A stone or less to lose

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Anyone looking for the magic stone more or less? I’m furious with myself and in a slight panic here. I had a fantastic weight loss last summer - June, July and August I lost 20lb and felt bloody brilliant. Stalled in September but kept it off until Jan then the last lockdown got to me and I have regained 7lb. Now, I know thats not loads but it puts my lovely big loss last summer back quite a bit and I can feel the inches going back on. It’s such a shame because I felt amazing slimmer and very proud of myself for shifting the pounds I’d been holding on to since my last baby (cough...three years ago!).

For context: I was 11st 9, I got to 10st 3 and am back up to 10st 10. My initial goal, which I never quite managed was 9st 12. I’d love to get there this time.

The burst of glorious weather today made me feel I want to BE slim this summer rather than “slimming” this summer. I want to do it now and not wait for the heatwave to kill my appetite

Anyone else want to shift up to a stone now and not wait until two weeks before their holiday...what holiday???

A great app for anyone trying to squeeze in short burst of exercise is Blogilates by Cassey Ho. It’s free to download and you can skip the registration part and still access lots of videos. You can filter the workouts to the time you have available - I do almost exclusively 10 mins! Also possible to filter to cardio/arms/bum/legs etc She’s very Californian and “up” but I like her. She used to be known for pilates but offers everything now.

And you don’t need any space to move. I usually do them in my bedroom before a shower.

Oh heyyyy! I'm currently 11 bang on and I was 10.2 at beginning of lockdown... HELP !!! I have 0 motivation and 0 sleep so where on earth do I find the beans my kids have to get fit again???

The trouble is with exercise, you don't really shift any weight, you just change fat into muscle. Great for health and fitness, not so great for weight loss though.

The quickest way to lose weight is to restrict your calories intake. It really is that simple. I saw someone mention restricting themselves to 1200 calories a day, but it's so easy to go lower and see a quicker weight loss, and more motivating I think when you see a difference within a couple of days rather than a week.

I agree about diet vs excercise, it's what you eat what counts, apparently 80% food, 20% excercise, although obviously excercise is great for toning and changing body shape (as well as the other benefits).
some days I've eaten so little I couldn't actually do a workout anyway! I mostly do about 6000 steps and that's enough for me.

but yes totally agree with pp's saying age makes weight loss harder, I lost about 2 stone a couple of years ago much more easily than I'm finding it now, I just did 5 2 and now I have changed and do more like 4:3. bit depressing.
I've plateaued due to Easter holidays but am still plugging away, not worrying about the fluctuations or goals. I do a daily weigh-in though so I can compare week on week, weirdly it helps me not get too hung up on being 200g heavier than I thought or whatever, as there's always tomorrow....

@Whatwouldnanado I'm also 53. My periods stopped over 3 years ago so I feel that I've come out the other side.

As for the impact of exercise on weight loss - zero! I have just listened to a few podcasts on the treadmill (lol) and the message was very clear. One was a metabolism expert on Deliciously Ella podcast, worth a listen. I'm really active but I feel like I am living proof that it makes no difference.

Also, the quality of the food you eat is more important than the number of calories, since it is extremely difficult to be accurate about the number of calories that your body is actually using.

Can I join please?
Another menopausal runner here, wanting to lose 2 or 3kg. It's definitely what you eat and not so much exercise that helps with weight loss. I run 50 miles a week, plus cycling and walking but can still put on weight.
I'm really keen to start eating to feed my gut micro biome better, so more veggies, legumes and fermented food. I cook everything from scratch anyway, just need to make more effort to eat more veggies. Dr Joanna Macmillan's free podcasts on Audible have been very helpful. Before I used to be in favour of low carb diets but fibre from whole grains is very important for a healthy gut so I won't be going low carb this time. Am hoping some weight loss will happen too!

I try to remind myself that general fitness is important as we age. I do body weight exercises and lift weights (not very heavy, but I intend to invest in more eventually) to keep my bones strong. I also think I get fewer back aches and twinges when I’m fitter. And anything I can do to keep my arse from dropping to the floor is a help!

In my younger days I believed exercise helped me lose weight. In my 40s I realise it’s ALL about the food. Sadly!

Hi all, hope you are making progress. 4 days of getting back into the swing of things and about 1/2 kg gone, so know what I need to do.

