I hope this isn't just another attempt.

First of all my name is Richard, I'm 34 years old and weigh in at about 440lbs at 6'3. I really need to succeed at losing weight this time around. I have recently been diagnosed with type II diabetes and a fatty liver to go along with my high blood pressure. I'm really kinda lost at this point in my life and need some help. I work in an office where I almost never have to get up out of my chair. I have a beautiful wife and daughter and I can only imagine how my weight is affecting them. I want to be healthy, I want to be able to take a shower without getting out of breath, hell I want to be able to talk without getting out of breath. This is day one, I am needing advice on what to do or what not to do. I am very bad at going in 100% and getting burned out in a couple of weeks. I feel like I have no energy to do much and was wondering if some sort of vitamins would help with that at all with of course some physical activity. One of the biggest problems with my eating is I don't like many vegetables and that hurts when trying to plan a meal. Any advice from you guys would be greatly appreciated. Someone just tell me there is a light at the end of this tunnel and I'll make it.
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Replies

  • MegaMooseEsq
    MegaMooseEsq Posts: 3,118 Member
    Also, a couple of resources that are really helping me are the book "Smart People Don't Diet" by Charlotte Markey (although she doesn't like calorie tracking long term and clearly I do), and the blog bodyforwife.com (although he's a big exercise plus diet guy, and I'm taking this one sloooooooow step at a time and not worrying about exercise right now).
  • Old_Cat_Lady
    Old_Cat_Lady Posts: 1,193 Member
    Take pictures so you can have something to post under Success Stories in a year. There are no vitamins or supplements to help you lose weight, but it is often recommended that you take a multivitamin if you are going on a low calorie diet to fill the gap in any nutritional deficiencies you might have.
  • toxikon
    toxikon Posts: 2,383 Member
    Welcome back! If you arm yourself with the right mindset, you can succeed.

    Here are a few tips that might help:

    1. Weight loss is all about calories in vs. calories out. You can lose weight without ever setting foot in a gym. You can sit at a desk at work all day then go home and sit on the couch and watch Netflix all night and you will STILL LOSE WEIGHT as long as you are at a caloric deficit.

    2. You mention that you get burnt out - you can prevent that by simplifying your weight loss plan. You don't need to even modify your diet - you can just eat smaller quantities of food. There's no need to follow a restrictive diet, or eat salads for every meal... you can keep eating the foods you enjoy and lose weight.

    3. The main difficulties you'll face are mental: lack of motivation and cravings to binge. Your determination comes from within, no amount of tips and tricks from others will help you with this. Seeing a therapist to confront your food issues can help you develop a healthier relationship with food.

    4. Set yourself up with tools to succeed. You already have a MFP account, so that's the first step. The second step is buying a good digital kitchen food scale. They're around $20 on Amazon. They'll help you accurately track your calorie intake to stick to your daily calorie goal. The third step is to track every single day, every bit of food that goes into your mouth. Build the habit!

    5. Calculate your TDEE and eat at a deficit. I like this TDEE calculator: http://www.sailrabbit.com/bmr/ It will tell you roughly how many calories your body burns based on your activity level. At a Sedentary level, your TDEE is 3500. Simply eat fewer calories than that, and you will lose weight. You could start with a daily deficit of 500 calories - meaning you'd eat 3000 calories a day. That would result in about a pound lost per week, without changing your activity level at all. Eat 2500 calories a day to lose about 2lbs a week. Find the sweet spot where your hunger levels are manageable and you're losing weight fairly consistently. There is nothing wrong with slow and steady - you will avoid burnout that way.

    Hopefully that helps, good luck to you!
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    When I started MFP, I started with just logging. I wanted to understand how many calories were in the foods I was eating and I honestly had no idea. Once I had a couple weeks of data, I entered my goals to get a calorie goal that put me at a deficit. Since I was already comfortable with logging, it felt less overwhelming that it might have felt for me otherwise.

