Fat for Life

Wow... i never imagined I'd get this much support. Thank You everyone for the tips and tricks and advice! I really truly appreciate it. I have calculated the BMR with MFP, and my daily recommended MFP calories intake are at 1280. So, i have decided to ollow MFP calories intake. Today was my first day. And I managed to meet my goal. And I didnt feel like I was hungry or starving myself. I realized that I tend to consume sweet beverages and unhealthy snacks (This is the main culprit for my weight gain). But I still managed to snuck in a few sweet treats and got it under 1280. I hope to continue meeting my goal and will adjust it if things get hard or compensate by walking an extra 15 minutes or so when i exceed my calorie intake. I know that the key to doing this is not to cut everything out but to learn abt portion control and moderation in everything. I will definitely start slowly and not overwhelm myself. Thank You again so much everyone. No words can truly express how grateful I am for your support! God Bless!

Quick tip sweetie! I'm a sugar-holic and I always drank soda and all that bad stuff we all know we aren't suppose to drink. BUT I've discovered that hot tea, with 2 tsp of honey and a packet of splenda is a great sweet beverage for you with only 30cals! OR if you like cold drinks and less of a tea taste, take 8oz of iced tea, 1/2 glass of fat free milk, a packet of splenda and pour it into a glass full of ice. Essentially what you get is milk tea, but it's sweet enough where you can't really taste the tea. With that one it only comes to 40cals for one large glass (about 12-16oz glass). I hope that helps!

Or just diet soda.

Wow, sad story. you're right to take this seriously. start with the keto calculator. http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/
it's not about calories, its about carbohydrates. get started and set your goals according to what the calculator suggests. take the carbs down to under 50 grams. you won't meet the calorie goal you set, not reasonable. it's going to be some time before you can safely exercise carrying the amount of weight you mentioned so take the carbs down first, get under 180 pounds and then start walking a bit. good luck. keep in touch.
no bread,
no grain (wheat, rice, corn,)
no sugar
no booze
no fruit,
no potatoes.
good luck.

OP Please Do Not Follow this advice!! I weighed 560 pounds, was pretty much homebound for over 2 years unable to walk and when I finally hit rock bottom my Doctors stuck me in a therapy pool to use water displacement to allow me to stand long enough to exercise which was basically walking from one side of the pool to the other. I lost 170 over 17 months b4 I was able to be fitted with brace (bad knee's) and start exercising out of the pool.... I worked with a dietician and set a manageable caloric in take that allowed me to lose 1 to 2 pounds a week and the rest is history... No need to go to extremes... I had one motto "Keep it Simple Stupid" and that has gotten me pretty far... Was it alot of hard work?? Yes but worth every bit of blood, sweat, and tears... Take it one day at a time... Best of Luck

^^This thread needs to go no further. Talk about inspiration!

I haven't read all the comments, but I've seen a lot of wise words. I've been overweight my whole life. I had my mom putting me on diets and giving me "that look" whenever I ate as long as I can remember.

One bit I'll add - don't feel bad about baby steps, especially in terms of exercise. I started at a higher weight than you and I'm a little shorter than you! I started with a stationary bike and at first was only able to do about 5 or six minutes at a time - I was THAT out of shape. I kept up that pace for a long time, just pushing myself to be able to add another minute, then another two minutes.

I'm not exactly a super athlete now, but I can do 30 minutes easily and often end up doing 45 or even 60 minutes of biking or walking. Watching tv or a movie while exercising is my favorite way to make the time go easier, but reading or finding a good high energy playlist will also help.

Good luck!

Hi there. I can relate to your story. I started at 252 pounds, 5’2”. I am down to 220 now and still going down. You can totally do this and you will probably stagger around a little bit until you find what works well for you.

