Any help kickstart my weight loss again pleas

[Puffypuffin]

I've lost just over 2 stone since the start of the year and still have about a stone to lose.

I've lost about 1lb ish a week, sometime a bit more, sometimes a bit less but over the last month I haven't lost an ounce. I go for about a half hour walk every day. Any ideas of how to kick start again please?

A normal day looks a bit like this;

Breakfast - omelette
Lunch - wholemeal roll with ham and tomato/packed quavers or similar, yoghurt
Dinner - chicken or fish, salad and/or veggies, jacket potato or rice/pasta. Most of my plate is protein based.
Pud - snack sized choc bar (like a Freddie or something).

I would be really grateful for some advice please?

I’d suggest you reduce the carbs and get rid of the chocolate - maybe having chocolate and bread once or twice a week at most.

You don’t necessarily have to do this every week; maybe just for a week or two.

As you have lost weight, it might be worth recalculating your calorie requirements now.

I was really hoping that I wouldn't have to drop my Freddo because they're only 95 cals. 😂 It seems a hundred times harder to lose weight at 56 than it was at 46!

Basically your calorie intake was low enough to cause weightless at your higher weight but only to maintain your current weight. The less you weigh, the fewer calories you need to maintain that weight (generally).

So you need to decrease your calories. I'd recommend taking an egg yolk out of your omlette (if it's 2 eggs). What goes in your omlette?

Replace the quavers with veg sticks.

And do some weight training. 1lb of muscle uses more calories than 1lb of fat.

Well done on the weight loss so far.

I would decrease your carbs and massively increase your fruit and veg.

@Puffypuffin well done on the weight loss. Re: Freddo. Can you substitute that for a square of high cocoa 80% instead. Buy a large bar from Aldi or Lidl. Make sure you are drinking at least 2L of water a day. Reduce the carbs. Up the veg at breakfast eg 2 egg omelette with mushrooms and spinach.

I'd recommend reading about the human being diet. It's basically a take on the Mediterranean diet and perfect for women of this age. I've found it really effective. You'll find a great community on Instagram. I guarantee you will shed a stone in no time and it's not difficult at all, it's common sense but teaches you a lot about how your own body works and about proper portion control. thehumanbeingdiet.com

Good luck.

Try doing a long fast once a week. I do 36 hours on a weekly basis (8pm day 1 to 8am day 3). I've been using the Dr Mindy Pelz book for a while. I don't believe its the solution to all ills as is sometimes sold but works for me.

How about adding exercise in instead? I’ve started doing CrossFit (I’m a similar age to you) and I love it. It’s hard work (the warm up is the hardest but because I’m so inflexible) but I feel great since I started doing it. I’m focusing on getting stronger and it’s having such an impact a couple of my friends have spontaneously joined too!

I'd love to exercise a bit more but I'm still recovering from surgery, so my walks are about as much we I can manage at the mo.

I feel like I've really lost my mojo and I just don't want to fall back into my old eating habits.

Dump Quavers, zero nutrition. No chocolate, up your water intake, try to use stairs/walk whenever possible.

My problem is, and I know myself very well when it comes to my food triggers, of I don't allow myself any 'treats' at all, I just won't stick to it. Cutting out the quavers etc is no problem but if I don't have a square or so of chocolate after my evening meal I'll end up feeling deprived and then pissed off. I enjoy the food I've been eating and haven't found it too hard up to now but god it comes off slower these days!

Then only have a square if that works. I know what you mean about total deprivation, Freddos are 65 calories so a square of dark chocolate might be better. You might need to change what you’re eating and do a different exercise.

Yes I think you're right. Walking is all I can really do at the moment (recovering from a mastectomy) but I think I need to think about different main meals in particular. I often just have chicken and salad etc but I also think that the less you need to lose the harder it is. I said I want to lose another stone, but 10lbs would be fine and take me back into a healthy weight range for my height.

