Diet tips, tricks, information and inspiration

I’ve been doing WW for a little more than a year and lost 70lbs. I managed to only gain .4 over the holidays.

I menu plan on Sundays and shop for the first half of the week. Then on Wed I go back to the store to shop for the next three days. I eat a lot of poultry, seafood and veggies, so I like to buy fresh often. Menu planning is really helpful. I keep all my plans in a small binder and it’s easy to see refer back for old favs and I note the WW points.

I hate exercise but know it’s important. Right before Christmas I re-joined a gym. My goal is to go 5 times a week. I’m including those days in my menu plan. I got a Fitbit for Christmas...it’s definitely motivating me to get up and move. I work a desk job, so it was sad to see my normal step count.

I had some success with low carb/IF last year. Derailed a bit over the holidays. I looked over the new WW plan last week and liked its emphasis on protein and veggies/fruits, with some fat. There are a lot of nice, filling things to eat for zero points. I'm starting that today and, when school starts next week, will also go back to a 16:8 IF window most days.

I don't personally know anyone IRL who has lost a lot of weight (50+ lbs) and kept it off without surgery. I'm not willing to do surgery. I'm working on being healthier and losing some weight, but if I'm never skinny, so be it. I'd rather be a little fat than have surgery.

My 14 year old is also doing WW with me for the first time.  She is struggling with her weight and doctor has recommended a healthy weight loss program.  So I'm supporting her in that.  I'm glad WW is more balanced and reasonable than it was when I started out - way back in the days of "exchanges."  That was super hard to follow.  This seems very reasonable.  

I lost over 70 lbs about ten years ago by counting calories and walking. I was keeping it off pretty well until I went back to school. Then I damaged my foot and was unable to walk normally for almost three years. Now I need to re-lose about 40 pounds, but it's harder thanks to age. I am trying something new this time, and that is giving up sugar. I've heard too many things about what it does to your body, so I am going to try my best to go without it for a year just to see what happens with my health and weight.

I joined WW last fall. I was very successful on low carb as far as weight loss, but I enjoy healthy carbs like oatmeal and fruit and whole grains too much for low carb to be sustainable for me (it is for many people tho!). So WW has been a perfect fit for me as far as enjoying those and learning portion control. Im not in love with the new freestyle program, but I'm working to find my groove.

I lost 45 pounds almost 11 years ago and have not gained it back. In fact, this year I lost an additional 6-8 pounds. It's possible to lose weight and maintain. Easy? No, but not impossible

The Dr suggested I put my DS on a low carb diet. This seems impossible for a teenager with a household with carb eaters he stared today and honestly I am feeling a little overwhelmed. Luckily my DS seems really excited which is motivating me. I think I will do Atkins with lean proteins. Two weeks of 20 carbs per day then start adding more fruits and cottage cheese into his diet.
Any low carb advice would be appreciated.
Jen

If I shouldn’t eat it I don’t buy it. It’s easier for me to walk away from it at the grocery store than it is to walk away from it in my fridge or on my pantry shelf.

I’ve learned I’m one that can’t count calories, carbs, etc. because it makes me obsess over the food I’m eating. IF is easier for me to do, and then I just eat as healthy as I can during the hours I eat. I can go about 10-12 hours, but any longer than that I start to feel it in my brain.

I don’t deny myself treats, but I will usually wait until I have a good reason to indulge, such as a birthday or something.

Protein is my friend. Sugar and other refined carbs aren’t. I definitely feel it when I’ve had too many carbs. I just hurt all over now. I eat a lot of eggs though. And shrimp.

I’ve lost 60 lbs. and I have kept it off pretty easily over the past year (200 to 140 now). I’m fortunate to have a job that keeps me very busy on my feet for 10 hours a night though, but that’s only for seven days at a time. During my week off I try to get 4-6 miles on the treadmill in every night. I walk/jog to all sorts of music videos on my iPad, and vary the speed and incline of my treadmill workout based on the beat of the song I’m watching the video for (fast song - high speed/low incline, slow song - slow speed/high incline). I put the videos on shuffle, so I get a different workout every time. Varying the intensity and incline levels like that works much better for me than just walking/jogging at one speed the whole time, and it makes the time go by faster than just listening to music alone.

I’m also working with a trainer to attain another goal. It’s not good for weight loss but it is helping me become stronger.

I did lose a lot of weight and then gained it all back several years ago. I know where I failed there and I’m determined that won’t happen again  .

Low carbers, make sure that in addition to eating enough fat, you're also getting plenty of electrolytes. That will help a lot with the 'carb flu.'

Do you belong to WW online? I'd like to see what their current plan is like but I don't want to make a major investment, so not sure how to do that.

I have two friends who each lost 100 lbs within the past 5 years; one had surgery, one did not. Both exercise a lot, every day. That means walking for one, running for the other. I think that has to be key to getting it off and keeping it off. I've been too sedentary over the past six months and 10 lbs has crept up on me. I know I need to get my keyster moving.

Finding exercise that works for you is SO hard. I like walking because I can do it with or without other people and pretty much anywhere.  I think, as someone said above, consistency is key.  I just do it now, like brushing my teeth. I have recently added Pilates three or four times a week and I really enjoy it. 

I also want to say that I think exercise is not key to weight loss (at least not for me), but is essential to maintaining my weight.  

Thanks; I'm hypothyroid and hypoglycemic, so it might work for me. In general I have to combine diet + exercise in order to get enough metabolic to lose weight.  It's so true about paying attention to feeling full. WW just might be the jumpstart I need.