Fat, tired and fed up.

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Good day all, I'm 6'4" and 390 lbs and basically fed up being fat. I've tried different things like medifast, that worked but when I've gone back to eating food again it all comes back. My goal is between 225 and 250 by May of 2017. Could someone point me in the right direction for the amount of calorie intake per day, good recommendations for eating during the day. I've read some posts but just looking for input. Exercise is about 40 min a day, 4 days a week walking back and forth to work. I have an exercise bike in the corner that I want to break out and start using. Being depressed doesn't help either and I have become a depressive eater. Thanks all for your time and help.

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  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
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    Plug your numbers into MFP and eat the amount of calories that it tells you to. As far as food goes, as long as you're maintaining a deficit, types of food aren't really relevant to weight loss, though many report higher safety (feeling full) when they eat more protein, and obviously if you eathink lower-calorie foods (like most vegetables) you'll be able to eat more within your calorie allotment.
    Also, bear in mind that MFP figures your calorie deficit BEFORE exercise, so you want to eat back at least some of the calories you burn that way. It is genearly agreed upon that MFP greatly overestimated exercise calories burned, so if you don't have a more accurate way to measure ca lorries burned (like a HRM), you should only eat back 1/2 to 3/4 of the calories MFP gives you.
  • dynamix1
    dynamix1 Posts: 12 Member
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    Just to drop an update on progress. It been a over 6 months and I can say it has been paying off. As of today 7/9/2016 I weighed in at 321 lbs. It seem like I'm slowing down losing weight and hit a wall at 324 for a while, almost 4 weeks of no weight change but then able to break through to get down to 321. I'm starting to have some "hanging" skin in the arms and chest region, any suggestions on how to tighten that up would be appreciated. Thanks all and have a good day.
  • kamar1988
    kamar1988 Posts: 4 Member
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    keep it upkeep being awesome
  • besaro
    besaro Posts: 1,858 Member
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    People will likely have all sorts of suggestions for sagging skin but honestly there is little you can do about it. Sure staying hydrated and using lotion is always a good thing but its not going to make significant difference. Also, people will suggest lifting weights, again, awesome suggestion for all sorts of reasons, but you aren't gonna fill in 100 pounds of fat with muscle, that would look ridiculous. Genetics, age, lifestyle, how long you've been overweight are going to be the biggest determining factors in how your skin rebounds. Don't sweat it. most important thing is to be at a healthy weight. worry about skin later. full disclosure, after getting to my goal weight i had skin removal surgery. Way harder than losing the weight in the first place. took me several months to return to normal and i will likely have nerve damage for years. happy i did it, but its not for the faint of heart.
  • RaptorMommy
    RaptorMommy Posts: 31 Member
    edited July 2016
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    I had hanging skin when I lost my weight the first time. How much it shrinks back up depends on hydration, yes (water mainly) but I think the bigger factor is how long you've been overweight, your age, etc. It doesn't always bounce back. Personally, I waited too long to lose the weight, and I will also have hanging skin when I'm done. More important, though, is reducing the fat. I don't know anyone who had weight induced diabetes or heart issues because of hanging skin...but they did because of an unhealthy weight and lifestyle! I'll take the hanging skin, any day!