Todays my first day BUT....

Can you donate the junk food to a food pantry or just unload it on a friend who would take it?

get rid of all the junk if u are serious about this. I designate Saturday as a junk day. I just limit my intake to 2000 calories one day a week. Monday-Friday, I hit the gym for 90 minute sessions.:flowerforyou:

Great decision! And like everyone else has already said, you can eat the foods you like just in moderation. Take this month to get into the habit of logging everything you eat and drink and getting the correct portion sizes down. Make changes, but don't try and overhaul your diet all at once. Read the message boards, get more ideas, next month for shopping maybe get some of your favorite foods, and also more fruits, veggies, whole grains. There are a lot of high calorie foods that I used to love, that I figured out how to make healthier versions of them at home also. I still eat my fair share of junk, it's just all about balance and moderation.

As for exercise, just start with what you can do. Go for a walk everyday, find some videos you like on youtube, dance to some music, just find some things you like to do to get moving. My health and how I felt was my main motivator, now I love seeing how strong I can be. Just start, keep logging, and have patience, this is a lifetime of health we're talking about after all. Best of luck in your journey!

How many calories does MFP tell you to eat?

All of the food you have should have labels, right? So log the food you eat, but stay below the calorie goal that you've set. If you eat at a deficit, you'll start to lose. No matter what food it is.

Good luck!

^^^This. Then when you next grocery shop, you can add healthier food.

Hi Sweety, today is also my first day! I am 56 yrs old and I weigh 266 lbs. I have just been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes as well as high cholesterol, fatty liver, thyroid problems, high blood pressure and asthma! Yah imagine all that! And most of it is from being overweight and not doing any kind of exercise! If I can do this then you can do it! My advice is for you to basically clean your house of all the fatty foods and don't bring anything that isn't fat free or low fat or sugar free or all natural into your house! I have a tread mill that I will start out with 10 min. three times a day GOD willing I can handle that much exercise! I hope you will be successful with your healthier lifestyle !

Desert connector :flowerforyou:

If you can't do that much, do what you can because it's still more than doing nothing. Better to start very slowly and increase gradually than hurt yourself or get discouraged and quit. You'll get there! :flowerforyou:

Best of luck with your journey! You can enjoy all the foods you have, but in smaller quantities as many have advised!
For me a big turning point was when my dad bought me some kitchen scales! I have never looked back! Portion control is the key!
I found this particularly true of my favourite comfort food, pasta! Also using the app to log everything honestly, its so worth it
Really really good luck, I'm sure you will succeed

You sound like a perfect candidate for Adopt-a-Noob. Check this thread....

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1161976-adopt-a-noob-official-mfp-thread

Many very experienced MFP's are willing to mentor noobies... just because they know what it was like when they first got here.

Read the first post in the thread. There are quite a few mentors who have offered services, fairly recently, so you could start from the last page of the thread, if you wanted, to find someone who might be suitable for you. It's your obligation to find possible mentors from the thread.... ( there's also an updated list in the first post ) and PM them. Don't just post in the thread that you'd like a mentor. That's not how it works.

And, just for emphasis..... I know it's already posted in this thread... but this.....

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants?hl=sexypants

Congratulations on this new life journey!

It's already been said and I'll reiterate. Eat what you have, but log everything and make it fit into your goals for the day.

I would like to suggest a few things I have found that help me feel really successful and not at all deprived: Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches and fudge bars; Skinny Pop Popcorn (4 cups of yummy popcorn worth about 50 calories); Lean Cuisine Pizzas; Dannon Oikos Greek Yogurt (Apple Pie is best); Diamond Cocoa covered almonds in 100-calorie packs; and Diet Dr. Pepper.

Also, I watch my sodium intake because I'm very sensitive to water retention, so I skip all lunch meats (packaged and deli) and buy chicken tenderloins to bake with Mrs. Dash. They are easy to add to just about everything from salad to mac and cheese.

If you go low fat, you'll find artificial sweeteners and carbs added in which can mess with blood sugar if you have issues, so it's better to have less of full fat things, in my humble opinion.

Don't shy away from food, just shy away from huge portions. Get a food scale and weigh everything. Take measurements now and before pictures. Re-take them all every 30 days. You'll be really surprised at the changes!

Lastly, don't be afraid to ask questions and don't ever give up!

Congratulations on making a big change in your life!

I didn't get a chance to read all the replies because there are so many but I can offer a little bit of advice! First my suggestion would be to just use what food you have now and try to stick within the calorie goal that MFP gives you and just begin planning ahead of time.

If you do your shopping only once a month it will be tough for you in regards to getting your fruits and veggies so if you can, can you try and budget so that you have money to be able to split up your shopping so that you can get some fresh produce once a week or once every 2 weeks? Eating clean doesn't have to break the bank, we are a family of 4 on 1 income and with some planning ahead I can usually keep things very reasonable. The one thing I do is I avoid a lot of pre packaged food. I purchase brown rice, Quinoa and Oats in bulk, I buy my chicken or lean meat in the larger portions, you can even buy big boxes of frozen chicken breasts, the only reason I don't is that I don't care for the texture of them, but my husband says there is no difference Then once a week I purchase my produce, eggs, dairy and I prepare my food for the week ahead. I try to shop the outside of the grocery store, not the aisles. try and live by the 80/20 rule. I try and keep things clean and healthy 80% of the time, so when I do slip up or have a special occasion it's not so bad. Yes, calories are calories, but 1500 calories of clean healthy food, is far more beneficial than 1500 calories of packaged and processed food. So each little step you make in that direction will make a big difference to you! Not just your weight, but your heart, blood sugar, cholesterol etc.

As for working out, if it is new for you, just take it easy, start slow and work your way up. Even a 30 min walk every day helps! Each week you will get stronger, feel great and you will want more!

Monitor your progress with measurements and photos, look at them and be proud at how far you have come, share it with friends and family, get that support and encouragement!

Any lifestyle change takes time, if we overload ourselves at the start it can be hard to stay on target, so just take it each day at a time and things will begin to unfold for you! Good luck to you!

I hope you succeed. I decided enough was enough about a year ago and for my first two weeks I simply made it a habit to track everything I ate or drank with the MFP app on my phone. I didn't even moderate anything, I just made it a habit to track everything. I was blown away with how many calories I was taking in.
Then I started using MFP and my doctors advice about intake per day and 74 pounds and 10 months later it's still a struggle but it's not impossible. Time will pass not matter what. One day's indulgence doesn't make you a failure, it's what you do over time that counts.