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OldAssDude
Posts: 1,436 Member
I have been reading post after post after post, and on and on and on, about...
Why cant I lose weight?
Why isn't this working?
Why am I still gaining weight?
I work out every day and stay within my calories, why am I not losing weight?
This diet, that diet.
low carbs, no carbs.
High fat, low fat.
cleansing, fasting.
And a bunch of other terminology that I never heard of.
It all comes down to calories in calories out.
If you are not losing weight, you are not calculating something correctly, or, you are not being truthful.
This is not rocket science, and it is not that hard to stick to if you do it the right way.
What is the right way?
The right way is to make it as easy to do as possible, and gradually change your life style. If you are not willing to do that you should just stop right now until you are ready to make that commitment.
A little about me...
I am a 57 year old male, 5 ft. 9 in. tall, 225 lbs. (when I started), 3 pack a day smoker (smoked for over 40 years, but trying to quit using electronic cigarettes), was told i have the beginning stages of COPD, and was told I had a small spot at the bottom of my heart that was slightly enlarged (could have had a mini heart attack at some time in my life). I got all this news when I had to get clearances for surgery. This made me start thinking about improving my health.
What did I do?
I got an activity tracker. At first I thought they were just a gimmick, but it turned out to be the most useful tool ever made for this type of thing, and has been a life changer for me.
What is an activity tracker?
It is a device that you can wear that monitors your steps, your calories in/out, and even your sleep. They can record your exercise, and automatically adjust your calories as you go. You tell it your age, weight, activity level, and how much weight you want to lose each week (it will automatically minus the correct amount of calories each day base on what you set), and it does all the math for you. The only thing you have to do is meet your step goal (you can set this for what ever you want), and log your food. It syncs with your phone, and keeps a running total of how many calories you have left. If you log an exercise session it adds those calories to what you have left, and when you log food it deducts those calories. This means you wont have to sit there and calculate all that stuff (which could become a part time job), and you will always know how many calories you have left just by checking your phone.
Most of them have a move alert too, so if you are not active for a certain length of time, it will vibrate to remind you to get up and walk. This is a good motivator and made me realize how much time I spend sitting on my *kitten*. The recommendation for steps is 10,000 steps per day. At my stride that is about 5 miles.
They also can track your sleeping patterns which is important as well.
I strongly recommend setting it to only lose 1 pound per week, because it will only deduct about 500 calories per day, and that will insure that you are still getting what your body needs without making you feel like you are starving yourself. And if you are that hungry, you can always do some exercise sessions and add some more calories to eat. That will also motivate you to be more active, which will in turn increase your fitness level, which will in turn make your body better at maintaining your weight. It's a win win.
Nature happens slowly, and it takes years to get over weight. If you try to lose too much weight too fast, there is a 90 something percent chance you will fail. If you gradually change your life style by becoming more active and losing the weight slowly, there is a 90 something percent chance you will succeed.
I weighed 225 pounds a little over 6 months ago, and now i'm down to 196 pounds. I log my food, get my 10,000 steps per day in, and I have been losing about 1 pound a week since i started. I also started doing a 1 to 3 mile walk at about a 4 mph pace each day, and i got a bicycle, so I do 5 to 10 mile rides 2 to 3 times a week. I also did the activities gradually over the 6 months, so now it has become the norm. Slow and steady is the best way to go I think.
Some people like to track all that stuff by hand, but I think that time could be better spent taking a walk or riding my bike, and let the activity tracker do all the tracking part.
Another thing I learned in logging my food is how many wasted calories I was eating, For example, a large slice of pizza is just about all wasted calories. I could have a piece of chicken and a plateful of veggies for the same or even less calories. Pizza does taste good, and I do have it once in a while, and if I do, I usually walk it off.
You don't have to go on any of these crazy diets, and fasts, and this, and that. If you eat a variety of foods, you will get what your body needs. If you limit wasted calories you will have more room for foods that are better for you.
Anyway, I've rambled on enough, but this has been my experience so far, and I hope this is helpful to others.
Why cant I lose weight?
Why isn't this working?
Why am I still gaining weight?
I work out every day and stay within my calories, why am I not losing weight?
