I weighted myself this morning, and i've lost 2 lbs this week, and i lost 4 lbs last week.
Yes last week was my first week. I've also lost a little around my stomach. My BMI has gone down now to 28.8, it was 29.6 two weeks ago.
Someone told me early on while you start a diet, you loose mainly just fluid/water, so it's not so hard to lose abit of weight at the beginning.
At the moment i don't understand about when people say " As you burn more calories than you take in, you set up a caloric deficit which can result in weight loss."
Q1. What i'm currently doing is that i know they say your body for a female needs 2000 calories each day for the body and brain to function properly.
But that if you are able to cut calories to 1500 calories a day (not including aerobic exercise) you will lose 1 lb a week. Will that work?
At the moment i can't understand how by 'burning' which i mean burn, means by exercising more calories than you eat is the only way you will lose fat from your body.
At the moment i haven't found reliable sources which confirm how many calories you have burned by exercising.
For instance i have a Reebok exercise bike which i use. It has a pulse sensory reading which shows my current hear rate. And the reading it gives me from doing 30 mins of exercise on it, is massively different reading than if i put same info on google to ask how much i burned.
The exercise bike gives me a reading which is 2 times greater than different places I’ve checked online, which they give me similar readings for the same amount of exercise including my age and weight.
But the exercise bike is able to read my heart rate as i exercise, so surely that would be accurate?
Q.2 Another question is, is it healthy to burn more calories than you eat?!
The first week of me cutting calories and doing more exercise, i became quite unwell, my whole body felt fatigued and i felt very tired almost in a daze and i had problems with light affecting my eyes. Once i increased my calories by a few more, i felt much better again very quickly.
So i am reluctant to do that again. I want to be able to keep losing weight safely, and realistically where i know i can keep it up.
I think i can get away with eating 1200 calories a day with doing limited light exercise. But more strenuous full on hard exercise (like road cycling 24 miles in a head wind. Which is what i did. ( I used to do that distance once a week easily.. But not doing it regularly for over a year, i guess it shows. Plus i am an asthmatic and i know cycling into the headwind didn't do me any favours.) I don't want to get that ill again.
But i want to try and do what i need to do to lose say a lb a week of fat i guess.
I want to buy a wrist exercise tracker, but i can't buy one at the moment. Means buying a new phone if i want it to sync with my phone.
Q3. I know fitbit wrist tracker you don't need a smart phone to use it. But the reviews tend to be better with ones which you sync with your phone. Has anyone felt that?
I use loseit.com to track and record my calories each day, rather than using the nhs Week 1-12 food and activity chart, as i find it easier to record it by typing it into loseit.com. And I currently each Saturday weigh and write the results on some paper on my wall. Including my stomach size and BMI reading. So I don’t think the Nhs food and activity chart offers anything much different from what I’m currently doing. Other than give you room for unplanned snacks, and 5 aday 5 boxes you can tick. I guess that would be useful as I don’t have that at the moment, to document that. Also I don’t have the strength exercise box option. So I guess maybe filling in that chart might be of some use..As well as using the loseit.com.
Q4. Do I need to be counting my carbs, fat, and protein in all the foods I eat too? I saw something which shows much much of each of those you should be eating no more than each day. I think it was on myfitnesspal.
Q5. If anyone can offer me anymore advice about what anything i've missed out, or what might help me, gently and safely which i can keep doing i'd like to hear it please.
Or if you want to share your story, i'd be interested in hearing it, and i may ask you some questions about it.
Best regards
Becky
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becky3344
2st 7lbs
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I've just read the rest of your post in a bit more detail.
My advice would be to use the NHS BMI calculator which should give you a calorie range for what you should be eating. Start there and see what calorie range it gives you. Let us know what range you get
Hello Becky and welcome back to the forum 😊. I shall update your badge shortl, but very well done on your loss so far 👏
First of all, to refresh yourself, please read the Welcome Newbies post here healthunlocked.com/nhsweigh.... It has lots of information about how the forum works and finding your way around so please read it carefully.
