5 stone 26 weeks - Anyhow that works for you

[stillplentyofjunkinthetrunk]

If you have a bit more to lose and will be doing this for a while and want a nice supportive crowd to hang out with while you're at it this might be the thread for you.

Hi all
Hopefully we are all managing to get through the Easter bh without too many indulgences.
Weigh in day for me on Monday and not expecting much as currently on antibiotics and steroids .
In a way they are a blessing because I'm determined to lessen any gain so have been super vigilant with not having any Easter goodies thus far.
Fingers crossed !

Hi mind if I join in?

I'm aiming for a lb a week and will be calorie counting/ 5:2. Though, disclaimer I won't be giving it 100% til after the school holidays!

Feeling pretty positive though, after years of being my own worst enemy I have realised I need to get myself sorted, I start a new job as the schools go back so planning to really work on it and see results.

Welcome @Bunnyjo @Nelephant @MooFroo !

I am IMPATIENT!!!

Saw 200lb on the scales this morning, hopefully by Monday weigh in I'll be in One-derland for the first time in a long time.

And only 3 lb off leaving the obese category.

@FlabMonsterIsDietingAgain I am IMPATIENT!!! soo relatable, I've been good I want my results now!

Hi there and welcome @Nelephant 1lb a week is a totally sane and sensible amount to aim for, I found I had that many bad habits that I totally need to calorie count in order to successfully create the calorie deficit I'm aiming for.

hi @Bunnyjo and welcome, I find the thread really helpful and I hope you do too. I noticed this Exercising is difficult as I require knee surgery in your comment and I thought I'd share a personal perspective. I think a lot of people are discouraged from weight loss by believing they need to do loads of exercise in order to lose weight and you don't (necessarily). What you need is a calorie deficit based on an average height woman your age with a sedentary / light exercise lifestyle your total daily energy expenditure would be 1900/2100

eating 1300/1500 would give between a 400 - 800 calorie deficit a day
eating 1000 would give 900 - 1100 calorie defit a day

expected loss 1.3lb a week to 2.4lb a week

Possibly controversially don't be afraid to focus on getting your diet on track first after a month or two and you've lost a stone or two stepping up to longer more frequent walks will feel much easier natural and enjoyable I think.

Hi @MooFroo and welcome, well done on your weight loss so far. We love a spreadsheet round here, I love mine and find them super useful for revealing the trend so you can see whether what you're doing is (or is not) having the desired effect.

I have some experience with controlling blood sugar through diet in type 2 diabetes dh long term average blood sugar has dropped from 88 to 68 to 49 over the last 6 months ( 20 - 40 is normal) and I can give more details of what we eat if you want them. But basically low sugar food is the absolute key here, keep it under 30g a day. You want low carbs (under 40% of total calories) and VERY low sugar. It's weird but the less you eat sugar and carbs the less you want it and the sweeter other food tastes.

All the best

@Bunnyjo I’m just adding support to what @stillplentyofjunkinthetrunk said about exercise. The old adage “you can’t out-exercise a bad diet” is so true.

Focus on the weight loss and then work on fitness and exercise as you get more comfortable.

For me, it’s been 99.9% diet and I’ve found I’ve become naturally more energetic as the weight comes down. I try and focus on movement and stamina for things like standing (as in, standing for as long as possible rather than sitting at every opportunity) rather than actual exercise. I figure that once I’m in a better way weight-wise, I’ll focus on my fitness much more.

@stillplentyofjunkinthetrunk thanks so much! yes pls any advice and info would be Great
I don’t actually know what my numbers are - drs said I’m at 50 so am diabetic but not really given me much support other than lose weight and make lifestyle changes 🥴

Google is a minefield and I’m so confused with what’s good for diabetics with high blood pressure so any personal experience would be great!

I’m making changes like having boiled eggs for breakfast, more green tea, a lot less junk / lot less carbs but opens it still too many?

@MooFroo I had Gestational Diabetes and have insulin resistant PCOS.

Check out diet advice and recipes on diabetes.co.uk

Basic principles

• complex not simple carbs are better so dark rye bread rather than white
• pair carbs with protein so if you want an apple have some peanut butter on it, toast with egg etc
• aim for a solid 8-10 hrs with no carbs/sugars at all, so stop snacking at 8pm and only water/herbal teas/black coffee etc
• high protein and high fat foods are filling and don't raise sugar levels. Go for full fat versions of things like yoghurts, milk etc as less carb content.
• keep a food diary and if you have one take your sugar readings as recommended by medical professional and take note of what foods are causing raised levels. My very worst reading was after a muller light yoghurt. Turns out they're low fat but HIGH sugar.
• switch out your sides, instead of pasta/potatoes/rice, have greenbeans/asparagus/babycorn/broccoli/mushrooms. You can roast them with chilli or garlic oil, steam them in the microwave and add a knob of butter, or whatever you like. I do this while DH and DD have regular carby sides. Veg grown above ground is generally lower in carb content than veg grown below ground.
• a 20 minute walk after eating really helps your body process the sugar

@FlabMonsterIsDietingAgain Thank you so much for sharing this, very helpful.
ive got a walking pad so started to use that to get in some steps but need to be consistent with it.

