I need to lose weight....

[helpmeoutpleasenow]

Posting here for traffic, but I need help.

Older lady, post menopause.

I'm very overweight, I need to change and lose weight, get fitter or I'm going to die, it's a fact.

I need to lose five stone.

Things I like

Walking
Cycling

Neither of which I can do a lot of currently, because I'm unfit.

Things I don't like

Swimming
Gym

I eat too much of the wrong stuff
I drink too much

So, you don't virus things to do, cut down drinking, snacking etc.

I need a plan, calorie count? Follow diabetic diet? Weight watchers? Slimming world?

DH, is full on joining me.

Can anyone give me advice please?

Thank you 🙏

You can do whatever is in fashion, but at the end of the day it comes down to the amount of calories you put in your body.

Obviously exercise is good but, it doesn't burn as many calories as you would think. For example half an hour od hard running is the same as a mars bar.

If I had to focus on one thing it would be calorie restriction rather than exercise.

It's more about diet than exercise when you're bigger.

I lost weight calorie counting and eating only between 11am and 6pm. I'm not a breakfast person anyway luckily.

Get smaller plates and pile loads of veg on.

Hi OP - I’m 58 & currently weigh more than DH ( he’s 6ft 1 & I’m 5ft 2!) I had an op recently & it was like a light bulb moment. I’ve been pressing the self destruct button for the last few years & just can’t carry on as I am. I notice you said you drink too much OP. My alcohol intake is definitely why I have piled on all this weight. I quit drinking a couple of weeks ago & have already lost half a stone. Good luck OP!

Thank you!

@Laiste Yes, intermittent fasting just sounds like "skip breakfast" to me, but there's no money in calling it that....... !

My friend does Slimming World & finds it very good as you’re never hungry. She’s lost 2 stone, although that’s taken a year as she’s doing it very slowly. She runs & does wild swimming.

Lots of ideas and tips! Thank you all.

My bad food choices are if I'm honest, partly laziness. It's easy to have a packet of crisps, instead of prepping veggie sticks etc...

I'm doing an online shop now, tips for particularly healthy snacks would be appreciated.

Last year I was diagnosed with T2 diabetes and put on metformin. The metformin ruined my stomach and I gave it up after ten days. I told the dr I would do what I could through diet.

Through cutting out added sugar and keeping my sugar below 60g a day, since June I’ve lost 22kg.

I had bloods this week and I am now in remission and my blood markers have gone down by 32, it’s tough and you have to stick at it, but watching my dad inject daily was a big trigger for me and I didn’t want that life.

So perhaps choosing the lesser sugar or sugar free items might be a good starting point?

Well done you!! That's amazing!

@Changedname81 that's nearly four stone in around eight months?

I'm hoping to aim for half a stone a month to start with,

Add in lots of things like lettuce, dairy free Flora spread, rosemary crackers, crackerbread, coconut milk, easy fruit like grapes and apples (minimal prep!), switch to maize snacks instead of crisps etc. Those are the kind of things I buy as like @spackleplumb I have a fatty liver I'm trying to reverse. I use My Fitness Pal to keep me mindful of my calorie intake daily as well and note every single thing that passes my lips.

Read and listen (podcasts) to all the stuff on UPF (ultra processed food). Dr Chris van Tulleken, Dr Chatterjee etc. Tim Spector too but I prefer the other two. Honestly, it was, and has been life changing to me to realise that I was addicted to UPF (they discuss this in the podcasts) and that no amount of calorie counting etc was going to work for me in the long term.

Since 1st Jan, I have basically cut out UPF, the odd thing has snuck in but primarily none. I still have sweet stuff, but I have to make it myself (eg courgette brownies, healthier muffins etc) with proper ingredients. It has made me really think, so I want something sweet? If I do, I make it, and the process means it takes time and I have no desire to binge on it because I want it to last!

I have lost 18lb in 6 weeks.

I also do WW online purely to keep an eye on portion sizes etc but I don’t eat any of the crap.

Disclaimer is I do have the resources to do this, and I’m lucky for that.

Looking back over my food diary (I do also use a photo app called see how you eat which really helps as you photograph everything so you are really accountable and it helps you see what you’re eating).

This is what the basis of my diet has been:

Fish
Chicken
Steak
Lean mince
Chickpeas
Lentils
As many different vegetables, spices, herbs, spices etc as you can imagine
Fruit (including frozen- amazing for sweet cravings!)
Nuts
Nut butter
Sourdough/seeded sourdough (check ingredients as so much is UPF)
fat free plain yogurt (this and milk is the only fat free thing I have, make sure it is just milk)
butter
milk (skimmed)
homemade sweet things eg courgette brownies/muffins
homemade soups

It hasn’t felt like a diet- it’s a lifestyle change. Crucially, I have also stopped all diet drinks and artificial sweeteners. Hope this helps.

Ha! Intermittent Fasting does sound much more glam holistic than ''skipping breakfast''!

I'm old enough to have had it drummed into me so hard that it's BAD to skip meals, that it feels odd seeing it so widely recommended.

I remember a lot about 'grazing' and spreading out your eating, little and often. Don't let yourself get hungry because you lose control. ect.

What do you do with yourself when you've been up since stupid o'clock and by 8 you're so darn hungry you could eat a finger? Just rock in the cupboard for an hour and a half? Or eat - but then not be allowed anything after 4 ?! Do you just sit and watch the family eat the food you cooked at 6? What message is that going to send to the DCs??!

(i don't think the 8 hour window is for me)

I 100% recommend Noom. It is a calorie counting app but it was so easy to use. I subscribed at first and got to
my target weight, losing about 2lbs a week. You weigh yourself every day and it was hard when I went up (sometimes by 5Lb) but I learned that this was mainly water retention and that I weighed more at ovulation.

