Best products from r/loseit

We found 592 comments on r/loseit discussing the most recommended products. We ran sentiment analysis on each of these comments to determine how redditors feel about different products. We found 1,789 products and ranked them based on the amount of positive reactions they received. Here are the top 20.

Top comments mentioning products on r/loseit:

u/davedawg2000 · 2 pointsr/loseit

Hey friend,

Reading posts like yours always strikes a chord with me -- once upon a time, I was a 17 y/o male weighing in at at least 220 pounds. (I say "at least" because I didn't weigh myself for at least two years after I saw that number back in 2007, and it's entirely possible that I gained more and was too afraid to acknowledge it). Being overweight my entire life, I never thought it would be possible for me to be at a weight that bears any semblance to fitness, but I tip the scales around 145 nowadays :)

I came to the realization that the reason for my weight gain and constant tiredness over the years was from lack of portion control and all the refined carbs I was eating (despite getting at least 7-8 hours of sleep every night). I just want to share what I've learned from LoseIt over the last year:

Weight loss is 80% diet, 20% exercise. In short, you can't out-train crappy nutrition. Even if you hit the gym fairly regularly, your results will be stunted by what you are fueling your body with. Start taking control over what you eat -- lean meats, eggs, fish, legumes, and VEGGIES should take priority.

If you feel like you're starving yourself, then you're doing it wrong. Diet-wise, lean protein and fiber are your best friends. You'll stay full and be more satisfied than if you ate a bunch of carbs and starch. Lean meats, eggs, nuts, lentils, greek yogurt, quinoa and veggies are staples in my kitchen now. Whatever it is you're eating, though, start logging it all. You're much less likely to want to gorge on a double-cheeseburger or hot fudge sundae if you force yourself to log it and watch it blow up your calorie numbers for the day. MyFitnessPal (website/smartphone app) is a great tool that takes almost all of the guesswork out of food journaling. Of course, you need to tell it how much food you're eating, so I highly recommend making a small but worthwhile investment in a digital kitchen scale and use it in conjunction with a tool like MyFitnessPal in order to provide you with the most accurate results and insight into your personal calorie consumption :D

In the first couple of weeks, you may find it difficult to wean yourself off of certain unhealthy foods that you may have grown accustomed to. Here are a few simple substitutions that you might be able to make to your daily meals:

Breakfast - Instead of cereal, have two eggs and fill the rest of your plate with steamed vegetables. Sprinkle a bit of cheese and salsa over the whole thing. The healthy fats and proteins from the eggs and cheese, coupled with the fiber of the vegetables will keep you full and happy all morning.

Lunch - A better alternative to sandwiches is just to try taking what you would normally make a sandwich with and put it on a salad instead. A big spinach salad with turkey breast or tuna on it saves you a great deal of unnecessary carbs. When it doubt, wrap it in lettuce.

Dinner - Try switching up the traditional "meat & potatoes" meals. The meat can stay, but try giving mashed cauliflower a try. When made properly, it tastes just like the real thing :D

If you are constantly hungry, you may not be getting enough protein, fiber, or healthy fats to keep you satiated -- this ultimately causes that uncontrollable urge to snack. Make sure you're eating a fair amount of lean meats, leafy greens, nuts/legumes. Once you start filling your stomach with things that are satiating, you'll probably find that the urge to snack will subside considerably. In absence of that, try keeping some healthier snacks around the house if possible -- I buy 5-pound bags of baby carrots to munch on constantly :)

In terms of drinks, you should be limited to water, tea, black coffee, and milk. No soda -- even diet. If you're used to drinking soda or other sweet drinks and find that the sweetness is a difficult thing to give up, try cutting up some citrus fruits and putting letting them steep in a pitcher of ice water. The refreshing hint of sweetness is usually enough to satiate your cravings! It also helps you to meet your daily water intake goals, which should be at least 72 oz. per day -- it's very common for the body to misinterpret thirst as hunger. You'll also find that staying hydrated will give you more energy to work out / study, etc.

If you find that you want to make your own meals, nothing is easier than getting a pack of boneless/skinless chicken breasts and brushing them down with a little bit of olive oil and herbs/spices and throwing those bad boys in the oven at 350 for about 30 minutes. Serve with a heaping helping of frozen vegetables, and you've got yourself a cheap, filling, nutritious meal :D

> how I should go about starting to run when I have no experience,

There is a great program out there called "Couch-to-5K". It's geared specifically toward beginning runners with no experience who eventually want to work their way up to being able to complete a 5K without stopping. It's very specific, gradual, interval-based training that many Redditors enjoy (so much so that they've created a subreddit just for the program!) Check out [r/c25k](http://www.reddit.com/r/c25k]!

While running and other cardio is decent for getting fit, I would advocate strength/weights/resistance training as soon as you think you're comfortable with it. The extra muscle you'll build not only helps you look better, but it will burn more fat/calories as it sits on your frame.

I've been using the program outlined in the book The New Rules of Lifting. It gives you detailed instructions, pictures, and a 52-week workout schedule. I started noticing amazing progress in both strength and appearance after about 2 weeks, and just began the fifth phase in the series. I've never felt better!

To help monitor your progress, continue to take photos of yourself in various poses and states of undress every few weeks or so -- you'll be happy later that you have them for reference. Because you look at your body every day, it's often difficult to notice small, incremental change. Having the "before" photos handy will definitely allow you to more easily see the progress you're making down the line. I would recommend an official weigh-in once or twice a week. Make sure it's under the same circumstances (first thing in the morning, in the buff, after you've expelled any waste, before a shower, and before you eat/drink anything).

I'm so proud of you for acknowledging that you want to make change and taking the first steps towards making that happen. It doesn't get any easier as time goes on. I went through all of high school obese, and all of college overweight. I always thought I was a reasonably happy person, but after graduating college, losing weight and looking back on the last 6 years of my life, I realized how unhappy I actually was and how much happier I probably would have been. After losing the weight and starting to see my body take on a shape I thought it would never have, I have such incredible confidence, happiness, and exuberance for life that I never imagined possible. I have no doubts that you could easily experience similar results if you stick with it :D

Like I mentioned before, getting healthy should be more like a marathon rather than a sprint -- you're in this for the long haul.

Please keep in touch and don't hesitate to reach out to me if you need any more advice -- diet/exercise tips, meal ideas, a crying shoulder, you name it. I wish for nothing more than to see you succeed.

“There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.”

~ Ernest Hemingway

So go forth and kick ass, friend :D

Cheers,

Dave

u/mionni · 2 pointsr/loseit

I think we learn the most from other people's (and our own) setbacks!

So here's one of mine:

 

>What has been your biggest setback or standstill?

That I can remember - almost reaching my goal in 2014 and then gaining half of it back.

 

>How long did it last?

Almost a year, from November 2014 - August 2015.

 

You didn't ask, but why did I fall back in the first place?

  • I was still doing cheat days/cheat weekends where I didn't log my food. This to me meant that I was always keeping my overeating "alive" and fresh in my memory. So I was just one stressful event away from falling right back into the weight gain, all the time. I was a ticking bomb.

  • I hadn't learned a lot of healthy habits. I did running but not every day, just a few days a week honoring those darn rest days. I did cut calories but not on weekends etc. Nothing became totally habitual.

