Anyone with 40+ BMI want support to loose weight during lockdown ?

[PonyosGreenBucket]

I've decided to start tomorrow because I'm scared to death I'm going to die because of my weight.

Height. 5Ft 5
Weight. 17st 3lbs
BMI. 40.1

Anyone?

I don't think I agree that reducing calories is "bound to fail". I think the hardest thing of all is to stick to whatever you decide to do. If you can manage that long term you're sorted.

I'm on another forum and there's a discussion about this coronavirus and obesity and I hate the attitude coming in from some posters that people with obesity and are all greedy and lazy.

My weight issues stem from childhood and poverty. My mother did the best she could do in the circumstances. Dinners for me as a child was chips with sauce because a bag of chips would have probably cost a pound. Instead of planning nutritious meals with meat and veg. I wasn't a fussy eater as a child and I was a rare one and I loved veg. My favourite part of the Christmas Dinner. I was always overweight in school. I was a uk size 16 in secondary school. I maintained that weight throughout my teens and 20s. I walked a lot because there was no car.

It was when I started a full time job as a nanny my weight ballooned into the obese category. I had no time for myself. I was working anything from 40 to 90 hours a week. A lot of my diet was convenience foods. Things that were quick and easy. There were so many times when I worked from morning time til night time.

It's only over the past month that I'm really taking this on board now. I'm using a fitness app. I used to walk a lot before but I learned I wasn't walking enough. I have a better work life balance with the lockdown too. Starting later and finishing earlier. I'm finally making time for me, many people will probably find shocking. I'm down 8 pounds.

@SMJYellow I agree - I had a similar pattern being size 16 in my teens and early 20s but when I started focusing on firstly career for a few years and then my family, I seemed to not be able to afford the time or money to look after myself I was always working so hard that I thought I didn't have an ounce of energy left for exercise and although I did occasional tasters of things like zumba classes or gym memberships they seemed so expensive just because my own fitness didn't seem like a priority. meanwhile although I ate healthy combinations of food rather than junk, my portions were wildly out of control. Not because of poverty such as you describe but food was always the means of punishment and reward growing up, so eating treats and having a second helping were deeply ingrained as a way of feeling positive about myself whereas feeling hungry is deeply connected to feeling guilty and worthless.

I had honestly thought that the negative impact of being so overweight was merely that I might die in my 70s of a heart attack rather than hanging on till my 90s and deteriorating for years with alzheimer's and that seemed to me like being unhealthy was a more desirable outcome. this whole sorty mess has at least snapped me out of that! (currently about 2 stone down since start of lockdown)

Well done yinu and I can relate to the last paragraph so much. I was happy and confident with the way I was. I didn't have any real motivation to push me into losing weight. My doctors in the go surgery said it to me at times that I need to lose weight and listed off health conditions that I could get like high blood pressure and diabetes.

It was easier siad than done. This virus emerged earlier this year and reports came in about obesity being high risk and that was it for me. I have to push myself now to make time for myself for exercise.

I'm now down to right under 16 stone. I had a starting bmi back in March of 39.9. Its now 38. Still have more work to do. It would be great if I could get it down to 30 for September. I would need to bring my weight down to 12 and half stone for that. Would that be too optimistic? I have a fitness trampoline ordered and I'm looking forward to that delivery.

I was getting ready for work this morning and I just happened to catch a few minutes of the morning show with Ruth and Eamonn. They had a section about the mental health of people and the lockdown and those who's not allowed to work because of the virus. Voices and names were changed. There's no need to change names and voices. I just got the impression that there's an underlying push to reopen the economy as fast as possible.

I'm certainly not here to diminish their experiences.

How about for balance they get people where the lockdown and the slowdown is working in their favour. I spent over a decade working. Every work day was different and every week was different. Some weeks I was lucky with a 40 hour week. Other weeks my hours were tipping towards 50 or 60 hours. I had some work days that were utterly scandalous. There were some days when I wasn't getting a lunch until 3 or 4 or 5 in the afternoon. I'd just have to keep on going. I found days off were spent catching up with chores around the house or shock horror sitting down in front of a plate of food to digest it properly instead of rushing a meal.

I find now I have a better work life balance. I was so time poor before now. I'm now finally looking after myself instead of working from morning time til night time. I lost some weight and brought the bmi down from 39. 9 to 38. I hope to keep going in the hope of bringing down the bmi as much as possible before September or October in case we get a second wave of this virus in the winter time.

