I am so down about how fat and unfit I am I feel defeated.

[coodawoodashooda]

So utterly defeated. I am a size 22. Can anyone help me turn this around?

You can do this OP. It will be tough, but it can also be enjoyable.

• Get a friend on board so you can encourage each other. Or join a slimming group to have support and make you accountable. Having a community will make you feel less alone.
• Tell family and friends of your intentions so they don't sabotage your plans.
• Get a bin bag right now and clear your cupboards of unhealthy snacks. If they're not there, you can't eat it. If you have kids/partner, they can't have it in the house neither (this won't kill them).
• Exercise. Join a gym with classes, swim. I don't recommend running - you will find it so tough and get demoralised. Again, if you can do something with a friend, even better.

YOU CAN DO IT!!!!!

I've gained and lost considerable weight several times thanks to meds and the key for me is accountability and being honest about what I'm eating, not cutting out foods.

Logging food one way or another, my fitness pal or previously old school weight watchers has worked well. Why not start by not cutting back just yet, just honestly keeping a diary (say on MFP) and getting a clear picture of what your current habits are and where you could change? No pressure right off the bat to keep to a diet, just get to know what your starting point is.

To note, I am about a size 12-14 and got up to 18-20 and am currently on my way back down after a long pause due to a big life change so I'm not talking about just a couple of pounds either. The first week or so of changing your habits and calorie counting/ WW is a bit of a slog but trust me, it gets easier. It's just about making that change. You don't need to necessarily wait to feel a huge push, use your current dissatisfaction as motivation.

Exercise will really help you stay on track, even walking as you will have a memory of physically working hard towards your goal which will help with willpower around food.

I've been that size, lost it and then pandemic happened and weight went back on as my gym routine was decimated due to lock downs.

Being large also saps your energy and doesn't make you want to move and do much.

Trust me go to the gym, I went this week and surprised myself in doing 30mins on the bike doing 80rpm at a medium level of resistance. I felt so much better after, more energy, lighter. Its then keeping it up

I've got a gastric band, but if I'd known then what I know now, I wouldn't have had it done, so please think carefully if you do go down that route.

It might be worth spending money on having a few sessions with a dietician to see where you can make some healthy changes. The key to permanent weight loss is changes that are sustainable long term and actually enjoyable. So eating nicer, tastier food, not feeling deprived and miserable and finding exercise you enjoy and will carry on doing.

You need to learn to truly love yourself again.

It will be a long and hard road to fitness for you. There are no short cuts, no easy options. There are times when you will feel utterly hopeless.

Focus on your end goal. Love yourself and your body enough to do what is needed. When I am exercising sometimes I say to myself “I will love myself and my body enough to do 10 extra minutes’

Allowing ourselves to be fit and healthy, to eat healthy, should come from a place of self love, not self hate. Love the person and body that is you enough to know that you deserve to be fit and healthy.

It's not cheap 150 initially then 100 a month but I would really recommend joining Shelley Booth Feel Look Be programme. It has everything you need. Knowledge, meal plans, community support, mindset and motivation sessions. Exercise plans. Yoga. It's brilliant and will keep you motivated and knowing exactly what to eat.

www.shelleybooth.co.uk/a/36347/ezzHxavz

Everyone seems to be going to Turkey for gastric sleeves

I'm on saxenda and loving it....need to lose 5-6 stone and I'm 2 1/2,stone down in 10 weeks. Menopause has meant I just could not shed it alone through normal diet/exercise

So I'm riding o. The saxenda ride, throwing money at the problem and it's working for now
If it all goes back on I'm off for a sleeve

I heard someone say

You have an image in your head of the body you WANT...
But the body you HAVE is a reflection of how much you are actually willing to put in to achieve the body you WANT🙄

So if you really want 'that' body. Then change your life. Because right now the body what you have. ..is the body that you settle for/ how much effort you are willing to put in

Small children isnt an excuse really. I have 2 young kids. But im 2 dress sizes bigger than I used to be not because of that. But simply because I can't be arsed to actually change my life and unhealthy eating habits. Being a parent doesn't mean have to have a mum/dad bod.

