Newbie here! 100 to lose.., ready, set go....

lorrie0217

Hello all! My doctor put me on an 1800 calorie/day diet. I'm 41 and am about 100 lbs overweight. 5'8" and started at 309 a week ago. I am suffering with gout, painful feet, ankles. I have metabolic syndrome and if I do nothing, I will be a full blown diabetic in a year. I have low thyroid as well. I'm too young to be falling apart like this!!

I've lost weight before. On WW before I got married 20 years ago. Since then, I've had two children and two divorces. I'm in a healthy, wonderful 18 month relationship now, my kids are the bomb, a great career and I have a lot to live for. I lost 80 lbs in 2006-2008 through compulsive eater's anonymous/HOW, no sugar, no flour. That worked. Then gained it all back.

I want normal. I want to eat normal food. I want to be healthy. I want to be hot again. ;-) Sex is so much more fun when you're thin.

So, here's to a long road ahead. I love this APP. Looks like a lot of resources here and groups and friends - I'm not sure where to start, so I thought I'd start here. I need to set some small, realistic goals. Boston Trip in January - would love to be 20 lbs down by then!

If you've read this far, thank you. Peace.

lorrie0217

Ummmm.... a tool here said I should be at 164.4 to be considered "healthy".... I would give both my pinkie toes just to hit 200. WTH?

Thoughts?

cinditree

You came to the right place, lots of support here for your journey and the tools are so convinient for tracking your progress, glad you decided to join : )

Araldia

Aim at 250, see how it feels. Why set yourself a huge goal? A lot of people have mini goals, with mini rewards like new clothes, a hairdo etc.

Your goal can change, but looking at loosing all of it in one hit probably won't make you feel all that great.

4SamNDan

Consider it the first day of the rest of your life !

I wish you nothing but the best, this site is fantastic, and the people are great !

Feel free to add me as a friend... Have a pleasant day and good luck to you

cinditree

Do what's comfortable for your body : )
I'm not trying for thr number they gave me, but set my own goals

annejuju

It's really going to depend on your body if you can get down to there. Your doctor probably gave you a point at which s/he believes your weight will not longer cause the health problems you are experiencing now. I bet you could make it to 165 if you really wanted to but just see when you get there to decide how far you want to go.

I did WW too so I'm sure you know about celebrating your mini goals. I have mine set at every 5% of my original body weight lost. I just switched over from WW to MFP last month and I'm loving it. Just be sure to get your fruits and vegetables in and you'll do great!

ElPumaMex

Love your enthusiasm !

My suggestion: keep realistic goals, so don't necessarily look for 20 lbs by January.
I would suggest 1 lb per week, and if you lose more than that well that is fine !

Since your doctor already set the calorie per day goal with you of 1800, you already have an advantage here over some that are wondering what that daily target should be.

So now just log in every day your food, and keep close track of calories, sodium, cholesterol, and fat.
As long as you stick to the goal of 1800, you will steadily but surely lose weight !

lynnonamission

Wishing you all the best in your efforts. You will find support and motivation here. I want to lose about 60 pounds and I'm determined. Here's to brand new us!

jah7700

MFP's a great site! I wish you luck on your weight loss journey... I'm have a long weight loss in front of me as well.. Feel free to add me for motivation!

darsh11

Your health related issues are very similar to mine. Here are some tips that I have been using the last couple of months and have dropped 12 lbs. First make sure that you are eating a balance of protein and carb. For example if you are going to eat a piece of fruit make sure to add a protein like peanut butter to balance the sugar from the fruit. From my nutritionist, keep carb intake to 45 g on main meals and 30g for each snack. Drink lots of water, at least 10 8oz glasses a day. For exercise start very slowly. I would try something like swimming or light walking. It is hard, but you have already made the hardest decision and that is to start in the first place.

Primalgal

I think the idea of setting small goals is great! Don't look at the big picture. As someone suggested, work on getting to 250, then take it from there. You could even just set 10 lb goals......you don't want to be overwhelmed. You will love this site! It is so user friendly an lots of great, supportive people! Good luck!

