Weight loss and healthy eating for a debt free life

WinterWarrior

I have been eating ‘fairly’ healthy, with more salad and veg than usual and less bad things. I should have had a calorie deficit most days according to nutracheck for calories in and Fitbit for calories burned….so I put a pound back on! The struggle is real.

Less_Talk_and_More_Action

Hi everyone 

An unbelievable 10lbs loss this first week. 

Caveats are - I have over 100lb to lose and was my heaviest ever last week when I weighed myself. So lots of water weight this week I should think. 
  I’ve said previously that I’ve had lots of first weeks like this over the years and they don’t mean anything if I don’t push on and get into the consistent 1-2lbs a week space - I want to get to a maintenance level, not keep having great first weeks!!!

My aim for next week is to maintain this or lose 1lb. I am in this for the long haul definitely so will be happy with any progress that helps me to be consistent and to keep moving forward.  

@WinterWarrior - I am also using Nutracheck which I find helpful.  I am taking a weekly view on calories with a weigh in on a Saturday morning to enable more flexibility at the weekend.  No idea how this will work in the long run so we’ll see.  I definitely have a lot  of flexibility with calories at the moment but that won’t last for ever so trying to build the positive habits that will serve me in the long run.  I think if you stick with it you will achieve the results you want - the scales aren’t always reflective on a weekly basis.  

The meal plan has definitely controlled our food costs.  And I saved at least £10 when I didn’t call into a shop to buy crisps and chocolate to accompany my long journey home from work one day last week. (sometimes a habit of mine -related to being fed up at the prospect of a three hour drive.  That can be 2000 plus calories consumed in a very short time and not even really enjoyable to be honest). 

So on to another week of healthy eating. Feeling very positive. 

L x 

KajiKita

Well done @Less_Talk_and_More_Action 👏😊 I know this is the start loss you you must feel better for it? I do just for the bit I have lost so far. 

Speaking of which, first loss weigh-in: 3lbs! Soooo chuffed 😊 This won’t be sustainable and as LTaMA said some of it will be water, but it’s a good start 😊

KK

WinterWarrior

Brilliant @Less_Talk_and_More_Action and @KajiKita. Extra well done. It gives you such a boost when the scales reflect your hard work ⭐️

Less_Talk_and_More_Action

@KajiKita - well done.  Thanks for your comments. Like you I have a very full on work life with quite a lot of travel at times.  I had fallen into the trap of treating myself a lot - tired, stressed at times etc.  However I also deserve good health and I have to put the effort into achieving it. 

Thanks @WinterWarrior.  Consistency is definitely the key and the thing that I have never been able to achieve. I know you’ll get the results you want as you’ve made really positive changes.
 Weekly weighing is a blunt instrument sometimes.  It’s one of the main reasons I stopped doing slimming clubs.  People (especially women with hormones having an impact at all stages of life) will have a mixture of results even if they are doing all the right things and I couldn’t watch people feeling bad because they hadn’t lost or had gained one week.  Anyhow, I don’t want to share too many of my personal views re slimming clubs as I know they work really well for some people and this is about whatever works on an individual basis. 

I’m definitely happy to have had a good first week - even if it’s water etc, it still needed to go. 

This is definitely like debt reduction- ultimately what works are those small consistent and sustainable changes that can be incorporated into your life without resentment and which become healthy habits.

L x  

joedenise

Well done to you both on your losses.  I had a gain this week but was expecting it as we were away for a long weekend last week and we ate out a couple of times which weren't healthy meals.  Also had a bit too much alcohol!  

I weigh on a Wednesday morning (same day as I used to go to Slimming World but stopped going at the beginning of this year).  Not really expecting a loss this week either as met up with DD1, her partner and his parents for Anniversary meal (theirs during this week just gone and ours this coming week) so again not so healthy food and more wine!

I'm back to healthy eating this week until we go on holiday at the end of the week (All Inclusive so again lots of food and drink will be consumed but hoping I can at least eat fairly healthily so I don't put on too much!).  Last AI holiday I put on half stone and that's what I'm still trying to lose 3 months later but life keeps getting in the way!!!

WinterWarrior

I tend to weigh daily and expect fluctuations, but went up a few points of a pound more again today, so a pound and a half up! However, when I drilled down on the fancy pants scales they tell me that my lean mass has increased along with (oddly) my bone weight and my fat has decreased…so I guess it’s not all bad. Hopefully the actual poundage will get with the program soon 😅

beanielou

Great loss @Less_Talk_and_More_Action w
Keep plodding 😊

@KajiKita. Great start. 😊

CRANKY40

Good morning good people (quote from my grandad there who hasn't been earthside for a long time) who was such a gentleman. 

@Less_Talk_and_More_Action well done. You sound like your head is going in the right direction which is more important than actual physical weight loss I think. You do deserve to be fit and healthy, you absolutely do. A three hour journey sounds like a good chance to listen to loud music. I love being on my own in the car without anyone calling my preferences "dinosaur music" 🤣🤣🤣

@KajiKita well done. As you say the first weeks loss is often (not always) the best loss. A loss is a loss though. I've stood in the supermarket before now holding half a pound of lard to demonstrate to myself that half a pound is a good loss. 

@WinterWarrior your scales don't seem as co-operative as ours. Don't let it derail you. maybe pick some jeans that are just a bit too snug instead and concentrate on toning up. Making up your lunches in advance sounds like a good idea. You could make yourself a salad bar as well like some supermarkets have (only yours won't have been breathed on by multiple people). I do this in summer as the only salad eater in the house with little tubs full of sweetcorn, chopped onion, chopped tomatoes, pineapple etc. 

@joedenise this too shall pass. Enjoy your holiday and some back ready for healthy food ☀️🩴🏖️

I'm another 2 lbs lighter today. My jeans feel like my own again which is a relief as my sister pinched the ones that are the next size up when she was here last summer. They were getting just that bit too snug if you know what I mean. I did have an unintentionally busy day on Thursday when lunch was an apple and an orange but I haven't gone hungry. 

My thoughts for this week.... don't replace food that you eat with "diet" things that have so many chemicals and goodness knows what added. Losing weight is more about making healthy choices not swapping one bad choice for another. I'm not saying give up eating (or drinking), but I've found myself eating sometimes with that "sod it" mindset that makes you charge things that you shouldn't be buying to your credit card. Just because it has diet in the title doesn't mean that it will help you to lose weight. 

Take care all of you 😊

WinterWarrior

Some excellent points @CRANKY40. The salad bar is a nice idea. I’m with you on avoiding chemicals and add ins. I bought some wholemeal wraps thinking they would be healthier, but was shocked at how many ingredients are in them. I will use them up, but will look for a version with less additives next time. I’m slowly coming to realise that it’s better to make the things you have time for just to avoid all the extra preservatives, etc. 

Extra well done on your jeans becoming your own again 😁