  • Then I lost a beloved friend - he stopped talking to me.

  • I worked really, really hard and didn't take time to take care of myself. There isn't much appreciation or reward for what I do.

  • Christmas came around, and I hadn't taken the time to learn to deal with Christmas and holidays. It was all a big binge. Now I can deal with holidays and actually lose weight on all holidays while still enjoying the shit out of them.

     

    >What was your motivation to get back on track?

  • I think I just got more confident. I started to feel like I should/could actually honor myself and my body and live the best life I can. I got tired of putting other people above myself on pedestals.

  • I read Leo Babauta's book "Zen Habits - Mastering the art of change" where he sort of gives the key to changing your whole life in super simple and easy to do steps (this is where my "5 minutes a day" mantra originated). The original book was the best, but it was only available as a reward for supporting his kickstarter, he has a new one out now (a brief version of it) here http://www.amazon.com/Essential-Zen-Habits-Mastering-Briefly/dp/098334471X

  • I found r/loseit a few months later and that has absolutely helped. I understood that I have to ditch the "non-counting weekends" and log everything. And I kept working on more and more healthy habits.

    I'm 3 kg away from my goal now, and changed many aspects of my life along with the weight - my house is now clean, my garden is getting better, I take better care of myself, I challenge my fears, I take up new hobbies such as painting/yoga/growing plants... I just feel so much better all around now.

    Long post but I really think we can learn things from mistakes!
u/basil_is_cool · 1 pointr/loseit

Glad I can help! Feel free to PM me for rants, encouragement, or general stuff too (:

People will laugh or think you're crazy, but you can turn around and say, "Yeah but do you know how much a proper serving of rice is?" Most don't. It's crazy when you really measure.

https://tdeecalculator.net/ This is a decent starting point, and go with sedentary as your activity level then add back your workout calories instead. The macros it provides are pretty good (:

Chicken is one of my favorites as it super easy to prep. Turkey is more for lunch meat type of stuff which I like to snack on sometimes (:

With fish, I'm a huge fan of white fish so cod is one I like a lot. I used to eat a lot more salmon, but it's harder to find well sourced salmon where I'm at, so I stick to cod if I want it or crave it, but otherwise I'm eating mainly chicken, top sirloin (choice grade, it's leaner, but I try to get grass-fed, this is beef, btw), or sometimes pork chops too.

As for protein shakes, I do drink one (Gold Standard Whey, https://www.amazon.com/OPTIMUM-NUTRITION-STANDARD-Protein-Chocolate/dp/B000QSNYGI?th=1, it is AMAZING and tastes like hot chocolate. Plus it's one of the highest rated out there). I drink it after my workouts normally. If I eat enough protein during the day, I'll cut it down to a half serving instead (:

Also on the topic of measuring food, I usually will weigh my meat before I cook it, but I sometimes forget to, and I'll just weigh it cooked. On MyFitnessPal, there are choices for uncooked vs cooked, so keep an eye out for things like that.

Little steps are going to take you super far (: I'm right there with ya!

u/K_Murphy · 12 pointsr/loseit

When I'm overwhelmed I find it best to break up a big task and do small things one at a time. These are a lot of valid questions, but some of them you might not need to worry about just yet. Maybe some steps like this will help:



  1. Have you read the Quick Start Guide and FAQs the AutoModerator commented? If not, do that first.




  2. Once done, figure out how you're going to count calories, because yes, it would be best to do that. Will you keep a pen and paper journal? Most of us use the MyFitnessPal app on our phones (also good on desktop), but there are other apps like LoseIt (not affiliated with this sub) that people like.




  3. Download that app/buy that special notebook and pen. When you set up your app, it will likely ask you how much weight you want to lose per week. If you want to jump ahead and put in 0.5-2 lbs per week that's up to you, but I wouldn't recommend it just yet; just say you want to maintain right now. By now you've read the Quick Start Guide and FAQs and you have an idea that to lose weight, the basic thing is to eat less calories than you burn. It'll be best if you count those calories.




  4. Buy a food scale to help you with this logging. It's so much easier than estimating; we often estimate wrongly and way too little.You need one that has a Tare function and can measure in imperial and metric. They're not expensive; something like this is just fine.




  5. No need to change your eating just yet. Just start logging everything that goes into your mouth. Don't forget sauces, cooking oils, drinks, etc. This will help you learn your app and give you an idea of what you are currently eating. It will also help you learn about logging, weighing food, etc. in general before you have to focus on any other major changes.




  6. After a week or two of this, then start slowly working your way down to your deficit amount. It's not recommended that women ever eat less than 1200 calories a day unless under doctor's orders, because that's usually the minimum needed to meet your nutritional needs (1500 for men). If you decide you want to eat at 1500 calories/day for now (just as an example), you can either jump straight in to that amount or start working your way down, cutting 100-200 calories per day at a time at a pace that you think is sustainable.



    You do not need to cut out things like fast food, chocolate, homemade meals, etc., cold turkey unless you really want to. I haven't, though. I still eat sushi, pizza, sub sandwiches, etc., just not nearly as often and most of the time I make it fit into my 1500 calorie/day budget. You just need to make sure you're logging everything accurately (most calorie apps have a recipe function that helps you with homemade food). And then most of the time you make it so that those foods do not put you over your calorie allotment for the day by making your other meals smaller, or something like that.



    Cheat days help some, hinder others. The thing you need to remember is that this is a process, there is sometimes experimentation. You can try cheat days or meals; if you find they're not working for you for some reason, don't have them as often or at all. There is not a deadline, so if something sets you back a little that's okay, you can just get back on track and adjust.



    Take a deep breath! You can do this! Post in the daily Q&A threads if you have any questions! And don't forget to celebrate your victories in the SV/NSV daily thread. We are here to help!
u/parkerflyguy · 10 pointsr/loseit

I've lost 140lbs This year, about 1/3 of my body weight, and there's no secret. Just hard work and discipline. But there are a few things that I personally could not have done without.

Calories in/calories out is KEY. Be vigilant and over estimate when you can't weigh or have to guess on a food input. I use MyFitnessPal to track calories in and a Fitbit to track calories out.

I started just walking my dog for about 30 minutes. I found as it got easier and enjoyable I worked my way up to running. I found that using my Fitbit to measure I would burn almost the same calories (under 200 calories difference) walking or running the same distance walking just takes longer. I went from barely being able to walk a quarter mile without my back hurting or having to rest to running a 5k every day.

My fitbit: https://www.fitbit.com/shop/blaze I love gadgets so of course it was a new toy for me but getting a more accurate count of the calories burned throughout the day is key. Plus, it's very motivational when i'm close to my goal for the day or a new record of steps or calories burned for the day.

Shoes: http://www.dsw.com/shoe/new+balance+410+v4+trail+running+shoe+-+mens?prodId=324685 super comfortable lets me run as long as my body will allow

headphones: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0132YHU0I/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Cheap, but they work AMAZING. I specifically chose this model so that they could not fall out while running.

phone case(?) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JF9DU4U/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 I dont like the idea of an arm band. having something clunky on my arm would be distracting. This thing keeps my keys and phone snug to my body so nothing is shaking around. Again it's about minimizing distractions while running.

