What I wish I knew when I was just starting out

allunits · January 2016

These are all wonderful. Thanks for clarifying CICO!

getitamb · January 2016

Take care of yourself. And do what works for you. As long as it's safe.

Runagain_4 · January 2016

I'm a little more than halfway to my goal weight now. When I was a third of the way to my goal I wrote the post in the link below, which is what continues to work for me. Best of luck with your goals in 2016!

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10280116/trust-in-the-process-the-results-will-follow

Peter_Brady · January 2016

Don't obsess about the scale and incorporate strength training from Day 1

AnnPT77 · January 2016

Carefully weighing and logging food (1) is not obsessive, (2) takes negligible time once you learn the tips & tricks and make it part of your routine, and (3) provides very, very useful information.

agzram · January 2016

Runagain_4 wrote: »

I'm a little more than halfway to my goal weight now. When I was a third of the way to my goal I wrote the post in the link below, which is what continues to work for me. Best of luck with your goals in 2016!

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10280116/trust-in-the-process-the-results-will-follow

Wow! Great post and great tips!!

AdrianChr92 · January 2016

Squats and oats

MerinneW · January 2016

I guess I always knew, but I wish I had actually taken it in - this is for life. You will never eat 'normally' (or what was 'normal' to your overweight self) again - or if you do, well guess what, you'll soon be overweight again! Weight loss is like a card palace - takes a fraction of the time it took to build to knock it down again. So frankly, if you don't think you can live like this (whatever your programme is) long-term without being miserable, either find another path, or get used to being big and learn to love yourself that way.

I just killed off about two years' worth of denial in two months of eating pretty much whatever I wanted - all the compliments I received on my weight loss went to my head, I stopped weighing myself, stopped monitoring my intake and abiding by the rules of my chosen programme, had an indulgent Christmas period and bingo - I'm back practically where I was when I started. Time to start rolling that rock back up the hill again...

So don't 'diet'. Change your lifestyle. For good. Yo-yo effect is a b***h.

By the way, from personal experience, low carb diet is actually very effective for weight loss, simply because it is so much harder to eat the same amount of calories from protein-rich foods as you can from carbs. The difficulty is keeping it up for life, especially if like me you love bread and pasta. Low carb and CICO are not actually antithetical, and people who promote low carb diets are not necessarily barking. It's about what works for you. Something else I wish I'd known before I started is that while MFP is a really useful aid to changing how you live and eat, especially the motivational success stories, there are a lot of people on here who are certain that they have found The One True Way and are more than happy to slag off anyone who disagrees/has a different way (see posts above). Ignore the negativity, explore the options with an open mind, and if you find one that makes you happier and healthier, then go with it.

vrojapu · January 2016

I wish I had known...

That small changes are better than big ones because they are easier to incorporate into life and last longer
That habits, and not willpower, are the key
That protein is so helpful
That writing down what I'm thankful for (even unrelated things) goes hand-in-hand with increased exercise time That varying my routine as often as I can for as many things as I can keeps me on track
That losing weight is a very happy journey, not a hungry, anxious (insert negative emotion of choice here) one

And most of all, that MFP is my BFF...

Triplestep · January 2016

"Diet" is not a dirty word. Someday this will be second nature ... just "the way that I eat." That's already started to happen. But at the start, there's really no difference between making small changes to your eating habits and what we used to call "going on a diet". It's OK that it doesn't feel like a "lifestyle change" from day one. If healthy habits came naturally to you, you would not be overweight. If it helps you to feel like its a "diet" to get started, then go ahead. Don't let anyone edit or censor you - just know that you'll never go back to the way you used to eat. I'm guessing that's OK or you would not be here!

katkins3 · January 2016

I started out believing the calories burned read out on gym equipment and calorie charts. Then I got my first heart rate monitor!! Now I get much more realistic feedback on whatever I do.

allunits · January 2016

Sorry to hear about the winter gain. I've been there many times. Here's to getting the weight off quickly and continuing your work. Soon this will be just a small blip in your story!

MerinneW wrote: »

I guess I always knew, but I wish I had actually taken it in - this is for life. You will never eat 'normally' (or what was 'normal' to your overweight self) again - or if you do, well guess what, you'll soon be overweight again! Weight loss is like a card palace - takes a fraction of the time it took to build to knock it down again. So frankly, if you don't think you can live like this (whatever your programme is) long-term without being miserable, either find another path, or get used to being big and learn to love yourself that way.

