ariana_eatsandlifts Member

Never thought I would look better approaching 30 than I did fresh out of college!

Off and on progress for about 3 years. Lifting and counting calories, nothing fancy. I’ve put a few pounds back on since the “after”, so using myself as motivation to get back on the wagon. EDIT: maybe a 15-20 lbs difference

Left is beginning of last October at a friend's wedding, maybe around 150-155. Right is last week, around 138. Mostly just lifting heavy (and counting calories of course), been more serious about it over the last couple of months and loving the results :D I'm 5ft6 for the curious.

Left: August 2011 (170s?), Right: last week (143-145ish) Height: 5'6" Apologies that the pictures aren't the same pose or in similar clothing. I've always been camera shy due to my weight, so I don't have official "before" shots, and I don't quiet consider myself an "after" just yet. I started off my weight loss journey…

It depends, healthy eating does not guarantee weight loss, a calorie deficit does. How many calories have you been eating and how are you measuring those calories?

I'm facebook friends with someone who quit her job as a nurse to sell It Works products full time. She's constantly posting about how many lives she's changed for the better selling her crappy MLM products. Kind of makes me sad thinking about how many more lives she could have really impacted if she stayed on as a nurse.

For me, no. I'd like to think I could stop counting calories once I reach maintenance, but it would only be a matter of time before I was 200 pounds again. I've been calorie counting off and on for over four years, and I am still occasionally surprised by how fast food can add up if I don't pre-log.

I would hardly call 253 to 196 failure! Maybe you gained a little back from your lowest, but instead of letting that derail your thinking, use it as a learning process. No one is perfect! I'm sure most people on this website have had to take a step back at some point and re-evaluate what they are doing.

If 1200 is difficult for you, maybe try 1 lbs per week? I know it's tempting to want to lose the weight as fast as possible but for a lot of people that isn't sustainable and they end up right back where they started.

Is it saying 1200 calories for both? That is because it is the minimum calories recommended by MFP for females. That also might mean your goal is too aggressive. What are your stats?

Good luck, that many rules always led to failure for me. Now for some leftover pumpkin pie!

OP, I have a Charge HR as I said above. I'm really glad I have it because I used to consider myself a lightly active person. However, I've come to realize just how lazy I can be on my days off and it motivates me to keep moving when I just want to stay on the couch! That being said, I don't think I needed to pay extra for…

Wow, thanks for this post! I've had my Charge HR for about a month now. I love it, but I have such a small deficit that a 10% overestimation could really affect me. I'll take that in to consideration from now on!

I've been surprised with how a big glass of ice water can curb my instinct to mindlessly snack.

A 500 calorie deficit per day is 1 pound a week, so you can set MFP to 1 pound per week and your daily goal will adjust automatically based on your Fitbit. Also, the general recommendation is to turn negative adjustments on in case you have a low activity day to maintain the same level of deficit.

In college I came up with an idea that every third day all I would consume was liquids. I was miserable and tired every third day and didn't lose any weight because I would overeat the other two days. I lasted maybe a few weeks doing this. If only I'd discovered CICO sooner!

I do it all the time! I'm saving up for Friday, I have a friend taking a licensing exam and she wants to get drinks after to celebrate.

I used to hate grocery shopping until I got a Fitbit and saw how many more steps it added to my day!

If you're not losing weight, you're either overestimating your calorie burns from exercise or underestimating your intake. You can get more specific advice if you open your diary. Congrats on your weight loss so far!

How many calories are you currently eating? How are you calculating your food intake and activity burns? You'll need to provide more information and open your diary for specific advice. EDIT: just realized you said 12 pound in just 2 weeks. Remember weight loss isn't linear. Give it a few more weeks before you decide if…

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10084670/it-is-unlikely-that-you-will-lose-weight-consistently-i-e-weight-loss-is-not-linear/p1 Congrats on your weight loss so far!

My husband likes to keep the house at 68 F... so I blame him, not my diet ;)

I'm attempting homemade lasagna for the first time!

Stick with the MFP calculator for now and reassess in a month based on rate of loss. No need to complicate it :)

I would bet it's either your pulse or mean arterial pressure.

Get a food scale. Edit: Sorry, just read the rest of the thread. If you're not losing weight, you are eating more than you think or burning less than you think. Get a food scale and weight everything to be more accurate and only eat back 50-75% of your exercise calories.

You're either overestimating your burn or underestimating your intake.

Has it been a week or weeks? Sorry, it's hard to tell from your initial post. If it's only been a week, that it not nearly enough time. Patience is key! Generally you should give it about a month before you can decide whether what you're doing is working or not.

How are you measuring your food? A scale is a lot more accurate than measuring cups. Are you eating back all of your exercise calories? Usually MFP and machines overestimate, so it's usually recommended to eat back 50-75% initially to see how your weight loss does. Do your clothes fit better? Weight loss isn't linear, and…

Plug your numbers in to MFP for your goal.