"What's Your Secret?"
JoelGMT
Posts: 4 Member
"What's Your Secret?"
I have lost 25 lbs and I am happy and proud of that, but I keep hearing the same question: "What's your secret?"... Now I am finally going to divulge my secret:
The secret is, that there is NO secret. A secret easy step to losing weight is like the Holy Grail. Those that search for it will never find it...it doesn't exist.
Losing weight is SIMPLE in PRINCIPLE but HARD to DO. The principle is easy math: Calories in must be less than calories out...or for the Algebraic amongst us: if A=calories eaten and B=calories burned, A<B=weight lost. That's it.
Of course, knowing the gas makes the car move and the brake pedal makes it stop doesn't make someone a good driver. Knowing that eating less makes you lose weight doesn't make it easy. So what am I supposed to eat?
Well that isn't a difficult question really...Remember how your mom told you to "eat your vegetables"? Well....EAT YOUR VEGETABLES! Eat less meat, use less fat when you cook and prepare food. Restaurants have ruined Americans sense of what a "portion" is. A real portion is much smaller than what you get at Olive Garden or Red Lobster. Also, your plate should be 75% vegetable and 25% (or less) meat. Not the other way around.
In short, we all know what to eat and do to lose weight...we just don't want to do it..
I have lost 25 lbs and I am happy and proud of that, but I keep hearing the same question: "What's your secret?"... Now I am finally going to divulge my secret:
The secret is, that there is NO secret. A secret easy step to losing weight is like the Holy Grail. Those that search for it will never find it...it doesn't exist.
Losing weight is SIMPLE in PRINCIPLE but HARD to DO. The principle is easy math: Calories in must be less than calories out...or for the Algebraic amongst us: if A=calories eaten and B=calories burned, A<B=weight lost. That's it.
Of course, knowing the gas makes the car move and the brake pedal makes it stop doesn't make someone a good driver. Knowing that eating less makes you lose weight doesn't make it easy. So what am I supposed to eat?
Well that isn't a difficult question really...Remember how your mom told you to "eat your vegetables"? Well....EAT YOUR VEGETABLES! Eat less meat, use less fat when you cook and prepare food. Restaurants have ruined Americans sense of what a "portion" is. A real portion is much smaller than what you get at Olive Garden or Red Lobster. Also, your plate should be 75% vegetable and 25% (or less) meat. Not the other way around.
In short, we all know what to eat and do to lose weight...we just don't want to do it..
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Replies
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This drives me nuts sometimes. I get that a lot; "what are you doing?" When I tell them "Calories in calories out and lots of exercise, I get a lot of hands up in the air and "pffft, I thought you had an easier way." People don't want to stop eating their large portions of Olive Garden
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They want a magic pill...and congratulations to you on your loss.0
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They want a magic pill...and congratulations to you on your loss.
Yes, I think that's what they're looking for. And thank you 0 -
Hmmm, must be an epidemic question/response. I get the same thing. People are so disappointed when they hear the truth, again.
Someday I am going to put in my purse:
1. some kind of shirt that says, "wear this. get thin."
2. A pill bottle full of jelly beans with a homemade label that says, "secret weight loss formula"
When I hear The Question, I will pull one out and say, "this." If I am feeling extra perturbed, I will say, "and for extra insurance, add this." Done.0 -
I get asked how I lost weight a lot my self, having gone from a size 20 to a size 10 in about a year in a half time frame. Honestly I'm human and slip up, but I just get right back on it. MFP is my secret weapon, I tell people that I use MFP and keep a food exercise diary, I get looks of disappointment, like that's it? Yea, I try to eat right and I exercise. Simple, but no magic pill0
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Nice job on your loss! I am down about that also. Here's my answer...
I'll tell you the secret but you're not gonna like it. A proper diet and exercise. With emphasis on the diet.
What do you eat?
Anything I want to as long as it's less than 2090 calories a day.
Oh (blank stare)0 -
LOL this is the #1 question that everyone asks me.
Funny story, I had this guy at work argue with me, like I was telling a lie. He said he had some female friends that were trying to lose weight and wanted to know what my secret was (thought I took some pills or something). I told him that I work out and I'm eating differently.
He said "I saw how big you were and you cannot tell me that you were just working out" - Needless to say I wanted to punch him in the mouth, but didn't the HR backlash lol.
I told him that it is all I did and he just walked away. People don't want to put in the work0 -
You are so right. I get that a lot, even after starting my weight loss years ago. I hear a lot of coworkers complaining about weight, yet we have cookies...donuts....cupcakes brought in and we are told to enjoy the 'treat'! When I pass I hear 'you are so dedicated' as they eat their cupcake or their bag of burger and fries from MickyDs.. I just figure it took me a while to catch on to how to live healthier and I'm STILL learning. Maybe they haven't reached that point yet. I just hope that they do.0
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Nice job on your loss! I am down about that also. Here's my answer...