This diet, that diet.
low carbs, no carbs.
High fat, low fat.
cleansing, fasting.
And a bunch of other terminology that I never heard of.
It all comes down to calories in calories out.
If you are not losing weight, you are not calculating something correctly, or, you are not being truthful.
This is not rocket science, and it is not that hard to stick to if you do it the right way.
What is the right way?
The right way is to make it as easy to do as possible, and gradually change your life style. If you are not willing to do that you should just stop right now until you are ready to make that commitment.
A little about me...
I am a 57 year old male, 5 ft. 9 in. tall, 225 lbs. (when I started), 3 pack a day smoker (smoked for over 40 years, but trying to quit using electronic cigarettes), was told i have the beginning stages of COPD, and was told I had a small spot at the bottom of my heart that was slightly enlarged (could have had a mini heart attack at some time in my life). I got all this news when I had to get clearances for surgery. This made me start thinking about improving my health.
What did I do?
I got an activity tracker. At first I thought they were just a gimmick, but it turned out to be the most useful tool ever made for this type of thing, and has been a life changer for me.
What is an activity tracker?
It is a device that you can wear that monitors your steps, your calories in/out, and even your sleep. They can record your exercise, and automatically adjust your calories as you go. You tell it your age, weight, activity level, and how much weight you want to lose each week (it will automatically minus the correct amount of calories each day base on what you set), and it does all the math for you. The only thing you have to do is meet your step goal (you can set this for what ever you want), and log your food. It syncs with your phone, and keeps a running total of how many calories you have left. If you log an exercise session it adds those calories to what you have left, and when you log food it deducts those calories. This means you wont have to sit there and calculate all that stuff (which could become a part time job), and you will always know how many calories you have left just by checking your phone.
Most of them have a move alert too, so if you are not active for a certain length of time, it will vibrate to remind you to get up and walk. This is a good motivator and made me realize how much time I spend sitting on my *kitten*. The recommendation for steps is 10,000 steps per day. At my stride that is about 5 miles.
They also can track your sleeping patterns which is important as well.
I strongly recommend setting it to only lose 1 pound per week, because it will only deduct about 500 calories per day, and that will insure that you are still getting what your body needs without making you feel like you are starving yourself. And if you are that hungry, you can always do some exercise sessions and add some more calories to eat. That will also motivate you to be more active, which will in turn increase your fitness level, which will in turn make your body better at maintaining your weight. It's a win win.
Nature happens slowly, and it takes years to get over weight. If you try to lose too much weight too fast, there is a 90 something percent chance you will fail. If you gradually change your life style by becoming more active and losing the weight slowly, there is a 90 something percent chance you will succeed.
I weighed 225 pounds a little over 6 months ago, and now i'm down to 196 pounds. I log my food, get my 10,000 steps per day in, and I have been losing about 1 pound a week since i started. I also started doing a 1 to 3 mile walk at about a 4 mph pace each day, and i got a bicycle, so I do 5 to 10 mile rides 2 to 3 times a week. I also did the activities gradually over the 6 months, so now it has become the norm. Slow and steady is the best way to go I think.
Some people like to track all that stuff by hand, but I think that time could be better spent taking a walk or riding my bike, and let the activity tracker do all the tracking part.
Another thing I learned in logging my food is how many wasted calories I was eating, For example, a large slice of pizza is just about all wasted calories. I could have a piece of chicken and a plateful of veggies for the same or even less calories. Pizza does taste good, and I do have it once in a while, and if I do, I usually walk it off.
You don't have to go on any of these crazy diets, and fasts, and this, and that. If you eat a variety of foods, you will get what your body needs. If you limit wasted calories you will have more room for foods that are better for you.
Anyway, I've rambled on enough, but this has been my experience so far, and I hope this is helpful to others.
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Replies
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Oops, nevermind.0
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I thought other people would think this is a good idea, but I guess not.0
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bcalvanese wrote: »I thought other people would think this is a good idea, but I guess not.
I enjoyed reading it, though "wasted calories" might be a subjective term. You expressed your opinion and experience clearly and congrates on getting below 200 lbs
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can you explain wasted calories?
