BUSY MOM WITH A FULL TIME JOB WHO NEEDS TO LOSE 80LBS+

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Sanela_S
Sanela_S Posts: 2 Member
in Introduce Yourself
Hi Everyone!! So I'm new to MFP. I'm 24 years old and 5'3 and weigh in at 249. This is the heaviest I have ever been in my life and it's finally come to the point where I have had enough. I have a 1 year old boy (who is extremely busy!) I gained 30 pounds during my pregnancy and never lost it after I gave birth. Sticking to a "diet" has been diffcult in the past because I feel hungry all the time and working out is so difficult to do when I work full time and have to be a mom and wife at home.And then I get depressed and over eat. I just started a 1,300 calorie diet. I do not exercise yet. Before, I used to eat anything. Never watched my calorie or fat intake and drank soda every single day( i was addicted)! I'm wondering if I will loose weight on a 1,300 calorie diet and drinking only water... without exercise? Has anyone done a diet before without exercise? I just need motivation and to hear from someone that I can make this happen and that I am on the right track this time... Add me :)

Replies

  • InForBacon
    InForBacon Posts: 1,508 Member
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    Welcome, make it a priority and you will succeed.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/918054-what-is-your-excuse-pics-included?hl=what's+your+excuse+pics+included

    ETA: weight loss happens by eating a calorie deficit. The type of exercise you do determines how you will look when the weight comes off. Don't deprive yourself of anything or you might find yourself being unable to stick with it. Good luck.
  • tootchute
    tootchute Posts: 392 Member
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    Hello, I'm also 5'3 and I'm 33 year old. I have one son but through the course of 15 years, I ballooned to 355. I started in April and I'm 66 pounds lighter. I'm pretty sure if your busy mom your getting exercise even if you don't mark it up. I eat get 1500 calories but normal stay 1300-1400, so I think you can do it without exercise, like at a gym
  • _Tara_R
    _Tara_R Posts: 688 Member
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    Welcome!! I understand....I'm a busy mom with a full time job as well. You have to make that time for yourself....even if it is 30 minutes. You will feel so much better. Make it a priority and you will do great! :)
  • tryinghard71
    tryinghard71 Posts: 593
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    My opinion only because it is what worked for me. Calories in vs. Calories out. Losing weight is 80% what you eat and 20% activity. Exercise is for your health and to earn more calories to eat. Diet alone can result in weight loss. Working out helped me for two reasons. One, I wanted to eat more. Two, because I wanted to tone, and be healthy not just lose weight. It's all about putting yourself first. Telling yourself you are worth it. I use to tell myself I was too busy as well. I was busy taking care of other people and busy not taking care of myself. I had to take an hour out of the day and tell everyone around me including my boss and my husband that this is my hour. It's my hour I work out and keep myself healthy and happy so I can take care of my job and my home and my husband. So even though it seems selfish and all about me it was what I deserved to live longer and have a healthy life.
  • NovemberJune
    NovemberJune Posts: 2,525 Member
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    I started in the 230s with a 1 year old and a 3 year old and a full time job. I would be way too hungry to stick to a 1300 calorie diet. I ate around 1600-2000 calories/day during my weight loss (depending on my weight and exercise at the time) and now I maintain on about 2000. Good luck!
  • mumtoonegirl
    mumtoonegirl Posts: 586 Member
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    I am a busy working mom of one and daycare provider to 5 more, I get busy. You need to make yourself a priority. Find a gym that has child minding, make your child part of your fitness routine but honestly 80% of your loss is going to come in the kitchen so log log log!

    Feel free to add me.
  • askeates
    askeates Posts: 1,490 Member
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    It is possible, and you will have good results initially.... and here comes the HOWEVER, exercise is a must as well. I have lost weight doing absolutely no exercise, just modifying what I ate.... I did really well, and then I started binge eating and it all came back and then some. My best success has come from modifying my diet and also adding exercise. A simple walk 2-3 times a day is a great way to start, and I bet your son would love it as well.

    Take him to the playground and run around with him.... any kind of movement to get you started will make a difference.

    I work full-time (and then some) and am a single mom of 3 children (including a very active 17 month old)... we take the dogs for a walk, and I will let the baby run and chase after her. Or we go to the park for an hour and we run, go down the slide, swing, go to a soccer field or baseball field and just kick a ball around.

