Hey, so... I'm new to this thing called 'exercise.'

VanityDeity
VanityDeity Posts: 2
in Introduce Yourself
"Exercise? What's that?!" That used to be me... until a month ago. I decided to kick my butt into gear and got myself a gym membership. 1 month and 17 pounds later, I'm slowly but surely getting to my goal.

My name is Heather, I'm 26 and am from Upstate, New York! I'm new to this site, I signed up when I first started exercising and dieting, but I haven't really utilized this site until today.

So, ready for some personal stuff? I feel like everyday that I go to the gym, I work myself to the point of near exhaustion, drench my clothes in sweat, and at the end of the week, I see a 3-5lb weight loss. Which is great, but somewhere in the back of my mind I think I should be losing more. I'm a big lady, and many times have contemplated gastric bypass. But I'm trying to do this without surgery. It's still very early on, but I'm doing it. And I definitely lived a sedentary life. Mostly desk jobs or jobs where I could sit on my butt. I do have a lot of health issues as well. I was born with a genetic disorder called Kartagener's Syndrome. (Y'all might wanna pull up Google right about now lol) so I've always been "the fat girl" even as a toddler, I was always bigger than everyone else. I don't ever see myself getting to where I'm a size 2 and my BMI is spot on -- but I'd like to be comfortable. I'm 5'1'', so I would need to be like, 120 lbs. The last time I was 120 lbs I was still in diapers, okay? Lol, alright, so maybe not that young, but I was very young. You get the picture. Anyways, hello everyone, hope to make some new friends and gain a nice little support network over the course of this new journey!

Replies

  • awesomek001
    awesomek001 Posts: 167 Member
    Hey, I get the mentality that you're struggling with. Every school picture, I'm the "big girl in the back row". But you're doing it right! Taking the steps to go to the gym, exercise and get healthy. I can tell you that loosing 3-5 lbs a week is AMAZING, so don't think that you're going to loose like those folks on The Biggest Loser!!
    I'd love to be one of your supporters - so feel free to add me as a friend.
  • beautifullittlemexx
    beautifullittlemexx Posts: 25
    Hi :)

    I'm Shelley and I'm from Australia :)

    Don't be discouraged. 3/5 pounds a week is a good rate for weight loss :) If you lose it too quickly it is really hard to keep it off and it's better for your body to slowly adjust (Ok so I know that that is a really simple overgeneralization, if that's even a word :P, but that generally how it works) Everyday you work our you a fitter and stronger than the day before. You may not be at your goal but you are one step closer than you were yesterday and that is a big accomplishment :) Think of what your life was like a month ago compared to now, if you have come that far in a month them imagine where you can be next month or next year, your whole life is ahead of you :)

    Feel free to add me :) I'm a pretty active member and I'd like to think I'm a pretty good cheerleader. Always looking for a new friend :) good luck on your journey xx
  • outlandish30
    outlandish30 Posts: 21 Member
    The rate you are losing is great. Don't give up! Also you can add me if you want :)
  • billsica
    billsica Posts: 4,741 Member
    actually 17 lbs in one month is kind of a lot to lose. Awesome work.
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
    I would definitely scale back on that weight loss. 3-5lbs a week is excessive and will likely lead to lean body mass loss. And/or injury. And/or hair falling out. You know, that sort of thing. Your ticker says you only have 70lbs to lose, shoot for 1.5lbs/week tops if you want to have a prayer of keeping that weight off. You will be much better off long term.
  • VanityDeity
    VanityDeity Posts: 2
    I would definitely scale back on that weight loss. 3-5lbs a week is excessive and will likely lead to lean body mass loss. And/or injury. And/or hair falling out. You know, that sort of thing. Your ticker says you only have 70lbs to lose, shoot for 1.5lbs/week tops if you want to have a prayer of keeping that weight off. You will be much better off long term.

    I changed my ticker, I actually have 110 lbs to lose. I'm not starving myself or over working myself by any means, I think the reason so much weight is coming off is because my butt hasn't seen this much physical activity since I was 10. :tongue: Would you still suggest scaling back? I'm losing this much weight solely by walking 1-2 miles on the treadmill and 2 miles on a stationary bike 4-5 times a week as well as some weight training thrown in. So it's not a lot, but it's a lot for me. Even after losing 110 lbs, I still should probably lose an additional 50-60 to be considered at a moderately healthy weight. Really, diet and exercise has never been a high priority in my life, not even as a child. So... any advice would be much appreciated. :smile:
  • mrsgrimsdale
    mrsgrimsdale Posts: 60
    My twin on another continent
    I don't have quite the same health issues, but have had an undiagnosed thyroid problem helping me grow to the weight I am now for over 20 years . The doctors finally thought to check me over thoroughly when I asked for a gastric bypass, then I saw the light, I was about to become type 2 diabetic had cholesterol thru the roof, high blood pressure and surprise surprise depression.
    I found MFP by accident and have lost almost a stone since that visit to the doctor. I hit my first goal of 18stone this week and promised myself I would join a gym when I got to this weight so today I am off to bite the bullet.
    I wish you every success in your journey and would be happy if you would add me as a friend.
  • mrsgrimsdale
    mrsgrimsdale Posts: 60
    I would definitely scale back on that weight loss. 3-5lbs a week is excessive and will likely lead to lean body mass loss. And/or injury. And/or hair falling out. You know, that sort of thing. Your ticker says you only have 70lbs to lose, shoot for 1.5lbs/week tops if you want to have a prayer of keeping that weight off. You will be much better off long term.

