Realistic goal setting

[Kat96]

Hey everyone

So I'm trying to think differently about food, I know it won't go away straight away but I'm gonna try persevere with not being tempted by fatty foods and not overeating by stocking up on healthy foods and trying to avoid those that upset my stomach due to my IBS which ultimately makes me feel worse about myself.

However, what would be a realistic goal to set for a 5'7", 19 year old girl of a medium frame set? Is 10 stone realistic enough?

Also ive read up that losing more than 2 pounds a week (unless you start off far from your target weight) may be unrealistic and not healthy. So as I'm 12 stone now and want to lose 2 stone, when should I realistically expect to get to that weight so that I'm not pressurising myself and expecting it to happen too soon.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated!

Thank you very much

[Zest Healthy BMI]

Hi Kat96,

I'd like to welcome you to the forum and hope you'll enjoy being part of this community. You have asked a few questions there, and I know you were interested to see if your wish to reduce your weight to 10 stone was healthy. You could input your details into the NHS BMI Calculator, a link to that is here:

nhs.uk/Livewell/weight-loss...

It takes account of activity levels too, so the result will vary according to an estimate of your current activity levels.

This is the Weight Loss NHS Community and many of us are following the NHS 12 week plan, so a link to the 12 week downloadable pages is here, incase you would like to try that plan.

nhs.uk/Livewell/weight-loss...

I know you mentioned that you have irritable bowel syndrome, so you might also like to look at the following link, incase there's anything on that page that would be helpful:

nhs.uk/Conditions/irritable...

In addition, we have a Welcome Newbie post, which a lovely forum member called Moreless has put together, which has lots of suggestions of things that people have found helpful within the forum:

healthunlocked.com/nhsweigh...

We have a Monday group weigh-in session too, so please do join in with that if you fancy the idea of a weekly weigh-in. Have a look at the Events section (right-hand-side of the forum homepage) to see the latest thread, but there will be new sessions there tomorrow - as that's the next weigh-in date (7th March).

Hope to see you around and about in the forum.

Lowcal

[Kat96 in reply to Zest]

Thank you

I shall check my BMI to see what I should get down to

I will also definitely download the plan, I read on it that it takes 3 months for us to form new habits so it should work if I really stick to it

I shall also look further into IBS so I can help myself with suppressing the pain and bloating

I shall definitely look at the suggestions to help me get back on track, thank you and I shall also take part in the weekly weigh-ins as it should encourage me to keep losing weight.

Thank you for welcoming me, I hope all this shall help

[IndigoBlue61]

Good sensible plan 😊 In my experience slow weight loss stays off easier 😊

[Kat96]

Hi yes, I heard that it's best to only cut out saturated fats than all fats and fats are important in our diet

But yes due to my IBS I tend to get it flare up when eating pasta,bread etc so I'm trying to lessen the amount of that because IBS makes me feel bigger too which I don't want to feel

Thank you for your advice

[Penel]

Hi Kat,

IBS is a miserable condition. Have you been able to get any advice from your doctor? Perhaps have a look at the FODMAPS diet, if you haven't come across it before.

Hugh FW has a good cookery book called "Nice and Easy", which has wheat and dairy free recipes. It's not a 'slimming book' as such, but has some tasty healthy meals.

[Kat96 in reply to Penel]

Hi

Yes it definitely is, I get bloated most days and hate what it makes me feel and look like

I take fybre gel and antispasmatics to help relieve pain and help with bowel movements that IBS effect which helps but contributes to me eating too much to compensate for hating what I look like which ultimately makes me not like what I see more, so I want to get out this viscous cycle.

I shall definitely invest time into looking at that as I find wheat based products bother me the most but are staple in my diet.

Thank you for your help

[Penel in reply to Kat96]

Have a look at the posts from Ruth_canal_runner, as she is eating wheat-free and has posted some suggestions for tasty recipes.

Cutting out wheat based products may help you lose weight, too, but if you need to replace them, make sure the foods have a low GI.

[Kat96 in reply to Penel]

Hi

Thank you I shall check that out

And yes I'm thinking about buying gluten free products to replace them

Thanks for your help

[muffintop67]

Hi Kat96. I am 5' 7" and weighed 10 stone all of my adult life (until I had children). Most of the information I have read on here is saying that you should aim to lose 1 - 2 lbs a week for a gradual healthy weight loss. So I guess that means it could take you up to 5/6 months to lose 2 stone. However I have found in the past that the weight loss slows down as you get nearer your goal weight so I wouldn't keep any particular time scale in your head as wouldn't want you to be disappointed if it takes longer. I think its all about changing eating habits and eating healthy options. Good luck.

[Kat96 in reply to muffintop67]

Hi,

When I started losing weight actively last year in July, it took 5 months for me to go from 12st 10 to 11st 4 (20 lbs loss). Obviously since then I've put on weight but I'm hoping it will be similar but I do appreciate the nearer i get to my goal, the harder it will be to lose the weight.

Yes I shall try to focus more about changing my eating habits to feel better than to think too much about the time it will take to lose the weight

Thank you for your help

[Kat96]

Okay I shall stick to the right fats such as veggie oil and butter thanks for the advice as I'm not always sure what the right things are to cut out so you've helped me a lot

Thank you