What I wish I knew when I was just starting out

All of you amazing life-changers who have succeeded in amazing ways, what do you wish you knew sooner/when you were just starting out? Might be a nice way to share with those looking for inspiration and a helpful nudge this New Year.

Replies

katkins3

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

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

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

Eat more protein.

MsJulesRenee

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

- 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

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

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

keana55

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

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!

sharitapita

For me, I plateaued (when I was at my lowest weight about 20 lbs ago) for several months. Cutting all processed food and sugar (aside from a weekly cheat meal) got me finally losing again.

stevepoling

Do not regard your diet as a Moral Code to cheat or otherwise feel guilty about. It is a plan. If you drive to Florida and you take a detour to Philly, it isn't a sin-it's a delay-just get back on the freeway and continue driving south. Same with a diet when you see an irresistible temptation for pizza look it in the eye, man up, and shoulder into the fact your scale will have bad news tomorrow. If that's too painful, balance that pain against the pleasure of pizza and maybe you can resist the temptation.

stevepoling

Habits are powerful and small habits are cumulative. It's like compound interest

markrgeary1

That anyone can lose weight, if you follow some simple rules.

That I didn't need to take 6 prescriptions daily.

mamadon

IILikeToMoveItMoveIt wrote: »

CICO. This would have saved me two ish years of sheer frustration!

This, except it would have saved me around 18 years of frustration. All I had to do was count calories and weigh my food? Who would have thought?

rebeccaEsmith

Love it!

swim777

luluinca wrote: »

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!

Love this! Hopefully, I can remember these things since I have worked so hard this past year to finally, once and for all, take control of my health again. I think I'm finally brave enough to get rid of all those "next sizes" that I've been afraid to donate.

SnazzIT

to get rid of my big clothes as I slowly lose weight is a sign of my mindset. I used to hold on to them and when I fell off the wagon I would put them back on. A lifestyle change is forever not temporary.

suehuntsman

Wow, this is my first day on myfitnesspal! You guys are wonderful. Thank you for all the good advice.

blossomingbutterfly

Patience!

Honestly, if I knew just patience was all it took to get going and see benefits of CICO, I'd have been happier!

dayrae02

STOP thinking about where you want to be day in and day out and every once and awhile just truly appreciate how far you have come. I have caught myself obsessing over the end goal and not being proud of what I have accomplished so far. It is worth it to take a step back and realize how amazing you are.

SeriouslySta

I wish I had known, before, how much easier it is if you don't put a date on goals!

Saying, "I want to lose X pounds by such-and-such date," is a recipe for demotivation for me. (Lots of reasons, of course, but mainly I stall on the scale then 'whoosh' several pounds off at once... It could be crazy-making!)

Now I'm happy to lose slowly and sustainably, in my own good time, which is so much more pleasant.

smh1963

agree with others , don't eat back your exercise calories.

Machka9

I wish I had realised how quick and easy it would be to lose the weight.

I had this idea that at my age it was either not going to happen at all, or that it would be a long, hard slog. So, reluctantly, I signed up, put my information in, gasped in horror at the 1250 maximum calories I was allowed, breathed a small sigh of relief that I could eat about half my exercise calories back too ... and stuck to the diet with the tenacity of a Jack Russell Terrier.

The exercise aspect helped a lot, as did thoroughly browsing through my local grocery stores and markets to find good tasting low calorie food.

And the weight fell off.

patty_36_2

MsJulesRenee wrote: »

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.

This is so true. I did find it hard at first, but then realized that it's my weight, and my responsibility, so I just kept on by myself, still on my road and am OK..

Nthabiseng259

yrieves wrote: »

Love your body while working toward the body you want! Take it one day at a time or else it can be overwhelming and easy to get off track. Know that you can do it by yourself and don't listen to bad advice! You know your body listen to it and do what works for you!

Preach!!!!!:)

jenovatrix

That there's a whole wide world of produce out there. You don't have to stick to apples and carrots

I still don't like sweet potatoes though.

Bruceapple

The most important thing portion control.

elaineamj

Loving this- fantastic as i am just starting my journey.

KareninLux

vrojapu wrote: »

I wish I had known...

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

Ha ha. Love this!