What's your best tips?

Water, water, and, then more water.

Great advice here. I found consistency is the key. Small changes over time will yield results.

Uber fast weight loss rarely works. Sure you'll see some people who never had a setback or lost 100 pounds in a year. Most did not.

In my 30's I could drop 50 lbs in 3 or 4 months but always gained it back. When I hit 40 I took the slow approach. Ate a little less at each meal, moved a bit more and it stuck. Soon I added more vegetables, swithched to whole grains and more fiber to fill my plate.

It took a long time and I had ups and downs because life happens. I experienced job loss, relationship problems, money problems, dealth of a parent and more. I used food in unhealthy ways.

My advice is to also address your relationship with food. I was a binge eater and honestly still am. It's a lifeling process, and rarely do you just snap your fingers and change overnight.

Keep the faith and always remember.. if you go in the wrong direction, do a U turn. Bad day or week? Stop and turn around. Easier said than done but so necessary.

Good luck. We are all rooting for you.

Log before you eat and weigh, do not use "cups".

Nothing worse than eating and then logging it to find you have gone over your calories or have not left enough for what you wanted for your evening meal for example. Also, logging before you eat means nothing gets forgotten.

And "cups" are the spawn of the devil. Do not use them.

If your goals are not realistic and fully attainable you will find logic in giving up. Set smaller goals that are totally doable (20lbs by 3 months out, or a pound a week... if you only focus on 200lbs to lose you will drive yourself mad) Start by not changing but taking a week or so tracking what you currently eat and drink completely and realize most people underestimate what they eat by 20% so factor in a buffer zone. At my heaviest I was consuming around 5,000 cals a day, identifying the swaps I was and was not willing to make allowed me to get it down to what works for me to lose weight. Once you know what you are consuming start to swap out the least necessary items for better ones or hydration (I learned I am very "hungry" when dehydrated for example) I also realized for me alcohol was eating up way to many calories and triggering me to eat crap at night. Most importantly unless you want to end up mentally unwell it's very important to surround yourself with positive people and seek out therapy if needed to deal with emotional issues as opposed to punishing yourself with workouts and diets that are unrealistic.

Meal plan if you can. I use Slender Kitchen and Skinnytaste for recipe ideas. I keep them on a Google Doc with a notation of where to find the recipe. I also list any ingredients that I may not have on hand so that I am not caught short. I can go back and look over my meal plans and make a grocery list pretty easily. I also try to use recipes that have similar ingredients that I may not buy regularly - for example I don't keep celery on hand but I need it for one recipe for next week so I am incorporationg a couple of others that use celery into my meal plan.
Know that this will not happen quickly, as others have said make small changes so it is sustainable. Accept that there will be periods of time when the weight loss or slow or there is none. Don't give up no matter how tempting it may be.

I just started in Sept this time i wanted to make it count. I didnt wanna do something that was too hard. So i did these steps.. it might help you, this is just what i did you can try if you want.

1) I did start out eating really low, first 2 weeks it was really hard (side effects - headaches, cant sleep, sugar cravings) but if you stay with it, its gonna pass. i literally would hear my stomach growl... especially at night , but you know what i learned what that is.. its called the hunger hormone... its used to you eating all the time esp carbs and then crashing again... it goes away .. this happens because my body wasnt used to eating at correct intervals.. your suppose to feed your body every few hours i only did 3 meals a day but you can do what works for you

2) exercise... you have to move your body... and try to go for walks if possible. But LIFT heavy weights, if you cant do much.. .just do what you can do bodyweight exercises, pushups, lunges, just do what you can.. and you can go for walks but dont do 1 HR of cardio

3) after the first 2 weeks detoxing.. of feeling starving, cutting sugar you start to feel kinda better...

4) whenever you're hungry drink water FIRST

5) make sure your eating mostly protein at each meal, if you can get 20g each meal. especially if your feeling hungry at night. chicken,fish,eggs, protein powder, protein bars, yogurt, cottage cheese

6) make healthy choices when possible.. you know what those are! your hungry at night... and already had dinner... have 1 piece of cheese and grapes.. avoid crackers, you can have 1 or 2 but try to. go for fruit instead.
if you go to a restaurant, mcdonalds.. get the healthier options.. they have small chicken wraps, salads, junior chicken (smallest low cal options), ask for coffee black w/ splenda.

