Hello! I am very new to this, but as this is 2020 and I am soooo tired of being overweight/in pain/tired, I am using all platforms to help support my weightloss journey, as this is my very first step.
The road is going to be long and I'm trying to prepare myself for it! I need to lose 4 stone at least! Currently 16stone and want to drop to at least 12st! I am relatively active, I just unfortunately have the "fat gene" in my family.
Any tips would be appreciated!
Hello and welcome to the Weight Loss Forum Hjane24
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Might I suggest that rather than being number focused you work on changing habits and behaviour, perhaps having a fresh look at what and how you eat. You may find this helpful healthunlocked.com/nhsweigh...
This is a very busy forum with lots going on, and nothing beats joining in, reading posts and replying to others. Our group Weigh-in and the Daily Diary are probably the best places to start.
Best wishes in your weight loss journey
Indigo 😊
So firstly, welcome Hjane24
I started my journey here to lose weight and be as fit as I could for my 50th (2012).
I’ve used many ways throughout my (almost 8 years) journey to keep things interesting and to learn what works best for me - I am very short (4ft 8"), 57 years old and don't move very much on account of my disability (I use a wheelchair outside of the house). Going through the menopause too at present. Not too much going in my favour, apart from having a love of cooking and plenty of time in which to plan and prepare healthy meals.
One thing that has remained constant throughout is logging everything I eat and weighing out portions. If I have ever stopped doing that for any length of time, the weight starts to creep up again. I really don't have an option to "guess" with this, as I am short, sedentary and "older" - my maintenance calories are around 1,300 and to lose weight 1,200.
I have used 5:2 "fasting" successfully and done a few rounds of the 8 week Blood Sugar Diet.
I now mostly try to avoid/limit refined carbs - so rice, pasta and bread. I eat them occasionally (about once/twice a week, always small portions - 50g dry weight, always wholewheat and ALWAYS measured).
I bulk out my meals with lots of vegetables - eat about 4-7 portions a day (home made soup or a salad for lunch, lots of veggies with dinner).
Through choice, I eat just two meals a day, that's been for the past 2+ years. I eat lunch and dinner. I try to keep my eating to between 12 noon and 6pm. Outside of those times, I do drink tea and coffee and plenty of water. That's a way that works for me, and I'm happy with this arrangement - not eating breakfast won't work for everyone though. I used to LOVE breakfast and could never have imagined a few years ago that I'd skip it!
I don't view exercise as a way to earn additional calories to eat - I use it as a way to remain flexible and independent. It's important not to be reliant on exercise to lose weight as firstly it only accounts for about 20% of weight loss (80% is achieved through food intake) and also if you injure yourself or are unable to exercise for any period of time, you suddenly have to reign back on the amount you are consuming.
I do a stretch and bounce seated routine around 4-7 times a week which lasts around an hour.
I try to do cardio exercise as often as possible, but because of my disability, it's quite a challenge. For that I walk and run (HIIT) on a special treadmill called an Alter G which is able to support a percentage of my body weight as I walk and run - currently I exercise at 80% of my body weight. I do this for 30 minutes every other week. I'd love to do it weekly, but I need assistance to get into the machine and can only get this support fortnightly.
I don't deny myself anything in terms of food - however, I have changed over the course of my weight loss to eat much more mindfully - considering "Do I really want to eat this?" ahead of eating food that is particularly calorific or not very healthy. Even leaving food that I'm not enjoying - never heard of in my "previous life"!
If I want to east a slice cake - I've worked out the calories beforehand and if I chose to have a slice then it DEFINITELY has to be worth it! If making cake, I slice and freeze any remaining cake in packs of two so that myself and my husband can enjoy it on other days rather than knowing it's there and needing to be consumed to stop it going off.
I have reduced the number of times I eat out as it's impossible for me to stay within my low (1100 calorie) limit by eating out regularly - even if I choose wisely. But to be honest, I am very happy cooking my own meals and eating those, as I know precisely what's in them - and I love, love LOVE my vegetables. I hardly ever get a takeaway (perhaps 1/2 times a year - usually at others instigation when I am visiting friends). I used to resent these things, but I now accept and embrace them. I no longer view this as a tortuous journey but more a new way of life.
I view my way of eating as keeping myself as healthy as I can in order to minimise the risk of developing middle aged illnesses (diabetes, stroke, heart attack...)
I don't judge my success by what others achieve - I just try to do the best that I can for myself and in a way that works well for me.
It does help that I have an extremely supportive husband who's always been happy to eat the same as I do (meals and quantities) - even though he doesn't need to lose weight. He has lots of little "extras" to make up!
I have just kept on going.... as it's what works for me.
I hope this helps.
Hi, Hjane24 , welcome.
My father was 24 stone, and I have three morbidly obese blood-relatives, and I have lost 4½ stone at about one pound a week.
If you "slim smart" weight loss is not so hard! It is not all about motivation and masochism.
Some of us here find that what works, for weight loss, inflammation and so much more, is a combination of The Low Carbohydrate, High-Fat (LCHF) diet (see the forum here on Health Unlocked) and Not Snacking All Day AKA Intermittent Fasting (IF).
Intermittent fasting tends to prevent cancer - and can help in treatment, particularly before chemotherapy. See:
Nice to see you check in on this forum. There are lots of different people with lots of different approaches to weight loss. I'd say the main thing we have in common here is that we avoid quick fix attempts and focus on long term progress. Focusing on long term allows us to celebrate small victories and importantly also acknowledge that setbacks are part of the journey.
Since you ask for tips I will share some things I thought were useful when I started losing weight.
1. *start small*
Weight loss is so emotionally charged and can be so extremely overwhelming (not helped by the wide variety of approaches being trumpted as the 'best' or 'healthiest' way to lose weight) and we start making all kinds of emotional/value associations that are neither true or helpful (if I lose weight i'll be happier/more successful at work/ more loved by my partner/ a better person etc.)
--> I really tried to focus on small stuff first. I decided to consciously eat healthy for one meal a day and walk for 10 minutes every day. These were changes I felt were manageable rather than overhauling my entire food habits and daily routine. It was also super exciting to see the effect these small changes had which encouraged me to implement further changes
2. try try try
there are so many different approaches and I believe this is simply because there are so many different bodies! I've learned what works for my friend might not work for me. That doesn't make me a failure or less healthy or not as dedicated as my friend. It simply means we have different bodies and possibly different lifestyles. Anything I was interested in I tried. If it worked great. If it didn't work, I tried tweaking it to suit me. If that didn't provide results I tried something else. Eventually what does or doesn't work will start feeling natural to you as these things become habits!
3. No food is 'illegal'
sometimes if you really want a treat you deserve a treat. I would deny myself a treat and then have ten treats. Now I try to acknowledge the possibility of having a treat *just because I feel like it* as being 'allowed' and totally okay. Best way of integrating a treat at the beginning of my weight loss journey was to check the calories and calculate it into my daily or weekly calorie budget. That way I can feel guiltfree about the treat and am unlikely to have ten as I am super conscious of the impact. Now I don't calorie count anymore but I have the same mindset. can't get my mind off chocolate? Can't stop eating the leftover xmas roast? Go for it. But forego the snack later in the day, have a smaller dinner to compensate, drink only water instead of juice/milk/wine the next day etc.
best of luck and let us know how you get on!
x 
Finally Starting the Plan That Is Going to Work!
Really want to eat
10 Stone to Lose 
6 stone to loose
5 STONE DOWN, 3/4 TO GO
