Newbie, how/where do I begin?

[Here2learn]

Hello, I’m new here, my name is Al, I’m 40 years old and it’s has been over a decade since I’ve been in healthy shape. My job had a moderate physical demand and that’s my only form of exercise. My reason for joining this group is weight loss. I also plan to begin exercising, starting slowly, and hoping to receive help with that as well, but weight loss is my goal. I’m 5’10” and 200lbs and about 23% body fat according to an online website calculation. My goal is to lose 20lbs in 2 months, is that too drastic? I’d like to continue with weight loss from there. My main problem is large meals and number of meals, I don’t eat much junk food but do consume alcohol on the weekends, which id rather not give up. I drink a moderate amount of water daily and consume tea not coffee nor soda. Where can I learn ways to eat foods that help me feel more full and satisfied so I might be able to reduce my portion sizes and reduce total calories per day? Can anyone help me begin this journey and point me in the right direction?
Thanks - Al

 

[Err2]

Hello, I’m new here, my name is Al

Welcome Al, you've come to the right place!

I’m 5’10” and 200lbs and about 23% body fat according to an online website calculation. My goal is to lose 20lbs in 2 months, is that too drastic?

20 lbs in 2 months is a bit extreme of a goal - I'd put 15 lbs of body fat as a difficult/maximum goal for you in 60 days. Here is my math/reasoning:

At 200 lbs & 23% body fat, you have 46 lb of body fat. According to research, the human body can efficiently burn somewhere between 20 and 32 calories per pound of body fat per day (if you have a larger calorie deficit, you start to accelerate muscle loss). To be conservative, I use the lower limit so 20 calories x 46 lb of body fat = 920 calories per day maximum deficit which is about 1/4 of a pound of fat (3500 calories per pound of fat). Multiplied by 60 days and I get 15.8 lb of fat - and that's going to be a bit high since you'll be losing fat along the way and thus cannot maintain as large of a calorie deficit after you lose the first 7 lbs...

Another way to look at it is the generic advice to lose no more than 1-2 lb per week, which would be 16 pounds in 8 weeks.

Either way 20 lb is a bit much.

My main problem is large meals and number of meals, I don’t eat much junk food but do consume alcohol on the weekends, which id rather not give up. I drink a moderate amount of water daily and consume tea not coffee nor soda. Where can I learn ways to eat foods that help me feel more full and satisfied so I might be able to reduce my portion sizes and reduce total calories per day?

So everyone is going to have a different approach, but as long as calories in balance calories out you'll be fine. My approach is to count calories, although others have success simply by cutting down on carbs or not eating in certain time periods.

For me, counting calories was an eye opener because I realized how full some foods made me (and how not full other foods made me). For example, a large flour tortilla is about 200 calories and if I eat one it'll do almost nothing to make me feel full. 2 bananas is better, 5 ounces of skinless chicken breast even more filling, and 7 cups of chopped broccoli would leave me so stuffed I'd want to pop. All of those are about 200 calories...

For more examples:

At 40, 5'10" 200lb @ 23% body fat your body needs about 2,250 calories per day to maintain your weight - and that's if you were totally sedentary. Every minute that you walk burns an extra 4 calories, so if you walked 30 minutes/day you'd burn an extra 120 calories. I'm assuming you're no longer as active at that job, so that'd put you in the range of 2400 calories/day to maintain. If so, you would want to eat at least 1500 calories per day. Even if you ate 2000 calories/day, you'd still be losing almost 1 lb per week.

If you do intense exercise, you'd want to add even more, but those should be in the ballpark of your minimum calories. You can still do that and consume alcohol, you'll just have to figure out how to cut back elsewhere (you might eat a bit less M-F or you might eat a lot less - or even totally fast - one day to give you a calorie budget for your weekend drinking).

Another key is to incorporate strength training into your routine - at least once per week. This will help prevent muscle loss and keep your metabolism from slowing too much.

