Hello seeking advice

lolaluvnyc · May 2020

I’ve literally tried everything in the book with no success. I started today slowly with my mom. I figured we could help each other out. I have several military injuries which lead to several surgeries and I’m terrified of getting hurt. So of course the lbs just piled on. My issue is snacking especially at night. I stop eating at 6pm and I’m starving. I only ate 1000 calories today. I think I ate too little. If anyone can help I would appreciate it🤗

KrissFlavored · May 2020

So many things here to address.

1. Yes, 1000 calories is way too little. When you signed up, mfp asked you questions and gave you a calorie goal? What was it? You need to eat that many calories. 1200 is the minimum a female needs, eating under it is risking your health and you need to not eat 1000 calories.

2. You can eat passed 6pm, there is no time limit on how late you can eat, if you are a night eater, use your calories and eat at night, you will still lose weight.

3. You dont need to exercise to lose weight, weight loss starts in the kitchen, exercise is for health and you can do ANYTHING you wish, that's safe for you to do, however, it is expected that if you burn calories from any exercise, that you eat back those calories, as I said above, they are for health, not weight loss, so eat more food, your weight loss is already included in the calorie goal mfp gave you.

4. Fad diets never work, everything those previous diets taught you were designed for you to fail, forget it all. All you need to do is eat an appropriate amount of calories and eat the foods you love within those calories. That includes "junk" foods and restaurant dining. Nothing is off limits, you just need to make sure you are eating healthy and balanced nutrition, which includes carbs, fat and protein.

lolaluvnyc · May 2020

Thank you so much for taking the time to reach out. I agree with u it was way too little today. The reason I stopped at six is because I was trying intermittent fasting. 16:8 I ate at 10 am and stopped at 6. I just want to feel better. I’ve had to back surgeries already and I feel that exercise is the disconnection. So I started to walk today. My biggest challenge is cravings and how long it takes to see results. 🤗

harper16 · May 2020

lolaluvnyc wrote: »

Thank you so much for taking the time to reach out. I agree with u it was way too little today. The reason I stopped at six is because I was trying intermittent fasting. 16:8 I ate at 10 am and stopped at 6. I just want to feel better. I’ve had to back surgeries already and I feel that exercise is the disconnection. So I started to walk today. My biggest challenge is cravings and how long it takes to see results. 🤗

Can you share your age, current weight, and your height?

KrissFlavored · May 2020

Is there a possibility you can change your window?

12 to 8? Something closer to bed time? Perhaps you are more successful at refraining from eating earlier in the day then you are at night?

Blessingsbe533 · May 2020

I am on the struggle bus, so I don’t know that I have helpful suggestions. But one thing I’m doing right is exercise daily. Exercise helps me stay in a better mood and experience less anxiety, so it’s self rewarding.

reallynearlythere · May 2020

I am a classic yoyo dieter, however am doing ok at the moment. With regard to evening nibbles, I have found that rather than trying to just use willpower, which inevitably ends up in me bingeing,I am trying to be more pre-active. At the moment I have found cutting up raw carrot and celery and dunking them into 45g of garlic cream cheese. Not only is this low in calories, under 150, but it takes much much longer to eat than a packet of crisps!

manyasin · May 2020

It sounds to me like you're jumping into the deep end here! 1000 calories is way too low, and having low daily calories and doing intermittent fasting means you're more likely to stop as it'll be too much to handle. If you're struggling with the intermittent fasting there's no harm in extending it to 10am - 8pm, but try adding your stats into MyFitnessPal and it'll tell you your recommended daily calories, I'm assuming it'll be a lot more than 1000!

Try to plan your day ahead and leave yourself calories for snacks, nothing wrong with snacking in the evening as long as it stays in your calorie allowance! Be honest with what you are eating and record everything, and I swear you will find areas that you can remove unnecessary calories (for me it was butter, fizzy drinks and overeating fruit thinking I was being healthy!). I'd recommend buying kitchen scales if you don't already have one, I realised my idea of portion sizes was grossly wrong!

