and not what the number says. That number begins to consume you, and you're daily mood is based on that. Throw it away, even when you're maintaining.
5. Stay on this site. This is the best website i've ever found! The forums right here are the best place to be to remind you of what you've accomplished!

Don't forget to take lots of before and after pictures and keep them in a place that's easily accessible for the days you feel like you want to give up...
Hope this helps

bbygrl5

I still haven't reached goal yet, but I've lost 90 lbs and have kept it off and have gradually lost the weight over the last three years. My biggest advice is to make lifelong changes.

I want to look good, yes, and I've used that as a huge motivator, but what has really made me stick to my new life is my passion for becoming healthy. When I eat healthy foods, I focus on what the different nutrients are doing for my body and how it's helping my body run efficiently and free from ailments.

When I workout and can run harder or continually improve, I think about how strong my body is becoming. It's highly inspiring to me to know what I am capable of becoming.

I have a passion for a healthy lifestyle now and that's kept me going. I don't want to ever stop being healthy. I remember what it's like to have 90 additional pounds on me, I can't walk up stairs without feeling like I'm going to die, I can't run at all, I feel sick from nasty, greasy food that isn't doing my body good. This has been key to my success.

Remind yourself daily why you want this... you won't be perfect all the time, but you will end up always coming back to being on track.

Good luck in your new lifestyle. :flowerforyou:

Wileyjoe

Biggest thing i found was 'consistency'.

Being consistant with the exercise that you are doing,
Being consistant with eating the right nutritional foods,
Being consistant with logging your cals in mfp - all of it!
Being consistant with the amount of calories -in,out - net.

Be patient - losing weight and maintaining is hard work and takes time - not every day or week will be a success - stick with it and in the long run you will get there.

bizco

Here are mine:
1. Totally cut out all processed foods, I eat only real whole food.
2. Increased my daily water intake to 8-12 glasses.
3. Reduced my sodium to 2,000mg or less per day.
4. Drastically reduced the amount of alcohol (notice i didn't say eliminated it).:drinker:
5. Eat 3-5 servings of vegetables per day.
6. Exercise at least 3 days per week; cardio and strength-training
7. Rarely eat out in restaurants (2-3 times per month) but then make sensible choices.
8. Consume at least 25g of fiber per day.
9. Allow myself a little dark chocolate every day.
10. Track absolutely everything I eat/drink in MFP. A food scale is a MUST.

BeerKahuna

Ditto to all the above comments. I'd like to add, I lost 55 lbs, went into maintenance and stopped logging everything and back-slid a bit. you have to think of it as a life-changing endeavor and understand this is NOT a journey with a final destination. It is a never ending journey so focus on enjoying the trip!

mapnerd2005

I had to change my mindset and quit focusing on the numbers. I switched my scale and my ticker to kilograms so it would be more of a reference and less of an emotional thing. I also said that I AM NOT ON A DIET, I am on a budget. I can eat any food I want as long as I stay within my budget (and yes, I eat back exercise calories). Funny thing is, after 11 months, my cravings have changed. I now crave healthy foods. High calorie stuff just doesn't seem appealing anymore. It truly is a lifestyle change, but I didn't set out to intentionally change my lifestyle. It just happened. Oh, and another thing - get up and move your body. Walking IS exercise. When I first started, I was amazed I could walk (slowly) for a whole mile, that became two, then the next thing I knew I was walking 3-4 miles, and then I started the couch to 5K program - and now I'm training for an olympic length triathalon. My body has continued to amaze me at how quickly it went from being fat and lazy to being lean and athletic. You can do it!

FYI, 51 kg = 111 pounds.

Kaye8395BTS

My advice is as most...eat healthy, exercise and re-examine your lifestyle. You will end up right back where you were if you "diet" for a few weeks and then go back to your "life."

I started in January 2010 and have learned boatloads since. My greatest advice is to challenge yourself physically every few weeks, your body will get used to your "normal" exercises and stall out. As for eating, it is all about calories in and calories out... I invested in an HRM and from there it's all about Math!

General rules of thumb while trying to lose weight: I keep my calories btw 1200-1300 a day and if I am plateauing I do start to eat my exercise calories back. Many people will criticize me for that, but it is whatever works for YOU! EVERYONE is different...this is what works for ME. I also keep my carbs below or around 100g a day, protein at or above 100g a day, fat around 45g if possible and sodium below 2300mg.

