To ask how EXACTLY you have lost weight?

[twoblackdogs]

There are so many threads with the New Year resolutions, weight loss discussions, advice and probably lies as well - so many words, so many things.
I have finally reached that point from which there is no turning back. I will do this, no matter what, but - please, help me. Those of you, the heroes who have really done it - please, name 3 main things that finally helped you to get rid of that weight.
Please.

I got gall stones and had to go on a low fat diet - 3 grams of fat or less per 100 gram of food. I went down two dress sizes had my hall bladder out, and I've kept the weight off for a year.I

I wouldn’t cut out all sugar OP- that’s not realistic and your cravings will get the better of you I found the opposite - the less sugar I had, the less I craved it. I accidentally bought lemonade instead of soda water recently and almost had to spit it out, it was so vile and sickly.

I have also found it easier to be all or nothing. I don't eat sugar so I simply avoid mince pies, Christmas cake, port, sweet drinks. Instead I search out olives, celery, a little piece of cheese...

OP if you're cutting out sugar then watch out for things that have hidden sugars (ketchup, low fat dairy etc) or things that are low fibre and turn quickly to sugar - put a bit of sliced white bread in your mouth, chew, and notice how fast it tastes sweet. And think about avoiding artificial sweeteners too, they're only fooling you into thinking you 'need' sweetness.

I've lost 3 stone since having my youngest 7 months ago. Most of it was intended but the last half stone wasn't.

I refused to cut anything out or cook separate from the family, so my main things were:
Reduce portion sizes
Reduce snacking
Increase activity (not hard with a busy toddler and a young baby who likes me to walk her around all day 😆 )
Switched to dark chocolate so a couple of squares is usually enough.
Although I didn't follow SW, one main principle I took when I looked at it was lots of salad, vegetables & fruit. So I'll have a small baked potato or a sandwich for lunch but with a large salad, or pasta for tea with vegetables instead of garlic bread. That applies to most meals but if I really can't face salad, I don't force myself.

I eat full fat as I do find it keeps me fuller than low fat. I just have slightly less of it, so real butter, small bowl of proper yoghurt, whole milk, etc. I still have pudding occasionally but a small amount of a really indulgent dessert. I don't deprive myself, I eat well, actually like porridge/fruit/salad and so on so it's not a hard ship for me.

Yeah I find eating very low sugar (all I have is 85% choc and whatever occurs naturally in vegetables eg carrots, I don’t eat fruit or use artificial sweeteners) is really helpful and I hardly have a taste for it any more...a little bit of dark chocolate goes a long way

For me the best way is to cut out sugary crap and starchy carbs and go on my treadmill 3-4 times a week. I walk fast up a gradient for an hour while watching Netflix. Whatever works for you is going to have to be sustainable and not painful if you're going to keep it up.
You can do it - there's no such place as 'point of no return'
If you want a tough but very effective kick start, look at Michael Moseley's blood sugar diet. Good luck!

The CICO (calories in calories out) approach is fine (and correct theoretically). But ultimately it is about eating food that is good for you. You could eat a reduced calorie diet which was full of artificial 'stuff', or you could eat eggs, spinach, tuna, salad...

The calories in calories out model assumes that all stored calories are equally accessible. They are not, which is why this model is poor.

Jason Fung is very good at explaining the details:

Intermittent fasting - eating only between 12pm and 8pm (though usually I don't start eating until around 1pm and stop by 7:30). I eat whatever I want during those windows but due to the timing alcohol is naturally cut out which cuts out a fair amount of calories)

I usually take one evening off a week so I can have a drink after the kids are in bed.

Started in the summer and so far I've lost around 7kg.

Joined a boxing gym. In the past I have run and been members of other gyms but nothing like boxing for strengthening and weight loss. Plus, and this is a massive plus, the endorphin rush is huge. I just feel good and strong and happy.

Stopped eating carbs and sugar. Incl. Fruit. Exercise levels went down, but weight dropped off and ive kept it off for 9mo now, a record for me. Keeping my blood sugar steady seems to have 'balanced' my metabolism and i no longer yo-yo with very slight diet differences. I've pigged out this xmas and not put on a single lb. Back to it new years day!!!

Eat less, move more.

I use the Loseit app (quite like myfitnesspal) to track calories consumed and expended. If I consistently create a calorie deficit, I lose weight.

Portion size is key. I weigh or measure almost everything. It's easy to fool yourself into thinking that you are eating less than you actually are.

Snacks are okay if healthy, I like baby carrots mid morning then a later lunch.

Portion control, activity tracking. I walk 3-5 miles a day. This adds calories into my daily budget so that I can eat a bit more and still lose weight.

It's hard but you can do it.

High fat low carb diet, it’s amazing!

