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Weight loss chat

A space to talk openly about weight loss journeys and challenges. Mumsnet hasn't checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. You may wish to speak to a medical professional before starting any diet.

Desperately need to lose weight. Please help? :-(

50 replies

RunRabbit · 14/01/2014 19:02

My weights always gone up and down and I'm sick of it. I want to make a positive change to my health. I want to lose weight and keep it off.

I have a high carb diet right now, mainly rice and bread. I've also bought myself an exercise machine since I'm too embarrassed to go to the gym.

Any ideas on how I can get started? And any tips on losing all this weight?

Thank you Smile

OP posts:
slimsoon · 15/01/2014 14:52

This girl is amazing and worth a look at her blog to see how she lost over 40kg www.nzgirl.co.nz/your-health/my-path-to-losing-60kgs-the-shrinking-violet-story/
Young, bright and determined to chamge her life for good.

Beechview · 15/01/2014 15:10

You can lose weight by eating carbs!
There are rules to follow though;
Don't mix fat and carbs
Don't eat too much. Do this by having lots of veg or salad with your meals.

Cut right back on wheat and sugar too and do a bit of exercise and you'll lose weight.

That's how most diets work

Beechview · 15/01/2014 15:12

I mean, most diet plans, including slimming world, low carb etc are really doing the above. Its the sugar and mixing of carbs with fat that cause weight gain.

BsshBossh · 15/01/2014 16:20

Just want to say that I have no problems with carbs; I seem to be able to eat them liberally and with fat (full fat at that - no diet foods for me) and still lose 6 stones. The only rules of weightloss that are important are the rules that suit the individual.

Beechview · 15/01/2014 17:59

You probably didn't overeat them though BsshBossh

You're right, It is what suits the individual. Some people love low carb, others hate it. Some people love to log their calories and some would prefer to 'not count' and prefer the slimming world way etc.

You're more likely to be successful with something that's not too far off what you're used to.

I would much prefer a bowl of rice and veg curry than a plate of meat and low carb veg so am trying to lose weight by making healthy changes to what I'm used to.

RunRabbit · 15/01/2014 21:13

So my first day didn't go so well.
Didn't have any carbs like I usually do, had some lamb, cereal, boiled eggs and a cup of tea.
I feel like I've been starving all day. Feeling lightheaded and weak. Sad

Not sure if I should carry on with this plan and hope it gets better or change my plan. I'm not giving up though.

OP posts:
capsium · 15/01/2014 21:23

Getting plenty of magnesium, salt and potassium is important if you are feeling light headed.

I found these books good.

www.amazon.co.uk/Protein-Power-protein-carbohydrate-weight/dp/0722539614/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1389820817&sr=8-1&keywords=protein+power+book

www.amazon.co.uk/Lose-Your-Middle-Aged-Middle-flatten/dp/0749942185/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1389820874&sr=8-1&keywords=Lose+you+middle+aged+middle

They give an idea of the sort of meals you can eat as well as all the science bits. Actually you can read quite a bit on preview. It might be you that you actually aren't eating enough.

Awkwardsis · 15/01/2014 21:47

I'm still not ure you have a good grasp of the basics here op, you really need to have a good read to get a better understanding of what your body needs. cereal is carbohydrate. What you've eaten sounds pretty nutrient sparse to me. Where are your veg? Sight adaptations to your menu today would have made a big difference. Plenty of water to drink and a boiled egg for breakfast. Lamb and lots of lovely veg for dinner, and a nice big salad (with a few new potatoes or similar of you need them) for lunch. You're setting yourself up to fail of you go into this with no idea what you're actually doing.

BIWI · 15/01/2014 21:51

That's an awful day's meals though. No wonder you feel bad!

And you haven't given up the carbs because you've been eating cereal.

Why don't you come and join us on Bootcamp? You can eat lovely food, like butter, cream and cheese, and you will get your carbs from vegetables and salad - it will keep your blood sugar levels stable which will stop you feeling weak and shaky as well as controlling your appetite.

