*** Big Fat Weight Loss Thread ***

[Martynt74]

hey all, its been a while - week

@Martynt74
get smaller pack of protein powder first. dont want to waste money on one you don't like and wont use.
consider one without any flavours.

been cycling with my mate and his wife today.
she has been using services of a nutritionist as she wants to build some muscle - she's skinny as they get LOL she does a lot of zwift and gym lately.
shes on 2k cal a day ! more than I try to get haha
around 240carbs and 175g of protein !! that's insane amount of protein

reduce bread intake.
try rice cakes with scrabled eggs

count them bloody calories...its boring but does work...
you eat a lot of eggs a week...switch some eggs to egg whites and reduce calories and add protein

I'm cheap mate. If i buy it i'll be bloody eating it. I remember i bought some absolutely horrid stuff years ago as a post recovery drink. Made me shiver and had around 3kg of it


Not a bad call on ricecakes, sometimes i'll just eat it as an ommelette rather than on bread, but that's less tasty!

On the last point. Note point 1. I'm cheap, i'm not throwing away the yolks!


Pretty horrific weekend for me, but i'm still at 103.1kg which isn't too bad.
Friday i finished work and we had to go to an appointment at a kitchen showroom. Finished at 8pm and grabbed a McDonalds (Large "McExtreme) with beer (of course!)
Saturday, we went to Ikea. Hot dog, chips and beer for breakfast. Then caved on my no wine at home rule and drank a bottle of cheap red. Tea was homemade curry, which probably wasn't actually too bad
Sunday, Toast for breakfast, then out for a meal with my mum and some friends. Mainly Tapas based, but this was around 3pm. Didn't have desert and on the way home decided i wanted an ice cream. Then also bought sweets/crisps to share at home for supper!

Overall, i worked out around 2500-3000/kcal per day which is well over my goal, but with reasonable walking around probably not too far over maintenance calories which i guess helps weight stay level.


Annoying at no cycling though. Saturday the Ikea trip wasn't planned (or at least i wasn't told about it), so my aim was a 2hr ride Saturday morning before sorting some storage stuff out, then another 2hr ride Sunday morning before we went out. Ikea stopped my Saturday riding and then the cheap red wine made me not want to get up at 8am on the Sunday before we went out.

 

[bastic]

I'm cheap mate. If i buy it i'll be bloody eating it. I remember i bought some absolutely horrid stuff years ago as a post recovery drink. Made me shiver and had around 3kg of it


Not a bad call on ricecakes, sometimes i'll just eat it as an ommelette rather than on bread, but that's less tasty!

On the last point. Note point 1. I'm cheap, i'm not throwing away the yolks!


Pretty horrific weekend for me, but i'm still at 103.1kg which isn't too bad.
Friday i finished work and we had to go to an appointment at a kitchen showroom. Finished at 8pm and grabbed a McDonalds (Large "McExtreme) with beer (of course!)
Saturday, we went to Ikea. Hot dog, chips and beer for breakfast. Then caved on my no wine at home rule and drank a bottle of cheap red. Tea was homemade curry, which probably wasn't actually too bad
Sunday, Toast for breakfast, then out for a meal with my mum and some friends. Mainly Tapas based, but this was around 3pm. Didn't have desert and on the way home decided i wanted an ice cream. Then also bought sweets/crisps to share at home for supper!

Overall, i worked out around 2500-3000/kcal per day which is well over my goal, but with reasonable walking around probably not too far over maintenance calories which i guess helps weight stay level.


Annoying at no cycling though. Saturday the Ikea trip wasn't planned (or at least i wasn't told about it), so my aim was a 2hr ride Saturday morning before sorting some storage stuff out, then another 2hr ride Sunday morning before we went out. Ikea stopped my Saturday riding and then the cheap red wine made me not want to get up at 8am on the Sunday before we went out.

dont throw yolks away, just buy whites only

100ml of yolks is from 3 eggs. yolks have calories, whites dont
eggs will last for longer LOL

need to be stronger to stick to calories...stay at 2k
even with a lot of walking...

on my commute days, i still try to stay under 1700cals ...if hungry, have protein shake or pudding

 

[Raymond Lin]

I've not really shifted any weight this week either...not been on my evening walks as much. Although this morning's poo wasn't that big so there is leeway lol

Still want to hit that 85kg mark by end of this week so 1lb to use in 8 days which is doable.

