Just signed up at 'My Fitness Pal'. Any advice, experience, or desire to join me?

[worriermum]

I read about the website, myfitnesspal.com on MN. Am truly desperate to stop the ever rising weight gain - I have just topped my full term pregnancy weight. I've never really been a dieter, or even believed in diets, but I Have To Do Something. Would love to do it with some other Mumsnetters - anyone interested in joining me?

All the weight loss threads seem so bloated, if you'll pardon the metaphor. I'm intimidated by 537 messages, or 219 messages. Feel I cant be arsed to read through all that and I will never be part of the club if I dont read the history. Advice please?

[foreverondiet]

Oat bran is very high in soluble fibre, hence better than oatmeal/porridge. I got that from dukan diet - it keeps you "regular" if diet is low in carbs.

Agave nectar - I bought from tesco - one bottle lasts me months as I only use tiny amount, but I guess if you are abroad get from health food shop. That all being said only point in bothering if you are doing low GI (ie cutting out white carbs including sugar from diet).

I never measured neck - I changed the MFP to measure instead:
hips, thigh, waist, bicep, calf, bust and body fat.

[gilbonzothesecretpsychoduck]

Thank you for asking my questions worriermum Everyone talks about 'shred' and I have no idea what it is! And yy to algarve nectar - what is it and can I get it in France?

[gilbonzothesecretpsychoduck]

x-posts

[foreverondiet]

Sorry shred is jillian michaels 30 day shred. You need DVD plus a couple of handweights, either 1kg or 1.5kg or 2kg depending on your fitness levels.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agave_nectar

I buy it in tesco, but when I bought it several years ago had to go to health food shop. Only really point in bothering if you are doing low GI, wouldn't waste money on it if you are having normal sugar/white pasta as part of your diet etc. I use it sparingly for sweetening natural yoghurt etc.

worriermum don't worry about the 1200 calories for now. At this stage in your diet 1400 probably more realistic and should still give weight loss. I had higher allowance on tesco diets until I reached 11 stone.

[foreverondiet]

Time for the first weigh in ladies!

Copy the other weigh ins and put yours underneath in same format.... doesn't matter if its imperial or metric.

I'll do mine as an example:
foreverondiet: 9s 2lbs, Target: 9s 0lbs. Hips 36 Waist 28 Bust 34 Thigh 21.

[hairypotter]

Ok here goes......

foreverondiet: 9s 2lbs, Target: 9s 0lbs. Hips 36 Waist 28 Bust 34 Thigh 21.
hairypotter 12s 11lbs Target 10s 7lbs Hips 41 Waist 38 Bust 42 Thigh 23

I weighed myself this morning and have managed to lose another 1lb bringing my total to half a stone.

[gilbonzothesecretpsychoduck]

foreverondiet: 9s 2lbs, Target: 9s 0lbs. Hips 36 Waist 28 Bust 34 Thigh 21.
hairypotter 12s 11lbs Target 10s 7lbs Hips 41 Waist 38 Bust 42 Thigh 23
gilbonzo 14s 6lbs Target 11s 0lbs Hips 42 Waist 39 Bust 48 Thigh 22

Bastard boobs ruining it all for me, hate the buggers.

[foreverondiet]

Now I know I have big thighs . Even after my massive diet, with more than 3 stone weight loss my thighs are only marginally smaller than both of yours! And I am sure I am shorter. [Sigh].

Gilbonzo you will loose some of your boobs as the diet progresses, I was roughly a 36DD now 34B. But no point in focussing on that, the waist is the most important measurement as I think best to have waist less than 32inches.

I suggest just doing measurments once a month, suggest first Monday of month. Make sure you log all the measurements into MFP.

[gilbonzothesecretpsychoduck]

My boobs hate me and barely go down. I have been 10 stone and a size 10/12 and still had 38F boobs. I have a massive ribcage and, obviously, massive boobs which never bothered going down after bfing so they are now 38HH.

I have a very top heavy figure. My shoulders are 4 inches wider than my hips and my legs are tiny in comparison. The 22 inch measurement is about an inch down from the top of my leg. If I measure a couple of inches further down it's 19.5 inches.

I'm surprised I don't fall over more....

[worriermum]

Gulp, here I go. For all my fine words about posting real weights, it does feel hard to put it all down in black and white. But I am vastly encouraged Gilbonzo to hear you too have a giant pair of knockers..thought I was the only H cup around. This is what the support group and MN is all about - realising you are not the only one out there with whatever your problem is (even if it is just getting bras that go on, and up :) ) Anyway, I am sure you have heard the same spieel I have my whole life...'but you should be thrilled'. And sometimes, just sometimes, when I am in a good space about my body and my self, I am!