I constantly shake up my eating and diet. I have my MFP set to 1580. I try to eat a NET minimum of 1200, regardless of exercise. My dietician recommends 1600 a day regardless of exercise, so I try to eat at a GROSS maximum of 1600. If I have a very high exercise day, I will allow my GROSS maximum get as high as 2200 as long as my NET maximum stays under 1580. My TDEE is 2058 and my BMR is 1720, so all of these goals have me almost constantly eating at a deficit. If I gain 2 weeks in a row, I lower to 1200, but I haven’t had to do that for several months. I prefer vegetarianism for ethical reasons, but only cyclically abide by it. Sometimes I will go as long as a year or two on a vegetarian diet. Other times I only have 1-2 veggie meals a week. Other times I might get on a low carb kick because my blood sugar is wacky and low carb helps out. That generally doesn’t last long for me though. I’m also learning to eat what is in season and what is available instead of what I’m in the mood for. It’s odd, but what I have found to be sustainable for me is to constantly change things up. I thrive on diversity.

As for exercise, I actually love it more than my body does. As a kid, I was a tomboy and very active in (unorganized) sports and fighting. As I got older, I was taught that playing was for kids and fighting was for fools, so I kind of quit most of the activities I had done all my life. I love running, but my body hates it. Don’t let anyone tell you what exercise to do or not do unless there’s a medical reason. I will actually be going jogging in a few hours. I will look like a big fat blob waggling and struggling down the road to score a triumphantly pathetic time of about 52 minutes for a 5k. My goal today is to make it in 51.  But you know what, 6 months ago I could not even slowly walk 1 full mile. I also love my bicycle that people told me I was too fat to ride. I went through a few extra sets of handlebar grips and a seat and constantly readjusted my chain because my poor bicycle didn’t like hauling 250 pounds. Oh well for it. Its job is to serve me. Not vice versa. We have a good working love relationship going on now. I just rode 17 miles last Friday. That was pretty cool compared to 6 months ago when I made it to the 5 mile mark and quit. I guess those people who told me I was too fat to exercise didn’t really know wtf they were talking about. The more I exercise, the more I am able to exercise. I now have the energy to work a quite productive vegetable garden, walk up the stairs without sounding like a hyperventilating hippo, and play with my dog. I couldn’t do any of that stuff last Christmas.

I also used to work a highly stressful job. (I was a college professor and carrying up to 9 classes at a time.) I gave up the rat race to live a more humble and agrarian lifestyle. That helped my stress tremendously because it was my calling. I still have stress of course. We all do. Sometimes I have to be a bit ingenious to make ends meet, but the stress of home repair and doctor’s bills is a whole lot more manageable to me emotionally than the stress of grading 500 term papers over the weekend, “scheduling in” my family, playing office politics, and pretending I’m a yuppie when I’m actually a hippie.

Living happier helped me live healthier.

My goal is about 1-2 pounds a week. I have lost over 30 pounds since April 15 (my “I’m really gonna do it this time” date). I plan to be under 200 by the end of the year, and to my goal weight of 139 by next July. I plan to get off all these silly obesity medications (high blood pressure, blood sugar, acid reflux, etc.) I have gone from a size 26 to a size 20. I plan to have short term relationships with sizes 18, 16, and 14 before settling down in a long term relationship with a size 10/12. I also plan to eventually run a full mile, then a 5k, and someday a marathon. But right now I’m pretty stoked that I can actually run to the mailbox, and about that full 5k I walked/jogged/wogged/stumbled out in 52 minutes.

I never compare myself to others and I’m learning to not pay attention to the media or people who want to compare me to others or set standards for me. I find supportive people and try to shut up and listen to their supportive voices.
1 year ago I actually wrote the words “I’ll always be a fat chick.” At the time, I absolutely believed that to be truth and fate. I don’t believe that is a truth anymore. I believe I can make that statement true or I can make that statement false. I’m currently working on making it a past belief.

So, I totally believe you can do this. You will find exactly what works for you and you will do it, sometimes correctly, and sometimes incorrectly. Then, in like a year or two, you will be one of those people who encourage other newbies by sharing your success story and a new cycle of awesomeness will begin with you.