how did you do it?

LatinaPuppyLover

Please share with us how did you do it? Even if you are not done yet, what kind of exercise you do? Are yoy following a special program or diet? Are you just counting calories? What worked for you and what didn't?

joejccva71

I eat a moderate calorie deficit + doing resistance weight training + fasted cardio. It's working.

OnMyWeigh464

I have my two smoothies a day, 2 healthy snacks, and a sensible dinner.

I make sure I give myself a treat now and then...I DO sometimes eat hamburger helper for supper because quite frankly I love them, as much as other people DON'T like them lol

I am at the gym a minimum of 5 times per week doing different things...I see my personal trainer on Mondays. Bootcamp on Tuesdays. And the over days are cardio/strength mixed.

I drink loads of water. I LOVE water. I never leave my house without my huge shaker cup with ice and water.

There's just so many *small* but significant changes I've made over the past 3 months.

peapod1976

For the past several weeks I have been concentrating on avoiding foods that I know I have a food intolerance to. There were some I've avoided for years due to the immediate unpleasant symptoms I would get (migraines, severe stomach pain), but there were others that just seemed to difficult to avoid (wheat) and ones that I just didn't want to give up (chocolate )

Long story short, by avoiding as many as I can, I dropped 5 lbs almost effortlessly after a year of maintaining. In particular I have noticed signifigant decrease in cravings and more satiety from my meals.

AsaraFuriosa

Ive lost 75.5lbs so far, ( pre MFP) this is how I did it:

Eat 5-8 times a day: 4 snacks, 3 meals boosts your metabolism. Your shrinking your stomach and you might be hungry at first but your going to eat again in 3-3 1/2hrs. Drink at least 8oz of water everytime you eat.

Portion control: teach yourself to eat within a serving size.

Make sure you eat at least 1 raw fruit and veggie a day.

Exercises an hour a day 5 days a week

Log everything!

Change is key to not platuing. Change your foods monthly and your exercises every 3 months. I'm calorie cycling so even my calorie intake changes daily.

Make it a lifestyle change not a diet.

Set mini goals

Believe in yourself!

LadyIntrepid

Figured calorie count on MFP for losing one pound a week. Exercise: three 1 hour strength training sessions a week, three 45-60 minute cardio sessions a week (usually spinning or kickboxing class), two 25-30 cardio sessions a week (usually elliptical or stepper), plus walking 15 minutes a day, often more. Pounds are finally melting off, especially considering pushing 50, my metabolism has slowed wayyyy down. But the above formula of strength plus lots of cardio and not going over allowed MFP daily calorie counts really really is working better than anything else I've tried. Oh -- small meals with several snacks throughout the day.

mfpcopine

Calorie deficit appropriate for my size and fitness status (1150).

Mainly real food.

I've gone over my limit, but I don't deliberately "eat back calories" which I think is a crazy idea for anyone who isn't working out like an elite athlete. Charles ****ens. [Testing the euphemizing function on this site. It's hilarious.]

Intermittent Fasting many days. (14 hour fast/10 hour eating window).

Some minimal strength training. No cardio because of an injury.

Daily logging of calorie estimates.

Ignoring calories burned estimates.

kathyc609

80 pounds lost In 6 1/2 months - low carbing, no processed foods, no added sugars, little to no exercise the first 70 pounds.
Protein, veggies, berries, Greek yogurt, green tea. Ketosis! No cheat days or meals - 100% dedication to a better life.

Railr0aderTony

I blindly follow the MFP guidelines and it works. Plus get as much activitiy as i can stand.

albinogorilla

calorie deficit...........
lift weights
no cardio

lmalaschak

I blindly follow the MFP guidelines and it works. Plus get as much activitiy as i can stand.

Yup. Plus having a spike day every now and then for fun.

EnchantedEvening

No soda, not even diet. I found it makes me retain water. I realize some people can have diet soda, but I simply cannot. I drink tons and tons of ice water, sometimes with Crystal Light if I want some flavor.

