im still wondering what other types of exercise i can do and if 30 min 3 times a week is enough of it?
and im still having problems with cravings. any creative ways to avoid them?
When I first started out exercising I started out very slowly. But then again I was 287 lbs and doing much was really not an option. At your weight, I would aim for some kind of "added physical activity" at least 5 times a week. Even if it's just a brisk walk for 30 mins to start out with. You could also break it down and walk 2 x a day for 20 minutes each to begin with. You might also want to look into some strength training type program. Buy a resistance band to start off with.
The best way to fight off cravings, I've found is to go cold turkey. I avoided the food that I loved best and abused, (cakes, cookies, ice cream, pasta, rice, bread, etc) and my cravings for them, after 2 difficult weeks, slowed down incredibly. It's really the only way IMO.
Although I elminated many foods, figured they were doing me NO good whatsoever, I might as well do without them, I mean they certainly weren't making me happy, I added in many, many new and wonderful foods that I've come to absolutely love. They are now (mostly) the foods that I crave. So yes, make sure that you eat - just experiment and find healthy, low calorie foods to eat. Eventually your tastes will change.
Planning has also been key for me. I plan my days ahead of time. I eat frequently, at least 6 - 8 times a day. I always know that very soon another healthy, tasty snack/food is not too far off.
Mermaid, give it some time. Your food choices will evolve. The first thing you should work on doing is making a longterm commitment to eating well and exercising. Once you make that decision, that commitment, everything will fall into place. Best of luck to you.
Last edited by rockinrobin; 10-03-2008 at 06:28 AM.
Just a note on WW--the program does not put you on that low a level of calories. You're supposed to be eating additional points beyond the base level. If you're interested, check out the 3FC Weight Watchers forum and ask the chicks over there!
I totally agree about being smaller and having less place for the weight to spread to! I generally think unless us small girls are pretty slim we look pretty chubby (even at healthy weights).
Anyway, I'm 5'2 and I've lost weight at about 1450 calories, it's starting to slow down but anything between 1200-and 1500 should be manageable when losing weight.
I've lost twenty lbs so far by counting calories and exercising. I like to vary my calories each day, staying between 1400-1800. It seems to be working so far. I eat lots of protein with good carbs - veggies, some fruits, whole grains, and good fats (evoo) to help fuel me, fill me and keep me full longer. Alot of people like to eat 6 times a day or so. I've found that I don't like or need a snack between breakfast and lunch (most of the time) so I don't have one but between lunch and dinner I always need a snack, sometimes even two. The after dinner snack? Um, for me anyway it's really more of a dessert because I'm usually not hungry at night, I just like to eat at night. While I'd like to tell you that yours snacks can be chips and cookies and such, you know it just isn't so. Cheese sticks, veggies sticks, nuts, whole grain crackers, yogurt -- these types of things are what I usually snack on. Sometimes a cup of coffee in the mid-afternoon w/a cheese stick will keep me going. Caffeine and protein - what a combo!
As for the cravings -- I'm w/Rockinrobin on this one. The first week or two -- I'm not gonna kid you, they were pretty hard but going cold turkey was the only way I found to really diminish the cravings for all the prepackaged junk. I think they put a little 'something, something' in those foods so the more we eat them, the more we want them. Geez, talk about a catch-22. So yeah, cold turkey. I just dug my heels in and just said no. It worked for me. Do I still get cravings? of course! I think everyone does. But now I know I can have a serving of doritos and not feel compelled to eat the whole bag. I've also realized that after the first 10-12 chips or so (which is somewhere around a serving) I don't really taste the chips anymore. Those first ones taste great but then I don't really notice the taste as much as I'm just going after that satisfiying 'crunchy/munchy' thing. Being aware, paying attention and not mindlessly eating really, really goes a long way in keeping the hand-to-bag/hand-to-mouth pattern under control.
As for exercising, I started off walking on the treadmill. I added in intervals (here's a link for a good explanation/example of what an interval is) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUV7Xiy2HAQ and freeweights. I also use a stability ball (do a youtube google search; tons of exercises out there), yoga and I try to walk my dog 1 1/2 miles several times a week. The more I move, the better I feel and the stronger I get. Yes, it burns cals but mostly I think the weight loss comes from diet vs. exercise. I like exercising because of how it makes me feel and because I want to kick butt when I'm 80!
Make a commitment, make a plan, tweak both the food and exercise constantly as you go along and you will lose the weight. Oh, and change your mindset too. Don't think of it as 'on a diet' cause then there will come a time when you are 'off a diet' and you will just resume your old habits. I thought I could just lose the weight and once at goal go back to eating and not exercising. I never even got to goal, twice!, and this time finally figured out that I'm changing my way of eating, my way of exercising and my entire outlook. I'm not 'on' anything and I'm not going to be 'off' anything. This is the way I live. Good luck!
avoid cravings by not letting yourself get too hungry. Eat every 3 hours, drink lots of water. If your craving something after you've eaten treat yourself to a small nonfat latte.
