Lose 10 lbs in September Challenge

QUESTION:

I am pretty new here and have read a lot of conflicting things. Simply put...If my calorie goal is 1200 calories than my net calories at days end should be 1200, correct? If I burn 300 exercising, I should eat 1500 for a net of 1200?

Sorry, I know people ask this a lot and I searched the forums and read a number of different things. Is what I gathered correct?

Thanks

The math on that is correct, yes, but it's a very controversial issue. Most people on MFP will tell you that whatever you burn exercising, you need to eat back and just don't go over your calorie goal. My personal trainer told me that this concept can be dangerous and counterproductive to weight loss. Your body needs fuel, especially if you're working out a lot, but the point of creating a deficit is to lose weight. The bigger the deficit, the more weigh you lose. I personally strive to eat a minimum of 1,200/day. My MFP calorie goal is 1,220. If I exercise and burn off 500 calories and I'm not hungry, I leave my net calories at 720 and don't fret too much about it. MFP will scold you if you consume less than 1,200, but not if your net is 1,200. The thing about losing weight is that everyone's body is different. Some things that work for some people don't always work for others. If you notice that you've hit a plateau, try eating back your exercise calories. If you've already been doing that, try not eating them back. Sometimes you just have to confuse your body because it gets used to what it's doing. I know that answer is pretty vague, but it's all I got...

1. Drink AT LEAST 8 glasses of water EVERY DAY - our bodies are primarily water and WILL NOT FUNCTION without the proper amounts. 64oz is an absolute minimum daily intake just for your body to function - so how do you expect to lose weight if your body is dehydrated?? :drinker:

Water is USUALLY not a problem for me (except these last couple of days because I've been slacking) so this part shouldn't be too hard for me.

2. Try a new exercise that you don't normally do or haven't done in a really long time. For women this might be weight training - a lot of times we have AWESOME cardiovascular systems but no muscle whatsoever, but our muscle is the fat-burners in our bodies. Also, sometimes our bodies simply get used to what we are doing and thus the dreaded plateau. Try to confuse your body this week and report back with what you did and how you liked it.

I'm going to cheat a little like some others have and call road biking my new exercise, simply because I'm still new to it. I recently invested in a road bike and my husband and I have started riding and it's SO much fun! We've also started taking a spin class at the Y. AND I'm supposed to start taking a yoga class (once my schedule calms down in a week or so). Cycling and yoga are both supposed to be really good cross training for my running, so we'll see how that works out for me. Next race is September 24th!

3. Think about (and share if you feel comfortable) what got you to where you are today. Why did you let yourself go? What was your awakening moment when you knew something had to change? What situations trigger you to not make healthy decisions and how can you control those situations? Life happens, and sometimes we need to focus on what happens in life and how we react to those situations and be ready to deal with them when they arise.

Hmm...what got me where I am today...lots of things! I was always overweight as a kid and was always made fun of for it, but I pretended like it didn't bother me. Then I had a tough breakup when I was in high school that sent me into a bout of depression and I really didn't care about much of anything. I started college and gained the freshman 50 instead of the freshman 15 because I was at a small bible college - and those church ladies sure do know how to cook - and I sure didn't know how to show any restraint! After 2 years of bible school I started "normal" college, got married, was working 2 jobs to pay for school, and the weight just kept going up and up. In 2008 my dad was arrested and in 2009 he actually WENT to jail for growing pot and that was a huge struggle for me because I'm definitely a daddy's girl. He missed my college graduation, which was pretty hard on me and after seeing my graduation picture for the first time, I knew that fat depressed person wasn't who I wanted to be. I joined the Y shortly after graduation and weighed in at my highest weight of 290 in January of 2010. I started South Beach diet and lost about 25 lbs. then gained it all back and then some when I quit following it. My weight crept back up to 282 by the end of 2010 and I knew I had to do something or I was never going to get the weight off. I am now only working one job and have no kids, so it's the perfect time for me to be focusing on myself and getting to where I want to be.

I work for a hospital, so they're pretty big on promoting wellness. In January 2011 I joined the Meltdown at work (sort of like Biggest Loser) and was a big advocate for our team. Meltdown ended at the end of April and I had lost almost 30 lbs. By this time I had ran my first 5K and discovered MFP (in March) and knew I couldn't just give up on all the progress I had made. I hired a personal trainer in July and reactivated my Y membership in August and have lost another 20 lbs. I made it my New Year's Resolution (corny, I know) to get under 200 lbs in 2011. I'm currently 4 months and 35 lbs away from meeting that goal.

This monthly 10 lb challenge is tough (most people don't actually hit 10 lbs) but it's great motivation for those who actually actively participate. dhiggins8 was the originator of this challenge and he is now in the maintenance phase of his weight loss journey and has thus passed the torch. I love "meeting" all of you and hearing your stories and look forward to an awesome month of weight loss goals being met and NSV's being shared. It's not always about the numbers on the scale - though it's nice to see that number get smaller. The bigger victories are on the inside - the way we feel about ourselves, the difference that others see and share, the healthy transformations that make life that much longer. If you don't hit 10 lbs lost this month, don't worry about it - the important thing is that you're here and you're trying.

Here's to a happy, healthy month! :drinker: