Weight Loss advice

[Bae56]

Please don't be hard on yourself sometimes a quick fix can make us binge. Slow & steady wins the race.

Calorie deficit really. When it comes down to it you could eat your calories in chocolate or salad. You'll still only lose when you're in a deficit. Don't restrict too much, you still want a balance so it's sustainable.
It's easier to go into deficit by doing a mix of exercising & calorie control. Try to move around more when your in the house. If you have stairs use them as your exercise, or housework as your cardio. Its a challenging time just now but you'll get there

 

[hrh89]

How’s everyone doing? Finally got my arse in gear the last couple of months and now I’m only 5 pounds away from my goal. Lost 1 stone 3lbs now.
Feeling happier because it’s definitely achievable before Christmas.

 

[Mercedes12]

I do think your mindset around eating makes so much difference. We always categorise foods as good or bad and if we eat “bad” food, end up feeling guilty and usually throw the towel in and continue eating unhealthy instead of accepting that we have had a treat and knowing one meal or snack won’t undo all the hard work.

I’ve learned recently that the most effective tool is calorie deficit. I used to think that losing weight meant eating salad and avoiding bread/chocolate/carbs at all cost. During lockdown I’ve lost half a stone through tracking my calories to create a deficit and exercise - and I’ve still been enjoying little treats (chocolate, takeaways) and eat carbs but just counting and tracking everything.

 

[NapQueen]

Don’t lose weight fast, lose weight sensibly. Track your calories and move more. And bang the water down you like it’s the last Bit of water on earth.

 

[Kofi Annan]

I've just joined weight watchers after gaining 4 stone over the past 2 years. I had mild depression and what I can now see was a breakdown of some sort. It was really hard to recognise all of that when I was "in it" but I've recently started to come out the other side and part of my recovery is addressing my weight gain.
Nothing extreme, I'm currently 18 stone and I would like to get to 12 stone as I have been stable at that weight and didn't feel like it was too restrictive. I'm not putting a time goal in place, the only marker is that I attend a festival in the Summer (fingers crossed cos Covid!) and I would like to be somewhat healthier by then.
I use to run, so I am hoping to start that again but need to lose some weight first as I know that it will lead to injury.
I requested a new smartwatch for Xmas off the hubby, a Fitbit Versa 3, as I know something new and shiny will give me motivation. I also have my eye on some new trainers. Already I'm trying to remove the physical and mental obstacles I know that I will use to self sabotage.
I'm here if anyone else wants to share advice and experiences. I'll be checking in from time to time, if that's ok?
Hate the slogan as I think it's insincere sometimes but I do mean this and remind myself daily of it frequently........Be Kind, especially to yourself

 

[hrh89]

Finally got my arse in gear. Lost 5 pounds in the past two weeks which I’m happy with. Got a stone to go to get back to where I was 6 months ago. Now I’m in the zone of eating less it’s easier, those first few days are so hard!!!!
Im absolutely desperate for a maccies though

 

[loubylou50]

I’m desperate to loose weight... what is best diet out there?

Honestly the simplest answer is just to be in a calorie deficit - eating less than your body burns. I followed WW for years but was always up and down with weight, never got to goal. I’ve been calorie counting instead now since May, and have lost 2st 6lbs so far. I use My Fitness Pal to track daily calories and exercise - once you’ve got used to checking calories and weighing portions it’s really easy - no made up ‘Syns’ or ‘Points’ to try and get your head round, no foods to avoid.