Can you tell I am writing to avoid the moment?? Okay, I'm diving:

foreverondiet: 9s 2lbs, Target: 9s 0lbs. Hips 36 Waist 28 Bust 34 Thigh 21.
hairypotter 12s 11lbs Target 10s 7lbs Hips 41 Waist 38 Bust 42 Thigh 23
gilbonzo 14s 6lbs Target 11s 0lbs Hips 42 Waist 39 Bust 48 Thigh 22
worriermum: 72 kg Target 60 kg Hips 103.8cm waist 94.5 Neck 33 cm

I measured myself on Fri and i cant find my tape measure right now. So I have included neck (as I was obeying MFP when I measured) and I will add bust and thigh when I find where ds left my tape measure.

So I have lost the princely sum of .3 of a kg since Wed. And you know what: I am delighted. I can imagine that it seems absurdly little to others but in my case I am trying to turn something around - to stop the relentless weight gain even before I turn my attention to much needed weight loss. And to bring some order to my chaotic and unhealthy eating habits. I really feel that you all and MFP have set me on the right road: keeping my daily diary has been very illuminating. So thank you lovely ladies and Forever, our fearless leader. Forever, I love having our very own expert diet consultant on hand to answer all our queries.

ps I can google so I am just being lazy. But can you tell me how many pounds in a stone so I can make sense of your progress and targets?

[foreverondiet]

1 kg = 2.2 lbs. So one pound roughly 0.5kg.

I am 58kg. My original target was 60kg, new target is 57kg. My original weight in October was 78.5kg.

(You are 11 stone 5lbs)

HTH!

I am not an expert though, just been on a diet for too long! LOL.

[Rugbylovingmum]

Hi all,

finally home to do my check in - we've been camping for the weekend which was fun despite me still feeling under the weather. My measurements are awful but I am telling myself that this is the last time I will have to write down such big numbers . The good news is that I have lost 3lbs this week just by being a bit careful about what I eat - the awful cold I had made everything taste bleurgh anyway so it was easier to resist cakes . I have put my lbs lost at the end of my details to keep me motivated, is that okay? I have added my measurements on to mfp and will start logging my food tomorrow. I think I have added most people on here as friends but my name on mfp is rugbymum if I missed anyone.

foreverondiet: 9s 2lbs, Target: 9s 0lbs. Hips 36 Waist 28 Bust 34 Thigh 21.
hairypotter 12s 11lbs Target 10s 7lbs Hips 41 Waist 38 Bust 42 Thigh 23
gilbonzo 14s 6lbs Target 11s 0lbs Hips 42 Waist 39 Bust 48 Thigh 22
worriermum: 72 kg Target 60 kg Hips 103.8cm waist 94.5 Neck 33 cm
rugbylovingmum: 14st 2lb Target 10st Hips 47 Waist 40 Bust 42 Thigh 27; 3lb lost

I am going to try day 1 of the shred dvd tomorrow too - wish me luck!

[hairypotter]

forever how do I enter shred workout into mfp? (if I get around to doing it) Not sure what it would come under.

worrier well done! Any loss is good :) Im going for slow and steady.

I feel everyones pain at having mahoosive norks as well, when I managed to get down to 10st, they didn't get much smaller.

[foreverondiet]

There is a place to add your own exercise, I added under cardio and estimated that it was 200 (I think) for 25 mins (I got that estimate from a website somewhere).

Also wanted to say IME weight loss is long slow and boring (sorry). Best case scernario is that you loose 2lbs or 1kg a week. I started in October and I wasn't happy enough with how I looked until end of Feb to say buy any new clothes.

Now I hope I can maintain my weight! I need to start eating a big more (ie set MFP to maintenance rather than loss). Would like to hit 9 stone, even if I can't stay there as want to see what I look like at that weight. After triathlon am going to do more on weight training.

[ChicksalinaBumSquash]

Can I join you ladies?

I have been signed up to MFP for a while and only use it on and off. I really need to stick with it.
It is good for me because I forget to eat or don't eat enough calories so end up clinging onto all my excess weight so it's good to see how many calories i'm eating so I know if I need to eat more or less.

I am going on holiday in June and would like to be at least a stone lighter.

I am CharleePeters on there, please add me!

[tookoolforskool]

hi.

Im not going to measure as it will make me depressed :( BUT i know from dec when i did the shred roughly where i was.... so, roughly bust 40inches
waist ( or non existant wasit) 36, hips 43, thigh 20.5. arms 11.
so skinny arms and legs... all my weight is in the middle. which is a crap place for it to be.

Havent weighted myself for two weeks either... will do tomorrow. but i hate knowing. ill either be pleased and sort of slack off thinking its easy, or feel awful and deflated that its not enough and then dive head first into some not eating for days plan.

forever, i hope you manage to mantain it too. thats the hardest part i think. ive yo-yo'ed up and down by 3 stone for about 10 years now. Its not that i dont know how to eat right, or that i hate exercise, i like it. i think that food is just something thats always on my mind. i celebrate with food or comiserate with it. Food to me means family, and happyness, and togetherness and home and safe and i love to cook and have people over and then, before i know it, bang 3 stone have gone on.