I hope your recovery goes smoothly. Small changes make a big difference. Think about what exercise you can do-maybe a static bike?

I can recommend weight watchers where you can still enjoy chocolate.

Thank you, but I've tried WW a few times over the years and it's not for me.

Unfortunately you've got to go hard or go home. Little things like the Freddos make a difference 😕

I'm also recovering from a mastectomy and can't exercise like I used to (no gym, running or swimming). I can only walk in the evening (too hot where I live to walk in the morning ATM) but I always found exercising/walking in the morning made a massive difference to my weight and metabolism.

Amazing OP, well done on your weight loss! I'd personally keep the freddo, if it fits within your calories and keeps you on the straight and narrow then that's good. I would recalculate your BMR seen as though you've lost 2 stone if you haven't already, it's likely you need to reduce your calories now to continue losing.

Unfortunately you've got to go hard or go home. Little things like the Freddos make a difference 😕

As long as you account for them they're fine. Freddos are under 100 cals so not taking up a large % (I agree having 200 cals plus would like damage things as it'd be in lieu of nutritious food). For me a 100 calorie treat after dinner stops me from going back to binging in the evenings and is one of the things that keeps it sustainable for me. Everyone is different of course but OP if it works for you and helps you avoid snacking then I'd be wary of getting rid of it, maybe do it slowly if you feel you want to- one every other day and then taper down? I lost 7 stone and have maintained for 4 years now and I have something sweet after dinner everyday.

Wow 7 stone is amazing!! Can I ask how you did it? I've recalculated my calories and I should be having 1600 a day apparently.

Honestly, I wouldn't stress about the Freddo. Especially if it helps you stay within your plan generally. It's really small!

Maybe dump the dinner carbs, i.e. no jacket potato? And replace with extra veg, or some fruit.

I'd also eat more fruit generally, but I am a fruit glutton!!

Slow and steady after many years of yo yo dieting and binge cycles! I did have counselling relating to something else and began anxiety medication (not because of my weight) which seemed to help. I didn't ever consider it as never felt I had something underlying but guessing I did.

Practical wise though as I say I took it slow, reduced my calories slowly, did focused things one at a time to try and build healthy habits and transform my lifestyle ie drink more water, add veg to every meal etc. I found calorie counting very freeing although I know some hate it, foods that I used to restrict and then end up binging on were no longer forbidden as long as they fitted into my cals (never had more than say 10% of my cals on foods like choc though). This led to less cravings, better portion control and having a bit helped stop me gorging. I was kind to myself and never thought 'screw it' if I had a bad meal or day, I brushed it off and didn't wait to start again tomorrow/Monday.

Of course different for everyone, maintaining was hard at first as it's tempting to think now I've done so well ill relax but years on its all second nature. I'd keep going with what's working for you and honestly be nice to yourself.

Lots of high density low cal stir fry etc as well especially at the start when my appetite was big!

I used to always immediately say screw it if I'd had a bad day and eaten all the wrong things. Every time I would fall off the waggon and I think that's the difference this time. I know I'll have meals out that are over my calorie allowance and that's fine. I don't beat myself up about that anymore and I think that's really important isn't it.

Maybe just keep going as you are for a bit longer. You’ve done really well and you’re recovering from surgery. Maybe increase your walks in duration if you have the energy and the time to.

Your overall calorie intake already seems quite low, I'd really be reluctant to reduce further as this means as soon as you start eating a less restricted diet again the weight will just come back on. You've done really well so far!
I'd look at a reverse diet for the next step, where you gradually increase your calories buy 50-100 per week for 6ish weeks. It's important you do this by increasing nutrient dense foods, lots more protein and veg. Eg if you're on 1200 calories now, you need to gradually build up to 1600 then maintain that for a few weeks. You can then cut it back to 1400 to lose more weight then gradually build it back up again. This will help you to stop regaining weight once your diet is finished. There's plenty on Google about the benefits of reverse dieting