Does anyone want to lose weight as a snail's pace?

[ginandchocs]

I'd say most people want to lose weight quickly. I certainly do. But it just doesn't work. Or, it does initially, but then it all goes back on and some.

I've decided to try a different method. I'm aiming to lose weight slowly. Maybe a couple of pounds a month. If I achieved that, I would lose almost 2 stones in a year but in a way that would be sustainable.

I'm going to do this using myfitnesspal. I'm setting my calorie goal for the week to be relatively near to what I usually burn without exercise (obviously a little lower otherwise I wouldn't lose anything!). I'm splitting the calories unevenly throughout the week though as I always tend to eat that bit more at the weekend (I end up falling off the wagon and giving up another diet - hopefully by having a greater calorie allowance would allow for this). Any exercise I do would then increase the weight loss (by a tiny amount) and would obviously make me healthier. I will not eat the extra calories.

The calories I've allotted myself may need to be tweaked if they're too high and I'm not losing at all. Time will tell. This may be a bit mad, but if it works then great. I would have to eat around this amount of calories to maintain my weight if I had lost anyway so I'm hoping this brings with it lifelong good habits.

My calories will be:
Monday to Thursday - 1675
Friday - 2000
Saturday and Sunday - 2250

Some days I may be over, others under. I'm not going to eat for the sake of it nor will I say no to something because I don't have the calories left for it. However, I want my weekly calories to be 13,200 or less. As I said, though, these calories may change if the numbers aren't right. It's a bit trial and error.

Anyone else fancy a slow weight loss journey that will hopefully create new habits, and allow me to maintain forever more?

3lbs off

Wednesday weigh in and I am 1lb off! First weight loss for 4 weeks

I gained 6lb at the beginning of lockdown in 4 weeks. It has now taken me A further 10 weeks to lose a stone. The thing that helped me most was to weigh myself daily and make a graph.

It was easy to see a pattern. I would lose quite well then over a few days, gain a bit, then plateau then lose again. I was surprised at what food made me gain weight and what did not. I went to my daughters for a lovely lunch and dessert but did not gain for example. Then some days I would eat very little and gained weight.

Food and exercise effect everyone differently and we react differently to weight gain day day. For me my goal was to go back to my pre-lockdown weighY but I have managed to do better.

It might sound a faff Recording your weight but it just takes a minute. I found it self educating.

Well done @QueenCT and @PotteringAlong!

Ooh, I just got my first day under 60kg! Ok, I’m feeling motivated again.
I just need to push myself for a walk each day now.

@FLOrenze that was like me - I had gradually put on half a stone over 3 years or so and then the first few weeks of lockdown I put on another half a stone. I’ve been weighing myself every day (for the first time ever - scales were my lockdown purchase!) and it’s been really interesting seeing the fluctuations.

I’m 9lbs off now. Would like to get the last 5 off to get to the stone.

This is what I use to track

Well done @QueenCT and @PotteringAlong 😄😄😄

Today is a write-off. Had 1900 calories already and didn’t even enjoy them. Stress eating due to major computer issues. Not healthy!

Well done @trisolaris!

Well done everyone on losing this week 👏🏼

Don't stress it @Egghead68, one bad day won't undo all your hard work. Try and enjoy your meals for the rest of the day and don't either restrict or binge because of this morning.

It is about educating yourself on what works for you. Today DH bought in fish an chips. Usually I would scoff the lot. Today I ate half of it and tried to eat it slowly instead of gobbling it down as usual.

Thanks @MrsEHB good advice. I think I’ll get an early night after my exercise class as feeling quite off-colour which I think is the problem.

I've been a lazy poster this week, but pleased to say that I've been eating well (on the whole 😂). This week seems to have been all about bagels and cream cheese! I'm sure I'll be back to eggs soon 😂 Other than the bagel this morning, I have also had:

L: a wrap with fajita spiced chicken, a little rice, salad and sriracha sauce
S: a Tesco version of a kitkat
D: 2 chicken wings (I made a rub for them which was nice but I'll add some more spice to mine next time!), griddled courgette, actifry chips and crudités.
S: a handful of hippeas crisps and a couple of squares of dark chocolate.
My drinks today have been either sparkling water or tap water.