I meant it as foods that are high in calories, but have very little nutritional value.0 -
Take out the first 25 lines and you've got a winner. It's always great hearing someone else's view/story.0
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You are not attracting a crowd because you're lacking in woo!
Things you could add to your thread to attract a crowd:
"eat less than 1000 calories a day to lose weight"
"never eat sugar/fat/protein"
"drink shakes and/or a special cleansing combination"
"eat clean/dirty"
"lose 5lbs a week when you're at a normal weight"
"lose 30lbs in a month to fit in your bikini/wedding dress/other picture taking opportunity
and variations of the above!
CAT and DOG GIFs help too!
Activity trackers make a credible stab at estimating your TDEE. Just as with any other method (MFP exercise calories for example), you should track for a few weeks and adjust based on your real life results.
Some activities (steady state aerobic in particular) are much more accurately tracked by the various trackers than other types of activities (weigh-lifting, HIIT).0 -
I agree with using activity trackers, trying to guess your maintenance using a formula drove me nuts and felt it was just a stab in the dark - especially since the activity levels are so ambiguous.0
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So you made a CICO thread.
Kind of like all the other threads you mentioned. Doing the same thing isn't really noteworthy. These threads cycle up too
My fav thread line
You can't out exercise your fork
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I think you're forgetting what it's like to be new to weight loss and overwhelmed with all the information, not knowing where to start.
I'm glad you've found what works for you.
For the average newbie though, they need guidance and help... that's what these forums are for.0 -
I thought it was fun to read. Many get tired of hearing those crazy "diets" on here. It is a lot simpler than people think.
Sorry you had to get bad news and awesome that you are making changes for better health.
Good luck to you.0 -
I think you're forgetting what it's like to be new to weight loss and overwhelmed with all the information, not knowing where to start.
I'm glad you've found what works for you.
For the average newbie though, they need guidance and help... that's what these forums are for.
I am new to weight loss, and I think an activity tracker would work for anyone, because it gives people the guidance they need to get started.0 -
bcalvanese wrote: »I think you're forgetting what it's like to be new to weight loss and overwhelmed with all the information, not knowing where to start.
I'm glad you've found what works for you.
For the average newbie though, they need guidance and help... that's what these forums are for.
I am new to weight loss, and I think an activity tracker would work for anyone, because it gives people the guidance they need to get started.
Activity trackers can be expensive. What if a person doesn't have $100 to spend on one? or even $50?
The best place to start is an open forum full of information and people willing to answer their questions.
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Great job, OP. You've obviously changed your behaviors and how you think about food. And it sounds like you're going to stick with it over the long haul. Kuddos0
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They are quite affordable for the average person.
Do you have something against them for some reason?0 -
I liked your post OP. Adding my activity tracker is what really worked for me as well.0
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bcalvanese wrote: »I think you're forgetting what it's like to be new to weight loss and overwhelmed with all the information, not knowing where to start.
I'm glad you've found what works for you.
For the average newbie though, they need guidance and help... that's what these forums are for.
I am new to weight loss, and I think an activity tracker would work for anyone, because it gives people the guidance they need to get started.
Activity trackers can be expensive. What if a person doesn't have $100 to spend on one? or even $50?
The best place to start is an open forum full of information and people willing to answer their questions.
I agree. I had to ask a thousand questions to get to where I am now. I'm so happy there were people put there who didn't mind my posts.0 -
You had a lot to lose, not everyone does. It's much easier to lose when you have more to take off. As for the activity trackers, they're great, love mine, but not everyone will be able to afford them.
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Bcal, thanks for your post and huge congratulations on your achievement so far - that is fantastic progress and it is helpful for many to hear how you went about meeting your goals.0
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bcalvanese wrote: »They are quite affordable for the average person.
Do you have something against them for some reason?
Not at all. I personally have a HRM, though since switching to a TDEE format I don't use it anymore.
