3 Fat Chicks on a Diet Weight Loss Community

3 Fat Chicks on a Diet Weight Loss Community (https://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/)
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-   -   I need u all to plz describe your first couple of weeks of losing weight (https://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/100-lb-club/269381-i-need-u-all-plz-describe-your-first-couple-weeks-losing-weight.html)

DoItWithAsmile 11-05-2012 08:41 PM

I need u all to plz describe your first couple of weeks of losing weight
 
First off, I'm a mother of four! I'm starting my weightloss journey an am inspired by u all! I wanted to ask if u can share with me how hard ur first week of dieting was and how u would not give in to temptation? And also how u kept going without feeling like u are going to fail? I weigh 260 lbs now and feel so depressed which isn't helping my kids! Oldest is 8 and youngest is 10 mths
Thx so much and would love if u can reply 😃

Last but not least, I take my hat off to any one of u that have lost weight coz its so hard but soooooo rewarding!

sistah phat 11-05-2012 10:22 PM

Please don't take this to be anything but honest help— from experience. I know how hard it is to hear that to lose weight you just have to eat less and move more, but that what it takes— for life. I have 40 years of experience to prove that "diets" don't work. Once they are finally over and I went back to "normal" I had no idea of how to keep it from coming back. And it did... and more...
So this time I am calorie counting and exercising. It's not a "journey" (with a destination). I aim for a (medically recommended) 1 to 2 lb. loss per week, though it starts off being more than that at first from losing water weight. I also exercise regularly and I don't eat the calories that I have saved from exercising. I've lost 50 lbs. in 5 months. Better yet, this is a plan I can live with forever. I don't feel deprived. If I want a plate of nachos, I can have them but I have to figure them into my daily allowance. I also recognize that it is a rare treat, not a weekly indulgence.
I recommend that you find a calorie/fitness tracker that you can use to log your calories. Many people like My Fitness Pal (myfitnesspal.com). It will help you find a reasonable calorie target as a % of your Basal Metabolic Rate. Check out the Calorie Counters forum for more info.
Good luck, and best wishes.

LaurieDawn 11-06-2012 07:18 AM

Everyone seems to do things differently. Some take baby steps. Others dive in headfirst.

I went from zero to sixty virtually overnight. I was very strict on calories (used SparkPeople to track) and went to the gym six days a week. It's easier for me to stick with something if I see immediate results. I also made a year-long commitment to stick with my efforts no matter what. I have been doing this since June. Some days are easier than others. Some days are extremely hard. But I am at the point where I get almost daily compliments. It is absolutely worth it.

My advice? Don't seek out the perfect plan or perfect time to start. Just start, and be willing to make adjustments to make it work. It's going to be challenging with four young children - but very much worth it.

Vex 11-06-2012 08:30 AM

re:
 
I really think the first month is the hardest. Your body is adjusting to the calorie changes and also to withdrawal from sugar. I had headaches and felt like I was starving the entire time.

It really did get better though. After awhile the cravings for sweets mostly disappeared and I was able to get through the day much less hungry. Plus, the weight was coming off which was motivating in itself.

I was actually in a biggest loser contest when I started so that helped me be accountable. I think logging all your food and weighing in at least once a week also helps with accountability.

Bottom line is, you have to decide you want to lose the weight and make that same decision over and over every day.

Lakilaulea 11-06-2012 08:41 AM

I've tried on and off for the past few years to diet, and they never worked. I always felt too tired, too weak, too hungry, too whatever... And I always quit after the second week. Everytime. This is the first time I'm not 'dieting,' per se. I just decided one Saturday to get off the couch and get on my treadmill and go for as long as I could, which ended up being sloooow and only for 17 minutes LOL But I got on again the next day, and the day after that.... I replaced all my fast/junk food with a fridge full of fruits and veggies that weekend. I stopped getting my food from drive-thrus and started grocery shopping. I didn't feel tired or hungry at all because I still ate large amounts, but now it was large salads instead of spaghetti. I also started eating breakfast--something I never did--and it actually really helped with energy and binging at lunch. That first week I dropped about 3lbs. I average about 1.5lbs. a week, which isn't as much as some of the other girls here, but this is the longest I've ever stuck with anything and even though it's not a lot, it adds up. If you have to take baby steps, take baby steps. Dieting doesn't work for me; I just make better food choices now. As soon as I get home from work, I change out of my work clothes into a sports bra and shorts so that I don't even give myself the chance to sit on the couch.

