Simple trick that took an embarrassingly long time for you to figure out...
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charlenekapf wrote: »This is why I do all the cardio that people on this thread say they "don't do and just eat less to maintain/lose". For the short women, we have to be pretty active to be able to eat a "normal" amount of food and maintain/lose. I do 45-50 mins intense cardio (HR 165-185 BPM stairmill, bike sprints, uphill fast walking) so I can eat balanced satisfying meals and not be deprived. I am losing very slowly and probably could lose faster just slashing my calories and not working out but when I do this, I cannot sustain it for long, my sleep suffers, my mood suffers, and I start losing my mind. I'd rather put in the work, eat more, and see it come off slowly in a sustainable way. Maintenance will hopefully allow me to eat the same way and ease up on the intensity of the cardio.Not a trick, but it took me years to understand that I, as a 5'1 woman in an office job, have a ridiculously low TDEE and therefore a "normal" diet, which restricts your calories to ~1500 is never going to work. I tried at least 3 times to get along with calorie counting, but since I always overestimated my need, it never worked.
There are many calculation tools out there, which still give me a maintenance number of >2000 calories, while my reality is barely 1600. And without actually trying to understand the entire concept, even the super simple CICO approach has absolutely no effect.
This. Every time I hear people say, "you don't need to do cardio!", I get quite frustrated. Maybe you don't need cardio and can just eat less because you're big and/or have a high NEAT, but some of us are will be starving with the amount of food we could allow ourselves to maintain the same deficit. On some days my TDEE is only 1600, which means if I don't exercise I'd get to eat, what 1100 to lose 1lbs a week? Only because I go running or go on long walks on days like that can I allow myself a semi-normal amount of food.11 -
It took me a while to figure out that moving throughout the day burns calories and it doesn't even feel like work. I used to do 30 minutes of exercise and agonize at the possibility that to get the calories I want I may at some point have to increase that to two or three hours. 30 minutes of exercise plus my day to day steps amounted to about 5k steps before introducing more movement. Started incorporating small walks here and there around the house while waiting for stuff, on the phone, taking the longest route, extra laundry trips, became the designated garbage person...etc and my steps jumped up to 7-10k without any exercise, so 10-15K on exercise days.That's about 90 minutes worth of extra walking every day that I don't even feel like I'm doing.18
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I too was late in discovering the effects of everyday activity. I walk, dance, play. No more tedious and time-draining exercise.
How to get the most out of my kitchen scales - the tare button and negative numbers are really, really handy.
Meal planning was another gamechanger, and there are several little tweaks:
Instead of just buying random stuff, or conversely, buying/looking for a specific item - think about what I'm going to use it for! Yes! If I have cheese, I want fruit that goes with that cheese, it can be grapes, or pear, or tangerines, but not apples or oranges. When I'm making a specific dish, I need certain ingredients, but sometimes I'm just making a casserole, and then I just need a starch, a protein, and some vegetables. All combinations aren't successful, but I have aquired some experience, and can make a reliable guess as to waht is going to turn out well.
When I plan meals, the ingredients for recipes, and other foods for those meals, is what goes on my shopping list. (I really didn't think about that.) When I have decided how large a "portion" of anything is, and weigh it out every time I serve myself, and I have decided when my next shopping trip is, I know how much I need to buy of each food - so I don't have to overbuy fresh foods "just in case" (and see it spoil) or buy too little and need another trip.
Plan meals I actually want to eat! It sounds so obvious now, but I had such good intentions, so I figured out that the "healthy meal" would be appealing. It never is. I love the predictability of meal planning, because I plan meals I truly like, and look forward to.
Keep a running inventory, of fridge, freezer and pantry, and never run unexptectedly out. Stock up on low-perishables when prices are good.
Have weekly rotating dinner themes. This ensures variety as well as structure.
Weighing myself every morning. This takes away the anxiety - every large jump is water - makes into something I just do every day, as well as a "reminder" to not overeat.6 -
Crafty_camper123 wrote: »@pinuplove *turns phone sideways* WHAAAAAT?! I just thought this was something the mobile version was missing! I can't tell you how many times I've wanted to know what my macros were for a particular meal and was left guessing off my total for the day (The only thing that pops up) This is awesome, thanks!
Been on here for YEARS and didn't know this
holy *kitten*!!!!
@pinuplove hahaha you've changed the game for loads of people on MFP with this revelation!
@HDBKLM I know! I don't feel so bad for taking so long to figure it out now
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@oat_bran, and others.
