EmmaFitzwilliam Member

I congratulate you on lasting this long. For myself, I decided going in that I wasn't going to do anything I considered not sustainable for me.

Congratulations! You've made a big start. Keep your interim goals attainable and acknowledge your progress.

Congratulations!!

And that is why most successful weight loss starts with logging. ;) But a one day one-off (or even two days) isn't "blowing it". It's part of the growth process as you become accustomed to portion control and calorie awareness. And successful weight loss/maintenance doesn't have to be about never having fun foods or never…

My friend bought a bunch of small (<$5) presents (and a few bigger ones!!) to give me for each 10 pounds lost. I also had some wardrobe changes because after losing 50 pounds I was starting to have a bit of wardrobe drama getting ready for work. I don't give myself food rewards because I haven't had to say to myself I…

I don't find the grocery store daunting, but I do find I shop very differently. A friend of mine is doing a different plan, but some of his maxims work: no food with a television commercial or from a place with a drive thru. :) There are exceptions (milk, eggs, etc.) But that made me more aware of the choices I was making.…

I lost about 35 pounds that way, 20 years ago. And then put it all back on, and more. Because fat grams were something I could control, I controlled them *tightly*. And cut them to about 7g a day. 7 g of fat per day is not enough. I found that the extreme to which I pushed it required a lot of work to find foods that I…

Unfortunately, you need to know the density of what you are weighing. That's why a food scale with a digital readout that displays weights in either oz. or grams is such a valuable investment. (They're not that expensive; about $10-$40 US depending on what you want.) 3/4 c of cereal is 31 grams, but 1/2 c of ice cream is…

(Shrug). I spend a lot of time carrying things, pushing carts, etc. My wrist isn't always free to move. And as I said, I think it's a bit optimistic when it does register, but that's a negligible issue for me. Overall I'm very happy with it.

I'm 5'2", 48, small frame, 162 pounds, down from 220. I probably average about 1275 calories a day, and I walk an average of 5000 steps a day, though I'm trying to up that average. I'm currently losing about 1.2 pounds a week.

I have similar genetics, and I say this with deepest compassion. Make peace with your body. When you lose weight, some things will slim, but your general body shape will not change. One of my biggest mistakes with earlier diets was thinking that I would get slim calves, and other dramatic body changes.

I love mine. Its step tracking is a bit odd - you have to move your wrist to get it to record, and it's a bit optimistic about how much I have done, but I'm okay with that. For my purposes, it spurs me to more activity, and I appreciate the sleep tracker. Others may be less enthusiastic about it, but I love mine.

Right. South Beach is perfectly sustainable if you're willing to give up fruit, dairy, and grains for two weeks and never have white grains again.

What part of the above from my quote constitutes lean meats, vegetables, whole grains, dairy, fruits, legumes, etc. ? My whole point was that popular diets - which do not typically include a balance of lean meats, vegetables, whole grains, dairy, fruits, legumes - are not sustainable and so fail. Mindful, informed, healthy…

Diet plans, like eating only 1000 calories, or South Beach, or Atkins, all have a low sustainability rate, for the reasons you mentioned. It took me 30 years of "dieting" as the term is popularly used to understand that. This time, I understand that I need to make healthy balanced choices I can live with for the rest of my…

Find some core exercises to do. Having lost (almost) 60 of the 90 pounds I set out to lose, I'm now (half-heartedly) cursing myself for not having started toning exercises earlier. (I know why I didn't. That's neither here nor there.) low-weight or body-weight exercises that focus on the core muscles are probably the best…

Make a plan. Do advance prep. Find low calorie, filling foods you like and stock up on them. I am out of the house for 11-12 hours a day. I bring breakfast and lunch with me to work, and plan for a fast, easy dinner. It may be a bit more challenging for you to find a dinner plan; my housemate has adopted a (not overly…

Whoo-hoo! A hang glider. ;)

Congratulations!!! I'm about 5 pounds from "overweight" instead of "obese" and I'm really looking forward to it.

First, your friends choose their own actions. You cannot prevent them from going to the gym at a particular time. Conversely, you cannot keep them from using your choices as an excuse to impact their actions. As for working out with them, use your words. "Friend, I am so glad you want to start working out. That's awesome!"…

<shrugs> The recommended number of calories is a guideline based on the information you entered in a program, taking into account your current weight, your goal weight, your activity level, and the pace at which you want to lose. There are a lot of variables. Did you enjoy the grapes? All of them? If so, embrace it and…

Seriously, a food scale is absolutely worth it. Estimating portion sizes rarely works. I use identical containers and weigh out my portions of just about everything. Chicken in simmer sauce for my roommate and me? Two identical bowls, equal weights. Dinner with leftovers? One third is a portion; three identical containers;…

I go by whatever portion on the label is easier to measure. Often, that's grams. (i.e., 2T, or 28 grams. 1/2 cup, or 85 grams. 3/4cup, or 31 grams). Meats, loose vegetables, I tend to weigh in ounces, but not always.

Knowledge is power. :) If I decide I want that donut badly enough, it's 190 calories. As the OP said, that means swap out something, or push a little harder to burn some exercise calories. Make it work. No drama.

What does motivate you? Maybe the gym doesn't. Is the weather amenable for walking? Do you have a smartphone? If so, there's a Charity Miles app through which donors like Timex (and others) pledge up to a quarter per mile (in .1 mile increments) that you walk, run, or bike. (Biking earns only 10cents per mile.) For me,…

I *loathe* raw cauliflower, but a friend made cauliflower soup with roasted cauliflower and chicken stock, and it was *amazing*. I haven't tried it yet, but I plan to just try roasting the cauliflower with an olive oil drizzle. Roasting is my preferred way of preparing spaghetti squash.

I have a digital one that displays weights in both grams and ounces, and has a good tare function. A good one will run $20-$40 but can be worth its weight in gold. It doesn't need a huge weight capacity, but a small one will probably have a 10-15 pound capacity. My scale is pretty much my weight loss lifeline. I can weigh…

Go outside and do a lap around the house. :) I commute over an hour each way to work, and while I have a built-in 1/3 mile walk between my train stop and my office, I don't have a lot of extra time for exercise. I've managed to kick up my steps by walking around the bathroom "pod" in my building. (The way the building is…

My scale has pretty much been my lifeline, especially for treats. I buy the family packs of frozen tortellini, then weigh out *half* servings into snack bags and freeze those. If I have a low calorie day, or if I deliberately plan carefully I can have a few bites of pasta with a tiny bit of pesto. That's how I've managed…

Until you step on the scale, you won't know if what you're doing is working. There are different philosophies on how often to weigh yourself. I go for every day and don't sweat the fluctuations (much). Others say weigh only once a week. I might lose 1 pound one week, 4 the next, and 2 the week after that. Regular…