is thiseasy to do this calorie counting??

Keep track of everything, and remember one bad choice is not a reason to blow the whole day or week.

Be confident!

You will be awesome!

It's addicting, actually! It depends on two things, 1) how much access you have to the internet 2) how dedicated you are to logging. Some days, if I know I will be away from the computer, I will log my day the night before. I think it is very simple, definitely not rocket science, and it has been a very effective tool for me.

LOL-it really is addicting! If you have a smart phone it's ten times easier! Just scan what you eat! The people on this site will also keep you positive! Anytime you have a rough day they will make you feel so much better! Buy 100 calorie snack packs for snacks if you like to munch on not so good stuff through out the day, best of luck to you!

its totally easy. MFP does the counting for you!

Welcome, and I think as soon as you get the hang of it you will love it. MFP makes it pretty simple, and as soon as you start to see the results you will love it even more. Just remember to track everything. The biggest thing to get used to is seeing the numbers BESIDES the calories, in my opinion. Noticing how much sugar/sodium I take in everday can be shocking, sometimes. Good luck!

Quitting is easy. If you look for "easy", it suggests you avoid "hard". Weight loss is hard.

Its the best advice I can give, forget about hard and easy, just decide if you will or will not do it, then commit to it for life. 10 years I did the "temporary" thing, and the net result was no movement. If that's what you will do, save yourself the trouble and don't bother.

Once you commit to it for life, and do the right things, the rest is easy (lol), you just wait for the time to pass.

...remember one bad choice is not a reason to blow the whole day or week.

truth.

use this: http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm to figure out a calorie goal per day. multiply that by 7 for your weekly goal. if you go over one day, don't stress. just subtract the excess off the next day, or the next two days, or whatever makes it the easiest for you. it's a marathon, not a sprint. as long as you come in under overall, you don't need to sweat the small stuff.

other people have said it, but i'll reiterate: count EVERYTHING you put in your mouth. you'd be surprised how a couple pieces of gum, a hard candy, "just a bite" of something all adds up. don't cheat yourself, do things right and you'll see success in no time.

1. Make sure you are eating proper sized portions, because that will trip you up easily.
2. TRACK SODIUM..its not an MFP default setting, but it can be a troublemaker!
3. If you're thinking about eating something "not so good". look it up on here beforehand and use that information to determine how bad you want to eat it!

Other than that...just do it...and keep at it, because it does work!

Hi, less than a week, lost 4 lbs. This is working for me. Trust low carb food and eat protein. I use hummus and wasa cracker for a snack (2 oz), at least 3 fruits a day, low carb ones, you can check them in your cal counter and delete if you plan right. Salad, lots of vegs and keep the carbs out of the way. This is the key to my small success this week. I have knee problems and am addressing them right now. Still wearing a pedometer and try to log in at least 5,000 steps (sometimes this is impossible), but I put it on every day. When I return from work, I try to step it up w/the steps, Hope this helps your success! Oh, I also joined teambeachbody and have purchased their shakeology, most delicious meal of the day. www.teambeachbody.com Have a great holiday weekend.

Did you have a daily deficit of 2000 calories for 7 days? (Deficit being BMR + exercise burned cals - eaten cals?) That's what you need to lose 4 pounds in a week, as 1 pound is 3500 calories. If not, your loss is water (less sodium = less water retained). Not trying to burst your bubble, just helping, it always happens that way the first week... Big loss, but its false hope. Keep up the good nutrition/exercise work though, and be proud of your monthly number (not daily or weekly).

your loss is water (less sodium = less water retained). Not trying to burst your bubble, just helping, it always happens that way the first week... Big loss, but its false hope. Keep up the good nutrition/exercise work though, and be proud of your monthly number (not daily or weekly).

That's a very key point. When you shift to a healthier diet and increase your water intake, your body naturally drops a lot of weight in the beginning because it doesn't need to deal with as much sodium nor will it retain as much water to stave off dehydration. Water weight loss can set unrealistic expectations for the new dieter as to their prospects for long-term weight loss, and many give up when they hit their first plateau (a period when, no matter what you do, the weight loss temporarily stops).

A sustained average weight loss of 2 pounds in a week is a very healthy but aggressive goal. But that doesn't mean you'll lose 2 pounds each week. And as you lose weight, you'll be burning fewer calories in a given day (you're carrying around less weight!), so you'll have to up your exercise or lower your calories slightly to compensate.

It's a long-term commitment to living longer, and it's so worth it (says the guy who used to weigh 280 and took a year to get to 230)!