AdrienneinTO Member

I wouldn't worry about your size. Why does it matter? Like others have said, there is too much variation in how bodies are built and how clothes are designed. Keep in mind that as you lose more weight, you may start dropping sizes more quickly. It's not necessarily proportional. I think I would drop 1 size after about 10…

As others have said, eat back at least most of your exercise calories. If you think that you can't find enough calories, have some nuts or avocados (relatively high calorie but healthy). Eat a larger portion of meat (protein is good for you). You don't have to eat all the calories on the same day. You can zig-zag your…

Ph.D. in cancer biology over here! Working on developing and implementing a novel diagnostic technology. My story: I got fat and squishy because I stopped taking care of myself during the high-stress existence that is typical of this line of work. I finally woke up in March 2011, decided my body deserved more respect, and…

I like these websites for healthy recipes: http://www.skinnytaste.com/ http://www.eatingwell.com/ http://www.neverhomemaker.com/ I tend to make a lot of stir-fries and stew-types of dishes. Soups are also great, you can make big batches and freeze portions for later.

I'm 38, 5'5", started MFP at 164 lb, and am now 133 lb. I steadily lost slightly less than 1 lb per week, no plateaus. I've done this by exercising regularly and eating healthy food. I rarely ate less than 1500-1600 calories a day, mostly home-prepared food. Feel free to add me if you'd like suggestions. Successful…

Check what your BMR is. (Mine is approx. 1300 calories.) Don't eat less than that because it will slow down your metabolism. If you are within 20-30 lbs of your goal weight, you should probably set your MFP goal to 1 lb a week (or even 0.5 lb), and eat most of what MFP tells you, even the exercise calories. (Assuming that…

It's hard to say without seeing your food diary and exercise details. It's a balancing act, calories in/calories out, and you can't go too far to the extremes. You can add me as a friend if you'd like, and I would be happy to share what worked for me.

I should clarify: I'd like to continue doing JM's 30-Day Shred, which uses dumbells. I don't think resistance bands would work for that, though it is a good idea for travel workouts in general. Thanks :)

I like to buy brown rice and quinoa from Costco. I also found good deals on vitamins (I take a multivitamin like Centrum Forte, plus at least an extra 2000 IU of Vitamin D a day).

Cool! Not much of a price difference, I agree, worth it! The fitness program feature should be interesting. I just hope it doesn't get too bossy, lol. Do some searches on the forums about how to use an HRM properly. For example, it's only really accurate in estimating calories burned while your heart rate is elevated. Some…

Try to gradually get more exercise into your life. That made a huge difference to me. I find it easier to exercise more to burn off the calories than to restrict my calories and feel hungry. Do not starve yourself. Really, it's counter-productive. Your metabolism will slow down eventually. Whatever MFP sets as your goal,…

As others have said, at your size, 1 lb a week is doing really well. So probably about 5 months. Something that people usually don't think of at first (I didn't): It may seem like a long time to lose that weight, you may feel impatient and discouraged. However, when you start losing the weight, and your clothes fit better,…

From what people say, FT4 and FT7 are quite good at estimating how many calories you have burned based on your heart rate. I have an FT40, and that one gives you a fitness test (VO2 max) that increases the accuracy of the estimate of how hard you are working (and therefore burning calories). I like to check my fitness…

Maybe you could loop the watch on your waistband somehow, through a belt loop? That way you could still access the buttons when needed. I have a Polar FT40 with chest strap. Like many other types of HRM, you need to push a button to get it to find your heart rate at the beginning, and then again to start the timer.

My name is Adrienne too. Few people seem to be able to pronounce it right when they read it. I've heard Andrea, Adreen, Audrina, Andreen. I don't get why people have so much trouble... A-dree-enne, emphasis on either the A or the -enne (I'm not that picky). Even fewer spell it right after they hear it. :ohwell: Though I've…

Also, be careful about reading too much into day-to-day fluctuations. It could easily take a couple of weeks for you to see much of a difference on the scale, especially since you are already within a healthy BMI range.

You're not eating enough. You should not go below 1200 NET calories (meaning food minus exercise). For example, if you burn 500 calories from exercise, you should be eating 1700 calories. If you under-eat regularly, you will feel hungry, have trouble sticking to your weight-loss program, and probably stall your progress. I…

You should be eating around 1870 calories (+/- 100, doesn't have to be exact) on workout days. If you have been eating 1370, but working out for an hour (probably burning 500-ish calories), it's no wonder you've been tired. That's a big deficit. On non-workout days, you could eat fewer calories (1400-ish) unless you are…

Hi! :) I have a PhD in Cell and Molecular Biology, BSc in Microbiology. My research has primarily focused on cancer biology and hematopoiesis (blood cell development). I have a strong interest in personalized medicine, and have been developing a new diagnostic technology that enables highly multiplexed cell analysis.

Thanks for the information, everyone! BTW, I am currently 138 lb, at a size 8, almost a size 6, and am most certainly not anorexic. I could stand to lose a few more lbs. It does very much depend on body type. :)

I have 3 lbs to go to my goal. Honestly, I have not noticed a slow-down in weight loss as I get closer to my goal. Make sure you eat healthy food (homemade, not processed), make sure you eat enough, and exercise. At this point, I am noticing every little bit of fat that leaves me.

I don't think HRMs give accurate calorie burns unless your heart rate is elevated to at least some degree. You would overestimate your caloric expenditure, which could especially be a problem if you eat back your exercise calories. Wear it just to see what it tells you. Also try wearing your HRM while sitting and watching…

I have the FT40, I think it is similar to FT60. I love it, and think it has 2 things that make it better than the FT7: (1) FT40 always displays time elapsed along with something else that you can scroll through (calories burned, heart rate, time of day), (2) FT40 has the fitness test (VO2max).

It's hard to say without being able to see your food/exercise diary. Here are a few basics that I've come up with based on my experience. Feel free to add me if you'd like. - You probably should not eat fewer calories than your BMR (check it under Tools). For me, that's about 1350 calories a day. Set that as your goal in…

Yup, me too. By accident. Lol. Seems to work, though. On exercise days I usually eat 1600-2100, and my net is 1150-1300. On rest days, I've been trying to eat ~1350 calories, but often go over a bit. I never eat less than 1350 regardless (that's a touch over my estimated BMR). I think I will start eating more calories…

Congrats on your first post! :) Many people on MFP will tell you to eat your exercise calories, because your MFP goal already takes into account a calorie deficit. This is generally true, but I think it is a little more complicated than that. I tend to zig-zag, so I go both over and under a fair bit. A lot of people have…

I use a Polar FT40 HRM, and I don't subtract from what it tells me. I guess the calories you would have burned per hour had you not exercised would be your BMR divided by 24 hours. For example, 1350 / 24 = 56 calories. That's a small #, I wouldn't bother with it. As for your cushion, it depends on what your goal is set to.…

Are you adding up your net deficit from your BMR/normal daily activity? I keep a spreadsheet to track my calories in/calories out/deficit from normal, and calculate how much weight I should have lost by a certain date. It helps me check if my estimates are close. They have been within 1-2 lbs in the long-term.

Probiotic yogurt is good as a long-term solution too (e.g. Activia). Probiotic yogurt promotes healthy bacteria in your GI system. I like to add a few spoonfuls on my high-fiber cereal in the morning. For even more fiber, top the cereal/yogurt with raspberries (fresh or frozen). Raspberries are yummy but have lots of fiber.

I think it's possible. Try Jillian Michael's 30-Day Shred. Even if you don't do it for a full 30 days or every day, you can get some major toning resulting from the workout! Good luck!