dont know where to start with weight loss :( help me!!

You've taken the first steps, but only you can make yourself do this.

When I first started I found that Gillian's 30 day shred was a great tool, it was very cheep and takes 30 mins all in so I never had an excuse not to do it. I spent a lot of time running up and down the stairs with music on as well.
I have a very active life so I didn't want to cut my calories down so much that I didn't have energy. I have personally found the best ratio that currently works for me is, 90 grams of carbs, 150 grams of protein and only good fats with very low sugar. I eat pretty clean as that way I can eat so much more, I am never starving!

My rough breakdown is
Breakfast - Yummy choc porridge - microwave with water
40g oats
1 scoop choc protein

Lunch
soft wholemeal wrap or something with only 30 grams of carbs
with high protein such as tuna or chicken and salad

If i've had morning workout prob have a protein shake as well or just some chicken or something as a snack.

Dinner
Lean meat - chicken, trout, turkey
As much veg as I like and if I fancy it I will have with baked potato as well.

Again I will prob follow with protein shake, I am weight training as well.

I have a ton of energy, and I am losing slowly and steadily. I am no expert I can only tell you want has worked for me. I used to snack a lot and think I didn't really know what I was eating, I made a vow to myself to log every single thing that passed my lips. This has def stopped me picking at food as it never seems worth it when I think about having to log it.

:flowerforyou:

Hi Hayley

The best thing that helps me is sitting down in advance and logging on here my food for the next day, then i know what i'm having, how many spare cals i have, fat etc. Like Tiff587 i try to eat more protein than carbs, around 90g of carbs in a day (but i don't include veg in this) and around 130g of protein in a day. I've been following something similar for the last couple of years and have lost nearly 5 stone doing it. Don't get me wrong i slip up plenty of times and eat something naughty but i try not to beat myself up about it.
A typical menu for the day would be scrambled eggs and lean bacon for breakfast or 2 weetabix and skimmed milk, a fat free yoghurt for snack mid morning, a wrap with chicken and salad for lunch, nuts for a mid afternoon snack or low fat cheese and fish curry with noodles for tea. If i have carbs for my breakfast(weetabix) then i try to have just protein at lunch so egg mayo and salad maybe. I'm already on your fiends list so feel free to take a look at my diary if you think it might help at all.
I've been stumbling too for the last few weeks, i had an op in January and changed meds which has completely messed me up but fingers crossed now i'm back on the usual meds the weight will start moving again.
Come on here as often as you can, we're all here for the same reasons, so you'll have loads of support. x

I started just by writing everything down for a couple weeks. Then started to make minor changes to what I eat. An extra veggie, or 1 less potato chunk. Small sustainable changes. My target is to lose 110 pounds in 3 years. A nice steady pace.

It sounds like you are taking some steps in the right direction. Sometimes, as much as we want to lose weight, its just hard to actually start. Getting off the couch and putting down the junk food was one of the hardest moves I've ever made...but its been SO worth it!

I agree with all of the things the others are posting here...finding the right plan for you, tracking food, and incorporating an excercise regimen into your routine. Start with small, attainable goals. If you're like me and have spent a good portion of your life being a couch potato, its not a reasonable goal to say "I am going to work out for two hours every day." You have to start with something sensible, like a commitment to excercise 30 minutes a day, 3 days a week. I have found that just simply walking a few miles each day at a brisk pace is a great way to burn calories and tone your legs and booty. Of course, it is still a good idea to add some strength training and abs, but walking is a good start!

Tracking food is a MUST! It keeps you aware of what you are doing and consuming throughout the day. Spending time researching foods is a good idea too. I can so easily fall into that trap of eating something that seems healthy, and then when I plug it into MFP, discover its almost triple the calorie and fat content than I anticipated. I try (and its not always easy or convenient) to be aware of the nutritional content BEFORE I put it in my mouth, to avoid making a mistake that leaves me feeling guilty. If you are going out to eat with friends and know the resturaunt beforehand, try to look up their menu at home before meeting up with your friends...this will give a good baseline idea of what foods in the menu would be good and which should be avoided. A lot of restuarants will also provide a special menu with nutritional content. An investment in a good food scale is a good idea as well, as it can help you really learn good portion sizes. (There are other cheaper ways to do this too, my scale was a gift from my boss.) Reasearching and tracking are time consuming, and require a little extra effort, but have been VERY helpful to me! (Not saying that this has to work for everyone, just sharing what works best for me! )

Lastly, the most important addition to my weight loss plan is a good friend who is willing to take the journey with you. My friend and I started together and meet weekly to talk about where we have been successful and where we could have done better that week. Having someone to hold me accountable for my food choices and decisions to excercise or not helps keep me on track. Its been GREAT encouragement! If you don't have someone physically close to you in your city, find a good friend on MFP to help encourage you!

I know you'll do great! Just have to find the motivation to get going!

Best of luck!