How did YOU do it???

I only needed to lose about 30 lbs, so it doesnt drop off as fast for me. The first thing i done was started using MFP!!! I was exercising, but nothing was really coming off the first two weeks. The first week I used MFP, I lost 2.5 lbs and continue to do so every week!! I actually lost 3.4 last week! Also I joined a fitness class with some people from work where we meet Tuesdays and Thursdays in the gym and do 1 hour of different cardio, strength training, running etc....) I go Wednesdays to a 30 minute ab workout. Im about to start going to more classes.

But when people say to eat right and exercise, that is the BEST way to lose weight. Sure its not going to fall off, it takes work. Ive been at it for 5 weeks and lost 11 lbs! Im super happy with that! I eat around 1400-1600 calories a day that consists of whole wheat/grain products like bread and cereal. I eat lots of fish, steamed veggies, yogurt, etc.... Also watch your portion sizes. When I go out to eat, I used to get the biggest plate that I could, but now I get a healthy fish plate.

Once I reach my goal weight, I will bump my calories up to 2000 to maintain that weight and continue to go to the gym. Remember, its not a diet, its a lifestyle change!

Also, I've come to realize that eyeballing my food and guestimating leads to eating far more calories than I intend. I'm now weighing and measuring everything, and it seems to be paying off.

HW:250
SW:203
CW:183
GW:165 (or what ever feels best--will reevaluate when I get there)
I am 5'7" and pretty muscular (used to power lift).
I lost the first 47 with a combo for cardio (elliptical and walking) and circuit traiing. Then I stopped losing...and was working out everyday, somedays twice. A friend referred me to MFP (THANK YOU MICHELLE), and I started tracking calories and found (like so many other people here) that I was eating WAY more than I thought. (How else do you burn over a pound a week in exercise and GAIN weight, right?). I lost another 20 pounds since Feb. My calories are set at 1450 for the day, but I generally eat about 2000 (yes, I exercise that much). I HATE not being able to eat what I want, so I do, and then I burn it off. When I try to keep my caloires lower, I stop losing, so for me it a fine line. It's hard. I want to eat ice cream every day in the summer, but that size 12 getting big is keeping me on track. Last month I added running, and I'm up to about 3 miles at a shot. The running is changing how my legs look for sure--they are not as thick with muscle (or fat over muscle) as they have been in the past.

Super high intensity intervals really help me! I also try to change up my workouts frequently. For instance, if I'm at the gym for more than 30 minutes, I try to change up my workouts based on predetermined time-frames.

I don't know how I did it.......no, really......because I can't seem to do it anymore. Not just the plan but the motivation.....not sure HOW I did it or WHY I've lost the motivation to give it that 110 percent that takes it off....I'm giving 97 percent but seem to lack that extra "umph" to keep it going. It's frutrating but I've not given up.

Dropped calories mainly by eliminating snacks and fast food. Lost nearly 15 lbs in 5 weeks with very little exercise.

I eat about 1400 - 1600 a day.

I've lost about 20 lbs total, most before mfp, though I dropped the weight much faster once I started logging my food here. My diary is public, but to sum it up I calculated my military test body fat % on the fit2fatradio.com website, used that to calculate my BMR (on the same website) and added 200 to that number, and that is my daily calorie goal. There is a really awesome discussion on mfp that describes all of this, here is the link:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/567092--read-this-figuring-out-your-calorie-goals

I go to Zumba for an hour twice a week and 5 days a week I go for a 20 minute walk and I do a workout from bodyrock.tv (my favorite way to work out - they are short, but very intense). Every once in a while I'll do a yoga dvd too. Other than that I do my best to eat food that supports my training (my fave and most filling part of lunch or supper is usually half of a medium sized yam/sweet potato). I do eat carbs (usually whole wheat or ancient grains bread), and most nights I'll have my snack (protein shake and toast with peanut butter) around 10:30pm.

bump

SW: 198
CW: 166
BF%: 13

I started running (my home-grown version of C25K) about a year and a half ago. I was running about 3x per week, about 2-3 miles. I decided to up my distance and increase the number of times I was running to prepare for running 5Ks competitively. This took a lot of the weight off. However, at the beginning of 2012, I started reading more about nutrition and eating healthier, as well as logging everything in MFP. I set my calories at 1,700 to start, and then upped them to 1,900 - but this was all based on the fact I was running 15-20 miles per week. I also started lifting weights 2-3 times per week.

I now try to keep my calories right at 2,000, but eat more protein and will up intake for longer runs.

Somebody mentioned using a measuring tape and NSVs for charting your progress. I highly recommend this - as you will see the scale go up when you start exercising, and it can be frustrating. If you start reducing clothing size, then you are leaning up and your effort is paying off. Another GREAT measuring mechanism is body fat %, using calipers. Most personal trainers and some physicians have these. You can do some estimations using tape measures, but they are not as accurate as calipers or underwater/submersion weighing.

Don't get upset over plateaus, they will happen. When they do, change up what you are eating, how much you are exercising, and what you do for exercise. This is where HIIT (high-intensity interval training) can benefit greatly by shocking your body into confusion. A good exercise combo session can leave you burning calories for up to 48 hours after the activity. You will come back off that plateau at some point.

Lastly, if you go too low on calories, your body may store those calories as it may sense that it is in starvation mode. Don't forget that you have a typical BMR (basal metabolic rate) which is the amount of calories you will burn just to live. Any additional burn on top of that just helps your net.

Good luck!!!

Greg