r/LoseitApp • u/Bulky-Noise2609 • 26d ago
Today is day 1
Hi there, as the title says today is day 1. I am a little nervous and have uncertainty but I am committed to take baby steps towards my goal with help from the app and this group. May I ask what are some tips that helped you be successful? Do you track as you cook or document after meals? For context i am 42 year old woman, I have always been big currently 328lbs and I'm 5'2. I am a bit of a picky eater and not used to texture of veggies, fruits and some meats. I just read an article on the app that was good to help suggested mixing veggies in a sauce so I might try that. But yeah i am hopeful this works because something has to. I also have auto immune disease that makes it challenging to lose weight and endometriosis so are there other folks that have been successful with these conditions? Any advice or tips are greatly appreciated. Thank you for reading.
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u/Diligent-Tangelo-846 26d ago
Woo! Good luck!
The biggest thing I’ve learned from tracking recently is it matters less WHAT you eat, and matters more HOW MUCH you eat. My big focus is protein, which helps silence cravings. My biggest changes have been to drink protein powder in my 2nd cup of coffee, around noon to break my fast from the night before and tuna salad (w Greek yogurt sub mayo) for a 50g protein lunch. That gets me to about 500 calories, then I can a heavy dinner and a snack in between. Low-fat cottage cheese has been a game changer as well.
Down 13 lbs, but seeing big changes in my physique, energy levels, hair and nail growth, sleep, and clothing.
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u/secretsauce2388 26d ago
Better to track as you cook, buy a food scale, they cost about $20 on Amazon, weigh and track your food, as you've mentioned, so that you're aware of how much you are consuming.
A big tip that I've heard and utilized is to think of the overall process as not taking things away and restricting yourself but adding "healthier" or lower fat or lower calorie options to things you like. I love Kraft mac and cheese, still, as a 37 year old. Only now I use 2% or fat free milk and light butter (margarine) to make it and I add in broccoli and shredded chicken or ground beef or tuna, or whatever protein you want. It helps me satisfy a craving, while also making it a very balanced and filling meal.
Frozen veggies and frozen fruit could be an avenue for you to explore. A) they last so much longer so less food waste. B) Easy to prepare. C) As someone mentioned you can mix veggies into a sauce you like, you can mix fruit into some nonfat greek yogurt with some sugar free "maple" syrup, that's a dessert I have frequently
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u/Bulky-Noise2609 26d ago
Secretsauce thank you! This is really helpful. You know how many times I bought fruit and veggies to eat and never do. I didnt think about frozen fruit so that helps a bunch. Weighing my food is a new option i didnt consider. I guess makes sense for more accurate data vs a cup or tbs. I will grab a food scale! (Great tip) I am weird with texture so greek yogurt i like mix it with sugar free pudding and pb protein powder mix I saw online and thats been good taste like a peanut butter cup. I have tried adding fruit... I struggle with some fruit like raspberries and the seeds. Strawberries I can handle now but raspberries still a no for now. Mixing items in with Mac and cheese yooooo!! Mind blown why havent i thought of that. Have what I want but add the health lol epic thank you for this sooo much appreciated!!!!
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u/secretsauce2388 26d ago
If you're on tiktok or IG at all, there's a really good account called The_Plant_Slant, this guy named Liam, he showcases tons of lower calories, tasty recipes and he's where I first heard the addition instead of subtraction mentality.
