Morbidly Obese and need help now!

Just because none of us can see you, know how well you'd do with certain exercise, etc... I would suggest seeing a PT or nutritionist. They'll give you answers catered to your body and your body type/skill level/activity level/job/etc, that way you know exactly what you should be doing/eating/planning/setting as goals.

It's difficult for us to help much besides just saying "Make sure calories out > calories in" (because to be honest, that's weight loss for ya).

I understand it's a scary time. Please just make sure you don't put it off any longer, we all want you to live a long happy life and if something happened to you, it would make it that much more difficult.

So glad to hear you want to start changing your lifestyle!! GOOD LUCK!!

its only been two weeks and you are seeing results. why not just stay the course, read, learn adapt as you go. You dont need to make massive changes right away, slowly start changing things.

my immediate advice is to up your calories a bit, i wish i would have when i first started. keep reading everything, ignoring 90% of it. get a digital scale to weigh your foods, get a hrm to get a better estimate on your calorie burn.

I started at 5'3" and 236. 1200 calories is way too low for you. I have MFP set to lose 1 lb a week and it put me in the 1600 calorie range. I've been losing pretty steadily and that number of calories doesn't make me feel hungry or deprived of my favorite foods.

You might even move it up to 1800 calories. I forget all the calculations but I'm pretty sure you'd still be in a calorie deficit with 1800 calories/day.

Don't be scared of going to the gym. The only people who would judge you are jerks who don't deserve the time of day or your slightest giving of a single ****.

but the idea of walking into our small town gym mortifies me.

Don't let it intimidate you too much. There are people of all different levels of fitness working out in most gyms. You may think that the people who have been doing it for a while and are in good shape will look down on you, but for the most part, people will respect you for making the effort. Everybody's got to start somewhere. Like the ad says, just do it!

Your daily calories are based on gender, age, weight, height, and how much exercise you do. I weigh 323.2 lbs and my daily goal is 2310 calories, set to lose 1 lb a week. I regularly burn over 3000 calories a day just on everyday routines. If you don't think you can maintain at 1200 calories, you can rework your settings so you only lose 1 lb a week, instead of 2. Make sure you log your exercise calories, but only eat back 50-75% of them.

You CAN do this!

Make sure your weighing ALL of your food (except liquids) on a food scale, and log EVERYTHING that goes in your mouth. If you go over on calories, don't let it push you off the wagon. Bad days happen. Just pick yourself up and try better at the next meal.

You look like you're well on your way. I was confused at first when I started out and still learning day by day. You sound like you've made a lot of good changes and those will add up to big results.
I too am morbidly obese and in the process of changing things and it does feel SO good!
I don't have a lot of advice but wish you nothing but success! The inches lost and the numbers going backwards on the scale will make you so happy you made those little changes to a happier lifestyle

You can definitely do it. I started at 220 and 5'3 (started actively logging on MFPa couple of months into it, was logging at Livestrong earlier). I was totally in denial before I got up on that scale. I knew I was way heavier than was good for me, but I figured I was close to my previously high scale weight of 189. Nope. I was depressed for a few days after I weighed myself and then decided it might take longer than I'd thought, but it was coming off.

I started at 1250 (I changed it from 1200, since at 1200 you are either over or being told you are eating too little, so too little room for error, IMO) and still aim for 1250 net, although I usually eat a good bit more with exercise and have adjusted my activity from sedentary to lightly active, so I wouldn't say that goal is wrong for you (depending on your age--I forgot to check). For me it was important to aim for 2 lb/week in part because getting rid of that weight played a part in helping me to be more active. On the other hand, (1) at your current weight you are probably getting the number based on a sedentary estimate and you may not be, most people aren't, MFP's job explanation is not a very good one; and (2) you can eat more and lose if the calorie count feels too low or leaves you with insufficient energy/constantly wanting to cheat or just not happy.

The important thing to remember is that the MFP way really gives you a ton of flexibility to fit this to your own needs and preferences.

I think it's good not to let yourself get overwhelmed at first--you can do this in smaller steps. I'm really list oriented, so made a bunch of lists of goals, for a week, a month, so on, and then started journaling, which was helpful in dealing with some of the emotional stuff that I'd been using food for, but perhaps that's too touchy-feely or just me specific. But in terms of the practical bits, the two things I started with were (1) getting control of my diet and where I was overeating, and (2) getting more active. I knew I was too out of shape to leap into a major exercise program too soon--I'd just feel bad and get frustrated, so I started with walking more, like you have. I think that's okay for now, although I agree with everyone else that I both understand why walking into the gym is intimidating and that it really is in your head and the gym exists in part for people like us, and IMO the people there should be helpful and show you around, etc.

On the diet, I think it's helpful to log how you have been eating and look at where the calories are coming from. I had a feeling I was consuming a lot of calories in a thoughtless way, and I was. When I replaced that with 3 balanced meals (it doesn't matter how often you eat, I just prefer 3), I actually cut calories too much at first and had to realize that I could incorporate more calorie dense foods than my initial reaction had been. But the point is the MFP tool allows you to put in sample meals, as well as past meals just to see how the calories add up--it's a good way to learn meal planning.