In regards to exercise, the old saying when it comes to losing weight is "80% diet, 20% exercise", so right now it's best to focus on what you are eating more than worrying about workouts. There is no harm in going for daily walks though, just try not to do anything too strenuous to aggravate your previous injuries.

bmeadows380 · May 2020

you absolutely do not have to exercise to lose weight - I lost my first 100 lbs through diet alone. Exercise has a host of health benefits, of course, but even mild exercise that you can safely do will provide you benefit; you don't need HIIT or other intense exercise activities to reach a healthier state. Walking is a perfectly sound, safe and healthy activity, even if its short stints around the block! Do what you feel safe to do, but if you aren't ready to start exercise, that's okay, too.

Secondly, the best way to make weight loss sustainable is make it as easy for yourself as possible. Don't be setting yourself up in a situation where you must will power or white-knuckle your way through; it won't last. Take a good look at yourself, your habits, your likes and dislikes in food, and then just work on tweaking those areas and coming to compromises with yourself that both the part of you that wants to be healthier and the part of you that wants food can agree with.

So you can either find lower calorie swaps for the higher calories snacks you are eating if that will satisfy you, or eat what your body is craving, just in a smaller portion. Account for the calories in all situations, using a food scale preferably for better accuracy. There is no need to force yourself to eat breakfast if you don't like to, and saving calories for evening is perfectly fine.

In fact, that is how I work with myself. I"m an evening eater; that's when the munchies hit me and when I crave more food. If I eat a large breakfast or a larger portion of my calories during the morning or afternoon, its a foregone conclusion I'm going to be over my calorie limit by bedtime. My will power is at its lowest in the evenings. So I save the bulk of my calories for evening. I usually have a slice of low calorie toast with 1/2 Tbsp of peanut butter first think with my coffee to fuel my first exercise of the day. I then delay breakfast to at least 9, maybe 10 or even 11 AM and keep that meal at 300 calories or less usually. That keeps me from snacking in the mornings because if I eat my full breakfast before 9 AM, its inevitable that I'm going to be hungry again before noon. That also allows me to push lunch later in the afternoon - sometimes as late as 2 pm, which I also try to keep on the lighter side, or no more than 400 calories usually (unless I've earned back some exercise calories and splurge or need more protein) and it helps me keep from getting snacky in the afternoon.

That saves a big chunk of my daily calorie allowance for a nice, satisfying dinner and a snack or two before bedtime. This is worked extremely well for me.

cmriverside · May 2020

KrissFlavored wrote: »

Is there a possibility you can change your window?

12 to 8? Something closer to bed time? Perhaps you are more successful at refraining from eating earlier in the day then you are at night?

This ^^

I did intermittent fasting, and for many people it's a lot easier to delay that first meal than to stop eating several hours before bed.

I delay for four hours in the morning, have my exercise midday, then a snack then a good sized afternoon meal, and then a snack of 200-300 calories a couple hours before bed. I do go to bed early, that was one thing I had to change during weight loss. No alcohol, in bed by 9PM, up at 5AM.

lolaluvnyc · May 2020

Hello everyone
Thank you all for all suggestions and taking the time to write to me I really appreciate all of you.They are very insightful. Biggest challenge is consistency. I’m working on logging all my food and activity with pure honesty. App suggested I should eat 1390 calories so I will stick to eating the suggested calories.

mrmota70 · May 2020

Aside from sticking to the minimum cal intake you should also consider adding some cardio initially. Cal deficit will add to you being healthier. I have dealt with old injuries and with added weight over the years I could feel them. As some weight has come off those old injuries are more manageable. Drink plenty of water. If you snack in later hours find some items that are recommended as late snack. Strawberries, kiwis, watermelon some non fat yogurt... try to dial in with what works for you and stick to it. I now only eat between 8:30am and 7:30pm and can’t say I’m ever starving and sometimes find myself hurrying to reach my daily cal goal. Give it some time to find your rhythm. You’ll get there soon enough.

Hello seeking advice

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