As Steelad has mentioned, for an accurate daily calorie target please use the online calculator here nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-we... This will suggest a target calorie range for you taking into account how much exercise you do, so it eliminates the complicated maths. As you have discovered, it’s quite difficult to accurately work out how many calories you are burning through exercise. Also, this will only ever be a small percentage of your daily usage, (unless you are running marathons). However, activity trackers are useful for encouraging more movement which is good for all sorts of other reasons..
With regards to WHAT you should be eating, yes, you do need to eat a balanced diet, and fat is no longer deemed the bad guy. Some good natural fat is very useful for satiety and balancing our hormones. But how far you want to go down the calculating the macro nutrients of your diet is up to you, Apps such as MyFitnessPal and the LoseIt app you mentioned will do this for you.
The best advice I can give is try to keep active on the forum, reading posts and replying to others. Being part of a community is proven to help weight loss.
Wow that's a lot of questions. I have read that some of the kit we buy over estimates the results of your exercise so you think the kit is helping more than it is? I am not sure if this is true but what I do know is that you put weight on if you eat to much and take it off if you eat less. Exercise helps with fitness too but that is a bit different. I think, don't over think things keep it simple? Too many things to worry about will only make you feel a failure when you are not, you are on the right track. Just keep eating a bit less.
I agree there's a lot to take in but don't make it over complicated for yourself. The best comment I've seen on the Forum this week is "Eating should not require a postgraduate degree".
1. Get your calorie range from the NHS BMI calculator as Indigo and Steelad have advised. That will take into account your activity level so you don't have to be adding on this and taking off that.
2. Start eating towards the upper end of that range. See how you go on that for 3-4 weeks.
3. Plan your meals, at least a day at a time, and log them on the Daily Diary: you will get helpful feedback and pick up ideas from other people's menus
4. Find exercise that you enjoy: you're more likely to stick with it
5. You've been tagged in the Newbie Club for everyone who has joined in the past week. Why not pop over there and talk to people at the same stage as you?
6. As Indigo says, always go back to the Welcome Newbies post when you need to find your way around
Q1. Do you mean the BMI range? If so mine is between "25 and 29.9 – you're in the overweight range." Mine is 28.8 currently.
As to my activity level on it, i do find it difficult to know which category i fall into. I do lane swimming at moderate pace twice a week, and i try and do 24 miles bike ride a week. Other than that i am fairly sedentary. So i put myself down as moderate activity.
Q2. What is the benefit of planning your meals a day in advance?
Is it so you don't end up eating anything you don't want to eat because you run out of the things you wanted to eat? Or is it more of a psychological thing, where you feel more in control of your eating if you can plan ahead?
Yes i do know to stick to exercises i like as i will more likely to keep it up.
Yes i will a look at the newbie section again. There are so many sections, and posts, i find it hard to know where to start for what i want and feel i need to know.
I can find it easy to feel overpowered with it all. But thanks for the suggestion, it's appreciated, you taking the time to reply to my post.
Thank you.
Q3. How is your weight lose coming along, do you find it easier or harder over time?
I meant the calorie range you are given when you do your BMI calculation.
The benefit of planning is that you know what you're going to eat and when, and you know that will keep you full and satisfied so you're less likely to be distracted by other food that comes along during the day. It means you're honest and clear with yourself. If you're going to have a piece of cake or a glass of wine, that is part of your daily plan. You can break out of the mindset of "treats" and just see it as food. You can plan to get your calories into your three meals instead of having "snacks" in between. That's how it is for me, anyway.
The benefit of posting it on the Daily Diary is that it's an extra layer of commitment to your plan, and an opportunity to see how other people are using their calories, to pinch ideas and share yours.
My weight loss is coming along well. I don't have a weight loss target now. I have a way of eating that suits me and is sustainable and weight loss is a happy byproduct of that. I intend to continue eating in the same way and trust that the weight will find its own level.
I do very little posting, except as an Admin. Everything I got from this Forum was by reading posts, responding, supporting, learning, being a member of a weigh in team, using the Daily Diary etc.