BsshBossh · 15/01/2014 22:14

I agree with Awkward OP, you should read more on a healthy day's menu. Perhaps start another thread asking for examples; Google it too. I don't consider myself 100% a healthy eater and I'm not a low carber but here are a couple of day's menus I've had this week. Bear in mind I rarely snack, also that I work from home.

Tuesday:
Breakfast - porridge with semi-skimmed milk and blueberries; banana; coffee with milk
Lunch - New Covent Garden butternut squash & sweet potato soup with three slices of buttered sourdough; small pot plain bio-live yoghurt; handful of Kettle crisps
Dinner - roast chicken (leftovers) with sides of garlicky spinach and grilled leeks; small bowl of good quality ice cream with fresh berries

Today:
Breakfast - lightly fried (in olive oil) egg on slice of buttered sourdough; coffee with milk
Lunch - defrosted homemade mixed vegetable stew (green peppers, red peppers, aubergine, courgettes, tomatoes, onions, garlic) topped with parmesan; apple; half a banana
Dinner - homemade prawn and courgette curry plus dal with rice; two squares dark chocolate

We eat out a lot on weekends so that's when I'm likely to eat pizza etc.

RunRabbit · 15/01/2014 22:20

capsium You may be right, I may not have had enough today. When I was having my lamb and spinach, I was very aware of not having too much and exceeding my calorie limit. Since it was homemade I wasn't sure how many calories it would be.

Thanks for the links. I'll try get them on my Kindle. At first glance the Protein Power one reminds me of the Atkins diet.

Awkwardsis I did have a lot of water to drink today. I had some Spinach with my lamb and some carrots but I'm not a Veg person. I'm ok with fruit though.

That meal plan looks good but when I'm adding everything to MyFitnessPal all the calories add up and I start to get anxious I'm going to exceed my calorie limit. Even fruit and veg cals. add up.

People have been very helpful with tips and what eating plans may work, carbs vs. no carbs, calorie counting vs. eating what you want in moderation or having fasting days and so on. I'm having a hard time figuring out which I should be doing and what will work for me.

You're right I have no idea what I'm doing. Sad

BIWI Yes I had the cereal but didn't think it'd add to the carbs (don't ask me why) but more on the fibre side, but I went on the other board (the lose 5st. + one?) and they set me right. I cut the carbs after the cereal though.

I'll have a look at the bootcamp board. Thanks Smile

OP posts:
capsium · 15/01/2014 22:29

RunRabbit the Protein Power is similar to Atkins but you can eat much more fruit and veg. With this sort of diet you don't really have to count calories.

I have combined it with counting calories before, after initially losing a stone and a half I plateaued. It was more tweaking though because my mass had significantly reduced enough for me not to need as much food. It was easy to keep the calories under what I needed more my weight and level of exercise.

I ate substantial meals whilst losing weight. I just home cooked and had the meat dish (included veg, eg curry including chicken, tomatoes, onions, peppers and mushrooms with the spices) with salad or plain veg such as green beans.

capsium · 15/01/2014 22:30

^for my weight. Typo.

BsshBossh · 15/01/2014 22:31

RunRabbit don't be Sad. You've decided to do something positive about your weight and health - that's something to get excited about. Take the time to explore all your options - there are so many - then take the time to really reflect on what might suit you and your lifestyle (and that of your family's). Take another look at my profile photo for inspiration Wink.

Sleepwhenidie · 15/01/2014 23:26

Runrabbit - don't try and do two things at the same time - calorie counting and low carbing won't work. If you are low carbing then you are also 'high-fatting' (or if you aren't you'll probably be starving, as you have been today) and if you then look at calories you consume its likely to be scary because of that Smile.

If you want to low carb, definitely get over to the Bootcamp thread.

Similarly, if you want to calorie count (though I really wouldn't advise it), there is a board for that too, at least with that no food type is banned.

