Tips and motivations - mid 30s, 5'8", with 25 lbs to lose

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111sj
111sj Posts: 6 Member
edited October 2017 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi all,

Starting today, I'm setting my sight on a 25lbs weight-loss to start off 2018 right and with less of a weight-loss challenge.

Until today my life has been extremely sedentary (office job).

But I am extremely motivated to make these next 2 months dedicated to losing the 25lbs that creeped back onto the scale over the last past 3 years.

But 20 lbs, although achievable, is ambitious, especially going into the holiday season!

I also fear, my motivation will decline within a few weeks because I'm not seeing results fast enough and old habits die hard.

So, what advice can anyone else here provide me with who has gone through a similar weight loss challenge?

What worked for you? What did you do to really start seeing the numbers on the scale go down?

How did you stay motivated to the end?

How did any of you get through holidays when starting a diet? I don't have a family, I'm single, but my social and professional life is quite active. Right now, I see myself making a lot of excuses to avoid those dinners!

Any tips or anecdotes would be greatly appreciated :)

Thanks!

Replies

  • 111sj
    111sj Posts: 6 Member
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    JaydedMiss wrote: »
    My comment was plenty nice. Its an unhealthy and unrealistic goal to expect yourself to go from 0-100 in no time flat and then maintain it. Thats the kind of thinking that causes yo-yo dieting in majority of people who "diet". Not to mention in general its an unhealthy rate of loss 2lb a week is only healthy for very obese people. your body literally CANT lose fat that fast and will canibalize muscle -like your heart- If you dont agree with my information that doesnt equate to rude.

    As for motivation, Dont rely on motivation. Learn new habits (yet another reason this 0-100 thing is a bad idea) and honestly just do it. Motivation dwindles fast your looking for dedication, Not motivation.

    3500 calories = 1 lbs, correct?
    2 lbs in a week is a deficit of 7000 calories
    At 1200 per day that puts my current weight at a deficit of 800 calories per day - without adding anything new to the mix.

    That means I only need to figure out how to burn an additional 200 calories per day or 1400 per week.


    If I walk to work, that's another 200 calories.
    A single session of OTF is around 300-400.
    Taking a break at lunch for a walk or even mid day will contribute (also to clear the mind)

    Maybe I won't do 2 lbs per week, but I can absolutely aim for it.

    There's the math.

    Now, again I'm looking for ways to motivate myself to stay on track and stick to it, asking others who have been in a similar situation to lend me their tips and what helped them.

    I will surely do the same when I reach my goal.
  • 111sj
    111sj Posts: 6 Member
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    middlehaitch wrote: »
    The math may look good to you, but it won't work in real life.
    You will not have the energy for your active job and life. Exercising without eating back those calories will only make matters worse.

    Lethargy, hair loss, and dull skin, are the first visible signs that you are losing weight in an unhealthy way. Bone and muscle loss are not visible and can affect you for the rest of your life. C

    Read the threads in this post (below) and come up with a sustainable way to lose weight that will allow you to enjoy the upcoming holidays and maintain your loss in the future.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10300319/most-helpful-posts-general-diet-and-weight-loss-help-must-reads#latest

    Cheers, h.

    ETA: there was nothing wrong with @JaydedMiss's replies, tone or content.

    Guys, I'm not starving myself! I have no intent on eating less than 1200 calories and am in no way advocating any sort of extreme dieting or disorders. I'm just recognizing the fact that I do intend to change my habits quite a bit (as regular habits are previously non-existant) and I want to get healthy.

    I'm loose on the deadline, and if I'm shy by 10-15 lbs from hitting the goal in 10 weeks that's OK too! But I want to give my best to make this more long term and not just a try and fail.

    Success for me will be maintaining this long term, and not necessarily the number on the scale. I don't know what it will be at the end of 10 weeks, but I expect to see it go down, as long as I stick to a healthy routine.

    Which brings me back to my initial post asking for tips on how to stay motivated and dedicated to a new diet i.e. watching your caloric intake during a time that's not quite routine (and frankly full of distractions) like the upcoming holidays. I feel like when you're just starting a new routine, this can prove to be quite an obstacle with all the social activities that suddenly come along with it. From dinners to drinks to office treats.

    Not to rehash, but I almost feel the need to clarify, when I was referring to @JaydedMiss 's tone, I was specifically referring to,

    "you put it on in 3 years and expect to get it off in 2 months? So yourr plan is to go from sitting all day to what just not eating and moving all day."