At the moment i don't feel i need to plan my meals. But i might change my mind in due course. Thanks for explaining though. Luckily i don't drink or eat cake, i've cut down chocolate 80% too. And i'm a vegan for 18 years. I do snack but it totals up still within my calorie deficit, so seems to work well at the moment.
I'll have a look at the daily diary, once i can find it. Yes it might shed some more light and insight.
That's good you're doing well, and coming along nicely. And you know what works for you. I'm starting to get in the groove as well, although early days.
Thanks for your post link, i'll have a read of it.
i becky you should write a column in papers well written and presented well seen all your questions and i have some for you (1) have you any medical conditions except for being o/weight thats causing you probs in your lead up info (2) how much do you intend to loose or try to loose (3) are you working full/part time (4) will power the biggy this is where i get fairly brutal if you are normal healty person who is just overweight then i would suspect you could get fairly fit in a few weeks you will feel like you did in first weeks then it get easier to train and diet BUT THE MAIN THING IS DIET/FOOD i have lost 10st 2 times but i was a very fit strong person luckily enough so what am getting at you MUST to forget food food is the enemy to us tubby's exercise is good but dont over do it you actually dont burn of that much with training a marathon runners burn up 2500/3000cals which is about 1ib or so they say its food i managed cut it right down to maybe overdoing it but you body will tell you if you take to far but if you want to move away from being o/weight forget food have a quick filler made up that i used if i became hungry but my saying was and is close the fridge door open the front door and it worked so hope that lot helps i know theres work/children and commitments its not easy and also if you loose it you cant go back EATING again
1. Yes i have asthma since a baby, had a bad attack last year, first time in 15years. Now it's more undercontrol with new asthma meds.
I also have Patellofemoral pain in my left knee due to arthritis, degeneration and chondral defects says the consultant. I had an operation last year on my knee, had a meniscus tear, they trimmed it but the pain is still there a year and half later. So it does limit the quality of life, i used to be a keen nature walker. I still try but it's problematic and causes pain. It doesn't effect exercise like swimming or cycling which i do as much as walking effects it.
I'm also menopausal which people play down, but it is a big thing, and impacts so many women on so many difficult levels. And one of the main things is it gives you a thing called the menopause belly, as your bodys metabolism starts to slow down you get a menopause belly.
2. I intend and want to lose 2 stone.
3. No i'm not working at the moment, but i could be anytime soon.
4. Yes my will power is strong at the desire to lose 2 stone. I have always enjoyed sports, playing most ball sports. I'm mixed race so i think i'm more blessed with my birth dad's athletic genetic genes. I've been lucky i can see that only with hitting the menopause has my weight shoot up. I used to be correct weight most if not all the time. So this is a big test for me.
Well done of losing 10 stone twice.. That is quite remarkable.
Yes i know when i have done a pushing the limits cycle ride, as i feel exhausted afterwards, then i start to eat to make up for the energy i've lost/burnt.
I do listen to my body and what it tells me.
I have had days this week when my brain has taken over, and i find it hard to stop it from telling me what it wants to eat. So i do what it says, acouple of slices of weight watchers bread.
Generally i am pleased, very pleased with losing 5-6lbs in 2 weeks. And i'm pleased with how discipline i have been able, and how quickly my body has gotten used to eating fewer calories.
I've just been reading about calorie deficit, and how you can find your estimated calorie maintenance. And to find your calorie deficit you need to divide your calorie maintenance level by 20%. Then you get your calorie deficit. So i think mine is about 1600 calories a day. But currently mainly i eat around 1400 calories a day, some days i may go under that other days slightly over, but not usually.
Q. Paul when you said 'move away from being o/weight forget food have a quick filler made up that i used if i became hungry but my saying was and is close the fridge door open the front door and it worked so hope that lot helps'.
Q1. Do you mean that you would make yourself say like big sandwich if you felt hungry but by opening and closing the fridge a few times, it took your hunger away? Is that what you meant?
Yes i was thinking what would i be like and what would i do once i lost the 2 stone. Would i go back to bad eating patterns, of not regulating what i'm eating.
Q.2 How do you feel in yourself, knowing that you've been there twice before, and have been able to lose 10 stone on different times. From what you say, it seems you don't see food as the enemy or something not to like?
