6 stone + to lose ... Whos in?

[ExplodingCarrots]

I'm at my heaviest EVER! I've been battling my weight for 12 years and quite frankly I'm done with it now.

Poor DH is probably sick of the cycle of 'I'm fat , I hate myself, diet for 1 month, quit, repeat' . He confided that he was worried about me the other day health wise and just wants me to be happy and then my DD who's 6 made a couple of comments about my big belly (not being mean...just being a 6 year old). So this is has given me a big kick up the bum. My wedding and engagement rings also don't fit anymore .

I'm an incredible emotional eater and suffer from anxiety and awful self esteem issues. It's a psychological battle each time I decide to 'diet'. I'm constantly trying to sabotage myself.

So...I've been calorie counting for the past week, doing one YouTube workout and going for an hour walk everyday (my distress also) , making sure I'm hitting at least 10000 steps. So far I'm feeling good.
I don't agree with super low calories but I've been aiming for and sticking to between 1500 - 1700 calories. My diet has been healthy and clean.

Anybody else up for using this thread as a support / check in / pick me up?

I've made the decision not to tell any friends and family about my journey this time because as soon as I do people start jumping on my bandwagon and start relying on me and whinging to me and it's something I know I can't deal with this time. This is why a thread like this would be perfect as we are complete strangers in the same boat.

My family have been serial dieters for 30 years As soon as any of them catch wind I'm doing any kind of weight loss they want in too and Facebook chats get set up and I suddenly feel on display and pressured and when it goes wrong I get incredibly embarrassed and ashamed and the cycle begins again. Also, as I've been battling this for years I'm quite knowledgeable about stuff and I get asked questions and advice all day everyday and I end up getting overwhelmed.

So ...

Start weight : 14 stone 12.5
First Goal : 12 stone
Ultimate goal : 9 stone , maybe a bit under.
Height : 5ft 3.

[ExplodingCarrots]

@MsJuniper @HowLongCanICallitBabyWeight
@Whymustyoubringinthebirds

Well done everyone ! Slow and steady wins the race I find. Enjoy your treats and don't beat yourself up when you have a bad week. Just making small changes at first works.

I'm one month in and feel much better. I decided to try the scales and I've lost 8lb so I'm happy about that. I'm feeling fitter too. If I continue to lose 2 lb per week up until my best friends wedding in March I can lose over 5 stone. That would be amazing.

[Whymustyoubringinthebirds]

OK so I'm back at it after a week off which was meant to be our holiday
Feeling more motivated than ever could definitely feel the difference by the end of the week as to how much better I felt when I was eating better
Also started this morning with my positive planner and mediation, just trying to focus in on me and set myself up every day

[HowLongCanICallitBabyWeight]

DH asked on Saturday if I'd lost weight so that was a nice little boost, I'm not sure he can actually see it, I can't but he knows I've been trying I'm not rigidly calorie counting yet but know I'll have to at some point. When I lost a lot of weight before it was a couple of pounds a week, it feels like it takes forever but I did then keep it off for years until I had DS, whereas before I yoyoed. I try and think long term maths , two pounds a week doesn't feel much BUT multiply that and by Christmas it would be nearly four and a half stone!

[HowLongCanICallitBabyWeight]

Sorry it's been a couple of weeks my grandfather is very unwell and DS has 4 new ten coming through, so life has been hectic. I've not weighed until yesterday partly I forgot and partly I find it demotivating if I see no change (and I had a big Chinese on my birthday....), It's been 3 weeks and I've lost 7.5 pounds, just be making healthier choices not binge eating crap and walking more. We met my dad yesterday at a local country park and walked 8.5 miles, I ache today but feel good for it.

[MsJuniper]

I just weighed myself and just half a lb off in a week. 5.5lbs off since 20th May and 3 of those were in the first week.

Apart from one day mid-period when I had a bag of crisps and some crackers, I have kept to 1200cals/day - measuring milk, weighing veg, logging everything on MFP. So hungry and so dejected that there is not more to show for almost a month's diet. This is the first time post-40 that I have seriously tried to lose weight but I hadn't realised how much harder it would be.

I have some lighter life stuff in the cupboard which I haven't used yet so I will try having some VLC days. I'm also not moving much as working FT from home and knackered in the evening so will try and get out for a walk each day.

Hope everyone else is having better success!

[ExplodingCarrots]

Hey

I'm still here , plodding along. DH says he's seeing big changes in me but I'm refusing to get on the scales.

In other news, we've just found out DH is intolerant to gluten, milk, some nuts and egg. He's cut it all out already and feels like a new person. I'm happy he feels better BUT I'm the cook in the house and it's proving to be a nightmare cooking at the moment . I don't want to end up making different meals all the time but I don't want to be restricted either. I know I sound selfish .

Sorry for the whinge !

Hope everyone has a lovely weekend.

[Whymustyoubringinthebirds]

Not been about really, I'm on 'holiday' this week and totally off the wagon

[ExplodingCarrots]

Welcome @SilkandSandwiches ! That sounds like a good plan to start. A few of us here have done couch to 5k or are doing it now. Eating less and moving more is the key .

I've been quiet here but still on track. It's been nearly a month since I started. I'm still not touching the scales but I do feel a lot better both physically and mentally. I've even started a journal writing down what I've done and my thoughts of the day.

I've also bought some smaller size bikinis for our holiday next year as motivation.

[SilkandSandwiches]

May I join in please?

I weighed myself yesterday , and measured myself, for the first time in ages. I knew I had put on weight, but thought I was about 13.5 stone.

I am 15 stone. My waist is 35 inches, and my hips 49. I have never been this fat.