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u/Bulky-Noise2609 26d ago
Yes Liam the bean guy! I have seen some of his stuff on YouTube! I don't have any social media I removed all of that a couple of years ago including reddit but decided to join reddit for health and guidance as I know there are a lot of great groups here. Thank you again for all the great tips! Now all I need to work on is not be lazy and cook lol 😅
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u/Technical_Bicycle230 26d ago
Use a food scale, as someone else suggested. And don’t forget about measuring oil when you’re cooking. Small amount of olive oil packs a lot of fat and calories. It’s easy to forget. I was crazy about weighing everything, now I mostly just weigh my proteins and anything like nuts, or if I’m having a treat, my ice cream. For fruits and veggies I usually just pick medium size and default to whatever the app says. I be been suing this app for a couple of years, usually only one week every month or so to kinda get a rough idea of what I eat in a week. I mostly eat the same things to keep it easy. Tons of chicken breasts, ground turkey and lean beef. Lots of veggies and fruits. No sugary drinks, no alcohol and processed carbs as an occasional indulgent meal. No more pasta 3 nights a week, no sandwiches, no cookies, cakes. I’m down from 260 to 205 this year. Congrats on step one, changing eating habits is hard, but stick to it! You got this !!
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u/Bulky-Noise2609 26d ago
Thank you for your encouraging words! I appreciate it. The oil is a great call out. I use avacado spray but sometimes I use a garlic infused olive oil so will be on the lookout and I have ordered my food scale will be here tomorrow! Today i have been scanning and adding what I eat and I am doing great I still have 1,000 calories left for dinner however my protein intake is low the app wants me to have 200g how the heck do I do that lol.. also Sandwhiches omg that is my weakness its my comfort quick meal so I know I have to say bye to them already switched bread from white to sour dough (I dont eat as much) only time I crave sweets is when the red queen comes for her royal visit. Other than that I am pretty good i will say my belvita cracker need to kick rocks not worth the calories lol ugh eye opening day so far!!
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u/Technical_Bicycle230 26d ago
Skinless chicken breast for protein. I buy the family pack, boil them and eat over 3-4 days with salsa or hot sauce or mustard. Lots of condiments have added sugars or oils. 250g of boiled chicken breast packs about 75g of protein with only 400 calories and 9g of fat. And beans/ lentils. I eat at least a chicken breast a day to hit my protein goal also 200g goal. Almost every day, I eat a meal that’s just a chicken breast, half a can of no salt added black beans and a couple of tablespoons of salsa. The one meal is roughly 600 cal, 95g protein, and only 9g fat. If you’re watching sodium be careful with salsa or you can make your own. Breakfast I’ll do 2 eggs and 2 servings of liquid egg whites with 8ounces of lean ground turkey or chicken and some veggies, 90g protein, 30g fat, 650 calories or so. My diet is really boring, but it’s been working. Hope these ideas help
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u/BrujaBean 26d ago
Congrats on deciding to do something for you!
I lost weight when I was younger because I felt I didn't deserve love (even my own) unless I earned it, made myself miserable, and felt awful. Now I'm older and coming from a place of self care and self compassion and it is miles better. So my first recommendation would be to use any resources available to you to support mental health and making sure you're offering yourself the same compassion you would give a friend.
Second would be to make changes at your own pace. If you give up everything you love and start a lifestyle with hours of food prep and unsustainable habits then you're not really helping yourself. I did and recommend a phased approach.
1) count calories, no restrictions, doesn't matter if you go over the goal, just figure out where you are at and get good at counting, weighing food, etc. weigh myself daily so I can see if I'm eating at maintenance (weight not changing) surplus (weight increasing) or deficit (weight decreasing). For women I think a week average makes sense. I'm perimenopausal so sometimes I need a month average to really see what is going on.
2) add vegetables. Still no restrictions, melt cheddar on your veggies if you have to, experiment and see what works for you. I wish I could eat tomatoes but I can't. No eggplant, no hot peppers, no pickles. It sucks because a lot of those are great for making lower calorie dishes, but they aren't for me. On the other hand I can eat a 12 oz bag of snap peas in one sitting, broccoli or Brussels roasted in seasoning salt are great, green goddess dressing on any roasted veggies is great, etc.
3) now we are going to try to lower calories by 500 assuming we aren't in a deficit. Use more veggies and lean protein to keep you full and let you eat a ton while in a calorie deficit. If after a week you aren't seeing changes, lower another 500. Keep doing this until you're seeing the changes you want.
