any success stories 5'4 female with around 70-80 pounds to lose, calorie counting?

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NatashaMooo
NatashaMooo Posts: 2 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi Everyone,

I feel like I am overcomplicating everything for myself. I'm starting to believe that if I don't deprive myself of the food I love the weight isn't going to come off, because any success story I find will either be someone who has ditched carbs, completely changed their exercise routine and now go to the gym every day for hours. Is it possible to lose a lot of weight just by cutting down calories but still enjoying the foods you love in moderation? for example I love chocolate and would still like to enjoy a small bar 3 -4 times a week providing my calories allow this. I also like pasta and toast and tea, but everywhere I turn it seems that people who have lost weight have stopped eating these kinds of foods. I would really love to see some success stories of people who have lose 70-80 pounds still eating the foods they love in moderation. Please show me that i CAN do this I seriously need some motivation. Thanks
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Replies

  • WBB55
    WBB55 Posts: 4,131 Member
    edited July 2015
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    NatashaMooo wrote: »
    Is it possible to lose a lot of weight just by cutting down calories but still enjoying the foods you love in moderation?

    That is exactly how I lost the first 60-70 lbs.

    Edit to add: every day I ate chocolate and ice cream. EVERY DAY. And I was never hungry. And I kept that weight off now for 7 years.
  • DemoraFairy
    DemoraFairy Posts: 1,806 Member
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    The vast majority of success stories on here are what you're looking for, most people here just calorie count and highly advocate not giving up anything unless you have a medical need to. I lost 55lbs (so not quite the 70-80 you want, but I am 5'4!) eating microwave meals, pub food and take outs, with plenty of chocolate and no exercise.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited July 2015
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    I'm 5'3 and lost 95 lbs doing that. So long as you watch calories and stay under your maintenance calories you will lose weight. I ate plenty of pasta (I think pasta is quite healthy--I am careful with serving size and eat it with various homemade sauces made of lean meat and veggies, although I also sometimes get it at Italian restaurants) and potatoes and ice cream and chocolate as it fit in my calories. I also ate lots of vegetables and lean meat and fruit and beans and that kind of thing. But on the whole I didn't eat a special "diet" diet at all, but how I can imagine myself eating for the rest of my life.

    I exercise a lot now because I'm training for stuff and love it, but I didn't workout that much when I first started. I was really out of shape and mostly tried to walk as much as possible in my daily life (for errands and such) and started with about 30 mins of extra exercise 3-4 days/week (stationary bike or swimming or extra walking), and nothing that strenuous as I (again) wasn't in shape at all.
  • jenncornelsen
    jenncornelsen Posts: 969 Member
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    i went from 215 to 150 eating what i want. having vacations, and exercising about 20 minutes a day. but lets be honest, going that route is a slow one. it has taken me years to get here. but thats ok because it is something i can maintain for life! i feel great and ive never been deprived. and yes im 5'4
  • kristydi
    kristydi Posts: 781 Member
    edited July 2015
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    Well I haven't lost it all yet, but when I get done I'll be in that range. I've lost 42lbs so far. I'm 5'4" and started at 212lbs. I eat all kinds of things. Currently, my favorite treat is a Snickers ice cream bar for 185 calories. I can usually fit one in if I pay attention or if I've exercised and earned some more calories.

    My advice is to try to over estimate the calories you eat and underestimate the calories you burn. It's easy to do it the other way around and wipe out your deficit.
  • ManiacalLaugh
    ManiacalLaugh Posts: 1,048 Member
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    I'm 5'4, lost 90 lbs, and did it while still eating home-cooked meals, restaurant food, and sweet treats. I did work out, but not as much as I would have liked. I mainly cut portion sizes and counted calories.

    (Note: I found that weighing and logging is really helping me now, but just a note - I lost 80 of my 90 without doing either.)
  • ElvenToad
    ElvenToad Posts: 644 Member
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    I am 5'4 and have lost 106lbs by eating cutting calories and eating the foods I love in moderation. I have not done low carb or any special macros, just the default that mfp gives me. I eat bread, chips, chocolate everyday, and I'll have a candy bar and eat out 1x per week and I'm doing just fine. I weigh my food though, accuracy matters but yup CICO is all that's required.

    I do exercise 30-45 min per day at home, usually in front of the tv :smiley:
  • NatashaMooo
    NatashaMooo Posts: 2 Member
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    Aw thanks you guys, I already feel better. I just have to stick with it and not get discouraged
  • manmitkr2015
    manmitkr2015 Posts: 4 Member
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    Hi guys to add to this... What's the expected time for losing this amount of weight?

    I am currently in a stationary job but I am leaving it soon so I can find hours for myself so I expect to be doing something stationary bike, walking, gym whatever atleast for 30mjns -45mins a day, sticking to 1200 calories a day etc etc

    I am 110kg and would like to be 65-70 max for my wedding- in March next year. Is that possible?!!?
  • WBB55
    WBB55 Posts: 4,131 Member
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    manmitkr2015 wrote: »
    I am 110kg and would like to be 65-70 max for my wedding- in March next year. Is that possible?!!?

    Lose 88 lbs in 8 months? That's about 2.75 lbs per week? It's unlikely, and if you do you'd never keep it off. At most, I'd shoot for 2 lbs per week AT MOST. But that's still 22 kg or so. Nothing to scoff at. Imagine how much better you'll look and feel after losing 22 kg.

    The body can only lose fat at a certain rate, that's simply how well the body can perform that complex chemical and physiological task. That rate is approximately 1% of body weight per week.