 

[Martynt74]

I've not really shifted any weight this week either...not been on my even walks as much. Although this morning's poo wasn't that big so there is leeway lol

Still want to hit that 85kg mark by end of this week so 1lb to use in 8 days which is doable.

How long are weeks in your world

 

[Raymond Lin]

How long are weeks in your world

lol...the goal is (was?) 85kg by end of April, but I get on a plane on Saturday and my holiday starts on Sunday so this "week" is only really 6 days!

I have a 4hr layover in Paris in the afternoon too, but at least the food options at that airport is terrible in a good way. Don't even need to try stereotyping but it's mostly baguettes or salads.

 

[blairw]

I'm cheap mate. If i buy it i'll be bloody eating it. I remember i bought some absolutely horrid stuff years ago as a post recovery drink. Made me shiver and had around 3kg of it


Not a bad call on ricecakes, sometimes i'll just eat it as an ommelette rather than on bread, but that's less tasty!

On the last point. Note point 1. I'm cheap, i'm not throwing away the yolks!


Pretty horrific weekend for me, but i'm still at 103.1kg which isn't too bad.
Friday i finished work and we had to go to an appointment at a kitchen showroom. Finished at 8pm and grabbed a McDonalds (Large "McExtreme) with beer (of course!)
Saturday, we went to Ikea. Hot dog, chips and beer for breakfast. Then caved on my no wine at home rule and drank a bottle of cheap red. Tea was homemade curry, which probably wasn't actually too bad
Sunday, Toast for breakfast, then out for a meal with my mum and some friends. Mainly Tapas based, but this was around 3pm. Didn't have desert and on the way home decided i wanted an ice cream. Then also bought sweets/crisps to share at home for supper!

Overall, i worked out around 2500-3000/kcal per day which is well over my goal, but with reasonable walking around probably not too far over maintenance calories which i guess helps weight stay level.


Annoying at no cycling though. Saturday the Ikea trip wasn't planned (or at least i wasn't told about it), so my aim was a 2hr ride Saturday morning before sorting some storage stuff out, then another 2hr ride Sunday morning before we went out. Ikea stopped my Saturday riding and then the cheap red wine made me not want to get up at 8am on the Sunday before we went out.

I mean this in the most supportive way possible... but you shouldn't be thinking about protein powder at the moment. You're focused on the pennies and ignoring pounds.

 

[tom_nieto]

I mean this in the most supportive way possible... but you shouldn't be thinking about protein powder at the moment. You're focused on the pennies and ignoring pounds.

Agreed, although I do find that a post gym (or during) gym protein shake stops me from snacking wildly and usually tides me over until I can eat properly. Most progress was made by strict calorie counting for me.

Starting to feel like I am finally getting over months of relentless nursery plagues and lost a bit of water weight along with it. Need to refocus and stop eating so much damned chocolate. Easter is over dammit!

 

[bastic]

Down to under 100kg again so trip back home really wasn't that bad...

Taking of protein powders...I haven't found one I like here in UK in taste and one that mixes well.
While UK was in EU, I used to buy it from back home.
Cheap compared to Ines avail here, great taste, and mixes very well.
Now they stopped selling due to known reasons.
So plan for trip back home was to buy bigger supply and bring back with me.
Filled duffel bag with powder...brought in 7-8kg of it lol

Should suffice

 

[Martynt74]

I mean this in the most supportive way possible... but you shouldn't be thinking about protein powder at the moment. You're focused on the pennies and ignoring pounds.

Cheers, i probably am. I will caveat most of this by saying if i don't lose weight as quick as i'd like it's not overly bothering me, i've been seening the general trend coming down since the new year, and whilst i'd like it to drop faster it's apparent i'm not prepared to change my lifestyle too dramatically to enable that.

My main concern at the moment is building strength/endurance for cycling and given how low my regular protein intake seems to be, despite eating eggs/chicken/pork most days (generally don't have Beef often as it doesn't agree with my wife) then i'm still severely lacking and so looking for low calorie alternatives to boost that.

 

[Alice In Wonderland]

Does the Spanish lifestyle not encourage you to behave better? All the sun and fresh food, etc. Saying that, I'd be eating churros for breakfast each day.

Same!!