Finally, keep an eye on your protein intake. While you're dieting, try to get 1 g of protein for every 1 lb of lean mass. At 200lb 23% body fat, you're sitting at 154 lb of lean mass so shoot for 154g of protein per day. If you're only eating 1500 calories, this will be tough to achieve without eating super clean so you may want an even slower weight loss goal.

I’d like to continue with weight loss from there

So you aren't in too bad of shape now - you're actually pretty muscular. You've probably heard of BMI, but it is not a good metric for muscular individuals. FMI - fat mass index - is more telling. At 40 years old you should have a FMI of 3.7-6.0 and you're sitting at 6.6 right now - so not far off the healthy range. If you lost 20 lbs of body fat - and no muscle - you would be on the low end of that range with a FMI of 3.7 (body fat of 14.4%).

At that point, losing additional body fat wouldn't help your health - it would be more for athletic performance or asthetic purposes.

 

[Here2learn]

Welcome Al, you've come to the right place!


20 lbs in 2 months is a bit extreme of a goal - I'd put 15 lbs of body fat as a difficult/maximum goal for you in 60 days. Here is my math/reasoning:

At 200 lbs & 23% body fat, you have 46 lb of body fat. According to research, the human body can efficiently burn somewhere between 20 and 32 calories per pound of body fat per day (if you have a larger calorie deficit, you start to accelerate muscle loss). To be conservative, I use the lower limit so 20 calories x 46 lb of body fat = 920 calories per day maximum deficit which is about 1/4 of a pound of fat (3500 calories per pound of fat). Multiplied by 60 days and I get 15.8 lb of fat - and that's going to be a bit high since you'll be losing fat along the way and thus cannot maintain as large of a calorie deficit after you lose the first 7 lbs...

Another way to look at it is the generic advice to lose no more than 1-2 lb per week, which would be 16 pounds in 8 weeks.

Either way 20 lb is a bit much.

So everyone is going to have a different approach, but as long as calories in balance calories out you'll be fine. My approach is to count calories, although others have success simply by cutting down on carbs or not eating in certain time periods.

For me, counting calories was an eye opener because I realized how full some foods made me (and how not full other foods made me). For example, a large flour tortilla is about 200 calories and if I eat one it'll do almost nothing to make me feel full. 2 bananas is better, 5 ounces of skinless chicken breast even more filling, and 7 cups of chopped broccoli would leave me so stuffed I'd want to pop. All of those are about 200 calories...

For more examples:

At 40, 5'10" 200lb @ 23% body fat your body needs about 2,250 calories per day to maintain your weight - and that's if you were totally sedentary. Every minute that you walk burns an extra 4 calories, so if you walked 30 minutes/day you'd burn an extra 120 calories. I'm assuming you're no longer as active at that job, so that'd put you in the range of 2400 calories/day to maintain. If so, you would want to eat at least 1500 calories per day. Even if you ate 2000 calories/day, you'd still be losing almost 1 lb per week.

If you do intense exercise, you'd want to add even more, but those should be in the ballpark of your minimum calories. You can still do that and consume alcohol, you'll just have to figure out how to cut back elsewhere (you might eat a bit less M-F or you might eat a lot less - or even totally fast - one day to give you a calorie budget for your weekend drinking).

Another key is to incorporate strength training into your routine - at least once per week. This will help prevent muscle loss and keep your metabolism from slowing too much.

Finally, keep an eye on your protein intake. While you're dieting, try to get 1 g of protein for every 1 lb of lean mass. At 200lb 23% body fat, you're sitting at 154 lb of lean mass so shoot for 154g of protein per day. If you're only eating 1500 calories, this will be tough to achieve without eating super clean so you may want an even slower weight loss goal.


So you aren't in too bad of shape now - you're actually pretty muscular. You've probably heard of BMI, but it is not a good metric for muscular individuals. FMI - fat mass index - is more telling. At 40 years old you should have a FMI of 3.7-6.0 and you're sitting at 6.6 right now - so not far off the healthy range. If you lost 20 lbs of body fat - and no muscle - you would be on the low end of that range with a FMI of 3.7 (body fat of 14.4%).

