Myfitnesspal.com support thread 6!!!

[cinnamongreyhound]

A thread for all those wanting support and advice for using mfp website and app. Welcome to everyone new and those of us that have been around a while

Newrowsees I think its all about slowly increasing your calories and finding out where you need to be to be stable. I went to 1/4lb loss on mfp and then started sneaking over it and then went up to maintenance. I am aware of what I eat, I know that sometimes I eat to much and then pull it back for a few days after that. I am very aware of calories in everything and do still think about it quite a bit. I run 3-4 times a week which helps keep my splurges under control when I have them. I do still weigh daily and have a range I'm happy to stay within and if I do go over I have a low calorie couple of days 1400 ish. Otherwise I don't feel I'm depriving myself on 1760 but do go over some days, mostly around my period!! Be mindful if what you eat and why you're eating it and don't beat yourself up if you have a bad day its just one day.

Hello girls, I'm fresh back from the festival tired burnt and a bit sad. We've had such a lovely time.
Food was pricey and tiny portions so didn't eat much but we did gave a few drinks.
Had a lovely curry when we got home tonight but back on track tomorrow.

Cecy I've added you too. I hope you have some big boots because I need booting up the bum again.

Please can everyone boot my big behind. I'm all talk and not enough action and seriously p'ing myself off. I'm still not running, but really need to walk more so I can start again later this week. You can all log kicking me as exercise

Thanks for all the adds! I'm feeling quite positive today, wonder how long that'll last!

Welcome back Ledkr, sounds like your festival was great and that you didn't even go that far off track.

Feijoa - what's the problem exactly, just not feeling motivated to exercise? I get that, but you KNOW you'll feel fine when you do it and GREAT afterwards, so just tell yourself exactly when you'll be going for a walk today and then go at that time. No procrastinating, no excuses! Consider yourself booted.

I have had a pretty good weekend myself, for once no parties or guests or going out anywhere. Indulged a little anyway with ice cream and homemade lasagna among other things, but it is the weekend after all...

Just want to say I am really impressed by MFP so far. Given I was already at the top end of my healthy BMI range, I never thought I'd lose much weight by just counting and logging 1600 cals every day, but it has been working amazingly. I'm about a month in now, and 2.5kg down. If I can lose the same again over the next couple of months, allowing for a slow down in weight loss, I'll be ecstatic. Then can move onto maintenance, a la cinnamon. I'm feeling good!

Riverboat, I had a run of well the runs over 3 weeks plus a cold, so physically couldn't go running. Now it's been so long I need to build back into it slowly, but am finding the motivation a bit hard. I KNOW once I get out an going I'll feel great, it's just getting going. DH is working locally today and not feeling great so he should be home early meaning I will have time for a lovely long walk this evening. Which I will need as DS is still to warm for nursery so I'll be feeling very house bound by his bed time!

Right it's a new day, Come on every one, we can do this!!!

Feijoa why don't you put your kit on and go for a walk? If you feel like running you can, and if you don't you get a lovely walk in the sunshine?

I've upped my calorie target on MFP to see what will happen re weightloss and obsession as I'm getting very dispirited eating 1200 calories and losing practically nothing. Here's hoping it'll work, and I won't bloody gain!

That is my plan for after dinner HotelTango. No sunshine though

I weighed myself this morning and was very pleasantly surprised to have lost 1lb!

The last two weeks have been pretty bad, foodwise and I really didn't think I'd have lost anything especially after having 2 macdonalds in 3 days

Also, I've just re-measured my waist and neck and have lost 2cm round my waist and 1cm round my neck. I've never measured either before so not sure how much of a reduction to expect.

One thing I have realised, which I kind of already knew but is much clearer now, is that in order to eat well I need to be a lot more organised and make sure there is enough healthy food at home. I haven't been to the supermarket for two weeks and all my childminded children cleared me out of anything even remotely edible last week during half term which has resulted in me picking at carb-heavy food and junk.

I had a quick shop this morning but only had £10 to spend because I'd left my cash card at home so will have to go back again later tonight or tomorrow to do a full shop.

Any tasty evening meal suggestions? I'm at risk of cooking the same meals every week and I think we're all going to get bored quite quickly!

Another obstacle in my way is my aunt/neighbour. She very kindly brings me supermarket bargains every time she goes shopping (a few times a week). I spoke to her when I started trying to lose weight and explained that I needed support and that I have no self-control so please could she not bring me cake/crisps etc. She started off well then turned up on Friday with a bag full of stuff that I'm avoiding. If it's in the house, I'll eat it. How do I make her stop or what do I do with it all if she won't stop?

I'm going to start adding some friends...please forgive my occasional biscuit binges

I'm being a bit think but can't see how to add friends by username. It only gives me the option of adding FB friends, phone contacts or email addresses.

Any ideas?

If you go to add by email you can do it by username. It's not particularly obvious, but you can!

I linked some recipes I use for evening meals about a week ago on this thread - they're all quick, easy and tasty. They might give some hints? If you can't find them have a play on the BBC Good Food website, there are lots of healthy choices on there and you can search by calorie content etc.

Hi ladies, I'm a long time MNer though don't post much at the moment. I could really do with some support and arse kicking.

Lost lots of weight around 7 yrs ago and it's crept back on. I'm bigger than I've ever been but don't seem to be able to stick to anything. I've tried every diet, every healthy eating/lifestyle change, hypnotherapy... I just can't get that motivation back. Result if any change is a 1/2 stone heavier 3 months later.

I'm unhappier than I'd be happy about anyone in RL knowing. I think they think I'm too busy being a kickass lone parent with two jobs, which both require me to be outwardly confident.

