5'4, 24 yrs old, 156 lbs HELP!

Hi Ashley,

I know exactly what you mean about cooking for one. The best advice I can give you for that is, take advantage of your freezer. Many prepared foods can be frozen and reheated. Another thing you could do is go grocery shopping with a friend and for things that come in packs larger than you can eat before they soil, split them.

As far as working out goes; I'm always tired after work, but I just have to keep "gym" in my head all day long to stay pumped. It took some time, but now, once I've packed my gym back in the morning, I'm looking forward to the gym all day. I used to go to the gym before work. Yes, that meant getting up around 5am most days, but it was well worth it to me. In fact, I kind of miss doing that. The only reason I don't anymore is because I now live with my boyfriend and he's a night owl, so many times I find myself staying up too late with him to be able to function at 5am.

Good luck, and feel free to add me if you need some extra support!

Erika

Hi Ashley! Well done for joining MFP! You don't have a lot to lose, so it should be easy for you!

I've been into exercising for a long time now, but I let myself go a bit in my 2nd pregnancy and 7 weeks after my daughter was born in May 2011 I weighed 220lbs. Eeek. I'm 5'6 and I was 33 at the time.

I started going back to the gym 5 times a week, 2 of those times were personal training sessions. My husband does shift work, so I just fitted my gym sessions round his hours. I'm English, and over here we can take a year for maternity leave, which I did.

I've always eaten healthily so that part isn't a problem for me, but after a year of losing weight I joined MFP in July 2012 and after a bit of reading the forums I realised that 1200 calories a day wasn't a good idea so gradually upped it to 1500-1600. I'm so active with my kids, and exercise, that I must burn a lot of calories every day!

I went back to work April 2012 - I work part time as a teacher. I could still continue with my exercise as on my working days my kids a at nursery until 6, and I finish work at 3 so can get to the gym. I also started adding classes, so now do a combination of spin, Zumba, boxercise, aerobics, step, LBT etc. I do one PT session a fortnight as I can't afford more than that now.

As for food...when I used to live on my own I ate jacket potato with salad and tuna a lot, and things like fish and vegetables, or chicken risotto with veg. I just went for quick, easy, healthy things.

Forgot to say, I now weigh 154 which puts my BMI at 24.9. I'd like to lose a little more, but mainly I need to tone up. I wear a UK size 12, a US 8, sometimes a size smaller.

I'm 22 and 5'0" and weighed ~140 several months ago (now down to 127!). My biggest strategy is of course using MFP everyday (it makes me think twice about eating anything in large quantities, or eating really rich foods); but like you, I also eat out a lot. My advice there is:

(1) Buy a book like "EAT THIS NOT THAT" (http://www.amazon.com/This-Thousands-Simple-Swaps-Pounds/dp/B002M3SP6O) which highlights the best and worst choices at many fast food and restaurant chains. There are probably other such books, but this one is my favorite.

(2) Next, take half of your entree home in a to-go box, especially if none of the "healthy" (<500 calorie) options sound appealing. If you eat the rest of it the next day, it will also save you a lot of money over time. Sometimes that means you should be strategic by getting something you know will taste good the next day (i.e., avoid soggy lettuce).

(3) My cooking-for-one advice: You can find a lot of tasty, low-calorie recipes from Hungry Girl (http://www.hungry-girl.com/) and other blog sites if you look for them.

To keep my energy up, I tend to eat the most in the morning, even if it means eating a very small dinner. I also eat ~1500 calories a day... 1200 makes me too lethargic.

Hi Ashley!

I'm also 5'4", around the same age, but I've had a lot more to lose. In college I actually got up to 200! Couldn't believe it. But you CAN do it, and there's lot of tips, pointers, advice, etc that people on here can offer you. Feel free to add me as well if you'd like What kinds of things are you interested in? I noticed you said you're exhausted once work is out - I find that if I do things that I enjoy, it doesn't feel like a workout really, just having fun (ie rollerblading, walking my dog, kayaking, etc). Start small, experiment, build from there.

Meals for one is easy peasy! I'm with everyone else that a lot of things can be frozen. There's also a lot of ways to put a healthy spin on your favorite meals. If you brainstorm a few, let everyone know and we'd all be glad to help!

Good luck!

:flowerforyou: hi, i am glad you are back! what i do is make a weekly list of meals & go to the grocery store every week, that way you will not get spoiled food! when i worked i would make up certain foods a head of time on the weekend & freeze until i needed to pull it out & microwave it! that saves a lot of time during the week! once you get into this routine it is rather simple to do! i joined in june of last year & have a total of 87 pounds lost! i will send you a friend request to help each other to get to our goals!

Good morning,

I'm not sure if this would help but I work out really early in the morning. Also, if I had to cook just for one person I probably wouldn't do it. I would likely buy ready meals set for one like Lean Cuisine or those types. They usually have all the info listed as far as nutrition and calories. It would be much easier and more convenient and I think some of them are pretty tasty.

hi

my name is tarmara and I am 31yo weighing in at 153 with a height of 5'3". at the start of the year I was 190 so it can be done you just need a lot of patience as it does not happen quickly.

I too wish to get to 130 eventually but this last bit for me is really difficult...I just need to keep at it.

I have sent you a friend request, so if you need any support or a big nudge in the right direction.... just shout

good luck and stay focused

HI Ashley! I started 2 years ago at 5'5 and 155lbs so I was right where you are. It took me 2 years to get 40lbs off, but you can definitely do it. I usually have to cook for 1 because my roommate and I have different schedules so one thing I do is go to the store every 2-3 days and get exactly what I'm going to eat. I work across the street from a Kroger so that is helpful, but in going every couple of days, I don't run the risk of my food going bad and I don't have the excuse to eat out as much. Also, use this site every. single. day. It will make you more aware of what you put into your body. I'm awful about working out (probably haven't done it in like 2 months ) but one thing helps me go in the mornings is to sleep in my workout clothes and then all I have to do is literally roll out of bed, brush my teeth, put my hair up and go. Hope some of that helps! Oh, and feel free to add me if you want some extra encouragement! Good luck to you~

I'm 5' 4.5"....27 years old...starting weight was 150 and currently 134.4. I am in college and I do work full time. But I live with someone so we eat food quicker. I try to find time to work out but it usually comes down to work out or get an extra hour of sleep...and when I'm currently on 5 hours of sleep...I learned that I can still lose weight by just eating less and trying to be active when I can. I'm going to take online classes in the fall which should free up some time so I can get workouts in. I try to average 1450 cals/day, and if I work out I will eat more. If you have to eat out it won't kill you as long as you make good choices. I had one week where I was doing nothing but eating out because I did not go shopping. Weighed in the following Tuesday and was down 1.5 lbs. I use this website to help guide my choices if I do eat out http://www.eatingrules.com/menu-mondays-index/

I love cooking for one - much easier than trying to stay on plan than cooking for others who don't have a problem.