What helps you lose weight when you have 20 lbs or less to l

Ging07
Ging07 Posts: 21 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
What are some things that help you lose weight? Weight Loss isn't easy no matter what weight you are, but I am trying to hone in on people in their 20's and 30's who only want to lose 20 lbs or less. Just going on walks doesn't really cut it but I am not fit enough to do HIIT which I know is effective. Any advice is also welcome about how you implemented your plan (as in how did you stick to your plan of exercise, diet, etc.) Thanks in advance! Just to be clear, I am looking for tips for behavior modification AND methods of weight loss :)

Replies

  • london_chick
    london_chick Posts: 4 Member
    I'm also interested. I'm new to MFP, I've only 16 pounds or so to lose. I'm finding difficult, as these are the same pounds I've been trying to lose for what feels like 2 years. But I lose 4-6 pounds, then I put it back on, and it's a vicious cycle. Feels like exact precision in what you eat is necessary to notice any type of difference.

    I'm now in a pattern of exercising about 4-5 times a week, losing around 400 calories a session (this has been going for 2 1/2 weeks now). I average around 1400 in my calorie intake, some day it may be 1600-1700 in which case i up the gym efforts. I don't feel like i'm getting anywhere.
  • Ging07
    Ging07 Posts: 21 Member
    Thanks for responding! I do the same thing I lose the same 3-5 lbs and then gain them back again. What do you do for exercise?
  • startinganewleaf
    startinganewleaf Posts: 56
    When anyone knowledgeable enough to respond to this properly does reply, let me know.. =P

    I've been trying to lose weight for the past 5 weeks and haven't lost a single pound. Im 19, 154 pounds and only really want to lose around 20/25 pounds max, I work out 5 times a week - 30/45 mins cardio, & Jillian Michaels 30 day shred recently, I eat a very clean diet and eat some or most of my lost/exercise/'net' cals back, arghhhh!
  • london_chick
    london_chick Posts: 4 Member
    I try to mix it up. I have days of pure cardio, where i might go for a run, and then do the stairmaster. That machine is my friend and makes me sweat like I've never sweat before! Other days, I may do a strength training class such as body pump. I also like to do one pilates/yoga type class a week to strengthen my core to counteract the strength training and the pressure it puts on my back.

    I DO know that I need to get more into weights, higher weights, less reps. I do need to lose some pounds, but i'm not overweight, so i really would like to sculpt and tone. And everyone seems to think heavy weights are the way to go, its just getting the confidence to do it!

    This time last year i did the same thing, absolutely smashed the gym for about 3 months, but i didn't lose any weight (probably looked better though). I'm starting to thing these extra pounds are with me for life. And i'm on the higher end of my BMI scale.. so i definitely have weight to lose.
  • Starlage
    Starlage Posts: 1,709 Member
    well, for me... it's been a loooonnnng process. Took about a year to lose 20 pounds. Then again I didn't make any drastic lifestyle or diet changes. I believe in "everything in moderation" for this whole thing to be something you'll stick with for the rest of your life. Once again- my opinion!! I cut down on things- like less white bread, pasta more whole wheat options... more veggies,.... less sugar. Maintaining a healthy balanced way of eating is most important and will make the biggest changes- exercising can't do it's job if you're not eating well. How did I stick to it? Determination. It's all a very personal thing- if you want to lose the weight bad enough you'll figure out what healthy things you like and don't like and what you'll actually eat instead of grabbing a bag of chips or something. I recommending spreading your calories out so that you're eating something every four hours or so. Exercise? For me it HAS to be something that combines cardio AND strength. I prefer cardio kickboxing dvds and only exercise 3-4 times a week. Cheat Day? Not a healthy habit in my opinion. Log everything, everyday even if you know you'll be seeing the numbers in red at the end of the day. Exercise calories? EAT THEM BACK!!! The goal is of course to get under your calories goal but not like "hey I'm only at 1100! nice!" it's best to get as close to your goal as you can even if that means like 30 over or something like that.

