Ladies that are losing 2lbs/week, what is your secret?

bsingleton

I recently had a baby and I am working towards getting back down to my pre pregnancy weight and then an additional 20 pounds.
So far i have lost 4.5 pounds after I started counting my calories again 22 days ago.
What has helped my continuously loose a pound or so a week is what I have been eating. I have almost completely cut out ground beef. I eat mainly chicken now. A normal dinner consists of chicken(grilled or baked) veggies, salad and some sort of carb (potatoes, mac n cheese, low fat peroggies etc). It fill me and my husband up and we dont go back later in the night and binge.
Make sure you are't skipping meals and eat snack in between meals to boost your metabolism. But make sure your snacks are nutritious, something like rice cakes or fruit. I enjoy eating fiber bars they give me that sugar I crave without all the fat and junk. Peanut butter is my addiction, the honey roast kind by peter pan. It has just enough of a sweetness to it to help those bad cravings, but it has to be eaten in moderation because it does have a load of fat but the good fats so it is ok if it is not overendulged in.

Also, Taebo is one of the BEST exercise programs anyone can get into. A 50 minute workout and you can burn 600 calories or more.

Most importantly, don't just look at the weight portion of "weight loss". I strongly encourage everyone who is looking to get in shape and make a healthy lifestyle change to take body measurements. You'll feel a lot more accomplished when you see inches melting off than when you only see a half pound change on a scale.

I weigh myself and measure once a week. And i see a bigger change in my measurements than i ever do in weight.

So keep a written log and track your progress that way.

Measure your neck, chest (under your armpits), waist (at the smallest part), hips (at the largest part), butt, and thighs.

See if that will help to keep your motivation up and help your progress to continue.

therapistbyday

LOTS AND LOTS OF H2O....I work out at least 6 days a week, keep healthy snacks with me at all times and have tricked my metabolism. I don't eat the same amount of calories or do the same workouts day after day. I only have 15 lbs. to lose but I swear they are sometimes the hardest to get off. Good luck to each and every one of you! I love reading your stories.....

Cupcake596

Awesome post

purpleipod

I forgot to add when I exercise I do eat the calories back to net at least my 1300. Also, I have well over 100 pounds to lose, it is somewhat easy to lose 2 pounds a week consistently when you are that heavy. If I had less than 50 pounds to lose I wouldn't expect to be able to lose 2 a week, personally.

oliviab301996

I've lost 2.5lbs this week, due to NOT eating any chocolate, sweets, cakes, biscuits, crisps and fizzy drinks. Its hard but very rewarding

amruden

No pop or beer,
Extra water.

fruit and veggies.

working out, lifting weights.

Not sitting on the computer.

making sure I eat all my Calories back!
even it i have to make myself eat bowl of cheerios or drink a slim fast when I'm short (not as a meal replacement)

ekone

I'm losing between 1 and 2 lbs, so this might not be directly responsive to your question. But it has been consistent for the last 2 weeks. I've been sticking to 1200 calories a day pretty religiously. I run 3 times a week, for 30 minutes each time. I walk about 1.5 miles per day (my commute). But, I was doing the exercise before I started MFP and I was not losing weight, so its really the diet. I've just eat what I want, but no more than 1200 calories. I find that I have modified my diet to eat less of the high-calorie carbs. For example, I love rice, but it's 205 calories per cup, so I am careful to measure out one cup. I also do a lot of roasted vegetables in my toaster oven (with a little oilve oil and balsamic vinegar) because you can eat a lot for just a few calories. Finally, I usually make a big pot of soup and ladle it into Ball jars which I then take to work, along with 1 slice of bread and 1 apple, for my daily lunch. I find soup is a pretty satisfying but low calorie meal for me. Or I saute a few chicken breasts and add a cup to pre-washed lettuce which I then add homemade salad dressing to at work. I almost never eat out because everything is very caloric- so much worse than you think, until you look it up! It hasn't been easy. I am usually hungry and there are many things I would rather be doing than preparing my lunch soup for the week, believe me! But, I am seeing results that I am proud of.

ekone

I'm eating my exercise calories back! For me, the 1200 calories I'm allowed to eat is sooo little. So, if I burn 200 calories exercising, I really need to eat that 200 calories.

vguynes

Thanks for posting and replying to this question. I've gained some valuable information that I will try starting tomorrow!

SteveTries

I'd be very surprised if that rate of loss is sustainable for anyone.

