2016 Weight loss thread.

[Gregg]

222.6 yesterday. Goal is 210. I am going to report on Tuesdays this year. Anyone else want to play?

[Steve]

217 this morning. Not sure yet what my goal is yet.

[Judge Jude]

on a good day it starts with a "1" and not "2."

I always do this informally, at least, at the start of the year. walked 3 miles on Saturday, which should be a piece of cake but the glutes barked a little in mile 3.

now walking up 5 flights of stairs at work every morning. again, should be nothing, but am slightly winded at the end. gotta fix that.

as always:

- drink a lot more water than you usually do. might be the most underrated thing.

- eat a healthy breakfast every morning. makes a HUGE difference.

- know the calories of anything you eat; it's not hard to find these days.

- caloric soda and French fries are a DISASTER. pretty good evidence that non-caloric soda also is a definite no-no.

[Steve]

on a good day it starts with a "1" and not "2."

I always do this informally, at least, at the start of the year. walked 3 miles on Saturday, which should be a piece of cake but the glutes barked a little in mile 3.

now walking up 5 flights of stairs at work every morning. again, should be nothing, but am slightly winded at the end. gotta fix that.

as always:

- drink a lot more water than you usually do. might be the most underrated thing.

- eat a healthy breakfast every morning. makes a HUGE difference.

- know the calories of anything you eat; it's not hard to find these days.

- caloric soda and French fries are a DISASTER. pretty good evidence that non-caloric soda also is a definite no-no.

While I still have a long way to go, giving up soda was one of the best things I have ever done for my diet.

[baldgriff]

I dont have weight loss goal currently. However, I am in the process of cutting soda from my diet. I am limiting myself to one soda when I get home from work. So for the last 20 days, I have had no pop at work. I have replaced it with Arnie Palmer tea mix - low calorie. A glass is 50 calories vs 140 in a Coke. I can already feel it is making a difference.

[joncarlos]

Lost 30 pounds last year. Gained 20 back. Time to start all over. Walking up a lot more stairs this year. Working hard to cut out the snacks at work. Gotta get back into working out.

[Mithrandir]

I have been hovering around 185 for two years and would like to get to 175 (realistically) and 170 (pipe dream?)

I have cut way back on soda, but will never stop drinking it altogether as I enjoy a glass or can of soda now and then.

Drinking flavored seltzer water has helped keep the pounds off.

[madducks]

Currently in the 197-205 range and hoping to get down to 180-185.

I too have cut back drastically on the soda. For many years, i used to drink deathly proportions of the stuff. Probably two liters a day. It's a wonder i don't weigh a lot more and/or have serious health issues. Since the middle of October i have only had three cans during the holidays plus one liter (threw away the other half) of a bottle that i kept under the kitchen counter for several months. Despite being addicted to soda i found out that i can still function without it. I've been drinking more bottled water. And to ween myself from the soda i often replace it with lemonade, fruit punch, and iced tea. Unfortunately these all contain sugar as well. So, my next step is to cut back even more on the sugary drinks and increase my water intake.

I've also been trying to cut back on red meat and white bread and eat more lean foods like fish and chicken and wheat bread. Notice i'm not trying to eliminate anything just cut back. Whether its cutting back 25% or 50% or 99% it's a step in the right direction. I don't know about anyone else, but if i try to completely eliminate something i enjoy, my rebellious side will put up a greater fight. At least if i leave the window open for that one special occasion where i can treat myself, i don't feel like i'm being deprived as much.

Despite eating healthier my weight is holding steady. So, i know the next step is to increase the amount of exercise i'm getting. I plan on starting a biking/running routine shortly. More on that later.

[Judge Jude]

"I don't know about anyone else, but if i try to completely eliminate something i enjoy, my rebellious side will put up a greater fight."

yeah, that's typical.

one thing I have found useful is to tie extensive exercise to major social events. like if you're going to a once-a-year get-together or a high-end restaurant, make that the day that you go running or walking or hiking at a longer time frame than usual. basically, you can have that food and drink later, but you want it to come only after you've "earned it."

[Steve]

Once I finally kicked soda, I don't even want it anymore. The last time I tried one, I couldn't believe how sweet it was. Didn't finish it.

My new problem is sweets, so I'm trying a "no sweets" except on the weekend and then only 1 serving (and watching the serving size) each day.

[hacko]

In - 221 last week at my quartily Doctor visit for my check of my Sugar. (Diabetic). I'm 6'4" was as low as 212 last year would like to hit 210 or lower. Working long hours so not much time for excercising. Plus t is colder then crap outside

[overkill94]

Eating healthier doesn't really matter for losing weight. Eating fewer calories (which is much easier with healthy food) is the way to lose weight.