    Hope some of my ramblings made sense :o)
  • ssharomi
    ssharomi Posts: 8 Member
    bump
  • LeCitron
    LeCitron Posts: 71
    I would also appreciate info on this. I am 22 and have been trying to lose something--anything!--for nearly two months with no change. This week I have decreased exercise to 30 minutes of cardio and 30-40 minites of strength training and have upped my base calories to 1810. With exercise calories that's nearly 2300 calories per day! I'm going to see how this goes but am getting so frustrated by the lack of ANY loss! I try to shake it up with the exercises but with runner's knee it's rather difficult. I also eat super clean, the only non-natural sugar I get comes from my daily dose of Nutella. So yeah, at this point I'm willing to try anything.

    P.S. I'm always looking for friends who share my situation. Feel free to add me! :flowerforyou:

    P.P.S. Happy Valentines Day! :heart:
  • Kali112
    Kali112 Posts: 87 Member
    Same-i have 20lbs-ish that i want to lose. I am sticking to 1000calories a day with workouts at least every other day in the gym. So far it has only been a week and a half and i don't feel any thinner (god i am impatient), but i will be interested to see how quickly i lose. I am sure that shaking up my workouts will help.
  • prjoy98
    prjoy98 Posts: 250 Member
    Please add me and keep me posted of anything that helps! I am under 20lbs...more like 10lbs but the scale isnt budging!!!
    I'm going to try to completely face out sugars (as best as I can!) and see if that does anything :grumble:
  • Huffdogg
    Huffdogg Posts: 1,934 Member
    Lift heavy weights. Nothing scorches fat like feeding muscle growth.
  • FlTGlRL
    FlTGlRL Posts: 239
    Kali112

    I think your problem is eating to little calories while working out as much as you are. I was only doing 1200 calories and I'm doing 4 days of intense weight lifting, several people pointed out to me that it isn't enough, I could be injured etc. So maybe that is your problem, I know I didn't like hearing it though but good luck to you.
  • Huffdogg
    Huffdogg Posts: 1,934 Member
    Thanks for responding! I do the same thing I lose the same 3-5 lbs and then gain them back again. What do you do for exercise?

    I'll guess that almost everyone doing this same thing is doing cardio, not strength training. Your BMR is naturally higher when you carry more muscle. Do not worry about getting bulky. It is difficult for men, and almost impossible for women. Do it.

    Men looking to start, check out Stronglifts and/or Starting Strength
    Women looking to start, check out New Rules of Lifting for Women

    Here endeth the lesson.
  • LadyBugLex17
    LadyBugLex17 Posts: 146 Member
    I'm right here with all of your i want to lose 27 more.
    Here is a few tips that i have gotten:
    1000 calories a day is WAY too few. this may be the reason you are at a plateau or not losing the wait.
    i eat small meals every 2-3 hours and it Jump starts your metabolism.
    breakfast 300 calories
    morning snack 200
    lunch 300
    afternoon snack 200
    dinner 400
    total of 1400 calories/day
    eat within 30 minutes of waking and eat lots and lots of fruits and veggies throughout the day

    For excersizes: strength training is important as well! lifting weights builds muscle which burns fat and raises your resting metabolism as well.
    do not soley rely on cardio for your exercise!

    hope these tips that i have picked up help.
  • bwalters82
    bwalters82 Posts: 95
    Thanks for responding! I do the same thing I lose the same 3-5 lbs and then gain them back again. What do you do for exercise?

    I'll guess that almost everyone doing this same thing is doing cardio, not strength training. Your BMR is naturally higher when you carry more muscle. Do not worry about getting bulky. It is difficult for men, and almost impossible for women. Do it.

    Men looking to start, check out Stronglifts and/or Starting Strength
    Women looking to start, check out New Rules of Lifting for Women

    Here endeth the lesson.

