The stone starts shifting, today!

[Chubbybetty]

I am 45 and 5ft 2". I have been a size 6/8 for most of my adult life. I put on about a stone in lockdown. Managed to lose it (largely through stress) for my wedding a couple of years ago, and have since piled it back on, mainly through too much cheese and wine and a love of cooking/feeding other people. I eat mostly low carb and Mediterranean style but have become a bit more lax, I don't really snack and do a fair amount of exercise (including strength training) I'm now more a size 10 with a small spare tyre and a large chest. I detest my body like this. On a short, small frame, 1 stone is a lot and really shows. Yesterday I didn't even want to leave the house with my husband to go for a drink in the sun as I thought I looked hideous. Today it all changes. I have started working with an online wellness/fitness coach recently and she said something this morning that made me stop and think - how sad it is that people literally don't want to be in photo's with their families because of their weight. This is me. I hate that I am so hard on myself because of my size and speak to myself in a way I'd never speak to anyone else. I hate that for the last few years every nice thing we've done, has always had the niggling thought that I'd enjoy it more if I were a stone lighter. I know I have lots of 'mind work' to do aorund my relationship with my weight (hence the coach) but on the physical front today is re-set. Binning the alcohol, more strict with the carbs and cheese. I aim to lose 7lbs in the next 4/5 weeks. Posting here for accountability really. Anyone else having a 're-set' today? Good luck!

Good morning. How’s everyone doing?

I’m still averaging 8st8 (although, disappointingly was 8st9 this morning).

Well done @Goodvibesonly - you have made incredible progress over these last few months! What is your ‘eating window’ for time restricted eating? I do 14:8 every day.

I’m aware that this thread started after Easter last year when I inexplicably gained a number of pounds over Easter weekend (and not by even eating very much!) and then took many months to lose those pounds. Although I’m frustrated that I’m not losing, at least I’ve not gained anything over the past few weeks.

I’m also a bit confused about how/why I managed to get down to around 8st4 in December and didn’t gain any weight over Christmas but have slowly drifted back up since then. I’ve been analysing my Nutracheck diaries from Nov/Dec and then the last few weeks and trying to work out what is happening/what needs to change.

However, I do keep reminding myself that I am a healthy weight/BMI. I’d just love to lose these few pounds as they are all on my tummy and I just feel/look too big for my small frame.

Sorry, long post! I don’t share any of these thoughts with anyone in real life!

Hi @Autumnleaves82 great to hear from you! This thread has gone very quiet recently and it seems that it's now only me and you that update!

I do 16:8 and usually have a small breakfast at around 10am followed by a larger lunch at midday, snack at 3pm and final meal at 5pm (try to finish eating by 6pm). After that, I try to stick to water only but will sometimes have a coffee. I only do this routine during the weekdays as weekends are chaotic and I can't stick to a routine! How about you?

Plateauing is so frustrating. I've been there on several occasions and the only thing that has worked for me is to go super low calorie (say 1100 to 1200) for at least two weeks. It's hard and boring but if you can get through the first week, it gets easier.

I'm still 7st 11. I had a very salty KFC last night so the scales showed a little heavier today but I'm sure that it will go down again in the next couple of days.

Hi @Goodvibesonly Yes, this thread has gone quiet. I’m very pleased you’re still here!

That’s interesting what you say about going really low calorie to get through a plateau. I’m trying to get the balance of eating enough to maybe start to build a little bit of muscle/body recomposition but also want to lose the tummy fat. Maybe I’ll keep going with what I’ve been doing for the next 2 weeks (Easter holidays, etc.!) and then maybe do a couple of weeks of lower calories and see if that helps.

I'm still ploughing on!

My weight is now at 8 stone 10lb. I've stopped dieting now, as I'm due to have surgery in a few weeks, I'll likely lose a bit of muscle afterwards (boo!).

Wishing everyone else best of luck with your endevours ... hopefully the winter hibernation urge to eat will ease now as we head into spring! It's so much easier to lose weight in summer

I'm still here. Stress then Illness then holiday/easter holidays has not been helpful to losing weight at all. I also have a toddler that doesn't sleep 🥲
From Monday I will be back to intermittent fasting and adding in exercise I am determined that this year is the year I get my weight under control.
I hope everyone else is well.

I’m still here as well! Braved the scale this morning and I’ve gone up to 8st!! Eeekk! I’m not sure if it’s water weight or just general easter weight gain but it’s certainly a wake up call. I think I’ll go back to intermittent fasting with one snack. This plan worked well for me in the past. How is yr intermittent fasting going @MightyGoldBear?