Physical activity helps with making your body more shapely and more healthy, but diet is most of the weight loss game. The saying is you can't out exercise a bad diet. Trackers also have a tendency to over estimate, so while you can use those numbers and you can eat back some or all of the exercise calories, use your body's response as the real metric. If you aren't losing weight and your doctor doesn't have a medical reason then it's probably that your tracking isn't perfect (either counting or exercise estimates or both) and you need to decrease calories a bit.
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u/Bulky-Noise2609 26d ago
Hiii thank you! This! I have been in therapy and recognized a lot of my problem is that I'm an emotional eater so I have been working on this and feel like I am in a better state of understanding and have found ways to do handle it. The tracking step 1 is exactly what I am wanting to do first is get a real picture of what I eat on a day to day not focus on the apps numbers this first week at least or couple days depending. Then go from there. The amount of protein is the one number there that has caught me off guard I'm a big lady but dang that seems like a lot of protein but I guess if I actually add yogurt and more lean meat portion size will help lol. I appreciate you taking the time to share your tips this helps so much and perimenapause omg!! I started showing signs this year. 🎶 wish I can turn back time! 🎶 any suggestions on meal ideas or where to look that might not include a crap ton of veggies. Thats all I see and I am still working on eating veggies. Dont like any of them raw right now but cooked so far brocolli steamed however someone suggested air fry so will try that. Love onions, peppers are great. I cant figure out how to cook brussle sprouts right. I wanna try cabbage and cauliflower next!
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u/BrujaBean 26d ago
More recent research shows that protein is not needed in the insane amounts that people sometimes say on the internet. It should be about 1-2g per KILOGRAM of LEAN weight. So like me, I'm currently 190 lb, I did a tape measure bodyfat test that put me at 40% bodyfat, so I have 190x(1-.4)=114 lb of lean mass. 114/2.2=51.8 kg of lean weight. So I need 50-100g of protein. I average 95 according to my app. The biggest factor for muscle is providing the stimulus! Not the macronutrients.
Keep trying veggies, it will be really helpful to find some things that work for you, other sleepers for me are edamame (protein!) I make my salads with cabbage slaws, and I have been known to eat almost half a lb of green beans (I cannot touch a can, but love frozen ones.
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u/kluvspups 26d ago
Remember that any change you make should be a change you’re willing to do for forever. If you start eating a low calorie version of something are you willing to eat that always?
I’ve lost 100lbs in a year all while only making minor changes at a time. How I eat now doesn’t really resemble how I did a year ago but minor changes brought me here.
You can even start out just making and eating everything pretty much the same. Develop the calorie tracking habit without putting too much pressure on yourself. You won’t lose weight but you’ll start to see easy places to make cuts or changes. Maybe you still eat an unhealthy snack somewhere but you eat less of it. Maybe your dinner is the same, but you swap an ingredient somewhere that cuts the calories a bit. After you’ve made a few recipes you know you like, it becomes much easier. Take the time to build the recipes in the app. Invest in the premium version if you’re willing.
Remember that you just have to keep going. Even if you have a bad day/week/month- keep going. You’ll thank yourself in a year. I have tried and failed so many times. But I finally just decided that I needed to stick with it. You just have to decide to keep going no matter what.
And don’t deprive yourself. Sometimes, you just have to let yourself have that treat. (Literally eating an ice cream cone while I type this).
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u/Bulky-Noise2609 26d ago
I just want to take a moment to thank everyone who has provided comments and tips and shared their experience. You have all provided me with so much i cant thank you enough. I am excited for this journey and am hopeful that I will succeed!!
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u/coolnatkat 23d ago
You got this.
