SAHM, how to lose weight

[Eesha]

Just looking for tips here. My friends are able to gym every day but I don't have the childcare. Any tips I can do day to day to lose a stone?....

@ploughingthrough I sort of do intermittent fasting now too, so 10 to 6. I think I need to be stricter with food somehow. It feels like an uphill battle.

@Eesha you could try 12-8 eating two balanced meals a day and a light snack in between. You will probably eat your dinner around 6 or 7 right, so your fast will actually be a bit longer. Try and get into herbal tea - it really helps curb snacking if you have a herbal tea instead!

It is a bit of a battle to find the pattern that works for you. IF 12-8 works for me as a lifestyle rather than an unachievable diet. At the weekend I will usually eat out once with DH and have a drink, so that means I don't IF that day - 6 days per week I follow it strictly. I am not keto, or even especially low carb although I do avoid bread and I only have pasta a couple of times a month. I eat rice, couscous, potatoes, just all in moderation and as part of one of my balanced meals each day. I only eat fruit after meals - never yoghurts or sugary puddings. Once you find your balance and the weight starts to drop you will start to feel better and more motivated.
You sound like you have incorporated exercise videos - this will help. The rest is completely down to how many calories you consume. You have to be really honest with yourself about what you are eating and weigh regularly to be properly accountable. You can do it.

@ploughingthrough thank you so much for taking the time to reply! It has to be my food or maybe my thyroid. In all honesty I don't ever snack and I don't drink. My day would be a small cereal in the morning, lunch scrambled egg with a slice of toast, dinner would be home made curry and rice/cottage pie/sausage casserole with mash. I eat less of it than before, plus earlier than before ie 6pm but I think maybe I need to not eat it at all!!

So its basically just calories in V calories out, you certainly don't need the gym - walking is much better as burns calories but doesnt spike your appetite. Your friend's calories are going to be low. Track your calories. Scrambled egg - swap for 2 boiled eggs. 1 slice of toast or an english muffin. No butter or max 10g (75cals alone!). Dinner instead of mash I'd have mashed cauliflower or brocolli, boil for ages til really soft then mash. No added milk/butter.

Check you're not drinking calories/adding milk to hot drinks etc. I eat 10calorie jelly sometimes in the evening if I want something sweet or eat celery/cucumber with salt if I want savoury. Good luck!

My day would be a small cereal in the morning, lunch scrambled egg with a slice of toast, dinner would be home made curry and rice/cottage pie/sausage casserole with mash

You should get your thyroid checked - I don't know much about that but I've read that it can drastically effect weight. How many eggs? Do you add milk? Is your curry made of full fat coconut milk, is your mash potato made with butter ? Do you eat your kids leftovers? You don't have to answer any of this, just trying to get you to think about exactly where extra calories might be coming from. Previous poster suggests some good alternatives. Instead of toast with your scrambled eggs, why don't you try an omlette loaded with veg like spinach and peas?

I agree about drinking the calories too - I have one cup of tea with semi-skimmed milk every day. All other drinks are water or herbal tea, apart from a glass of wine on the weekend sometimes. I am very low alcohol which I think helps.

PS you are welcome. I have struggled with my weight before and I know it's hard - you have to own it though, be accountable for everything you eat and drink, and accept it's a slow and steady process and not necessarily a straight line (and that's actually better than rapid weight loss and more sustainable). Just don't go for some crazy diet with shakes or something as you'll never keep the weight off.

@ploughingthrough right, bagels off my shopping list now, and bought tons of lentils to have instead of mash.....Waaah!!!

I don't drink anything but water too. It has to be food.