Virgin to weight loss

[Krabbybabby]

Hit my mid 40's and for the first time in my life I feel the weight is slowly creeping on. I can still see the shape I should be under the layer of fat that is building but if I don't get a handle on this it's going to disappear. I am beginning to notice back fat, a belly (where historically hip and thigh has been where it has gone) and the tops of my arms are losing definition.

My problem is though I just don't enjoy cardio, never understood those people who get a buzz out of getting hot and sweaty it just makes me feel sick. I love walking and will happily walk anywhere. I try to be the one who does the dog walking in our house but with other commitments probably only do it 4 times a week on average for an hour which is about 3 miles. I also enjoy strengthening and toning exercise.

My weakness is bread, I figure if I can reduce my carb intake that would help a lot. I love brown toast or a bowl of shredded wheat in the morning and am a devil for an old fashioned sandwich at lunchtime. I know they say protein should stay with you longer than carbs but I just don't feel as satisfied after eating without it though. That said I am determined to get this under control so am prepared to change my ways.

But I am rubbish when it comes to nutrition. Yesterday I had a Greek honey yoghurt mixed with pineapple chunks and MFP still rated it a carb heavy breakfast. This morning I had a veggie omelette for brunch which was low carb but high on fat. I didn't use cheese so this was just the coconut oil I used for the pan, I never know how calorific a bit of oil was!!! I love nothing more than a glug of olive oil on a salad, it's just not the same plain.

Yesterday I tried a fitness blender cardio workout from YouTube, I found it tough going and had those shakes at the end. Then today the muscle soreness. I can't decide if exercising through that pain today is a good or a bad idea?? I have done 3 miles with the dog just to stretch out the muscles and loosen them.

Any opinions, advice, shared experiences, meal ideas welcome. I have looked at the joe Wicks plan but was horrified to read in phase two exercise goes up to an hour and a half a day! Throw in getting dressed and ready for it and showering after that's 2 hours out of your day. Hats off to those with families and work commitments who have this much time to themselves. I do love his meals though but when I have put them into MFP they are quite calorific so am thinking maybe should only be eaten if following his rigorous programme.

Can't advise on the exercise as I am trying to lose weight through diet alone.

I have found now I am heading towards 50 the weight is so hard to get off. I am not following any diet but changing habits so no food is out but I am aware of the calories in them.

At the weekend when I used to have 2-3 bacon rashers on two toast I now only have 1 slice with a couple of bacon medallions and add tomatoes to bulk it out. Sandwiches, even made by myself, are too calorific for a lunch so I have swopped to salads. Then for dinner I still have the same as I used to eat but have more veg so I fill up on that and eat less of the other stuff.

What I am saying is rather than trying to change your diet could you not tweak it so that you simply don't have as much. So less toast and less shredded wheat in the morning. Choose a wrap rather than big chunks of bread for lunch then up your veg at night.?

That sounds like a sensible and sustainable way forward Whoatemynuts. How long have you being following your plan and is it working? I do actually enjoy salads and what would be perceived to be healthy foods so I'm seeing this as an opportunity to get better at them and experiment with some new dishes, rather than the meat and two veg approach I was brought up on and am comfortable with.

I started it around Christmas. I didn't want to wait until after as I wanted to minimise the eating over Xmas and New Year.

As it's just changing habits one at a time it's slow but I didn't want to follow a diet and then go back to my old ways as I have done in the past.

Currently 6.9kg down but as I am only 5ft3 it's really noticeable. I can see the difference. I have another 4-5kg to go.

Another thing I did was to use an app on my phone (called happy scale) which shows your overall trend and breaks the target weight down into mini goals. It's much better to focus on the next mini goal and see the graph going down even if you fluctuate a bit.

I’ve just lost over a stone to get back to 9. Basically eating no more than 1000 calories a day and recording it in MyFitnessPal. The hardest is the first 2 weeks because the results are slow and you feel like you’re missing out but then you adjust and feel better and get used to it.
I’ve also done low carb for a bit but it was too annoying working out what I could and couldn’t eat.
So for 1000 cals you can have toast and poached egg 200 cals a tin of soup 150 - 200 cals an apple and French fries crisps 160 and a small evening meal of lots of vegetables with fish or something, then a lo cal hot choc it’s quite doable.

That is very encouraging Whoatemynuts, I am 5'3" too and wish to lose a similar amount to you. How many calories do you restrict yourself to? MFP tells me to work toward 1200 a day it this has to be monitored tightly. It's a lot easier on days I exercise as I win some back.

Karwomannghia it's working well for you too but 1000 a day!! Sounds tough. I keep telling myself I can't have any treats at all but I guess the truck is to just stay below recommended daily calorie amount. Is it worth worrying about the carb, fat and protein split?

For me, no if I put too many restrictions on I go off the rails but Include lots of veg and salad as they’re low calorie and healthy. I like spicy food so happy with veggies with a chilli sauce and a bit of yoghurt and coriander and lemon with just a small amount of rice or pasta or a poppadom (they’re about 35 cals). I just put a lot into flavour rather than stodge but still have the odd snack so I don’t start craving.

I don't specifically calorie count as I didn't want to get bogged down to following a diet.

However, if I am looking at a lunch I will try and think of it as being no more than 400 calories or 600 for dinner. Breakfast around 300 calories. This tends to only apply if I am shopping and comparing calories in different main foods.

Day to day though I don't calorie count but if I am having half a pizza for dinner at the weekend I will make sure I have porridge for breakfast and a salad for lunch. I measure the portion of porridge as that type of food is very easy to eat too much off. I use fruit in the porridge to sweeten it rather than anything else.

