Female Forum

I’ve finally, after putting it off and ignoring the problem for ages, decided it’s time to lose weight.  I’ve been feeling crappy for ages, but just recently it’s become obvious that it’s affecting my health as well as my happiness.

I thought it might help to post this and update it regularly, not so much for support, but more because it’ll make me feel accountable (I hope), whereas if it’s just me I’ll let it slide.

Current weight and measurements:

Weight, 10st 8lb - may not seem too bad, but I’m only 5’2” and am therefore very overweight with a BMI of 27.  My ideal range is supposedly 7st 6lb (BMI 19) to 9st 4lb (BMI 24), but I’m aiming for 9st (BMI 23) as the lower end of that range would be way too thin for me.

My body fat percentage is 39.1%, making me obese.  I’m not exactly sure what to aim for there, but 25-30% seems like a good target.

Measurements are chest, 42”; waist 38” and hips 41”.  Apparently my waist size puts me at high risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease, so for my health my target should be below 31.5”.  I’m aiming for 28"-30".

I’m starting to watch what I eat again, I’ve been very lazy on that front and have tended to eat all kinds of rubbish, which has to stop.  I’m not following a particular plan, just counting calories, as that worked very well for me in the past.  I’m not prepared to go hungry, as that just makes me sneak high calorie snacks in and ruins all my good intentions.

From tomorrow, I’m starting weekly street dance classes, and re-starting walking at lunchtimes, which is a 4 mile walk 2 or 3 times a week during my lunch break.  For now that’s it, I’m not a member of a gym (too expensive) and don’t play sports, but that should be enough to get the weight loss moving at a sensible rate.  As it gets harder to get the pounds off, I’ll have to find other things to do to help it along.

Anyway, I’ll update this each week to keep myself on track and hopefully will have something to show for it fairly soon.

Thanks for listening all!

Viv

Snap

I resolved that as of tomorrow it is time to start getting serious again..... I don’t know what my body fat percentage is as my body fat% scale has broken but I know my BMI is 30.6 putting me in the obese category . While I am told I don’t look obese - probably because it goes straight to the boobs - I hate the way I feel right now.

Was 13st 10lb now 12st 10lb aiming for 9st 4 which is supposed to be ideal for 5’5”.

Anyway I am not trying to hijack your thread but I do think this is a great idea aqnd will help keep you accountable, I might even start my own.

I too shall be counting calories as it’s my favorite method and the only one that has ever worked. I love the idea of dance classes it sounds much more fun that the gym, tbh I don’t think you really need a gym membership just a way of finding exercise thats fun and that will keep you motivated to keep coming back.

One thing that I noticed is you said you shall be walking 4 miles in your lunch break but are you sure that will give you enough time to eat decent lunch too?

I look forward to hearing how you get on.

The best of luck for both of you.

Well done Viv and Kez for doing something about it. The first step is always the hardest one isn’t it?
You can count on us to offer you as much encouragement and support as you need.

Are you following any particular diet? If not I just have to suggest the one I followed and that I cannot recomend highly enough. Slimming World.  This isn’t so much “dieting” it’s about changing your attitude to food and your whole way of eating. You eat “normal” food every day and plenty of it. In fact you get so much to eat you do wonder if you are on a diet at all! Take a look in your local supermarket and pick up a copy of Slimming World magazine and just have a read of the success stories and the recipies. One lady I read about once lost an incredible 8 stone!!

I lost over 3 stone with Slimming World. I went from a size 18/20, which for my 5ft 4 height was WAY to much to a size 12 and I’ve stayed that way for 4 years now. I also gave up drinking booze and eating peanuts. They were my downfall.

Please do keep us updated every week and let us know how your getting on. We will cheer you on all the way.  The very best of luck to you both.

Thanks for the messages of support, for me the main thing is knowing that other people are “keeping an eye” on me - even if it’s not exactly the case, it makes me much more likely to stick to this as my will power isn’t great!

Kez, hijack away!  Seriously, I’m quite happy for you to post your progress on this thread if you want to, it’s nice to know someone else is doing the same thing.  And well done for your progress so far, that’s a fantastic start!  Doesn’t it feel great when you’ve lost that first stone?  When I lost weight before, that first stone coming off was so liberating, even though I knew I wasn’t anywhere near done it just made it all seem worthwhile.

As for getting a proper lunch, I eat at my desk anyway and the only difference is whether I eat my soup and ryvita while surfing the net or between emails/phone calls while I’m working.  I’ve done it before and it works ok, it’s not ideal but at least I’m getting some exercise that way.

good luck to you both. It sounds like you have actual plans to lose the weight through exercise rather than some faddy ‘cabbage soup’ type diet, so I think you will be more successful than if you’re feeling hungry the whole time! keep us up to date with your progress!

“cabbage soup’, good idea!

cynthia09 - 22 Apr 2009 06:36 PM

People who lose weight quickly by crash dieting or other extreme measures usually gain back all.

I agree, been there done that and never have reached a goal this way, instead I just quit half way through as I couldn’t stand the hunger no more.