  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    I'm 5'5" and lost 80 pounds eating 1650-1800 calories a day, just trying to reach 110g of protein a day and just eating whatever I like otherwise. It took 1.5 year. Been maintaining at 133 for a year (want to lose more, but I'm too hungry).
  • cathipa
    cathipa Posts: 2,991 Member
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    Yes you can eat what you want and lose. If you have not invested in a food scale I highly recommend this for accurate logging. I did cut out pasta and breads (for the most part) only because I found substitutions I liked that allowed me to eat more of the foods I would rather have (i.e. zucchini noodles for pasta so I can have that ice cream or oreos for dessert). I also had to deprogram myself on the 1200 calorie diet since this was too restricting and once I increased my calories to 1600 a day I lost more than I had before.
  • Psychgrrl
    Psychgrrl Posts: 3,177 Member
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    Me too. 5'3, lost about 85-ish pounds. It's a marathon, not a sprint. You really do need to keep at it. You'll get there! :smiley:
  • GR8TAWK
    GR8TAWK Posts: 90 Member
    edited July 2015
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    ManiacalLaugh wrote: »
    I'm 5'4, lost 90 lbs, and did it while still eating home-cooked meals, restaurant food, and sweet treats. I did work out, but not as much as I would have liked. I mainly cut portion sizes and counted calories.

    (Note: I found that weighing and logging is really helping me now, but just a note - I lost 80 of my 90 without doing either.)

    ManiacalLaugh.....I am 5'3" and want to lose 50lbs how did you lose weight and still eat your favorite foods with n o exercise??
  • GR8TAWK
    GR8TAWK Posts: 90 Member
    edited July 2015
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    ManiacalLaugh.....I am 5'3" and want to lose 50lbs how did you lose weight and still eat your favorite foods with n o exercise??
  • Simply827
    Simply827 Posts: 41 Member
    edited July 2015
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    Hi there. I need to lose the same amount of weight you do and I'm the same height.

    This time around, I'm going to try the IIFYM method (If it fits your Macros)

    I read through this entire thread: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1276219/i-went-from-morbidly-obese-to-6-pack-abs-ask-me-anything/p1 and it was an eye opener. This guy has lost 115 pounds, kept it off, and doesn't deprive himself of his favorite foods. You can get most of the good info in the first few pages and he's more than happy to answer questions. And yes, this method applies to women as well.
  • ManiacalLaugh
    ManiacalLaugh Posts: 1,048 Member
    edited July 2015
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    GR8TAWK wrote: »
    ManiacalLaugh.....I am 5'3" and want to lose 50lbs how did you lose weight and still eat your favorite foods with n o exercise??

    Well, I did exercise, just not as much as some of the folks on here. Exercise isn't needed for weight loss. It just helps you build a bigger deficit if you want to be able to eat more. (There are a ton of other benefits to exercise too, don't get me wrong.) I'd say I averaged 3-4 times a week, but some of that was just cardio or weights. In retrospect, I think I should have been doing both.

    I still counted as well. So, I'd find foods that I liked that fit the calorie count I was aiming for. I did this for breakfast and lunch. By dinner, I knew I had enough saved to eat a sensible dinner. For dessert, I had a steadfast rule of nothing over 150 calories. But wow - there are a ton of desserts you can eat for 150 calores (ice cream, ice cream sandwiches, small chocolate bars or loose Dove or Hershey's chocolates, gummies, etc). Nothing was ever "bad", it was just a matter of eating less of all of it.

    Now that I'm 90 lbs smaller though, my calorie allotment has gone waaaay down - hence why I log now. I can still eat almost everything I want to (within reason), I just have to watch how much of it I consume. I also have to weigh my food because my deficit is so low. It was much easier in the beggining when I had more wiggle room.
  • manmitkr2015
    manmitkr2015 Posts: 4 Member
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    Thank you for the responses. I don't use scales at the moment because to be fair I am using dietchef meals and I am finding they are working from me. Early days but they have perfect portion calories controlled and ready in less than 3 mins. Plus the variety is brilliant and none of it tastes like diet food ... I should know tried everything under the sun.

    I am not usually one to post on forums or groups (extreme lack of confidence) but I feel like you all understand ... Somehow... So thank you !!!

    Will this post remain open or is there a way to keep everyone posted.

    I would want to share how well dietchef is going but more importantly I feel like there are dark days ahead with a looming deadline and it would be good to have some moral support.
  • taty914
    taty914 Posts: 6 Member
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    I don't get it (?)!!? I'm currently 230( lost 10 pounds last month and half since I started) I about 1500-1700 cal sometimes even less no sweets
    No bread mainly no carbs mainly protein and tons of veggies, ( even cut out some fruits) Ibsen walking an average of 6-8 miles a day . Why can't I loose the weight ???whT am
    I doing wrong
  • victoria_1024
    victoria_1024 Posts: 915 Member
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    I'm only 5'2" and haven't reached my goal yet. But I've lost 52 pounds so far and have about 20-25 pounds left to go. I eat chocolate every day. Without fail. In fact, I just finished a cookie dough blizzard because I had extra calories leftover at the end of the day (not that DQ blizzards are a daily occurrence for me!). I never would have believed that I could lose this much weight while still treating myself. My biggest goals for the day are to stay under my calories and to get as much protein as I can. Other than that, I am perfectly happy to use my extra calories for a handful of m&ms or an extra slice of pizza!

    I do work-out every day. Sometimes I will get an hour in, other days I am lucky to get 20 minutes. I also try to be active with my family and take bike rides and things like that. I eat back 50% of my exercise calories. On days that I don't work out, I just don't eat as much and it's fine. I don't think you HAVE to work out to lose the weight, but I enjoy it and my body feels so much stronger now.

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