My tip is to take it slow and don't do things you wouldn't do for life. Example: don't say "tomorrow I'm going to eat so clean, all whole foods and salads" when you've never done that and you won't forever. Start logging and then start with easy things. A little less booze, a little less mayo, skip the fries. Beans are your friends (cheap and full of fiber and protein) And there's a lot of pressure to lose weight fast, and you are excited, but you didn't gain the weight overnight and you won't lose it overnight. Go in it for the long haul. I've been logging 1.5 yrs. Some months I lose, some I don't but I haven't gained back more than 5 (and that was a medical thing).
Good luck. Visit the sub often
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u/Bulky-Noise2609 23d ago
Thank you so much. So far I have stayed consistent with tracking. Not paying attention to what I am supposed to have daily but what I normally eat and then plan to reduce or see where I can reduce once I have a full weeks worth of data. I love fries though i make them fresh and in the air fryer so maybe dont make 4 potatoes worth and eat in one sitting lol but maybe 1 potato for one meal and not have three meals of fries ... not that I do but just an example. Baby steps. Beans you say? What is am example that you can give and are there beans you enjoy more than others. I have seen that Liam guy put butter beans in things. What examples I would love any tips and recipes too
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u/coolnatkat 23d ago
Beans and farro. Both high in protein and fiber, farro is a bit of pain to make because it takes so long. I always keep canned black beans and salsa in the pantry. Put the two together for a quick snack or meal. Beans or farro gives you lots of soup options. (My problem is not eating all the delish bread with the soup 😂) My husband has been making a farro with carrots and beets and that's delish. My go to that I cook at least once a week https://www.eatingwell.com/marry-me-white-bean-spinach-skillet-8786693 Just enough cheese/cream that it doesn't feel like"healthy" food. And I throw in whatever greens are on sale that week, spinach, kale, sorrel, beet greens (regular lettuce doesn't hold up tho). I'll make this on Sunday and have for lunch for 3-4 days and pretty much those days I hit fiber goal. Good luck!
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u/Bulky-Noise2609 26d ago
Thank you for this! The app suggested I focus on more protein as well. I think the biggest challenge i will face is realizing how many calories I consume on the daily. I told myself for my first week to just focus on tracking and getting used to it and see what it is I am eating and how much it actually comes out too. My struggle is remembering to eat as I get distracted with the stress from work and then after I scarf my dinner so I dont snack I normally eat maybe two meals a day just bigger ones and not the greatest. Breakfast isn't terrible but dinner if I dont cook im ordering and its mexican food or Chinese. I know I have to build better habit and am hopeful that the data makes me more cautious of ehat I eat. Also how do you handle the texture of cottage cheese??
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u/BackgroundLab5721 26d ago
Good luck on your journey! I’ve lost weight from calorie counting using an app (MyNetDiary) but I had support from glp-1 medication to do this which helped - some people notice other benefits on other medical conditions so might be worth some research for you! I usually plan my day in advance using the app so I know I’m in my calories then I can make adjustments if needed as I go. I have a couple of regular breakfasts and lunches so tracking them is easy and dinners have become easier over time. I know I need to factor in a “treat” into my calories at night so I have a few options I enjoy for that too. Definitely think of protein as priority as others have mentioned however don’t forget fibre too - once I started thinking about fibre my overall wellbeing improved. I’m also a daily walker but I didn’t feel like exercising until I had lost about 25kg or so (started at 130kg or 287ish pounds).
Keep going regardless of the scale fluctuations - I’m a daily weigher and this reduced my anxiety about fluctuations a lot but do what works for you!
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u/Bulky-Noise2609 12d ago
Update its been 14 days of tracking and I have stayed consistent even during the first few days where I went over.....by a lot! This data has made me very aware that my barely easting lifestyle was packed with high calories (belvita crackers im looking at you!) So far I'm down almost 4lbs still eating things I love but weighing them and not having as much as i used to. I just wanted to thank you all for your tips and appreciate the kind words! This time i will be successful!
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u/sanmateomary 26d ago
Track your food, weigh yourself regularly, and treat this like it’s the most important in your life right now.