    Couldn't agree more. Also, if you're going up and down with weight, then your food habits are going up and down. Settle into a good lifestyle of eating food that'll make you happier and healthier.
  • lin7604
    lin7604 Posts: 2,951 Member
    wow nice to see so many others in the same boat as me! I have been trying to loose 10-15 lbs since oct and i have only lost 6-7. I have been at a stand still for a month now, no change! I had 5 months as my goal to loose 10-15, at least the 10 and i doubt i am going to make it. I never thought it was going to be so hard to loose 10 stinken pounds! I am at least now in my healthy bmi range with that 6-7 lbs off me but that's it. i started doing cardio 5 days week for 30-45 min and no change so i added 30ds into the mix too, so then i was working out 7 days a week for just under 1hr. i seem to only loose 2 lbs a month max. i only lost 1 inch off my waist, 2 off my hips and tummy with 30ds. I got fed up and was going through some stuff personally, so i dropped working out and figured i will try just by diet alone. i dropped 3 lbs once i finished 30ds and that was it. stuck now for the last month. I started up 30ds again as of yesterday, so i hope getting back on the exercise wagon will help. I have 4.5 weeks left to loose another 6-7 lbs, that's it!
  • tdfarmer
    tdfarmer Posts: 176 Member
    I have been up and down since the beginning of the year. Been trying different things. What i'm trying now is to take one day a week and do extra exercise. Then i am still doing my regular exercise the rest of the week. Hoping this helps, tired of the ups and downs.
  • vannie18
    vannie18 Posts: 55
    bump
  • rachaelgarcia
    rachaelgarcia Posts: 20
    Same boat....10 lb to go and I can't get them off!!!!!!
  • Huffdogg
    Huffdogg Posts: 1,934 Member
    I lift for roughly an hour 3 days a week. That's it. It works. Lift heavy, tax your body with compound heavy lifts in multiple low-rep sets, doing weight that's all you can handle for those reps. Keep your body constantly occupied with the business of repairing and rebuilding muscle tissue.

    Also: eating multiple small meals throughout the day is no better for you than eating all of your calories in one meal. Your metabolism isn't that finely tuned. I fast 16 hours of every day. You don't need to eat breakfast to "jumpstart your metabolism." That is one of the worst myths out there.
  • Ging07
    Ging07 Posts: 21 Member
    Thanks for all the responses! Some of you have shared this, but are there tips or hints for how to stick with your program. I usually stick with eating well for 2 weeks and then once the novelty wears off I get busy and forget to plan my meals then I'm eating "whatever" again. How do you push past your hurdles? We need discipline but will power won't get it all by itself because eventually that does fail because hey, we're human. I'd love to hear your thoughts on your own weight loss journey. :smile:
  • jennfost777
    jennfost777 Posts: 37 Member
    I had been dropping(but currently am bloated from you know what lol) about 2-3 lbs a week eating 1150-1200 and burning 300 cals with aerobics at home 4 times a week and burning 500cals at the gym 2X a week on the elliptical and this is what has worked for me. Also, try to read the blood type diet book to find out what types of food you should eat more of and which others you should avoid. Hope this helps
  • wackyfunster
    wackyfunster Posts: 944 Member
    I lift for roughly an hour 3 days a week. That's it. It works. Lift heavy, tax your body with compound heavy lifts in multiple low-rep sets, doing weight that's all you can handle for those reps. Keep your body constantly occupied with the business of repairing and rebuilding muscle tissue.

    Also: eating multiple small meals throughout the day is no better for you than eating all of your calories in one meal. Your metabolism isn't that finely tuned. I fast 16 hours of every day. You don't need to eat breakfast to "jumpstart your metabolism." That is one of the worst myths out there.
    +1

    Also, higher intensity cardio seems to become less useful the lower your body-fat gets, due to reduced availability of free fatty acids in the bloodstream. Low-intensity cardio such as walking still draws primarily from fat stores. Doing that first thing in the morning can be helpful.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,316 Member
    You generally need a smaller calorie deficit, no more than 500 calories a day (1 pound per week) but preferably a smaller one than that 250 (half a pound a week) is idea. Also lift weights using compound exercises (squats, deadlifts, bench press, bent over rows, overhead presses and other exercises that use more than one muscle group) using a weight that is heavy for you 6-10 repetitions per set. Also use Interval training. You can start with less intense intervals, and build up to higher intensity, but Interval training will do more for you that hours of cardio.
  • nutandbutter
    nutandbutter Posts: 447
    I lift for roughly an hour 3 days a week. That's it. It works. Lift heavy, tax your body with compound heavy lifts in multiple low-rep sets, doing weight that's all you can handle for those reps. Keep your body constantly occupied with the business of repairing and rebuilding muscle tissue.

