Healthy Weight Loss & Diet Support, Tips, and Goals

[Forever Eccentric]

Today I ate a bag of marshmallows and four cookies. For lunch I had three hot dogs.

I'm happy

[Ariestea]

My current weight is 160, and I'm aiming for 130. I've lost 1 pound since the new year, which is about on track since it's only been 3 days so far.

I'm changing my eating habits, but not my exercising habits (because it's too cold for me to go running). I don't eat meat, cheese, bread, or anything fried. I try to stick to fruits and veggies with some dairy.

I did this in the summer, too, and I exercised at the time. I lost about 20 pounds in maybe 1-2 months. Once it warms up I'll start running again.

I've found that drinking a glass of water before meals curbs my appetite a bit. I also found that using smaller utensils and plates was a good idea. (it makes it take longer to eat, so you begin to feel fuller after having eaten smaller portions.)

I made a thread about it in Heaven, but the biggest frustration I'm dealing with is that my friends are discouraging me from dieting :/

[Madthew]

I was too lazy to read the other posts, but a few tips:

Build muscle. People with more muscle gain less weight in fat.

You can't go wrong with cardio exercise.

Don't skip meals. Your body will go into starvation mode and increase the amount of fat it stores.

Don't eat too much carbs, so previously mentioned low carbohydrate diets should work well.

[Miss Esa]

Ariestea

I made a thread about it in Heaven, but the biggest frustration I'm dealing with is that my friends are discouraging me from dieting :/

I've had a hard time with this as well. My family and friends are not the least bit encouraging when I do things like this, and it really effects my motivation and the weight loss.
That is why I created the thread. 3nodding

[freelance lover]

I cleaned up my eating and exercise routine back in September, and I'm down about 15lbs so far. I've got about 10 more to do. I also want to reduce my body fat percentage by about five percent too. If you haven't already, you might mention body fat percentage, since it's more accurate than BMI. It takes into account things like muscle, etc.

I use myfitnesspal. I love it. Helps me track calories and exercise. I also keep a tumblr blog, which keeps me accountable since I blog every day about how I'm doing.

I also agree about the build muscle thing. I was steadily losing until I got lazy and stopped lifting weights. Kept doing the cardio, but the weight training really seemed to make a difference.

[Ariestea]

Miss Esa

Ariestea

I made a thread about it in Heaven, but the biggest frustration I'm dealing with is that my friends are discouraging me from dieting :/

I've had a hard time with this as well. My family and friends are not the least bit encouraging when I do things like this, and it really effects my motivation and the weight loss.
That is why I created the thread. 3nodding

Sorry to hear that sad Want to swap stories? Might be fun to discuss :3

[Miss Esa]

Ariestea

Sorry to hear that sad Want to swap stories? Might be fun to discuss :3

Lol, sure. Not really sure what to start with tough...

[Atheri]

While I don't need to lose weight anymore, I am working on getting in shape along with not gaining any weight. o_o I leave for Army Basic Training at the end of this month, so gaining weight would be awful.

Anyhow, tips I've heard are:
Eat something within a half hour of waking up. Water doesn't count, must be something you can digest. This kick starts your metabolism.
Don't eat anything 3 hours prior to bedtime.
Tea helps curb appetites, though keep the sugar to as little as possible. A full glass of water also helps with this if drank right before your meal.
Don't drink any carbonated drinks.
Actually read the nutrition facts on food labels. If it contains sugar (or any variation of sugar) as one of the first 4 ingredients find something healthier.
Make sure you are actually getting enough to eat. If you can't eyeball calories then I suggest you try tracking them. If you don't eat enough your body will go into starvation mode and start storing fat and using muscle for energy.
Mix up exercise routines. Don't just keep it the same every week. Alternate weeks as well as days for what you work on. This keeps you from hitting a rut where you don't lose any weight.
Small snacks during the day help prevent you from over eating at dinner time.

...I'm sure I've got more somewhere. Anyhow I wanted to add that I personally don't find it very healthy to omit carbs for too long. You need carbs for energy.

[Ariestea]

Miss Esa

Ariestea

Sorry to hear that sad Want to swap stories? Might be fun to discuss :3

Lol, sure. Not really sure what to start with tough...

Anything that's been bothering you about how people have reacted to you losing weight :3

This summer, before I lost 20 pounds, one of my friends kept insisting I was fine the way I was. I was 180 lb, which according to the BMI chart was just under obese for my height. She was persistent in saying that I didn't need to change my weight. Then I almost got diabetes from it emotion_awesome My personal experience has been that my friends (around my age) tend to be somewhat prone to discouragement.

[Miss Esa]

Atheri

...

Awesome, thanks for the tips!

[Goaat]

My advice would be to not bother with those specific diets, and just count calories. If you eat less calories than you burn, you will lose weight. Simple enough.

[Miss Esa]

Ariestea

That sucks, I'm the same way though.
I'm 190, and according to the BMI chart I'm obese for my age and height. My parents constantly rip on me for being overweight, and its a defense thing for them, they are both MAJORLY overweight and unhealthy. Its really hard to lose weight when the ones closest to you are not supportive.
My closest friends are pretty undereducated about healthy eating and over weight as well.
Thankfully I have my boyfriend to support me.

[Miss Esa]

Mungooo Jerry

My advice would be to not bother with those specific diets, and just count calories. If you eat less calories than you burn, you will lose weight. Simple enough.

The thing is that calorie counting doesn't work for everyone. Some people actually need to go on a specific diet and exercise plan to see results.

[Atheri]

Miss Esa

Atheri

...

Awesome, thanks for the tips!

Welcome. =)
It's hard getting started, but once you get used to the routine and diet you've set for yourself, then you're good to go.

I still struggle with cardio related exercises. >_< But I'm getting better. I've only been working out since July, though and I've lost 5 pounds, but I've gained muscle. I lost 15 lbs the previous year.

I can't keep up with any diets, though. So I just started cutting things out of what mine was already like. I cut carbonated drinks first. Then I limited fast food to as much as I could. Been cutting down salt and sugar...It's worked pretty well.

Good luck with your goal! I hope you can accomplish it. =)

[weebwitched]

This thread excites me very much! I am subscribed! My boyfriend and I are pushing each other to get active again because we are both lazy asses atm, and to think, he used to be a physical education major. Oh well. Back to the gym and counting calories! But we need support!

I'm 5'7" and 200lbs and this is NOT acceptable! D: