About 80 pounds--how I did it
 

Briefly--50 yo male, overweight, family history of diabetes, etc. Tried off and on to lose weight with varying success. Something (I don't know what) finally clicked for me, so back in August, I began using FitDay, to log my activities and my intake. The key for me has been being RIGOROUS about logging in EVERYTHING that passes my lips. I also bought an inexpensive food scale, to really accurately measure my portions (in the past I just estimated).

I also began walking for 20 - 25 minutes each morning, and after about a month added the same amount of time on an old exercise bike that has been gathering dust. I also really changed the way I eat--lots more fresh foods, vegetables, citrus fruits, etc. Basically eliminated most breads (except for light wheat) and pastas (very small amounts). Cooked a lot from CookingLight; never felt like I was starving, either, even though I was eating only about 1000-1200 calories a day (might not be recommended for most people).

And it's worked. From a start of 258, I'm down to about 180 right now. Feel great, more active, new clothes, more confident--all the good stuff. I have in the last few weeks added some free weights and some resistance bands to tone up and build some muscle. My wife is very happy also!

So--be rigorous (obssessed almost) and honest and watch your portions--it will work for you too.

Fresh food, light on the carbs, and exercise. Wow. You're a winner, and deserve to be. Congratulations and best wishes.

P. S. I really value Fitday for helping me keep track of stuff. I need to hold myself accountable, and it works.

Good job! I lost #165 with diet and exercise, and people ask me how i did it, my response 1/3 was controlling food intake, 1/3 exercise, and 1/3 figuring out why i overate and worked on those issues.

Thanks!
 

I agree--one of the best things about this program is that it helps you keep track of what is going on--or in!

People often ask me "How did you do it?" I think they are looking for me to say "Oh, it was MagicWeightLossPill" or "I did the LowCarbWatermelonColonFlush diet" or something else. They seem disappointed that I achieved my weight loss "the old-fashioned way.":)

Awesome. My issue is my blood pressure and cholesterol, so I am going to do something about it. I'm 5 feet 10 -- weigh 220 -- a few years ago, I lost 20 lbs but gained it back gradually. When I was about 200 ibs I didn't need my blood pressure meds, now I do. As for my cholesterol, it's come down a bunch, but that is due to the medication I take and the drop in alcoholic beverages that use to raise my triglycerides.

So your story is inspiring and I see that it's doable. That said, hope I can share my success story here too. Thanks, from Dom.

I just started my dieting more or less my life style change.so far this sit seems to be helpful.tracking what i eat makes me realize what i am eatting.my mom watched what she ate..instead of her worrying about portions she ate progresso soups and 100 calorie packs of sweets..was easy and easy on the go way to do it..so i'm trying it she went from 204 to 139 in around 6 months just eating right.

Thank you for sharing. Very insrining and gives hope! God Bless you <3

Thank you so much for sharing your success story. It is particularly heartening for me as I am taking much the same approach towards my weight loss. In the past when I tried to lose weight it seems I was always kidding myself about my true weight, how much I was eating etc. I just wasn't committed enough I suppose. This time, something really has clicked and I am determined to lose the weight and get to feeling fit and healthy again. Fit day is an excellent tool for this and so far I have been rigorous and if I ever feel disheartened or tempted I will refer back to your excellent post to keep me motivated! Thanks again, I hope to post a similar success story one of these days! :)

I am 5'6, 195 lbs.

I want to get to 175 by March! Keep me motivated guys!!! These stories are wonderful! I have changed my diet--a total 360 degree change.

Now my diet consists of vegetables, fruits, cereal, fish, and chicken.

We are looking at 1500 per day. I lift weights 4 times a week, for an hour, and 30 minutes running at 5.5 mph on the treadmill.


I am ready to make a change for good!! I have never felt so good. I started January 4.

Hey guy's! I to am on a new journey. Being 202lbs at 5'2, and being a diabetic, Iv'e got some work cut out for me! I started my new way of life on 1/11/10. So this is just my 4th day. My blood suger on that day was 349! (with insulin) Today, it was 150! Also have lost 6 lbs.! I am so motivated! Thanks to Fitday I am recording everything! It has really been helpful to see my progress on charts and graphs. If you can, drop me a line to encourage me along my way! I'm a mother of 5 and my husband and I foster children.So things are pretty hectic around here to say the least! Finally, I am taking care of myself so I can be here for my little ones, and my family!

Yes! I am nowhere near as far along as you on my weight loss journey; I've only lost five pounds so far, but even so I've had a couple people ask me what I'm doing and they seem really disappointed and then completely disinterested when I say, "I'm eating healthy, counting calories and kicking my butt at the gym at least three days a week." Their faces just glaze over and you can tell that inwardly they're saying, "Oh, work. No thanks."

I mean, yeah. I would much rather eat a cheesecake for dinner and lay on the couch all day not moving and still lose weight too, but it's not going to happen.

YES! That is what works for me, too. Otherwise I'm aiding the "enemy" by allowing it to feed me lies: "Oh, what's one piece of cake and I've had such a rough day, I deserve it." No, we deserve to be healthy and fit to take on the challenges of the day! Congrats on your weight loss!!

Again--it's important to log EVERYTHING you eat. One of my downfalls was snacking constantly throughout the day. A few crackers here, a little chocolate there . . . throughout the whole day it really adds up. So, if I happen to eat a few potato chips, or a handful of nuts, I sit down and (honestly)estimate what I ate, and log it in. It keeps me honest.

I might be able to "fudge" (pun intended!) what I put down on my food log, but the scale is not going to lie to me, you know?

Agreed! I wrote in another post about that. I stopped using fitday last summer after two plus years of rigorous and honest use and I gained 8 pounds! Believe me I will never do that again!

I know what you mean! I dropped 80lbs in a year going from a job where I sat all day eating fancy take out, to a job which requires me to walk 5 miles between all my train stops and stand all day, not to mention pack a lunch. Everyone still asks me what I'm taking!

I think I may have just found the right website to keep me motivated. I started my weight loss journey a few months ago. I have not been tracking my food intake, so I am not where I expected to be with my weight loss. Like many of you here, I too am diabetic. I currently take oral medication for this. Before my diet my A1C level was 9.0 (way too high) it is now at 6.3. I hope to be down to 5.0 soon. As of today I have lost 13 pounds. My goal is to lose 30 more pounds. I will keep checking back for more success stories, their such a great motivator. Thank you for sharing!

Hello
 

Today is my first day on the post.
Please share with me what you ate or gave up the first two weeks to lose the 15 pounds.

Here's a couple of sample food logs for me back in September.

2 slices light wheat bread (100 cal), about 2 ounces of turkey sausage (202 cal), 1 can anchovies no oil (I love anchovies, 50 cal), 1 can chicken and rice Healthy Choice soup (222 cal), Special K bar (90 cal), i cup of homemade cole slaw light dressing (about 125 cal), 3 large tomatoes (98 cal). Grand total 937 calories.


1 large cucumber, 1 large tomato, Special K bar, 1 seafood cake (recipe from Cooking Light about 170 cal), 2 chicken tacos with mango salsa (Cooking Light 400 cal), 3/4 cup homemade cole slaw, 2 ounces of grilled salmon on two pieces of light wheat bread (about 200 cal), 2 Tennessee Pride turkey sausage patties on 1 piece of light wheat bread. Grand total 1103 calories.

I found a lot of good light recipes at cooking light.com and the magazine. Good variety of foods. The tomatoes became one of my favorite nighttime snacks (with a little salt, some cilantro, and some diced jalapenos).

C'mon every one!!! WE WILL MAKE THIS HAPPEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Let's work hard!! Let's all lose those pounds we want to lose. Don't starve your selves!!!!! Eath healthy. Don't forget the vegetables and the fruits and some chicken and fish for the win!

Stay away from sweets, sodas, sweet bread, high calorie snacks, cakes, and you will be amazed at the results you will get after a month of leaving this behind!!!!

Get on the "LOSERS" boat!!!! LEt's make it happen. I already feel thin just from the food choices I have made to eat healthy and making it a habit =)

Hi! I am new to this (or any) forums. I have been on the heavy side for all of my adult life - I am a 5' 2" 35 year old female who was 189.5 and was scared to get to 190. Yet, I kept doing the same things everyday, trying to put weight and health out of my mind. I became really depressed (other stresses going on in my life) and started exercising because I didn't want to go on drugs and remembered that exercise had helped me in the past.

I think it is funny how you said something just clicked and you don't know what. I experienced the same thing - I've always known inside that it is about calories in and calories out to lose weight. By now, I don't know how ANYONE who is overweight can possibly not know how to lose it. But for some reason, I never really could get myself to be serious about losing weight for long enough.

Somehow, like you said, it all just clicked around the time I discovered Fit Day. I've been tracking my eating keeping it down to 1250 - 1350 calories a day, and exercising with Kathy Smith videos (I really love her) and it is working!! I have lost 11 pounds in 4 weeks, and am on my way to reaching my goal of 140 in June.

The exercise pretty much cured my depression - although obviously, stress still remains. I can just handle things a lot better when I am active. Now with the exercise, my lower caloric intake is helping me drop the pounds week by week, almost effortlessly! I have never felt this great or confident in my life. For the first time, I don't just think I can possibly lose the weight, I feel like I just KNOW it inside. This time I will reach my goal.

Tracking everything on Fit Day is a lot of fun. That's what was missing for me, I believe.

Way to go, erick! I'm happy that you've taken the first step. Last year at 41 years old, I weighed 219 (5'10"). Due in large part to tracking my food on FitDay, I lost 40 pounds in about six months. Then, around Thanksgiving, I stopped keeping track of my food intake during the holidays. That turned into two months of cheat meals and 16 pounds gained back. Keeping track of what you eat not only allows you to properly record calories, fat, etc., but, perhaps more imporantly, it makes you think about everything you put in your mouth. Be obsessive if you need to be, but keep track of everything. Good Luck!!!

Not hungary with 1200-1500 calories! how did you manage that. I'm constanly starving and don't know how to deal with it. What did you do at night and get-togethers?

I'm so glad that alot of people are seeing results!!! I can't wait until I start to see them. The problem is, that at home, I have no motivation or support. Being 17 years old, I am forced to eat what everyone else eats, unless I ask for money to buy my own food. But we don't have money to blow to where I can go to the market and buy things every week. So, it is tough for me to stay on track as far as dieting goes, and exercise is a little tough too. That's why I'm glad that I found this site because its the support and motivation that I need to reach my goals. I can finally SERIOUSLY track everything that's going on with me from my moods to what I put in my mouth. I can set goals, and then see how far along I am to it. This is great! I hope everyone reaches their goals as well! :)

thanks...
 

Read your "story" this morning and wanted to say thanks for posting it. I've been eating all the healthy foods for a long time now, but not 1 pound comes off. Some of my meds don't help either ... and I'm borderline prediabetic.
I've been walking but your words have helped encourage me to get at the walking each day. So, thanks!

congrats David! Great job!!

you can say that again!

just starting out
 

David
I am just starting out My weight is starting at 252 lbs I feel like crap and look like crap. I have been doing the Atkins for 6 days and have lost 6 lbs. You are inspiring to know I to can loose the weight I would like to get to about 180 also.