I'm not on,y fat but drab. I can't afford to spend much on clothes so I look and feel terrible in clothes that are busting at seams. If I drop 2 dress sizes I have lots of clothes that will fit. If I get to a 10/12 I have suitcases full of beAutiful things.

I can't believe I've done this to myself again. I want to be a good example to my 3yo. I want to not cancel my few social evenings at last min because I can't bear how I look. I want to have sex again one day!

I will weigh myself this week but would est 15st. I'm 5'4, 34. In 2005 I was 9st. After the birth of my son in 2010 I was 12st

Plan is to get used to eating 'real' clean food again over next 2 weeks before picking up exercise. I am a member of a gym that I have't set foot in since November...

I've set MFP at 1500 cals, any less and it won't stick. I need to lose 5st. Normal pattern is to lose 10lb before I fall off the rails...

It's easy to overeat when you live alone, work a lot of silly hours and don't really have friends. Please give me the encouragement and asskicking I need so I can be healthy and happy. I'll give back :)

MFP name itwas

Excuse typos, I hate typing on iPad.

Hello all and welcome new joiners.
It's been tricky again today cos went for an after school picnic but back at work tomorrow so should get me nicely back on track.
Probably won't weigh for a few days as ill be disheartened if I've gained.
Off to log my picnic for shock factor.

Welcome Peanutbutter. It's horrible hearing you sound so sad about your weight...especially that you cancel social events because of that. I have never done that due to weight, but I have done it due to low self-esteem / paranoia about being boring at an earlier stage of my life, and it was just this vicious cycle that made be feel worse and worse about myself. So in some way I can imagine a little how you feel, and I so hope you manage to make yourself happier. It's so easy for motivation to drop off and to slip into a 'bad' routine...but you have to find a way to continually force yourself back to a good one.

My top tip for success with MFP would be: plan as much as possible, decide your meals for the week and shop for them AND get in lots of low-cal, healthy snacks. Around the start of each day I enter the main components of the meals I know I'll be eating in MFP, and then I can see how much leeway I have for snacks / desserts / alcohol. Also one day a week I inevitably go over my calories due to eating out or having guests or whatever, and I don't stress about it. Knowing I can indulge at the weekend keeps me going when I'm trying to resist the biscuits at 4.30pm in the afternoon!

Also weigh yourself in kg! You lose grams more quickly than pounds, I think it's much more motivating, especially if you plan on weighing in more than once a week, because you can consistently see numbers going down...

Good luck!

Riverboat, thank you for your kind words. Basically my whole self esteem is tied up in my weight. Which I hate. It affects all kinds of things from winding up my business as a photographer because I don't feel confident to promote myself to refusing interviews for work because the fewer pictures of me that exist the better. But I know from bitter experience that there is just no stopping me when I'm thin. I wish it wasn't like this. But it is.

Some good tips, especially the kilo one, hadn't thought of that. I can't really weigh myself at home as floors are to soft and can make a huge difference if scales move place even a little. But i know the sooner I do it the greater impact of week 1 will be felt.

I have been having a look at myfitnesspal as an option to lose weight once I've had my baby. I signed up yesterday and set my calorie target for 2062 calories, which is what another site said I should be eating in my second trimester. I also set my goals as weight gain. Just to be clear, I'm not dieting while pregnant! I'm purely looking out of interest and to familiarise myself with how it works for the future. While breastfeeding my twins a year and a half ago, I put on a stone, so I don't have that magic breastfeeding-eating-cake-weight-loss-luck that other people have! I want to be prepared this time, so that I can at least maintain weight after this one is born.

I have a couple of questions. 1. Does anyone ever do this for weight loss while breastfeeding? I know weightwatchers have a system where you have extra points allowance for breastfeeding. Is there a function to allow for extra calories? And secondly, is it just calories you are watching for weight loss? When I added just my breakfast and morning snack yesterday, I was already 11 over on the sugar because I had a banana and a yoghurt. Do you have to stay within all of the daily amounts to lose weight?

Hi Beamae. I was BFing when I started MFP. There is an option under food that gives you negative calories (same as exercise). I used to add it in at breakfast so I could see my daily total all day. Good luck xx

I'm only saying this here and nowhere else because I'm so ashamed and embarrassed.

I need a scan on my hip and the physio had to ring to check if I'd fit in the machine. I'm so red faced even just thinking about it. She was really nice but the fact it happened is getting o me.

Although if that's not a kick up the arse to eat better I don't know what is!

Hi Beamae, I'm still breastfeeding my 5 month old and I've found the simplest thing is to just manually increase my calorie allowance (MFP suggested 1200 but I work towards 1450). You can add breastfeeding as a negative food item or an exercise, but it still involves some estimation of how many calories are being burnt - I'm not sure what a reliable method of deciding that might be!

Also, I wish I'd been as sensible as you during pregnancy! I used it as an excuse to eat as much cake and chocolate as humanly possible!!

Ah no, you misunderstand me. I'm clearing a minimum of three packets of biscuits a week! I've done an extensive amount of damage already, so am anticipating a 4 stone to lose situation come September.

I'm on an eating mission today, feel like I haven't stopped!!!! Blimmin stressful life and totm at the same time is not on!

cleaned the fridge out today, so that will help with organising healthy food...in theory!

Me too cinnamon nearly binged but held off by having a low cal hot choc. Actually had some stuff on my lap but put it back

Have a work event tomorrow and its a shared lunch so I'm hoping to be able to make some sensible choices.
I know there is talk of pavlova and bannoffe so let's hope they get dropped on the way in.

Sorry to hear that Cecy, hope it acts as motivation for you...I am quite new to this thread, have you done / been doing MFP before?

Will be thinking droppy thoughts for you tomorrow morning Ledkr!