At that point, losing additional body fat wouldn't help your health - it would be more for athletic performance or asthetic purposes.

this was beyond anything I could have expected from my first reply. You’ve put me in a very excited state of mind for my upcoming goals.

I answered some online questions to arrive at the 23% body fat number, and I’m therefore Not overly confident in the number but assume it must be in the ballpark. Your helpful math allows me to make future calculations, so thank you.

15 in two months sounds acceptable to me, would 25 in three months be a bit too unrealistic also? Maybe 25lbs lost by the end of May?

counting calories sounds difficult as I eat mostly at home (so it’s not clear to me how I account for a piece of grilled chicken, as would be easiest if I ate out and they had a nutrition menu) I do infrequently eat out too. Is there a simple way to do this, maybe by estimating, as I don’t imagine there is a major difference in eating 2200 calories or 2180 or 2220. I know every bit helps but if this process is far too time consuming and detailed then I fear it will have me disinterested before long.

Are there any good websites to help me learn how many calories are in the food I’m eating or about to eat?

I have a plan for my initial exercise, just to bring my body back into the mode of physical fitness. From there are there any recommendations via websites that might offer plans or directions for home fitness (gyms in my location might not be open for awhile)?

And finally, can you offer any tips to fill me up? As I said, I don’t mind eating healthier foods but I find that I consume multiple chicken breasts to feel as full as a large fried chicken sandwich with a bun and cheese Etc. I’d like to trick myself into feeling full in the hopes that over weeks I’ll have a full feeling sooner and sooner. Any advice for this? I have no allergies or health conditions/concerns.

 

[Err2]

You’ve put me in a very excited state of mind for my upcoming goals.

Excellent!

I answered some online questions to arrive at the 23% body fat number, and I’m therefore Not overly confident in the number but assume it must be in the ballpark.

I've found the US Navy's body fat estimate to be reasonably close to my "actual" body fat as determined by Dexa Scans. Bodyfat scales less so...

With the Navy method, measure your waist at your navel with your stomach relaxed and after exhaling. Make sure the tape measure is horizontal - a sagging gut tends to make the tape tilt downward...

15 in two months sounds acceptable to me, would 25 in three months be a bit too unrealistic also? Maybe 25lbs lost by the end of May?

I made a quick spread sheet to deal with the declining calorie deficit as you lose weight. If you started tomorrow, you'd lose 15 lbs of fat around April 11 and 25 lb of fat on June 18:



You can see that the amount of fat you can lose really slows down as your body has less fat to work with.

counting calories sounds difficult as I eat mostly at home (so it’s not clear to me how I account for a piece of grilled chicken, as would be easiest if I ate out and they had a nutrition menu) I do infrequently eat out too. Is there a simple way to do this, maybe by estimating, as I don’t imagine there is a major difference in eating 2200 calories or 2180 or 2220. I know every bit helps but if this process is far too time consuming and detailed then I fear it will have me disinterested before long.

So the way to get as close to exact as possible is to weigh out everything. This is pretty much what I do, although at restaurants or at friends' houses you just have to estimate. There are lots of calorie tracking apps - my fitness pal is probably the most common, I use myplate. With packaged foods it is really easy - just scan the barcode with your smartphone from the app and it'll enter all the info for you.

As hard as it is, I would really recommend weighing and counting every calorie for a couple weeks - you'll learn a ton. Studies have shown that when people estimate, they tend to under count by 400 calories (and dieticians - who should know better - under count by about 200 calories). As you go along, you'll learn that the difference between 3 and 4 oz of chicken really isn't that much (40 calories) but the difference between 1 tbsp and 2 of salad dressing might be 90 calories. Many people end up eyeballing their meat (or veggie) weights by comparing it to their palm size.

*With meats, keep in mind that many nutrition labels are based on uncooked weight. A 4 oz hamburger patty will cook down to about 3 oz, but it'll still have pretty much all of the calories - not 75%...