    That was a bit snippy and rough. This is my first post on this forum and I was expecting some helpful support. Not a brute criticism on my goals or an assumption of how I want to get there. I'm sorry if I took it out of context.



  • 111sj
    111sj Posts: 6 Member
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    middlehaitch wrote: »
    The math may look good to you, but it won't work in real life.
    You will not have the energy for your active job and life. Exercising without eating back those calories will only make matters worse.

    Lethargy, hair loss, and dull skin, are the first visible signs that you are losing weight in an unhealthy way. Bone and muscle loss are not visible and can affect you for the rest of your life. C

    Read the threads in this post (below) and come up with a sustainable way to lose weight that will allow you to enjoy the upcoming holidays and maintain your loss in the future.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10300319/most-helpful-posts-general-diet-and-weight-loss-help-must-reads#latest

    Cheers, h.

    ETA: there was nothing wrong with @JaydedMiss's replies, tone or content.

    Also, thank you for the links. They are helpful
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,485 Member
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    @111sj read the posts with a smile on your face, or with a Daffy Duck voice. It is easy to read a tone into a post that is not there.
    Also communicating styles differ according to profession and local. I am from northern England, a place known for its bluntness. It took me a long time to try and talk in a neutral voice fit these boards, as my inclination and profession don't need it.

    What is trying to be comunicated is that your goal and timeline are not suitable for the amount of weight you are trying to lose. Nor will it teach you anything about how to maintain your loss.

    Anecdotally.
    It took me a year to lose 30 lbs. slow? yes, effective? yes, maintainable? Yes- 8 years so far.
    It could have been faster for others, but I was within a healthy weight range to start with and I am quite short

    I set myself a goal of 1 lbs a week, and ate back all my exercise calories

    For special occasions, I tried to pre log my alcahol and ate to my portion size (eyeball) when eating out, aiming for maintenance calories and forgiving myself when I went over.

    Treat each meal or day as the occasion not the week or month, get right back on track after, and log everything even if not perfect.

    From now until almost mid January I have something happening every weekend. This means I will probably not drink during the week, save them for the weekend, and do the same with deserts.

    I will stay within my weekly calorie goal, but have it slightly skewed to more calories on the weekend, less on week days.

    Glad you like the link posts. They really are a must read. :)

    Cheers, h.
  • m1ss1onH1llZ
    m1ss1onH1llZ Posts: 7 Member
    edited December 2017
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    ?:);$;
  • colors_fade
    colors_fade Posts: 464 Member
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    111sj wrote: »
    That was a bit snippy and rough. This is my first post on this forum and I was expecting some helpful support. Not a brute criticism on my goals or an assumption of how I want to get there. I'm sorry if I took it out of context.

    People are trying to help you - by informing you that your goals are unrealistic. The idea is to get you to adjust your goals to something reasonable to achieve. Achievement & progress will help you stay on course. Failure will discourage.

    People on this message boards have been here a LONG time; we've been doing this for years, figuring out what works and what doesn't. You have the wisdom of thousands of users to learn from, but you're being pig-headed. Sit back, relax, listen to what people are saying. They're actually trying to HELP YOU.

    1 lb. per week is a sustainable weight-loss rate for nearly everyone. 2 lbs. per week is unrealistic and can only be achieved by the select few (typically males who have more calories at their disposal).

    If you truly do want to make a change and sustain it, then listen to the wisdom of those of us who have done it: maintain a small deficit. Eat foods you like in portions that allow you to hit your deficit. Don't try for too large a deficit; you will get hungry and binge and then ruin all your progress (it happens to everyone, and that's why we don't recommend it).

    Take your time. Don't worry about deadlines. You're in for 1 lb. per week. If you want to lose 25 lbs., it's going to be roughly 25 weeks of work. But by the end you'll have established good eating habits that will last a lifetime (this is why it's important to eat foods you enjoy in portions that fit your caloric budget during your weight loss adventure; if you do not do this, then when you reach your goal on some weird diet of food you don't like, and you will revert to the foods you enjoy, without portion control, and you'll gain the weight back).

    So keep is simple. Create a caloric deficit that is slightly under your TDEE at sedentary. Eat foods you enjoy in calorie portions that fit your budget. Track honestly and accurately. Be honest if you have a cheat day or cheat meal. Log it.

    I know what you want to do is "lose weight", but what you're really doing here is changing habits for a lifetime. You'll fall at some point; you'll fail occasionally. It happens. Get right back on the horse. Don't let one bad meal turn into several bad days in a row. Don't create deadlines for yourself. Just take it one meal at a time, one day at a time, and it will come.

    Best of luck.

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