A stone to loose

[thelaststone]

Hi all,

I'd like to loose about a stone ( 6kgs) by the end of February to finally get back to my pre covid weight.

So I've got 4 months so I'd like to aim for an easy 3.5lbs (1.65kg) a month or just under a pound a week.

I know all the basics, drink water, avoid carbs and sugar, try to eat lean protein and veg, try to be more active etc, but a part from that I'm a bit stuck.

I'm not very active at the moment but do try to make 10k steps a day ( even though I probably only hit that goal 4 times a week.) I go to the gym once a week.

I'm chained to a desk job and have quite a stressful period coming up at the office.

My main pitfalls are a cocktail or two a couple of evenings a week and cheese.

If anyone else is in the same boat I'd love to have some company and tips and encouragement.

I finally managed to lose 3 stones last year at a similar rate and have, so far, kept it off. What helped me were (i) reducing to two meals a day and not eating until lunchtime (ii) bbc good food website with all recipes calorie counted. I wasn't obsessive about counting calories but it gave me loads of ideas for interesting, tasty things that were easy to make and I couldn't kid myself so easily about calories. Good luck!

Thanks @Ramblethroughthebrambles
I think I need to start by tracking what I actually eat/drink everyday. I'll try not eating until lunch and see if that helps. I've not lost anything for the last month so I'm starting to feel a little discouraged. I'm not sure how much under my BMR I should be eating to loose either.

@thelaststone I think you can probably Google that. How many calories you need to lose 1lb a week, 2lb or maintain, etc.
Your target is realistic anyway.
What do you weigh now ? ( no worries if you don't want to share).
I'm in a similar position - I aim for a pound a week. But some months, it's just a 2lb loss. Or nothing.
I've been away a lot this year but I'm ready to knuckle down, get back on it.
You can check in with me via your post. I'll support you.
( oh, I'm 5ft 7, 13st. 58 years old if that's applicable !).
Target 12st.

@thelaststone yes, look for calorie calculator. Mine says to lose 1lb a week, I need 1800 cals. To lose 2lb, 1300.
1800 it is !

Thanks @Viavita I can find the calculators online - I always just have an issue working out if I'm sedentary or mildly active!

I'm 35 (but already in menopause - medically induced). I'm 1m68 ( 5ft6) and 61kg (9st9).

I want to get down to 55/56kg - I was 53 pre covid but I don't see that happening!

Ah well @thelaststone you can only do your best.
Stay positive and focussed and I'm sure you'll get there.

Do you weigh at home?
And what day ?
My scales are dead so I'll just weigh at boots, but it'll probably be next week now. Possibly Monday.

Thanks @Viavita !
I weigh at home normally Monday mornings too.

@thelaststone , I have a ( cunning ) plan 🤣

I'm going to weigh myself on Monday 28th October and every Monday up til Xmas (8 weigh ins, last one being 23rd December 🎄).
I'm aiming for a pound a week.
When I weigh on Monday, I may be more than 13st, but it's ok. I'll take it on the chin (s).

Target by Xmas 2024 - 12st 7.
I'm going away in February 2025, and I'm always an angel in January, so 🎯 is 12st 5, which is realistic and achievable.

So it's Monday morning and I just weighed myself

Starting Weight 61kg (134.5lbs or 9st8.5)
Current Weight 59.9kg (132 lbs or 9st6)

So I've lost just over 1kg or 2.5lbs this week.

I'm really happy with that as it's more that I expected but I've been being quite strict with myself for a month and hadn't lost a gram so maybe it's just a big woosh.

We'll see what this week brings.

@Ramblethroughthebrambles Thank you - I switched to 2 meals a day and that seems to have helped.

@Viavita How are you getting along?

@thelaststone well done, that's a great start.
I weigh myself today but it's a 45 minute walk. I'll check in later this morning.

Hi. I would like to join you. I'm a teacher who moved schools and roles in September and have piled on the weight. I'm on half term this week so it is a good time for me to start and get my head in the game. I would love to lose 3 stone in total but a steady stone would be amazing to begin with.
I've just weighed and my starting weight is a shocking 180.2 pounds...I knew it was bad but not quite that bad
I'm going to focus on calorie counting and upping my fruit and vegetables intake

@MercuryRising hi and welcome onboard. It's great you've got a week to get sorted.
I'd take it in 7lb steps - my friend did that when she had 3 stone to lose.
You can do it !

@MercuryRising and you could definitely lose the first 7lbs by Xmas 🎄

Hi @MercuryRising

Happy half term!

And welcome. I'm sure we can all make progress for Christmas.

@Viavita enjoy your walk!

Walk done ✅ Wouldn't say I enjoyed it ( it's raining and I carried a heavy bag back ! ). Still, I'm pleased I did it and I'm pleased I weighed myself.
13st 8 - pretty much what I expected.
8lbs to lose for Xmas.

@Viavita Well done on the walk! I'm at 13 700 steps ( 6 miles ish) so far today and hope to get to 16 000. Now you have your starting point - 8lbs before christmas seems doable. Good luck

@thelaststone that's great, I love walking, too. I could walk for miles.
Yes, I think it's realistic - I just have to plan my days without getting obsessed. It's a fine line !

Hey @thelaststone - I have more than a stone to lose but I'm looking for a thread to support me in losing weight without the jabs, and to do it healthily/slowly/sustainably.

I'm currently 5'4 and 12st8lbs which puts my BMI at obese 😪.

I would love to lose 3.5 stone by my wedding next May - slowly and sustainably - to get to target weight of 9 stone which has always been my 'happy weight'. This would basically equate to 7lbs per month loss if I break it up into 7lbs losses as suggested above by @Viavita

My plan is:

• Net 1200-1400 calories per day
• Use NutraCheck to track
• Trying to favour protein over fat macro-wise (this is basically what everyone above is saying about making better choices): carbs 40%, protein 35%, fat 25% - this is quite hard for me as I am veggie though.
• Gym for cardio half an hour each day (sadly I can't do any weights/resistance training at the moment due to a health condition!)
• 5 fruit/veg per day
• 2000ml water per day (8 glasses)

I don't drink (gave up in January) so that's one thing I don't need to worry about at least!

@EqualityDuck Welcome, I love your name.
I'll reply properly tomorrow but firstly, congrats on your up coming wedding. So exciting! You've got 7 months which is masses of time. do you have an air fryer? Air fryer tofu is amazing and full of protein.

@EqualityDuck hi !
What a lovely event to plan for and look forward to. Your 7lb weight loss a month is absolutely realistic, too.
It won't be linear because it never is - some weeks will be better than others, and we all have blips or life gets in the way, but slow n steady will definitely win the race. And, I think not giving up is key.

@thelaststone I don't have an air fryer, but considering getting one and the tofu sounds like a good snack to have on hand! I've also heard chickpeas in the air fryer are a good snack.

Thanks for the welcome and the well wishes about my wedding! Had my first wedding anxiety dream last night 🤣

Also, good weight loss news for me - my blood tests came back and show I don't have PCOS which is a relief (over summer I thought I'd developed it).

@Viavita thanks for your kind words - I often give up when I don't consistently lose but I will remember your wisdom!

@EqualityDuck - ahhh, that's me - a wise old woman 🤣.
I need to take my own advice sometimes.....

@thelaststone well done on the weight loss and glad the two meals a day strategy is helping. It seems to be helping me to maintain the weight I lost. Good luck everyone!

My scales finally arrived and they show I've lost 6lbs since my last weigh-in (which was 5 months ago...) but that means technically my starting weight is in fact 12st2lb.

So, 3 stone to lose, rather than 3.5!