I've seen some people feeling bad about 'falling off the wagon'. Please don't. For me, this is a lifestyle and not a diet. If I eat more one day than another, that's absolutely fine just as long as it isn't an every day thing. If I have a weekend of eating differently, I enjoy it but then go back to eating what's 'normal' for me and what makes me feel good (I'm learning that some foods don't agree with me if I eat them too often).

It's not easy, and after over 15 years of dieting (and weighing a heck of a lot more now than I did 15 years ago!) it takes a while for the brain to not see food as good and bad. I'm trying to move away from the diet mindset and concentrate on my physical and mental health.

Wise words @ginandchocs.

Are hippeas crisps worth trying? I’ve always rejected them as a bit too healthy-looking.

68.1kg today but I feel very bloated.

@Egghead68 they were surprisingly nice. I've only tried the sweet and smokin' (or something like that) ones, but have ordered the salt and vinegar ones to come with Saturday's Tesco shop (they currently have 25% off).

Today's plan

B - banana breakfast protein shake
L - tuna mayo on corn cakes
T - gousto honey and cucumber pork noodles

Food shop arriving tomorrow!

Thanks @ginandchocs. I’ll give them a go.

Tonight's meal
Same for tomorrow as I have leftovers

Only 1 more day and it's the weekend!!

Today I have eaten:
B: bagel and philadelphia
S: 2 salt and vinegar rice cakes
L: fajita spiced chicken and rice wrap with sriracha sauce
S: chocolate biscuit
D: keema pie followed by a chocolate brownie (husband was working in a town today which has the best brownie shop ever, so he brought one each home for us! All different flavours, so all 4 were cut into quarters so we got to taste each one! Amazing!!)
I have also had a glass of wine with dinner.

I don't usually have a morning snack, but I ate breakfast a little earlier so was quite peckish by around 10:30!

Week 13 weigh in:

I've gain half a pound! 🙈 totally justified I will do better next week! I'm just reminding myself I have still lost 20lbs in total so it's not all bad!

Probably just water weight or something @imfaoo.

67.9kg after a bad couple of days (0.1kg up).

Plan today:
B: chocolate 450
L: Roast veg 100 salad 50 macaroni cheese 630
S: Melon 50 cherries 100 baked crisps 100
Gentle couch 2 5K, gentle 3x10min bike.

My waist size is way above guidelines despite a normal BMI. Anyone know anyway I can get this down or is it just a question of losing weight overall? I do 40 mins abs exercises a week plus Pilates. I guess that may not be enough.

Not sure what possessed me to weigh myself. While I'm on my period
Idiot

@Egghead68 I know that stress can cause you to hold weight around the middle. I'm no expert but I think the types of food you eat can make all the difference, I would try and include more nutritious foods into your diet and cut down on the snacks. You could have half the chocolate and you have 250 calories left for something else? Porridge with some fruit, some eggs and toast?

I'm considering upping my calories slightly, I'm feeling a lot hungrier than a few weeks ago, perhaps due to working out consistently. And I'm thinking it's perhaps better to eat a little but more each day to keep myself satisfied. Though it's a difficult choice to make when my weight just doesn't seem to be shifting right now! I've ordered a measuring tape aswell so I can see if I'm losing inches, I've been working out a lot so also conscious of the fact I might lose fat but gain muscle and not see any change in the scale!

Thanks @MrsEHB. You are right - my diet while I am trying to lose weight is rubbish (basically fruit & veg plus junk). I will take steps to improve it. I’ve been stressed from being ill in the last few months but tbh my stomach was always fat before that (to the point that the GP had me investigated for ovarian cancer). I’ll try to eat more healthily and up the abs exercise.