Oh the joys of the privilege that is getting older! Really impressed with the amount of exercise others are putting in. I do an hour's yoga two or three times a week and go for a hike with our kids at the weekend if it's not raining. Doing sets of crunches, sun salutations during the day now. I've never been one for sitting about, barely drink alcohol, don't do pudding apart from maybe fruit, yoghurt in the week and tend to snack on fruit more than anything and always cook from scratch but just don't seem to be able to eat as much as I used to without it sticking to my belly! Cheese is my weakness so I have bought cottage cheese to which I'll mix a bit of grated cheddar to have with salad. I love chocolate but will try and stick to having a bit at weekends. So interesting about the gut health aspect of things. I buy the live M&S yoghurt, should I get a probiotic supplement too? I take Menopace Max which helps hugely with the sweats and low mood I was having.

I'd like to join please - have 13 pounds to lose to get back to my target weight of 11 stone.
For some reason anything less is just unattainable for me at 44 and 5'6". Not sure why as for lots of people this is still heavy but for me being 10 stone when I got married at 35 years old was a humungous effort and I looked too thin.

Can i join please? I'm 5'2 and currently weigh 9st 4lb and my happy weight is 8st 10lb. I've lost 4lbs already by following a low carb diet but i need to up my exercise and water intake (and stop cheat days at the weekend). Would love to reach my happy weight by June.

So interesting about the gut health aspect of things. I buy the live M&S yoghurt, should I get a probiotic supplement too?

Not sure if having a healthy gut helps with the menopause or not. Prebiotic foods are as good as probiotics for helping a healthy gut, so eating onions, garlic, chick peas, whole grains, broccoli, nuts etc. will help in general. Apparently a good gut helps mental as well as physical health 🙂

Hi all, hope you survived the Monday

Welcome @missfliss and @Crimbles

I've closed my eating window after 7 hours and will do some yoga tonight.

Does anyone want to share any recipes or meal planning that they've enjoyed?

I made this soup and had it for lunch yesterday and today with a slice of rye bread.
pinchofyum.com/healing-chicken-and-rice-soup

@YetAnotherWalk DH changed his job recently and was given an Instant Pot as a leaving present (I suspect he used to tell them all about the amazing chicken curry he makes, but I can't comment as I'm plant based!) It has helped to make some lovely soups and curries really quickly and with minimal attention once it's on.

Ah that's good annabell. I don't have one. Is it a lot of faff to cook separate meals? I get annoyed enough at adjustments I need to make for fussy kids, so can't imagine cooking two completely different meals.

Struggling today as feeling utterly shattered and quite a full on day... and no time for yoga today!

@YetAnotherWalk a good point - there are just two of us, but there is very little overlap in what we eat! If I make a veg curry, for example, he might have some of it as a side dish with his chicken curry or eat some for lunch. I usually make enough for four portions and put the rest in the fridge or freezer, so it helps to be able to microwave my meal to avoid kitchen overcrowding at dinner time.

We eat mostly the same, so nights feed the child/ren something different dependent but I know DH would eat more spice and seafood if we weren't around.

Guess if it works for you!

I've finished tea and brushed my teeth - not a great day, but tomorrow is a new day!

One week done and I have lost 5lbs

Starting weight 11st 10lbs

Today weight 10st 10lbs

Which I'm delighted with!

I’ve gone from a size 6 to a size 12 in trousers over the past year and a half. Mostly thanks to medication but also due to not moving as much and developing a bigger appetite.
I’m only 5’1 and I’m just over 9 stone. I would like to get to 8 which is still 2 stone over my starting weight. I was too thin before but have gone from one extreme to the other.

I have no idea how to cut calories but I’m thinking about doing 18:6 which would work well with my shifts and I’m mostly low carb and vegetarian thanks to intolerances etc. The only thing I struggle with is not having that first cup of tea in the morning while fasting.

I might look at fast 800.

I do try to work out 4+ times a week although sometimes that’s just a 4 mile walk although sometimes an hour of hitt.

@Reinventinganna how early do you need your tea in the morning? If you're fasting for 12 hours (for the Fast 800) then all you need to do is avoid an evening snack. We have dinner around 6pm so we can start at 6 the next morning if we want to.

@Reinventinganna
You can drink tea when you fast, I do 18:8 everyday but always have a cup of tea when I get up. I have it black no sugar but a lot of people do a cheat fast with skimmed milk in tea or coffee.

@samthebordercollie and @musicalfrog thank you! That makes much more sense! I feel slightly silly now

Well done @nodtik!

16:8 with a morning cup of tea or two should be fine @Reinventinganna

Plan for today - a walk, eat sensibly, lots of water, 8hr window and a yoga video.

I’ve lost 3lb in total since I started taking my weight seriously again! I am fasting 16:8 but it’s generally more like 18:6. I’ve cut right back down on the biscuits and chocolate and upped the veg and water.

Fingers crossed I’ll be under 10st soon!