Just a newbie !

Welcome,

Logging your food will be beneficial. Once you start it's like a game. Good luck and add me if you'd like.

I agree- log everything AND use the NOTESsection to record how you felt, what you liked, what changes you notice, what works-- it is good to see what you are eating, seeing patterns strong areas and weak areas.

It's like making a spending/money budget- they say for the first few months don't worry about changing your spending habits- just record everything! then go over it and see the places that need change. (but here is probably more like weeks instead of months)

Hello fellow Canadian!

I recently joined this site (my second day) and I congratulate you for having the dedication to improve your health while facing other obstacles!! I have 40 pounds of pregnancy weight to lose (well, some is baby weight, and the rest is extra weight I had from before!!). I have lost weight successfully in the past by using a site similar to this one (great food and exercise tracker) but it was a costly one that had membership fees! The fact that this site is FREE is just blowing my mind. I think the best thing to do is to really visit the site as often as you can throughout the day for motivation and support, and don't foget to log ANY type of exercise you do!! It ALL adds up. If you work and take the stairs or park your car far, LOG it! If you stay at home but did a 10-minute walk around the block or to the corner store for milk and eggs, LOG IT! It is so motivating to see that every little but helps.

Another tip I have for you is to wear a podemeter (little step counter you attach to your waistband). You can get them really cheap and it 's such a great way to motivate yourself to walk and move just a bit more each day. The goal for everyone is a minimum of 10 000 steps a day. It sounds like a lot, but really, you can reach that just by moving around your house doing daily chores and tasks. You can burn a couple of hundred calories just by tracking your steps! Like I said, LOG IT!

As I said, I have successfully lost weight in the past (over 30 pounds in my 20s before my wedding) and I kept it off for a very long time. It crept up on me when my lifestyle changed a little bit and then when I got pregnant of course. Because I was already heavier than I needed to be when I got pregnant, I now have 40 pounds to lose, but once I do, I will be in the best shape of my life and even thinner than I was at my wedding.

Keep up with the site--I truly believe that it is a key factor to success....that, along with drinking tons of water, portion control and making buddies here to keep you going and hold you accountable. Since this site is free, I am sure you can find someone in your entourage (husband, friend, neighbor, etc.) who has a couple of pounds to lose and could join the site with you.

Finally, one of the things that really helped me in the past is tell as many people as you can about your weight loss goal. DO NOT KEEP IT A SECRET! I know it may be uncomfortable telling people how much you weigh or what you want to lose, but the more people you tell, the more chance of you holding yourself accountable for what you put in your mouth and for how often you get up off the sofa and say OK, JUST 10 MINUTES AROUND THE BLOCK. You`d be surprises that the 10 mins often turns into 15 or 20, and before you know it you are walking 30 minutes with ease.

Best of luck!

Lisa

We can all use motivating people to share ideas, successes and frustrations with. Good luck on your journey - knowing you can do it is half the battle.