Hi Everyone,

I am pretty new here, I have been reading an responding to some posts, but this is basically my first one.
I am just turning 25, a student, married and need to lose quite a bit of weight.
I have always been heavier, but I am at my high right now.
I really want to lose the weight, but I cant seem to stick to anything I try for more than a day or two!
I am quite informed on what i need to do to get the weight off, but as we all know it is easier said than done.
Any advice on what programs are easy to stick to and how you stay on track and focused would be great!

P.S. my goal is so get to a healthy weight before I start a family in approximately 2 years.

Thanks,

Britt

Hi Britt -
Welcome to 3FC & Congratulations on your decision. This is one decision that will be hard to stick too, but at least you're doing it now before you have a couple more decades on you, like me. I'm so stuck in my bad eating habits, I'm struggling.

I'm not using a particular program yet but am watching what I eat & writing it down. I'm also writing down my activities & am wearing a pedometer.

As for "how to stick to it" - you have to have something important to you that will help. For me, it's an upcoming vacation to the Virgin Islands. For you, it sounds like having children is your incentive. Maybe having a picture of kids or of a "normal-sized" pregnant woman in your daily line of sight would work for you? It's great that you've decided to do this now then you'll be able to teach & model to your children the importance of a healthy lifestyle.

Good Luck!!

Hi Britt! Welcome to the forum. Everyone here is wonderful and completely suppotive. Losing weight is the hardest thing I have ever done. It takes a lot of work there is nothing easy about it. I would say the best thing that has helped me stay on track is coming back here. I find the support amazing and would never had been able to lose weight without this site. Good luck!

Hi Britt, welcome!

For me, and from what I've seen, there is no one program that will be guaranteed to help you lose weight. The best program is the one that you can stick with. If you can stick to cabbage soup and lemon water, more power to you, I can't. What I can stick with is lowering my calories, daily exercise, and more of my food coming from plants.

If you are an "all or nothing" kind of person, then by all means, choose diet and exercise plan that you think looks interesting and do it. If you're like me, that needs to get started slowly, this is what I did:

- Start logging your food. Every bite. If it goes in, it gets written down. I use Fitday, but there are a lot of others. Even a pen and notepad will do. I can't tell you how much knowing what I've eaten for the last year and a half helps me. Especially right now that I am on a plateau and I'm going to the doctor. If they ask about upping my calories, I would say "Oh, you mean March, here's what I ate". It also keeps me more in line to know that what I'll be eating stays for posterity.

-On the subject of food, start cleaning up your eating. Start slow with this too. Add servings of veggies, try not to eat out as much, that kind of stuff. I can tell you that after a short while, you'll start adding more and more.

-Oh yeah, make an environment conducive to weight loss. That bag of Doritoes and Oreos in the kitchen, get them out!!! They are only there to temp you. I started out at your weight, an by just cutting out the junk food and walking some more I lost 15 pounds in 5 weeks. I hadn't even joined a gym and I wasn't consciously trying to lose weight, I just cut out the junk.

-Start exercising. You don't have to go and become a gym bunny right away. Start slowly, working your way up. From three times a week to six or seven, half an hour a day, and then going up. Walk briskly, get some exercise tapes, join a gym, whatever. Just do it. Even on those days that you don't feel like it, one of the mods here mandalynn has her rule, at least 15 minutes. Do it for 15 minutes, and if you can't go on, then don't. Usually by the 15 minute mark I'll stay in for the full hour.

-Lastly, think about this as a process. You will have some missteps. One day tiramisu will magically end up in your mouth, but hey, one tiramisu didn't make you fat. Lots of them did. Brush it off and keep going.

-Finally lastly, have support. This board is great, all of the information, and people who never tire of talking about healthy living and weightloss. What more can you ask for?

GOOD LUCK and keep us posted!

The real question (which archy mentioned) is what happens after the couple of days that you stick to it? Do you mess up once, and decide to "start over next week," or give up? I've seen the "all-or-nothing" attitude prevent a lot of people from losing weight.

I can only stick to very healthy eating for a couple of days. So I plan treats every few days: a mini candy bar, or one scoop of ice cream, or a can of non-diet soda, or whatever I'm in the mood for. I also have rest days where I don't exercise... some people say it's good for your body, and it's good for me, mentally, to have a break. Make sure whatever you're doing isn't too strict... you'll probably be following some form of it for the rest of your life!

As lenient as it is, I can only stick to my food and exercise plan for a couple weeks at a time before I "mess up" in a bigger way and get a burger and fries for dinner, eat a big dessert at a restaurant, skip a planned workout because I just don't feel like it. *THIS* is where I used to have problems... I'd skip a workout, then skip the next, and the next... or I'd eat breakfast from McDonalds and figure I blew it, so I'd have cookies for lunch. The reason I'm (slowly and) steadily losing weight this time is that I've really been working on my "comebacks." I'm trying to go back to doing the right thing as quickly as possible after I slip up. And it seems to be working!

As for specific plans, right now I'm actually not following anything, but in the past I've counted calories and had great success with that because it's so flexible.

Hey! I have always had a hard time sticking to a diet. I start counting my calories in Feb. and am still sticking to it. I write down how many calories I eat in a notebook. I still eat junk food once in a while, but in moderation and within my daily calories. I eat between 1200-1500 calories a day. I do let myself have on day where i eat 1800 calories so I can eat pizza, or whatever it is I have been craving all week. I also try to walk at least an hour every night. I hate exercising but have found that I enjoy walking.

Good luck to you! I hope you find something that you can stick to!

Hey Britt - welcome and good luck finding a plan!

I'm also determined to get my body in shape before I have children. It's a great motivator!