Are there any good websites to help me learn how many calories are in the food I’m eating or about to eat?

A smartphone app is mostly what I learned on. When the app doesn't have data on something, say yardlong beans, I'll google "yardlong bean nutrition" and usually find data from someplace like fatsecret.com or nutritiondata.self.com

I have a plan for my initial exercise, just to bring my body back into the mode of physical fitness. From there are there any recommendations via websites that might offer plans or directions for home fitness (gyms in my location might not be open for awhile)?

My main advice would be to find some form of exercise you enjoy so it doesn't feel like a chore. Walking, running, biking, rowing, skating, etc - it'll burn calories and the endorphins will improve your mood.

For strength training, I pretty much just search "body weight strength training" on youtube and try to follow along to the various 15-30 minute videos. I also got a pull up bar for my door jam and I keep an extra bag of water softener salt lying around that I use for curls. Push ups, sit ups, planks, air squats, burpees, bicycle kicks, etc are all pretty common exercises I'm doing for now, but I am looking forward to being able to go to a gym.

And finally, can you offer any tips to fill me up? As I said, I don’t mind eating healthier foods but I find that I consume multiple chicken breasts to feel as full as a large fried chicken sandwich with a bun and cheese Etc. I’d like to trick myself into feeling full in the hopes that over weeks I’ll have a full feeling sooner and sooner. Any advice for this? I have no allergies or health conditions/concerns.

Multiple chicken breasts probably still have fewer calories than the whole sandwhich. For instance, a "Charbroiled BBQ Chicken Sandwich" from Carl's Jr has about 370 calories. The "low carb" version (wrapped in lettuce instead of in a bun) has 180 calories so you can get two of them and still have 10 fewer calories (plus you'll be getting almost twice as much protein for the calories you are consuming).

Mostly you'll have to find what works for you through trial and error, but the most basic advice I can offer is eat more vegetables. Personally I always hated vegetables until I gave up sugar (just for the empty calories), but after a few weeks I found that I really enjoyed a lot of vegetables. A quick and filling lunch might be a giant bowl of broccoli (about 200 calories) along with 3 oz of left over trip tip steak (about 200 calories). When something calls for 2 eggs (160 calories), I'll use 2 egg whites and 1 whole egg (110 calories). I like chopping up celery and sticking it in random foods to add bulk (and virtually no calories). I also find that if I make something spicy I'm more likely to feel fuller, so I've been adding jalapenos to lots of random meals, mostly with success.

For breakfasts, a lot of the time I'll make a spinach cottage cheese egg bake for the week and have some each morning. Overnight oats are another easy & filling one.

 

[Cate]

Wow, Al. Err has definitely given you a very informative answer to your introduction. You have come to the right place. No-one here is trying to sell you anything. We try to get rid of spammers quickly. If someone is "senior" or a "well-known member" (such as Err) you can usually trust any links they share. Great job, Err! I'll be a part of your cheer squad
I use the My Fitness Pal app on my phone & Trusylver uses Cronometer.

 

[Here2learn]

Wow, Al. Err has definitely given you a very informative answer to your introduction. You have come to the right place. No-one here is trying to sell you anything. We try to get rid of spammers quickly. If someone is "senior" or a "well-known member" (such as Err) you can usually trust any links they share. Great job, Err! I'll be a part of your cheer squad
I use the My Fitness Pal app on my phone & Trusylver uses Cronometer.

You’re right, Err has been so helpful. And I welcome you as part of the newly formed cheering squad. Thank you for the post

 

[Here2learn]

Excellent!


I've found the US Navy's body fat estimate to be reasonably close to my "actual" body fat as determined by Dexa Scans. Bodyfat scales less so...

With the Navy method, measure your waist at your navel with your stomach relaxed and after exhaling. Make sure the tape measure is horizontal - a sagging gut tends to make the tape tilt downward...