I just killed off about two years' worth of denial in two months of eating pretty much whatever I wanted - all the compliments I received on my weight loss went to my head, I stopped weighing myself, stopped monitoring my intake and abiding by the rules of my chosen programme, had an indulgent Christmas period and bingo - I'm back practically where I was when I started. Time to start rolling that rock back up the hill again...

So don't 'diet'. Change your lifestyle. For good. Yo-yo effect is a b***h.

By the way, from personal experience, low carb diet is actually very effective for weight loss, simply because it is so much harder to eat the same amount of calories from protein-rich foods as you can from carbs. The difficulty is keeping it up for life, especially if like me you love bread and pasta. Low carb and CICO are not actually antithetical, and people who promote low carb diets are not necessarily barking. It's about what works for you. Something else I wish I'd known before I started is that while MFP is a really useful aid to changing how you live and eat, especially the motivational success stories, there are a lot of people on here who are certain that they have found The One True Way and are more than happy to slag off anyone who disagrees/has a different way (see posts above). Ignore the negativity, explore the options with an open mind, and if you find one that makes you happier and healthier, then go with it.

csillabrimer978 · January 2016

1. Before I thought that eating healthy means growing your own zucchini, cooking from scratch and never to set foot in a fast food restaurant but today I know eating healthy is more about the choices I make at the grocery store than anything else.
2. CICO, and yes sometimes I even eat pizza and ice cream as long as I stay under the calories
3. You can eat less calories and get a lot more nutritions - I hate calling this a diet, it's more like a nourish yourself program
4. Don't underestimate the little stuff- I struggled for month without MFP eating nothing but salad and I wasn't loosing ( the dayum ranch dressing I didn't count lol)
5. customize your meals, make it healthy and delicious, both me and my husband are losing weight, however we eat different food because he is more meaty and I am more veggiefil lol , put yourself first in this

srujana_kanneganti · January 2016

Eat more protein.

MsJulesRenee · January 2016

The workout/diet buddy you start with, on your weight loss journey, will probably not be there at the end or even middle. Just keep going and don't let that affect your progress.

Scamd83 · January 2016

- It's fine to eat after 7pm, especially carbs.

- There's no need to do three hours of cardio a day, every day, without a day off and thus eventually completely kill your desire to do cardio at all several years later.

- Bread and pasta do not make you store fat on their own.

- Anyone who utters the words 'you should avoid [insert food here]' is usually bs'ing you based on their own paranoia.

luluinca · January 2016

I learned that just because I'm 65 it's not actually more difficult to lose weight than it was when I was younger, that lifting weights at my age could transform my body and make my bones healthy, that it's not a race or a competition with others, and that I really could eat what I wanted if I could make it fit into my daily calorie and macro goals, but also that the occasional over indulgent day doesn't ruin all my hard work.

Birthdays, weddings, vacations and holidays are part of life and it's more fun (and not bad) to just enjoy them and then get back on track the following day.

Logging (primarily pre-logging) every day is essential to me to maintain my loss and now that it's a habit, just like any other, it doesn't bother me as much as I thought it would.

I wish I knew years ago that there was a gym rat living inside of me just waiting to get out!

doesthisappmakemelookfat · January 2016

This is a great post and perfect for reinforcing what I already know, but need to keep reminding myself.

keana55 · January 2016

My Fitness Pal really works--believe in it, weigh your food
Follow the plan CI<CO
Set a reasonable weekly weight loss (I finally settled on 1 lb per week)
Keep within the macros
If you fail on one day or one week or a month, don't beat yourself up--pick yourself up and GET right back on the plan
Whatever your situation, don't let anyone tell you you can't do this or it is not worth it (family, friends, doctors)

amandapierce0515 · January 2016

I wish I would have known how simple it could be! I also wish I had known that you don't need to buy lots of name brand snack bars and 100 calorie packs, etc to lose weight. For a while, I did. Then, I realized that there were WAY better snacks out there for me (fruit cups, cottage cheese, light string cheese, raw veggies, etc). Didn't need to spend any extra money to lose weight!

What I wish I knew when I was just starting out

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