Struggling to know where to start.

[Someonesayroadtrip]

So I'm obese and need to shift some weight. I thought to myself, sure this is easy enough, so I downloaded the my fitnesses pal and started walking with some yoga. I've been really strict with myself and watched loads of YouTube videos and googled to try and figure out what's best, but I'm finding all the information very contradictory.

So I have been on my "weight loss journey" for 10 days or do. I lost 1.5kgs quite quickly the forest few days and now it's not moving. I lost some weight on my breast and arms but gained some on my thighs 🙈

I have been calorie counting and eating between 1000-1200 calories per day. So it's very frustrating that I'm not losing quicker especially this early on. Been upping my water intake, trying to stay very active, and taking vitamins etc, making sure my veg intake is 2/3 of my diet etc.

I'm not into things like weight watchers or diet fads, I've done juice fast before and I did lose a lot and maintain it for awhile but it's just a lot of work and I don't actually think it's the best long term.

Any advice or companionship on this journey would be welcome.

Absolutely - it has to be something that works for you. Not silly at all.

Though I still think you should be giving up those pesky carbs

@BIWI haha! Thanks, I think your right but I'm just not there mentally yet. What do you eat when you go out?

Anything and everything! Granted, pizza restaurants are difficult, but elsewhere there's always something I can eat.

And I've never been to any restaurant where they haven't been prepared to swap something for me - so vegetables or salad instead of chips, for example.

It's actually (generally) a lot easier to eat out low carbing than it is if you're trying to keep your fat or calories low.

Hmmm you're slowly winning we around. So I take it your still calorie restrict too though

Nope. Absolutely no calorie counting (or carb counting for that matter) on Bootcamp. The whole idea of it is that it's about enjoying our food.

One of the key side effects of low carbing is that it suppresses your appetite. So you can enjoy lovely food (butter, cream, cheese, olive oil ...) and not be hungry.

(I feel a bit like the Pied Piper now!)

Your appetite is already suppressed, isn't it, OP? If you're forgetting to eat until 5pm when you feel ill?

I'd suggest meal prep. So you don't have to cook too much. Find a meal you like that won't bust your calorie limit (the calorie limit being the key to the whole thing), and make a huge batch. Portion it into tupperware, fridge 2, freeze the rest. Every time you take one out of the fridge, replace it with one from the freezer.

And, if you have some fruit for breakfast, it'll remind your digestive system to look alive, so you'll want to eat a bit more consistently throughout the day.

And you don't have to go low carb. Work out your TDEE (you can do this online, with a quick google and your weight and measurements), then eat less than this consistently. Your weight will drop at a rate commensurate with how much less you're eating.

As your weight drops, recalculate, because your TDEE will change as you go.

Thanks. Sounds like a great plan

Ok, thanks everyone. So I'm kind of doing a combination of different things. I might as well do the 16:8 as that really suits me really well as I don't tend to eat out of those hours normally, but change it to 1-8 so that I don't snack or eat too late, which is definitely a downfall for me.

I will also combine with the 5:2 as I can easily accomplish this the way I skip meals anyway.

I will also significantly reduce my carbs, I'll aim for no carbs but I know I'll not be able to cut them all out and that's ok for me. Maybe as them goes on and I'm used to not having them it will be easier.

I will meal plan. Particularly my evening meals but I'll make some veg soup and freeze for lunch.

I will also monitor my calorie intake and keep this as low as I can but aim to keep it above 1000 on non-fast days.

I think you'd be in danger of doing too much by trying to combine a lot of systems there. Choose one & stick to it. Sure if you choose a fasting diet you can be careful & not overeat the other times but 16:8 & 5:2 is too excessive id say, (though I'm no expert!)

@buckeejit 5:2 works for lots of people. The eating pattern on the non fasting days doesn't matter, so if the 16:8 pattern works according to OP's previous habits, changing it would be more effort than sticking to it.

Don't aim for no carbs! That would mean you're not eating any vegetables or salad.

