BlackKat75 Member

Part of it is to do with body composition and where you lose. I didn't really get a single comment for the first 25 pounds, but then people started noticing and then with 30 pounds lost *everyone* noticed. I found it really hard to keep going thinking that I'd lost 20 pounds (more than 10% of my body weight) and *no one*…

Another vote for the C25K app by Zen Labs - free and very good. I also echo the importance of getting fitted for shoes - have someone analyze your stride to determine if you pronate, etc. Good shoes will pay off in the long run. I'm going to put in another vote for trying to run outside. I've done C25K on the treadmill and…

During the week, I generally pre-log my breakfast, lunch and snacks on the bus on the way to work, that gives me a general sense of what wiggle room I have for dinner. I think pre-logging food helps me - I've got a plan and you know already what I'm going to eat and stops me from making not great choices throughout the…

I log it as 20 mins of circuit training, which for me according to MFP is 162 calories. I don't have a HRM, but given that I'm still losing and I'm generally dripping with sweat when I'm done, I think 162 is a little on the low end. A lot of it depends on the effort you put in to it.

C25K is great - stick with it and you'll definitely get results. The pic on the left is from July 2011, and I joined MFP in February 2012 at about the same weight. Over nearly a year and a half, I've lost 45 pounds, and for much of the time my main exercise was walking or working up to jogging with C25K, which I only…

Just testing.

Running outside >>>>>>> Treadmill any day. I find that I can just totally go into my head and keep going when I'm outside, whereas when I'm on the treadmill it feels like *work*. Also, since my normal route has hills, I find that running outside is harder than running on the treadmill, even if I set the incline. If you're…

I have a Taylor body-fat analyzer scale that I bought at Target nearly 10 years ago. I don't know about the accuracy of the body-fat analysis (although it seems to approximate that which I have found from online calculators), but as a scale it is *dead-on* down to the 1/10th of the pound - completely identical to the…

Have you calculated your BMR per the various online calculators? I'm 5.5.5" as well, and my BMR is somewhere between 1350-1380. I have my daily goal set for 1450 (to ensure I actually eat above my BMR), and I eat back all my exercise calories. After basically maintaining for the past 3 months, I'm finally back to losing…

this sounds amazing! My husband was reading over my shoulder and asked me to make it ASAP!

Garlic infused olive oil - definitely makes it a savory treat, but it's delicious.

I agree with the others that MFP's recommendation for fiber is too low. I personally aim for between 30 to 35 grams a day, which is close to double what MFP would recommend. No issues for me, although you want to build up slowly if your increasing your fiber intake in order to avoid intestinal distress!

Over the past year, I've done a lot more from-scratch cooking, so my husband and I don't tend to eat a lot of processed foods. Now when we do, we really notice how "salty" they can taste.

It's really hard to notice a difference yourself because it happens so slowly. I started at 177 and I didn't seem to really notice a difference and no one said *anything* about any weight loss until I lost 25 pounds, then my body seemed to really change and everyone noticed. I really recommend taking pictures, measuring,…

I know it's hard when you're feeling frustrated, but slow and steady really does win this race. I've been here for a little over a year and I've lost 41 pounds in that time. Averaged out, that's less than 1 pound a week. I've lost 20-25 pounds in a few months before, but I've *always* put that weight back on almost as…

I'm generally so in my own headspace that I don't notice the other people running around me on the trail, but if I do, it's always with a sense of admiration either (1) because they are SO fast I'm wildly impressed, or (2) they're not in the greatest shape, but they're working at it, so I'm also wildly impressed.…

Get out now - the weather is perfect! General rule of thumb is that after a few minutes running you'll feel like the temperature is an additional 20 degrees. Running in 40-degree weather is so much nicer than running in 80-degree weather! My one tip if you're going out into any cold - bring lots and lots of kleenex! My…

For me, running on the treadmill is *awful*, but running outside is delightful - even if it's more difficult. With the weather warming up, try and get outside. (I had my first outdoor weekday run of the year yesterday and it was wonderful - the snow melt is finally coming here in Minnesota!) I listen to podcasts while…

There already is this - if you click on "quick tools" in your diary (or the wrench in the app), you can copy a meal from an earlier day with one click. I do this all the time since my breakfast / lunch / snacks for most days are pretty near identical. In addition, there's a tool to make a meal that MFP will remember.

Weight loss is not linear. I can go weeks at a time with no loss at all, then *bam* four pounds off seemingly overnight. Sometimes you just have to take it on faith and keep going. These are the times when it's super-important to focus on the non-scale victories - looser clothes, more energy, etc. Try to think about…

Did you take your measurements at the start? If not, do so now, and compare them for when you end the program. Losing inches is what counts rather than the number on the scale!!!

^^^This!!! I routinely re-use the same recipes, but ingredient weights constantly vary, so I'm always futzing with my previously entered recipes, and I wish I could just adjust the amount of an ingredient within a previously created recipe. This is really my only big pet peeve with MFP.

My main focus is on my calories, but I also do try and stick to targets for protein (>100 g) and fiber (>30 g) daily. I track my sodium, but largely because I like to get a gauge on possible water retention if my weight fluctuates. As for carbs, sugar, and fat, I don't really take any notice of them.

Don't get too hung up on this - It's actually easy to change the serving size in the recipe function if your initial guesstimate is wrong. Generally, what I do though is estimate a smaller number of servings, so if I'm off, I'm overestimating my calories rather than underestimating. I generally estimate that I get 4…

Log everything - the good, the bad, the ugly. I took a break for the holidays, then took a long vacation, upped my calories, and had trouble getting out to exercise during the cold Minnesota winter, but through it all, I did my best to stay consistent with my logging. And after four months of not being rigid at all about…

If you've upped your fiber recently that may affect your bloating. My initial reaction though is that it may be the broccoli / cauliflower - both of these foods make me bloat terribly and cause painful gas. I think it may be food related rather than to the metamucil.

There's a local pub here in the Twin Cities that is famous for its burgers. My fave at this place is the "Jiffy", which has the following: peanut butter, a little mayo, pepper jack cheese, bacon, and a few pickles. It's delicious. I know it sounds gross, but it's fantastic!

Keep at it and soon people will be commenting. My magic number was right around 25 pounds - that was when the first person said anything about the fact that I had lost weight. (People may have noticed before, but didn't want to say anything.)

I've been keeping track of my weight / size as I go. I'm 5'5" SW - 177 - Size 14 155 - Size 10 144 - Size 8 CW - 137.8 - Size 6 (beginning to get a little loose)

Yup live in Highland Park but work in Minneapolis. Been on MFP for over a year. Add me if you'd like.