Food Scale: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004164SRA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Keeping an accurate calorie count is key and this battery operated scale is perfect. I like that it can handle up to 10lbs and is pretty accurate with smaller increments as well.

Meal prep: https://www.amazon.com/Glad-Food-Storage-Containers-Entree/dp/B0014D0SWW/ref=sr_1_cc_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1468187303&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=glad+containers These guys keep me on my diet. one day a week i make a ton of meals and these are the perfect size that they let me fill them and when im done eating I feel full. I eat all my meals at home and work, out of these to prevent me from over eating.

I use my slow cooker to cook my meat (usually chicken) and a rice cooker to cook a bunch of brown rice. My meals are usually 1 cup rice, 4oz chicken, an apple, and 3 oz carrots for lunch and dinner and a half cup of fiber one and 1 cup almond milk for breakfast. From there I just change the type of meat and fruits and veggies from week to week to keep from getting bored.

This sub also keeps me motivated!

Hope this helps! Good luck.

u/GodlessGravy · 2 pointsr/loseit

> So, to start off, I downloaded MyFitnessPal.

Excellent! I like MFP, it's working well for me even with its quirks.

> it's been awhile since I've had access to a good scale for people of my weight

You are going to need some way to measure your progress, eventually! I had a poke about amazon and they're not hugely expensive:

eatsmart scale

this one measures %bodyfat and is on sale!

%bodyfat information is hugely valuable for accurately tracking your progress and adjusting your diet.


> Excersizing has always been hard for me, I have severely flat feet, even my specially made inserts don't do much to prevent masshive pain if I'm on my feet too long

Stationary bike is your friend!

If you can, start walking second daily/daily for 10-30 minutes.

> It asked how much weight I wanted to lose a week, it recommended 1 pound. Is going with 2 pounds a week that big a deal? Do you think it'll be harder?

If you are 5'10" and 360lb+, you should eventually aim for 2lb/week. You may want to start at 1 pound a week to see what it feels like though.

> White bread, frozen things such as chicken tenders, sandwhich meat, cheese, baked chicken, hamburgers.. I used to eat other less healthy things but I've cut a lot of food out due to my chronic acid reflux, I eat a lot of bread and drink a lot of milk because they're relatively safe for me. I also tend to drink two cans of pop a day, though I'm going to try cutting those out.

You can eat, what you can eat. That said, as you lose weight, your reflux may improve.

If you are having trouble working out what to eat, just start with what you already eat, but control the quantities with calorie counting. You will want to do a few initial days of just counting what your current intake level is, so you can slowly lower your intake.

The easiest way to generate meals is to start with some good lean protein, then add some vegetables to that, and some flavouring, but don't forget that sauces count as calories!

Frozen food has the useful benefit of having very detailed nutritional information on the side of the box, and snap frozen vegetables have high nutrient value.

> How do you guys go about snacks? I usually eat something, be it some chips or something microwavable every few hours.

Chips are generally not great, but if you need them, count their calories into your budget. There's definitely a range of microwave foods out there with decent nutritional value (good amount of protein and essential fats).

> Also, what do you do at night when you're trying to sleep but it feels like you're starving?

When you get your eating right, this may be less of a problem. The right balance of proteins and fat help with satiety, whereas not having enough of those in your dinner meal may leave you hungry as you go to sleep.

> it says that I should consume no more than 2290 calories a day. I've used other calculators online though and have seen anything from 2600-2900 calories a day.

You probably have relatively little muscle mass because of your issues with your flatfeet. The main determinant of how many calories you should have is muscle mass. (%bodyfat measurements will let you determine this far more accurately though).

2300 calories per day is probably a good eventual target. However, first you need to measure how much you are currently eating, then work down from there.

> a bit of weight training.

I would suggest with working towards bodyweight squats and lunges. You may or may not be able to do a full movement with your current size, but a few partial squats are safe and will start conditioning your knees and muscles.

Also, try to get your hands on some cheap dumbbells and learning what movements you can do at home. You don't need the gym to lift weight!

Overall it sounds like you have a good attitude and an openness to learning. With patience, time and the right feedback, you can definitely achieve not only your temporary goals, but more than you thought possible!

u/[deleted] · 2 pointsr/loseit

I too started losing recently (on my way down from 6'3" 313 to 270 now) Here are some things that are helping me:

I started doing a healthier/vegetarian rendition on this:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/slow-cooker-chicken-tortilla-soup/detail.aspx

Plenty of leftovers too, so you won't have too cook for a while. Take leftovers of healthy meals as portable foods. As far as snacks go: 100 cal popcorn packs and almonds are favorites of mine. They have different flavored almonds in most supermarkets as well (wasabi soy are my favs) Also, fresh fruits and veggies cut up and in individual portion are great for quick on the go snacks. FiberOne bars are great and relatively healthy as well.

You can get an electronic scale at any big box store (e.g. target/walmart)

I also picked up a body fat calculator and a fabric measuring tape, which is a great way to track your progress. Sometimes your weight won't drop, but the inches and body fat percentage will:
http://www.amazon.com/Omron-HBF-306C-Loss-Monitor-Black/dp/B000FYZMYK

I just graduated with a degree in engineering (and started in grad school) so i'm a HUGE numbers geek. I chart all of my progress, whether it is good or bad in a spreadsheet. I plot all of my numbers, by date, against a trend line (such as a weightloss goal of 2-3 lbs/week). I feel like it makes a huge difference in your outlook on things. Eventually you will get to the point where you are trying to get below that expected progress line. And whenever you are feeling like you have plateaued, just go to the progress and see how many inches/lbs you have lost.

Also, take pictures of yourself before you start. You don't have to show them to anyone or post them anywhere if you dont want to, but in 3-6 months when you have lost weight but you dont think you look any different, take more pictures and compare. Trust me, you wont regret it, and you will always have a reminder of where you started and where you don't want to be again.

Exercise: check out r/fitness and I would recommend a c25k or c210k program if you are interested in running.

Advice: Don't give up! Everyday that you make an effort to be healthier is a step in the right direction.

Also, if you need help with the spreadsheet, I can send you a template...

Good luck!

u/funchords · 5 pointsr/loseit

It sounds like a great plan!

> Advice from current college students as far as eating habits/ how to deal with the eating barriers that come with being a college student are especially appreciated!

How to estimate your food when you're eating at school ... https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/4wvryb/eating_in_the_cafeteriadining_hall_how_to_be/

> I'm also considering buying a food scale

Yes, absolutely. The Ozeri Pronto Digital Multifunction Kitchen and Food Scale, Elegant Black is $6.95 on Amazon right now and a little more at Walmart and that's a great price and it's /r/loseit's favorite scale.

> Any tips on how to fully utilize the loseit thread?

Read the sidebar. If you're on mobile, the sidebar might be called "subreddit info" or something. The Wiki here is fantastic. Check out the daily and weekly threads. Join the challenges. Note the daily stickies as they keep things interesting. Please upvote the most interesting posts and useful comments as they encourage the posters to keep posting.

> Also, is it customary to post a starting picture?

No. But take one so that you have something to compare with from time to time. Also take your starting measurements for the same reason. You can post your progress here when you have progress to post.

Welcome!