The MFP calculator works just fine for finding calorie goals and the rest, especially at first when it's easy to get overwhelmed. You can play around with everything else and worry about macros and so on later, unless you are the kind of person who finds that stuff motivating. A couple of things to remember, though--it assumes no exercise, even though it asks how much you plan to exercise, so you need to log exercise and eat back at least some of the calories from it (not all, since sometimes the counts are overstated), and if your calories are too low you can lower your weekly goal. There's no rush--it's more important to make this sustainable.

You say: "Does it matter caloric wise that I am obese? I need help."

It matters in two ways. First, when it calculates your calorie burn it uses a formula that takes into account a lot of things, including current weight. So at a higher weight you burn more even without exercise and when you exercise you will also burn more. That allows you to eat more and lose--so you definitely will be losing at 1500-1600 or even 1800, just not as fast. However, it also means that, especially if you are exercising, it's okay to have a somewhat higher deficit (in other words, aim at 2 lb/week) than someone who is only 15 lb overweight. It's really up to you, what feels sustainable and whether you have enough energy at how much you are eating.

I would get a pedometer and start shooting for 10,000 steps a day. As for eating, 1200 calories is hard. If it were me, I'd try to recreate what my normal food day looked like BEFORE you started your journey. Get an average of what you were eating (calorie count) and then subtract 500 calories to begin with. For every 10 pounds you lose, readjust your calorie settings.

1200 is not enough! Not sure of your age but you need to be eating closer to 1500-1600 a day . 1200 a day is a set up for failure and future gain back of all the weight you lose

I would tend to agree with everyone in that 1200 calories a day is too low. One of the most important things to do is to set realistic goals for yourself and understand that you may not make that goal in the time frame you expected. It took time to put on the weight and it will take time to take off the weight.

I started off at 355 pounds and have shrunk more than 100 pounds. For me there was one thing that was a big factor in both my weight gain and my weight loss: soda. I stopped drinking all soda July 31st last year and I believe that this is the one factor that accounted for the majority of the weight gain/loss.

Another factor was that after examining what I was eating I discovered that I was under eating protein. Sure, I met the MyFitnessPal level (15%), but based on my weight and activity that number was too low. It needed to be over 20% for me to be eating "properly".

So, my advice? Take it slow and keep reading everything you can about nutrition. As for a TDEE calculator, I find the Scooby calculator to be inaccurate for larger individuals such as myself. If It Fits Your Macros (http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/) seems to be more accurate based upon my own experience. (Your mileage may vary.)

You can do this and we are all here to help you whenever you need it.

Don't be scared of going to the gym. The only people who would judge you are jerks who don't deserve the time of day or your slightest giving of a single ****.

So agree with this - I did not want to go to the gym but my son encouraged me - everyone has been so wonderful and supportive. Have had some nice conversations with the super fit people and enjoy the gym now!

You can do this!

While I agree with others that you shouldn't be scared of the gym...I totally understand - especially in a small town. A good start with weights would be kettle bells (I love mine!). My advise here - start today! The more weight you lose before really starting to tone, the saggier the skin and we don't want that!

Calories - not a one size fits all. Play with these. I lose best eating at my BMR -15% level. I also do best with a low carb plan. These things are personal and you need to see what feels best for you.

I'd be glad to answer any questions if you'd like to PM me.

Best of luck! You are on the right path.

Great suggestions from all....I'm sure you'd agree. I started out at 275lbs. I'm 5'8". I joined a gym and got myself a PT. I didn't care about being overweight and going to the gym, I did care however about looking stupid using equipment. So for me, the PT was beyond awesome. As far as other gym goers, no problem there. Every person, regardless of shape, are just there doing their own thing. I've been met with smiles and occassionally encouraging word. It's become my "church" so to speak. I not only enjoy going there for the obvious, but it's my hour away from all that is hectic. Good luck to you! Feel free to add me a a friend if you wish.

You can do it! I am 5'4" and started out at 229 so close to the same as you These are the links that helped me get going:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

If you aren't already using one, get and use a food scale. Weigh all solids. Measuring cups/spoons are not accurate:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY
Neither is guessing:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1270280-food-weighing-scale-miracles

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

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1235566-so-you-re-new-here

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/872212-you-re-probably-eating-more-than-you-think

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1234699-logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide

+1

The information in those links is exactly what you need to succeed.

My personal advice:

Set your calories to 1500-1700 per day and log exercise conservatively. I have gone from 186-150 by eating 1600-1900 a day. 1200 will result in weight loss but you will struggle to stay at that deficit which will make it more likely that you binge or quit.

Get a food scale. It's very common for new people to both underestimate their calories while overestimating their exercise burns and then come to the forums and say they are doing everything right but not losing. Weighing your food is as easy as Plate, dump food, zero, dump food, zero, dump food, zero. It seriously takes a few seconds and is more accurate than using cups/spoons.

Find an activity that you enjoy and can do comfortably and stick with it. If you hate the elliptical, don't use it. If you like walking, then walk for 30 mins a day. Pick up some weights, just make sure it is a weight that challenges you.

Good luck. :drinker: