Hello Everyone!! :)
 

Hi there! I'm new here (obviously). I've always been a bigger girl but the past couple of years I've gotten much larger than I've ever been before. I can make excuses all day but bottom line is I have a poor diet and I've gotten so busy with life that I've been too lazy to make the time to do anything about it. That ends today. Or at least I hope so. My ultimate goal is to lose 100lbs but that's pretty lofty so I'm starting with a smaller goal of 20lbs. I'm hoping once I hit that goal I'll keep at it. So if anyone has any advice on how to fit exercise into an insanely busy schedule I'm all ears! I have 3 children (ages 4, 3, and 2), work a full time job (7:30-4:30), and I'll be going back to school next month to finish my degree. I'm also an extremely picky eater which I'm trying to change but it's so dang hard! So please, any and all advice is welcome!!

Good on you (and awesome screen name, btw)! My initial weight loss goal was very similar to yours. I wanted to lose 24 pounds because I read that losing ten percent of my body weight could get rid of the debilitating pain in my foot. Happily, it did - and by then I had enough belief to keep going. Meet your first mini-goal and see how your belief looks after that. By all means, give yourself permission to lose weight slowly. The process is the process, and it takes however long it takes. (Also, slow weight loss minimizes loose skin. So does lifting weights).

I get the scheduling difficulties - I have kids and spend 4.5 hours commuting 4 days per week (I telework the other day). You'll be happy to know that weight loss is about 80% diet, so you don't need to kill yourself in the gym for hours every week. Weekend meal prep is your absolute best friend here. The other 20% is a combination of getting enough sleep and doing workouts that will give you the most bang for your buck (like lifting). Good luck to you!

try low carb diet, if you can

I'm new too, good luck in your journey, all the best! :)

Hi there I'm Tim from San Diego! Keep up the good work

Hello :cheer2: a) exersice Leslie Sansone has videos for a 15-minute walk which is much better that no walk. You could do it with the kids too. b) As for the picky eater, the less processed food we eat, the more palatable everything else seems. Good luck with everything

Hey everyone :)

Just getting into the community for the first time and excited to be here! I can't believe I didn't know about this until now. Seems like a great place to connect, and I've really been needing that lately...so lemme just say thank you to the people who created this forum and to everyone here sharing their stories/feelings and being there for others. It REALLY means a lot.

Hi GullibleDino, nice to hear about where you are right now and where you want to go. It all starts with acknowledging your current situation and defining the situation you would like to have as your ideal. I don't think it's lofty to have a goal of losing 100lbs. I think that's an amazing goal that you should have and that you CAN achieve. Starting with a mini goal of dropping 20lbs first though sounds great too! That means you will be that much closer to completing your goal, and then you know you will be able to repeat that process and lose another 20lbs.

The most crucial part is just the discipline to form the habit. And the beautiful thing about that is that it only takes about 26 days to form a new habit. Which is awesome news because once you realize that, then you just need to stay consistent with something for 26 days to form a new habit of that thing. Then it's easy from there on out and it feels natural to keep it as a habit.

Okay on to some actionable tips that you can use to actually achieve your goal:

1 - Intermittent Fasting

You have to start intermittent fasting. This has seriously changed my life and helped me drop a ton of weight. It's the #1 thing that I would recommend to anyone who seriously wants to lose weight. And not only does it help you lose weight better than anything else out there, it also gives you more energy naturally, frees up time in your busy schedule, gives you more mental clarity, etc. etc. It has a TON of benefits physically, mentally, and energetically.

And the best part is that it's natural and VERY accessible to everyone. In essence it has to do with HOW/WHEN you eat, not what you eat (though of course that's important too!).

I found a free quick start guide to intermittent fasting that really helped me understand it and get started with it that I suggest to any of my friends who are trying to lose weight.


2 - Eat a clean diet

If you are serious about your weight loss goals, then you can't overlook this one. I know you said you are a picky eater, but you gotta dig deep and ask yourself how much does this matter to you....for me, I have changed my view on food. I don't see eating food as an act that always has to be enjoyable. Rather, I now choose to look at eating food as a functional means to a better life, to more energy, to more happiness, etc. Every meal doesn't need to be enjoyable. In fact, removing that concept entirely will help A LOT in actually achieving your goals. Start to view eating food as a way to empower your body not as a way to pleasure your tongue.

Trust me, this is a complete game-changer too. If you combine this with Intermittent fasting, then I guarantee you that you will start to see major results within 1-2 months. And of course I don't mean that you should never look at eating food as a pleasurable act. Of course you should. But most meals do NOT need to be looked at in this way.

And what I mean by a clean diet = mainly vegetables and leafy greens, then some healthy whole grains like quinoa/amaranth/millet, nuts & seeds, some fruit, some eggs, and some lean meat if you really need to eat meat (though I really wouldn't suggest eating meat at all)


3 - Walking

This is going to be your key to "exercise" at least to start off with. It's extremely accessible, it's free, it's low impact, and it's VERY healthy. At first, don't complicate exercise or associate that term with "the gym." It doesn't need to be that way.

Instead, you should simply power walk 30-45 minutes per day. I like to do it first thing in the morning, as the sun is setting, or once it's nighttime, but you can do it whenever fits with your schedule.

This way you don't have to do anything whatsoever to prepare for working out. You simply walk out of your house and start power walking. Simple, super easy, and actually fun too! I mean walking is an amazing part of life, and many people don't do it enough. Not only is it a great exercise, but it's also great "me time" and a great time to reflect on life.

4 - Drink More Water

This is super simple and may sound silly, but it CRAZY how many people don't get enough water...and water is literally liquid life. It helps our bodies and minds function at their peak levels, and when we don't have enough, our body cannot work efficiently.

So, another very simple thing to do is drink enough water every day. I drink a big glass first thing when I wake up, which feels amazing, helps wake me up, and is such a healthy start to the day. From there, I make sure to always have water with me.

An easy way to gauge whether or not you have had enough water is to look at your pee. If it is yellow, then you are not nearly hydrated enough! It should be clear or very close to clear.


Okay, that's it for now haha. All of these things have completely changed my life physically, mentally, and emotionally and have helped me big time in my weight loss goals. And I KNOW they can help you as long as you just start doing them.

Remember - it only takes about 26 days to form a new habit. Then it's easy. So get started :)

Hope this helps! Touch base anytime if you want to talk. Definitely excited to hear about your progress.