I always knew to drink water, but in March 2010 I started keeping 24oz bottles in my car, on my desk at work and at home. They say to drink half your body weight in ounces of water, i.e. if you weigh 200 lbs, drink 100oz of water a day. I drink more than that...I started following that example at my highest weight and just kept on drinking that amount even now, 95 lbs lighter. I've consulted my nutritionalist, trainer and doctor on this, they say it is fine. I work out 4x a week and do give myself a "free day" which sometimes turns into a "free weekend" but it has not hindered me making my goals.

I have plateaued at times...but that happens, rev up your workouts and eat more, that's my solution. The above poster is correct, your cravings do change. I have never deprived myself from things I love, I just eat less of them. Also, I have moved away from all the "low fat", "fat free" items and changed to regular food, just PORTION control. MFP and a food scale have probably been my biggest success helpers, not to mention my trainer )

simplexserenity

I've lost between 65-70 pounds give or take a couple. I have about 20 pounds to go, and have joined MFP to stay focused.

I was 265 pounds about four years ago and had no clue how to eat right. When I finally got fed up with being that heavy after
not being able to fit on rides at Six Flags, I decided to do Jenny Craig. A lot of people will go on and on about how it's "processed" food and not good for you..whatever. It helped me lose the first 30 pounds and taught me portion control as well as the willpower I needed to get the weight off. Also, it gave the "I don't have time" excuse a kick in the *kitten*. I'm a college student and my Sophomore through Junior year I really felt like I had no time to cook my own meals because I was always in class or doing extra curricular activities. Jenny Craig kept me full and satisfied enough to not want to eat the junk food that was constantly being offered to me.

I was constantly active so every day stuff was more of an exercise for me than actually going to the gym, and because I was so heavy simply eating right made me shed pounds like crazy without the working out. Everyone's body is different, however..and that was only during the first part of my journey. Now, since I've lost so much weight I've hit a plateau and have to workout consistently to get the rest off.

Advice I can give is if a plan like Jenny Craig isn't for you (because I understand it isn't for everyone), I would recommend you do all the research you can on proper portion control and eating "clean", meaning healthy, natural foods. Make sure you at least have a cheat snack or meal after a good weigh in. This kept me sane throughout my journey and did not hurt my weight loss at all. (Others might argue that it slows down their loss..again, everyone is different.)

Also, having a consultant to talk to really helped me stay motivated. If it's a doctor, friend who is familiar with weight loss, professional consultant, whatever..making a commitment to someone else sometimes keeps you in the game longer because you don't want to let that person down. MFP is very helpful as well

Good luck, and feel free to add me if you have anymore questions!

healthyme2be

Bump..

atrayubrandy

I've lost 75lbs and kept it off for almost 5 years now. I lost the weight by eating 6 smaller meals a day and using the mantra "eat to live don't live to eat." I'd keep reminding myself during moments of temptation that the first few bites of anything always taste the best so only have a couple bites and stop. It worked for me. Then, when I started seeing results it motivated me to keep going.

My best advice is not to beat yourself up. I was always on that constant roller-coaster ride of eating perfectly for two days and then having a piece of cake and deciding "well, that's it! I've ruined my diet. I'll try again next Monday." And until Monday I'd eat everything in sight. Then, I'd start the process over again. I was very erratic.

Don't do that! Just take it one day at a time. Also, I would weigh myself daily and then record any weight loss on a giant calendar in my room. I'd ignore any weight gains. So, lets say on Monday I weighed 233.6, Tuesday 232.8, Wednesday 233.4, Thursday 231.9, Friday 232.4. I'd show it as Tuesday 232.8 (-.8), then I'd skip Wednesday and post Thursday 231.9 (-.9), and skip Friday. That way it always looked like a loss to me. I'd no longer beat myself up or cry over gain days. I'd just ignore them and get super excited when I'd lose more than my personal best. That was a big turning point for me. That's when I really started to lose the weight.

Also, I didn't exercise that much. I know it sounds counter-intuitive. But I stopped thinking "I need to exercise today" constantly and just relaxed. Someone once told me that unless you are training like an Olympic athlete, you aren't going to burn enough calories to make a big difference in your weight. I fully believe that now. Exercise is great for helping you tone up and it certainly has it's health benefits but for weight loss I see it as being somewhat irrelevant (making a very slight difference at best...and certainly not worth beating yourself up over if you miss a workout). I'm sure it's very controversial to say that on here but I'm just trying to let you know what helped me lose 70lbs...it wasn't exercise. Instead, I focused more of my efforts on trying to change my diet. Once I got down to a healthy weight I started adding exercise back in to my routine but still only 20 minutes a day.