    Also: eating multiple small meals throughout the day is no better for you than eating all of your calories in one meal. Your metabolism isn't that finely tuned. I fast 16 hours of every day. You don't need to eat breakfast to "jumpstart your metabolism." That is one of the worst myths out there.

    Yep, lift heavy.
    You generally need a smaller calorie deficit, no more than 500 calories a day (1 pound per week) but preferably a smaller one than that 250 (half a pound a week) is idea. Also lift weights using compound exercises (squats, deadlifts, bench press, bent over rows, overhead presses and other exercises that use more than one muscle group) using a weight that is heavy for you 6-10 repetitions per set. Also use Interval training. You can start with less intense intervals, and build up to higher intensity, but Interval training will do more for you that hours of cardio.

    ^ And these are the lifts you should be doing. Although the range I use is 4-8. I'm coming off maintenance so I'll probably start adding 15-20 minutes of HIIT 1-2 times/wk. I might not though because I don't enjoy cardio and it increases my hunger.

    For diet, I follow IIFYM (which isn't really a diet) and I do IF (really, I just skip breakfast). As long as food fits my macros, I eat it. Just had a cupcake and will probably have some ice cream before bed. This way I don't have the deprivation/binge cycles. Skipping breakfast doesn't cause me to binge later because I know when my hungry times are and plan accordingly. I know after I leave the gym at 6pm, it's dinner time so I may have a protein shake on the way home (not because you need protein right after working out, also a myth) just so I don't raid the kitchen while making dinner.
  • Ging07
    Ging07 Posts: 21 Member
    I lift for roughly an hour 3 days a week. That's it. It works. Lift heavy, tax your body with compound heavy lifts in multiple low-rep sets, doing weight that's all you can handle for those reps. Keep your body constantly occupied with the business of repairing and rebuilding muscle tissue.

    Also: eating multiple small meals throughout the day is no better for you than eating all of your calories in one meal. Your metabolism isn't that finely tuned. I fast 16 hours of every day. You don't need to eat breakfast to "jumpstart your metabolism." That is one of the worst myths out there.

    Yep, lift heavy.
    You generally need a smaller calorie deficit, no more than 500 calories a day (1 pound per week) but preferably a smaller one than that 250 (half a pound a week) is idea. Also lift weights using compound exercises (squats, deadlifts, bench press, bent over rows, overhead presses and other exercises that use more than one muscle group) using a weight that is heavy for you 6-10 repetitions per set. Also use Interval training. You can start with less intense intervals, and build up to higher intensity, but Interval training will do more for you that hours of cardio.

    ^ And these are the lifts you should be doing. Although the range I use is 4-8. I'm coming off maintenance so I'll probably start adding 15-20 minutes of HIIT 1-2 times/wk. I might not though because I don't enjoy cardio and it increases my hunger.

    For diet, I follow IIFYM (which isn't really a diet) and I do IF (really, I just skip breakfast). As long as food fits my macros, I eat it. Just had a cupcake and will probably have some ice cream before bed. This way I don't have the deprivation/binge cycles. Skipping breakfast doesn't cause me to binge later because I know when my hungry times are and plan accordingly. I know after I leave the gym at 6pm, it's dinner time so I may have a protein shake on the way home (not because you need protein right after working out, also a myth) just so I don't raid the kitchen while making dinner.

    It's been awhile since I posted the original question, but what is IIFYM?
  • wackyfunster
    wackyfunster Posts: 944 Member
    It's been awhile since I posted the original question, but what is IIFYM?
    if it fits your macros (macros being macronutrient targets for protein, carbs, and fat)
  • Ging07
    Ging07 Posts: 21 Member
    Thanks!

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