How to get started?

dlovel
dlovel Posts: 2
edited September 21 in Health and Weight Loss
I have been in desperate need of permanant weight loss for a long time. Now I can't easily put my shoes on or fit into my bigger clothes so I just need to get going. I am glad to have found this site with numerous resources that seems to be provided without cost. I have read many of the post geared toward "newbies." I did not find the information that I hoped to fine. How do you get started? Just start reading the packages and writing down the information. I see that some people have their diaries available to get ideas. I could not find a recipe collection. Is there one? Lastly, I am not a dedicated computer user. I would be more likely to write information down on paper and then tranfer it. Do you have anything for this type of user.

I sure hope I can show some weight loss progress with the help of your site,
dlovel

Replies

  • horizonflight
    horizonflight Posts: 75
    I think that if you put your mind to it you can do it. The website is very simple to maneuver around. You can update your daily food intake through the database you will find under the "food" tab. You can also update your exercise tracker through the "exercise" tab and find different exercises under the database there. Anything works. I just started on my profile as well, but if you already have the basics of "healthy" eating down then you should have no problems getting started.

    I think the main point of the website is to display to you how many calories your taking in versus those that you are burning in order to lose some weight. Just keep asking there are plenty of people on the site who will be able to help you.
  • dlovel
    dlovel Posts: 2
    Thanks so much for your suggestions.
    dlovel
  • MacMadame
    MacMadame Posts: 1,893 Member
    Just start reading the packages and writing down the information.
    A lot of common food is already in the database so you don't even have to do that!

    What I did when I was starting out was just to log my food intake for a while. I wasn't really trying to lose weight at that point. I just wanted to see how I was eating. As I did that, I could see some immediate areas of improvement and I started working on them one at a time. First I started drinking more water, then eating more protein, then cutting back on sodium, etc., etc. But definitely one thing at time!

    On MFP, you need to start by going to the "My Home" tab and setting up your "Goals". This is how many calories per day you want to be eating, how many grams of protein, etc. You can just let MFP calculate it for you or you can select "customize" and make them more what you want. For example, I find MFP's protein recommendation to be way too low and the sodium to be way too high, so I adjust those to my own levels and not what MFP suggests to me. But, if you are just starting out, letting MFP pick your goals is easier and you can adjust them at any time.
  • OlenaS
    OlenaS Posts: 125 Member
    A little while back I read somebody's suggestion on starting, unfortunately I cannot find the post right now, but the suggestion was if you are feeling overwhelmed, then to not make any changes for the first few days but to just record everything you eat. This way you will start by getting an idea of where you can cut calories or what you can replace, etc... And then you can start by making small changes in your daily nutrition. Even changing from wheat to wholewheat will make a difference. Swapping mayonnaise for a lower calorie spread, eating Skinny Cow icecream instead of regular, etc, etc... Same thing goes for exercise, you can start with a couple of times a week, low impact stuff and gradually move up...
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