I made a quick spread sheet to deal with the declining calorie deficit as you lose weight. If you started tomorrow, you'd lose 15 lbs of fat around April 11 and 25 lb of fat on June 18:

View attachment 41438

You can see that the amount of fat you can lose really slows down as your body has less fat to work with.


So the way to get as close to exact as possible is to weigh out everything. This is pretty much what I do, although at restaurants or at friends' houses you just have to estimate. There are lots of calorie tracking apps - my fitness pal is probably the most common, I use myplate. With packaged foods it is really easy - just scan the barcode with your smartphone from the app and it'll enter all the info for you.

As hard as it is, I would really recommend weighing and counting every calorie for a couple weeks - you'll learn a ton. Studies have shown that when people estimate, they tend to under count by 400 calories (and dieticians - who should know better - under count by about 200 calories). As you go along, you'll learn that the difference between 3 and 4 oz of chicken really isn't that much (40 calories) but the difference between 1 tbsp and 2 of salad dressing might be 90 calories. Many people end up eyeballing their meat (or veggie) weights by comparing it to their palm size.

*With meats, keep in mind that many nutrition labels are based on uncooked weight. A 4 oz hamburger patty will cook down to about 3 oz, but it'll still have pretty much all of the calories - not 75%...


A smartphone app is mostly what I learned on. When the app doesn't have data on something, say yardlong beans, I'll google "yardlong bean nutrition" and usually find data from someplace like fatsecret.com or nutritiondata.self.com


My main advice would be to find some form of exercise you enjoy so it doesn't feel like a chore. Walking, running, biking, rowing, skating, etc - it'll burn calories and the endorphins will improve your mood.

For strength training, I pretty much just search "body weight strength training" on youtube and try to follow along to the various 15-30 minute videos. I also got a pull up bar for my door jam and I keep an extra bag of water softener salt lying around that I use for curls. Push ups, sit ups, planks, air squats, burpees, bicycle kicks, etc are all pretty common exercises I'm doing for now, but I am looking forward to being able to go to a gym.


Multiple chicken breasts probably still have fewer calories than the whole sandwhich. For instance, a "Charbroiled BBQ Chicken Sandwich" from Carl's Jr has about 370 calories. The "low carb" version (wrapped in lettuce instead of in a bun) has 180 calories so you can get two of them and still have 10 fewer calories (plus you'll be getting almost twice as much protein for the calories you are consuming).

Mostly you'll have to find what works for you through trial and error, but the most basic advice I can offer is eat more vegetables. Personally I always hated vegetables until I gave up sugar (just for the empty calories), but after a few weeks I found that I really enjoyed a lot of vegetables. A quick and filling lunch might be a giant bowl of broccoli (about 200 calories) along with 3 oz of left over trip tip steak (about 200 calories). When something calls for 2 eggs (160 calories), I'll use 2 egg whites and 1 whole egg (110 calories). I like chopping up celery and sticking it in random foods to add bulk (and virtually no calories). I also find that if I make something spicy I'm more likely to feel fuller, so I've been adding jalapenos to lots of random meals, mostly with success.

For breakfasts, a lot of the time I'll make a spinach cottage cheese egg bake for the week and have some each morning. Overnight oats are another easy & filling one.

Obviously these are all very helpful, I do have a few more questions.
I’ll take the navy body fat assessment soon.
I have already started on portion control, eating healthier (though not weighing food or counting calories yet, just that I know my meal choices have been much better), and began a limited home exercise Program yesterday. The journey is beginning.
Can you suggest any other meal ideas in the beginning of my journey? In addition to the broccoli might you add something like hummus for dipping? I’d imagine garbanzo beens have protein and health benefits. I love spice too, what creative way do you add jalapeños I might not have considered? Are there any spicy sauces which can be added to food too that you’d suggest? Something with low sugar obviously, and maybe homemade.
I don’t like cottage cheese and breakfast is likely the meal I struggle with most. Other than eggs and jalapeños, which is good if you haven’t tried it, can you suggest other things
try? Thank you

 

[Llama]

Hummus is great but beware of the calories: most store-bought hummus is very heavy on the oil. Making it yourself could solve that, of course, and you could add as much spice as you like!
Here are some suggestions for low-cal savory sauces:

If you aren´t too tied to tradition breakfast isn´t harder than any other meal. My breakfast is usually either wraps with mashed beans and veggies, pitabread with baked falafel, or whatever else I´d also have for lunch or dinner. A stir-fry with chicken breast is quick and simple, even in the morning, especially when you use a frozen veggie mix. Protein pancakes (made with protein powder) are fine as well if you have a sweet tooth.