Essentially what you're moving towards is the Fast800 diet, which is worth reading more about. website here

I think it's doable, there are obviously going to be wobbles but I think it can work. Yeah when I say no carb, no simple carbs, I've taken all bread, pasta and potatoes away.

Weight has started reducing again, I find it hard to stay physically active all day, I have to home school the children and that is difficult standing when we have to use iPads all day. But I am doing a 20 minute power walk in the morning (before husband goes to work), 10 minute yoga in the day and a 30/40 minute walk in the evening/late afternoon.

I need to figure out some high intensity exercise but it's difficult to fit in with children around and I'm sore already.

I've ordered food (hooray for food ordering again) and have a Gousto box coming today.

Hi OP I just caught up with this thread and I can see you've had some great advice.

I just thought I might give a tip of what my DP does to try and reduce his intake of pasta/potatoes and so on when we are also catering for the kids. He will make himself a huge batch of salad (literally takes 10mins) and store it in the fridge and whenever we have lunch/dinner and it might be something like spag Bol etc so the DCs eat it too he will make sure half of his plate is the salad and about 1/4 is the other food.
Helps to keep him full and avoids having too much of the pastas and so on. The salad lasts about 3 days.

@overweightcat I should do that with salad really too. All I ever put in is leaves, red onion & tomatoes. Not a fan of cucumber but would like some other additions. Definitely easy if stuff needs no prep.

How come you're 'sore already'? Is it from exercise? Be careful not to overdo it. That's important in terms of injury, and in terms of blood pressure, if you're starting from scratch with exercise. Moving about is good if you have muscle soreness from exercise, but not high intensity stuff. Wait until the soreness of the previous session has worn off. 'Don't exercise a sore muscle'.

Stretching after exercise will minimise recovery time, as will a good level of protein in your diet. Also, once your muscles are used to it, they will ache less. The good news is, the soreness in the 2-3 days after exercise is the ffeling of muscles repairing themselves. That's what burns extra calories. What you feel is the fat burning away, in essence!

You need enough food to fuel a fire and lose
Personally I always calorie count, works for me, eat carbs just less of them.
Try and eat regularly, relax and enjoy

Sounds like very low calories overall. Fair enough if you think you can do it but most people wouldn’t be able to keep it up. Why not go for a higher daily calorie count like 1700 or 1800 which you would still lose on if you are currently obese.

There us no need to cut carbs, just eat less of them, even pitta makes nice toast

You need enough food to fuel a fire and lose

What do you mean?

Thanks everyone. Kind of finding my way now.

I have done the salad thing and will make up a bag as that's excellent advice.

I have not eliminated carbs, but I have reduced them. Weight seems to be reducing steadily now.

Yes, I saw sore from sit ups etc which I have never really done. And power walking/jogging, but feeling much better now.

Feel like I have a better grip of what I can eat and allowing myself things like cheese (as long as it fits with my calorie count).

You body needs enough calories to begin to lose, a common known fact.
Otherwise your body tends to hold on to the fat, hence some say I hardly eat anything ( if they do), don’t achieve.
Always amazed how much I can eat when losing, tho I hsve s roughly daily plan

'A common know fact' where?!

If a person stops eating, they lose weight. You're talking rubbish, @Nsky

Eckhart most people can’t sustain a very low calories diet for very long, making failure almost inevitable. You might also want to look into the scientific research on former contestants on the Biggest Loser whose metabolism has been severely affected by such a restrictive diet and now find it impossible to lose weight. Nearly all diets fail (the stats are pretty dire) so doing something where you eat very little food means that you’re not giving yourself a chance to succeed on it.

OP, I have been eating between 1700 and 1800 calories for 10 weeks and have lost 20 pounds so far. No fasting, low carb or anything. My exercise is alternate walking and jogging plus a bit of yoga. I was obese with a BMI of 32.7 and am no longer in the obese category. I have about a stone and 10 lb to go but I am pleased with my slow and steady results. There’s no way I’d have been able to do 10 weeks on something like you’re planning. Just not possible for so many and especially not people who are starting off from obese who already are likely to have an issue with hunger and portion control.