Trying Lose Weight Once Again

[Eatchipz]

For 10 years now I have been rather overweight and in recent years I have been at my heaviest which would be at high end of 19 stone It all started with a break up with a girl in my teens and it has gone downhill since then.

My main downfall has always been junk food and takeaways. The biggest culprit would have to be soft drinks I could have easily drunk 3 or 4 litres of coke in a day no problem. When it comes to making dinner I would just find it easier to go down to the local Chinese or chip shop and spent my money there. Which could happen a couple of times a week which aside from being bad for my body is not kind on the wallet.

This time last year I got myself some Withings scales, Fitbit and a decent pair of walking shoes and for maybe a month to 6 weeks I had stopped drinking soft drinks and moved to Pepsi Max and water and tried to go for a 35 mins walk at least 4 times a week and in that period I dropped about a stone which brought my down to 18 stone I was loving life. My diet wasn’t bad either I was eating rice and chicken breast and some count on us meals from M&S not amazing but still better than what it was. Then I hurt my foot and everything grounded to a halt and that was it back to my old ways.

About 3 months ago I joined the local PureGym to try and kickstart my ass back into gear and while during this period I tried to go twice a week some weeks I only went once and then just stopped going altogether. I did feel getting a bit fitter when doing cardio but no real weight loss happened during this time. But honestly my diet was still awful after doing a good cardio session in the gym and feeling like I could take on the world I would go to the local shop pick up a Lucozade and a packet of sweets and stuff my face.

Since then the weight has crept back on as of this morning according to my scales I am 19st’3. The past few days I have cut down significantly on soft drinks once again have only had 1 can of coke in the past 48 hours and I am planning to go for a short walk this evening. I am going to try this journey once more and see if I can do any better this time

I have no long term goal but I do have a holiday planned for the end of October time and I would love to be in 17 stone range by that time. I miss having been able to buy what I want in the way of clothes. I am now an XXL is now my size and 42 to 44 waist jeans and honestly, a lot of the brand names don’t go that and high in sizes. And the saddest part of this whole post I want to get the ladies to notice me once again.

In short I just need some advice on what I can do to try and make my changes permanent this time maybe some advice from people who have been in the same boat as me and what they did to succeed!

Age: 25
Height: 6ft 3
Weight: 19st 3lbs

 

[Begbie]

You need to find what works for you. It's all in the diet, no matter what.

There is no 'best' way. But it may be worth starting with some sort of flexible dieting. I don't mean just eating what you want. But be brutally honest with yourself, record everything that you eat. Myfitnesspal app here is very helpful.

Find out how many calories you are actually eating, and then workout ways to cut this down. Use a online calculator to give you a rough base on how many you should be eating to lose weight.

 

[Kris_90]

Echoing the above post. I lost just under 4 stone last year. Yes I was going to the gym doing weights and cardio however I lose weight because I changed my diet.

Download Myfitnesspal and track everything you eat and drink. Weigh once a week and weigh the same day each week (best time is just after you've woken up and been to the toilet). Use a TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) calculator to determine the amount of calories your body burns - use this as an estimate. Once you've calculated your TDEE decrease the calories by 500 and eat that consistently. You'll lose on average 2 lbs per week.

The mistake I made initially was trying to change everything overnight. It doesn't work and you'll end up binge eating again. Take it slow and accept it'll take about 12-18 months if you can change your lifestyle.

I tried loads of dieting methods i.e. low carb, 4-5 small meals etc and they didn't work for me (they might for you). I found intermittent fasting helped more than anything else to lose the weight. It involves eating your calories in a 8 hour eating window and fasting for 16 hours. They may sound like a long time but in reality your sleeping for half of it. IF basically meant I didn't eat breakfast which I found really easy. It meant I could split 1,900 calories between two big meals and a snack. It was easy and helped me stay consistent.

It might be worth a try - when your dropping the weight consistently it helps keep you motivated

 

[Rids]

As everybody else has said, its about finding a diet that works for you. You cannot out train a bad diet, no matter how much you go to the gym.

2 years and 6 days ago I was 20 stone and 3lb, at the moment I'm just over 13 stone 6lb, packing a lot more muscle than I was previously.

My lifestyle was very similar to yours, I'd live off takeaway food and soft drinks. I would probably have a takeaway 4 or 5 nights a week, I'd eat badly at lunch time, I'd drink 2 litres+ of coke a day and I loved a beer.

Don't try and change too much at once, you can't think of this as a diet but as a lifestyle change that you're going to stick with for the long term. I am not a big fan of veg, there is no way I'm going to have a salad for lunch, I won't enjoy it and I'd soon find myself rebounding back to the unhealthy crap.

I had to learn how to cook, I mean I'm no great chef but now I can prepare chicken or fish in a variety of healthy ways that taste amazing. I'm still tempted with the odd kebab, hell I had a bad day on Monday and I just didn't fancy cooking so I picked up a greasy unhealthy takeaway on the way home - but that'll be my bad meal for the week.

Start making small adjustments, MyFitnessPal is perfect as a motivational tool and as a tool for tracking your calorie intake. Accept that its going to be a long journey, and that this is a lifestyle change you're going to have to make for life. When you have a healthy meal when you would usually have had a takeaway stick the money you've saved into a pot, after a few months buy yourself something with that money.

You've got age on your side, if you can shift the weight now its likely you'll be able to get away without any of the complications that us old boys have from losing a lot of weight (I've got so much loose skin I look like Rachels hairless cat) - and when you're ready, start lifting at the gym, it'll do wonders for your motivation also.