Weight loss/getting healthy help

[mbcdefg]

I had a doctor's appointment this morning. They took my weight and I weigh even more than I thought I did ... I don't weigh myself at home and don't normally look at the doctor's scale because I'm so ashamed. I've gained about 80 pounds in the past 10 years.

I have a really hard time finding clothes that fit. I have asthma. I got winded in a business trip yesterday because I had to climb a few flights of stairs. I avoid having my photo taken. I'm sure my weight isn't helping my skin issues, or our TTC efforts. I have very little motivation and I'm so embarrassed I've let myself get to this point.

If you've lost weight after being too heavy or managed to maintain a healthy weight, tell me what you've done. Workout ideas, foods/recipes, lifestyle changes, motivation tactics, anything.

[compassrose]

I am not the best about being consistent, so take it with a grain of salt.
But for me, the things that work are tracking what I eat (I am a type A scientist, so I like data. Even when I go over my calories as I often do.) and just finding active things that I enjoy. I traditionally hate exercise, but I like yoga. And I like the elliptical. And swimming (gently, like an old lady with my head out of the water.).
If I hate it, I won't do it. If I enjoy it, I will.

[cuadrado]

I'm a dietitian so my thoughts might be skewed a little bit

I strongly believe that the foundation to a healthy weight is with diet. Exercise is important but you can easily cancel out a nice workout if you over indulge with your diet. So I would pick your meals and snacks as a starting point.

I find that people who try to completely overhaul their diet and exercise regimens at once are generally not successful. I would try picking 1 weekly realistic goal to work on. Small changes can yield big results. Here are some simple example goals:
- Drink 8 cups of water each day
- Eat 2 1/2 cups of non-starchy vegetables daily
- Eat 20g of protein for breakfast each morning
- Walk for 15 minutes 5 days per week

Re-evaluate where you're at each week and pick a new goal if you're ready.

Hope that helps

[Deleted]

I track and measure all my food. It's amazing how what you think is a cup is actually two...

I only regularly exercise initially with classes or a workout buddy. Otherwise I just push it off until it becomes routine.

[kimibrighteyes]

Don't be embarrassed about your weight. You are an amazing person and a number on a scale shouldn't change that.

I agree with cuadrado The key to weight loss is what you eat. Exercise is great for improving health, but has minimal impact on weight loss. What I have found to be key is food journaling. My fitness pal is a great app or even if you write down every single thing you eat/drink in a notebook, it can be very helpful.

You may want to have a realistic goal as well. It may not be realistic for you to lose 80lbs. I would start with aiming for a 5% weight loss. If you are able to achieve and maintain that, then try for a further 5% (10% in total from your current weight). It is better to have realistic, maintainable targets rather than losing and regaining. Even weight loss of this magnitude reduces your health risks.

[tacom]

I have only lost 5 lbs since beginning my weight loss efforts in march, but I feel like I'm on a good path. I started really slow... just yoga x1 weekly and logging whatever crappy food I wanted to eat.

- meal planning. we use fresh direct and I *love* that they list all nutrition info. I get the family meals, freeze individual portions, and don't have to think about cooking or washing pots and pans. breakfast is always the same - apple, cheese, and coffee. if I need a snack, I have a low cal/low sugar protein bar. 
- log everything in MFP
- we do Friday night walks after dinner (usually 2+ miles)
- sunday morning family gym time followed by another trip to the park or window shopping
- I take the stairs at work (up/down 4 flights. i still get winded but whatever)
- I invested $$$ on a personal trainer. I needed to work with her for a few weeks before I felt comfortable stepping into group classes at equinox. now I do personal training once a week and equinox 2-3x (spin or a HIIT class). I enjoy group classes so much more than solo work.
- I use my apple watch to track my steps, heart rate during work outs, exercise minutes, and calories burned. I find the data very motivating.


this week I'm taking the plunge and swapping my half and half for coconut milk. someone hold me!

[bostonmichelle]

I would make one change a week or every other week. Don't overdo it or you'll burn out.

I log everything into MyFitnessPal and when I feel my weight going up and when I started I did a lot of measuring. Measure your portions for a few weeks to really understand how big 1 oz, 1 cup, etc are.

I meal plan and it makes life so much simpler especially since we grocery shop on Sundays and base it on what's going on during the week.

When I started running I couldn't run more than a minute. Start a walking program and just go for 5 minutes and build from there. Everyone starts somewhere.