The maths tells us you'd need to be 1000Cals below maintenance every day, seven days a week. My personal experience is that I need one day of re-feed (sometimes called a cheat day) to prevent metabolic slowdown - so if we are to make the 2lb weekly drop sustainable we need to incorporate that, so now we are at 6 days of dieting. Each of those six days now needs to be 1166Cals below maintenance. Taking the commonly quoted average for a woman of 2000Cals maintenance a day, you'd need 834Cals Net six days a week to sustain a 2lb loss.

How many weeks before your immune system is compromised following that regime and you are forced to stop?

1lb loss a week is sustainable, comfortable and realisitic - in my opinion.

CookieCrumble

Really great tips, thank you.

albafitz12

I am not losing 2lbs/week because I only want to lose 8 lbs. But I can tell you how I keep it off.

First, you should know I have a desk job, I am in my early 40's, in my second year of menopause, I have slow motility, and I have bad knees. And with all those issues I still manage the following:

Mondays - in the pool for an hour doing a mix of slow laps and water aerobics
Tuesdays - 4 mile walk/slow jog or 1 hour yoga class
Wednesdays - 15 min light cardio with total body resistance training with weights
Thursdays - 15 min light cardio, upper body workout with weights followed by 1/2 hour core fusion class
Fridays - 1/2 hour light cardio followed by 1 hour yoga class
Saturdays - off or one hour of light cardio (walk, yoga, eliptical)
Sundays - off or one hour water aerobics class

Don't let my exercise schedule intimidate you; the key is to amp up your activity level. I f you walk once a week, then start doing it twice a week. Mix it up! don't get in a rut! Changing only your diet is good, but in order to lose weight you have to increase your activity level. Period. End of story! You have to want it, stop making excuses (lord knows I could come up with a ton), and just do it! If you have kids, they should be your motivation. You want to be around for them. You want to be healthy for them. If you have a great marriage, keep it that way; get healthy for your partner. They love you and want you to be around and looking great.

As for the food, this is what I have learned over the past two years while doing all sorts of research to make sure I didn't end up frumpy in menopause.

Stop eating a ton of processed foods. My rule is if you can't pronounce what is on the label, then put it back on the shelf.

Limit your bread intake. I used to have toast in the morning, a sandwich for lunch and bread with dinner. Now the only time I eat 'bread' is when I treat myself to pizza or pita with hummus. I don't follow a gluten-free diet, but I pay attention to gluten added to things. Gluten is a major culprit of the mid-life buldge. I have tried all of my favorite cookies and breads with rice flour and it's really not that bad at all! I will still eat things with flour in them, but if I can avoid processed, bleached white flour, I DO.

Make sure you eat a good mix of carbs, protein, and fat. One without the other is bad; no matter what diet gurus tell you. My main rule is to avoid carbs about three hours before bed because they store as fat. I try to do mainly protein for dinner and get my carbs during the day.

Watch your intake of sauces, dressing, and additives; limit or eliminate.

If you are going to eat sweets, do it at breakfast or lunch so you have the rest of the day to burn off the calories.

Watch your portions. Smaller portions for two weeks and your stomach will decrease in size making it easier to feel full with less food; you just have to get past that first two weeks.

Stop eating in front of the TV - studies show you eat more. Don't eat out of the chip bag; pull out a portion and put it on your plate and put the bag away.

Don't starve yourself; your body retains the bad stuff because it is in starvation mode which causes you to not lose weight. Eating less than 1200 calories a day is generally bad. I am a special case because of the slow motility. My food digests 50% slower than most people so I rarely feel hungry. I try hard to get the 1200 calories so I don't fall in the starvation mode; hence the reason I have a hard time losing the last five pounds.

I hope that helps!

Good luck everyone.

TwoSpirits

I just checked the primal diet web site out...it looks interesting. It basically sounds pretty much what I'm doing with my low-carb diet and moderate exercise. Instead of spending any time in the fasting stage, I'm allowing myself around 60-70 carbs a day. The first time I did this diet, I went craxy with it doing 20-30 carbs a day and I lost 50 pounds in 6 weeks...but eventually it all came back because I didn't stick with it and I didn't change my eating lifestyle. This time I'm allowing myself to have a little more carbs while still enjoying the pounds coming off. I think I'm gonna check more into this primal thing...it does look interesting. Thanks for sharing the info.

comet_wow

Bump

sarajo16

I think the key to the success I'm having is my workout routine. I get up in the mornings at 4:00 and start working out on the elliptical around 4:30/5:00 and I don't stop until I've reached 60 minutes.