 

[Err2]

I do use homemade hummus for dipping, but still pretty sparingly. Instead most of the time I mix a modest amount of meat/protein with a large amount of vegetables to make the veggies more appealing and the meat more filling. But I'm no cooking connoisseur - before this last year I ate out almost exclusively, usually fast food or at dive diners, so my idea of cooking is throwing 5oz of leftover pork chops in a bowl with 1 pound bag of microwaved frozen veggies or dumping a can of chicken on top of a Caesar salad...

I get some ideas from fitness influencers (like "anabolic french toast"), but a lot of times I just search things like "high protein low calorie breakfasts" (and get results like this: 13 High Protein Low Calorie Breakfasts). Some of the cooking sites will let you put in what ingredients you have on hand and come up with possible recipes.

Like LaMa, I'm not too wed to traditional breakfast meals, but the typical ones I have are things like plain oatmeal with a little peanut butter and some chopped fruit, omelettes/skillets, frittatas, etc.

 

[Here2learn]

At 40, 5'10" 200lb @ 23% body fat your body needs about 2,250 calories per day to maintain your weight - and that's if you were totally sedentary.

are calories to be counted per day, or can they be counted over a few days? For example, if I was attempting to eat 2,000 calories daily, and tomorrow I ate 1,500 for just one day, would I be able to eat 2,500 the following day to maintain a 2,000 per day average? Or does it not work that way?

 

[Err2]

are calories to be counted per day, or can they be counted over a few days? For example, if I was attempting to eat 2,000 calories daily, and tomorrow I ate 1,500 for just one day, would I be able to eat 2,500 the following day to maintain a 2,000 per day average?

Yes you can - that is how the calorie restriction in alternate day fasting works. The main thing that matters in the long term is whether your calories balance at the end of the week.

 

[jdfoley5]

And finally, can you offer any tips to fill me up? As I said, I don’t mind eating healthier foods but I find that I consume multiple chicken breasts to feel as full as a large fried chicken sandwich with a bun and cheese Etc. I’d like to trick myself into feeling full in the hopes that over weeks I’ll have a full feeling sooner and sooner. Any advice for this? I have no allergies or health conditions/concerns.

I've been recommended to drink a gallon of water a day. Perhaps this would help "trick you" into feeling full. Working for me.

 

[Here2learn]

Yes you can - that is how the calorie restriction in alternate day fasting works. The main thing that matters in the long term is whether your calories balance at the end of the week.

Thank you.
i haven’t been checking my weight daily but I’m down to 196 from 200lbs in 5 days. That’s a lot more than i had planned. I don’t want to be doing anything unhealthy but is this possibly typical of someone who cuts calories and begins exercising? I’m eating three meals a day, and though not counting calories, I estimate eating 1500-2000 daily. I just want to make sure I’m not doing harm by losing too much too quickly. It’s encouraging to have quick weight loss. And I’m wondering if maybe this will quickly plateau but I thought it best to check with the community here first.

 

[Err2]

It is very common to lose extra weight during the first week or two. This extra is almost always water weight (especially if you're cutting down on refined carbs). You may find that you have plateaus down the road where you start retaining water for a while and then your body suddenly lets it all go days later, again perfectly normal. The long term trend is what really matters...