That's really interesting. I do find it takes time to eat healthily and to exercise - time I had precious little of at work. I'm still busy now but have more little pockets of time to do things, and need to get the children to exercise too.
I've been counting calories for four weeks now and have lost 7 lbs - I'd kind of hoped for more but that's not too bad is it?
I'm going to google what 7lbs of fat looks like to cheer myself up!

absolutely the extra time is massively helpful. also being at home for every mealtime so never going to cafes and restaurants or grabbing a quick pasty etc etc. but being able to prep portions and know how much I am having isn't something I would normally have time for. hopefully I will develop a reasonable instinctive grasp of what a modest and healthy portion looks like that when working life starts to gain pace again I can still keep my intake in the right ballpark without needing to weigh and measure.

I actually need to up my calories a little bit as I have been losing weight a little faster than the recommended 2lb per week. it seems to be going very well if weight was the only measure but the fat seems to be going from places I am not that bothered about like arms and legs, whereas my waist is barely shrinking - still wearing the same trousers - although waistband is a little looser it's not enough to even go down a clothing size. is this because most of my exercise is walking? would I lose more weight from my waist if I was doing exercise that worked my (virtually absent) abdo muscles more?

How's everyone doing? I had a cheat meal on Saturday night to celebrate getting under another stone, and the scales were up by 3lb the next day! I think it's mainly the sodium in the takeaway we had as my weight's dropped back down to what it was last week today, but it definitely encourages me not to do it often. I am going to wait until I lose at least another half a stone, or maybe a stone, before doing that again!

I definitely agree with what you say SMJYellow about work life balance. Pre-lockdown I had a demanding job, 1 hour commute each way, a 1 year old who is breastfeeding (I know it burns calories but it makes me so hungry, especially when combined with a lack of sleep) and a DH who is busy looking after our demanding toddler so doesn't have much time for cooking either. Losing the commute has been a godsend! I know Labour were talking about having a 30 hour work week with the same pay in their last manifesto and maybe it's unrealistic but I wish we could all move to that. It would be great for the nation's mental health too.

I’ve finally lost another 2lb, so total loss so far is 37lb . Brings me down to 20 stone 8, I need to get to 19 for a decent BMI .

I can now walk about 2.5 miles continuously but struggling in the heat. Trying to follow obesity UK guidelines about standing more than sitting, that’s helping .

I’m struggling though with thinking I ‘deserve’ treats and takeaways and thinking I should order nice food ... that’s not at all helpful .

Afternoon all!

Still going good here but weight loss slowing a little now, lost just over a 1lb this week which takes me to a loss of just over 28lbs but not quite 29! Bmi down to 43.4 from over 48.

I managed my longest walk last Sunday, 5 miles and although I was shattered by the end of it I was pleased with the progress made.

This week the family wanted to do a ‘come dine with me’ type thing for our evening meals so needing to be careful on how much I put on my plate!

I hope everyone is good, it’s supposed to be cooling down later this week so that should help with the walking/ exercise

total loss so far is 37lb
loss of just over 28lbs

Wow you are both doing amazingly!

There's cooler weather on the way for most of the UK starting tomorrow Lesbihonest Is there a non-food treat you can give yourself? I've bought some nice new earrings off Etsy as a reward.

Lesbi I am so inclined to do that, if I get stressed or sad I feel I am being kind to myself with food. But it's not kind. Having lost half a stone in four weeks I've been crap this week, partly as it's hard to stick to lower calories and partly as I'm disappointed with the loss and wanted a bit more off. Just doing stuff round the house can leave me with about 1000 steps done only and then I'm going on a mega walk in the evening to try to shift the calories and I'm fed up with it. Just gave in last night, but today is a new day...

I get up early in the morning and I schedule my day around the sun and heat. Like I go walking very early in the morning, and very late in the evening.

well this is very irritating.

as I mentioned upthread, I was a little concerned that the 1100-1200cals per day I was eating and managing fine on (not too hungry) was actually losing me weight a bit too fast - around 3lb a week whereas nhs guidance says that 2lb a week is a sensible rate and going too fast can cause health problems. so just in the last 3 days I have upped my calories to about 1400 per day and I weighed myself this morning expecting to see that the weight loss had slowed. I have actually gained a pound that is not reasonable! this is a very tricky balancing act, but somehow I need to find the exact point where I continue to lose steadily without going too fast.

Give it a bit longer @YinuCeatleAyru. You should be burning much more than that. I am absolutely positive that it will be a temporary fluctuation.

Even if you were 12 stone and literally did not move all day you would should burn approx 1400 calories. To gain a pound a week on 1400 calories you'd need to weigh less than 8 stone and not move whatsoever during the day.

