Things you wish someone had told you at the start

rlysrh

So I'm sure we all have little gems of wisdom we've learnt from our time on here so far, but what's one thing you wish someone had told you when you had first started?

For me it'd be not to log on MFP and literally just wait to lose the weight so I could go back to not logging what I ate and eating what I want. Its caused me to try and fail on here 3 times and gaining back what I lost each time. But now I've realized that its going to take time and I can never go back to just eating all the junk whenever I want I feel like I'm in it for the long haul.

Share yours! (:

cekeys

I wish I could tell myself years ago dieting alone will not work for me. I HAVE to exercise.

jaceface87

I wish I would have known a long time ago that I take in too much sodium as well as have a pretty awful time with water retention. Should have started watching the sodium years ago even when I wasn't counting calories.

I also wish I would have known that it's normal to gain weight in the first 2 weeks of dieting instead of losing because your body has to adjust. Maybe I wouldn't have gotten as discouraged and quit so many times before.

abradley114

It takes time a lot of time and when and if you are really really ready you will do it ,being on MFP def helps. All i have to say is you can NEVER go back to eating all that junk food it would be great to lose weight and then be able to just eat whatever you want but it does not work like that from my experience. Every time i have done that i gained all my weight back if not more. We are all here to help and support you on MFP and if you really are ready take that challenge and know you will be eating healthy for the rest of your life except for cheat meals, special occasions or if you know PORTION control (which i still have trouble with) If you see food that you know u cannot just have one bite of and stay satisfied just do not even take the bite. And allow yourself to have one cheat meal a week this way you are not depriving yourself and you have something to look forward to ( try and make the cheat meal within your calorie goal for the day) do not go over calories because if you do chances are you are eating too much of that junk food. Enjoy the healthy foods you eat... if you do not enjoy the foods you will never stick to it. so learn to love what you make I have gone through this so many times so I know how you feel if you have any questions i will be more than happy to answer them. Losing weight is very hard but once its off you will never feel better keep your head up I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT

Remember *** YESTERDAY YOU SAID TOMORROW

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So start today and change your life because this time last year you wish you had stayed with it

Best of luck

rlysrh

I wish I could tell myself years ago dieting alone will not work for me. I HAVE to exercise.

Ooh thats a good one. I wish I had known that too. Its so much easier to stick to your calories when you've exercised and can eat more. Also paying for a gym membership kinda ties you down and gives you more incentive not to give up. (:

ki4yxo

I wish I would have known a long time ago that I take in too much sodium as well as have a pretty awful time with water retention. Should have started watching the sodium years ago even when I wasn't counting calories.

This!

I had no idea how much I sodium I was taking in.
I really hope this helps lower my blood pressure.

cekeys

Ooh thats a good one. I wish I had known that too. Its so much easier to stick to your calories when you've exercised and can eat more. Also paying for a gym membership kinda ties you down and gives you more incentive not to give up. (:

Yeah, I've been a member at the gym for 11 months now and I've lost 30 lbs since last February. If you do the math--which I do-- it works out to about $22 per pound.

LauraSmyth28

I wish I'd known that the first couple of weeks are EASY. Then the novelty starts to wear off, and you really need to push yourself.

I also wish I'd known that your stomach actually shrinks and you wonder how you ever ate all the food you used to eat (or is that just me?).

Blueberry09

Only wanting to lose 25lbs, I wish someone had advised me from the start to set my goals at 1/2 lb/week instead of 2 lbs/week.

rlysrh

Only wanting to lose 25lbs, I wish someone had advised me from the start to set my goals at 1/2 lb/week instead of 2 lbs/week.

Haha yeah I can definitely relate to this one too. (:

Kirkajuice

I wish someone had told me not to give up when I got to a plateau, because it's no fun to have to start again after putting 9lbs back on. You're just 9lbs further than if you'd kept it up.

prism6

yes.22$ a pound but on the other hand how much per pound to gain? I am new and have lost 10lbs out of 60 so far. For some reason my mind is in the mode... I want to stay with this for the long haul, and wear my shirts tucked in again

marhattap

"It takes 4 weeks before you start noticing changes, 8 weeks before your freinds begin to notice, and 12 weeks for the world to notice."

Savagegirlt

I have only been on here about 1 week, but have been on the diet, calorie counting, exercising, logging it all for months (almost 1 year). I wish I knew back then:

It ALL adds up... (the good and the bad)
Surround yourself with ppl with common goals. (Peer pressure works for good too)
Don't JUMP off the wagon when you 'fall' off. (we all have bad days, but each day is new and a clean slate)
That what's on the scale does not (always) reflect the whole truth. (muscle gain, fat loss, inches shrunk)
This is a LIFE change not a short term quick fix to get in shape (healthy choices will last a lifetime)

eacatterton

I wish I would have known a long time ago that I take in too much sodium as well as have a pretty awful time with water retention. Should have started watching the sodium years ago even when I wasn't counting calories.

This!

I had no idea how much I sodium I was taking in.
I really hope this helps lower my blood pressure.

I also wish I had known about my sodium intake. I believe that has been the root of my problem with working out. When I exercise 5 days a week and keep my calories in check, but my sodium is 3 times as much as my calorie intake...not good. My goal now is to keep my sodium numbers the same as my calories. It is hard. Processed food is stuffed full of sodium. I am learning to make more things made from scratch.