I look forward now more to meal times. I haven't gotten as far as planning my meals the day before. I just see what i feel eating just before i decide to cook it.
i becky firt off well lovely written piece again "close fridge open front door"close is literally that fridge shut meaning no food front door open bike run walk dog yourself if only round block becks the "magic mix" in fridge is say any left over meal whizzed down put in dish for quick filler if pangs start i have written a few posts about loosing weight click name it should but they are extreme especially the "Ramadan" one i managed about 3 weeks and all it is don't during daylight hours for one also theirs eat a day starve a day but you must be aware of your conditions to do it please if you do it I never bothered about calorie counting
but now i have a condition called Gastroparesis which is actually helping me loose weight again so its my "friend" at the moment can only have liquids using a lot of those packet soups but could easily make my own and very soft food mashed and only little amounts so far stone and half lost and seems to be dropping fast
cant eat 'big' at all otherwise sick i feel strong and i am not panging for food which is good so becky and all thats my side of weight loss at the moment BUT DONT DO ANYTHING YOUR BODY KICKS BACK AT NOT YOUR MIND YOU GOT TO TRY AND BEAT IT
Hi Paul . Food fridge left overs. Yes i'm starting to get more of those, as cooking meal and too much so goes in fridge. I've already accounted for it for the days calories so i feel if i get during the evening i still eat it or some of it and i'm covered still.
Did you do fasting through Ramadan?
I've not heard of Gastroparesis before. I just looked it up on the Nhs sight. I'm sorry to hear about that, even though you said it's your friend as it's making you lose weight. Have you had it very long, are you slowly learning to live with it?
A stone and a half lost. Are you worried you will become underweight. You need to look after yourself if you can. Yes i understand that you can't eat big meals as it makes you sick.
Yes i feel okay, and have done for 2 weeks now. It's the cycling outdoors in the wind that did me in last time, along with too few calories. But i know better now.
Yes i will look after my body and mind, in the best way that i can. Thanks.
hi becky i just called it Ramadan as it similar to what the Muslims do dont eat in daylight hours the cycling brill but it the food we must cut back on if you get to physical you got to eat or body will kick back if your alright with it the weight will fall off you just think all those NEW CLOTHES EVeN SHOES but its very hard to do i lasted a month but during that time weight dropped rapid i dont wont you to try that hard but a few days maybe then eat then push again the point being YOU SEE AND FEEL THE WEIGHT GO good luck and keep in touch i like your posts
But that if you are able to cut calories to 1500 calories a day (not including aerobic exercise) you will lose 1 lb a week. Will that work?
It worked for me.
This is simple arithmetic and biochemistry, and it can work in some obese people, but your body might go into "starvation mode" and try to retain fat. When you are "overweight" rather than "obese" it might not be so easy to lose weight. (I will be there before Christmas!)
Also, if you have metabolic (insulin) problems it will not work.
At the moment i can't understand how by 'burning' which i mean burn, means by exercising more calories than you eat is the only way you will lose fat from your body.
I lost 1½ stone without exercising (I was disabled)
At the moment i haven't found reliable sources which confirm how many calories you have burned by exercising.
For instance i have a Reebok exercise bike which i use.
But the exercise bike is able to read my heart rate as i exercise, so surely that would be accurate?
My watch knows all about me, (and the ambient temperature) and uses that data to estimate how many calories I burn when I walk (but it does not know if I am carrying a heavy rucksack). Sophisticated (Exercise) bikes are, effectively, dynamometers, and measure (not estimate) your energy expenditure. Different people convert consumed food into output power at different levels of efficiency, so the "calories burnt" figure is an estimate.
Q.2 Another question is, is it healthy to burn more calories than you eat?!
You have to burn more calories than you eat to lose weight, but that is all calories burnt, not just exercise calories.
The first week of me cutting calories and doing more exercise, i became quite unwell, my whole body felt fatigued and i felt very tired almost in a daze and i had problems with light affecting my eyes. Once i increased my calories by a few more, i felt much better again very quickly.