I'd be a huge butterball.

 

[Alice In Wonderland]

I've switched things up a little the last week or so which seems to be positive. I was getting a little bit all or nothing on the calorie counting resulting in days with low adherence followed by super strict. I've decided to move to a 3 large meals model, no snacking (unless I need a banana pre run or something) with a focus on being mindful on portion size and quality...

Looking something like this at the moment

Breakfast: 65g Oats with Semi Skimmed Milk, some Raisins and loads of raspberries/blueberries with a Nespresso latte
Lunch: Half a tesco pre marinaded chicken pack (180-200 calories) with a full pack of stir fry veg and either a half bag of cook in bag potatoes (done in air fryer instead) or half a uncle bens rice packet.
Dinner: whatever we are having at home mainly, fajitas, curry, burgers with mash/green veg... my basis being is my 140lb wife is eating it and not getting fat then its likely not the issue. Friday is Half a Tesco cook at home pizza for example.

Ive dropped just over a kg this week so going to try it on for size for a few weeks and see if it works for me or if I need to be a bit more calculated. I'd rather keep the macro counting for a specific push towards a weight / event

Your menu sounds delicious.

I think the idea of moving to 3 large meals a day, and with no snacking sounds like a good idea.

 

[Uther]

With the weather getting better( yeah right...) I've cranked the walking back up, 3 x 30 minute walks a day, plus 3 x 30 minutes on an incline treadmill 3 times a week, and weights 2 x a week. Being retired helps, I have time.
40g of porridge with water for breakfast, a protein shake for lunch, and pretty much anything for dinner, just less of it. And black coffee, lots and lots of coffee...

Saying that, if I'm out and having a coffee, I won't say no to a millionaires shortbread occasionally...

 

[blairw]

in at 95.3 which is fairly close to my lowest during this 18 month pursuit of not being a fat git! think I got to 94.3 in December at one point so looking forward to breaking through that barrier and getting to the 80's

 

[tom_e]

With the weather getting better( yeah right...) I've cranked the walking back up, 3 x 30 minute walks a day, plus 3 x 30 minutes on an incline treadmill 3 times a week, and weights 2 x a week. Being retired helps, I have time.
40g of porridge with water for breakfast, a protein shake for lunch, and pretty much anything for dinner, just less of it. And black coffee, lots and lots of coffee...

Saying that, if I'm out and having a coffee, I won't say no to a millionaires shortbread occasionally...

Can you actually keep that diet up for a meaningful length of time, I'm hungry just reading it

 

[Uther]

Can you actually keep that diet up for a meaningful length of time, I'm hungry just reading it

Dinner’s ok though…
( posting from a treadmill in anytime fitness, send help)

 

[Karl]

I've gone from 14st 7lbs to 13st 9lbs from the beginning of March -> Mid April by mainly counting calories and not going nuts. I'm 5'11".

I have plateaued now though, and am struggling to lose much more. A combination of Easter and family gatherings / a restaurant curry night with a mate have contributed to a slowdown.

I tend to need to do exercise just to build up enough of a calorie deficit to satiate my hunger. I couldn't maintain this weight loss just on diet alone, I don't think.

I like running around a field with a football and some cones, doing various drills, because I think less about how knackered I'm getting, and really enjoy sport, so will usually do that once a week, play competitive 7-a-side once a week, and go to the gym at least 2, maybe 3 times a week, where I do mainly strength exercises. My hamstrings tend to turn to jelly unless I'm deadlifting / leg curling regularly since I hit middle age, so maintaining strength in my legs and core has become more important than the cardio in some ways. Some weights have gone down since I started losing weight, but some haven't gone down at all, and it's not as significant as I thought it would be, considering I've cut down hugely on protein intake as well as other food groups.

I'm a creature of habit, so the exercise days tend to stay the same, (exercise pretty much every single week day, weekends off), and I try to be careful with food Mon - Fri, and then let my hair down a little bit more on the weekends.

Breakfast: Try to put this off till 9.30am or so. 60g porridge oats, 230ml semi skimmed (can't stand water in porridge), a few frozen raspberries and half a teaspoon of honey
Snack: Banana
Gym
Lunch: 1 piece of bread with tin of sardines in tomato sauce on with some salad, or a half a sandwich with some salad.
Snack: Apple
Dinner: Whatever gets made for the family, try to exercise portion control.