^♂54 ^5'11^^/179㎝ ^SW:298℔^^/135㎏ ^CW:181℔^^/82㎏ ^[3Y AMA], ^[1Y recap] ^MFP+Walks🚶Hikes🏃C25K+TOPS

u/TheRealMattyPanda · 2 pointsr/loseit

There's people that say having a good amount of protein within 30 minutes of a workout helps with recovery, since right after a workout, apparently your body absorbs protein better. Protein powder is just a quick and easy way of getting this. There's also some people who say this isn't necessarily true, and overall protein intake matters more.

As far as types of protein, whey isolate is the most popular since it's the most efficient. By efficient, I mean that it's pretty much all protein, about 90%, and apparently is absorbed quickly. There's also whey concentrate, which is cheaper than whey isolate, but can have less protein and more carbs (from more lactose) per scoop.

The plant based proteins I'm not very familiar with, but through a quick search on Amazon, it looks like soy protein will have higher carbs than whey, and hemp has lower protein, but a good bit a fiber and healthy fats. If you're looking to just get protein, stick with whey unless you're vegan.

All in all, if you're getting the protein you need already, I wouldn't worry too much about a shake. But if you want to boost your protein, a post-workout shake won't hurt, and possibly might benefit you.

If you decide to use protein powders, this is the one I use. It's reviewed very well, has a good amount of protein (1 scoop is 120 cal, 3g carbs, 1g fat, 24g protein), and I think tastes pretty good. It comes out to about 78 cents per serving, so in my opinion, it's really not that expensive.

u/Time_Bank · 2 pointsr/loseit

I use this calculator from the Mayo Clinic. According to that, if you are completely inactive 1600 calories a day will maintain your current weight. So if you consume, 1100 calories a day you will lose one pound per week (3500 calories per pound). You can eat a bit more and you'll simply lose weight at a slightly slower rate. Just never go above 1600 calories in a day.

Finding foods that taste good is key to success. I make a shake with the extreme milk chocolate flavor of this protein powder and soy milk. It is delicious. It literally tastes like a chocolate milkshake (as the Amazon reviews confirm), but is really good for you. Low calorie and high in protein. Another dish I make are these beans with garlic powder and other spices. Sometimes I add rice, but not too much (because rice are pure carbs). These beans are high in fiber and protein, so they are perfect. And the spices make the whole thing taste really good. The full receipe is here. The whole dish only costs $1.30 a meal and you can literally have all the ingredients shipped to your door from Amazon. Another tip is that if you drink, you can use the website Get Drunk Not Fat to make efficient choices about what you drink. :) Finally, be sure to take a multivitamin to make sure you get all the nutrients you need even though you have a calorie deficit.

Eat smart and the pounds will fly off in no time. I find the Hall of Fame to be really awesome motivation. With each pound you lose it will become easier to stay away from the bad stuff. Then once you are at your goal weight, you can start to eat more calories because then you just need to maintain. You don't have to be perfect, you just need to make smart choices overall. You can do it, I promise. :)

u/almostelm · 5 pointsr/loseit

It sounds like you're on the ball. The only thing I would recommend doing if you're really frustrated with the lack of progress would be to invest in a kitchen scale (this one is probably best for you in terms of your limited funds). You might be miscalculating how much you're eating which can be why you're stalled.

To calculate home cooked meals, I count the calories, by weight, of everything I put into a dish until I have the grand total for the whole thing. Then I divide the food into tupperware, by weight so everything is equal, and of course some for my plate for dinner that day. I take that grand total and divide it by the servings I've portioned out. It takes a little time, but usually the math is super easy as long as I have that grand total and number of equal serving sizes. I eat really well for two or three days on the leftovers, because I'll purposefully make extra and I know exactly how many calories are in each.

Honestly, just stay the course and if you're still not seeing results, consider getting the scale. It really helped me. Also, if you haven't already, take pictures of yourself and measurements. If you're not seeing the number on the scale go down, you may see results in the pictures or measurements! If you want you can friend me on MFP: Liluth. Good luck! I hope you start seeing results soon. It sounds like you're working really hard at it.

u/OkieScoop · 1 pointr/loseit

I'm a big fan of PSS, and they had a big part in motivating me to actually lose weight, but I didn't want to go to a plant-based diet like them, and I'd learned by that point that calories were really all that mattered, so I didn't read Presto. I am interested to read Ray's book though, if it ever gets published. I know others have already told you, but it really doesn't matter a lot when or how you get your calories, just how many you consume per day vs. how many you burn. I lost weight in the past on Body For Life, which also involved exercising 6 days per week and eating 5-6 small meals per day. It worked, but it wasn't a sustainable lifestyle for me long term, and after successfully reaching 200 pounds, I gained weight over the next 9 years until I was 290. This time around, I wanted to lose in a way that represented a realistic way for me to eat long term. And it's worked. It sounds like you're on board with that advice. Just focus on how many calories you eat overall (MyFitnessPal is helpful with that) and how many you burn (I use a Fitbit with heart rate monitor, but www.tdeecalculator.net can give you a starting point.)

As for body fat, I recommend getting a set of cheap calipers. I use these for $6.29. It's not perfect, and it takes some time to get your technique down to something consistent. Personally, I measure myself weekly, using a 3 site formula, and I measure each site 5 times and take the average. I still am not convinced that the number I get is accurate, but it seems to reliably show improvements week over week. What I mean by that is I don't know if I'm 15% or 17%, but I am confident that I was 2% higher a month ago. As long as my skin fold measurements are dropping, I know I'm losing fat.

I've done no weight training and not a ton of cardio during my weight loss. It's been almost entirely diet. Still, I haven't lost much lean mass, and it looks like I'll hit my body fat goals at a higher weight than expected. If I decide to work out more later, I definitely won't be doing it at the intensity you are. I'm not an expert, but my (limited) experience and what I've read tell me that, at least as a beginner, you can get most of the benefit out of only a few intense workouts. When lifting, you should be working a muscle group just about to failure, then giving it several days to recover before working it again. Even on cardio, I seem to improve my performance faster if I do high intensity interval work, then allow 3-5 days for recovery. If your goal is just calorie burn, then heavy volume is probably fine for that, but I'd rather eat a little less and just work out hard 1-2x/week, with maybe some walking or light bicycling another day or two.

That's my workout approach, which doesn't mean it's best for everyone. But, whatever approach you take, consider what is sustainable for the long term. You can follow a strict, aggressive plan, and it will work, but if you just quit and go back to your "normal" diet and lifestyle when your done, you'll just put the weight back on like I did. Give some thought to what you will do after you reach your goal, and then consider if you might want to transition to that now if you find your current workout volume overwhelming.

u/OfficerNelson · 5 pointsr/loseit

No issues at all with the post, it's just that the FAQ has a lot of tips for people getting started that you should read through.

Start out with MFP (it's free) and see what happens. It is stupidly simple to use and will track everything you need. A food scale is nice (this is the recommended one, $12) but it is really only particularly needed if you are dealing with bulk food. On that note - if you want to get into "cooking", try starting out with chicken. Get some bulk chicken (unbreaded) and you can just pop it in the oven for a while. If you get raw chicken, make sure you get a meat thermometer ($10-20). Chicken gives you tons of protein and it's really difficult to screw up. I've focused on it so far and it has worked really well - I'm a picky eater, at that.