@OpenThatWindow I wish u all the best for your surgery x

Great that there’s some of us still here! Don’t panic @Goodvibesonly - you’ve done so well over the past few months. Do you weigh daily or weekly (or randomly!)? I weigh daily and record it on Happy Scale to see the trends. My weight can fluctuate my around 4 pounds over a week, but Happy Scale helps to see trends.

I started to take creatine a couple of weeks ago (I’m not particularly keen on taking supplements but was eventually convinced that it was worth starting this to help with my mission on body recomposition). Does anyone here take it? Apparently it can cause a couple of pounds of weight gain (obviously not fat), so I’m having to try to mentally get my head around that.

@Autumnleaves82I take creatine not noticed any changed with weight down to that at all. I also take collagen too. I do feel better and feel like I have more energy when I'm taking them.

@Goodvibesonlyit's going well thank you easing myself back in to it gently. Although early days I've found getting back into it easier this time. Maybe the warmer weather perhaps.

Hi guys, doing a weekly check in! I’m down to 7.12. It’s been hard and at times have had to walk away from the delicious office cakes but certainly worth it! I’ve also started to up my steps to 11k.

How are u getting on with creatine @Autumnleaves82? I tend to weigh daily and it does fluctuate for me as well, I have noticed it goes higher mid-week for some unknown reason! I take Sunday’s weight as my final weigh in for the week.

@MightyGoldBear glad that intermittent fasting is going well for u! Keep it up!

Well done @goodvibesonly that's amazing dedication! Are you close to or at your goal weight now? And thank you for the well wishes!

@Autumnleaves82 how are you doing?

All is fine here, surgery last week went incredibly well. I'm still very swollen so I'm definitely not weighing myself, and of course I'm not dieting while I recover, but my appetite is non existent - I expect I'll lose weight - but muscle most likely 😞

I did google how much a uterus weighs - not as much as I thought! 😂

Good morning, everyone.

Well done @Goodvibesonly for your great progress last week with weight loss, avoiding cakes and increasing steps. How’s this week been for you?

@OpenThatWindow How are you doing after your surgery?

I’m still stuck at a slightly higher weight than I would like to be. Does anyone else here do any strength/weights workouts? I’m struggling to know what the right balance of calorie intake is to improve my body composition. I’m a healthy BMI for my 5ft 2 height but with too much tummy fat (and small frame, tiny wrists, slim legs/arms). I do dumbbell workouts at home (not particularly heavy yet) and trying to get the balance of eating enough to gradually build muscle whilst also losing tummy fat.

Thanks @Autumnleaves82 . I'm not sure if this happens to anyone else but when I'm in my luteal phase, my sugar cravings hit hard! I've desperately tried to keep balance of allowing myself a sugary treat without overindulging or over snacking (my weakness!). I've somehow managed to maintain this week. If anyone has any advice for combatting these craving, I would be most grateful! I don't do strength training (hopefully want to start soon) so sadly don't have any advice to give :(

@OpenThatWindow how is your recovery going? Hope you have your appetite back now! I'm not quite at my goal weight - ideally I would like to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight of 7st 7lbs. I do need to focus on toning up but my days are so long with work & looking after my children that I struggle to find any time for myself.

I've enjoyed weight training for a few years; though I'm not the most knowledgeable, what I have found (for me) is that I need to focus on either:

A) cutting fat (by restricting calories, eating really really 'clean') or
B) building muscle (increasing kcal with protein)

So - one or the other! Ideally you'd build muscle then shred fat, so you end up more lean.

It's pretty much pointless paying any attention to the scale when you're doing weights, because, as you know, muscle in denser than fat. So you may be the same weight or more, but smaller/leaner. So measurements are the only way.

Also, just to be honest, weight training increases my appetite for carby food far more than cardio does, which sucks!

I'm at the point now where I'm delighted with my muscle ratio, I'm as strong as I want to be, but I have an extra stone of soft fat everywhere, so back to the scales for me to do the 'shred' bit but I keep failing 😂

All good here recovering well! Really missing exercising but equally bloody glad to just have a rest and be waited on hand and foot! I'm restricted to nothing whatsoever for 6 weeks.

I can resume exercise at 12 weeks. I know I'll be losing muscle now so the scale going down won't be a celebration as such but telling myself it's temporary.

Not sure if any of that is helpful.

Oh a bonus is, the more muscle you have, the more kcal you burn at rest, so that's a big incentive to increasing your ratio of muscle!! And of course, health...