Don't think of it as a 'diet.' If you want to lose, and more importantly, maintain your losses, you have to do something you know you can sustain for life. Even if you lose slowly, just keep chugging along. Before, had I seen just a small loss on the scale, I would've just given up. But now I just keep going. I'm a little over two months in and 17lbs. down. My small losses end up sounding pretty good :) Good luck!!

facingfacts12 11-06-2012 09:07 AM

I want to chime in to say I started in January - kinda dived in headfirst after having my head in the sand for 2 long. With relative ease I went from 234 to 222 in just a little over a month. I was on a roll. I controlled portions and exercised almost 6 days a week for 20-30 minutes a day - not really much but it kept me motivated not to "undo" the work by binging.
I was VERY excited to see the weight start to roll off.
But a word of caution. When life kind of "happened" to me, and things got very stressful, I put weight loss on the back burner and reverted to my old habits temporarily. I could not BELIEVE how much even FASTER the weight creeped back on. I think I saw an 8 pound gain in like a week or something!!
I kind of hovered all the year without doing anything (actually, with doing a lot of damage to my body by not eating right) and the scale maintained pretty much. Until a few months ago when I saw it start to creep up again and started hitting new highs. Finally, I could not take it anymore, life or not, and am back here and this time determined to stay with health for life no matter what else is going on in my life.
My weight loss so far has not been so drastic (I'm about a week and a half into this and so far have about a 3lb loss). I'm not even back to my original starting weight in January. Depressing? Yes. If I could have stuck with things all year I am amazed to think about where I could have been now - maybe enjoying my body instead of hating how fat I am and having to live life that way each day with all the negatives that come with feeling obese.
But while I cannot change the past I can change the future, so I'm taking a little stab at it one day at a time and even if I have to chip away at this weight at the rate of an ounce a week, I just want to know that I am going in the right direction.
My advice - just START. And then once you do, just remember to NOT stop no matter what happens, because you can either choose to stick with things and be a success story months from now, or you will simply be starting all over again

Brandnewday 11-06-2012 11:29 AM

For me, the first weeks were the easiest. I made the decision, I was in control, I was ready to tackle anything. I could not be budged or tempted! Between September 13 and the 30th I lost 15+ pounds, which was a huge motivator to keep going!

Since this is my first SERIOUS attempt to lose weight (in the past I would quit after a week or 2; I never made it past a month) I assumed it was always going to be that easy. Then I hit my first blip, around the first week of October. I ping-ponged around in the 251-252 range for 2 weeks, and the temptation to give up was strong. Then I went on vacation and gained 5 lbs.

I got really tough on myself. Did those things taste good? Absolutely they did. Did they make me feel good, or better about myself? NO!! I was sick nearly every night, had acid reflux, and beat myself up that I was undoing the progress I had made. I came home, got back on track, and sailed down to 244.

I am ping-ponging again, but I am committed to staying on track. The pleasure from that piece of cake is fleeting. I am seeing and feeling the benefit of eating well every day. Good luck to you, you can do it!

MizMelis 11-06-2012 09:03 PM

Try not to think of it as a "diet" per say. It's going to be a change that your going to keep for the rest of your life.
How the first few weeks go depends on the person, I was ok after the first couple of weeks, and they were REALLY hard.
The main thing is to not give up. You'll have good weeks and bad weeks and weeks where you just want to scream, but don't give up because the end result will be worth it :)

toastedsmoke 11-07-2012 06:37 AM

The 1st few days for me were easy. I was on fire to lose weight, I was determined, I was on plan. Then I got bored and started to feel that it wasn't fair that "other people" could "eat whatever they liked" or that I had to "watch what I ate" or that I wasn't "naturally skinny." This was maybe around day 4. And then I began to feel like maybe I couldn't do this. After all I had never tried to lose weight before and 110 lbs (my original weight loss goal) seemed a lot. I decided to at minimum keep up with calorie counting, no matter how many calories I ate. This made me keep my plan a little reasonable. Yes I had days when I ate 1400 calories of Snickers or Twix or Lindt chocolate or 1500 calories of Popeye's chicken and nothing else but these made me feel ill and realize that it wasn't a good use of my 1400 calories. With calorie counting and tracking and loosely planning what I ate instead of having a free munch fest, I lost and kept off 18 lbs. I stalled after a while but didn't gain any weight back.

