Just eat less and move more?

[fattygettingthin]

I'm very overweight. Have about 9 stone to lose, I'm so ashamed. I got diagnosed with type 2 diabetes yesterday. The dr who was also overweight told me all the things I'm now likely to get, and how I should lose weight as a matter of urgency. They even offered to refer me for weight loss surgery right there. I asked for some advice on losin weight alone and they suggested weight watchers and swapping coke for Diet Coke .

So my aibu is; how the fuck am I to lose 9 stone without surgery? I have a gym membership but I don't think I use it well. I 'workout' for an hour or so 4 times a week but really it's just playing at using my membership and I know I need to be better. But how? How do you learn how to workout properly?

All the workouts I see online are for like mega body building men! And suggestions of eating protein and working out for 4 hours a day. I need help. I know I need to do this. Is it unreasonable to want to see little workout cards near the machines in the gym?

What do you eat for breakfast when you so 'low carb'? Is weight watchers worth it? I have a 12 week membership now but I don't want to eat 'lite' yogurts full of sugar and sweeteners. It feels like a mammoth task that I can't do.

If you got to the end well done!

sounds like your looking at this huge mountain with you being at the bottom.stop that.lol.first mistake.
it will daunt you and stop you.when you climb a mountain do you leap to the top and wam your there.when you do the dishes do you put you hands in the water and its done.when you write a letter do you put the pen to paper and your finished.sounds silly but look at everything in life.we don't decide to do something and its done.easy or hard thing take time and processes and steps.some granted lots harder...this being one of them.but its not impossible.
don't let fear halt you either.being scared of ur illness and whats to come will fill ur head with too much fear.
so take it in tiny steps.get a notepad and write down the little things you think you can do.push yourself but not to the point where it cant last.you cant cut out food you like forever you can tdo weight watcher and no sugar forever.you need a lifestyle change.and a lifestyle future.so changing to be healthy.which can be emotional and physical too.feeling better insdie and out.feeling good about yourself and letting it run throughout.
so the gym and ur exercising for what you have been is a great start!dont belittle the thing syou have done.it takes practice to get new routines and chanes into your head and day to day life.
what little things can you do now.making up healthy salads and then keeping them in tubs in the fridge.
natural yoghurt pots with fruit and granola.
keeping some veggie stick chopped in the fridge.
portioning out your food and taken it to the table.so your having a set amount and walking away.
find some nice recipes that can get you excited.
like big barley or bulgar wheat salad.pepping things up with garlic.or by roasting or adding herbs.simple tips and trips.
baking fruit so its tasty.
silly little things can help you.
get to the end of the day knowig your trying and feel good about it.
you've got the intention there and that already amazing hun so don't lose heart because its seems to huge to do.many have achieved it.so you can too.but you have to find the lifestyle you can manage it has to be what you can do.
what are you good at too.coudl you walk to a hill to draw.
or walk to a café for your favourite coffee.make it part of every day life not a task to be taken up.

Sorry if I’m replicating any advice as I’ve not had a chance to read the whole thread to the end...but I found Paul McKenna’s ‘Hypnotic Gastric Band’ really useful- it’s a book with a meditation CD and he covers the science and psychology behind the importance of portion control and the timing of meals, amongst other things! I found it very motivating!
Get a copy and work through it to supplement your existing exercise schedule- best of luck!

Also worth finding out if you’re allergic to anything as some foods may cause bloating - I say this because when I was pregnant with my youngest I ballooned! Turned out that he was allergic to egg, dairy and sesame, and when I took all that out of my diet to breastfeed I lost 3 stone in a year without any exercise at all ! Won’t work for everyone but probably worth investigating just in case?

So this weekend has been a bit of a revelation. I did an exercise dvd today and burnt 457 calories according to my Apple Watch, my hr was always at or around 170-185 for the 30 mins. I've made a healthy carb free tea but I'm not hungry after exercising so I'm waiting until I feel hungry!