 

[Sunflower91]

Sorry if it’s been mentioned already, but I’ve heard people pretty insistent that sw and ww are essentially a cult. I mean I guess I can see that when sw has a syns (not far off sin) system. And it does kind of boil down to weekly meetings where you sit down with a bunch of people and after a while you are going to gain or maintain and no matter the reaction of the group, you’re going to feel ashamed of that.
My ex was a WW fan at one point. Lost loads of weight but it just wasn’t maintainable. Some days he would live on a tuna salad and soup - massive calorie deficit. It got to the point where we couldnt have a nice meal out without the first 30 minutes involving him being glued to his phone calculating calories or his ww points.Then once he lost the weight he went through this period of serious binge eating. I mean I used to go to his house and find that he’d eaten two tubs of ben and Jerry’s I’m one sitting. And this kind of behaviour doesn’t just affect the person doing this kind of diet.
Personally, I lost around 4stone just making sure I was in calorie deficit. You have to put the blinkers on to the bullshit out there too- like bogus diets telling you that you can lose 15lbs in a week. Understanding the difference between water weight/ fluctuations and actual fat loss is super important. Slow and steady is more maintainable in the long run

 

[bexgreen1983]

i would think it's simple muscle gain. since muscle weighs more then fat. as long as you're fitter and slimmer the number doesn't matter.

no it doesn’t... 1lb of muscle and 1lb of fat is still the same amount....

 

[Whoshallubetoday]

Hi this is my first time posting and I hope I’m doing it right I lost nearly 4 stone and felt amazing but I’ve put 3 of it back on... I’m still trying but I just can’t seem to get past binging... which I didn’t do before ... I’m on day 2 of being back on plan but I’ve had a million day 2’s in the last year... I constantly beat myself up about putting the weight back on which makes a viscous circle... I’ve tried other ways but it’s really strange it’s almost like sw it totally engraved on my brain and I struggle to follow other plans without comparing it to slimming world... I’ve actually come of Instagram recently as the big accounts I was following really didn’t help... I’m a working single mum of 3 on a budget...I can’t relate to people who have every slimming world fad and things as I just can’t justify it in my budget... also I’m finding a lot of them are also beauty and makeup accounts which is so not me I’m just a normal mum trying to fit back in her skinny jeans

 

[hrh89]

I’m desperate to loose weight... what is best diet out there?

honestly. Just get yourself in a calorie deficit. You don’t have to cut out any food groups to lose weight contrary to what the diet industry likes to makes us think. No “diet” will make you lose more weight than others or faster tbh. With a calorie deficit you can eat what you want as long as you maintain the calorie limit

 

[hrh89]

Are you guys absolutely sure you’re in a deficit? Have you worked out your tdee in order to create a deficit? I’m totally not judging but if it’s not working then somethings not right. Are you tracking calories properly? I know I used to have the odd bite of something here and there, handful of cereal or nuts but didn’t bother tracking because I thought it was minimal when in fact those little things can take you out of a deficit they all add up. Totally not saying you’re not doing it right but a lot of people tend to find it’s something like this that’s causing them to not lose

 

[On A Roll]

Hi everyone

I have been thinking about creating a YouTube channel for a LONG time to document my health and fitness journey, and to give me some accountability. My main pain with other youtubers doing similar is it always seems to be retrospective, and they mention really expensive gyms/classes/food. I want to do it completely ‘normally’ and show it’s possible for anyone.

if there’s anything anyone would like to see personally I would really appreciate any ideas

 

[Countrybumpkingirl]

isnt it to do with the difference in density though?

Yup, 1lb of anything weighs 1lb but the area it takes up will be different. Biggest bug bear in weight loss groups

 

[JLXRD]

It does work for some people
You just need to have the right frame of mind

I agree that Slimming World works when you are doing it, but it is not a realistic plan that you can follow for life (you could never go to a restaurant and have a 3 course meal for example), I found it just didn't teach me anything about balance as it was so all or nothing.

(I say this as someone who lost 3 stone and has slowly put back on 1 stone of that over the last 9 months or so. True - I could be doing SWs maintainence plan but I never could have stuck to SW on my honeymoon, etc)

 

[Flumperooni]

Ok so in my heart of hearts I no there is no fast answer but interested to no which weight loosing ways worked for you? Since lockdown I have gained two stone , I feel disgusting and won’t leave the house for fear of people seeing me , any help is much appreciated

The ONLY way to lose weight is to eat fewer calories that you burn. That is the law of thermodynamics. Whether that be through a ‘diet’ that unbeknown you puts you in a calorie deficit, or by actually counting the calories (using an app, maybe) Or upping your exercise, the best way is one that you can stick to, but if you are not burning more calories than you are eating you will NEVER lose weight, no matter what method you use.