One thing I have changed is that I always get the small size or kid size in everything that I buy when eating out. Like a small latte, or a small orange juice, etc.
I am 5' 1" (and 1/2!) and a huge cheese addict like you.
In my daily plan I am allowed a few protein or dairy servings in a day, so what I do is make one of those a cheese serving (I always weigh it to make sure I don't over-do it). I have found out that as long as I know I can have a little every day, I am ok.
I don't crave sweets or other things as much, but I still made sure I got them all out of the house just in case, because I know if I start eating them, it will be harder to stop.
As for exercise I started on the Wii Fit, and as I felt I need more of a challenge, I started doing exercise DVDs, so now I alternate between both.
Do any of you have a scale? I am curious about buying a food scale so I can tell exactly how much of something I am eating. Does anyone have any suggestions or advice? Where should i get one? is there something specific i should look for? are there differences between the cheaper and more expensive models?
I got a cheap one from target. It appears to be accurate. It has a "tare" mode which lets me take it down to 0 without taking off the food. It also has 2000 foods listed but I've never used that feature and don't even know how to use it. It was $10. Oh, and it's digital. Chef Mate brand I believe is what Target sells.
Last edited by LandonsBaby; 10-03-2008 at 07:36 PM.
Thanks mermaid20 for the link to this thread! It's awesome to see there are other petite people here who are trying to lose weight as well
So I have about 25 lbs to lose before I'm in the healthy weight-range. I recently signed up with WW - but I feel like I often blow my points (18 a day) before dinner! Obviously I'm making the wrong food choices... I'm trying to motivate myself to eat more fruits and veggies and cut out on the junk food.
I think the biggest change I can make is start exercising. Last year I'd lost 15 lbs just by running 3 times a week ( I was training for a half-marathon). After the half, I started running less frequently, but I was still able to maintain for almost 8 months until this summer when I stopped running and bam! I'm back to where I'd started
So anyway, like Hattrick suggested, I am trying to think of this as a lifestyle change. I signed up for kickboxing classes, now I jsut have to make sure I go more than just once a week Motivation and commitment - two simple concepts but... *sigh* oh so hard to maintain! What do you guys do to stay motivated?
I found I need to exercise too. That is key for me, if I want to see a difference on the scale and in the clothing stores. It is hard for me though. I'm trying to stay motivated by thinking of the future- how nice it will feel to have the weight be gone, the compliments i would get, the clothes i'd be able to fit back into, and when I invest some money into it (gym membership, new fitness mat, etc) I feel like I have more of a commitment to it because I don't want that money to go to waste.
but making this into a lifestyle change is hard. One month in, and I have seen some results, but it's so easy to step back into old ways.
wow kamesennin - you have lost 29 lbs!! that is FANTASTIC what are some of your best tips?
mermaid - yeah I'm the same - in order to see the difference I *have* to exercise I'm a very people person, so it's hard for me to motivate myself to go it alone - which is why I signed up for kickboxing. atleast there are people around me, so i feel like I have to keep going the whole 55 minutes, and not be able to slack off!
wow kamesennin - you have lost 29 lbs!! that is FANTASTIC what are some of your best tips?
mermaid - yeah I'm the same - in order to see the difference I *have* to exercise I'm a very people person, so it's hard for me to motivate myself to go it alone - which is why I signed up for kickboxing. atleast there are people around me, so i feel like I have to keep going the whole 55 minutes, and not be able to slack off!
Oh kickboxing! That sounds like a lot of fun. Be sure to come back and tell us how you like it!!
As for losing 29 pounds...well I kind of cheated and had a baby--that's good for about 7 pounds plus fluid and placenta=easy 20 lbs right there. I'm averaging 2 lbs per month so I'm hoping to increase that by a little!
I bought this scale here: http://cgi.ebay.com/55-ULTRASHIP-Dig...QQcmdZViewItem
It is called Ultraship 55. I guess it is a postal scale because you can use it up to 55 lbs. Good for shipping stuff too so now I don't have to go to the post office. It is digital, has a tare function and can switch units . Only $20! Well you have to pay shipping, though.
While I'd like to tell you that yours snacks can be chips and cookies and such, you know it just isn't so. Cheese sticks, veggies sticks, nuts, whole grain crackers, yogurt -- these types of things are what I usually snack on. Sometimes a cup of coffee in the mid-afternoon w/a cheese stick will keep me going. Caffeine and protein - what a combo! 
Obviously I'm making the wrong food choices... I'm trying to motivate myself to eat more fruits and veggies and cut out on the junk food. 