Getting up at 4am takes a lot of dedication. If you need 8 hours sleep though how do you have a life going to bed at 8pm! I think exercise should fit into your life in a way that's easy so that it can be sustained long term. Fair play if you can do this everyday. I've a 2 year old and sleep is precious!

fashionista954

Since I've started this site I've been averaging 1.5-2lb weight loss a week. (daily weight does fluctuate, and I only have weigh in days every 2 weeks)

This is a typical day for me:
wake up
-work out 6 days a week at 5am before work (I do Insanity. on round 3, did it twice, but do whatever works for you)
-Breakfast. very important. I drink a whey protein shake from GNC mixed with a cup of milk and on the side eat a little fruit or oatmeal, pb toast, etc. DO NOT SKIP BREAKFAST. and higher protein keeps you full longer.
-10am have a snack. I often have protein bars or apples, carrots, etc. up to you.
-12 - lunch. Whatever I want.
-2-3 in the afternoon I have another snack. Almost every dya I have a 90 calorie special K bar
-4pm 5 evenings a week I go to the gym and do between 30-60 minutes of cardio. (usually opt for elliptical, but occassionally jog on treadmill or use stationary bikes) Also do between 15-35 minutes of weight training on the machines alternating days between legs/arms and throwing abs in there whenever.I use low weights at higher reps to tone.
-around 6 pm-get home and eat a supper. usually try to have fish, chicken meals, etc.
-SOME evenings if i am hungry i will have a low cal snack.
-try to sleep 7 hrs at least a night!


so as you can see it takes a lot of dedication. I'd recommend eating 5-6 times a day. Doesn't have to be small meals, stick with your 3 main meals and eat 2-3 healthy snacks. Also working out! I do A LOT of cardio so maybe that's why I lose. Insanity is about 30 minute to an hour of cardio, then the gym at night. A day of rest is crucial! don't over do it! And PROTEIN is the key! I would recommend protein shakes to anyone...whey from GNC! You can add me if you'd like! I only drink water (minus the milk in my protein shakes) and I don't even have the urge to drink soda or juices anymore. I don't deprive myself of any food either. I'm not on a diet; this is a lifestyle.

^ This!! Your routine is very similiar to mine. I do a workout DVD in the morning before work and extra cardio in the evening after work, I've lost an average of 1.5 or so lbs a week since starting in late Jan., but to top it off, I feel GREAT since i've been more active and making healthier food choices. I also NEVER SKIP breakfast..most important meal of the day.

skinnyro32

bump, good info!

SuzanneKrause

The first thing I did was give up dairy and increase my water intake to at least 96oz a day. My asthma symptoms cleared up significantly and I lost weight. So I went a step further and gave up meat for beans, legumes, nuts and seeds. I lost more weight. Then I gave up eggs and I continue to lose weight. I am down 15lbs since January 1. I am not a militant vegan (though don't fault those who are) but I know this eating lifestyle has been VERY beneficial for me. I don't see myself turning back and am loving exploring new recipes. This is the only method of losing weight that has worked for me including low carb, weight watchers, low fat, calorie restriction, south beach, etc etc. I used to work out 5 days a week with a trainer and never had these kinds of results. Other "diets" have always left me weak dizzy and hungry. I eat constantly now and am never hungry.
When the weather warms up a bit I intend on getting back into a jogging routine.

MrDude_1

The first thing I did was give up dairy and increase my water intake to at least 96oz a day. My asthma symptoms cleared up significantly and I lost weight. So I went a step further and gave up meat for beans, legumes, nuts and seeds. I lost more weight. Then I gave up eggs and I continue to lose weight. I am down 15lbs since January 1. I am not a militant vegan (though don't fault those who are) but I know this eating lifestyle has been VERY beneficial for me. I don't see myself turning back and am loving exploring new recipes. This is the only method of losing weight that has worked for me including low carb, weight watchers, low fat, calorie restriction, south beach, etc etc. I used to work out 5 days a week with a trainer and never had these kinds of results. Other "diets" have always left me weak dizzy and hungry. I eat constantly now and am never hungry.
When the weather warms up a bit I intend on getting back into a jogging routine.

technically... this diet is a from of calorie restriction... most of your intake is now just less calorie dense then your previous diet.

write2sonya

Bump! Great post with lots of interesting info! Thanks!!