@Goodvibesonly Well done for maintaining. Your plan of a balance sounds sensible re: sugary treats - not overindulging whilst not completely restricting. Your progress over the last few months shows you must have a pretty good balance.

A few thoughts that might or might not be helpful…
I find having plenty of protein and fibre can help. So making sure every meal (and any snacks) prioritises protein and fibre.
Are you craving chocolate or other sweet things? Maybe try dark chocolate?
I really like berries and Greek yogurt.
I also sometimes have a protein pudding/mousse. One pot has 20g of protein. They are very processed and I’m sure lots of people on Mumsnet would be appalled(!) but I figure that they have less calories than lots of other snacks/desserts whilst also giving a good amount of protein.

But I also think life is all about balance. You (like me) are a healthy weight/BMI and we’re trying to lose a few pounds. I imagine we’ll have to be mindful of this for life so we need to get a balance between sometimes making choices that say ‘no’ to something (cheap staff room biscuits?!) or find an alternative but sometimes having that piece of cake because that is normal life.

Thank you for your replies. That’s really helpful. I think I might be keeping myself stuck because I’m not really doing either A or B. I’m trying to build a bit of muscle but also trying to lose some tummy fat. I think I’m restricting my calories too much to build muscle but clearly not restricting them enough to lose the few pounds/tummy fat. I’m a healthy weight/BMI but not happy with how I look!

@OpenThatWindow - no worries if you’d rather not share but do you know your approximate daily calories, etc. when you are focusing more on building muscle? I think we are a similar height/weight, so could be helpful to know what’s worked for you.
Is your experience with weight training at home or a gym? I have to workout at home and am currently following Caroline Girvan (but I’m currently lifting dumbbells that are much lighter than what she uses!).

I completely understand being stuck between the two - fat loss vs muscle gain, I'm forever balancing the two.

It's a really hard balance when you're at a healthy weight, and short!

My maintenance calories seem to be around 1600-1800 when I'm active. (Jogging, weights and hiking a bit).

But to lose weight/fat at a rate of 1 pound a week I need to eat 1200 a day. And really cleanly. Since I turned 40, it seems my body is more reluctant to part with fat. It's decided to store it as fat rolls on my back & podgy hips!

I've gained muscle over the years by focusing on protein (150g daily) and eating around 2000 calories along with x4 1 hour weight workouts a week, to noticeably build strength.

When I began, I used the gym and had PTs to learn good form but now I just use weights at home. I have minimal equipment - two dumbells and a barbell, weight plates, a foam roller, resistance bands. I do a lot of body weight stuff like press ups, good old burpees etc.

I deadlift 60kg and overhead press 25kg, not big weights at all in comparison with Proper Gym Goers but I feel strong and do have defined muscle (albeit under a soft layer of squidge...)

I'm exactly the same weight now as I was 5 years ago, but a size smaller so it has worked to an extent, but I haven't got my finish line yet! I'm forever gaining and losing the same 2-3kg. It makes such a difference to how clothes fit and how I feel! I just need to focus.

But food. It's so good.

Thank you so much @OpenThatWindow for sharing all of that. It’s really helpful to read your experiences, especially as we are similar height/weight. I’m nowhere near as strong as you! I’m doing home dumbbell workouts 5 days per week but I’m not managing to lift particularly heavy yet.

It’s so tricky isn’t it, when we’re shorter? I’ve also got a really small frame. I’ve got thin legs & arms, with every extra pound on my tummy. It feels a tricky decision to know whether to increase calories to build muscle or decrease calories to lose fat. But I think what I’m realising is I probably need to commit one way or the other, as I’m currently just keeping myself stuck by eating an amount that is far too low to build muscle but slightly too high to lose fat!

Thank you, again for sharing. It’s helpful to bounce ideas around on here. How are you doing?

How’s everyone doing?

I’ve had a strange week. Due to some life circumstances I ate pretty low calories Monday to Friday and didn’t prioritise protein and fibre like I usually do. It was very interesting that when I did a home dumbbell workout yesterday morning, I was so clearly under-fuelled and couldn’t lift as heavy (not that I lift particularly heavy anyway!). We had a family celebration yesterday, where I ate a more normal amount of food (but probably not particularly nutritious).

Hoping to get back to my typical diet this week of eating enough to fuel workouts/high step count, prioritising protein and fibre (and hopefully slowly seeing some body recomposition and losing tummy fat!).

Hope everyone else is doing ok.