Wish to lose 60lbs!

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MJoterp
MJoterp Posts: 4 Member
in Introduce Yourself
Hoping for some inspiration and motivation. Interested in losing 60 lbs in the next year - hopefully sooner. anybody out there that has any advise?

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  • murphy2020mfp
    murphy2020mfp Posts: 10 Member
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    Start slowly, don't cut your calories to the lowest level till your body adjusts. Also start slowly with the exercise. It takes a few weeks to get into a good rhythm, then your mind and body are on the same page. You can do it, just slow and steady.
  • MJoterp
    MJoterp Posts: 4 Member
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    thanks. good advice!
  • MsCzar
    MsCzar Posts: 1,042 Member
    edited December 2020
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    I am down 65 lbs. now since May 2020. Here are some things that helped me. Your mileage may vary.

    1. Assemble the right tools. Get thee a good digital kitchen scale and use it! Get into the habit of measuring and logging every morsel that crosses your lips even BEFORE you 'officially' start reducing your calories. It doesn't matter if you are currently being a sofa slug with a huge bowl of chocolate ice cream on your lap; measure and log it! This way, you will clearly see what and when you are eating. Awareness is half the battle. And don't wait for the end of the day. Record what you are eating in real time. I lost weight the first week of logging everything I ate before even trying to reduce calories. Why? I started to become more mindful - and that helped tremendously.

    2. Do you like to cook? Try new foods? I do; I really enjoy the challenge of finding recipes made with healthy ingredients and fewer calories. Make some healthy swaps. Some you will like - others, not so much. Greek yogurt in place of sour cream on my tacos? Yes! In egg salad in place of mayo? YUK! I have a frozen dessert maker and LOVE turning frozen fruit into soft-serve "ice cream".

    3. Build up a good repertoire of go-to breakfasts, dinners and treats. ALWAYS have the makings of healthy meals at the ready so you won't be tempted by high-calorie/low satisfaction frozen meals and take-away. Pre-plan your meals so that you don't walk into the kitchen without a plan.

    4. Limit your window of time spent eating. I take two meals a day between 10AM and 6PM. I'll sometimes have a mug of green tea after dinner. BONUS: No more nightly acid reflux!

    5. Decide on a daily calorie limit that will work for YOU. I aim at 1000 - which is French for "I actually eat around 1300." ;) That "extra" 300 calories is the wiggle room I prefer to add throughout the day as desired. Sometimes it's extra cheese in my omelet and a banana. Sometimes it's a Reese's peanut butter cup! I don't always eat more than 1000 calories - but I like having the mental buffer and don't feel like I failed if I exceed 1000 calories.

    6. MOVE. At least a little bit EVERY day. I dusted off my rebounder (mini-trampoline) and started with a low-impact jog-in-place for a whopping 5-8 minutes a day. I now work out a little more vigorously 30-45 minutes a day. On days when I am 'too busy' to exercise, I still do that big 5 minutes just to keep my head in the game. I DO NOT eat back the calories MFP tells me I've "earned" from exercise.

    Good luck! I hope you will post your progress here.

  • Beautyofdreams
    Beautyofdreams Posts: 1,009 Member
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    The most important thing is calories in versus calories out. You must consume less calories than your body burns each day. Exercise will burn calories, improve your mood and fitness and firm your body but it can't correct a poor diet. You also don't need to start exercising immediately.

    Try to establish some healthy habits first. Weigh and log your food intake. Verify the calorie entries in MFP with food labels and nutrition menus, This will let you know the calories that you consume each day.

    Drink water or unsweetened tea to hydrate your body. If you feel hungry, drink a glass of water then wait 15 minutes. we often mistake thirst for hunger. Try to build up to 8-12 glasses of water per day. It will hydrate your skin, fill you up and flush out by products of metabolic functions.

    Get adequate sleep. When we are tired, we often reach for high carb or high fat foods to help us stay awake. Try to get 7-9 hours of sleep each night (or day if you work on third shift).

    MFP can be used to calculate your daily calorie allowance. Look at your allowance as a budget. When you log and record what you eat those are withdrawals. When you record exercise, it is a deposit. MFP is designed for you to eat back exercise calories. I personally eat 1/2-3/4 exercise calories back. I find that it tends to overestimate calories burned for some of my activities.

    Successful dieters, according to the Weight Research Council, participate in at least a half hour of moderate exercise a day. This isn't necessary planned exercise. It can be gardening, raking and snow shoveling for example. If you choose to exercise, pick an activity that you enjoy and will look forward to like dancing or walking or strength training. Start small and increase either the duration, weight or frequency of the exercise to fit into your schedule.

    Life happens. We choose how to react to it. For example, my boyfriend/fiance died of covid this month. I tend to comfort or bury my feelings with food. This time, I chose to buy a package of chocolate cupcakes and eat them then that was it. If I became too grief stricken, I walked or cleaned a room or talked to other people about what is going on. The Fat2Fit challenge members have been a godsend to me.

    We are not perfect all the time. Diet slip ups will happen, the scale may not move down fast enough or not move at all. Don't give up. Give it time and check your calories. If you overeat one meal or day, you have not blown your diet. If you had a car with one flat tire, you wouldn't slash the other three so why give up on your diet?

    Measure your successes by more than just the number on the scale. Take monthly photos and measurements of your biceps, bust, waist, hips, thighs and calves. Sometimes we miss the changes that occur in our bodies as we get fitter or lose weight. Reward your successes wit non food rewards like song downloads for example.

    The above ideas are things that I have learned since gaining 75 pounds prior to my kidney/pancreas transplant. Then losing 93 pounds and maintaining for 5 years before eating my feelings and now , after counseling, losing 63 pounds since March.

    One final thought. Don't look for motivation from other people. Motivation comes from within and it isn't necessary to lose weight. You are an adult and you go to work and do your job or studies whether you feel motivated to do it or not. Dieting is the same way. Consistency is the most important factor. If you consistently log your food and stay in your calorie budget, you will lose weight.

    Hope you find this helpful and best wishes on your journey to better help.

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