If I'm hungry by the time I go to bed, I won't be able to sleep hungry, so would have 1 Weetabix with enough semi skimmed on top to make it NOT as dry as Tutankhamun's arse, but try to avoid this.

GALLONS of water. Coffee and tea throughout the day. Probably 8 cups or more. Can't cut that out as well

I've definitely noticed I don't mind eating as much, and the portion sizes have gone down, but there's still a bite of hunger that I'm still struggling to get used to even after a month.

My goal weight, at least at first, was to hit 13st 7lbs, knock a stone off and see how I felt. When I hit that goal weight, my BMI is still too high, and my waist to height ratio is still going to be above what it should be. I think realistically I'd have to get down to 13st to get those figures to a sensible level.

To get my BMI to the absolute edge of 'healthy' I need to get to 12st 11lbs, which I have only managed to reach once, about 11 years ago, and I was doing circuit training 3 times a week + football 3 times a week!

 

[Syla5]

Solid start @Karl when you say you are tracking calories, are you tracking everything, all the milk in your teas and coffees for example? all condiments with dinner etc? that all adds up very quickly and if you don't factor it in you will naturally plateau. 8 cups of tea/cofffe with 50ml milk per is 200 cals for example and thats only if its semi skimmed!

Weight loss really is simple when you break it down, calories in vs calories out. If you are not losing weight then you have equal calories in vs out. To loss weight then you would either need to move more, or eat less.

Also that doesn't sound like very much protein in the diet, and not a lot of cheap calorie bulkers such as veg etc.

 

[AndyCr15]

there's still a bite of hunger that I'm still struggling to get used to even after a month.

I hate to break it to you, but after 5 years I'm not 'used to it'. I still spend reasonable amounts of the day feeling hungry I'm jealous of those people that somehow don't feel hunger. "Oh no, I forgot to have breakfast!", "F off you b stard!" "I'm pleased I managed to only have two breakfasts today..."

For me, I'm back on track after two trips away where I've eaten more than I should. Thankfully I cycled a lot, so after a week or so, it has balanced itself out.

These are average weights for the month, so the blip in January is from Christmas and the blip in April is from my two trips, but my weight yesterday was 14st 12, so lower than March average already.

 

[Karl]

Solid start @Karl when you say you are tracking calories, are you tracking everything, all the milk in your teas and coffees for example? all condiments with dinner etc? that all adds up very quickly and if you don't factor it in you will naturally plateau. 8 cups of tea/cofffe with 50ml milk per is 200 cals for example and thats only if its semi skimmed!

Weight loss really is simple when you break it down, calories in vs calories out. If you are not losing weight then you have equal calories in vs out. To loss weight then you would either need to move more, or eat less.

Also that doesn't sound like very much protein in the diet, and not a lot of cheap calorie bulkers such as veg etc.

Cheers for the input. I've attached a screenshot of what my cals look so far today to the bottom of this post so you can see roughly what I'm constituting as 'salad', and dinner will have things like broccoli, green beans, skin-on new potatoes, etc.

I'm tracking pretty much every calorie I can, even when I know it's a bad day, so I can see how far over I've gone!

I hate to break it to you, but after 5 years I'm not 'used to it'. I still spend reasonable amounts of the day feeling hungry I'm jealous of those people that somehow don't feel hunger. "Oh no, I forgot to have breakfast!", "F off you b stard!" "I'm pleased I managed to only have two breakfasts today..."

So true. It gets easier, but it doesn't really go away. I just seem to live with it a bit more. Weirdly, I've started to feel a bit guilty when I've gone off the plan and eaten a bit too much, and I'm trying to remind myself that I'm still on track, and one big meal isn't going to see me back at square one. I think I'm too invested to throw it all away anyway tbh. My problem comes when I try to maintain the weight I reach. It tends to creep up when I'm not looking.

 

[Syla5]

The tracking is the key, I'm not sure how you take your tea but 15ml is almost no milk at all, even a splash is easy to hit anywhere 30ml+. I'm sad enough to know as i measure out my milk even! A new feature to MFP shows you how long you've been tracking and I'm up to 853 days in a row, and my weight loss and weight gain has moved in accordance to what I've eaten. I know i shouldn't have been but i was a little surprised by how close to the science my numbers have been.