You say this every year and while there is some truth in it, there is tons of evidence that points to certain eating habits enhancing your weight loss due to physiological and neurological factors. One great example is diet soda - it technically has zero calories but countless studies have shown that it will still mess you up (http://time.com/3746047/diet-soda-bad-belly-fat/).

I found this article to be pretty succinct in explaining different ways to maximize your weight less besides simply counting calories - http://authoritynutrition.com/26-evi...ght-loss-tips/

My wife and I have started using MyFitnessPal again for the last couple weeks and she especially has been very happy with her progress (she's down like 4 or 5 pounds already). It's a good way to hold yourself accountable as well as breaking down the nutritional breakdown of what you're putting into your body. You can set goals for what percent of calories come from carbs/fat/protein - my aim is 40% carbs, 30% fat, 30% protein - so even on days where you stay under your calorie cap you can see whether your nutrition goals are up to snuff (spoiler alert: fast food and junk food will mess up this ratio bad).

[GwynnInTheHall]

In

185-190 I need to get to 165-170. My frame is actually built for 155-165 as I'm very slight (not right now, but most of my life) I wish I could give up beer, but I like it too much and living in Vegas affords me access to some really great food.

I don't drink soda and eat healthy so my goal is to............get off my ass. I stand all day and sit all night. I need to get active, get to the gym and after getting my CV back in shape, get outside more.

[overkill94]

It's always good to simplify things but sometimes giving the simplest answers can obfuscate the underlying methods.

Take this as an example - person A has 400 calories worth of donuts for breakfast and person B has 400 calories worth of eggs, fruit, and canadian bacon. Person A may think they're on an even playing field with person B but inevitably they'll get hungry quicker as well as crave more carb-rich foods.

Your original response was to someone saying they were eating healthier yet not losing weight so yes, lessening their caloric intake is obviously one solution. His suggestion of getting more exercise is another solution. Drinking less alcohol is another solution. It's simple to tell someone to just eat less calories, but if their metabolism is making them hungry without those calories then they're more likely to go back to their original caloric intake. That's why I think adapting a more well-rounded philosophy is more successful - I know that when I start exercising more that my cravings for junk go down.

One thing I wholeheartedly agree with is using a food tracker of some sort. While you might think certain foods you're eating are healthy, the reality might be different. And maybe you're getting plenty of veggies but not eating enough lean protein? Getting educated on what foods you eat is a good first step but augmenting that with other healthy habits will only make things progress smoother.

[Teenwolf]

I recently saw a picture of me at 230 lbs from 6 years ago. At the time, I was told I was pre-diabetic, and needed to make some changes. I was drinking about 30-50 drinks per week, and eating like a bachelor, total trash. Pretty incredible to look back on. I'm ranging between 155-165 these days, but that's mainly because I can't eat any sugar. The 2 years prior to giving up sugar, I was ranging between 165-175. Not a huge difference, but sugar definitely has a lingering fat storage element to it. It's that "last 10 lbs" people speak of.

Here's the things I've given up in order:

5 years: booze
3.5 years: meat + dairy
5 months: sugar, chocolate, tomatoes, carrots, celery, citrus fruits, apples, dates, black pepper, cayenne pepper... plus avoiding nuts when possible. Pretty intense.

But I'm super thrilled to be getting close to figuring out my pain/bleeding/etc... don't care what I have to give up. Also just started eliminating my one final unhealthy food... potato chips. I was initially eating a tonne of chips, like 3-5 bags per week. But as I've been tracking everything I eat, and trying to eliminate anything that gives me flare-ups, chips seem to line up... bummer. But like I say, happy to be figuring out how to heal my body. Hoping the naturopath elimination diet will only be for like another year or two max. I miss using apples in recipes, I miss tomatoes (they're also in tons of things)... I don't miss sugar soooo much, but only because I'm still substituting maple syrup quite a bit.

I also started working at a health food store about 2 weeks ago, so it's been really interesting talking to people who want to eat healthier. After being forced down the path of healthy eating less than 2 years ago, it's become a real passion of mine seeing how much my life has improved.

Weight loss doesn't mean improved health, unless the method for losing the weight is healthy eating. Everybody in this thread comes back like a boomerang. Tracking calories isn't sustainable, neither is working out 10+ hours per week, both are maddening. Less maddening: track the health content of your food, and make sure it's HIGH veg, HIGH fruit, HIGH grains, HIGH beans, etc... LOW meat, LOW sugar, LOW processed foods... Don't beat yourself up if you have a bad food day, even a terrible food day. Every single person, including insanely optimal eaters, have bad food days. It's about crowding in the good, and crowding out the bad. Slowly, bit by bit.

Congrats to everyone participating! Late January, I thought everybody had given up on themselves!

Steve, congrats on kicking your soda habit! Awesome job, and I'm sure you notice huge differences in your appetite, weight control, etc. I know soda was a hard concession for me.