I'll tell you the secret but you're not gonna like it. A proper diet and exercise. With emphasis on the diet.
What do you eat?
Anything I want to as long as it's less than 2090 calories a day.
Oh (blank stare)
LOL, nice. I'm going to use this0 -
LOL this is the #1 question that everyone asks me.
Funny story, I had this guy at work argue with me, like I was telling a lie. He said he had some female friends that were trying to lose weight and wanted to know what my secret was (thought I took some pills or something). I told him that I work out and I'm eating differently.
He said "I saw how big you were and you cannot tell me that you were just working out" - Needless to say I wanted to punch him in the mouth, but didn't the HR backlash lol.
I told him that it is all I did and he just walked away. People don't want to put in the work
Oh I know, I told a female friend of mine, I count calories and exercise. She went off in a rant about how you can't lose weight that way, blah blah blah. I wanted to punch her. I'm 52 pounds lighter and 8 sizes smaller so what now B*tch! lol0 -
Yep. I tell people "It's just math." I count my calories and I work out to burn more calories than I eat. Like, all those years where the doctor said, "You can lose weight and improve your health with diet and exercise," . . . . ? Well, turns out you can lose weight and improve your health . . . with diet and exercise. Go figure.
I've also had people ask, "Are you . . . all right?" And I laugh and say, "Oh yes. I don't have cancer or some wasting disease. I'm just eating less and exercising more, that's all. Everything is fine."
And everything IS fine, pretty much. I'm now off my blood-pressure meds, for instance. My clothes fit better. I feel much more energetic. I deal with stress better. I'm not tired all the time. You know?
Congrats on your continuing work and your weight loss!0 -
I had an aunt ask me this, I told her about MFP and the workouts I was doing, that the key to weight loss is portion control, she put her nose in the air and said "I can't do that." I asked her if she couldn't do it or she wouldn't do it? You can do anything you set your mind to do but it can't be a matter of interest, it has to be a commitment, it has to be something you desire and as some have called me "Obsess" over. Which I don't call it obsessive, I call it determined to see my body where I desire it.0
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My secret is......keep going...0
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I get that question a lot.
I answer truthfully and get the blank stare.
One of these days I'm going to tell people I had my jaw wired shut for 2 years. Hmmm, wonder if that would start a new weight loss craze?0 -
Nice job on your loss! I am down about that also. Here's my answer...
I'll tell you the secret but you're not gonna like it. A proper diet and exercise. With emphasis on the diet.
What do you eat?
Anything I want to as long as it's less than 2090 calories a day.
Oh (blank stare)
This! There is no correct ratio of this or that. Just eat less, move more. If you want to lose fat eat less. If you want to transform your muscles, then lift heavy weights. It's not sexy but it works....and it'll have you looking sexy. 0 -
Amazing concept, that diet and exercise....0
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"What's Your Secret?"
I have lost 25 lbs and I am happy and proud of that, but I keep hearing the same question: "What's your secret?"... Now I am finally going to divulge my secret:
The secret is, that there is NO secret. A secret easy step to losing weight is like the Holy Grail. Those that search for it will never find it...it doesn't exist.
Losing weight is SIMPLE in PRINCIPLE but HARD to DO. The principle is easy math: Calories in must be less than calories out...or for the Algebraic amongst us: if A=calories eaten and B=calories burned, A<B=weight lost. That's it.
Of course, knowing the gas makes the car move and the brake pedal makes it stop doesn't make someone a good driver. Knowing that eating less makes you lose weight doesn't make it easy. So what am I supposed to eat?
Well that isn't a difficult question really...Remember how your mom told you to "eat your vegetables"? Well....EAT YOUR VEGETABLES! Eat less meat, use less fat when you cook and prepare food. Restaurants have ruined Americans sense of what a "portion" is. A real portion is much smaller than what you get at Olive Garden or Red Lobster. Also, your plate should be 75% vegetable and 25% (or less) meat. Not the other way around.
In short, we all know what to eat and do to lose weight...we just don't want to do it..
BAM!!!!0 -
This drives me nuts sometimes. I get that a lot; "what are you doing?" When I tell them "Calories in calories out and lots of exercise, I get a lot of hands up in the air and "pffft, I thought you had an easier way." People don't want to stop eating their large portions of Olive Garden
I am constantly getting strange looks when I ask for my order with a take away box so that I can box up what I won't eat that meal straight away. Got the most interesting reaction at a pub in Devon, England....'uh,...we don't have any boxes...' I asked her for a piece of aluminum foil instead lol My friends husband thought I was the strangest person for doing it as he'd never heard of it before :laugh:0 -
I had one of those conversations with a guy at work. I finally got frustrated and told him he obviously didn't want it bad enough.0
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I've been getting similar questions too. I like to say a simple "eat less, move more." It's amazing how people seem to think anyone who has lost noticeable weight (intentionally) has done it any other way.0
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Very good topic! The 'whats your secret person' use to be me. I wanted to hear that there was some other magic way to lose the weight. I suppose that I am not alone because the diet industry is a billion dollar one - this pill, that diet, etc etc. I have never tried pills but just about every fad diet out there. I always knew what to do..just wanted a shortcut, quick fix. But just like the OP saiid. Eat less, move more. I know how many calories I need in to lose weight, I know how many I need to maintain my weight and I know that if I go overboard one day, cut back the next and lastly it has to be your way of life. 0
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I get that question a lot.