Then 7 months after I started, I found 3FC and it changed everything about how I approached my journey. I'm not a "support forum" person or really a "forum" person so it was my first experience with this sort of thing. I started coming on everyday and the support motivated me to get my butt in gear again. I picked up all sorts of ideas and tricks and tips from the people on here. My first week I joined an 8-week (?) challenge. Since I did not have any weight loss support in real life, this was great for me. When I felt discouraged or like quitting, I told myself you only have to stick to this plan till the end of the challenge, after that you can go back to your old ways. I didn't meet my challenge goal which I think was 25 lbs or something but I was down 20 lbs and I was motivated. I felt better stronger both mentally and physically. For the first time, I was sticking to something. So I decided to join another challenge and then re-evaluate at the end of that period... and so on.

Just start, make the commitment to make good decisions for 2 weeks, then at the end of 2 weeks, re-evaluate and maybe re-up for a month this time and so on. Little chunks of commitment will get you there. Even a daily commitment is enough. Or an hourly one. You don't have to be perfect, you just have to commit to this and keep picking yourself up.

Dreamer2012 11-07-2012 04:16 PM

My first couple of weeks were the hardest for me. I started in June after discovering I had lost around 12lbs without even trying. This gave me the motivation to keep on going. So, I started to work out by going walking and cutting down on my foods i.e. sweets, chocolate, fizzy drinks, fast food. I then started calorie counting. After about a week or two I began to get frustrated! (Yep, that soon I gave up!) I felt the calorie counting wasn't working for me. It was like it was taking over my life and it was hard work. Over the following week or so, I was eating like I had been but no exercise and then BAM. I just had this sudden realisation that people lose at different times. It took me a while to get my head around to this but I eventually realised it. So, I was back on track and exercising and eating well and then I started to see losses. I think it was after 4 weeks, I saw my first loss. It could have been down to not have a strict diet plan after quitting the calorie counting after the first week or two. After that, it was just watching what I was eating. I had learned what was in which from when I did calorie counting so I did have a fair idea of the numbers. For the rest of the summer, I was successful and worked out pretty much every day in July and August. Now I'm back in college, I'm slowly trying to get back on track once again by doing it bit by bit - but I am getting there.

Everyone is different but this is just my experience. I've learned a lot along the way about dieting and myself. I feel like I have still a lot to learn but I don't want to give up! I want to keep on going and eventually reach my goal and become a better and more healthy person. I've lost 9lbs since June which to a lot of people I know is not a lot of weight but it has made a big difference on my life. I'm a dress size smaller, I get complaints daily and people often believe I've lost a lot more than 9lbs. This could be down to my small frame that even a loss of 9lbs makes a big difference!

The best advice I can give you is that you should research some information about weight loss, what to do, how to do it. (this website is great for this information from how others have done it) From there, start your journey. And let it the road take you where it wants to go. Honestly, the current plan I have (Watching foods, exercise 30 minutes 3/4 weekdays, hour weekends) is about my fourth or fifth plan I've had! I've changed my routine so many times to suit myself and my schedule . This is just part of the learning process for me.

KateB 11-08-2012 03:53 PM

The key is finding what works for you AND makes you feel good. Years back I did very low fat. Sure I lost weight, but I was constipated all the time. I looked tired and drained, my skin started to sag almost right away. It was NOT the right plan for ME.

Other plans have left my hungry, or tired, or just have been boring.

This is what is working for me, and is working better than everything I have ever done before. Not only with weight loss, but not having cravings, my skin is not saggy, I am not and do not look tired. It is something I can live with!