    I changed my ticker, I actually have 110 lbs to lose. I'm not starving myself or over working myself by any means, I think the reason so much weight is coming off is because my butt hasn't seen this much physical activity since I was 10. :tongue: Would you still suggest scaling back? I'm losing this much weight solely by walking 1-2 miles on the treadmill and 2 miles on a stationary bike 4-5 times a week as well as some weight training thrown in. So it's not a lot, but it's a lot for me. Even after losing 110 lbs, I still should probably lose an additional 50-60 to be considered at a moderately healthy weight. Really, diet and exercise has never been a high priority in my life, not even as a child. So... any advice would be much appreciated. :smile:

    I would take it steady it doesn't sound like you are overdoing the exercise, make sure you are eating back your calories though to make sure you lose fat and not muscle, a point to keep in mind is that when your body has been stretched for a long time like yours and mine, it takes time for the skin to shrink back, at least at your age it has more elasticity and plenty of time to go back, but the quicker you lose weight the more likely you are to have loose wrinkly skin to deal with. So slow but sure is the way to go. Just my opinion. :)
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
    I would definitely scale back on that weight loss. 3-5lbs a week is excessive and will likely lead to lean body mass loss. And/or injury. And/or hair falling out. You know, that sort of thing. Your ticker says you only have 70lbs to lose, shoot for 1.5lbs/week tops if you want to have a prayer of keeping that weight off. You will be much better off long term.

    I changed my ticker, I actually have 110 lbs to lose. I'm not starving myself or over working myself by any means, I think the reason so much weight is coming off is because my butt hasn't seen this much physical activity since I was 10. :tongue: Would you still suggest scaling back? I'm losing this much weight solely by walking 1-2 miles on the treadmill and 2 miles on a stationary bike 4-5 times a week as well as some weight training thrown in. So it's not a lot, but it's a lot for me. Even after losing 110 lbs, I still should probably lose an additional 50-60 to be considered at a moderately healthy weight. Really, diet and exercise has never been a high priority in my life, not even as a child. So... any advice would be much appreciated. :smile:

    Even at 110lbs to lose I wouldn't want to lose much more than 2lbs a week. Extreme weight loss speed pretty much always fails. I had over 100lbs to lose when I started to (only 4lbs from goal now) and I never lost any more than 2lbs a week. I'm also a tall male. It has been very sustainable, 3-5 is very unlikely to be.

    It's hard to say how you're doing, you've only logged one day total that I saw and you net intake was about 200 calories which is extremely low and a really, really bad idea. So I would definitely rethink your plans if you're eating like that normally. At your size you can probably eat 1800-2000 calories a day and still lose a reasonable amount of weight each week. Eating around 1200 and then exercising for almost 1000 is a disaster waiting to happen.
  • michybeans
    michybeans Posts: 106
    3-5lbs a week is FRICKIN AMAZING! Although keep in mind the smaller you get, weight loss tends to go slower too, so don't get discouraged later on when you're not dropping that much in a week. Right now I'm lucky if I lose 1/4 pound a week! But that's ok, because progress is progress. :)

    As for working to near exhaustion, just make sure you are exercising at a pace/rate that is sustainable for you to keep up. I don't mean while you're exercising - go all out! - but I mean in terms of a lifestyle change. To be healthy, even after you have lost the weight you want to, you are going to need to exercise to maintain that and stay healthy, so just make sure it's activities you like or can at least bear to do long-term. For me, that involves changing things up every once in awhile so I don't get bored of doing the same workout or activity.

    But seriously awesome work and keep it up!!! Friend me if you want and we can help motivate each other.
  • ImaginingJackie
    ImaginingJackie Posts: 4
    I just started exercising, too!

    I know it seems like you're losing weight slowly, but it really is great that you're losing that much that quickly. It probably doesn't seem like enough or like it's fast enough (I know that's how I feel a lot of times), but you're also looking at a large amount of weight you want to work off. As others have said, it will slow down more as you get lighter because you have to work your body harder to lose the same amount of calories.

    I saw an image that really made me feel a lot better about myself a little while ago. It's a picture what a pound of fat and a pound of muscle would look like. It's not real fat or muscle, just made to look like them and represent how different they are from each other.
    http://www.meh.ro/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/meh.ro9002.jpg

    So if you feel like you're getting no where, look at that and remember that you're doing a lot more than you can see from the outside. c: Good luck! Feel free to friend me!
  • Kotuliak
    Kotuliak Posts: 259 Member
    Clearly, there are two schools of thought. One is, hey, you're losing 3-5 pounds a week, that's great, I'd like to do that too! The other is, what you're doing is unhealthy and even dangerous.

    I would suggest that you read the fora and get familiar with the arguments, reasoning, and science behind those opinions and attitudes, and make your own decision on how you want to proceed.

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