Fat and need serious help
 

Hello everyone, I am needing some serious advice and looking for healthy options for lunch and dinner choices. I weight in at 245 and want to lose weight so back but do not know exactly where to start. I got this way with plenty of unhealthy eating habits due to a very low budget for food purchases in the pass. I am so down on myself right now. I would love to lose at least 75 to 80 pound in the next year or so. I need exercise plan for someone with weak muscles and a deformed back bone, Any suggestions are appreciated.

Hi Charlie
I think the best thing for exercises might be to ask your MD to help you find a physical therapy person who can come up with a plan for you.

Re the food plan, different folks here do different plans. Often when new folks start a thread, they sadly get no answers. The way it works best here is to find a thread that interests you. And then to join in on the thread. Sort of join the conversation. I personally find that a low calorie combined with low carb. Diet works best. But that's just me. Others like weight watchers. Or other plans. Perhaps take a look around the website. Join in a few threads.

Wishing you success. You can do this. Even if it means 3 tiny steps forward and 2 steps back. You can do it

I agree with Flower that you have to find your own way. I was going to reply sooner but I was in charge of a Cub Scout Halloween party for 40 scouts and I just was running crazy.

Here is a suggestion - it may or may not work for you but it is what worked for me. Figure out your unhealthiest habits and eliminate them one at a time. I was living a very unhealthy lifestyle. The most unhealthy part of it had to be my Diet Coke (aspartame) consumption. I was probably drinking close to 2 liters a day. I needed to kick that before any weight loss was going to happen. The fake sugar affected my appetite (i.e. it made me hungry). It took me a full two months to kick the nutrasweet and all my cravings for it to the curb. I didn't lose any weight during that time, but headaches went away and I was much less prone to being "hangry". Once I was satisfied I kicked the fake sugar, I eliminated sugary tastes from my diet. That only took 3 days for me as I'm more of a salt person anyway. The weight started dropping off like crazy at the point. Then I reduced bread and other refined carbohydrates. That is more difficult, but one thing is for sure that the less refined carbs and sugars I eat, the less hungry I am. I actually have to force myself to get 1200 to 1500 calories in each day.

I'm not really a great exerciser but I got myself a fitbit and I try to get 10 thousand steps in 5 days a week. I don't know if walking is a problem for you, but if it is, maybe swimming or a stationary bicycle might work? I also do a little resistance Pilates, which doesn't take much time but gives me lean muscle and a better looking shape.

The last thing I want to say is don't dwell on the past, just think about the things you can do going forward within your own situation. As far as food costs go, you'll be shocked at how much less food you eat when you're eating healthy. Maybe while you're transitioning to healthy you'll find you're spending more, but once you're there, you'll wonder how you used to spend so much on food. Pretty much the only things I eat now are meat, eggs, frozen vegetables, Wholly Guacamole, celery, olive oil, butter, organic mayo and some cheese, along with the occasional handful of potato chips and teaspoons of ketchup. All this, of course, is along with some herbs and spices, although I have a bland enough palate to typically be very satisfied by butter and salt. Anything I didn't list would be an occasional treat that I might eat at a party. Even with my increased meat intake, the food costs for me are MUCH MUCH less than they were when I was eating high carb.

You can do this! Believe me, if I could, anybody can.

ETA: That Pilates is something I do now. When I started, I was happy if got in some (any) movement. There's no crime in taking things slowly!

There are lots of little things you can do to get started. Try drinking a tall glass of water before you eat anything. Eat a veggie with every meal. Cut out sugary nonessentials. Walk whenever you can, even 5 minutes is great. Don't worry about the past, even if it was 5 minutes ago and you faceplanted into a carton of ice cream. You can only control your next choice, not your previous ones. Good luck!