I still have a little ways to go. I want to get down to 135lbs and I'm trying to tone up hard core for a trip to Vegas in June. But I've been holding steady at between 150-165 since 2006. It's great knowing you can go in to any clothing store and they'll have your size. It's great knowing that you can go to amusement parks or airplanes and not have to worry about the seat belt not fitting. It's great knowing you can stand on a chair to change a light bulb without the fear that you're going to break through the chair. It's great eating in public without feeling like someone is judging you. But I think my favorite thing of all is going to sleep at night without fear that I'm going to stop breathing because my body is so heavy. I had horrible sleep apnea before.

T0M0

Bump

IMDABOMBthe0wife0DABEAST

My husband and I started this life change together over a year ago and we still have some more weight to lose. We never treated this as a diet. It is the way of life for us. I still have 1 diet soda a day and that curbs my craving for regular soda( I use to drink at least 64oz of regular soda a day)
Here are my top 5 things to consider.

1. Don't treat it like a diet. Most Diets fail as soon as you go back to your old habits.
2. Don't eliminate the things you love. (Pizza, Soda, etc) Portion control is a Key.
3. Treat yourself to something you enjoy but in moderation.
4. Listen to your body.
5. Make the new lifestyle fun and enjoyable.

Twinsytoo

Bump I love reading these....

Marll

Good advice I would give (after not following it myself after loosing a ton of weight previously) is to catch any slipping early.

I question why I didn't get on track when I saw my weight go up by 5-10lbs instead of 80+. Catch it early if there is a slip, do what you know is right to get it off again and maintain best as possible.

TheNewMrsDemo

bump

BuckeyeLuvvvva

All of these are great! When I hit my initial goal weight of 120, I had a great deal of anxiety about gaining it all back overnight. But here I am, one year later, and about 8 pounds lighter, and with a fraction of the anxiety I had before. These are the best pieces of advice I can provide:

1. Drink water and lots of it
2. Listen to your body! First of all - are you hungry? If so, what do you WANT? What sounds good? How can we work that in? By knowing that nothing is off limits I don't feel like I'm one hershey kiss away from gaining back all the weight and then some on a crazy binge...
3. One crazy binge will not undo everything! Own up to it, be accountable, don't beat yourself up too much, learn from it, move on!
4. Exercise
5. This is LIFE not DIET, be realistic and enjoy the journey : )

lorriefagan

Wow such great advice...keeps me motivated and on track!
Thanks!

Alidecker

I haven't hit my goal yet...pretty much been stuck in the same 5 pound range since October, but I have lost over 130 pounds in the last year and a half.

Don't beat yourself up over a bad meal or a bad day, just get back on track as quickly as you can.
If you are really craving something, have it...just don't eat as much of it as you used to
Find support. If your family and friends aren't good at supporting you in this journey, use forums like this. Luckily I have had both.
Find exercise you enjoy since you will be more likely to do it.
Eat often, don't let yourself get to hungry. I eat 6 times a day usually. If I don't and let myself get to hungry I end up eating more
If you can afford a personal trainer, get one. Love mine, he keeps me motivated and he is someone to truly be accountable to.
You aren't on a diet...you need to plan to eat this way forever.

DowntimeDesigns

Before MFP I started at 245... and the ONLY thing thats been able to help me lose weight/keep weight off is JOGGING/RUNNING.

My diet hasn't changed TOO drastically (chicken over red meat, minimal Soda, etc.), but running has been the key for me!

jer2kat

Bump, I've been struggling lately and everyone has offered some great advice!

jnam7619

Wow, I really like how you have used pictures of yourself slimming down on your ticker. What a good idea!! Congratulations on your weight loss. I just started last Saturday and want to lose 68 pounds. It really does help to get on here and read the stories of people who have lost weight and see their pictures. I am so glad I was introduced to this site, I don't think I could have done this without it. It is so easy now to track what I am eating.

cccathyyy

bump

nickiben

Whats does BUMP mean??????

atrayubrandy

BUMP means that people are trying to "bump" this topic up to the top of the forum topics. If a person comments on a topic, the thread will go back to the top in the forum so more people see it.