Anyone else with under 20lb left to lose?

tartanshep · November 2021

Hi!

I'm a 25 year old woman, 5'10, SW was 173lb, CW is 159lb, GW is 145lb.

I lose weight slowly, because I tend to get obsessive. I know right now I'm a healthy weight, but I felt much better when I was 145lb (last summer - then we went back into winter lockdown and I got depressed and ate far too much and drank too much).

But I find because I 'only' have a stone left to lose, it's harder, and it's slower. I'm tall and I do a fair amount of exercise (I eat back half my exercise calories) so I need at least 1800 calories or I get dizzy and pass out. I've also got low blood pressure and low heart rate, which doesn't help the dizziness.

I'm going to aim to stick to losing 1lb a week, which is fine. When I was a teenager I'd lose 4lb-6lb a week (started at 143lb, so I didn't need to lose fast at all), but I'm trying to forgive myself for having regained a stone.

Apart from sticking to my calorie goals, does anyone have any tips? Last time I was 145lb (aiming for 140lb), I kept rewarding myself... with food.

cmriverside · November 2021

It took me nine months to lose that last 15 pounds. Hungry.

I would suggest that you set your goals to, "Lose 1/2 pound per week," and be patient.

AnnPT77 · November 2021

I recently (re-)lost 10-15 vanity pounds in maintenance, at what turned out in retrospect to be an average daily calorie deficit of a mere 100-150 calories. Yes, it took a very long time. Yes, ultra slow was what I intended. (I intentionally ate most days at about the level that would be about half a pound a week loss, but allowed some well over goal days occasionally, also intentionally.) It was virtually painless.

I'm not saying you should do that, because it's maybe too slow to be acceptable for a lot of people . . . but it can work, and it's one kind of easy.

IMO, with little weight to lose, it's generally smart to lose it slowly. That would seem *extra* true in your case, with a tendency toward dizziness, passing out, low blood pressure, etc. You don't want to short-change energy or nutrition.

That's ^^^ all just background chat, though, so you understand what mindset I'm coming from.

My tip would be to think in terms of finding healthy and sustainable habits (with a small calorie deficit in the picture), rather than focusing on dieting as a project with a weight goal and an end date. Clearly, you want to lose weight (and that's fine). Use the weight loss process to experiment, dial in easy habits that will keep you at a healthy weight longou term.

For example, one thing to work on would be finding rewards that aren't food, but that are satisfying nonetheless. Another thing would be to explore and find an alternative to guilt or self-recrimination when things don't go as planned: Those are problems to be solved (for the long term), not sins to be expiated. (It's just food. We need some. Feeling bad burns no extra calories, makes life ickier, so why waste energy on it?)

Overall, think "easy", "permanent habits", not "fast project".

Wishing you excellent outcomes, physically and psychologically!

chubby_gazelle · November 2021

I'm a little shorter than you 5'7 but we have, if you take into account the difference in height, similar stats. SW 157lbs (high end of "normal" BMI) CW = 137lbs, GW= 128lbs. I also had a bit of a lockdown food fest and was hauling around a lot of extra poundage at the beginning of summer. I lost the first 20lbs at between 4-6lbs per month. I found it really helpful to weigh only once per month as if loss is around the 1lb/week or less weighing every week can be a bit demotivating. The start of my 20lb loss was bumpy as held my calories too low and went for a "low carb" approach. I now favour upping exercise as my fitness levels increase rather than decreasing calories. I have also adopted a "fun fitness" approach, mingling fitness into my social life such as hiking, climbing or cycling with friends so it feels like a reward to get out, have fun and enjoy life rather than something I do just to loose weight. At my current approach and rate of loss am hungry before meals but it doesn't dominate my life

debtay123 · November 2021

I have a little less than 10 pounds t go to goal- however I am taking it slow this time- I have been here before-- but I usually will start to make excuses or in some way screw up-- this time- I am taking it slow and easy-- eating the right amount and also exercising when its possible and most of all--- trying to be realistic during the holidays.......

dralicephd · November 2021

I'm older (47) and shorter (5'7") than you, but weights are exactly the same! SW was 173lb, CW is 159lb, GW is 145lb. (weird coincidence!)

Anyhoo, since I don't have that much to lose, I took Ann's advice and am going at it very slowly. I'm on the lose -0.5lbs./week plan. It's VERY slow, and while my CW is 159 today, it will fluctuate a bit (+/- 1 to 2 pounds). At such a slow loss rate, it is difficult to see progress sometimes, but a weight trending app and a little patience go a long way. On days that I feel frustrated, I remind myself that I am eating below maintenance calories for my current weight, so I WILL lose weight eventually. Patience, patience, patience. I figure that I've been overweight for years, so what's a few more months? The point for me is more about sustainable life changes so that I'm not back here losing these same 20-30 pounds again. And again. And again.

So, I guess that's my tip... just be patient. It will happen. Again, to echo Ann (because her advice is always fabulous): focus on sustainable behaviors more than the weight loss. Again, it will happen.

nay0m3 · November 2021

I am in this same boat where I am trying to lose 5-10 more pounds. I am 43, 5'3" and my weight fluctuates between 132 and 135 currently. I would love to get below 135 and would love love to see how I look at 125. I have maintained my current weight for the past almost 2 years (with a slight spike when i started weight lifting) and I am just wondering if I need to tweak my macros? I am spot on with exercise but my nutrition at times is tough. There is something mental for me it feels like. Being so close but not attaining my goal? Binging... but some people suggest I may really be hungry. I am starting today to implement some new strategies to avoid the binging in the evening. I never used to do this....I got this! We all got this!

Anyone else with under 20lb left to lose?

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