Have a read through the NEAT thread, for ways to increase your daily movements in, sometimes, fun and interesting ways.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10610953/neat-improvement-strategies-to-improve-weight-loss/p1
Cheers, h.2 -
I’m learning it’s not About the food it’s my mood and situation, managing this better is helping my weight stabilise and hopefully will help to lower in the longterm5
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Ditto on 'doing cardio really helps with weight loss because you can eat more.
And substituting something 'healthier' to manage a craving is NEVER worth it.0 -
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GemimaFitzTed wrote: »
Even doctors and scientists (like you) still regularly say it turns into energy.... everyone says it turns into energy... that implies that we have all this energy that we can access... but the reality is that in the lack of fuel, the body burns muscle, not fat (I am massively over-simplifying) but you know what I mean
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Tare-ing your scale after each part of a bigger meal. I used to weigh, log, remove, rinse and repeat for everything. I've since taken some steps out so it makes weighing out trail mixes and plates of food much quicker.0
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Weekend calories count!4
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tinkerbellang83 wrote: »Logging recipe servings in grams instead of portions so that I can accurately account for calories. Doesn't make a huge difference over time, because I am cooking for one but in the week-to-week it can be helpful for me.
Extremely helpful for dealing with those who have no respect for what the recipe says a portion size is. I measure out my grams, they glom as much as they want. No worry about odd measurements afterwards.3 -
newheavensearth wrote: »tinkerbellang83 wrote: »Logging recipe servings in grams instead of portions so that I can accurately account for calories. Doesn't make a huge difference over time, because I am cooking for one but in the week-to-week it can be helpful for me.
Extremely helpful for dealing with those who have no respect for what the recipe says a portion size is. I measure out my grams, they glom as much as they want. No worry about odd measurements afterwards.
I learned that long workouts are much easier to do if you are having fun doing them.5 -
newheavensearth wrote: »tinkerbellang83 wrote: »Logging recipe servings in grams instead of portions so that I can accurately account for calories. Doesn't make a huge difference over time, because I am cooking for one but in the week-to-week it can be helpful for me.
Extremely helpful for dealing with those who have no respect for what the recipe says a portion size is. I measure out my grams, they glom as much as they want. No worry about odd measurements afterwards.
I learned that long workouts are much easier to do if you are having fun doing them.
Definitely! Variety and a great playlist helps!
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GOT_Obsessed wrote: »I wish I had known on previous attempts that mixing up my fitness suits me best. I get bored easy and variety keeps me enthusiastic about keeping active.
I also wish I had known that attainable goals suit me best. Instead of "lose 50 lbs" I do better with things like "run 1 mile without walking", "go to the gym 3 days a week for 3 months", "lose 15 lbs then reassess", "try every group fitness class at my gym".
And with more of a focus on my activity level and not on calories I don't even want crappy foods very often.
I cannot set weight goals without driving myself crazy. I just do not lose consistently and if I have weight and time goals, I will fail, get depressed, and go back to living on chicken nuggets and fries with an ice cream chaser.
Instead, I set nutrition and fitness goals. I have control over how many steps I take and how many veggies I eat. I have no control over how long it takes me to lose 10lbs. Yes, there are medical issues involved with that.8 -
I have control over how many steps I take and how many veggies I eat. I have no control over how long it takes me to lose 10lbs.
I may embroider this on a pillow.13 -
I like to read mysteries. One of the characters I like, cooked to relax after a stressful day. All those years eating diet frozen meals and never being able to keep the weight off? I needed a long term/life time solution.
Learning to love to cook from scratch and seeing it as enjoyable instead of a chore is helping me not feel like I am dieting or being deprived. Good food, in moderation, and plenty of activity seems to be doing the trick.13 -
I like to read mysteries. One of the characters I like, cooked to relax after a stressful day. All those years eating diet frozen meals and never being able to keep the weight off? I needed a long term/life time solution.
Learning to love to cook from scratch and seeing it as enjoyable instead of a chore is helping me not feel like I am dieting or being deprived. Good food, in moderation, and plenty of activity seems to be doing the trick.
I really feel you on this one. And I have learned that the idea of 'cooking from scratch' does not necessarily mean going full Martha Stewart three meals a day. Some flash-frozen peas warmed through with butter next to a quick pan fry of salmon fillet with a squeeze of lemon, as an example, is a 10-minute preparation that satisfies me beautifully. As a side effect, the more I prepare my own food the more mindful I am about food in broader ways; for example, I'm not getting the preservatives (and therefore also sodium) of a frozen box meal of the exact same simple dish.8
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