    I didn't change anything I ate, but over time I began to notice which meals kept me feeling full and which foods had more calories but were not as satisfying. So over time, my eating style began to change just a bit. It's not very different now, I just eat more of some foods and less of some than I did before.

    You don't *have* to eat vegetables to lose weight, although I certainly think they're a great source of vitamins and fiber. But you can begin without any if that is what you want. Then you can decide if you want to try some new vegetables (or ways to prepare them).

    You don't have to go 100%. In fact, I've noticed that for many people, not changing too much all at once can be a great tool for long-term success.
  • bogwoppt1
    bogwoppt1 Posts: 159 Member
    Good for you for thinking about your family and yourself long term.

    Starting to move is a great place to begin. Ask you wife and child if they will go for a walk with you after dinner each day. Make it a habit, do it daily and do it together. Walk to a park for your little one to play, then walk back. Make it fun, make it family time and make it happen together.

    Log your food. Make small changes. Of course vegetables are healthy, but you will lose weight just cutting back the amounts of whatever it is you normally eat.

    Can you walk up and down the stairs once a day at work? Ask a co worker to join you? Park a little further away from the front door?

    Make tiny steps.
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,179 Member
    https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/search/list Use this to find the true facts about calories and nutrient values in foods.

  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
    Hi, Richard! I truly believe that small changes, done faithfully and consistently, make the biggest difference in the long run. Lots of great advice here. My "tip" to add is to make one change at a time and stick with it until it's habit or second nature before you undertake more changes. Slow and steady wins the race! Best to you!
  • OliveGirl128
    OliveGirl128 Posts: 801 Member
    You've gotten great responses already so just want to chime in and say welcome!
  • chels5988
    chels5988 Posts: 23 Member
    Hi Richard!
    Its a long, sometimes frustrating, road. Youve got a lot of great advice here though!
    I started at 333. Once you start seeing changes in your body, and your life there is no greater motivation to keep going.
    Take lots of progress pictures! Even if you dont want to at the start. I like to look at mine, to keep me going.
    Feel free to send a friend request if you like.
  • Volbeat79
    Volbeat79 Posts: 185 Member
    We have some very knowledgeable people here. I echo everything that's bee said. I started 5 months ago with no exercise at all and just focused on food. I started just walking and built up to walking 4 miles a day. I then added jogging a little at a time. Like said earlier, just bite off a little at a time--quite literally. You would also do well to add everyone here as friends to lean on. Everyone here is very willing to help when asked. Good luck and keep us informed of your progress!
  • Adc7225
    Adc7225 Posts: 1,318 Member
    Welcome, like others have stated, start small. Even one less soda a day for a week is a big step - just remember one step at a time.

    Also, try not to focus on what you don't like or can't do, but really look at things that you can do and change. I started with just really simple things like making extra trips to the kitchen or bathroom . . . whatever it takes to move, just a little more :) It adds up.

    Change is amazing, we are capable of changes we can't even imagine. I don't even know how I would have reacted if someone told me, one day you will be a gym bunny, go from owning 1 pair of jeans and 1 pair of sneakers to 14 pairs of jeans and 21 pairs of sneakers. That I would rather buy workout clothes over a purse . . . I never saw it coming. I will be 49 in a few days and never saw myself doing push ups or squats and working with weights, etc.. let alone liking brown rice :) (my first time I felt I was being punished by God). You have a wife and daughter that will support you and while sitting all day is a drag (I'm a receptionist) there are still ways to move a little more that doesn't have to be a chore. It can be easy to get distracted so logging is important and rewards can help as well. You have to figure out what will work for you, maybe even making a deal with yourself that you will do something special with your daughter or wife if you eat better for a week - things like that help give you something that is reasonable and attainable.

