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?

Hey guys, can I join?

I’ve been at this for 5 weeks, not specifically calorie counting but watching what I eat and have made some very different choices! I’ve swapped my 3L of milk a day for water and have been opting for healthier choices rather than reaching for the chocolate!

I’m only 2lb down so I guess that’s pretty snails pace!

My maintenance calories are around 1850, so from today I’m going to meticulously log everything, aiming for about 1500 a day I think!

Today I’ve had:
B: 2x coffees with skim milk, aldi shake (261)
L: 2x mountain bread wraps with cucumber, ham and cream cheese (360)
S: another coffee but with full cream milk (36)
I have no idea what’s for dinner yet.

Hope the scales start shifting! I’m a bit disappointed it’s only 2lb considering how much I usually eat and drink, but at least it’s not a gain I guess!

Welcome @eeeeeeeeeek well done on losing 2lbs any loss is better than nothing!

I'm still feeling really bloated today despite drinking plenty of water 😭

I've attached a picture of my lunch as it was bloody delicious and I was impressed! Hopefully it attaches.

1/2 chicken breast 100cals (overestimate)
1 boiled egg Egg - 100cals
20g of Feta - 50 cals
Tbl spn of Oil and vinegar dressing - 50 cals
Plus the calories in the lettuce tomatoes cucumber and spring onions which I couldn't be bothered to work out!

This was followed by a yoghurt with some granola

Hope everyone has a good day! What are you all having for lunch?

Ohh that does look good @lmfaoo. Haven’t had a hard boiled egg for ages and really fancy one now!

Lunch today was falafel flatbreads. Quite calorific (about 600kcals) but so worth it. The breads were thick but quite small so had to have 2 at 200kcals each!

Dinner is either going to be tomato risotto or steak and mash. Can’t decide quite yet. Might work out the calories and then decide

That looks yummy @lmfaoo, I really need to eat more salads but the lure of carbs is just too great for me and I always end up with a sandwich or bagel! I'm back at work and the hours are not great for lunch, I only get a 15 minute break so lunch today was an apple and a special k bar. Need to figure out how I'm going to fit my meals in as I came home so hungry and tired that I ordered a takeaway! It was my first in two weeks though and I did go for a run before it came ha!

Welcome @eeeeeeeeeek 😊 It sounds as if the changes you have made are working for you.

@lmfaoo your lunch does look good! Falafel flatbread sounds great too @basinhaircut I love new recipes and meal ideas to try out.

@mrsehb 15 minutes isn't long at all. How many hours do yoU work a day? Is it possible to have a bigger breakfast before going in to see you though? There's absolutely nothing wrong with a takeaway from time to time though.

Today has gone good for me. I've had:
B: 2 x poached eggs on toast (really changing thing around from my scrambled eggs and bagel 😂) with cranberry juice
L: teriyaki chicken with rice and broccoli
S: mini cheddars
D: southern fried chicken from Aldi's freezer (quite tasty), homemade actifry chips, peas and sweetcorn
S: a small glass of red wine whilst waiting to get onto the Next sale....that wasn't a success, a watermelon ice lolly and 3 x digestives.

That brings today to 1,530. I'm amazed at how quickly the calories in a digestive biscuits add up. 3 of them totalled just over 200 calories. I could easily eat half a packet 🙈

@ginandchocs I'm working 5 hour shifts just now. I've woke up late today (knackered!) so breakfast will be slightly later and I'll take a bagel in to scoff down in my break. Big shop came last night so I'll be more organised for my tea. I enjoyed the takeaway though so I have no regrets haha! Oh was the next sale rubbish? I find if you don't get the very first slot there's not much decent left!

Ladies I need some help on how to get my bowels moving! TMI I've not done a proper poo in 4 days! I took two senokot last night and still nothing. I'm so bloated and uncomfortable!

What’s everyone’s quick and easy dinner ideas? I CBF cooking tonight, have about 400 calories left, any ideas?! Needs to be kid friendly too, though obviously I won’t restrict them to 400 calorie portions 🤣

On no @lmfaoo I fail your pain, I was majorly constipated a few months back and it was awful. Coffee? A Pilates ab workout (did one a few weeks back and it definitely got me moving!) Have you decided what to have for tea @eeeeeeeeeek? I have plenty of ready meals in this week as I know I'll struggle to cook with being back at work.

I’ve just found you again! You dropped off my “I’m
On” threads And theN I couldn’t find you!

All ok here - another 1lb off today at Wednesday weigh in so I’m 5lb’s down overall now!

@MrsEHB coffee didn't help unfortunately, I drink far too much of it already however a couple of ellas fruit purée pouches have helped a little! I've had an ok day up until this evening when me and DP shared a huge bar of chocolate!! What with that and all the bloating AND I'm on my period I'm not hopeful for fridays weight in! I just feel so blughhh today!

Well done @PotteringAlong nice to have you back!

Imfaoo I had the same problem a couple of weeks ago. I drank a whole bottle of prosecco to myself one evening on an empty stomach - not advisable but it worked

I ended up having a couple of sandwiches, on white bread
I thought I had some low cal mountain bread in the cupboard but one of the kids must have eaten it any left the empty packet in there.

Anyway, went waaaaay over my calories for the day, but I’m actually not cut up about it. Previously when I’ve tried dieting, if I had a bad day I’d just throw in the towel and eat everything in sight because, well, I had already ruined it. But now, today’s a new day, I’ll move on and try to do better!

It’s actually food shopping day tomorrow so the cupboards are pretty bare, that might help! 😂😂😂

Hi everyone, it sounds like you’re all doing so well. I had a week off work last week so was not very well behaved. I managed to only put 0.2 of a pound on though probably due to having time to do more exercise. I’m eating around 2000 cals a day this week but I’m still going down steadily. I’m running 25 miles a week at the moment so I think my body needs a bit more than 1750. It’s mainly pretty healthy though and I’m deffo eating my 5 a day!