I still occasionally have my fast food fix but rather than a big tasty and fries from McDonald's I will pick a mcchicken sandwich and fries which saves an awful lot of calories. Again if we go out to a restaurant I will have a light lunch such as soup to compensate and not overeat in the restaurant. If I have a piece of cake it's in place of my lunch rather than in addition.

Alcohol has been a big change though. I have found some lovely low or no alcohol alternative beers and wines which are also low calorie. I do have the occasional glass of alcohol but mostly stick to AF/low cal ones.

This change feels like something I can do forever as nothing is off limits but it does mean I have to think about my overall diet and compensate for higher calories meals. Before this change I would just be eating mindlessly, sometimes just because it was in the cupboard and often snacks in between.

Although I use those calorie guides for breakfast/lunch/dinner I have no real idea of the number of calories I consume as I only look at the bigger food items.

I am trying to think of it as making a better choice. For example if I look at two similar main items to buy I will probably pick the one with less calories. It's amazing how calorific some foods are though and making a different choice can make such a big difference overall.

I like spice to Karwomannghia so feel free to share any meal ideas. I think we all get that stodgy craving sometimes but in reality I hate the way it makes you feel after and I actually prefer the taste and flavour of fresher healthier food.

Whoatemynuts you are really making this sound easy and completely do-able. Tell me more about the low calorie alcohol. I like Becks Blue but have never found a decent wine and I do love my vino. Usually I would go for a Pinot grigio or a Sauvignon blanc. And after work on a Friday often involves a gin and slimline. Your last paragraph about eating mindlessly is me to a T.

whoatemynuts your approach sounds great. Calorie counting/MFP can be totally crazy making and 100 calories a day is very very difficult to maintain. Carbs also aren't the enemy but processed carbs really don't have a great deal to provide in terms of 'bang for your buck' nutritionally. They are enjoyable though! So pick your poison...is it bread? If so, keep that, but just have it once a day and keep other beige carbs (eg pasta/cereal) as an occasional thing. If you minimise the processed and high sugar stuff, including alcohol, and focus on whole foods, not worrying about fat, you should notice a difference.

Strength training is the best thing you can do in terms of exercise, doesn't matter if its just body weight stuff or free weights. This will battle the hormonal changes around menopause better than anything else.

1000 calories! 100 really would be a challenge

Sure, things like stir a load of stir fried veg and prawns with ginger garlic chilli and stock and soy sauce to make it a bit soupy with coriander and lemon or lime.

Also Marinate salmon overnight with lemon juice and salt then make a spicy tomato sauce - dry fry cumin seeds then tiny bit of oil, gently fry onion garlic ginger chilli, add ground coriander and cumin, plus any other veg you fancy like peppers or green beans, fry a while, add tinned tomatoes, a few sundried tomatoes finely chopped up, water, salt, cook on low till veggies are tender then pour over salmon and oven cook till done. Add lemon and coriander at end. Serve with a popadum and spicy yoghurt and onion chutney (chopped red onion and red pepper mixed with salt lemon juice and coriander and left to infuse for a while before).

Salsa verde without the oil on cod (so basil, capers and mustard) with lots of green beans and peas.

I’m pescatarian so it’s lots of fish!

Also I weigh every day. And at the beginning of the change in diet would repeat my target weight with every footstep walking around (weird I know but it just helped me focus and remember!)

Meal planning tasty meals helps you to save yourself for your next meal.

I drink becks blue but have gone off it recently.

Whilst I am not an ale drinker I have found 'brew dogs nanny state' pale ale to be really tasty. It is a real adult drink with a nice flavour, only 0.5abv and really low in calories.

For wines it has been harder but I found rawsons retreat sparkling to be a good alternative to cava/Prosecco. The jury is still out on their red as I can't decide whether I like it or not but I know my taste buds are changing so am sticking with it to see if it grows on me.

sleepwhenidie this is the first time I have actually thought this is doable forever. I read a few books on eating mindfully and why diets fail and it was my lightbulb moment. They also talk about how cutting out foods and food groups cause binging hence why I decided that nothing was off limits. Ironically when you know you can have it I have found I actually don't choose it.

That's so true about mindful eating and not making anything off limits whoatemynuts.

I can highly recommend Heineken 00, IMO the best alcohol free beer. Nanny State is good too if you like pale ale type. Tried new Peroni one recently and it was really metallic. And the Budweiser one is sooo sweet - awful. Still looking for a good AF wine!

Ooo haven't tried Heineken. Will put that on the shopping list for next week.

Wines do seem to be the hardest to find a good low/non alcohol alternative.

Sorry I disappeared, my mum called round and then the last couple of days have been crazy at work. Sleepwhenidie thanks for your advice, I have felt far more relaxed in my approach to this over the last couple of days and it has been easily achievable and I can see it being sustainable. In fact throw in the dog walk and I seem to be coming in a little under a 1000 calories a day and not feeling hungry?? It might be psychological but I already feel better for my efforts.

Karwomannghia I will def try those meal ideas, they sound up my street. I don't own a set of scales though and am not inclined to get a pair and start adding weighing into my daily routine. I am just going to go by my clothes fitting better and feeling happier with how I look.

Whoatemynuts I am looking forward to giving that prosecco a try. I completely understand what you mean about eating mindfully, making better decisions about what to have. I can also see how I could come in hungry and snack whilst cooking dinner, adding calories I didn't need if I just hung out for dinner to be ready.