Mindful eating.Forget dieting and lose weight,sounds mad but I was introduced to it by a dietician. Basically need to evaluate why you are eating. Question 1 how long since I last ate, if less than 3 hours you cannot be hungry so do something to take your mind off it. Question 2 if over 3 hours is my stomach rumbling,if he's have something to eat,if it's not main meal time have a healthy snack. If stomach isn't rumbling then displacement activity.

Concentrate on the food you're eating think of the taste, texture etc and eat slowly

Long term and very slow and unexciting and sustainable....

For me this was eating normal family food (shepherd's pie, pasta, roasts, pizza, whatever we eat as a family, but always with a side of veg or salad), no puddings most days (unless at friends ' house or eating out. But always eating a nice normal meal at meal times. This stops cravings imo, and diet-or-bust mentality

One treat thing a day, like a few biscuits/crisps/a bar of chocolate

Not many takeaways just mainly decent home cooked food.

Lots of exercise ;1 hr walk a day plus 4x cardio a week. Socialise over exercise, going for evening walk with friends in summer, instead of going out to pub

Lots of small tweakings ;not drinking a lot of alcohol, not having a caramel latte when I am just as happy with an Americano with 1 sugar

Boring. Sensible. Not strict = sustainable for life. No food is forbidden. I eat carbs

Calorie counting. I don’t limit what sort of food I eat, at all, I just prioritise. Sometimes I want chocolate or ice cream at the end god the day, so I eat less of other things to come in on target. Other days I prioritise having more at lunch or dinner. I don’t exercise beyond walking. I relax these constrictions dramatically on holiday or over Christmas, or on special occasions. I’ve lost two stone this year, now a size 12, I’ll get back on it in the new year and aim to maybe lose one more.

1. Eat less frequently - eating a single pretty big (2 or 3 course), non-calorie-counted meal once a day, and no other food. Amazing how quickly the body adapts.

1. Forget about low-fat - fats fill you up and keep you satiated for longer, most are good for you.

1. Lots of veg and colour in the diet, less sugar.

I used Exante doing VLCD version, It helps me not having to think about food/what to eat as tends to make me quickly fall off the wagon, a bonus that I've not been as hungry either.

I discovered that I lose my full switch with carby foods, so was eating way more than I need. Its possibly also medication side effect but on the low carb diet it was great to feel satisfied and not get hungry. My skin also massively improved i suspect down to reduced sugar & dairy?

I end up doing intermittent fasting, I used to eat breakfast as routine but discovered I really just need a drink i'm fine if have no food till afternoon & yet hungrier all day if I eat breakfast.

MyFitnessPal has made me realise how little attention I paid to labels & underestimate calories in food along with how much exercise is required to burn it off. I need to start doing more.

The hardest to change is mental side, as I know how to eat properly. Easy to go into an emotional binge cycle & I don't think I can be someone that just has a bit of cake, chocolate, bread etc in moderation. So that's going to take some CBT and work to become healthy long-term.

being in love
hyperemesis gravidarum
not being able to eat because I was scared I was going to get in to big trouble because ive done something I shouldn't

Portion sizing, i eat whats on the plate probably due to how i was raised so just giving myself small plate helps.
I like wide variety of veg and can actually eat a load for little calories, so why did I always stick to little piles to accompany rest of the meal than have veg as main part.

I've lost 13lbs since around May. I joined a challenging sports class doing a sport that I had never tried before so had to work pretty hard at it. Christmas aside, I no longer eat anything at all after my main meal in the evening until breakfast. I don't have sandwiches for lunch anymore, I'll have sushi or salad with protein.

These are genuinely the only three changes I have made. I didn't want to 'diet' in a way that I couldn't maintain and I only really wanted to lose a stone (damn you that last lb!) so didn't want to have to work too hard at it [lazy]

Good luck in your weight loss, it really is about exercising more and eating less calories!

My £40 a month PT, he’s been amazing!
I track calories etc on my fitness pal, I weight lift heavy and have lost a lot of weight

Cut out the junk, eat smaller portions, drink more water and don't eat after 6pm. That with one exercise a few times a week helped me lose weight. I didn't eat salad, I ate ordinary family meals, just less of it and more veg.

By eating sensible portions and including salad and veg in meals. Not excluding treats if I do I just crave things. Eating decent meals stops the snacking. My biggest down fall is special coffees which I limit

@Rafflesway how long before you started to notice a weight loss with the Thyroxine? I’ve been on it maybe 3 months now and have lost the odd pound but nothing substantial.

I had also gained 3 stone. I couldn’t work out why it was happening.

5:2

DP and I have been on it about 5 years (barring holidays and Christmas week!). Keeps my weight where I want it and hopefully reduces my risk of heart disease and cancer. I'm 60 and healthy.

Once you're in the routine it's very easy to do. I just have a 500 cal meal Mon and Thurs nights. Eat what I want on the other days.