Have switched to green tea and peppermint in evenings and ditched the sugary treats that I ‘had to have’ after dinner so that’s a good start.

I need to start tracking - doctors were quite dismissive of home readings so haven’t really explained how to use them. Will get googling!

How are we all surviving Easter?

I’m firmly in the “if I don’t buy it, I can’t eat it” camp so didn’t buy any chocolate. Lucky that my husband isn’t fussed about sweet stuff so he’s not missing out- I’m making him a roast later.

Easter has not been good for my willpower! 😭 way too many hot cross buns and big family meals since Friday. I have managed to avoid chocolate, but the huge roast followed by apple crumble and custard is not going to bode well for tomorrow's weigh-in! Hey-ho, I will face the music tomorrow and try and get back on track!

No chocolate here either @BusinessSecretsOfThePharaoh and managed to stay on track today, we did have roast but I just had one chicken drumstick, a few little potatoes and lots of the veg so have been able to stay in calorie count. Weigh in tomorrow for me too @Bumblebeebum23 I'm thinking if I've done well I might treat myself to a cream egg sized thing, hopefully we still have some of the Oreo ones in the cupboard.

first easter in living memory where I haven't had an easter egg but I did have a cream egg yesterday which felt a most reasonable substitute.

happy easter everyone

sample weekly menu including carbs and sugar @MooFroo

thank you @stillplentyofjunkinthetrunk, appreciate it xx
daily weigh in showed a 1 loss today so I’m at 200lbs - I’m starting ‘officially’ tomorrow and getting the bike out of garage this week once we’ve cleared some space!

Had baked sweet potatoes with chicken today - no cheese or mayo, the family had normal jacket potatoes. DD cooked dinner and I’ve made them aware of me needing to eat differently and they’re being v supportive

did some little things today like moving feet and arms while sitting on the sofa after dinner and walked around the room while watching evening telly - normally peak chocolate eating time!

think it’s kicking in this time how important the big and all the little things we can do are so need to stay focussed.

SW - 1st Jan - 225 lb (16 st 1 lb - BMI 34.2)

WC 8th Jan - 220 lb
WC 15th Jan - 217 lb
WC 22nd Jan - 216 lb
WC 29th Jan - 213 lb
WC 5th Feb - 211 lb
WC 12th Feb - 210 lb
WC 19th Feb - 207 lb
WC 26th Feb - 212 lb
WC 4th Mar - 207 lb
WC 11th Mar - 205 lb
WC 18th Mar - 205 lb
WC 25th Mar - 201 lb
WC 1st Apr - 200 lb (14 st 4lb - BMI 30.4)

Total Loss - 25 lb (11% bodyweight)

So Monday weigh-in is not as bad as it could have been. I have pretty much stayed the same since last Monday....12st 5lbs. I was down to 12st 4lb on Thursday, but considering the bank holiday weekend has been off plan, I'm not complaining.

2 weeks off work and school now, so I'm going to try and stay as sensible as possible around lots of social meet-ups/family visits. I am off to London for the day with my boys tomorrow, so it should be a good step count 🚶‍♂️

Weigh in day .
Started 11/02/ 24
SW 16st 1.5lb
CW 14st 9 lb
Lost 20lb

ok weight today is 113.8kg
I do weigh 2kg less than I did 4 weeks ago so I think I have been burning fat but just at a slower rate. Need to try and focus over the next week.

Well, not a great week, but considering it's involved a massive roast and an easter buffet... it could've been a lot worse. Have avoided chocolate and have stuck to one meal a day... but the meals have been rather larger this week. Next week I'm going to Italy for a couple of days too...

My Monday weigh in -

Start weight 21st
Current weight 18st 8lb
Goal weight 11st
First target 17st

Lost 1lb this week
34lb total loss.

well done @Scrabblingaround you've clearly been pretty disciplined.

Today I had a small piece of carrot cake and a chocolate biscuit and to some extent feel like a massive failure but otoh I went to the gym and I'm still under maintainence calories so I'm trying to stay positive. Persistence and patience will get you through everytime.

Too many hot cross buns and roast potatoes for me, but I still lost 2.5kg in March, and am continuing to lose this week now I'm back on normal food!

SW: 95.5kg
CW: 86.7kg
GW: 75kg

ok need a bit of a hand hold for the upcoming holiday season. I needed new swimwear so today though I bought a size 20 bikini because it fits me perfectly and has really nice support for my boobs but omg there's so little of it and so much of me that isn't inside the bikini. It's definately better but it does feel a bit like I'm just in my underwear talk to me about ettiquette and coverups etc.