[raangoli]

I agree with kimibrighteyes. You are an amazing friend regardless of what the scale says.

But I know all too well how that stupid number controls how you can feel about yourself.

I've gained and lost weight so often but the thing that really made the difference for me was trying a little of this (say exercise) and a little of that (changes to diet - like smaller portions or adding more veggies) to see what clicked. What really made all the difference for me though was cutting out sweets. Or at least seriously stepping back from them. My body just doesn't metabolize sugars well and it shows.

As for exercise, what do you like to do? Is it dance, walking, team sports? If you're doing something you like, you're more likely to stick to it. For a while I tried a bunch of different group exercise classes to see if they clicked. I did like spin (but not as intense as the classes sfy seems to go to) and something called Pound. But I stopped because I felt like running was my jam and something I kept going back to because I could do it when I wanted and on my terms.

Also, it helps when MH is on board with these changes. That way I wouldn't be tempted to cheat or eat something because he'd remind me that it's not the best choice.

Hugs, MB. It's hard, but I know you can do it.

[genet313]

You say you have little motivation...so that's where I would start.  What will motivate you to try harder?   Find a reason, because without a reason you will not make progress.  

And I say this in full empathy and understanding...I was still holding onto baby weight and didn't do anything about it because I couldn't find my motivation.   I still don't have it especially now that I'm pregnant again.  But I feel confident that once I'm done being pregnant and nursing, I will find a motivation that works for me.  
Good luck mbcdefg.  I think you're awesome no matter what size you are.  Your kindness always shows through in your posts.   

[mbcdefg]

Thank you all. I appreciate your input  (heart)

I'm trying to be more conscious about what I put in my mouth (twss). My eating habits definitely need some improvement. Fewer/better snacks, more water, less of that "mindless" eating, smaller portions of junky stuff. 

I was talking to MH about all this and he said, "I don't really see you eat all that much at home. I think you just need to move around more." 

So I'm trying to do just that. I took a walk over the weekend, and this morning I got up an hour earlier to once again start Couch to 5K ... I've slacked off in the past because I didn't want to jog after work, or because we'd make sudden evening plans with friends that I didn't want to miss by taking up an hour+ with running and showering. Normally MH gets up at 6 and I get up at 7, so I hope I can stick with it at least 3x a week. I put a little note on my nightstand saying, "You're not going to remember that extra hour of sleep" - because when I sit and think about it, I'd rather sacrifice a little sleep so I can feel better and maybe one day look better as well. 

I'll build up as I go. I may order a bag I like at the end of this week if I stick with Cto5K. Maybe start a simple weights or fitness routine after a few weeks of jogging. My office is on the 6th floor so maybe I'll start walking up just one flight next week and eventually build up to all six. Signing up for a 5K with a friend helped motivate me to complete Cto5K a few years ago, so that sounds like a good plan this time around as well. 

Again, thanks for the tips and also for the kind words. I really appreciate it. 

[SallyJ]

I think the first step is always choosing to make changes. And it sounds like you are there.

The very first thing I did was to change only a single meal in my whole day. It was overwhelming to do more than that so I only changed dinner. I swapped out starchy carbs for a protein and two veggies. After I successfully changed that I started tracking my food using MyFitnessPal. I began changing what I ate for snacks because I realized I could eat more food if I ate healthier food. The candy and chips didn't seem worth the calories anymore.

As for moving around more, I started simply. Just walking at every chance I could and taking stairs nearly always. I started a workout program just 2x/week with the idea that 2 days was better than no days. I approached exercise as a learning experience because I am passionate about learning and it made it easy for me mentally. I only ever committed to going to the gym for 10 minutes and gave myself permission guilt-free to leave at the end of 10 minutes. I never left and only cut my workout from 1 hour to 30 minutes a few times over the course of a year. Eventually I found a type of exercise I loved (ballet) and it stopped feeling like exercise. I also set mini-goals of completing 6-8 week long exercise programs like New Rules of Lifting for Women (or Abs or Supercharged), as well as goals to complete a 5K and eventually the ToughMudder.

Also? I ignored the scale. It's a lying liar that lies. I wanted to be able to accomplish certain athletic things and to fit into a specific dress hanging in my closet. I accomplished both of those things, but I never reached by goal weight. For that reason, I recommend not setting a goal weight and just include non-scale goals in your plan.