I eat high protien, moderate fat, low carb foods. Very minimal processed foods. I allow myself up to 1700 calories per day. I have been doing this since July and have only has once day i was slightly over 1700, Most days I eat around 1200 calories. ut in the beginning I was eating about 1500. So don't ake up tomorrow morning and say I am only eating 1200 clories, cut back to 1700, then cut back a few more. MEASURE AND TRACK your food. Be honest about EVERYTHING that you put in your mouth. Eat your vegetables, then eat sa few more vegetables.

I rarely have bread...maybe twice a month. I don't have sweets. The longer you go without them the less you miss them. Now sweets are just too sweet.

Don't view this as having an end. When I get to x pounds or x day I will be done. I have done that before and I end up back at the starting gate in no time.

If you have a "slip", acknowlege it, log it, and look at the when where why of the slip so you can figure out how to NOT do it again.

Also, although it is important to plan ahead. Make sure you have healthy food in the house, know how much carrots or chicken etc you need until you go shopping again, so you dont fall back into old habits. You stil MUST take it one day...one meal at a time. Just because you got a frapaccino on the way to work doesn't mean you have screwed u the whole day so you may as well have a donut at coffee break and a quarter pounder for lunch.

Start NOW. Not Monday, not the first of the month, not after Thanksgiving. Just start by making the possible choice now. Also, I hear many people complain about not being able to drink 8 glasses of water a day. Well if you current only drink one or two glasses of water a day, DON'T start drinking 8 tomorrow...you will never leave the bathroom. Many people say that can't drink that much they are in the bathroom ALL the time or up 4 times a night to go to the bathroom. Increase you daily water intake by one glass a week, you will spend les time in the bathroom and will be more likely to stick to drinking more water.

My children and grandson are my greatest source of motivation! I am able to be more active in their lives if I am healthier. I love them so much I want to be an ACTIVE part of their lives for a very long time and not just watch by the sidelines. My second greatest motivation, my own success. Third...sorry everyone, but this is how it is...is the support and encouragement I get from everyone on this website.

ubergirl 11-09-2012 01:04 PM

This is my second time around, after a regain, and I'm on Day 5 right now, and I have to be honest, I'm finding it hard. I think I found it hard the first time around as well, but I think it's a little easier this time because this time I know it will work, and I also know it will get better.

Right now, I'm irritable and hungry a lot of the time, and even though I'm cooking at eating healthy food, it tastes like cardboard because I'm still craving crap. I think after about 3 weeks, I'll be in the groove. I stayed very much on plan for two whole years before my regain (stress-related, long story) and after a while it became automatic and kind of easy.

Am waiting for that to kick in. In the meantime, scale has dropped 7 lbs in five days. That's the GOOD part of the beginning. The weight just falls off at first.

Beverlyjoy 11-09-2012 02:00 PM

Gosh, which time? LOL I've started diets a gazillion times. (Maybe more, as I am 60 years old) It's different and the same each time. What I have learned is that I've got to pick something that is livable. The food plan that works best and easiest for me are the food exchanges (like Richard Simmons Foodmover) combined with The Beck Solution. (Beck is about learning to live with food in a sane manner).

Speaking of the Food Mover/exchange food plan. When I went to see the dietician a few weeks ago, that's how she told me to proceed - exchanges.

All this being said.... I usually start off 'slowly'. I may not be as 'perfect' as I want... but, in a few days I work into following the food plan pretty closely. I can actually stay with a plan, sometimes, for 4 months and then I can't seem to continue. It's happened like that at many times. However, a few years ago a Doctor/PHD who is weightloss specialist said that actually 4 months is a time when folks often start to have a harder time. It made sense to me... it made me feel 'validated' in a funny way. Anyway... knowing that helped me to be more proactive as I read the four month mark. I've actually made it past the four month mark at times via joining a class or something.

I just reread your question... it was about the first week of my diet. I guess I answered that and offered alot more information than you asked for. But, I won't delete it. It's good to see what other folks are doing and it's often helpful.

ubergirl 11-09-2012 02:18 PM

Lol. I should say that after my regain, I looked back at my calendar, and I'e TRIED to restart in May, July, and September and never made it past the ten day mark. But I knew in the back of my mind that I didn't REALLY WANT to restart and stick with it, and this time, I feel that the time is right.


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