    I wish you the best.
  • Goober1142
    Goober1142 Posts: 219 Member
    Hi Richard! What kind of food do you like? I'm not big on veggies either, waiting for the new study to come out saying they're bad for you...but until then I fill a blender with spinach, kale, frozen berries protein powder and a banana and it's pretty good.
    Do you like eggs? They're a great diet food, full of protein and keep you full for hours. If you start logging your food and just go for a reasonable deficit, like 500 calories, it's not too hard. The first four days are the worst and after a couple of weeks your body gets used to less food. I find that I have to eat a lot of protein and a good amount of fat or I'm starving. Once you start seeing the numbers on the scale go down it becomes something you want to do and the change is exciting! 100 percent start logging your food. Figure out your daily calories and hang on for four days. Lots of water and just go to bed. It gets easier, I promise!
  • Blitzia
    Blitzia Posts: 205 Member
    There's a lot of great advice here so most things I could say would be redundant, so I just want to say welcome to MFP and congratulations on deciding to get healthier.

    My only piece of advice that might not have been mentioned: it gets easier! You're tired and hungry now, but it gets better. Once you start getting closer to a healthy weight, you feel better, you sleep better, you have more energy - just going about your day is easier! So this is the hardest part, but every healthy step makes the next step easier.

    Also, this may have already been mentioned, but you don't have to eat vegetables to lose weight. As long you stick to your MFP calorie goal, your weight will come down. Vegetables might make it easier to stick to your goal though! I thought I hated vegetables, but I tried a lot of hidden vegetable recipes - cauliflower pizza, cauliflower tater tots, black bean brownies, etc. You may find a new low calorie recipe that you like. I find adding the right spices and fat free cheese makes even vegetables taste good. You may also find that your palate changes. I've tried and adjusted to so many low calorie desserts that I don't even miss the "real" thing. So just be willing to try new things - dieting doesn't have to mean just salads.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,030 Member
    Okay the past is the past. You came back. You admit your failure. Now what have you learned from it? You FAIL to learn new info and how to succeed.
    So my advice............WRITE DOWN a plan. Writing it down helps you to really absorb it and think about what you're trying to achieve. Make sure your calorie deficit is MODERATE so you don't frustrate yourself quickly. Post it where you can see it everyday. And then follow the routine to a tee. When it becomes routine, you don't even have to think about what to do or need much motivation. If vegetables aren't that appealing to you, then just pick the ones you do like. When it comes to burning off more calories, start by walking. 1/4 mile at first, then 1/2, then 1 mile and so on. Once you've gotten used to a little exercise, you can add in a few more exercises a little at a time. If you're CONSISTENT on a day to day basis, you will succeed. Last guy I did this with went from 360lbs to 250lbs in about a year. YOU have to really want to do this to make it happen.


    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

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  • ReenieHJ
    ReenieHJ Posts: 9,724 Member
    Guess what.... I failed. Well I'm back at it lol. Didn't want to start a new post so figured I'd just reply to this one. Need some accountability buddies.

    You only fail when you stop trying. You're here again aren't you?? Fresh start, maybe some new friends, new ideas?
    I wasn't here your 1st time around so didn't read your original post. But here now. :) If you'd like a new friend, please feel free to add me to the list.
    While I still struggle to not binge, I usually stay within a few pounds of where I want to be, having lost a total of about 100# from my highest(unless you count every yo-yo diet I've had then it's more like 1K) :). I have to face it'll always be up and down for me. :/ BUT this place has kept me more on the straight and narrow than anything else I've ever done in my life.
    I've found tracking calories has helped the most, then comes not allowing certain foods in the house that I find too tempting. THE one hardest thing has been to control my mindset, which is a daily work in progress. No way around it, unless I can find that gotta-have-food on/off switch. :/
    Anyways, you've already gotten tons of good advice. Add me if you'd like. And best of luck to you!!!!
  • ReenieHJ
    ReenieHJ Posts: 9,724 Member
    Smart logical helpful ^^^^^^^
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    ReenieHJ wrote: »
    Smart logical helpful ^^^^^^^

    i finally just saved it in notepad the other day to make it easier for myself. i have a few other commonly used replies i should probably do the same for lol