My point is that activity trackers are not necessary for weight loss, though they are great tools. I just think that it's unreasonable to expect a new person to know where to begin, that's why they come to these forums, to find answers. That's what the rest of us are here for too, to share our experiences and knowledge with people who don't understand these things. Some new people know absolutely nothing about activity trackers or that they might even exist. When I first came to MFP years ago Fitbits and other activity trackers weren't even a thing yet. They weren't available in stores and the ones you could get were only online, and you may never have even heard of them. That they're affordable for "the average person" is debatable. I'd consider myself the average person, but I can't afford one with bills, house/car payments, a new baby, etc. $50 or $100 is alot to ask when you have other needs.. and let's face it, weight loss is free. But if you can actually afford one and think it could be helpful to have one, by all means, go for it! It's a good investment into your wellbeing.
IMO, to a person that comes to MFP to lose weight, the best place to start is with using it's features, like the food diary, to begin tracking their intake. And then maybe if they see something about activity trackers that they feel would be helpful, go from there. The app is free, weight loss is free, and if you have the means to invest in tools, a food scale and maybe an activity tracker or HRM, some good shoes, a gym membership, weights, etc are good things to consider investing in.0 -
bcalvanese wrote: »It all comes down to calories in calories out.
Agreed! For me, one thing I learned when I ran my numbers was that as sedentary as I'd been, my numbers (even after all the weight I'd gained, and certainly before when I was gaining) were much lower than I'd thought.
That was upsetting, as was the honest thinking about how many calories I'd been consuming, but it confirmed what (lucky for me) I understood already--that getting fat was the result of eating more calories than I burned.The right way is to make it as easy to do as possible, and gradually change your life style. If you are not willing to do that you should just stop right now until you are ready to make that commitment.
I tend to agree to this too, at least that you should focus on habits and change lifestyle to some extent.
The reason I say "to some extent" is that my lifestyle includes a lot of things, not just my eating and exercise habits, and some had to change and some did not. What was useful for me was thinking about my lifestyle in connection with the reasons I ate more than I burned. This caused me to realize that after being active when I was maintaining a healthy weight and after being pretty active when I was a healthy weight without thinking about it in my teens and 20s, I was now sedentary. Not just as in not exercising (which made me sad, because I'd enjoyed running and biking and other outdoor activities when I was in shape), but as in not walking nearly as much as I used to--instead driving or grabbing a cab or taking the very closest public transportation when possible, or simply not incorporating longer walks into my day. I also saw that I was putting work before every health-related thing, using food for stress-relief purposes, and falling out of the habit of cooking as much as I used to, because I'd be tired and not have stuff on hand to cook and order Indian.
On the other hand, there were things that might make weight loss more challenging that I didn't plan to change, including my regular habit of eating out with friends, so whatever changes I made had to accommodate that.
Based on my understanding of what I wanted to change and what I did not, I put together a plan to get there that was mainly based on simple steps.What did I do?
I got an activity tracker. At first I thought they were just a gimmick, but it turned out to be the most useful tool ever made for this type of thing, and has been a life changer for me.
I did this too, and for me also it was extremely helpful.
I do think that one can get by -- and probably get the same effects -- with an inexpensive pedometer or simply by resolving to walk at certain times and for certain activities, but it certainly demonstrated to me how little I could walk on my worst days, what I was normally walking, and how easy it was to get up to about 10000 steps/day if I just resumed walking as much as I had thought was normal at one time for commuting and daily errands and stuff (I live in a city so have occasion to walk a lot). I had fallen out of the habit of walking and getting back into it was the first and one of the most important activity-related things I did, and one of the things that I think will most help maintain my loss (again, if I just look at the numbers again and what a difference just walking a lot vs. not walking much makes).Another thing I learned in logging my food is how many wasted calories I was eating, For example, a large slice of pizza is just about all wasted calories. I could have a piece of chicken and a plateful of veggies for the same or even less calories. Pizza does taste good, and I do have it once in a while, and if I do, I usually walk it off.
What I consider wasted calories are the foods I was just eating because they were there, without really appreciating them or realizing how many calories they were adding. The ones of these I really like (like some sweets and your pizza example) I still fit into my day (more or less often depending on how challenging that is), but I'm more choosy and I keep the calorie cost in mind enough to adjust and make room in some other ways.
Some things, which I ate from convenience or didn't think about and didn't really care about I simply cut way down on or out. Not because I think it's necessary to do that to lose weight, but because why waste calories on foods that I just consider okay.
Congrats on getting below 200 and your success so far.0
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