I've been trying to differentiate between hunger and thirst this weekend and it appears they feel the same so I've been drunk 500ml of water when I feel hungry and that's made a massive difference. I did have some really intense feelings last night but I brushed my teeth and they went away as mint tastes grim with anything!!

Well done! If I ever find myself wandering into the kitchen to see what's in there (not that I don't know given I've bought it all lol) and eyeing up snacks I'll drink two large glasses of water and then see how I feel. Works great!

I felt hungry yesterday, decided to get moving and went on what turned out to be a file mile walk. Enjoyed it hugely with headphones. The act of walking somehow got rid of the hunger.

Half of the walk was to a dessert shop mind you, I just discovered this amazing one in my town that serves vegan food (had NO idea I could get vegan desserts here, it's the only one of its kind) and wanted to try it. Decided I could have a dessert if I walked there and back (2.5m each way) and had it as my meal for the evening. Pre getting healthy I'd have gone nuts, had a couple desserts, driven both ways and had the desserts as a snack and then another meal after.

I'm 9lbs down, another 14lbs to go. You can do it OP! I've dropped 9lbs in three weeks by calorie counting (1200) and going on a handful of moderately paced walks.

@WalkingOnAFlashlightBeam that's amazing ! Well done!

Ive lost 7.5 stones on WW and haven't used any low fat products apart from natural ones, like lean meat, poultry, fish etc.

Lots of good advice on here, what I would add is this:

Track what's in the food you eat, use something like MyFitnessPal and enter everything into it that you eat and drink. It'll tell you how the balance of what you eat in terms of all the nutrients you need. Nothing is the enemy except of you're consuming way too much of it. If you mostly eat fruit, veg, nuts and meats, and some dairy then you'll feel fuller for longer. On days where I eat too much sugar/carbs or not enough protein I'm always hungry despite eating the correct amount of calories.

I'm going to be really controversial but with that amount to lose you will find it easier with surgery.
I had gastric sleeve 18 months ago and have lost 10 stone (and accidentally had a baby in the meantime - a complete no no after bariatric surgery!)
The sleeve gastrectomy removes the excess stomach so you eat far less, I generally can only eat half a round of sandwiches for example for lunch. It doesn't interfere with digestive integrity to bowel and is generally successful.
It hasn't been easy but I am now down from 163kg to 96kg and still going. There are many weight loss groups about that can support you in the surgery.
Also you are so lucky to be offered on NHS....mine cost £14,000.

BTW For those that would condemn me for the 'easy way out' I'm wheelchair bound, exercising not an option.

Op, have you looked at the diabetes uk website? There is lots of helpful information and there are several books that you can buy. Have you got to take medication or is diet/weight loss the first treatment being tried? Take up the offer of weight watchers membership because it’s really difficult to know where to start.

Isabella I don't think surgery is the 'easy way out' at all , it is basically an enforced diet for the rest of your life, which of course is why it so successful. Congratulations on the baby , as well as your fantastic weight loss

Try as I might, I find that after about five or ten minutes of light cardio that I'm absolutely knackered and out of breath.

It's taken almost a year just to build up to ten, and I'm beginning to struggle as I get older as well (I used to do lots of yoga and pilates when I was in my early twenties). Please tell me that it actually gets easier!

Thanks OP. I know it's only 9lbs but my jeans seem to fit much better already, I'm not busting the button open when I wear them.

I won't be one of those naive people who thinks there's any guarantee I'll keep losing and not screw up or that it'll be easy, but I feel like my mindset switched after the first week into this new way of eating and moving around being non negotiable. For now anyway. So I feel happy with the way I am right now, knowing that day after day I'll be happier and happier with my body. I no longer feel out of control.

I'm excited for us and everyone else on the thread making changes for their health. It's been great to see so many people advocating the simple calorie in-calorie out approach instead of too many awkward fad diets that cost the earth and are unsustainable.

Nothing worth having comes easy. And in my experience the odd 'treat' (calorie rich food) tastes a hell of a lot better as an occasional thing once you're at a happy weight than it does as a daily thing when you're bigger and only half enjoy it and half feel awful even as you're eating it because you know what it's doing to you and what you need to do to change things around.

