Trying to lose weight

Hi,

I'm new here and thought I'd introduce myself I have hypothyroidism which was untreated for 6 years causing me to gain a lot of weight. Now that it's being treated and I feel normal again I want to try and lose 4 stone. I changed my eating habits 3 weeks ago and have lost 7lbs so far. I now want to start exercising, but my fitness levels are zero. I also have back problems which don't help, and all the things I like doing are sedentary. I thought I would try the NHS 10 minute exercise plans, but if anyone has any tips, I'd be very grateful. I am trying to eat more healthily rather than being on a 'diet', as I find this approach easier to cope with. Lots of fruit and veggies and cutting back on fat and sugar. Recipe suggestions would be appreciated!

[Jennymary]

Well done on losing 7lbs, is there a GP referral scheme for Exercise in your area, if there is it may be worth giving that a go, the instructor has the qualifications to help people with health problems, I wish you well x

[Hidden in reply to Jennymary]

Thanks for your reply I did enquire about this, funnily enough, but I don't like going to a gym, and would feel embarrassed joining an exercise class of any kind. I want to try something at home, really. In my 30's I used to do weight training and cardio 3-5 times a week at home and was very fit and healthy. I couldn't do that at the moment, but am hoping to build up slowly. I have just ordered some of those stretchy exercise bands, and will try them out.

[IndigoBlue61]

Hello Hidden 😊

Havd you seen the weight loss forum? It's a very friendly site with lots of useful advice about eating properly and increasing exercise 😊 Losing weight is more about eating than exercise and you are doing well there 😊🎉🎈😊

With regards to your fitness levels, small steps are the way to go 😊 I started out in a similar position and did 2 or 3 bouts of 5-10 minutes a day, a mixture of Physio exercises (I was recovering from ankle surgery) Pilates/yoga and some of the NHS strength and flex exercises. I also walked every day, increasing distance and speed, incorporation steep hills and cliff top steps as my measure of improving fitness, ie how many times I had to stop during the climb!! Lol 😊

I recently bought an activity tracker which I love, it's a Jawbone Up Move from Amazon and cost just £15 and I highly recommend it 😊 It clips to your waist or bra or can be worn on your wrist 😊

Good luck and very best wishes 😊

[Hidden in reply to IndigoBlue61]

Thank you for your reply, it is most helpful I haven't seen the weight loss forum, but will certainly check it out! The activity tracker sounds like a good idea, too, thanks. I plan on trying to walk more (something I'm sure my dog will appreciate, lol), and starting small and building up my stamina slowly seems the way to go

[IndigoBlue61 in reply to Hidden]

Oh yes, dogs are definitely our best friends when it comes to increasing our walking 😊 Especially when they sit at the top of a steep hill and look down on you as if to say "come on! What's keeping you?" Lol 😂

[Hidden]

Thanks for the link, it was very useful. When I said I was cutting back on fat, I meant chips, crisps, pastry etc. Processed foods really, I suppose. It is good to know that a lot of the things I am eating now are in the 'real food' lifestyle suggestions

[sparky66]

Hiya sounds like you've made a great start and doing everything right and sensibly it really is a matter of keeping up those.. you will gain encouragement ans spur yourself on the longer you keep at it.. that's the key..step at a time..

I posted a bit of my journey if you care to read it.

Fully recomend c25k.. running app for complete couch potatoes it's helped me enormomsly.. look on the forum for inspiration.. you won't regret it x

[Hidden in reply to sparky66]

Thanks for replying I am still sticking to the healthy eating, have just come on here to get inspiration for a healthy recipe for some lean pork I have. I try to do things that my son will eat as well (he's 28 and likes most things, so I'm lucky). I have lost 2 inches off my waist as well as the weight, and that has pleased me even more! It is a good incentive to keep going I have tried running in the past but didn't like it at all, or swimming (I swim like a brick, lol). I prefer weight training type exercise, but am not up to doing it at the moment so will stick with trying to get a bit more flexible first.

I read your post, and it's very nice to see someone succeeding like you have....kudos to you! I certainly know who to ask if I need some motivation Thanks again!

[sparky66 in reply to Hidden]

Google pork recipes.. you can see so many online x hope you find something tasty

[Caz28]

Hi, I too put on weight through an illness, about 2 stone and also have a back problem, degeneration in the discs through an old sporting injury. I joined the weight loss forum, which is brilliant and have now lost 21lbs of the excess weight. One of the symptoms of my illness was fatigue and I hadn't been doing any exercise, just a walk round the block with my elderly dogs. I started walking more, gradually and then introduced Leslie Sansones walking videos, they are excellent and there are some free ones on you tube, 22 weeks on from when I started and I now do a bit of interval training and just today introduced some hand weights into my exercise routine. I now walk in excess of 10,000 steps a day. I too have a jawbone up move and would recommend it. Good luck!

[Hidden in reply to Caz28]

@Caz28 Thanks for your reply I have just downloaded the 12 week NHS change 4 life plan and am giving that a go. I looked at the Jawbone up move, thinking I would get one, but I must be the only person on the planet that doesn't have a smartphone, ipad or similar which is needed to sync it to, lol! I already have a plain old pedometer, but the battery ran out years ago. If I can't get it working I'll just buy another one. At least it will tell me how many steps I do each day, so that's a start Thanks for the good wishes.

[millie1979]

Hi, I'm new to this also and would love to loose weight which would help with my hernia and acid reflux. I have started to walk about half an hour each day which helps, I need to sort out my healthy eating though but that is my next step.

[Hidden in reply to millie1979]

Hi millie1979 . Since this post over a year ago, I have lost the 4 stone and am now quite fit and healthy. I still walk a lot, and the hardest part (apart from cutting down and altering my eating habits), has been keeping the weight off. I reached my target in July, and am still managing to keep within 3-4lbs of it. I won't lie and say it was/is easy, but you will feel so much better, not only healthwise, but mentally , too The trick is to get your head in the right place and keep posting on the forums. There are a lot of very supportive people on the weight loss forum especially, and I probably wouldn't have stuck with it, without their help.

Good luck!

[millie1979 in reply to Hidden]

Thank you, I need to look through my cupboards and start planning meals I think then I won't be tempted.

[daviddonovan119]

Yeah that a good start. Well done!

Just try to take a smoothie with all your 5 a day in the morning.

Try to walk more, maybe invest in a fitbit (do 8000 steps a day - increase it overtime) The good thing with a fitbit it nudges you overtime if you are not walking enough. You can also do things like challenges so a lot of my friend have it and work colleges so we all do challenges to see who does the most steps etc, this is another thing motivates me to walk more.

Do the 10 minutes exercise 4 times a week at-least, after few weeks try to increase the time to 20 minutes and gradually you will see the difference.

Recipe - a great site i saw was - forksmealplanner.com/?utm_m... (all healthy meals) - things like soups are healthy, try to avoid carbs

Hope this helps.