I have had hypoglycaemia... early on when I was losing two pounds a week ...and the other day, when I walked 10,000 steps, I had postural hypotension, which might have been exacerbated by hypoglycaemia.
But i want to try and do what i need to do to lose say a lb a week of fat i guess.
I lost a pound a week without exercising... it is a good idea to limit your weight loss to one pound a week, and you will need to eat more
I want to buy a wrist exercise tracker, but i can't buy one at the moment. Means buying a new phone if i want it to sync with my phone.
I have a wrist exercise checker and an iPhone... They are expensive, but they seem to work
Q3. I know fitbit wrist tracker you don't need a smart phone to use it. But the reviews tend to be better with ones which you sync with your phone. Has anyone felt that?
Yes
Q4. Do I need to be counting my carbs, fat, and protein in all the foods I eat too? I saw something which shows much much of each of those you should be eating no more than each day. I think it was on myfitnesspal.
If you eat a normal, balanced diet... only cutting down on high energy foods like cereals and potatoes, you should not have to count much. Theoretically, if you were not putting on weight before, and you are using 500 calories a day exercising, you could lose one pound a week without eating any less... monitor your weight and "suck it and see".
Q5. If anyone can offer me anymore advice about what anything i've missed out, or what might help me, gently and safely which i can keep doing i'd like to hear it please.
Or if you want to share your story, i'd be interested in hearing it, and i may ask you some questions about it.
You seem to have the right ideas, and you are asking the right questions; I have been able to lose two stone without counting anything.
I was fit once, and di a great deal of exercise, but I was not trying to lose weight
Yes i've been looking into calorie deficit and what it means and how to find your own calorie deficit. I think i'm on the right track for the moment, it feels right.
No i don't have any metabolic (insulin) problems. I was on the border of obese before i lost 6 lbs.
Well done for losing over a stone by not exercising. It's good education for me to hear this. That it is mainly about eating less calories then and not so much empathize on exercise.
Although exercise is also a good way to keep your body healthy and maintaining your organs well, so the nhs says. But of course if you're disabled it can make exercise much harder.
Thanks for your input about the exercise bike i have and your explanation about how accurate they are and that they give you an estimate of calories burnt. Still abit unsure which readings to listen to the most, the exercise bike or the online estimate. Or may i can split the difference.
Q1. Why do you think i would need to eat more, so i can lose 1lb a week?
I was reading this morning which explains well about different levels of calorie deficit from low, medium to high. High being the largest difference between your calorie maintenance and your a high calorie deficit. It says the average calorie deficit is 1-2lbs fat loss a week. I'm just running through your question as i try and work out the anwser myself.
Q2. Which wrist tracker do you use? I'm after one which will work well in the swimming pool.
I did see the allowance of fat, protein and carbs, do seem relatively generous, so i don't think i have a problem falling out of the guided limit anyway so that's good.
Thanks for advice about if i use 500 calories a day exercise then wont need to change my eating habits. So for me that could be 30 mins on the exercise bike at 13/14 mph.
At the moment, i feel okay eating 600 calories below my calorie maintenance. But when i do exercise more vigorously i do eat abit more afterwards which is understandable.
Q3. Well done for losing 2 stone with out doing anything. Are you pleased with yourself for still losing 2 stone even if you weren't trying?
Q.4 Do you plan on losing much more weight? How are you finding trying to lose weight?
Q1. Why do you think i would need to eat more, so i can lose 1lb a week?
You said that you felt ill when you exercised a lot and did not eat much: You might be able to lose two pounds a week with a combination of exercise and eating less, but to lose only one pound a week you need to eat more than you were when you felt ill... as you had realised. I expect that the NHS calorie allowance tries to take into account how much exercise you do?
Q2: Which wrist tracker do I use?
I use the Apple Watch 4... I think it is about the most expensive option, and you use it in combination with an iPhone... but it is waterproof, and will be able to produce an ECG. I think many forum members have bought trackers second hand... saving a great deal of money.
Thanks for advice about if i use 500 calories a day exercise then wont need to change my eating habits. So for me that could be 30 mins on the exercise bike at 13/14 mph.