Frankly, you can get a kick start with some microwave meals and go from there. They are easier to track calories on and are stupid simple to make. Just keep in mind, microwave meals can really start to add up in price. If you're truly limited to food banks, try pasta to get some variation from the traditional canned food - just be aware that pasta is loaded with carbs and has quite a few calories, so eat in moderation. You can usually find cans of tomato sauce and dried pasta - it's no Olive Garden, but it will do. You can try adding some garlic powder and onion powder to the sauce to pump up the flavor a bit.

You should also actually calculate out your TDEE here. MFP's formula overestimates if you are truly sedentary like you say. I would recommend 1.1 for your activity level. It'll probably spit out a number a few hundred less than your MFP goal - follow that instead (although your MFP number will get you there, just slower).

One benefit to just simply using MFP is realizing how calorie-intense your foods are. I used to have a bag of chips or some cookies half of the time whenever I was at the computer and I don't want to imagine how many calories I mindlessly snacked down. When you start actually metering your snacks, the shock kicks you into gear and you really do just avoid them.

And most importantly - find something interesting to do. Anything. If it's just walking around town, great. Hell, if it's just sitting outside and people-watching, go for it. Getting your mind focused on something you enjoy will distract you from eating. I've found myself at the end of the day having not eaten anything and not even noticed because I've been so engrossed in something. On top of that, a social net is really helpful as well - if you're comfortable with the idea, find people with similar interests nearby and just visit, even if it means zoning out on their couch playing video games. If you don't want to, that's fine too - /r/loseit is more than enough of a social net.

u/orange_ollie · 3 pointsr/loseit

Hi there! Congratulations on the birth of your kiddo :)

Take a look at the links the automod posted - they're very helpful and will give you the knowledge and tools to get started. You'll want to purchase a digital food scale like this, and download a calorie tracking app like MyFitnessPal or Lose It. Weight loss is mostly about cutting calories, but being active is wonderfully helpful not only for toning your body but also in making you feel better about yourself. Walking is a fantastic activity for new moms - that was exactly how I started getting back into exercise after having my daughter last year.

For healthy recipe inspiration, take a look at SkinnyTaste, Sprouted Kitchen, and OhSheGlows. You can import the recipes directly into your calorie app. There are many, many more low calorie/healthy cooking blogs to discover and explore. Find one or two you like and have fun cooking!

One important note: If you are breastfeeding, take a look at this article and talk to your lactation consultant/doctor before you start cutting calories. Restricting calories too much can lower your supply.

Good luck with the weight loss, the exercise, and the kiddo!

u/verdouxkai · 1 pointr/loseit

Such a wonderful and sweet story, I hope you post again when it happens! I love the idea that u/TSDAdam mentioned! I think that would be perfect! Otherwise, my husband went to Jared's when he bought my ring. He sat down with their sales manager and described my personality to her. I don't know what all he said, but apparently the 2nd ring she showed him was "the one" and it really was, I love it! We've bought a few additional pieces from them since then, so as far as where to buy when you're ready, I can't recommend them enough.

As for weight loss tips, definitely recommend MyFitnessPal for logging, and purchasing a food scale. It is definitely an eye opener to how much you're eating versus how much you think you might be eating!

Best of luck! Can't wait to see you post again!

u/Rewind2013 · 1 pointr/loseit

How many calories are you eating? If you're not tracking, it would be a good idea to start because it's one of the best ways to make sure you're getting in enough food and still staying at a deficit. I think it sounds like you're eating too little.

For breakfast I'd add in something that has protein. This will help you last through the morning. Try hard boiled eggs, a cereal that has protein (cheerios has basically none), or some greek yogurt with a bit of fruit.

For lunch, pack a sandwich or a roll (low calorie tortilla, sliced lunch meat, small amount of condiments, some lettuce/tomato), a small serving of nuts (almonds or whatever kind you like), and a serving of fruit and/or veg. 1 granola bar is not enough to keep a growing male to get through the day. You should absolutely be eating lunch if at all possible. No wonder you're hungry.

Do you have a food scale? You can get cheap ones on Amazon. I use this one and it has always served me well. When I can't find a food's nutrition from a label I use the USDA Food Database. It's not perfect, but it's a decent way to get an estimate. It lists them in grams so that I can measure them with my food scale. For example, if this is the type of rice I eat, or am estimating with because I can't find my brand I would weigh out 48g of dry rice and count that as a serving. Most foods are weighed dry or uncooked. If you're not sure, count it as dry, but check the label first because some of them say whether it's dry or prepared.

To be less hungry, yes incorporate protein into your diet. Make sure that you're eating at the very least 1500 calories per day. As a growing male you should probably eat at least 1700-1800. If you give us your height/weight we can help you figure out a target calorie goal per day. Try out MFP to track your calories.

I use Under Armour shoes when working out and Salomon shoes for work (on my feet a lot). They have plenty of support and are comfortable for me. I'd look through reviews and make sure to get a shoe that is classified as distance/running.

If you don't want to stay there for an hour and a half and don't want to run, could you try a /r/bodyweightfitness routine at home?

If you do run, work up to it slowly. Start with alternating small amounts of running between larger periods of walking. Check out Couch to 5K. A lot of our members have had good success with it.

u/xhayatox · 1 pointr/loseit

>1). Sorry there's no way for anyone to know that. However on your frame 5 pounds will be more noticeable than on mine.

Thank you very much. I understand. I suppose I'll just try to lose the 5lb first and see how I look, and if I feel it's not enough, then I'll try to lose a few additional pounds to get the desired look. But I'm thinking 5lb may be sufficient like you said considering my frame.

>2). Yup. 1 pound of fat is theoretically 3500 calories. You're understanding perfectly.

3500 calories= 1lb. Great. Easy to remember!

>3). Myfitnesspal. It's an app for your phone or webpage either way you wanna go. You can keep a running log of everything. Built in bar code scanner and a massive user driven database. The most accurate way is to weigh everything you eat. Weigh the eggs, butter and milk and record.

The app you mentioned sounds good. I've actually used it in the past just to see how it works and it was very useful, so I'm going to download it tonight. Thanks for that.

>4). Whenever you want to weigh. You weigh what you weigh at any given moment. But I think the answer you're looking for is.... As soon as you wake up and pee but before you eat or drink anything. Weigh daily... Weigh weekly... Weigh whenever, but it's most helpful to do it at a controlled time and environment.

Weighing in the morning does seem like the best since you are waking up refreshed and no food is in your system so I'll try that :P.

And lastly, you mentioned weighing food. Is that an easy thing to do and does it actually give you an accurate estimate? That sounds like a very useful tool. Would this be a good scale to start with?

u/blakethegeek · 1 pointr/loseit
  1. Lifting for strength development is going to be your best bet, which means somewhere in the range of 1-5 reps, for 3-5 sets. I would recommend using a beginner's program like Starting Strength which focuses on big, compound movements. The program is three days a week, usually finished in around 45 minutes.

  2. Never stop walking, even on lifting days. If you are short on time, walk on your non-lifting days. Walking is the best thing for you and it will help you recover from lifting.

  3. Whether or not something counts as lifting sorta depends on how much you can do. If you can only do 5 sets of 5 sit-ups or 5 sets of 5 push-ups, then yes, I'd consider it "lifting" since you are in the range for strength development. If you can do more than 10 reps, you will have to add resistance. This is where lifting weights will benefit you since you can add weights in a linear manner, keeping within the necessary range.

