If you've lost a good chunk of weight and kept it off, what made the difference for you?

[loveyouradvice]

Really just that... and what you think the best advice you've had was...

And congrats! And ps how much did you lose? And how does it feel?

I'm on the way to this but not there yet - the keeping it off that is!!

I changed from doing very minimal exercise to an hour of yoga/meditation daily plus walking/swimming every week. I also completely reworked my ways of eating…I simple do not snack, and I eat as little ultra processed food as possible. These are basics, so I don’t feel restricted and I don’t have “cheat” meals or days as I don’t feel like I’m on any kind of diet…I just live as healthily as I can.

I was on a hormone suppression med for breast cancer.

I gained a stone nothing would shift it.

Breakfast is porridge or cereal.

Then I just cut my lunch and dinner portion in half.

I added 5 pieces of fruit.

It doesn’t bother me and I got used to it - the stone is gone and it feels very natural to eat like this.

I don’t eat out much but would only eat a starter.

Looking back at my late mother’s crockery the plates and bowls were tiny and my portions fit perfectly.

So I think we’ve gradually started eating too much over the last four to five decades.

I struggle big time to bring down my appetite/not eat like a horse! So I had to take the emotions out of it and realise that if I wanted the food, the maths just meant I have to exercise harder.

I walk for minimum 60 mins every day and over double that on weekend days. I sea swim and do some weights at home. No interest in the gym personally. Obviously life gets in the way sometimes but I try to stick to that.

lost 60lbs in 2022/2023 and have kept it off.

No snacking and sugar only as a dessert for a very special occasion.

I can't say I'm perfect at sticking tonight, butbthe weight starts creeping back on if I don't and is (relatively) easy to shift once I get back on it.

All the water

eating low carb high fat

https://www.eatinglessonline.com/ choosing what to eat according to how I’ll feel after I’ve eaten it, immediately and for say 24hrs thereafter.

No biscuits, cakes, crisps or chocolate in the house. Can’t nibble on them if they’re not there.

Not eating sugary stuff gets easier the longer you do it. My palate has adjusted and I’ve now pretty much lost all interest in eating cakes, chocolate and ice-cream. If I feel like something dessert-like, I’ll have blueberries and plain yoghurt.

Kicking the toast habit. Marmite on toast is so delicious and I found it easy to get through slice after slice on non-workdays. Now it’s just one slice,to be slowly savoured with a mug of strong tea (no sugar, obvs). Or no slice at all.

When I get the occasional craving for something sweet, I’ll have a sugar-free coke.

Thats just a few things that helped.

Keto and running. If I cheat on one, I know about it.

I learnt to milk cows. Walking miles up and down the parlour every day does wonders for your figure! I think that I lost 1-1.5st. It got to the point where I was shrinking rapidly out of all of my clothes and was considering holding my waterproofs up with baler twine...

On the bright side, I know that I can eat as much as I want without ever putting any weight on. On the downside, eating so much is a very expensive habit 😂

Therapy! I was overweight my entire life, tried everything and nothing stuck (except fat, obviously 😂) ~ went to therapy and explored the issues behind my constant need to binge, and lo and behold, I’ve never looked at food the same way. I also found a few fitness classes I loved and splurged on a fancy gym membership, and prioritised fresh, good quality whole foods which made the whole process a lot more enjoyable. But 100% the therapy got rid of the food noise and constant desire to eat.

I‘m now down to 10st from 24st, and it was life changing. My self esteem has jumped hugely (I know not everyone has issues with this, but I definitely did!), I have more energy, people look at me differently, I’m more respected in my career (I think!) ~ basically all the stuff people say will happen when you lose weight. Turns out it’s true, for me at least!

No sugary treats at all and loads of exercise (gym and running).

these are the two essentials for me and if I keep them both up, other healthy eating habits naturally follow.

i cannot eat healthily if I’m not also exercising, i lose all motivation. And vice versa, if I fall off the wagon and binge on sugar, I can’t be bothered to exercise. So although people say losing weight is more about diet than exercise, I need to do both.