Morning all. Been MIA for a few days but staying on track. My lowest weight now is 12st 0.6lbs so I can almost see an 11at on the scale. I will be over the moon when that happens.

I’ve had a really stressful couple of days with work. I’m having issues with my line manager who is, to be completely honest, a total bitch. Luckily my boss, who is her line manager, is so lovely and I finally had an off the record chat (well 45 min rant) with him yesterday and that’s helped a bit. He said basically that he knows exactly what I mean and not only does she treat him the same way, but he had the exact same conversation with another member of his team a few months ago. He is going to try and help guide me to a resolution. He is a star.

Anyway, not sure what’s on the menu today yet. We have plenty in and I think it will be either chicken fajita bowls or salmon and veggies. Ohh I might stick some jacket potatoes in for lunch though.

It sounds as if everyone's doing really well. @lmfaoo I'm sorry to hear that you're suffering. Other than plenty of fibre and lots and lots of water I'm not sure what to suggest.

As I was going to bed last night I realised that I hadn't tracked a single calorie all day. I had a pretty ok eating day though (I think) so I might try for a few days to just be sensible and not count everything to see how it goes. Yesterday I ate:

B: buttered bagel and cranberry juice
S: a fairy cake my son had made
L: a small portion of leftover lasagne from Wednesday night with a salad.
D: chicken fajitas
S: a mini pack of aldi party rings.

Wednesday wasn't such a great day though......it was going ok until I opened a bottle of wine after a very stressful day. Lots of wine calories and a couple of snacks (wasn't bad at all with the snacks.....pretty much what I'd usually eat, but far too much wine). I've decided on another wine free weekend. I need to stop turning to the wine when I'm feeling stressed or low. It absolutely doesn't help. I didn't buy any wine with this week's food shop and I'm limiting myself to 1 g&t Saturday and having the rest of the weekend alcohol free. I'm fine with it most of the time, but when my mental health starts to suffer that's when I open (and drink) a bottle which is so unhealthy and so bad for my mental health.

Anyways, it's Friday!!! I hope everyone has a great day!

Having a good day here so far after a couple of days of way too much bread and sugar. 😳

Today I’ve had a few coffees with skim milk, and and Aldi shake for breakfast. And a big green leafy salad with turkey, cheese and light mayo for lunch.

I’m not very hungry so maybe just another shake for dinner.

I also bought a skipping rope and have been doing some skipping, it’s A LOT harder than I remember from when I was 8. 😳

Hi everyone

I'm not posting very often but still reading and very much enjoying everyone's updates. I really like when people put what they've eaten that day, good for inspiration.

For constipation remedies you could try fasting for a little while - from one evening until after lunch the next day or something and just drink coffee/juice and see if that helps. My DD once got horribly constipated on holiday and the doctor told us not to give her any more food until something had come out!

I had a really good first month with dieting and 8lbs dropped off so quickly and now I seem to have hit a wall and nothing is coming off and I seem to have put a pound back on! I'm not doing anything differently, if anything I'm exercising more and being more careful counting calories. Very frustrating!

I’ve just had 2 glasses of wine and a takeaway pizza with my little ones

I don’t care, it was lovely and I’m now feeling very full and content so I can live with that.

Happy weekend!

Hi everyone thanks so much for all the advice - I'm all sorted now thank god!!

Week 6 weigh in for me and I'm another 1.5 lbs down. Really pleased with that as i was prepared for a maintain/ gain this week! I've had another ok day had tuna pasta bake for tea and it was delicious so probably ate a bit more that I should have! Going to try and be really good over the weekend as my friend has cancelled meeting up on Saturday night.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Morning! How did everyone's weekend go? I'm finding that I'm snacking lots less, especially during the evening. I've weighed this morning and lost 1lb so I'm really pleased. I haven't counted calories since last Thursday, but I've still lost so I may continue just being careful this week and not counting to see if I can continue with my loss.

I hope everyone has a great Monday.

Morning well done @ginandchocs ! That's great that you've lost without counting for a few days, you are obviously becoming more naturally aware of what you need. So I did not have a good Saturday after all! Far to much gin, pizza and snacks were consumed! Felt a bit disappointed when I woke up but onwards and upwards. Yesterday was good for food but I barely moved off the sofa all day so no steps at all. Starting fresh today and feeling positive.

Morning! My weekend ended up being a write off! No calories counted, too much alcohol on Saturday. I got so stressed from being back at work and not being able to work out as much that I just did my usual trick of throwing the towel in! But I'm back to it today, got my workout done and about to have breakfast. No idea on weight atm, the scales have me 1.4lbs heavier than yesterday morning so I'll have to wait for the weekend bloat to disappear before I know where I am.

I’m definitely snacking less and I’m finding I’m less hungry.

I realised Greggs had reopened today and I DIDN’T buy a sausage roll. I’m growing as a person

😂 @potteringalong that's a big achievement! I'm lucky that I don't often walk past one, the smell is such a temptation.

@lmfaoo and @MrsEHB it's great that you're both back after the weekend and I'm sure you'll both have a great week.

Today has been a good day, I had:
B: poached egg, bacon and a bagel with cranberry juice
L: chicken salad wrap with some chilli sauce and 4 snacker crackers
D: pasta and sauce with a salad. The sauce was an Aldi tomato and mascarpone sauce, it was the first time I've tried it and its already on my shopping list for next week.....really tasty!
S: a slice of cake

My steps are low today as we didn't get out for a walk. It's been a hectic day, but at least it means that I've no time to think about my stomach 😂