    Good luck!
u/cupcakeartist · 1 pointr/loseit

I'm a firm believer that to get to a healthy relationship with food it's often not enough to just have a meal plan that focuses on what we should be eating and how much. It also often means working through underlying feelings and attitudes that got us to where we are in the first place.

The good news is it sounds like you're perceptive enough to realize that you can be eating healthy food but still have an unhealthy mindset around food that you need to work through. It sounds like there was some emotional stuff going on around food in your formative years and it's not unusual for that stuff to stick with you and make it hard to have a healthy relationship with food as an adult.

I had different issues I had to work through, but still issues none the less. For me the book Starting Monday has been invaluable. It gave me so much guidance for identifying issues at the root of my struggle with food and armed me with the tools to change them. I'm also a huge cheerleader for therapy. Doing hard work there has made my whole outlook on life much healthier. It sounds like you're a student so you may even have an easier time than most. I first started seeing someone in college and we had pretty great behavioral medicine/mental health services that were covered as part of my insurance plan. I'd definitely recommend seeing what is available to you.

u/GoAwayWay · 1 pointr/loseit

My food scale was about $12 or so on Amazon. I originally got it for home brewing and now it serves double duty. And definitely take measurements...sometimes when the scale isn't moving, or the number unexpectedly goes up, the measuring tape is a huge sanity saver.


Eating clean is awesome and a huge part of the battle for a lot of people, but ultimately, calories still matter. I love cooking too, and it's definitely been fun to get creative. I've found that if I do the bulk of my cooking on two nights per week, it makes lunches really easy. I can weigh and portion things out into containers and get it over and done with.


Measuring things, just like putting them into MFP, might take an extra minute or two each day, but I'm nearly 3 months in and it's just habit now.

u/WritewayHome · 2 pointsr/loseit

You know what's funny is we both started at the same exact weight, even though you are 5 inches taller than me.

I can tell you I've had a lot of success on my journey so far(10 pounds in 1 month), much better than the 16 years I've struggled with weight. Here is everything I've learned and I really think this can help you make quick gains while keeping your muscle mass :)

Here is how you should start out:

  1. Use Myfitnesspal https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.myfitnesspal.android&hl=en . Myfitnesspal has been a complete lifesaver for me. It shows me what foods are really breaking up my diet and what I can eat in a manageable way. An example is I can still eat 4 servings of chips, and put them into the app. But I don't touch anywhere near as much chocolate as I used to. I didn't realize how powerful a few small high calorie chocolate pieces were. I also changed the bread I eat because it was extremely high calorie. You'll find it will give you a LOT of insights into your diet. Weight loss really is 90% diet if you want to be honest.
  2. Set the app to lose 1 pound per week and it will give you a very generous calorie amount. After a month, if you really want to shed the pounds off, you can do what I did and have it burn 1.5 pounds a week.
  3. Get a food scale so you can know your exact proportions. Here is an example of one: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005OSUIYG/
  4. Get some sort of exercise in. At the very least try walking 2 days a week for 30 minutes. It's VERY very addictive. Schedule the time in EVERY week, same days. If you have a friend or a significant other, walk with them. The walk will spur you on and help you do higher levels of exercise as you continue on your journey.
  5. You're still young so don't be upset with yourself. If you fix your weight by 21, you've still beaten me who will be potentially 28 or higher, so chin up :)

    Also ask me any questions you might have, and I'll give you whatever advice I know :)

    Goodluck Bobo!

u/Excuses__excuses · 1 pointr/loseit

Kann45's advice is pretty solid so in addition:

From what it looks like, your carb intake is high relative to your protein and fat. I struggle to keep them all in check as well. I suggest going to the supermarket and staying away from anything pre-made. Buy ingredients rather than meals; this way, you get to control how much salt/fat is in your food. MFP has a "My Recipe" section that will break down calories per serving as long as you punch in ingredients. I know we all have to eat out sometimes, but if you bagged a lunch, you wouldn't be at the mercy of all the extra crap a company mashes into their food.

Try to bag a lunch, bring deli meats and cheese, but not bread. You'll be able to get a lot more meat in and you'll be satisfied longer.

To help you stay on track with MFP, buy a digital food scale. Nothing crazy, but enough to measure what exactly, for example, does 300 grams of cherries looks like?

I always have a bit of no-cal sweetener in my bag or at my desk incase of a craving, but if you need the cola taste, Coke Zero is better than the regular stuff.

Up your water consumption to about 8 cups a day. I don't know what you do from day to day, but a big glass of ice water on hand helps me say no to all the snacky foods I might eat in place of it. I'm really happy that you're taking these steps to get healthier. Any more questions, ask away!

u/AnthonyAstige · 1 pointr/loseit

Weightlifting is a great safe way to get exercise, especially to set good foundations. [Starting Strength] (http://www.amazon.com/Starting-Strength-3rd-Mark-Rippetoe/dp/0982522738), as the title implies, is a good book to start with. It can be a bit technical, but it's nice to learn how your body works so you can make it stronger and lessen the probability of getting injured.

It can take a while for the positive physiologic / psycological effects of exercise to occur I think. For me it's when I'm no longer concentrating on what I'm learning and just lose myself in it. Once I get in the groove of things it's a nice way to escape the world and it acts as a stress relieve.

As I understand you don't have to avoid all salts, and the amount that people need vary greatly. The main thing I think is if there are indicators it's hurting you, like high blood pressure. If you're eating unpackaged foods you won't get much salt and can add some. However many preserved foods (canned, frozen, etc) already come with enough salt nutritionally.

You can also keep your cholesterol low without being vegan. If you have other reasons it's fine to be vegan, just a bit more restricting in food choices. Lean meats like fish and chicken breast are fine. Salmon has "good fat". Olive oil isn't bad for you and with some salt may get a flavor that you like back. It will have calories to watch our for, but it's pretty flavorful and could help as you get towards maintenance level calories.

u/snwborder52 · 3 pointsr/loseit

Read Starting Strength. It will teach you everything you need to know.

Don't be afraid of barbells! I know they can be intimidating, but they are the best exercises you can do. The book's program is 5 exercises: Squat, Bench Press, Overhead Press, Deadlift, Power Clean. It will show you how to do them, the science behind it, how to fix problem areas, and a bunch of other info. Even if you are just starting out, just doing the bar is great! (And if you can't do the bar, the book will show you how to get to that point).

To build strength effectively, you need to be lifting 3 days a week. You don't need to do cardio at all, though thats an extra 1,000kcal+ a week you could be burning by doing it on your off days.

Overall, strength training > cardio for weight loss. When you lift you gain muscle, thus increasing your BMR so you will lose weight faster. Cardio, on the other hand, only burns calories and doesn't permanently increase your BMR. Weight lifting will help you lose weight and keep it off, cardio will only help you lose weight.

One great thing about lifting for the overweight is that you can rest as much as you want. Need to take a 5 minute break in between each set? Perfectly fine! Hell I almost always do when I do Power Cleans or Deadlifts (man those things tire you out). You just have to make sure you go all out on each exercise.

u/Elafacwen · 3 pointsr/loseit

Hello! I, too, am a female in my early 20's, have always been a fat kid, and came from a family who didn't give a shit about fitness and food. My heaviest weight was over 270lbs, and I have lost a total of 62 pounds since October by simply counting calories. That's all that is really too it.

