Hello,
I'm new here but have been reading alot of the posts.
I have been calorie counting since January 5th and doing at least 30 mins of increased activity almost every day, also drinking nothing but 7/8 ounces of water, I have lost about 11 pounds. I started Jillian Michaels 30 day shred today, it was interesting.
I thought I would ask a few questions about the calorie counting.
It was very hard the first few days, I feel like it is alot easier now that I got into the swing of things. Is that common?
I also want to know what some of you have been doing along with the calorie counting to lose your wieght?
How often should I or do any of you step on the scale?
Also how much average wieght loss have you had in each month?
I'm looking forward to your answers....


So tired of the 200's.
Mag

Wow, you've lost 11 pounds since January 5th?! That's awesome! I've only lost 4 since January 1st...my body is going slowly but surely.

I've been on my weight loss journey for a while, but I started counting calories on January 1st -- once I got in the habit of it, it did seem very easy, and it is very easy for me. I actually like having something to track. It makes me feel like I am being very productive and proactive towards my weight loss.

I step on the scale daily, but everyone is different. The only reason I do it is because I believe that if I had a full week before weighing in again, that I *might* see that as an opportunity to cheat and eat a little more knowing that I *might* have time to work it off before my next weigh in. Plus, I like seeing how my body weighs in every day.

Good luck to you!

Hmm...

As far as it starting hard and getting easier? In some ways, yes. I felt like I had to "detox" from all the crap. However, at least in my case, it doesn't STAY easy. It waxes and wanes. Some days are a breeze and others are really, really, really challenging.

I've been counting calories, aiming for under 1500 a day. When I started out I did Couch to 5K, and now I run a few miles, do high intensity interval training, or a Jillian Michaels DVD. I average about 4 days a week working out but usually aim for more.

I weigh myself daily. Every morning, after using the restroom and with no clothes on. Per the recommendation of someone on 3FC, I started an excel spreadsheet that keeps a running weekly average of my weight so even if I'm stalled I can almost always see a decrease in weight (even if it's only a few tenths of a pound). It's been helpful.

I've lost anywhere from 7-11 pounds a month since July. Usually in the 9-10 range. Also, since tracking my weight, I see that tend to stall (bounce up and down the same couple of pounds) for 2-3 weeks and then lose a bunch at once. I lost over 5 pounds in the last week after stalling/slowly creeping downward for a few weeks.

Anyway, welcome, and good luck!

Congrats to you too for the wieght you already lost. I'm glad to hear that you feel that it gets easy. I thought maybe I was not doing it right or something. I'm using an android app that is absolutly amazing and maybe thats why it seems easy. I think that the water seems to help me even though I dont drink as much as I think I should. I believe it helps me say feeling full. HOW much water do you drink or any of you reading this.

Mags

adapting to calorie counting was easy and must say that the transition for my body to accept less calories was casier than expected.

With the calorie I make sure that what I put in my mouth is nutritious such as a cookie compared to an apple about the same calories but one brings me nothing positive. Changed my intake of salt, increased my water, dropped all processed food. I went for healthier choices. Also doing cardio and weight training 6 days a week.

I do every morning the scale thing but it drives me insane, I have switch this. Week to once a week scale and body measurements.

My calorie intake is 1200 a day that was established by a nutritionist that is supposed to allow me to loose 1 pound a week but because of the gym I have lost more. Since nov 1st I have lost 36 pound which is an average of 3 pounds a week, the pounds were falling off quite fast at the now it is more like 1 pound a week and I think it is normal.

That is excellent weight loss so far! You're almost out of the 200s before you know it. Congratulations on that! And in answer to your questions:

- Yes, it gets easier once it becomes habit to weigh/measure/count. I've found that I've also broadened my tastes so I'm actually eating more variety, more flavorful stuff than I was when I was eating mindlessly.

- I'm counting calories and doing a minimum of 3 hours of exercise a week. Note that that's my bare minimum, no-excuses number; if I wind up doing 5 hours in the week, yay! But on down weeks like during "That Time" or when I have a cold, I can still commit to three hours in a week. I like walking, riding my stationary bike, and lifting weights, but sometimes I just dance around like an idiot and hope it counts as exercise.

- I weigh daily. It used to panic me to see an upswing; now I know that it's a natural result of a hard workout, consuming more sodium, or slacking off on fiber. Other people weigh weekly or even monthly; there seems to be no wrong answer to the question, "how often should I weigh?"

- I've averaged 7 pounds a month since I started at the end of October. However, that average includes two slow-loss or no-loss weeks (read: Thanksgiving and Christmas) and a couple of three- or four-pound-loss weeks toward the beginning of things. I'd like a bigger weight loss, but I accept the reasons why it isn't bigger and don't feel the need to substantially increase my exercise or decrease my calories to speed things up. I'm enjoying this and don't feel deprived on my 1500 calories a day, so that's a bigger priority to me right now than super-fast loss.

Wow congrats on the 11 pounds!

I found calorie counting became easier after the first week since I eat a lot of the same foods so once I figured out the calories in them I didn't have to continuously go check what the calories were. I have been calorie counting for about 3 weeks now and I find myself automatically adding up the calories when I am making something so I guess it has become a bit of a habit now.

In addition to calorie counting (I try to stay under 1500) I am doing cardio at the gym for 30 mins 5 times a week. I haven't got around to doing any weight training yet but I know that I should.

I weight myself a few times a week but I only officially weigh in once a week. For my official weigh I make sure like Bac0s that it is first thing in the morning after using the restroom and with no clothes on. All the other weigh in are just because.

Good luck and keep up the hard work!

Hello,
I thought I would ask a few questions about the calorie counting.
It was very hard the first few days, I feel like it is alot easier now that I got into the swing of things. Is that common?

I've been a calorie counter since early 2010 (estimated calories January/February, countng strictly beginning in March). I agree with Bac0s - some days it sees like second nature with no problems. Some days it's a drag and I'm mentally tired of it. But my worst weight loss day is better than my old "fat" days.

I also want to know what some of you have been doing along with the calorie counting to lose your wieght?

I do DVDs 4-5 times a week. I also use a lot of Jillian DVDs, including the 30DS. By upping the weights and making things harder (or modifying less) I can still challenge my body with her workouts. Plus, they're only 25 minutes long. Love that!

How often should I or do any of you step on the scale?

I weigh every morning but only record my weight once a week (on Mondays, which I find helps keep me in check over the weekend). I see a lot of ups and downs weighing every day, but I'm looking for a downward trend over time, so I try very hard not to stress about whatever the scale says.

Also how much average wieght loss have you had in each month?

By month? I hate math. Well, I would say it's been around 4-8 pounds per month. I would also say that the weight is coming off slower and slower now as I approach goal. That was hard for me at first - I was SO needing that affirmation from the scale. But that's pretty common, to slow down the less you weigh. I've (mostly) adjusted my thinking about it.
So tired of the 200's.
Mag

You'll be out of them before you know it!