7) eat at the correct intervals... our body is starving initially because we are used to eating carbs and then crashing and needing energy. eat at the right times,8-9am breakfast lunch 12-1 dinner 6pm, like that? make sure theres a balance of protein carb fat (chicken - protein, olive oil - fat, carbs - veggies) youll notice when your eating enough food at each meal.. you will feel full between meals.

lillyy23 wrote: »

I just started in Sept this time i wanted to make it count. I didnt wanna do something that was too hard. So i did these steps.. it might help you, this is just what i did you can try if you want.

1) I did start out eating really low, first 2 weeks it was really hard (side effects - headaches, cant sleep, sugar cravings) but if you stay with it, its gonna pass. i literally would hear my stomach growl... especially at night , but you know what i learned what that is.. its called the hunger hormone... its used to you eating all the time esp carbs and then crashing again... it goes away .. this happens because my body wasnt used to eating at correct intervals.. your suppose to feed your body every few hours i only did 3 meals a day but you can do what works for you

2) exercise... you have to move your body... and try to go for walks if possible. But LIFT heavy weights, if you cant do much.. .just do what you can do bodyweight exercises, pushups, lunges, just do what you can.. and you can go for walks but dont do 1 HR of cardio

3) after the first 2 weeks detoxing.. of feeling starving, cutting sugar you start to feel kinda better...

4) whenever you're hungry drink water FIRST

5) make sure your eating mostly protein at each meal, if you can get 20g each meal. especially if your feeling hungry at night. chicken,fish,eggs, protein powder, protein bars, yogurt, cottage cheese

6) make healthy choices when possible.. you know what those are! your hungry at night... and already had dinner... have 1 piece of cheese and grapes.. avoid crackers, you can have 1 or 2 but try to. go for fruit instead.
if you go to a restaurant, mcdonalds.. get the healthier options.. they have small chicken wraps, salads, junior chicken (smallest low cal options), ask for coffee black w/ splenda.

7) eat at the correct intervals... our body is starving initially because we are used to eating carbs and then crashing and needing energy. eat at the right times,8-9am breakfast lunch 12-1 dinner 6pm, like that? make sure theres a balance of protein carb fat (chicken - protein, olive oil - fat, carbs - veggies) youll notice when your eating enough food at each meal.. you will feel full between meals.

@lillyy23

You are making things harder on yourself than needed. Weight loss has hard parts built in. If you exhaust your resolve doing things that are unnecessary then you are in trouble when you really need it. I should know... it is on my greatest hits album of ways I failed.

You believe some myths. This happens. There are many out there and they can be quite compelling especially when you have heard them over and over again sometimes from seemingly credible sources.

Weight loss only requires a calorie deficit. It does not require special food other than what is needed to control hunger.

SModa61 wrote: »

NovusDies wrote: »

lillyy23 wrote: »

I just started in Sept this time i wanted to make it count. I didnt wanna do something that was too hard. So i did these steps.. it might help you, this is just what i did you can try if you want.

1) I did start out eating really low, first 2 weeks it was really hard (side effects - headaches, cant sleep, sugar cravings) but if you stay with it, its gonna pass. i literally would hear my stomach growl... especially at night , but you know what i learned what that is.. its called the hunger hormone... its used to you eating all the time esp carbs and then crashing again... it goes away .. this happens because my body wasnt used to eating at correct intervals.. your suppose to feed your body every few hours i only did 3 meals a day but you can do what works for you

2) exercise... you have to move your body... and try to go for walks if possible. But LIFT heavy weights, if you cant do much.. .just do what you can do bodyweight exercises, pushups, lunges, just do what you can.. and you can go for walks but dont do 1 HR of cardio

3) after the first 2 weeks detoxing.. of feeling starving, cutting sugar you start to feel kinda better...

4) whenever you're hungry drink water FIRST

5) make sure your eating mostly protein at each meal, if you can get 20g each meal. especially if your feeling hungry at night. chicken,fish,eggs, protein powder, protein bars, yogurt, cottage cheese

6) make healthy choices when possible.. you know what those are! your hungry at night... and already had dinner... have 1 piece of cheese and grapes.. avoid crackers, you can have 1 or 2 but try to. go for fruit instead.
if you go to a restaurant, mcdonalds.. get the healthier options.. they have small chicken wraps, salads, junior chicken (smallest low cal options), ask for coffee black w/ splenda.

7) eat at the correct intervals... our body is starving initially because we are used to eating carbs and then crashing and needing energy. eat at the right times,8-9am breakfast lunch 12-1 dinner 6pm, like that? make sure theres a balance of protein carb fat (chicken - protein, olive oil - fat, carbs - veggies) youll notice when your eating enough food at each meal.. you will feel full between meals.