Lori

cygnetpro

Lorrie, good for you for taking charge of this now. I have 50 to lose, myself.

I have to admit, I'm not looking at this as a "diet". I've tried WW, etc., and they always had the feel of "if I stop counting points, I'm going to be as big as I was before". Now I'm counting calories, but I'm not crazed about it. I am trying to eliminate fattening foods, and replace them with things that I genuinely enjoy (e.g. am eliminating the nightly brick of cheddar with air popped popcorn), and so far I don't feel deprived.

The scale isn't moving much, but my pants, which were tight a month ago when I bought them, almost fell down while I was walking yesterday.

As for what weight you should shoot for, I've seen a lot of people on here talk about how helpful it is to set small goals, rather than big ones. So why not set something like 5 lbs lost as your first goal?

Usbornegal

At some point you might want to get a metabolic fitness test that will take into account your muscle mass and body frame to give you a more realistic number. I am about your height, and my tests show I should be about 180 - the weight goals on any chart are generic.

I love MFP because nothing is forbidden as long as you balance everything out. It helps to teach portion size, reduce 'hunger' to appropriate levels, and lets you make free choice. I have lost 12 pounds in under a month and never felt deprived!

When you've lost your first 10 pounds, go to the grocery store and carry a 10 pound bag of potatoes in your arm while shopping. It will give you a real appreciation for reaching what might otherwise seem like a small goal.

Go, You!

lorrie0217

WOW!!!! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!

Please add me if I didn't add you - I think I caught everyone?!

Thank you again for the wonderful welcomes and encouragement!

sunshinethompson

If you want it bad enough, you will reach for it! You'll love MFP, I do!

ymachick

Congrats for taking the first step and welcome to the MFP community! I'm exactly halfway on my journey (45 down/45 to go) and know how it feels to lose and gain the same 30 pounds multiple times. This is agreat site to get support and ask questions as well as track your exercise and food.

I echo the group's advice to break your overall goal into smaller bits to make it more mentally manageable. If I can move the scale 10 pounds, I'd be estatic! Then, I'll think about the next 10 and so on. Also, the estimates are that 80-85% of weight loss comes from food choices and the rest from exercise. That being said, exercise will increase your resting metabolism and start to shape and tone your muscles to make you strong and firm as you start to lose weight. I like to tell people that I am an extreme hard body under this 45 pounds of fat! :laugh:
Seriously though, I try to move my body at least five days a week for 30 or more minutes and I try to make two of those days weight training to build the muscle. It really does make a difference for me.

Lastly, I LOVED the trick where the other member told you to go to the grocery store and carry around the potatoes. I actually did this each time I lost 10 pounds and couldn't believe how much weight I was carrying!!! It made me feel SO good to know I had removed it from my body and my poor bones didn't have to lug it around anymore. Great motivation to keep going!

Good luck!

jeannec3631

YEA YOU! step one: joining...complete! enjoy life, food, exercise & u will DEFINITELY enjoy MFP. great tools, people & support. Good luck on ur journey!

mayjen85

Here as well, 200 is a more realistic weight for me I personally feel. But who knows, maybe once I hit that I'll feel more comfortable being less. Good luck on your journey!

FABRICWOMAN

Hello Lorrie0217 - You made me laugh so hard. You sound like a mirror image of myself about 6 months ago. All kidding aside, don't look at that number all the way down the end of the tunnel. Live each day to the fullest. Before you know it you will be closer to your goal faster than you think. You didn't gain all of your weight over night. I too have to lose 100+ lbs., and feel that with the use of these tools I will make it. I also go to TOPS (don't know if I'm allowed to say that), but I do. These chat rooms are fantastic! You will meet others who are in the same boat as you. With all of your medical problems (I suffer from painful ankles also, I bleed for you), please start eating healthier meals not only for your own health but for the benefits of your children. Children are mirror images of their caregivers. Teach them good eating habits while they are young. What would they do without you?

OfficiallySexyVal

I am a newbie as well with a little over 100 pounds to go I would love become friends and support each other!