I answer truthfully and get the blank stare.
One of these days I'm going to tell people I had my jaw wired shut for 2 years. Hmmm, wonder if that would start a new weight loss craze?
The last paragraph is utterly hilarious. That said your first 2 sentences are what I tell people as well. The way I look at it is, our sociatey is at a point where gluttonly and not listening to our bodies has become the norm. Thusly, we're the ones who are weird, hence the blank stares. I still get glared at if i refuse to help to clean a plate (from a communal dish even if I explain that I'm full. Of course these are the same people who are usually shocked at the number they see on a scale...0 -
This drives me nuts sometimes. I get that a lot; "what are you doing?" When I tell them "Calories in calories out and lots of exercise, I get a lot of hands up in the air and "pffft, I thought you had an easier way." People don't want to stop eating their large portions of Olive Garden
When I got food poisoning and ended up in the emergency room, that broke me of any habit of going to Olive Garden again.0 -
Yup. I get this all the time.
There's no real money in 'eat less, move more', so there's no charismatic spokespeople saying it over and over.0 -
I just tell them I track my diet meticulously and train my *** off.
That usually shuts them up.0 -
Sounds like too much effort. I think I'd rather just buy ketones, a juicer, and a body band. Aww f'k it, my genetics make me fat. Heading to the pub.0
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I actually have muscles now so it's obvious that I work out. Maybe that's the key.....get so buff that it is apparent that you are doing more than just walking on the treadmill.0
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If achieving a healthy weight were simply the mechanics of "calories in < calories out" then none of us would have ever been overweight to begin with, because everyone pretty much knows that. So to scoff at and ridicule people for wanting to know your secret is kind of mean and self-superior. People with weight problems are treated like crap by others - can't we be kind to each other?
Maybe what they're really searching for is the secret to your inspiration, the secret to changing your mindset, the secret to keeping hope for change alive when change is slow and difficult.
My biggest "secrets" are three-fold:
1) Abandon the expectation of perfection. No change happens overnight, no change happens without a few backwards steps, and no one can be perfect all of the time. Therefore, one must arm themselves in advance with emotional tools to handle the days when we go off track, to handle the self-defeating thoughts of, "Why bother - I'll just fail again!" It's OK to not be perfect as long as we keep trying.
2) Accountability and analysis. Account for every calorie (My Fitness Pal is a godsend for this). Account for every hunger pang and ask yourself the source. Analyze for every craving and see how it ties to feelings. Talk to your goals with your friends so that you will be motivated to live up to your word. Weigh in with someone trustworthy (works for Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig for a reason - I use my doctor for this).
3) Support from people who have been through it. (Successful people, don't roll your eyes at people asking your "secret" - this is your chance to be supportive!) Whether it's online message boards or in-person, talking to people about their struggles, their helpful hints, their "aha!" moments that helped them recognize and change their behaviors - this is like gold to a person striving to change.
Weight loss can seem like an insurmountable struggle. There is no harm in asking someone what has worked for them.0 -
I feel ya. No one I know believes me that counting calories (with just a moderate number of healthier choices and typical exercise) has worked for me. I tell them about MFP and they usually act skeptical then. Why, I don't know.
I have experienced firsthand the truth to eating 1200 calories or less and not losing for long periods of time. Keeping my calories around 1400-1600, I've been losing slowly yet consistently since March. If I try to explain this to most of my female friends they're like, "OH well that will not work for me because the only time in my life I ever lost weight, I was eating 600 cals" or "No, eating better doesn't work for me I have to run 4 miles a day to lose"
Sure that may be true for them, but when they say it I just hear similar excuses to what I used to say. I didn't understand how I could eat pasta, daily Starbucks, and no veggies and weigh X amount and then go to salads and fruit and still weigh X amount. I think my whole adult life I've been unknowingly yo-yo dieting by having "good days" that were under 1200 cals. I know some people don't believe that it works that way but for my body it apparently sorta does...0 -
I can totally relate! Just had the same question asked by a cousin that I have not seen in a while. My response "Eat less, move more", and she looked at me and said "No, really, what's your secret?". I had to just repeat myself ... we all know there is no "secret" - we just have to get up every morning and DO it.0
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