@lillyy23

You are making things harder on yourself than needed. Weight loss has hard parts built in. If you exhaust your resolve doing things that are unnecessary then you are in trouble when you really need it. I should know... it is on my greatest hits album of ways I failed.

You believe some myths. This happens. There are many out there and they can be quite compelling especially when you have heard them over and over again sometimes from seemingly credible sources.

Weight loss only requires a calorie deficit. It does not require special food other than what is needed to control hunger.

Hey @NovusDies, I actually thought @lilyy23 had some good pointers to get started in those early "feeling crazy" weeks. I am only something like 6 weeks in "this time", but I am a repeat offender, which is sounds like you are as well. For me, I needed some rules for those early few weeks to help push me through and help to convert my mindset. It's funny because those early weeks (and all those weeks where I was gaining) hunger and old cravings were my main issues. So I targeted some rules that help keep my blood sugar more steady to support better behavior. Right now, I have kept some, but I am living looser now and living a bit more. But now I feel safe doing it because my mind has switched over to where it needs to be. Seven weeks ago, any bit of hunger, I could not handle. Now, the sensation of reasonable hunger feels empowering. Anyhow, I get your point that it is calorie deficit that is the key and that I think you are pointing out that one needs livable, sustainable habits, but at the same time, I think Lilly gave some great rules to support getting the ball rolling. Her suggestions are not far from what I did 6 weeks ago.

All in all, I am enjoying reading the pointers from everyone on this thread. Keep them coming. I am still building my tools.

During survival phases you do not impose more rules than you need. If you were on a deserted island would and you believed you should never eat with your hands would you starve yourself with food nearby because you didn't have a fork?

If you need a rule then you should use it. I have a rule about how much protein and fiber I eat because they control my hunger so well. I can certainly ignore my hunger when needed but that is mental energy I would rather not waste.

What is truly empowering is losing weight. Especially when you have lost as much as I had to lose. I get zero style points for how I have done it. I have chosen to keep things as boringly normal as I could making changes to my normal as needed. I eat anything I can moderate.

There is too much focus on the food and physical side of weight loss. It is a simple energy calculation. If you eat less calories than you burn your body has no choice but to use stored energy. If you have specific medical situations that involve some finesse with food that is separate. I have one myself. I need to eat the way I do whether I am gaining, losing, or maintaining. Ultimately you do need balanced nutrition but all health food all the time.

The mental side of weight loss is where the true challenge is. Every bit of energy can you divert from over-thinking food to changing how you are thinking the better off you are.

SModa61 wrote: »

What I have repeatedly stated over the years, primarily as a WW member and then as an employee, is the value to their "meeting" and, in our case now, the forums, is the volume of people and volume of advice available to a person. There are so many ways a person can be experiencing a weight struggle (even low weight person trying to gain - yes I even encountered that a WW) that with in the larger setting, there are greater odds that someone has been dealing with something comparable and their advice might be more pertinent. As I stated before, I saw merit to both your advice @NoviceDies and @lilly23. If I sat down and wrote a full on answer based on my own thoughts, I bet mine would not be an exact match to either of you. IMM what is most important is getting to understand oneself and understand your own needs, your own psyche and how you will respond. When asked about some issue as WW staff, my answer was frequently multi-fold because if that single "correct" answer is wrong for the individual, it gave them no help. I would often encourage looking at the solution options and figuring out what will be a right match for that person. I doubt WW approved of my methods as I likely did not always "tow the line", but I had a very good relationship with the members I saw each week and they were my first priority.

As I stated before, I am enjoying with thread because I am always looking for new ideas for myself. At 59, I am still open to new ideas.

I am not sure you are reading the same posts that I am. I do not put people into a plan box. In fact, I highly recommend that you do not marry a plan but remain flexible and adaptive. Perhaps it is because I have lost such an enormous amount of weight and my life has changed so much that I am more aware that what you do at the beginning may not be what you are doing at the end. I went through a large physical transformation. Removing that much fat changed how I needed to eat. Adding more and more activity changed the way I had to eat.

I also highly discourage detox/jump start type plans. They are a recipe for misery. lillyy23 said she suffered side effects. There was no reason to do that when you can transition yourself. People think they need to do drastic things - they do not. The body is ready to lose, gain, or maintain weight depending on the number of calories you feed it. You can lose some fat one day, maintain the next, and gain some on the third day. The body will respond the way it should. It is best not to overthink it.