It does require more planning and more motivation. And less alcohol haha..
But really, all you need is wanting it enough.
I most definitely didn't want it hard enough... shit hahaha.

I think lockdown has a lot to answer for, I'm a comfort eater and have put on two stone in the last two years. Not sure if I'm allowed to say the title of the book I've just bought in Aldi, but it's a 30 day plan by a popular coach who did lots of exercise on tv over lockdown. Exercise and sensible eating seem to be the way to go for me, personally.

OP, thinking about your eating habits and exercise, what needs to change?

Use an online calculator to find out your calorie maintenance level and what you should aim for to lose weight or maintain your current weight.

Start counting your calories. Weigh your food and portions.It doesn't have to be perfect but keep track.

Buy smaller plates so your plate looks fuller.

Find foods that are filling but low in calories, so you can eat plenty of them. Cut out or substitute every day things that are calorie heavy - so stop cooking in loads of oil, for example.

Cook from scratch or at least start to prepare some meals for yourself. Find new ways to cook vegetables to change things up roasting broccoli instead of steaming, for example.

Drink more water. Drink if you feel hungry or with a meal.

Don't cut out everything you enjoy. If you like crisps or chocolate, allow yourself these things - but stick to your calorie limit.

Walk more. Walk every day, no matter the weather. Even if you start by just 20 minutes per evening, do this and then walk some more. You'd be surprised by how many miles you can walk in a week.

If you start to feel hungry or are picking at food when you know you shouldn't be, put on your shoes and head out the door.

Forget about fad diets, don't overdo your exercise at first, don't starve yourself. The changes you make have to work in your life. You might have to tweak your lifestyle to accommodate them, but be realistic. If you're not an early riser, don't plan to go for a walk at 6am, for example.

Be patient. Realise what results look like. Staying the same is a result in itself. Aim to not put weight on first and foremost.

It's a marathon, not a sprint. If you over-eat one day, accept it. Just don't let one day creep into two days, or a whole week.

Don't eat and watch TV, or your tablet. Don't eat while your doing something else, and don't do something else whilst you're eating.

It will depend a bit on your budget. While you can do free things, you could try to get an expert’s help to kick start you. Are you in any financial position to afford help from a pro eg nutritionist or PT? If not, can you stretch to a gym membership? Nearly every gym will give you some free introductory advice / nutrition help etc.

If you need inexpensive options, just remember that the sole way to lose weight is calorie deficit. You need to eat fewer calories than you burn. So, work out the daily intake for your age / height etc and then adjust your portion size / reduce snacks / reduce calories of meals and also introduce some very gentle exercise such as a daily walk. This is this most basic and effective first step: reduce calories and increase activity.

"Also, there’s no money in it. Literally no one profits if you fast"

I'm not against short fasts but this statement isn't strictly true. Presumably the people who write the books, their publishers, the advertisers, the people who do the speaker events, the researchers etc earn money from this work?

I was a size 22-24 a few years ago, I did exante. Got down to a size 10 in 12 months. I've put a couple of stone back on over the last year or so, lockdown, having Covid, eating shite & no gym etc but back on it to get a stone or so off.
You can do it!

Most places IN Turkey won't do gastric bands anymore. Several women I had surgery with were having band to sleeve conversions.

Bands are very outdated and not recommended.

Exercise is most definitely not the way to go and of all the exercise is walking is most definitely not a bad option at all for somebody who would struggle with weight-bearing exercise, walking is by far the best choice however weight loss is 80% food 20% exercise it’s very difficult for mere mortals to out to train a poor diet so the bottom line is you need to put less in your mouth.

Keep a food diary. That can be an eye opener. I realised my diet wasn't as healthy as I thought