It works on changing your mindset, using mini lessons every day. And it didn’t feel like dieting. I still use it but the free version to maintain my weight. I know that if I didn’t write down everything I ate, I would overeat - I just have that kind of brain. Absolute game changer.

you don’t have to exercise with it but if you do, you can eat more 😉.

It is what you put im and quantity. So you may find intermitant fasting beneficial.
Walking at least 10k a day. Push yourself a bit mroe every day. First week so what you can then increase it even 5mins each day or two.
Consistency.

One thing I suggest is making food less important. Dieting can have this horrible effect that you are constantly thinking about food, calorie counting and weighing things and looking for the next snack. It can really take over your life and a lot of headspace. Most people who are slim don't think about food all the time. It took me a long time to figure that out.
I'd find a week's worth of meals that are all under your alotted calories, that are things you like and nutritionally balanced, and just make them on repeat. I know that sounds boring but honestly it's not bad at all and it makes food functional and not another plate to spin in life. It's also budget friendly and easy to follow.

I exercise a fair bit and I'm quite lean, for at least 4 days a week I eat the same thing. Miso vegetable soup and an omelette with mushrooms made using 2 eggs. I have that for dinner every other day at least, it takes no thought and I like it.

Eat 3 balanced meals a day of real food - 1/3 protein, 1/3 veg, 1/3 carbs
No snacks.
Leave at least 12 hours between dinner and breakfast the next morning

Go for a daily walk

The 'fasting' you do inbetween meals helps with regulating insulin levels and leads to weight loss. You'll find lots of info on this.

I would get a fitness watch and make sure you do some exercise every single day.

Focus on proteins for every meal, and calorie count (log everything in your fitness app). Protein will keep you fuller for longer.

Drink lots of water.

Get lots of sleep.

Allow yourself a small treat each day (some sweets, a small glass red wine, etc)

I'd also think about doing 16:8.

These are all things I have done the past year, lost 2 stone in the first 6 months & have kept it off.

If I go off piste I don't beat myself up and just get on it again, i.e I wouldn't deny myself a delicious meal out for a special occasion.

There is nothing like feeling fit, strong and slim, it's hard work but so worth it.

THIS! Spot on! Calories counting imo doesn't work because are you going to count forever? It is all about changing your eating habits and sticking to it. I lost 2,5 stones doing that and I can feel myself sliding back to old habits, so back in the saddle, I will take my time but I will get there because I want to and so will you💪.

I think loosing weight is mostly about what you think. About yourself, food, exercise, your past, your future - the whole caboodle. I highly recommend No BS Woman. I am a member, having been doing the stuff and 1) getting weight loss I want 2) enjoying the process and feeling better about myself. DM me if you’d like more info. Good luck!! https://www.nobswomen.com/

Step 1 for two weeks, No snacks between meals. No crisps or biscuits or stuff.
Are you able to cook from scratch ingredients? It gets you thinking about how you eat. Then you can reduce helping size. Brisk walking a little more will help heart, digestion and blood flow. I am told.

Depends what works for you. You’ve already identified that you drink too much and eating too much.

I did slimming world after I piled weight on in my first pregnancy - lost 3 stone and I’ve never gained that weight back again (I’ve gone up and down over the years but never back to my heaviest weight)

I don’t follow a diet as such now but I’ve learnt a lot about food and nutrition and I know that if I eat / drink too many calories I will gain weight. It’s all about finding a calorie deficit that you can stick to whilst not feeling hungry or like you are depriving yourself.

I love walking and it’s such a good form of exercise - start with some easier/shorter walks and build up. Spring is coming and it’s good to get outside in the fresh air.

You could be me. I need to lose 5 stone too. I put on loads of weight after retiring and packing up smoking. I started WW on line abd have lost 8 lbs in 2 weeks so quite please. Im determined to stick to it this time ad my brother is getting married and I dont want everyone looking at me and thinking ive let myself go. I hope you find the right diet for you. Good luck.🍀

You need a calorie deficit to lose weight. That's it. People find all sorts of different ways of doing that. The mental side of losing weight is the hardest part because you do need to restrict what you eat and drink and it's about changing habits. There's an NHS weight loss app and my partner lost over 3 stone using just that after speaking to the GP. If you have a lot to lose/certain health conditions you can qualify for Slimming World or Weight Watchers for free I believe. If you are motivated you will find it easier.

Easiest starting point op is cutting out the alcohol altogether unless you feel dependent on it. It's such a huge amount of empty calories and sugar and if you feel not great the next day you're more likely to eat badly and feel less inclined to exercise. I cut out alcohol a few years ago and I honestly feel so much better for it. I'll still have a glass or two on special occasions but just not at the weekend or after a stressful day.

I found slimming world good as a starting point because so many foods you can eat a lot of, I never felt hungry on it and there's a lot of ways you can eat very low 'syn' meals and then I saved my syns for night time when I knew I'd want to sit in front of the TV with something nice. It also got me back in the routine of grocery shopping and batch cooking instead of getting takeout a few times a week.

I love to walk but initially i found it sore on my knees etc. The more I did it the better it got as I lost weight. You don't need to do anything huge, if you're not exercising now then anything additional you do is going to be an improvement. So even a 15-20min walk in the evening after work etc will make a big difference in how you feel. I hate anything high impact (knees) so I like doing yoga/ pilates videos at home as well. I also love aquafit and it was great at the start because it wasn't swimming but I wasn't putting lots of pressure on my knees either.

Start by making small manageable changes and then adding to them, things build up and get your other half to support you and go on this journey with you.