I want to lose weight to wear my nice clothes (this year I have been wearing about four different outfits only). I want to be able to run around again. And I want to be healthier. My goal is 10 stone.

My diet is rubbish and I don't do any expertise, so lots of room for improvement! My plan is to meal plan (and stick to my shopping lists!) and start couch to 5k, and see how that goes before I start adding in more exercise.

[MsJuniper]

Well done Bells! It is such a good feeling to pass those milestones isn't it.

I am planning much better this week. I had got into the habit of having quite a carby lunch so I'm trying some alternatives.

[Bells3032]

Yippee. Only lost half an lb this week but its pushed me into the next weight bracket (14 stoners yay)!! Another quatre of a lb an I will be the lowest weight I've been since 2015!!!! Yay!!!!

[MsJuniper]

I have been feeling quite down as this is the slowest I've ever lost weight. I thought going down to 1200 calories was really going to have an impact but it is has been very slow. I guess the lack of activity as I am stuck in working most of the time hasn't helped, and perhaps age too.

Anyway after several days of my weight either seeming to stay the same or even go up, I recorded a 1lb loss today. I've lost 5lbs so far in 2.5 weeks - much less than some of you.

I'm trying to cut down on carbohydrates as I am usually coming in quite high on those. We eat mostly veggie plus a couple of days fish so it is hard to low carb. Soup is probably the way forward but I am struggling with hunger and tiredness.

[CelloBello]

So, I'm just coming to the end of my second week and I'm feeling good. I've lost 11 pounds so far and can definitely feel it, so I'm very happy.

I had a bit of a treat - a double decker bacon sandwich for dinner but I hope I worked off the calories as I went on a looooong walk today - 15000 steps

[ExplodingCarrots]

Well done @melissasummerfield that is awesome !!

@Speminalium Don't beat yourself up about it. You probably havnt done as much damage as you thought. I highly recommend checking out Team RH on facebook. They do videos explaining how you havnt blown it when you have a binge. Draw a line under it and forget it. I used to have a 'fuck it' attitude when I thought I'd blown it. I agree with @RooKangaroo , when I've managed to get past that one treat and carry on being good I've seen it as a huge win.

[Speminalium]

Wow @melissasummerfield go you! What an amazing start!

@RooKangaroo thank you so much. Your words mean a lot. Tomorrow, or even this evening is a fresh start. You have lost so much, and clearly learnt a lot congratulations.

[RooKangaroo]

..... which really resonates with me. To keep the weight off (and lose more!) I can't be perfect every meal and everyday. My perfect needs to be that I keep on trying and don't get derailed too easily.

[RooKangaroo]

@Speminalium, I think your approach sounds very healthy and sensible.

I'm six months into my 'lose-six-stone+' journey, and down almost five stone so far. My 'fuck-it' button is still a problem and I struggle with it a lot. I try to allow myself treats and days off-plan a little, but once I've started a treat or off-plan day, I just want to go crazy and binge everything. My mental state around food is very all-or-nothing, and that's just not sustainable long-term. I know that I need to not see those days as cheats, but as part of an overall healthy way of eating and living.

Every time I eat something off-plan and manage to pick it back up at the next meal or the next day, I try to see it as a huge psychological win.

There was a long-running series of threads here about people losing 100lb+, which I've read (and very highly recommend as they're a great read and so motivating). One of the users had a saying that an year is 365 opportunities',

[melissasummerfield]

I lost 8lb in my first two weeks! Really happy but fully expect it to be less on the next fortnightly weigh, as long as its 2lb per week i will be happy!

Have a great weekend everyone

[Speminalium]

Oh dear, I just had a run in with the chocolate brownies I'm baking for a friend who's just had some very sad news. Not like half the tray but still more than I'd intended to eat (I.e. none!) I think the thing to do is to note my mistake, forgive myself and move on but there's always a bit of fear that the food is in charge. Does that sound daft? This time I am all about picking myself up, dusting myself off and starting again. I only fail if I stop trying. Any words of wisdom?

[ExplodingCarrots]

Well done @smartiecake !

I don't know if this is a NSV but I've had a look at my resting heart rate on Fitbit and it's gradually gone down over 30 days. Used to be between 81-86 and now it's 76-74. I can assume it's because I've been exercising everyday and I'm getting a bit fitter?? I hope so.

[hellotoday27]

Thank you all. Always easiest to lose in the first week.
Well done @Speminalium

I'm trying the diet where you only eat for certain hours a day. So not eating until 4pm which on lockdown seems to be going ok. I have one main meal a day, but I'm eating with the family. I find it really hard to be cooking for everybody else and then making my own food so would rather just cook one reasonable healthy meal for everybody.
Looking for a change in habits that may work long term and I think not eating earlier in the day may work. I don't like to go to bed hungry!

[smartiecake]

I'm 2lb down today so I'm happy with that. I'm managing 1500cals a day on MFP.
@hellotoday27 thats brilliant!

[missingmum]

@ExplodingCarrots my nn from long suffering dh is Duncan, remember the little man in the lurpack advert who blows the trumpet? That's me 🤣 your menu sounds delicious

Been ok so far not quite managed 1200 but not far off at 1368 today I'm aiming for a substantial loss Monday

@hellotoday27 amazing that's almost half a stone!

Keep going everyone I love reading this thread for motivation

[ExplodingCarrots]

@Speminalium well done ! You're doing great!

[Whymustyoubringinthebirds]

Well done everyone on the weight loss!!

I've just finished my cardio session and I am feeling great!

Got a big strength workout tomorrow and then I'll try and fit some long walks in at the weekend