I also discourage people from drastically changing the way they eat. Change enough to keep your hunger under control and stay in a deficit. There is no reason for me to tell you what to order at a restaurant. If you can make a burger fit comfortably in your calorie day I see no reason to get the "small chicken wraps, salads, junior chicken (smallest low cal options)". I have eaten the burger and fries sometimes and I have looked for the lowest calorie options. It depends on what is happening that day. My rule is to live mostly within my calorie goal. As long as I take care of my basic nutrition how I make that happen doesn't matter that much while losing.

Meal timing is also not something I push on people. Eat in a way that makes you from being hungry too often and manages your energy well. I have eaten 2 meals a day, one meal a day, back to 2 meals, and now 3 meals a day.

I do recommend protein and people to remain adequately hydrated. I do not suggest constant over-hydration because I find that miserable and I have seen many others eventually feel the same way.

I do recommend exercise but this is a weight loss tip thread and exercise should be mainly viewed for fitness.

Once hunger is solved most of the battle is in our heads. The first battle is grief. You grieve the food freedom you had before. The way to lessen that grief is not to change drastically. The more you change the more you miss what you had before.

SModa61 wrote: »

@NovusDies I am very happy for you and the success you have found and improved health that resulted. When I was able to get my *kitten* together in September, I likely had withdrawls for my choices (I had some issues with headaches and tiredness) BUT those choices got my head back and where it needed to be. I can accept that.

I can accept that if you believe it was necessary it was. However, I do not think it is something to suggest to others. "Jump starting" is common which, imo, makes it worth reconsidering as a good idea given the overwhelming fail rate of weight loss efforts. Certainly each and every time I tried to do something like it (I never called it a jump start) I failed because it started me off on the wrong mindset of trying to force weight loss. Once I got in that mode I stayed in it. Weight loss is better, imo, as something you allow to happen because the initial highly motivated state fades, the honeymoon ends, and then it is getting up each day and taking another small step towards better.

NovusDies wrote: »

SModa61 wrote: »

NovusDies wrote: »

SModa61 wrote: »

@NovusDies I am very happy for you and the success you have found and improved health that resulted. When I was able to get my *kitten* together in September, I likely had withdrawls for my choices (I had some issues with headaches and tiredness) BUT those choices got my head back and where it needed to be. I can accept that.

I can accept that if you believe it was necessary it was. However, I do not think it is something to suggest to others. "Jump starting" is common which, imo, makes it worth reconsidering as a good idea given the overwhelming fail rate of weight loss efforts. Certainly each and every time I tried to do something like it (I never called it a jump start) I failed because it started me off on the wrong mindset of trying to force weight loss. Once I got in that mode I stayed in it. Weight loss is better, imo, as something you allow to happen because the initial highly motivated state fades, the honeymoon ends, and then it is getting up each day and taking another small step towards better.

For me, I had to find a way to kill the insane cravings (some physical and some psychological) that I had been dealing with. Incorporating some of those rules, qwelched them. I have since loosened the rules some, and will continue to loosen bit by bit as I before more confident that my mindset is back and I focus more on sustainability and "living it".

I am relieved you are focused on sustainability now. Cravings are often spawned by habits that have cut deep trenches in our brains. I have been at this 2.75 years and those habits still get the better of me from time to time. It is often triggered by something that occurs rarely (death of a loved one, illness, etc.). Logging keeps my awareness level high so when my calories begin to creep upward I understand what has happened. Because my normal routine is easy and satisfying it is usually not a big ask to get back into my new habits even though they are still fairly shallow grooves in my brain.

I was in a great place in 2017, at the time of my daughter's wedding. Needed no mental support. Eating had become natural. Was doing classes with a trainer 4 days a week and as soon as the wedding was over, was looking to focus more on me and take it to the next step. They fired the trainer 4 days after the wedding. That was the first of many excuses (medical, deaths, life), and it has been back and forth for the following three years. By september of this year, my state was such that I could not turn down foods that I should not eat (like driving to the grocery store to buy TWO ben and Jerries and eating both). I had the angle and devil on my shoulders arguing it out. In a way, rather funny to watch the inside of my head. Devil was always winning. I am glad though that my damage stopped at 153 lb. In September, I needed more than just "do better". I needed a bit of the shock treatment start. I was even playing with using P:E ratio and did so for the first 2 weeks. Now at 6 weeks, I am trying to remember what P:E ratio is. I am down 10 lb in the 6 weeks, so I am calming some. If will ease up when I get between 138 and 140 which is what I weighed a year ago. Then about 10 more lb to clean up before I am back to where I want to be and I am fine if that takes another year.