If I'm hungry, I eat. I try to eat all day. I have grapes, yogurt, and string cheese for work. At home, I might have some nuts or apples. If I still feel hungry, I might add a bit of peanut butter to the apples.

I try to stick with as much protein and as many veggies as possible. I try to keep my starches to a minimum.

I allow myself treats every day. I have a couple spoonfuls of ice cream, or a small cookie... something like that. I budget my calories for these treats. By doing this, I never, ever feel deprived. I even have things like pizza on occasion. I just watch my portions and always make sure I keep my calories on track.

Sometimes I have a "cheat" day, where I go over my calories, but then I make up for it the next day by eating less and/or exercising more. Cheat days are usually things like birthday parties, day trips, and other things where I find it hard to plan/control my food, so I just try to do the best I can while still enjoying some treats. This is also GOOD for your metabolism, as it keeps it from falling into stasis, which can cause plateaus. It's good to keep your metabolism guessing. Instead of doing 1800 calories per day, I might do 1800, 2000, 1600, 2000, 1600, 1800, etc.

I get 30-45 minutes of exercise every day. I usually do Turbo Jam Cardio Party, but if I'm not feeling up to that, I go for a walk. Walks are relaxing and never feel like exercise. I often walk during my lunch period at work because it helps clear my head.

Hope that helps.

hailzp

I eat slightly above my BMR and eat back about 1/4 of my exercise cals unless I fancy a treat. I log everything. I try not to eat cakes and processed foods. Cakes are really hard to estimate unless you make them yourself. No cheat days, If I fancy something I will have a little bit of it. If I want a lot of something then I have to exercise for it.

I have also recently applied a cognitive approach to help with consistency. It seems to be working so far.

MonicaT1972

Low carbs, no wheat, no processed foods, no sugar and lots of exercise....2 to 2.5 hrs per day!

AllTehBeers

I blindly follow the MFP guidelines and it works. Plus get as much activitiy as i can stand.

Yup. Plus having a spike day every now and then for fun.

Me three. Though, my spike days are alcohol days. It's the only time I go over usually. Yay drinks!

Reinventing_Me

bump

iwantahealthierme13

I eat whatever I want as long as it's in my calories (1620) I go over sometimes but always try to remember that even if I go over there's the 500 cal buffer before maintenance (I'm set to lose one pound a week)

I swim twice a week and use the treadmill (2.5-2.7mph for 45 to an hour) walk or do a pilates video on the other days. I want to buy some velcro weights soon so I can add some more resistance

I've lost 6 pounds and 1 to 1 and a half inches so far since second week of April, so about 5 weeks of logging every day. Oh and since starting this I always try to have the serving size or less of any food so I don't overeat.

I try not to have a lot of sodium, I try to up my protein even if it goes over, that's the one macro I don't mind going over. I have mostly stopped drinking pop (there are a couple of slip-ups but I find it's not worth the calories or sugar) and do not have fast food burgers (unless it's a McD cheeseburger or hamburger which I only had once in 5 weeks) or fries. I've also cut out McCain fries. Next I will be cutting out chicken fingers (I have 3 more in my freezer, once those are finished I won't buy anymore)

rileygrace17

I'm a rising college sophomore and, during high school, had six screws and a plate put in my left ankle as well as knee surgery to replace worn away cartilage on the back of my right knee cap. Those injuries and recoveries took me out of the sports I'd played competitively since the second grade and I gained weight like mad. Without any form of exercise, that's what happens!

I played softball for my university this past Spring and was FINALLY working out regularly enough to start losing some of that weight I had gained. At my heaviest this past fall, I was 235 pounds. I'm now about 198 and am planning on getting down between 150 and 160 and staying there. I lost 40 pounds (mostly) during my second semester of my freshman year - at a university that's over a thousand miles from my hometown!

I guess I'm saying all of this to hopefully inspire somebody. If I can manage to have an amazing first year of college AND get healthier, then you can workout around work, you can take healthy meals, etc. There's time, I promise!

