Weight Loss Secrets Revealed!!!

For those struggling or just beginning, things I have learned…

• Be Patient!
• Find supportive friends on MyFitnessPal and add them to your Friends List
• Encourage and support your friends, and they will encourage and support you!
• Log everything you eat, every day, good or bad and learn how to make it better.
• Weight Loss is 85% Food
• Weight Loss is primarily Calories In vs Calories Out
• Set reasonable goals - 1-2lb weight loss a week is very healthy and normal!
• Just start moving - you don't have to go to a gym or run a marathon - just get up and start walking
• Don’t let someone else decide your fate. Find the strength and courage to stand up to those that may be putting you down, or telling you that you are worthless or that you will never succeed. Even if those people are your loved ones. You are important and deserve to be happy. You are Stronger than you think!
• Uncomfortable going to the gym? Remember that you are not there to find a date. You are not there to be judged on how you look or how much you weigh. You are there to show everyone just how much strength you have inside. Nothing can stop you. Nothing will stop you.
• Have an excuse for not exercising? I have pulmonary hypertension causing shortness of breath, swollen legs that are tender and sore, tore both of my Achilles tendons so that every step I take can hurt like someone is stabbing my ankles, I have Type II Diabetes, and I am 200lbs overweight. I was ready to give up on life. The life I had was spent on the couch eating. Everything I do in the gym means I’m moving that 400lbs of body weight around. I work out an hour a day, 4 days a week with a bodybuilding trainer that kicks my butt. What’s your excuse?
• It Doesn’t Get Easier. You Just Get Better!
• Don't eat under 1200 calories - especially 800 or under
• Exercise will make you feel strong and powerful!
• Exercise will tone your body, build muscle, and drop inches
• Don't always use the scale to measure success!
• People see inches, Not the scale! - You are the ONLY one that knows how much you weigh. You can be 160lbs and look 130lbs because of inches
• Women don't do enough strength training/heavy lifting
• Take Progress Pictures!!!!! You may hate the way you look now (I do!) but in 6 months, a year, 5 years you want to be able to look back and see how much you have changed!! you will want to show off how much you have changed! and you will want to see why you were unhappy before and why you don't want to go back!
• Find the little Non Scale Victories that will keep you motivated (have you lost weight? my jeans are looser! My kid is proud of me!)
• Protein is great for keeping you full longer, rebuilding muscles, and aiding in recovery from strength training
• Restrictive/Fad Diets Do Not Work Long Term - learn how to eat healthy and eat the things you want but not as often and not as much as you did before
• Everyone hits lows, falls off the wagon and has bad days. This is a life long journey that is full of ups and downs, but you will always be happier in the end.
• If you Fall, it's ok!! Accept It, Forgive Yourself, Learn From It, and Move On
• Just Don't Quit
• Enjoy Life and the Journey You are Taking

There can be a lot of debate about weight loss, what does or doesn’t work. Hopefully, these are less debatable and apply to everyone instead of posting argumentative tips I thought it would be nice to list some less debatable encouragement…

I’m sure someone can debate something I listed, but I just wanted to be positive and encouraging. Hope someone finds it helpful.