Struggling to see the light at the end

MotivatedNick22

MotivatedNick22

New member
Hi everyone,

My name’s Nick and this is my first post in this forum. I started my weight loss journey about a week ago using Noom. I am 5’9” and started at 178.2lbs. My target goal for now is to reach 160lbs, but in the long run, I’d like to reach 145/150lbs. My biggest issues are of course, wanting to be healthy, but more so, wanting to feel comfortable and confident in my body. As I near the age of 20, I am becoming more self conscious of my body. I have a decent amount of belly fat, some muffin tops on my sides, and too much fat on my chest and butt. I’d really like to get in shape. Everything was going well and due to dieting and exercise, I was even down to 172.4lbs yesterday! But when I woke up this morning I was back up to 173.8lbs, despite being under my recommendation for caloric intake yesterday and having done cardio. I know these fluctuations are to be expected, but I just don’t really feel any different and am not noticing any difference in the way I look. I know I must be patient, but it’s very hard to feel so motivated yet defeated at the same time. Sometimes I wonder if it’s even possible for me to reach my goals. If anyone has any advice or weight loss success stories of their own, I’d love to hear it.

Thanks everyone!
Stay safe and healthy!! :)

-Nick
 
Hi Nick and welcome!

It´s normal to be impatient but even going by the 173.8 number you lost over 4 pounds in a week, which is tremendous! If you place so much value on the number on the scale maybe you shouldn´t weigh yourself every day. Weighing daily is only sensible if you can accept that some days your muscles hold on to some extra water, some days you´ll be a little dehydrated (so the number looks nicer), some days you poop more, some days you eat more salt (which in turn attracts water), and some days your body just does weird things you don´t understand and that´s ok. How much weight did your app predict you to lose in the first week? From what I can see Noom is a relatively healthy way of losing weight (if expensive) which doesn´t encourage crash dieting and I´m always happy to see that. How are you feeling about it in general? Do you have enough energy? Like the food? Feel hungry? Do you feel like you can keep this up for the rest of your life?
 
LaMaria said:
Hi Nick and welcome!

It´s normal to be impatient but even going by the 173.8 number you lost over 4 pounds in a week, which is tremendous! If you place so much value on the number on the scale maybe you shouldn´t weigh yourself every day. Weighing daily is only sensible if you can accept that some days your muscles hold on to some extra water, some days you´ll be a little dehydrated (so the number looks nicer), some days you poop more, some days you eat more salt (which in turn attracts water), and some days your body just does weird things you don´t understand and that´s ok. How much weight did your app predict you to lose in the first week? From what I can see Noom is a relatively healthy way of losing weight (if expensive) which doesn´t encourage crash dieting and I´m always happy to see that. How are you feeling about it in general? Do you have enough energy? Like the food? Feel hungry? Do you feel like you can keep this up for the rest of your life?
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Thanks for your reply! I do understand that the weight will fluctuate and I’m coming to terms with that now. I have been feeling better about the healthier food options, but I do notice myself feeling hungry more often now that I am trying to monitor what I eat and portion sizes. But I definitely feel like I am already learning ways to begin leading a healthier lifestyle for the long term.
 
If I can give you one piece of advice it's to really eat as much as your plan allows. Being hungry for a couple of days after changing your diet seems to be normal but if you're hungry all the time in the long run you're likely to fall prey to binge attacks. It may take you 2-3 weeks longer to reach your goal that way but that's a lot better than messing up your relationship with food. I'm glad you're feeling good about your food choices though!
 
Hi, Nick & welcome to the forum. I'm glad you are taking a healthy approach to "dieting".
:iagree: with everything that LaMa said in both posts. Losing slowly is the best way and you will be most likely to learn new habits that will be sustainable long term. What a great age to take control of your health. The diary section of the forum gets the most activity. You'll find it at https://weight-loss.fitness.com/forums/weight-loss-diary.9/
 
aiminglow said:
Hey there, Nick! Good to meet you, and cheers for good motivation and good sense in dieting! :)
I like your holiday snap from Pisa. :D
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Thank you! I was studying abroad in France this past semester and unfortunately had to return back to the US early due to the virus- but it was a great time while is lasted! :D
 
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