For me, I'm adjusting my workouts based on in- vs out-of-season. For summer, I'm giving my knees a rest from the pounding of running and am opting for bike rides. Evening bike rides are the best! After only a week or so, I'm up to six mile rides twice each day. It's a refreshing and relaxing time and takes me less than a half hour!

I don't ever deprive myself, either. If I want some ice cream, then I'll have a scoop of cookies and cream. But just one scoop and not every day. I also love Chipotle and so I'll get some, but I'll do light or no sour cream, get water to drink, and some brown rice instead of white (I just can't do chicken instead of steak, though. The steak is too damn good!)

For me, it's about adjusting my lifestyle back to how it once was - making working out a habit and eating healthy a fun choice. I love greek yogurt, for example, and would encourage everyone to try Oikos vanilla fat free greek yogurt. I put in fresh strawberries or kiwi and it's delicious and almost decadent!

Feel free to contact me in any way if you want some advice from this college athlete who is getting everything back on track. I was named to second-team all-conference as a freshman and am fighting through the long hills I ride up and the cravings for more than one scoop of ice cream because I want to be first-team!

Find something to fight for and then do it. I know you can

jadedone

I eat pretty clean, eat my fruits and veggies (at least 5 a day), and I have a cheat meal or 2 on the weekend. I try to stay in calories most days, and I eat 50% of my exercise calories.

Another tip? On most meals I try to eat all of my veggies first. I try to make my plate 50% veggies or eat a dinner plate full of veggies first, and then eat the starch and protein on a salad plate. The veggies help me to fill up, and then I end up eating the meal slower.

I do planned exercise 3-4 days a week for about an hour, mixing cardio and strength or doing circuit training.

I drink mostly water and try to get plenty of sleep.

I also celebrate my non scale victories and come up with non scale related challenges:
eat leafy veggies daily
do more pushups
do more squats
walk faster
row farther...

s0ready

bump to read later!!

GLJezebel

I log every single thing. I drink a lot of water. I exercise. I eat whatever I want and change my calories around day to day. One day I eat 1400, the next day 1200, the next day 1600. When I plateau I increase my calories and my exercise. I made a commitment to a lifestyle change, not a diet. I never feel deprived. If I want it, I eat it. I just work out a little extra for it.

glennstoudt

Please share with us how did you do it? Even if you are not done yet, what kind of exercise you do? Are yoy following a special program or diet? Are you just counting calories? What worked for you and what didn't?

Caloric intake reduction, but nothing severe.
Ample increase in cardio, but again, nothing strenuous, mostly walking.
Diet modifications, carbs way down, protein up, fruits and vegetables up.
Strength training, 5 days a week during active weight loss time.
Supplements, although they have little to do with weight loss.
Everything worked pretty well, 9 months to below goal weight. Good luck with yours.

Erindipitous

A constantly changing mixture of eating clean, running, strength training (P90X, and my own workout at the gym with free weights), HIIT, and intermittent fasting.

dad106

My trainer asked me this same question(because I told him I ate cookies and ice cream through out my entire weight loss and he looked at me like I had three heads).

I did it by eating less, exercising(both cardio and strength) and cutting out alcohol.. I think the alcohol made the biggest impact along with the food.

jenniejengin

Treadmill, weights, circuit training, dancing.

redcat17

Eating clean, mild deficit, gym at least 4 days a week. Lot's of weight training, a little cardio, and yoga.

spearfox

Keep my calories above my BMR.
Eat some of my exercise calories.
Walking.
C25K training
Circuit training
Eat healthier
Eat with moderation not wild, hedonistic abandon.

carld256

I count my calories, and do an hour or so on the treadmill each day (I can't lift due to injury). I also follow a low-fat, mostly vegan diet.

thelovelyLIZ

Eating healthy, running, and strength training.

joejccva71

Eating clean is personal preference. It has zero bearing on fat loss.

70davis

bump