Focus on losing slowly and keeping it off, don't rush headlong into any super-strict diets, especially not with diabetes in the mix. Build up the exercise slowly and gradually too. You're aiming to build new habits, and that doesn't happen overnight, but it is do-able, just be prepared for the 'long haul' and don't be tempted to rush things to the detriment of your health. Best of luck to you.

If you haven't already done so, I would suggest you look on the Diabetes UK website. Lots of information re low carb high fat diet, lots of people who have done/ are doing the diet who can offer support and tips. To encourage you my OH was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes over a year ago. He was very overweight, did the diet, still does actually.When he started he was in tight 5xl clothes, now he is in loose xl and still losing weight. I didn't think he could do it but he has. He takes no medication now and has been told that the diabetes is in remission. I urge you to go on the website today. You don't have to have type 2 diabetes.BTW my oldest has type 1, and truly no-one wants to end up injecting insulin, it saves lives but if I could have it instead , I would. Best of luck!

P.S please remember that you are not producing enough insulin or can't use it well. The idea of low carb is to make the insulin you have work better. You need to find the amount of carbs that you can tolerate. You can eat meat, eggs, cheese, fish, lots of veg and some fruits. You are not losing weight to get into a favourite dress but to stop diabetics recking your life. The diet is different but works.

Try not to focus on 9 stone. I've been very slim and very heavy (currently need to lose 8 stone! Preferably by my daughters wedding in August haha!) I found when I've lost weight previously that aiming small is helpful. Look at losing half a stone then the next half. Break it down into achievable manageable goals. It will help to focus on the next small hill rather than the mountain x

Keep on doing a bit by bit and ebb away at it and you will get there.
Start by joining weight watchers or slimming world.
Start by reducing some of the treats you have. If you stop everything at once you may crave it more.
Switch to sugar free drinks.
Start walking more, it’s good whilst it light.
Even a little bit each day and you will start to see the difference. Good luck

*I also suspect some people here work for these diet companies.

Where is the actual important information rather than the sales talk?*

Blood Sugar Diet: buy the book for £8.99. That's all you need. No sales talk needed, because there's nothing else to buy.

And I would suggest that you get a blood sugar monitor so that you can test and see exactly what makes your blood sugars rise. Without doing this you won't know if you are getting that under control.And the important thing is to have blood sugars within the normal range.

A lot of type 2s swear by lchf, low carb high fat,. They find their blood sugar drops and they don't suffer from increased cholesterol from it. I'm also type 2 but have a hereditary cholesterol problem and although LCHF brought my blood sugar down my .cholesterol level went through the roof. Whilst some of the comments on here may sound useful they're not all taking your diabetes into account.You may be better off on a diabetes forum where everyone is in the same boat.

How's the diet going OP? x

like a previous poster said don't concentrate on 9 stone, think about losing 1 first then go from there, make it more manageable.
Sugars are the first thing you really need to cut down on. And don't try to completely cut them out just really reduce them.
Matcha tea or hot water with lemon and cayenne pepper helps a sluggish digestive system but I only have one or the other once a day.

Losing weight is 80% about diet and 20% exercise which is a fact so don't concentrate too much on having to join a gym or anything fancy. Reducing calorie intake is most important. Increasing walking gradually building up distance, pace and adding inclines will be an effective and free exercise to start with. Weight watchers could help but there are also lots of free fitness apps that you input your calories intake to keep track. Some will allow you to input your current weight / height and will calculate a realistic daily calorie intake for you to achieve a weight loss goal. As you use this you will become better at judging which foods to eat and how much.
Btw I'm not sure if anyone else has mentioned this but there is a diet that could reverse type 2 diabetes so you don't have to suffer with it forever. It is hardcore - I think 800 calories a day off the top of my head so I don't think you should be starting with it but once your on your way with your weight loss and have got your head around daily calorie intake maybe it's something you could find out more about.

Good luck.💪