    You can find ways to get activity in there, and in the long run it will help your overall health! Best of luck, and if you need encouragement feel free to add me, just please include a note with the request. :drinker:
  • MelRC117
    MelRC117 Posts: 911 Member
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    Hi there!
    I'm 26 and I work full time. I have a 14 month old son (and a 12 year old stepson). I had my son July 2012 and gained A LOT of weight. 70 pounds. I had lost 90 pounds a few years ago and totally lost control when I got pregnant. It took until this January for me to realize I need to buckle down. I went back on low carb (it worked for me before) and counted calories too. I lost the 26 pounds in the first 3 months and have struggled to get that back down. I know its my food choices that have stalled my weight loss. I didn't really exercise those months. I didn't feel like leaving the house after getting home from work and I live in Wisconsin so getting outside for just a walk isn't doable in February.

    I know working out would be better for me, and don't get me wrong I want to get that incorporated again into my lifestyle, but my main struggle is food and its what I have the most control over.
  • ruggedBear
    ruggedBear Posts: 295
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    Welcome - you can do this! I am 45, have 2 very active kids (11&13), work 50-60 hours/week and spend the rest of my time shuttling them from practice to practice. It took me a year to lose 70lbs, but I did it!

    I started at 5'2", 240 lbs. Got down to 162, now 180 lbs (gained a bit back during the winter last year and trying really hard to get rid of it again!)

    Eating at a deficit is good for the first couple of months or so, but when you hit the wall and stop losing, you'll need to integrate some sort of activity into the day to recharge your metabolism. The body wants to maintain stasis at all times - so you have to force it to change or it will simply adapt to your eating habits to maintain that stasis.

    I disagree with the no-exercise option. Without exercise, you lose as much muscle as you do fat and that's not going to improve your heatlh. Balance is really important. When people ask me what I like best about being healthier - it's not actually the smaller size that makes me happiest - it's the improved strength, stamina and overall confidence that comes from knowing my body can do almost anything I ask of it. Just losing the lbs won't get you there.

    For exercise - I started with walking (during practices), progressed to running, working with a trainer at the gym doing every kind of compound weight-bearing exercise you've ever heard of (mixing it up is KEY!). I run, bike, hike, lift weights (heavy), kettlebells, sandbags, ropes, etc. I make it a priority to be active for at least an hour every day - even if it's 6 hours of slinging mulch in the yard on Sunday - it all counts. Take the kiddo, buy a toddler backpack and walk with them in it (they almost always fall asleep anyway!).

    There's always a way - just find what works for your lifestyle and stick with it.
  • pbakasha
    pbakasha Posts: 8
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    I am right there with you sister (I need to lose at least 100 lbs)!!! I have a 4 year old and an 11 year old. The 11 year old plays travel ball and the 4 year old is playing ball as well. With my work schedule, my husband's work schedule, a house to maintain, extended family who we spend a lot of time with, a family business (outside of our full-time jobs), I feel your pain. I had a personal trainer look at my schedule one day and tell me that unless I wanted to join a 24 hour gym, there was really no place to carve out time for me if I wanted to maintain all that I do. Look at your BMR. You need to burn 3500 calories to lose one pound. You can lose weight with diet alone but ultimately, how will you feel? I know I need to tone as well and a more tone body burns those calories more efficiently. Like someone else said, running around after a toddler is exercise. Laying down on the floor and playing with your child (lifting over your head, squats, planking, all of these can be done in play) will be exercise also. There are lots of videos out there (look on youtube) which can help incorporate playtime as exercise. When I carry laundry up and down the stairs, I take small loads so I have to make more trips or I stop on the stairs and do calf lifts. When I am standing at the stove cooking dinner, I try to do leg lifts or when retrieving a pan from the bottom cabinet, I try to do a set of 10 squats. Each of these small things can add up over the course of the day. I am just starting back to MFP after being gone for years. This is a great community to find inspiration. Just stick with it. If you falter or are just feeling like you cannot do it anymore, take a deep breath and start again. If you have bad day (or just say to heck with it and eat something really bad), don't wait until the next day to start back with it. Every moment is a struggle and the best time to start back is now. Always now, not later. It has taken me a long time to come to this and it will take me a long time to lose it. I'm ok with that. Have faith in yourself. You can do it. You are strong. Remember, it takes at least 21 days to develop a new habit or to break an old. I look forward to reading about your success.


    p.s. Sorry for the long reply :-)
  • Sanela_S
    Sanela_S Posts: 2 Member
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    Thank you all so very, very much! It feels amazing to have so much motivation and support from others who have gone through this already. It proves to me that IT IS possible! I am going to try my very best to stick to this new "lifestyle" (no diet!) and am looking foward to possitive results.
  • askeates
    askeates Posts: 1,490 Member
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    You will do this, keep the positive attitude, and keep the questions coming if you have them! :flowerforyou:

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