No doubt been done a zillion times but what worked for you with weight loss - inspire me! Need to lose about 7lbs but like food too much to do faddy diet.

[pigswithfludontfly]

Title says it all. I like my food and don't want to eat lettuce leaves. Happy to do short bursts of exercise three times a week provided I can find the time but I will just have to.

I need to lose 7 lbs and am a size 12 ish (only 5ft 2 so this is more than I'd like to be even though it's not very overweight).

Have lost the same amount from the same starting weight before ds but that was with intensive exercise with a personal trainer plus a sensible eating plan and I don't have the time for such a lot of exercise or the money for the trainer now!

There's scope for me to cut out the naughty food (usually have a couple of biscuits a day for example).

What worked for others with a similar starting point and goal?

I can't relate to your starting point, unfortunately, as I have a lot more to lose and am in a very different position.

I have, however, recently taken up the WII fitness game through EA and it's a bit like having a personal trainer. If you've got a WII it's the cheap way to get your own fitness programme going and it might just help you to shake off those last 7lbs.

Hopefully, someone more experienced at this kind of thing than I will have better advice for you. Good luck with shifting it.

Hi Squilly thanks for replying. I do agree with what you imply that those last 7lbs (well they're not really my last 7lbs as frankly if I were to do it properly there'd be a few more after that but life is too short and I know I'm not destined to be very slim!) are very different to say the first 7lbs of 3 stone.
Harder to shift I suspect!

I don't have a Wii so buying one and the Wii fit would add up I think. I do like the sound of it though!

Bumping...

Slimming world is really working for me... but TBH it's nothing magic, just cutting right back on bread/pasta/potatoes/

Eat 1900 calories a day and do your exercise two or three times a week. It works, I promise. It won't be a quick loss but then you won't feel deprived either.

Eat whatever you want as long as your eat slightly less than your body needs each day.

Particularly easy ways to do it are to eat a lot of veg with your main meal. You will probably then automatically eat a bit less carb/fat as a result.

Are you a jogger? Join the Couch to 5km ladies under Sports & Exercise. You only need 40mins 3xper week for the 5km (30mins running, 10 min warmup/cooldown)

Will drinking lots of water help too?

I like you're thinking Doozle - last time I did this I think I had 1800 calories so I'd get 100 extra LOL.
But seriously I could happily do 1800 or 1900 and am okay that the weight loss would be a bit slower. It's much more achievable for me than a 1500 diet which would make me very miserable!!
I kept a food diary and calorie counted everything last time. No drinks other than 1 glass of juice in the morning (for the vit c) and then water and 2 cups of tea (don't have sugar anyway).

I allowed myself one day off a week - which didn't mean bingeing that but I could e.g. have a meal out choosing reasonable things but without calorie counting.
On those days I probably had 2200 calories I'd guess.

This is very useful by the way!

OK that sounds like a food plan overall. I need to think of some nice dinners that will fit the calorie bill....

So far can think of:
chicken breast with mustard, boiled new potatoes, veg.
Smoked salmon (!) salad, with a little mustard and olive oil plus bread (not loads).

Erm that's all I can think of so any more suggestions would be welcome...

Oops your not you're

If you can do 1800, all the better. I always felt that if I was particularly hungry one day, all I had to do was keep it to 2000 or less and would still be on the right track.

You're aiming for a lunch and dinner of about 550-600 calories each which really is quite ok.
Then you can still have a kitkat for pudding (100 cals) for example and so on. Or you can have a bigger main meal of 650-700. Depends if you're a snacker and need to keep some calories aside for little bits and bobs.

There's load of meals you can do - stirfry veg and prawn noodles come in about 500, I think. Prawns are great, low in calories. Mushrooms are good protein too.

I was even having roast dinners with a small yorkshire pud and 2 potatoes and loads of veg.

The other thing is just trying to incorporate little bits of exercise where you can. Walk up stairs, walk/talk bus rather than drive if you can. Nothing extreme that will annoy you after a while, just fit it in if at all poss.

Oh and yes, lots of water will help. And food diary is definitely the way to go. It's a bit boring but I just did it roughly and so only took me a minute or so each day. Then you start to get a feel of what's about the right amount anyway.

Doodle you are fab - even your meal suggestions are right up my street as I love prawns and mushrooms!

I'm going to dig out my old food diary and look for ideas of what I was having last time.

Right these are going to be my targets for each day:

• breakfast: 450 (I always have the same thing so that's not changing!)
• lunch: 500
• snack mid pm: 150
• dinner: 600
• pud (fruit!): 100

TOTAL 1800. Although I think I might manage a slightly lower cal lunch. Sound OK?