[drloretta]

I cut out refined flour and sugar and dairy when I was TTTC. The side effect was I dropped about 10 lb. I assume I would have lost more if I had included exercise. I'm a strong believer that they go hand in hand.

A couple of years ago I started to see my weight creep up, and I wanted to put a stop to it (BTW I went back to all that stuff I cut out, so I was on a more "normal" diet). DH and I joined WW together, and I started tracking points/food. It's amazing how you think you're eating something fairly healthy or lower calorie, only to find out it's a lot more than you ever imagined. That helped me get back on track.

This week I'm starting Couch to 5K to up my activity level. The diet part is pretty reasonable, it's the activity angle I need to work on.

[Poppy]

Something >> Nothing when it comes to exercise. I've always failed when I got too ambitious and tried to "go to the gym" or do something like start a running program. For me, what works is competition (so playing rec league sports) or doing something social and active like hiking or biking with friends. Having things scheduled helps, otherwise I don't make the time.

For diet, I find that something boring and low effort works best for me to keep me from getting discouraged. Like I keep whole wheat bread, almond butter, and easy fruit like bananas or apples at work and eat that pretty much every day for lunch. It doesn't have to be the healthiest thing you can imagine. It just needs to be a little better on average than what you would do otherwise, and the differences add up. Getting too ambitious with reform meant that I dreaded the effort and the food itself and then I would inevitably quit.

[insominac]

I can't track food.
But what I have been doing is trying to eat lean protein + 9 cups of fruits/veggies a day:
3 cups leafy greens
3 cups color rich fruits/veggies (reds, yellow/orange, blue/black)
3 cups sulfur veggies (broccoli, onions, kale, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts)

Not too much dairy or gluten.

I'm doing this for health reasons, but I'm also losing weight.

[daisyn]

Have you had your thyroid checked??

[tevagirl]

I lost about 40 pounds with diet changed and exercise. The diet changes were the biggest part of my weight loss. I tracked everything I ate, ate lots of veggies, fruit and protein and cut way back on my carbs. I drank lots of water, didn't eat sugar and didn't eat after 9pm. I've let some of my good habits go and gained some back recently, I need to get motivated again.

[itsme]

H says he doesn't see you eat all that much at home but what is the quality of the foods you're eating and are you eating enough? Also, are you raising the cupboard here and there and mindlessly or snacking out of boredom? That adds up.

I started with exercise and found something I loved which was CrossFit. I was going 1-3x/wk with no consistency and lots of excuses. I didn't lose any weight that first year but I did see some good change in my body.

The second year I decided that I needed to be consistent and if I was going to see change I needed to eat better. I started eating better, made a commitment to do CF 3x/wk, and run at least once a week. I lost 20lbs, then plateaued and gave up on being careful with my food. I pretty much maintained for the next 6-9 months.

One day I decided I was done putting in the work and not liking what I saw so again I changed up my diet but with some guidance this time which has helped me stick with it. I also added in more running days after a few months of getting used to my diet changes. Since then I have lost an additional 21lbs and am finally seeing the results I want and the look I am going for which is to look and be fit.

It takes steps and is a process. Find something you love and start there. Don't go all in all at once. Make changes like you mentioned above and slowly add in more as you get into the groove of your new routine. Make it a priority and you will be successful.

[mbcdefg]

May 2, 2016 18:48:34 GMT -5 daisyn said:

Have you had your thyroid checked??

They took blood at my doctor's appointment last week (full disclosure - I may have had another m/c or a chemical pregnancy or even a false positive). The doc told me he'd check my thyroid levels with the blood test, but when I called today to check the receptionist said it was only to confirm that I wasn't pregnant. The doc is out until the end of the week so I can call back then.

[daisyn]

May 2, 2016 21:45:32 GMT -5 mbcdefg said:

May 2, 2016 18:48:34 GMT -5 daisyn said:

Have you had your thyroid checked??

They took blood at my doctor's appointment last week (full disclosure - I may have had another m/c or a chemical pregnancy or even a false positive). The doc told me he'd check my thyroid levels with the blood test, but when I called today to check the receptionist said it was only to confirm that I wasn't pregnant. The doc is out until the end of the week so I can call back then.

Definitely make sure they check it
I gained 37 lbs in just under 3 years before my dr tested my thyroid and I have hypothyroidism.