  1. Join MyFitnessPal It is free and wonderful, and add me as a friend! My Reddit name is the same as my username.

  2. Buy a food scale on Amazon. This is the one I use.

  3. Dig out your measuring cups and spoons.

  4. Start out by MEASURING EVERYTHING you would normally eat using said food scale and measuring spoons. LOG EVERYTHING in MyFitnessPal. This will give you an idea of how many calories you are consuming with your typical food choices and serving size.

  5. Experience second reality check.

  6. Change.

    Start slow, make gradual changes, and stick with it. Once you have a set calorie goal (myfitnesspal will help you with that) you will realize that your current food choices are no longer keeping you satiated and under your calorie goal, and you will soon learn that healthy foods will keep you going longer and keep you under your calorie limit. And allow yourself one cheat day a week!

    Expect hunger pains and cravings for the first few weeks as you start to settle into your new, healthy routine. Once you get actual good food into your system and cut out all the junk, these cravings will diminish. However, be aware that once you eat 'junk food', you will find yourself craving it for a few days afterwards.


    A few awesome things:

    Water-Drink a lot. Coffee (watch the cream serving size and sugar!) helps control hunger when you are starting to shrink your stomach.

    Veggies-Steamed or raw, have them EVERYDAY.

    Non-Processed foods-learn to cook!

    Eggs-Awesome source of protein to keep you going.

    Lean Cuisine Dinners-With a steamed veggie on the side, perfect for a busy or lazy day.

    Don't buy trigger foods-Those bag of chips look good? How about all of those cookie choices? DON'T BUY THEM. If it isn't in the house, you are not going to cheat or binge on it.


    FIND WHAT WORKS FOR YOU! Experiment, change things up. What works for one person won't always fit the next person.
u/sheath2 · 1 pointr/loseit

I'm not an expert on the bulk/cut cycle, but I don't think it's impossible, just easier to do separately. I've lost weight VERY slowly, but I know I've built muscle/strength in my shoulders and arms over the past 6 months. Whether this is the same thing or not, I don't know.

These are calipers. They measure bodyfat percentages.

Here were the directions I was given to use them: (instructions courtesy of /u/theycallhimhellcat )

Measure on the right side of the body:
measure the skin between the nipple and the arm pit (diagonal)
measure the skin by pinching belly button and to one side (horizontal)
measure the skin in the middle of my thigh (vertically)

To measure, you just grab skin with your right hand and pinch, place the caliper about 1/2 inch away from your pinch, and close it till it pops into place. Add up the 3 measurements and plug it in to a calculator and you get your BF%.


I just read your posts below about wanting to gain muscle without actually bulking heavily. With your scoliosis, I think the yoga would help a lot because it focuses on spinal strength and stability. If you get into lifting, the advice I was given for that is lighter weights, more repetitions. You build strength and definition, but not bulk.

u/spurplebirdie · 4 pointsr/loseit

I second this. You need to develop healthy habits so that your new lifestyle becomes effortless. I recommend reading the Power of Habit for tips on how to develop habits.

Another thing is that you need to become a foodie. What I mean by that is that you need to learn to LOVE food. But real food. Not highly processed and flavourless crap. If you want to eat dessert- fabulous! But it better be good. No stale doughnuts or snack foods with salt/sugar and fat optimized so precisely that it's basically crack. When you stop eating it, you stop craving it. Develop your tastes. Eat good food. It's much easier to eat a normal serving size when the product isn't designed to trick your brain into consuming as much as possible.

Good luck!

u/coldize · 1 pointr/loseit

Read everything you can about http://stronglifts.com/5x5/

There is an incredible phone app that goes along with this program.

If you want to get real serious and motivated, go buy the book that it is based off of: Starting Strength

The only equipment you'll need access to is a barbell and plates, a squat rack, and a flat bench.

> What are some things I should or shouldnt do right away?

  • First thing you should do right away is get your diet in check before worrying about your exercise. It sounds to me like you are hoping that exercise will be your primary tool for weight loss. You will likely be sorely disappointed if that is the case. Go get a food scale, a bathroom scale, download MFP, and learn how to calculate and track your calories. This should be your absolute priority.
  • In the gym, do NOT go too hard. You haven't lifted in a while, prepare to lift a very meager amount of weight for weeks, looking foolish and feeble the whole time. Do it right, don't copy other people. I started my squats at 90lbs and went up by only 10 every time until it started to feel slightly heavy, then I went up by 5.
  • DO start weightlifting now. It seriously feels so good and like I said above, you are going to start at very light weight. People like to put it off for some reason. Don't. Just get started with really light weight and start building. It's nice to have this "grace period" where you don't have to worry too much about lifting heavy and can focus instead on being comfortable in the gym, using the equipment, if certain movements hurt, and if you need help with form.

  • DO Ask people for help and advice. After a couple weeks with 5x5, if your gym has trainers, I'd suggest getting a single trainer session and having them walk you through all 5 of your big lifts. Make sure you know the correct form and start doing it with weights still fairly light.

  • Do NOT force yourself to do things that you don't like. But don't give up on something instantly, either. If you hate 5x5, then explore other options. There's a ton of great beginner plans out there. Whatever you do, just follow the program to the letter. If it tells you to do a 50% deload, then do it. You said you hate cardio but you used to be a swimmer. So maybe what you meant is that you hate running and ellipticals. Swimming is still cardio, and an excellent form as well. Maybe you'd enjoy biking outside? It's one of my favorite things to do in the summer. Or hiking! There's a lot of options. Explore.

  • DO Educate yourself. Make sure you have realistic goals for what you want to achieve. An absurd amount of men and women think they can lose weight and build muscle simultaneously. This is wrong....but only in most circumstances. If you have an expectation, validate it. Don't rely on baseless assumptions.

    Some helpful starting information would be the sidebar here in /r/loseit, which is focused more on losing weight primarily through diet and the sidebar over at /r/fitness, which is focused more on what you might be doing in a gym and why.
u/Ms_Andry · 3 pointsr/loseit

Just because you don't know your weight doesn't mean it isn't real. I avoided scales for a long time because I knew I was gaining weight and I just didn't want to deal with it. All that did was delay my decision to finally to start making positive changes. I'd recommend getting a scale and getting together the courage to weigh yourself -- and take some pictures for reference as well!

I find that weighing myself every day helps me stay accountable and helps me track my progress. If the day-to-day fluctuations (which are definitely real) stress you out, you can do weekly weigh-ins or use a smoothing app like HappyScale or Libra.

If you're looking for a cheap scale, there are plenty of options around the $20 mark. I have this scale and it works pretty well: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001KXZ808/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1

u/notpandora · 2 pointsr/loseit

Easiest question first: Yes it's just for added protein. Everyone's got different macronutrition goals, mine includes A LOT of protein for muscle gainz. This may or may not apply to everyone. I use protein powder in a number of ways, the main ones being 1. Protein shakes when I don't feel like eating food but need to 2. Adding to baked goods and stuff like pancakes so I don't feel guilty about eating pancakes. 3. Adding to Greek yogurt so I don't have to drink a protein shake.