 

[Casperron]

So since May I’ve lost 2 stone (not much as I haven’t had much to lose) by:
Changing to kids size plates
Only eating when I’m actually hungry and listening to my body
Drinking diet drinks only and tea
Making my meals under 400 calories (mostly had pizza wraps with homemade chips, jacket potatos, roast dinners a lot, chilli, quesadillas, Bolognese, chicken with salad
Snacking on muller light, ice lollies, low cal jelly and fruit and rice cakes
But overall I’ve not actually thought much about my calories or eating just listened to my body. Before I’d just eat because it was 6pm dinner time, but now I’m often not hungry at dinner so I’ll just have a snack later in the evening rather than forcing myself to have a meal

 

[jharpz]

So glad I stumbled upon this thread!
I've been a serial Slimming Worlder for the past 8 years or so. What I've come to realise in the last few weeks is that I have disordered eating and I'm in a binge / restrict cycle.
I'm not sure if any of you follow TC on Insta, but when she started her recent journey again (not following SW) I was so sure she wouldn't succeed because she was having smoothies for breakfast and SW has it so drummed into you that smoothies are bad. However after seeing her results I'm going to follow her lead, ditch the SW mantra, syns and healthy extras and cut down instead. Because of my distorted image of food, I will need to something that will continue to allow me to restrict and so I will be calorie counting.
I can't wait to have cereal AND a sandwich tomorrow!

 

[Lalla]

I've done SW 3 times. First time, lost 4.5 stone. Got bored and gave up going. Over next 2 years regained 3.5 stone. Joined again, different group, but still didn't enjoy it. Got back to a similarish weight. Gave up. The slight difference the second time was that I did start going to the gym, which I really enjoyed.

Anyway, was then in a relationship and over next few years got 'comfortable'. 4.5 years on, I was basically back to my original weight. Rejoined a third time, this time lost 7 stone in a year and got to within half a stone of target. That was last September. I dropped off it for a few months due to personal shit, rejoined in January, had gained a stone. Had lost 10lb of that prior to lockdown.

Since then I've not weighed myself but I think I have gained 1-2 stone (based on which clothes are now tight and/or don't fit) due mainly to eating chocolate, far too many carbs (bread, potatoes, pasta) and not exercising. Oh and the break up of my relationship (which as he was my best friend and I don't really have other friends) has been pretty shitty

However am now trying to do at least 30 mins exercise a day, and watch what I eat. Hopefully at some point I'll be brave enough to get back on the scales!

What I found made the difference the most recent time was cutting my carbs massively. I'd always done the unlimited pasta - however I love pasta (Italian heritage) and could eat massive quantities. When I lost the 7st, I only had pasta and potatoes 2-3 times a week max. And tbh I didn't miss them after the first couple of weeks.

Re the binge eating - I've been a binger for 20 years (as a result of a past abusive relationship where eating was my only comfort), so I can't blame SW for that. I will only really binge on snack food or bread. I keep all my bread in the freezer, and try to keep all snacks to under 100 cals per item. I relaxed this at start of lockdown and bought biscuits and chocolate (my nemesis) mainly to keep my now Ex happy (didn't work!). Have now stopped this...if it's not here I can't eat it. I never have the urge to binge on fruit sadly!

 

[Readread]

Totally agree. It’s maybe ok if you’re not already overweight but just want to drop a lb or two for a party but for the long term it’s a road to nowhere. Better to spend 6-12 months losing weight slowly and sustainably then keeping it off than spend that time on and off crash diets losing and gaining the same half a stone.

Exactly! I always have to remind myself that losing weight isn't a quick process. It doesn't take a month to gain all the weight so don't expect to lose it in half the time. I speak for myself but I haven't found losing weight to be fast and sometimes that's a tough pill to swallow but I'm fine to accept that now!