[BettyButterknife]

Hi everyone, well this is exciting!

I am very pleased that I've lost another pound since I last weighed myself and have now lost a grand total of.... drum roll... 1 stone! (worriermum this is 14lb) This is since November to now so has taken quite a long time and I still have 2.5 to go but I am feeling very pleased. Well done everyone else too - we're getting there!

However, I am quite shocked by my measurements... I knew things were bad but I had no idea they were quite this bad. No wonder I can't fit into my lovely clothes!

Here goes:

foreverondiet: 9s 2lbs, Target: 9s 0lbs. Hips 36 Waist 28 Bust 34 Thigh 21.
hairypotter 12s 11lbs Target 10s 7lbs Hips 41 Waist 38 Bust 42 Thigh 23
gilbonzo 14s 6lbs Target 11s 0lbs Hips 42 Waist 39 Bust 48 Thigh 22
worriermum: 72 kg Target 60 kg Hips 103.8cm waist 94.5 Neck 33 cm
rugbylovingmum: 14st 2lb Target 10st Hips 47 Waist 40 Bust 42 Thigh 27; 3lb lost
tookoolforskool: Hips 43 Waist 36 Bust 40 Thigh 20.5 Arms 11
bettybutterknife: 12s 7lbs, Target: 10s 0lbs. Hips 43 Waist 37 Bust 42 Thigh 24; 1s lost :) Oh and my scales tell me that I have 35.8% body fat which is clearly a lot. What is a healthy fat %, does anyone know?

tookool I am with you on the emotional eating front. It is very hard. I cannot understand people who can take or leave food though, and although I would look better if I was one of them I know that I would be missing out on one of the great sensory pleasures in life!

[foreverondiet]

A good body fat to aim for would be 25%-29%....

My starting was 40%, now is 24.5%. Gym instructor said anything under 25% would be "very good" for me (ie aged 36 having had 3 kids, going to gym 3x a week).

Body fat on scales varies depending on time of day, I think most accurate reading in morning, had it checked by having callipers done in gym and it was consistent with morning reading.

[gilbonzothesecretpsychoduck]

Hi ChicksalinaBumSquash You have my favourite ever MN name (when you're titsalina) at my MN crush!

[MouseWheat]

Can I join too?! I am DESPERATELY wanting to loose weight following DD2 9 months ago. Was a real shock to me that it didn't "drop off" like first time despite bf'ing. The warmer weather this weekend was a wake up call that nothing fits me. I have at least 2 stone to lose & if I've got people that can spy on support me I am more likely to get back into my size 12 wardrobe!

Just briefly, I am 5'8" 14st, size 16. My MFP name is Lisakins I suspect I also have PCOS and really need to get to grips with the low GI diet. Right. I'm off to locate the tape measure...

[foreverondiet]

Hi Mousewheat....

I also have pcos, symptoms much better when I follow low GI diet. Now I have lost the weight plan is to follow low GI 80% of time.

Weight doesn't fall off me either, have had to diet. I wouldn't describe it as hard work, more like a need for good self-discipline! DS2 is one on Sunday so I have achieved the original objective - have have lost the weight by his first birthday and be able to eat a slice of cake!

And although my size 12 wardrobe fitted me for around a month, its now all too big. I am buying size 10 clothes, although slight nervousness about this. Last summer I was buying a few cheap things as I didn't want to be a size 16, this summer am buying a few cheap things as don't know if I can maintain a 10....

[worriermum]

Forever, wow, you are an inspiration to us all! Now that you've gone metric for me, I am in awe. You've lost TWENTY EFFING KILLO'S!! Bloody brilliant.

Welcome aboard Chicksa and Mousewheat. My MFP name is wouldbegood (god it does sound naff - especially next to yours Gilbonzo, which I greatly enjoy) so do add me.

Forever, it is rude to ask how tall you are? I'm curious because our target weights were the same (though you have now changed yours).

And Hairy, thanks for the encouragement! I am embarrassingly pleased with my .3 ! Also, a small thing but how do you do that cute little trick of bolding up MN user names? My 'control B' doesnt work on MN.

So - good luck to us, and see you next Monday, if not before

[foreverondiet]

worriermum I am 5 foot 4 inches. 162.5cm.

[MouseWheat]

Forever - what worriermum said. If I can be a 10-12 by Xmas i'll be made up! Slow and steady for me this time I think. I want to keep it off this time...

Thanks for the friend requests girls and I've made some of my own. I'm determined to do it this time!

[tookoolforskool]

Woohoo 4lbs off in the last two weeks, making a grand total of 8lbs for the.month, which isn't bad is it :)
And I've had quite a few cheat days and, this is the biggest thing, I have lost weight without having to stop eating.. :)
Am pleased, just got to stick at it for the next 2 stone!