I need help

Hey there, let me tell you a bit about myself. I am 24 years old with a 2 year old son. I have hit my highest point and I can't handle it anymore. I am around 215 pounds at 5'1 in height. At my lowest I weighed 145 pounds and at this point I'd be happy to be back to that. That is my start goal.



I have no idea where to start but to ask for help from others. I cannot afford to go the gym but I'm also not sure what to be doing at home apart from walking. And I am also in incredibly picky eater, peppers give me headache and I can't handle many textures either without getting physically sick. Funds are not the best as well and healthy food is incredibly expensive and doesn't get eating quick enough in my house.


I really need help :(

Replies

  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Walking is good.

    Eat what you normally eat, just a bit less so that you're in a calorie deficit
  • mikevfr
    mikevfr Posts: 47 Member
    I find it cheaper to diet. Walking is free.

    Buy a scale from Amazon. They are cheap. weigh and log EVERYTHING.

    Stick to it. Find support here.

    You are not alone! :)
  • Owlfan88
    Owlfan88 Posts: 187 Member
    Get a digital scale and start weighing your food. Log it and see what the calorie amounts are. You may find that some things that you thought were healthy are actually rather full of calories (I certainly did). Healthy doesn't have to be expensive. Frozen veggies are cheap and quick to prepare.

    Walking is good for exercise. And do-able with a toddler too. It mostly what I do (sometimes I go work out with a friend in her basement with a weight machine). There are loads of videos on YouTube as well.

    Good luck and remember that you didn't put on the weight overnight and you won't lose it overnight either.
  • ashersmomma33
    ashersmomma33 Posts: 10 Member
    Thanks everyone. I love walking so that's a plus. And in the summer months I row, so sad that's impossible in the winter lol
  • maidengirl_
    maidengirl_ Posts: 283 Member
    Invest in a digital food scale. Thats your first step. Eat less. And the rest will follow. I have lost 40 pounds on mfp and I've never stepped foot in a gym. The possibilities are endless!
  • workinonit1956
    workinonit1956 Posts: 1,043 Member
    Hi:). The beauty of counting calories and staying at a deficit is that you can eat what you like/agrees with you-- just reasonable amounts that fit in your daily goal.
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    edited September 2016
    You don't have to exercise to lose weight. You need to eat less than you burn - have a sustained a calorie deficit - to lose weight. Exercise is good for your health, though, and it burns some calories, but there aren't any particular exercises you have to do. Just move your body.

    You can eat anything to lose weight. Just log what you eat and hit your calorie goal - if you do that correctly and consistently, you lose weight.

    Unless your diet is really terrible, and I mean really really terrible, you can eat what you already are eating, just less. If you want to improve your diet, you can do that. Healthy food isn't more expensive than "unhealthy" food - basic staples are inexpensive and anything can be eaten in moderation. What seems to be eating your budget, is not eating up what you are buying. That has to stop. Plan your meals and only buy what you need for those meals, and prepare them and eat them. This means that you have to plan meals you like. Find recipes for meals and dishes you like - replace or omit whatever you can't eat - and fill your calendar with a week's worth of meals. You decide how detailed you need to plan. Then write down what you need for those meals. Remove the items you already have. This is your shopping list. Use it.
  • LazSommer
    LazSommer Posts: 1,851 Member
    eating less food is effective and cheap.
  • ashcky
    ashcky Posts: 393 Member
    Hey our stats are the same and I lost my first 20 without exercise, then I added walking. I'm fortunate that I have a gym membership free through my school but on Tuesdays and Thursdays I am at home and I walk/jog those days. I also am 24 and have 2 kiddos! Feel free to add me!
  • kittykarin
    kittykarin Posts: 104 Member
    edited September 2016
    Walking is a great start! Put your son in a stroller and wheel him around the neighborhood. Once it starts to get cold, you can go to the mall or another large indoor shopping center and walk the aisles. If you plan your meals, you can actually eat cheaper than buying junk or fast food. If you have an Aldi's orSave A Lot, check out their deals. Walmart usually has chicken breasts in the big packs for $1.99 a pound and they mark down other meats often. There is so much you can do with chicken and a bag of brown rice or a can of beans. Just do a little prep and you can get your meals for the week and you and your son will have healthy meals on deck! Good luck!
  • grob49
    grob49 Posts: 125 Member
    Like everyone has said walking is a good exercise. You can also do some body weight exercises like squats. Just Google body weight exercises and home workouts. Kettle bell work outs are good too. As far as your diet just keep it simple. Chicken is cheap so is pork. I know lots of people that have lost weight by cutting out junk food cokes cookies stuff like that.
  • allenpriest
    allenpriest Posts: 1,102 Member
    Walking is not impossible during the winter. It just requires more planning. Dressing correctly to walk outside or planning a trip to someplace where you can walk inside like a large store or a mall takes a little more time but nothing else
  • DaisyChain80
    DaisyChain80 Posts: 109 Member
    Walking is really good also try your best to stick to your calorie goal....I don't go to the gym but if you look on YouTube there are thousands of workouts from beginners to hard core so you are bound to find something that suits you......Good luck
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
    You are on a tight budget for affording gym, "healthy" food, and you are a picky eater.. we have three variables that are not in your way for losing weight..

    1) No exercise is needed.. walking is just fine
    2) "Healthy" food is not a necessary thing to add to your budget
    3) Eat the foods you like already as a picky eater (eating less of this will save you money)

    Do not over complicate, it really boils down to just meeting the calorie deficit you setup in MFP and no more added to the wallet.
  • PinkPixiexox
    PinkPixiexox Posts: 4,142 Member
    Contrary to popular belief, you don't have to spend hundreds on expensive gym memberships and fancy food that you would never normally eat - let alone cook with. Me? I hate salads and I'm not a huge fan of 'gyms'. I still managed to lose 30 pounds with a calorie deficit which included foods I would normally eat. As for working out, walking is absolutely fine. Great, in fact. I deviate from gym classes to dance work-out programmes (Currently doing Shaun T's CIZE programme and loving it). I think it's important to find an exercise you enjoy doing otherwise it can become very tedious very quickly. I promise you can do this. It doesn't have to be over complicated or difficult. Good luck :)
  • oolou
    oolou Posts: 765 Member
    Start the walking but perhaps hold off the diet for a week. Instead spend this week logging what you would ordinarily eat. This will help you get into the practice of logging your food using the databank here - use a food scale too to be accurate - and will help you step back and look at the calorific value of what you normally eat. Then start to trim back and make substitutions that won't be too much of a burden on your lifestyle.
  • seeing1111
    seeing1111 Posts: 13 Member
    Everything they already said above, and drink lots of water, and black coffee is great if you like it.