What One Small Change Made the Biggest Difference?

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  • Lasmartchika
    Lasmartchika Posts: 3,440 Member
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    Drinking more water, cooking most of my meals (I say "most" because I still go out to eat), and not freak out if I ever go over my daily calories - I'll just continue the next day like normal.
  • madlaser504
    madlaser504 Posts: 3 Member
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    Today I actually turned down birthdaycake, and denied myself soda. It take time.
  • bbmoss4life
    bbmoss4life Posts: 3 Member
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    Healthy meal prep & counting calories
  • snowflake930
    snowflake930 Posts: 2,188 Member
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    The only thing that really made a difference was, eating less calories than I burned.
  • econut2000
    econut2000 Posts: 395 Member
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    This was mentioned already, but is totally worth mentioning again, is that you're going to have bad days. Don't let one bad choice, derail your whole goal. We have to forgive ourselves and move on. :)
  • JMC3Terp
    JMC3Terp Posts: 2,803 Member
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    Easiest answer is probably just tracking what you ea.

    Beyond that, the main 3 I can think of are:
    1) get rid of alcohol/pop/soda
    2) eat more often, but smaller portions
    3) drink LOTS of water
  • giantrobot_powerlifting
    giantrobot_powerlifting Posts: 2,598 Member
    edited June 2015
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    Planning. I stick to my plan, i.e. when to wake, workout, and what/when to eat.

    Success goes back to planning and how one structures their life - it will leave you no excuses.
  • DuckReconMajor
    DuckReconMajor Posts: 434 Member
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    Chewing each bite 30 times, or until it's just not feasible to chew it any longer.
    Not letting my water cup sit empty.
  • healthygreek
    healthygreek Posts: 2,137 Member
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    Weighing my food.
  • JodieP13
    JodieP13 Posts: 94 Member
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    My standing desk is helpful! :)
  • TheVirgoddess
    TheVirgoddess Posts: 4,535 Member
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    LolBroScience wrote: »
    Consistency

    Yes. I've lost 83 pounds and this is why.
  • DeterminedFee201426
    DeterminedFee201426 Posts: 859 Member
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    Not having so many cookies, cakes and doughnuts in my home = 0
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,426 Member
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    Pre-logging my whole day has been very helpful. I have really thought about my choices more and pay attention to how I feel with different choices. I don't worry that I will be eating too much or too little because I already figured it out.
    Not being restrictive or negative about food. I still eat and enjoy most of the same foods just appropriate portion sizes for my goals. I see I get more satisfaction from a certain amount of protein, vegetables, etc vs a small amount of another higher calorie food that will actually leave me wanting to eat more sooner. I want the food that will give me more satisfaction for the amount of calories.
    Drinking water or unsweetened tea and saving my calories for food most of the time.
    Setting a moderate regular exercise goal instead of trying to do hours every day and giving up. I can do about 30 minutes of some exercise 6 days a week.
    Not freaking out if I go over my calories one day or the scale is up one week. Look at weekly calorie intake and weight loss trends over time.
    Not putting a time limit on my progress. I have accepted that it will take time to get to my goal. Every day I am better off than I was even if it takes a year or more to get to my goal.
  • mirandafromwv
    mirandafromwv Posts: 1 Member
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    For me it was water. Drinking only water with the occasional cup of coffee. I used to drink at least six-eight cans of Mountain Dew a day. Being able to cut that sugar out and drink at least 72 ounces of water has made me feel wonderful. Also, logging everything that goes into my body makes me seem more accountable to not only myself but also friends who have access to my diet on mfp.
  • BioQueen
    BioQueen Posts: 694 Member
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    The biggest thing for me was to stay on track. I can be an all-or-nothing type of person with my eating and exercise, so if I stop logging then it will be a while until I come back, and I would come back having gained weight. I tended to stop logging during stressful times or during big life changes. This time around the biggest change was that I log ALL days, even the bad ones (I wouldn't do this before). Even if I wasn't 100% accurate or forgot to log everything, I logged on every day. This way, I quickly see when there is a problem and I am able to fix it quickly with minimal, if any, damage to my progress. It also reminds me that just because I have a bad day (or couple of days), I won't ruin everything I've worked for.
  • SuggaD
    SuggaD Posts: 1,369 Member
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    reading nutrition labels
  • SuggaD
    SuggaD Posts: 1,369 Member
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    reading nutrition labels
  • whitebalance
    whitebalance Posts: 1,655 Member
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    I bought a pedometer and started using it. First an Up band, then a Fitbit. I lost most of my weight just walking. After over two years of maintenance, I still use the Fitbit, although my main fitness activity has changed.
  • AChildAtHeart
    AChildAtHeart Posts: 22 Member
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    I think the wearable tech is great. My Microsoft Band is helping me with the "get up and move" change because I have an app for it that makes it vibrate and scroll a little reminder. Otherwise it's too easy to lose myself in my work, or even in being sedentary in front of the TV. I watch almost everything on DVR, Hulu or Netflix, so there's no excuse not to pause, get up and take a break.
  • Achaila
    Achaila Posts: 264 Member
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    Giving up soda. All soda. Even diet.

    Letting go of the belief that I had to make myself miserable to lose weight by never enjoying the foods that I love. Moderation is key and I could not imagine a life without chocolate, pizza, and cheeseburgers!

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