Quit drinking & lost 4 stone. I’m still overweight for my height but not getting too worked up about it. I feel a million times better.

I took it upon myself to try and overcome binge eating disorder as there was no help offered by my gp. I read intuitive eating, slowly implemented my learning and it healed my relationship with food. I lost 5 and a half stone and have kept it off.

Lost almost 3 stone and DH the same. Weight has crept on over a few years and after having DS. Both maintaining at healthy weights.

Ditches the ‘diets’ and anything faddy and has an honest look at what we were eating. I was very much all or nothing, feast or famine

We did it very slowly over around 18 months, small changes adding up over time. We basically try to eat as little UPF as possible. Eat dinner around 5pm and have a food cut off at 7pm. I food shop online so I’m not tempted and keep no rubbish or treats in the house as I can’t leave it alone. Exercise frequently and walk as much as possible. I’m at a point now where I eat more intuitively and make healthier choices because eating rubbish isn’t worth the short term hit anymore, it makes me feel lethargic and sluggish and i find that really off putting.

Cutting my alcohol consumption by 75% and exercising every day. 10k steps minimum plus gym, cycling etc. I lost 35kg & kept it off.

Quitting sugar , it became very easy after the first couple of weeks

I’ve lost 4 stone and kept it off for about a year and a half. The difference for me has been that i stopped weighing my self all the time (I get weighed twice a year at HRT checks with the nurse) and I just keep going. If I eat something that’s not on my diet or I get pissed or something I just crack on the next day. Before I would eat all sorts of things thinking I had ruined the diet and it would go on for days.

I lost 21/2 stone

Technically haven’t lost much weight but have completely changed by body composition and the way I look with strength training, walking and eating large but healthy meals - based around a protein source, a fat source, beans/pulses/wholegrains and a lot of veg. I’ve only lost a few kg but dropped a few dress sizes. Hair, skin, nails and mental health have dramatically improved too. Most importantly I enjoy it all enough that I can imagine doing it forever.

Track your calories by the gram. That’s it. That’s the hack.

Not eating starchy carbs
Having something that I can snack on a lot
Making meals really tasty with spice
Weights

Can I ask what kind of therapy you had? Do you know the modality?

I lost four stone six years ago and have kept three of it off ever since (I went a bit too far and lost too much). To keep my weight down I have to; run, never snack, eat OMAD and watch the calories of that. I allow myself one cheat day a week but other than that I try to keep calories around the 1200 level, run four miles five times a week, spin five times a week for 30 minutes a time, Pilates three times a week for half an hour, and never keep snacky, tasty, high calorie food in the house.

To be honest it's bloody miserable and I'd almost rather put the weight back on again, but I won't. I'm post meno and if it goes on again I'm pretty sure it will stay.

Basically stopping drinking and walking everywhere.

Conversely to the cutting down on UPFs, I eat high protein ready meals (really delicious ones) twice a day (including for breakfast sometimes) with a side of whatever veg I'm cooking the kids. For the third meal, I have scrambled or poached eggs on toast. It's easy, practically no effort and the weight is dropping off. My cravings for snacks have massively reduced since I've started having a full meal for breakfast.

But I am at a stage of life at the moment when I have fussy children who only eat bland food, I hate cooking with a passion, I spend most of my waking time taking care of others and realistically if I don't have nice, no-effort food in the house, I'll just eat junk. Accepting this has made a huge difference - "self-care" for me at the moment extends to eating food that I don't have to go to any effort to prepare. Maybe in a bit I'll have the energy to start cooking properly for myself again but it's not happening right now.

I'm 4.5 stone down with another 3 to go. I'm diabetic, so for me it was my blood sugars going through the roof post 50 and having to dramatically change my diet for good. I now eat low sugar, low carb and higher fat basically - I'm vegetarian anyway and my rule of any plate is 70% veg and 30% protein. I also walk my dogs around 12k steps a day and I really notice if I can't get out and do that. I've lost all food cravings so life is so much easier (or food noise as the weight loss jab devotees like to bandy around). I also remember how horrid I feel for 24 hours after eating something that throws my blood sugars off.