At the moment, i feel okay eating 600 calories below my calorie maintenance. But when i do exercise more vigorously i do eat a bit more afterwards which is understandable.
Simple arithmetic tends not to work very well for weight loss, but, if your Maintenance requirement is 2,000 calories and you are burning an additional 500 calories a day exercising, and you are eating 1,500 calories a day, you might find that you lose two pounds a week... which might not be a problem... but it is not an exact science... try it, and adjust your calorie input if required.
If you are already six pounds below "borderline obese" you do not have much weight to lose... so losing one pound a week might be best... and would make for an easy transition to maintenance.
"They" say that weight loss is 80% diet and 20% exercise...
Q3. Well done for losing 2 stone with out doing anything. Are you pleased with yourself for still losing 2 stone even if you weren't trying?
I am fortunate that losing weight has never been a problem or a challenge for me.
Q.4 Do you plan on losing much more weight? How are you finding trying to lose weight?
I am losing weight the way I intend to maintain. My appetite has decreased over the last 20 years, and especially now that I am exercising, I have to check the scales and eat more to limit my weight loss to one pound a week.
Weight loss is almost a science in itself... and deciding at what weight you want to maintain is another complicated question. BMI 18 to BMI 25 is not the only answer, but, if you are "normal" and not very muscular, it might be the right answer for you. If you want to discuss "target weight" I suggest you start another post.
To cut a long story short... I hope to lose another stone or stone and a half.
Yes i seem to have found a groove at the moment, and feel okay, with the exercise and eating. Although i haven't been on road bike since, as it's been too windy for me. It flares up my asthma.
I've been looking at the trackers again, i mainly want one for swimming. But the budget price ones, they don't seem to be very accurate. So i'm put off at the moment of buying one.
Yes i found a good website which explains more about calorie deficit and how it works, and what you can do. It seems reasonable and easy going, which i like.
At the moment i don't think i'm burning 500 kcals every day, i'm just cutting calories down to 1500 or just less, and seem to be losing 2lbs a week. See what weigh in says on Saturday. I found exercising for 30 mins every morning on top of swimming 2 days a week moderate/vigorous pass is enough, i don't want to over do it. I don't walk much, due to knee injury.
If i stop losing lbs each week, i will cut my calories abit more, and see how that works.
I still have a stone and a half to lose to get down to 11 stone 7lbs.
Q1. That's good you find losing weight easy. Have you always been like that?
The BMI scale and what they say, does sound frightening.. " You need to be within this range -otherwise you are risk of blar blar blar.. conditions"
I'm just aware i getting bigger and knew i had to do something about it. I want my body to be fit and healthy for as long as that's possible, but not killing myself getting there.
I'm not that muscular.
Thanks for the suggestion if want to know more about 'Target weight' might be an idea to start a post on it.
At the moment i don't think i'm burning 500 kcals every day, i'm just cutting calories down to 1500 or just less, and seem to be losing 2lbs a week. See what weigh in says on Saturday. I found exercising for 30 mins every morning on top of swimming 2 days a week moderate/vigorous pass is enough, i don't want to over do it. I don't walk much, due to knee injury.
You are doing great... do not over-do the exercise, or the calorie cutting, or the thinking, or the weight loss.
Q1. That's good you find losing weight easy. Have you always been like that?
I have always been able to lose weight, but I have been obese most of my life... I thought that maintaining at a reasonable weight was better than yoyoing, but my lean mass has gone down by 10kg, and my weight went up by a stone, so I thought I needed to do something about it!
I'm just aware i getting bigger and knew i had to do something about it.
Note when your clothes are a good fit!
I want my body to be fit and healthy for as long as that's possible, but not killing myself getting there.
I am asking my self how much exercise is ideal to be "fit for (longer) life" without training for a marathon. I am walking about 50km a week.
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Where to start is complicated!
Anyone here reached a 'plateau' ?
Just joined and help needed! Lost over 6 stone on Weight Watchers, 2 stone to go but have come to an abrupt stop! Time for a change....
How do Calories work?
