All you who did it..whats your best advice?

Step 1 if you don't have a food scale, buy a food scale. It makes a world of difference. People don't realize how bad they are at estimating how much they're really eating until they start using a scale. Aside from that, set a conservative, I repeat CONSERVATIVE weight loss goal that you can stick to and stay under your daily calorie allowance every day. I'd highly recommend taking up a lifting program to preserve your muscle mass as you lose weight. It's also a good idea to set up proper macronutrient goals to stick to.

My best advice is do some cardio everyday, even if it's just a walk.
Also accept your slip-ups and keep going. Don't use it an excuse to stop trying.
There is no need for hunger-eat at a reasonable deficit.
Include treats in the correct portions.

I'm in the same boat, my goal is to lose 20-25. For me, it helps to make all my meals ahead of time. Most importantly I put them all in containers( yes its a total hassle!! ) but I have zero self control... if I am just sitting with a bowl of pasta in front of me I will over eat. So, if I want a treat I have to go out and get one, which I do, and try to keep it to a small portion. Down 15ish so far, and working towards the end

Good luck!
-lift heavy!!!
-smile alot
-and dont forget to do cardio

I feel like I'm in there with you bc although I have 10-12 to go to get to the original goal I set for MFP, I have always wanted to get down about another 10 from there and see how my body felt, if it would even be maintainable there - so what is that? 20-22 lbs? After taking off 55 or so already, I feel like I've needed to regroup mentally. They say the last 10 are harder than the first 10 so, I'm trying to keep it fresh and remember that each day is a new beginning. it doesn't matter what happened yesterday, good or bad, it's what I do today that counts. And sure enough, all those awesome Today's add up to pounds lost when you stop to look back. But I take it a day at a time, a week at a time, and try each week to improve in some way over the previous week. That's it! Never stop improving.

-Pre-plan your main meals for the week and shop accordingly.
-Weigh/measure everything as much as possible and you will start to train your eye.
-Use fractions/decimals! Look for gram/ounce portions on the food entries you select, so for things like tomatoes, if it's per 100g it makes it easy to say I had .55 or 1.35 of a serving when I weigh it.

Keep at it!

If you rely on willpower to lose weight you will fail. You are establishing a new routine for a new way of life. Weigh, measure, and write it down. It works!

I've lost 30 pounds and honestly, its the same concept as losing 100 pounds. Weigh your food, eat less calories, exercise more. The last 10 pounds are the worse and will take the longest to lose.

If you fall off the wagon, get up, dust yourself off and do it all again. And remember everyone here has fallen off the wagon. Its perseverance that makes someone a weight loss success story.

BillRicks1 wrote: »

Log everything! You'd be amazed how a "little" cookie or "some" chips or a "couple of" Hersey's Kisses ad up over time. Rule of thumb - If it goes in your mouth - LOG IT!

just this!!

Don't be too hard on yourself... or too easy. There is always a reason to take a day off. It's my birthday. It's Thanksgiving. It's Christmas. I'm on vacation. I'm travelling. I have out-of-town guests... and on and on...

1. Use a food scale for everything. Seriously. It will change your life. I had the opposite problem of most people. I would overestimate my calories ("This pizza slice is 500 calories" when it was really 300, etc.) and then undereat. I was cranky and constantly hungry. I wouldn't stick with it because I was so miserable.
2. Get a food routine. Have a back up snack or simple meal at your house at all times so that you're not tempted to make poor decisions/eat outside of your calorie goal due to hunger. This also means learning when you are hungriest and breaking up your calories accordingly.
3. Exercise makes weight loss a lot easier. Find something that you can do daily or weekly that you enjoy that provides exercise. For a while, for me, that was Zumba. Some people join cycling groups or kickball leagues. Some people add yoga to the end of their day or free weights while watching TV. It's all about finding something you actually enjoy doing. I used to dance, so I got back into my favorite kind of dance, which is a crazy high cardio burn.
4. Don't beat yourself up for big meals. Sometimes, bottomless boozy brunch will call and you will answer and there is no way you're within your calories. Log it the best you can and move on. One day is one day. I've found that I don't impede my own success if I only do the bottomless booze and food thing about once a month.

Don't be intimidated too much by the sheer # of pounds someone has lost. I have lost 137 lb from my heaviest but the last 20-25 lb have been the slowest and hardest. The less you have to lose, the easier it is USUALLY.

Patience is key. Even if you're down 5 lb in a year, it's progress worth pursuing.