After one month, I am twenty pounds lighter! (with pics)

WOW!!! You look great! You stated that 20 lbs is only 1/4 of the way where you want to be. I think losing another 60 lbs will be waaaay to much for you! I think if you lose another 20 then start lifting...just my two cents.

Haha...thanks, I'm flattered! :blushing:

But really, truly...my frame hides a decent amount of weight. There's a LOT of squish under those clothes. I was down to 203 while I was a sophomore in college and even then, I looked pretty gooey with my shirt off. :noway: So while lifting and toning will become a bigger part of my strategy in the coming weeks, I'd be totally fine with being lean before being muscular.

I also intentionally set my goal a bit lofty so that if I decide I'm satisfied before I get there, that's okay. Keep in mind, though, that even for my tallish height of 6'2", 227 is just shy of obese. I chose 170 because it's almost smack in the middle of the "healthy" BMI range. But as I said, goals always have room for revision.

Just sounding a note of caution here: if you lose too much too quickly, you can set off serious cardiac problems. Check it out, determine a safe losing rate. Slow down and stay healthy!

Hi grassette,

I've thought about this, too - I know this has been a pretty extraordinary amount of weight loss in a very short time. I know this is not a sustainable rate of loss, and I expect it to slow down somewhat (probably quite a bit, in fact).

I have honestly been very surprised at how quickly the weight has come off so far. I haven't been restricting my diet a great deal - just going by the recommendations I got when I entered my information into MFP - and it has been very well balanced. I'm watching to make sure I get plenty of protein (this is always on my mind, as a vegetarian...and many days I eat more than I need) as well as carbohydrates and I'm tracking things like sodium and fiber, too, because I know in the past I have eaten WAY TOO MUCH heavily processed junk. Along those lines, I've been drinking 10-12 cups of water most days, too, so it shouldn't be an issue of dehydration.

I'm not exercising really hard...not even to the point where I feel tired when I stop. I've just tried to make it as consistent as I can. I do, of course, feel a bit of tenderness in my calf muscles, for example, but certainly not enough to stop moving. My workouts are pretty relaxed - just walks or moderate, cruising bike rides (I've been trying to enjoy the fleeting days of fall here in Minnesota before winter arrives).

My instincts would suggest that I wouldn't feel very good if my body were not liking this trend, but I haven't felt particularly hungry between meals, and I haven't been ignoring my body nutritionally. Still, I know things can be wrong without signs or symptoms, and that's why I'm trying hard to make sure I'm being safe and reasonable about my eating and exercise.

Thanks for your concern - I appreciate that you're looking out for me. I was aware of some risks before, but after poking around a bit I am better informed and will make sure to stay well in tune with how my body reacts to this continual change.