As an update I have lost 4lb so far but I am sure that is just water weight as I have been eating more fresh food with less sodium.

Hey Kezflake,

Well done with the 4lb’s so far . Every bit off is a bit less to lose (and will stay off ).

I’m in the process of losing weight at the moment too. I have quite a bit to go. But I have set myself a target to be ready for the Hasting half marathon next year :D.

Good luck everyone .

x

Good luck ladies. I’m the same. I was 8st and I’m now 9st4. I can’t believe I’ve put on weight - I don’t normally have to worry about my weight. I’ve started going swimming more, but I think the problem is that I eat rubbish sometimes. I eat healthy meals but I snack a lot.. I need to stop it! I’m trying hard… good luck to us all

Well, I said I’d update you all with my progress, so…

Having weighed and measured yesterday, after a week of being hungry all the time (not because I’m undereating, but because I’m so used to overeating) and not giving in, I’ve lost a grand total of 1lb :-(.  I know it all adds up, but all that effort for 1lb doesn’t make me very happy.  There’s no point giving an update on BMI, body fat percentage etc as it’s made no difference at all.

The only thing I’m pleased about is that I didn’t give up and stuff my face like I wanted to, and I’m still sticking to that now, so I hope this week will go better.

Hey Babynothing.

I’ve been in your shoes so many times before! Goodness, I know the feeling of putting so much effort in and getting a smaller number than you expected. But you are right, the positive of this is that you didnt give in. Sometimes the first week is slower for some people because your body things its in a ‘famine’. Once it gets use to the amount of food you are having now, it will fall off . I am positive . Keep on persisting!

Oh, one thing to consider is salt in take. Are you adding salt to your food? Soya sauce? are you using pre-made sauces. Home made sauces tend to be better because there is no added sugar/too much salt in them then .

Good Luck!!!

I think our salt intake is probably ok, when I’m at home in the evenings we eat fairly healthily, it’s only when I’m in work and can snack (there’s actually a vending machine full of crisps and chocolate on my floor, which doesn’t help) that I have trouble.  Now I’m not eating crisps etc I should be ok.  I don’t put salt or things like that on my food either.

I like your famine theory, that hasn’t happened to me before but it makes sense, hopefully next week will be better.

babynothing78 - 27 Apr 2009 10:39 AM

Having weighed and measured yesterday, after a week of being hungry all the time (not because I’m undereating, but because I’m so used to overeating) and not giving in, I’ve lost a grand total of 1lb :-(.  I know it all adds up, but all that effort for 1lb doesn’t make me very happy.  There’s no point giving an update on BMI, body fat percentage etc as it’s made no difference at all.

Well done or losing that 1lb every one counts in the end!

I think this is the hardest part as I too am stuck in a routine of over eating as a normal pattern to life.

BMI is always slow to go down hardly even worth measuring unless you have lost 10lb or so as there is barely a difference, take me for example I lost 5lb (mostly water) so far but my BMI has gone down by only 0.5.

I have heard the famine theory before and from what I have found out this tends to happen when you are not taking in as many calories as you should each day even for a weight loss plan.

Go Girls!!!!

Well done to both of you!!! All loss counts and better still fitness rises therefore health!!! WELL DONE!!!

I remember some friends doing a weight watchers program once years ago and they were talking about the famine theory too. My understanding is as Kez has said… on the weight watchers program you eat up to so many points per day depending on your weight. All who stuck to the 20 points or whatever it was lost lots, those who went under (therefore weren’t eating enough), didn’t lose. They had to reach their point target per day by increasing their vegatable intake.

Apparently the body stores the food rather than allowing it to be used for energy. So you might have noticed that you’ve been feeling tired or finding the walk a bit harder etc. Lack of concentration and focus etc.

What my friends did was increase the vegetables and increased the amounts of time they were eating. It meant an extra bowl of salad a day and eating another piece of fruit or extra vegetable sticks to snack on.

One thing they did which I really enjoyed myself at the time was veggie sticks dipped in salsa. Celery sticks dipped in tomato are really yummy. And herbs are a great way of adding flavour without calories… putting some mixed herbs or rubbing in spices on a bit of chicken breast means you don’t need sauces cause the sauce wrecks the flavour. You can eat an enormous amount of vegetables without it being fattening… but balance is the key… following the healthy diet pyramid in my opinion is paramount as that gives you a healthy diet that alongside regular exercise losing weight, gains health AND gives you the energy to maintain yourself and maintain the exercise itself. You’ve got to have the right fuel to be able to lose the weight. Losing the weight and being conscious of your health at the same time.

You probably know this but increasing the actual time you spend eating your food is a major plus.

Good on you both. Your enthusiasm is contagious!

I have been feeling tired and lacking concentration, actually, so that’s probably what’s happened to me.  I don’t know why as I’m not actually undereating, and I’ve successfully maintained these eating patterns for 18 months without problems in the past, I suppose I’m just going to have to wait for my body to adjust.