Personally I would try applying just a few rules to start - don't eat pre-prepared processed food. Cut out sugary foods (only go for those with naturally occurring sweetness, as with fruit, but avoid juice, have only whole fruit), nothing made with white flour, no other white starchy carbs (rice, pasta, potato). Have lentils, sweet potato, beans, chickpeas and if you really want to, small portions of brown rice or pasta, good quality brown bread. Real, whole foods. as much of all this as you need to satisfy your appetite. Plenty of water. Plenty of veg. Forget about calories. Forget about fat. Just try that for a couple of weeks and see how you feel...you may want to take it a step further and low carb properly, or maybe look at paleo (caveman type diet) boards and try that....or you may feel pretty good and that you are steadily losing weight and happy to continue eating that way. Experiment to see what works and what you can live with. There is no point following a diet that makes you feel deprived, inevitably you will revert to the foods you feel you are missing and any weight lost will be back with a vengeance.

RunRabbit · 15/01/2014 23:43

BsshBossh I'll be stalking your profile until I shift this weight Wink
Those menus look delicious. I've looked up some menu/food ideas. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.

Sleepwhenidie I think I've learnt that lesson today the hard way.
Thank you for the tips.

One question though, why is pure fruit juice not good?
I was going to replace my Robinsons sugary fruit juice with it since it would count towards my fruit intake.

OP posts:
Sleepwhenidie · 16/01/2014 07:24

It's too full of sugar Rabbit, and not much else...just eat a piece of real fruit and drink a glass of water. Then you get much less sugar, all the nutrients and all the fibre Smile

RunRabbit · 16/01/2014 20:21

Today I had:

Breakfast - 1 wholemeal slice of bread, 2 eggs and a small cup of tea.

Lunch - Fruit corner (Not great but once the pack is finished I'm going to replace it with better yogurt and fruit).

Dinner - A small teacup of rice, 2 tbsp yogurt and grilled lamb.

Lots of water and I've been working out on my elliptical machine.

Today was a better day, not perfect but a lot better. Smile

OP posts:
BsshBossh · 16/01/2014 20:43

RunRabbit that's not a lot of food. Surely you'll fall off the wagon quite quickly eating so little. I lost loads of weight eating 1800-1900 cals a day (back when I counted cals). I worked out my TDEE (the amount of calories needed to maintain current weight) then ate at a 10-15% cut of that. I then manually adjusted MyFitnessPal accordingly and didn't eat back my exercise cals (as TDEE accounts for exercise levels).

MyFitnessPal had allotted me 1200 cals a day which I refused to contemplate as I knew I would feel so deprived I'd stop dieting.

You can lose weight eating much more than you think.

RunRabbit · 16/01/2014 21:00

BsshBossh I know it doesn't seem much but the lamb made me feel full for longer. I don't want to eat just to fill up calories if I'm not hungry.

But I wont stick to eating so little if I'm hungry either.

OP posts:
RunRabbit · 16/01/2014 21:01

Also how often do you think I should weigh myself?

OP posts:
capsium · 16/01/2014 21:41

I think regarding weighing as often as you like. BUT only if you can handle seeing your weight fluctuate by a pound or so day to day.

Otherwise once a week might be more sensible. Although after weighing everyday, weight fluctuations scare me much less. I know how much my weight can fluctuate and yes I have weighed myself after going to the loo! Grin Can make quite a bit of difference...

capsium · 16/01/2014 21:43

Oh and fluctuations throughout the day as well. So to compare, make sure you compare like with like.

RunRabbit · 17/01/2014 23:12

Think I'm going to go with the once a week after the loo trick too Wink

Grin
OP posts:
user1467975542 · 08/07/2016 12:07

Hello! I don't know if you are still looking for tips but I've actually written an article on ways to lose weight - and they really are straight-forward and easy! Hope this helps! :) features.shopomo.com/health-beauty/health-personal-care/8-surprising-ways-lose-weight-fast/

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