 

[overlandflyer]

hi H2L... funny how much your story is similar to mine. i lost a bunch of weight when i hit 40, too. unfortunately i didn't know then what i do know now and within 5-6 years i was back to over 200 lbs and headed for even worse.

up to now i've been inserting a plug for intermittent fasting here, but frankly i'm getting a little tired of stating the same things over and over again. look up my diary and read through at least to the point i talk about the Jason Fung video. in a nutshell, try to learn all you can about nutrition. you will see why just about everyone on earth eats too much. you should pick up on why "eat less-move more" diets (like what i did 25 years ago) will fail EVERY TIME.

so good luck and if you want my opinion 10lbs/ month is what i achieved in the first 4 months (about 2-2½ lbs/ week). it took me a few more months to get to where i am now, but the best part is that i've stayed here for nearly 2 years now. intermittent fasting isn't easy 24 hours a day because it takes a bit of discipline. i have hunger episodes, but i have learned to live with them. hunger won't kill you... fasting won't kill you... your body will try to trick you into eating every chance it gets. you just have to be smarter.

 

[Here2learn]

It is very common to lose extra weight during the first week or two. This extra is almost always water weight (especially if you're cutting down on refined carbs). You may find that you have plateaus down the road where you start retaining water for a while and then your body suddenly lets it all go days later, again perfectly normal. The long term trend is what really matters...

i thought this was likely normal, or expected, but I’m glad you confirmed that I’m still losing weight in a healthy way.

do you have any low calorie super bowl favorite items?

 

[Here2learn]

hi H2L... funny how much your story is similar to mine. i lost a bunch of weight when i hit 40, too. unfortunately i didn't know then what i do know now and within 5-6 years i was back to over 200 lbs and headed for even worse.

up to now i've been inserting a plug for intermittent fasting here, but frankly i'm getting a little tired of stating the same things over and over again. look up my diary and read through at least to the point i talk about the Jason Fung video. in a nutshell, try to learn all you can about nutrition. you will see why just about everyone on earth eats too much. you should pick up on why "eat less-move more" diets (like what i did 25 years ago) will fail EVERY TIME.

so good luck and if you want my opinion 10lbs/ month is what i achieved in the first 4 months (about 2-2½ lbs/ week). it took me a few more months to get to where i am now, but the best part is that i've stayed here for nearly 2 years now. intermittent fasting isn't easy 24 hours a day because it takes a bit of discipline. i have hunger episodes, but i have learned to live with them. hunger won't kill you... fasting won't kill you... your body will try to trick you into eating every chance it gets. you just have to be smarter.

thank you for sharing. Where are you on this next phase of your weight loss journey?

 

[jdfoley5]

do you have any low calorie super bowl favorite items?

Veggie straws?

 

[overlandflyer]

thank you for sharing. Where are you on this next phase of your weight loss journey?

i was about 230 lbs at my worst. i was maybe 215 when i decided to intermittent fast (along with a few other diet eliminations). my goal was to get down to ~190. i hit 190 within 2-3 months, but i just kept losing weight. at about 182 things started to slow. it took another few months, but i got down to below 160 for a few weeks. over the next year i settled in the mid 160's (my college weight). been there ever since.

over the past 3-4 months the pandemic stress is getting to me. i hardly go out to walk anymore. no place to go. why bother. i'm hovering around 170 now, but i can see some light. i get my first vaccination in 11 days (i'm 65+)... hopefully this will be a better year.

 

[Here2learn]

It is very common to lose extra weight during the first week or two. This extra is almost always water weight (especially if you're cutting down on refined carbs). You may find that you have plateaus down the road where you start retaining water for a while and then your body suddenly lets it all go days later, again perfectly normal. The long term trend is what really matters...

I went from 200lbs to 191.5lbs over the course of 18 days. I started to eat less and focus on calorie intake. I also began exercising, a little, each day.
but over the past two days my weight has climbed to 192.2 and now 192.8

I admittedly have not weighed my food nor keep a food log or journal. I am eating less than I had been before stating this journey. Is it possible this fluctuation is normal or is it likely I’m falling into bad habits already and going the wrong way? Any thoughts of yours would help