Exercise is going to be a bit more of an issue as I already walk tons and play a moderate but not fantastically calorie burning sport 2 x per week, plus started cycling a bit.... yet have still put weight on so need to do more!
Going on past experiences I need to do aerobics or running....but they're so BORING!

Sounds good to me. Honestly I wouldn't try to go lower than 1800 or else you start getting that hungry thing and then it becomes a pain in the bum.

You do loads of exercise by sounds of things. Do you think your diet is the culprit then? If you hate running or aerobics, don't do it! Just do stuff you like, how about cycling a bit more to get around? I found that really helped as there was also a purpose to it, ie I had to get somewhere.

Ps. if we like same sort of foods, then eton mess is really good pudding! I think mine comes in around 100 calories total (if you only use little bit of cream and one of those 50 cal meringues)

Ooh yes I love eton mess! So some strawberries, small meringue and cream....yum!
I used to call things like that calorie bargains on my old regime. I'm quite looking forward to doing this again actually. I'm a bit of a control freak so designing it myself and having a calorie budget works well vs going on a prescriptive diet.

I guess I could cycle a tiny bit more but the roads are a bit of a nightmare here - very busy so I'm not happy to cycle with ds on the bike. I'm going to get a Davina DVD and give it a try with my ds as I think he'll find it very funny to try and join in!!

Know what you mean about the roads, not fun.

Well good luck with it and keep us posted.

I sort of need to get back on it too really. Lost 7lbs before my hols and have 2-3lbs more to go.

Sounds like you're all sorted already but thought I'd just add my experience!
I'm 5'1" and like you, have found the last half stone very difficult to lose. However, I lost the other 4 stone with a mixture of Davina's DVD's and Tesco ediets (using GI method, which from what you've said would probably suit your tastes?) Oh and I cycle too. I would really really recommend the DVD's - I'm convinced they're the reason I've kept the weight off for two years (even if I haven't lost that pesky half stone)

Good Luck!

OP, Weight Watchers would suit you.

But do you fancy joining this healthy eating/weight loss thread ?

Tis live at the moment although we are a bit distracted by Michael Jackson being dead and all

We have some in the same shoes as you and others with more to lose. I am somewhere in the middle with exactly one stone to go before I'm at my target weight.

We are a nice bunch, honest guv. Some of us are really getting into running and swimming whilst others are letting the food do the work.

Sycamore I'll come on over tomorrow and join in (off to bed now).

Buttercream - about to borrow a Davina DVD. How many times a week did you do it?

It seems I need to burn an extra 500 calories per day to lose a pound per week or eat 500 less or a mix of the two.
Going to have to be a mix of the two as there's no way I'm surviving on about 1400 cals a day.

Great Pigs...

Morning a good time to come on and say hello. We are all usually a bit more focussed then, logging in our breakfast etc.

Back in your chocolate free cave and no coming out until that 5lbs is gone!

Was about to say that I went from a 14 to a 10 (and have stayed there) with the support of a mumsnet thread but see you have had an invitation to join one. Keeping a food diary (even though only I looked at it) and reporting in on hat I'd eaten/what I'd lost helped me maintain (some) discipline. Good luck!

Well done Tangerine, that's great!

Yes, the thread is really helping us!

weight watchers is fab...their motto is "make wise food choices" which i think is perfect for any kind of dieter...

its the difference between picking up a prawn may sarnie in teco for say 600 cals, or a plain ham one for 250 cals (for example!!)

watch your portions, and bulk your meals up with low cal veg..peppers, onions, tomatoes, etc

save some cals for a treat for yourself, then you won't feel like you're missing out.

before you aimlessly snack, be sure that you are really hungry, not boredom/stress eating.

drink plenty of liquid to keep yourself hydrated.

i need to shift a half a stone, but can't seem to get back on my wagon....

must read up on the weight loss threads to re find my motivation!

good luck!

pigswith, i'm in exactly same situation as you. i have half a stone to lose. i've totally failed to shift it for the last four months. i exercise loads but have to eat out a lot for work and find it hard to calorie control in restaurants. my downfalls are bread and butter at lunchtime (in restaurants, waiting for food to arrive), biscuits after my cycle to work (which is a tiring 7 miles through central London) and chocolate after dinner. so i keep screwing it up. i'm going on holiday in two weeks time and it's now too late to lose my half stone before then but i can at least have a go at losing some of it!
are you starting today?

Pigs - I do a full hour 3-4 times a week. I've got all her DVD's so mix and match them.