I am not calorie counting at the moment (too little time to do it accurately) but when I did it to lose weight for my wedding I really liked using calorie counting in conjunction with my Fitbit. You can tell the app I want to lose 2 pounds a week and it will tell you how many calories you have left. It will update as you go through the day taking into account how much exercise your Fitbit has recorded and what foods you have entered. I believe you can link it up with MyFitnessPal too if you prefer to enter the foods on MFP rather than in the Fitbit app. I found that when I would stick with it I would lose a fairly precise 2lb/week and would recommend. I found it really motivating to know that I could eat what I wanted as long as I put in the steps to be able to keep within my calorie limit. You can pick up cheap second hand Fitbits on eBay if you don't want to spend too much either.

Hi Everyone

Celebrating another half stone down today!
So 20 stone down to 17 stone 7Ib. BMI down from 43.9 to 38.4.

Really pleased, but it seems like every ounce is a battle post menopause!

@YinuCeatleAyru don't get too hung up on the NHS guidance, 2lbs a week is an average. The more weight you have to lose the quicker it comes off (initially). 3lbs a week is fine and well done on your loss so far.

Onwards and downwards everyone!!

That's amazing, well done

It looks as if I was stalling at 16 stone for the past few weeks. I by thought I saw the scales go to a pound under 16 stone at one stage but then it looked as if I went up again after that. I was definitely becoming disappointed because I'm putting in so much effort with my diet and also exercise.
I'm walking a lot. I stepped on the scales this morning and the scales definitely changed in my favour. I had to step on a the scales a few times to double check. I'm now 15 stone 8 pounds. I am absolutely delighted. I was about 16 stone 12 lbs when I started this journey. I'm down now over a stone since I started.

I had a difficult day yesterday with the exercise. Unfortunately. I'm unbelievably motivated to lose weight. It was the virus and obesity that's really kicking me into gear. Yesterday it looked as if I was going to be working late. I wasn't tole or asked, just go into work and just not finish. I had one plan for the evening to go out walking and I was nearly not allowed to do that because of my job and working late. I rang the employer at 7.30 to ask where he was and will he be back soon. My phone was hoping from 6pm with my partner phoning me for a chat but I was busy at work. When he starts phoning, the man has no sense whatsoever and he phones over and over and over again. By the time I finished work, my phone was still hoping and phone. I nearly have to pay rent monies to everybody around me to get the time to look after myself. I finally did get out walking thank goodness. This is the challenge I have for the summer ahead. I have one job to do this summer to lose weight and it looks as if everyone around me is going to become seriously offended with me trying to look after myself and lose some of the 15 stone and 8 pounds of fat that I'm carrying around.

I just ended some with such a headache for the night with stress.

16st 1lb today having flipped up 1lb then down 2lb over the course of the past week (or maybe my scales were having a funny five minutes midweek but I did check a few times). bmi now 37.5 and it's just over a month since it was 40 so if I can keep up this pace I might be merely "overweight" rather than obese in a mere 3 months time. I realise the chances of keeping on at the same rate for that length of time is low but it feels good for that milestone to feel achievable.

Thanks @Uptheduffy hope you're feeling a bit more positive now!
It's really hard, but hopefully worth it.

Well done @SMJYellow , it was the virus the gave me the kick up the bum I needed as well.
I've also got a busy job and a family that thinks I exist to serve them, but I'm trying to be a bit more assertive that I need some time for me. It's helping that I'm working from home so not doing the hour each way commute. I'm using the morning hour to go for a walk (but now the weather's conspiring against me - gah!). It also helps that I live rurally and there's no shops in our village, so if I don't buy crap on my weekly trip to the supermarket, there isn't any crap for me to eat when I'm feeling weak-willed!

@YinuCeatleAyru I'm still fixated on the 'every pound off makes it easier to breathe' mantra to stop me thinking about how far there is to go.

Wow I hadn't heard that and it certainly makes me feel better about my 1lb weight loss this week! Thbaks igivein I do well for several days and then (for example) get the shopping in and eat far too much that day. Or I see I can't make my target on fitbit and so go too far the other way. The walking does feel good though. I find the earlier I do exercise the more likely I am to have a successful day.
SMJ you have to keep taking that time for yourself and people will eventually get used to it being something you do. It takes a long time for other people to notice weightloss or improvements in fitness I fine. That's great about the loss creeping up on you.
I'm off now to see what difference a 1lb loss has made to my BMI (never something I bothered about before, it was always about how I looked)

Can I join in?

I’ve been struggling to keep on top of this during lockdown. I’ve been doing the 16:8 fasting this last week, as I’m not much of a breakfast person anyway.

I weighed myself this morning and am 16st 12lb (a loss of 3lb this week) which puts me at a bmi of 38.

One of my big problems has always been unhealthy snacking. I can’t remember ever not being tempted by crisps, chocolate, biscuits, cake etc. I’m sure that’s contributed a lot to my weight gain over the years, and it’s something I really need to figure out strategies for. Both in the short and long term.