My recipe for shakes is typically:

2 scoops of powder
8oz flavored soy or almond milk (chocolate or vanilla)
8oz of unsweetened soy or almond milk (vanilla)

I do the half and half because I found that if I try to do 16oz of the regular sweetened kind, it's like drinking pudding mix. Gag. You could also do water instead of the unsweetened to make it thinner. I don't do all water though because that's just as bad as the pudding blend.

Harder questions: It tastes like whatever they want it to taste like. I used to get the kind you can find at the grocery store or on Amazon, mainly Myoplex or Optimum Nutrition. ON is generally considered a good buy, Myoplex is kind of meh, I just got it in bulk once because I could. They come in different flavors based on the brand, ON has lots of flavor choices. The problem with these is that they pretty much universally contain artificial sweeteners which everyone has different opinions on.

Personally, I don't care for them, I'd rather add sweetness via whatever I'm adding the protein to. I found http://www.truenutrition.com/ which allows you to create custom protein blends, including the options for different or no sweeteners, and different or no flavors. I got the unsweetened unflavored Team Skip blend from the Formulas/Protein Formulas tab. Just because I'm not smart enough to make my own blend. It does add a little texture to the yogurt but I like it, adding the agave smooths it back out too.

Since this is /r/loseit, it depends on the individual's needs as to whether this is something worth adding to the diet - the extra protein can add satiety and help curb hunger/cravings as well. I don't really have that problem since I usually struggle to eat everything I'm supposed to eat (like, a crapton of eggs and plain chicken and broccoli.)

Oh snap i just had a really good idea, tomorrow i'm going to try to add protein to my breakfast oatmeal. Thanks for sparking that one! I usually make my oatmeal with almond milk as well, this will make it even better and I can use up my old Myoplex crap.

u/tr1ppn · 2 pointsr/loseit

MFP also has a website, in addition to the app. I like the app for the pie graph of what I ate today, the site for, well, everything else. For each their own.

I had an ankle surgery, so I TOTALLY get "hurts to run". Can you walk at least? If so, go with that. The body is an amazing thing. My ankle was a total mess, but the more I moved it and worked the muscles in the area to make up for the lack of ligament, it wasn't so bad. Might be something to try once you've taken off some weight.

I don't have a kitchen scale right now because poor, but I found this one on Amazon and put it in my wishlist. It's $25 and has a 5* review.

Swimming is an EXCELLENT exercise to do since it works everything. I am an EXTREMELY poor swimmer (childhood trauma), but I know plenty of people who were in the best shape of their lives because of it.

If you're looking for recipes, check out /r/fitmeals. I've found some pretty tasty things there. Otherwise just poke around on the google, or recipe websites. They usually have good things listed. Most spices/seasonings have no-low calories, so flavoring isn't an issue. The cooking method can be, though.

It sounds to me like you're taking a serious look at yourself and want to change. This is WONDERFUL. There's such a huge mental portion of losing weight that being in the wrong mindset can ruin everything.

Take it one step at a time. Today's lunch was 700 calories. Tomorrow you can aim for 350. Drink a lot of water. It will help you feel full/reduce cravings.

It's going to be REALLY tough for the first few days/weeks. It's well worth it though. I'm about a month in of being serious about my weight, and it's just second nature at this point.

Check out the MFP friends thread for some support, and feel free to message me here or on MFP (I'm tr1ppn_ because some jerk stole my regular username).

u/yeti5000 · 3 pointsr/loseit

What are your goals? What do you hope to accomplish?

Lifting? Cardio? Weight loss?

Some easy tips (which I can help clarify) are:

Do most of your lifting with free-weights and a few cables. Unless you have a pre-existing condition preventing use of free-weights such as barbells or dumbells do NOT build a workout routine around machines or circuit training.

Practice form first. Form is everything. Start with an empty barbell or bodyweight only. Consider splitting the cost of a PT session between you two, but make sure to find a PT that also doesn't advocate training with machines.

Make sure you get your nutrition and out-of-gym habits in good form; if you don't eat right and rest correctly you might as well not even go to the gym for all the time you're wasting.

Find someone experienced in weight-training to help you put together a workout routine, and make sure it focuses largely on compound exercises. (I can help if you'd like; I am experienced in strength-training but carry no certifications, however my advice is free!)

Buy this book: http://www.amazon.com/Starting-Strength-Basic-Barbell-Training/dp/0982522738

It is now your new bible.

Focus on squats, deadlifts, powercleans, benchpress and other large muscle group compound exercises.

I'll add more as it comes to me.

u/Denz3r · 1 pointr/loseit

Jefit is a really nice site that has a lot of the exercises displayed as well as user generated routines. They also have a handy smartphone app you can use to show your routine and track logs of weight lifting. See what other people are doing in their routines (which other people rate as well) and you can get a good idea.

I would check around first at the other link posted on Men's health, you can also try T-nation and bodybuilding.com for some other areas for possibilities

/r/fitness also might have some suggestions on their board for putting together a routine, check the FAQ. If you want to get you routine critique (meaning you make your own and want to see if its good) make sure to put some time and effort before putting it up on some of these sites. Since so many people ask the same question, you might get a lot of flack if you just put a slapdash routine together.

EDIT: A good starting point is a book and website called " Starting Strength " It will help you define core exercises and seek to learn good form. its a great jumping off point and then you can add supplementary exercises as well once you are along.

u/Zarenadra · 2 pointsr/loseit

First, congrats on your weight loss! 25lbs is awesome!

The first several pounds fall off quickly and then it slows down a good bit. 2lbs a week is great!

Out of curiosity, are you using a food scale? When I started out, I was guessing and I did a terrible job at it. I was eating 300+ calories more than I was logging just because I was guessing wrong. I've had this for going on 2 years. Cheap and works great. :)

But really, 2lbs is an awesome pace.

u/krhsg · 2 pointsr/loseit

For a food scale... get one that can weight in different units. I bought this one because it was inexpensive, and there are only two buttons to know. The battery has lasted a long time. Just pick one... as long as it works reliably, it will be your best friend! I took mine with me when I stayed at my mom's for a few days. She laughed, but I kept my portions consistent and knew what I was eating!

My mom thinks that calorie counting is too hard, and she's constantly finding "the latest research" which says if you do this one easy trick it'll unlock weight loss. She is so supportive of me, but figuring out how to smile and thank her for the advice, but stick to counting calories (which works when I eat healthy and works when I eat unhealthy, and the difference is how I feel) because it's literally the only thing that's worked for me.

Seriously, I've done WW (and I know it works for a lot of people, but it just didn't for me... I could never stick with it), and I've done weight loss camps (Pritikin was a lovely vacation, but far too restrictive to be sustainable on the "outside") and I've tried just making healthy choices without counting calories (fell apart when I slipped up and made an unhealthy choice, and then used that as justification for the next and the one after that). What all of these have in common is that I achieved success, and would generally lose 30-40 lbs, and then give up. Counting calories is easy once you really get into a groove, and there's nothing gimmicky to trip you up.

I hope to see you making a SV post in the future! I'll be cheering for you.

u/creatures · 9 pointsr/loseit

> I don't know where to start! What do I eat? How do I exercise?? What is a normal routine like? What do you guys do?

What? I do what's in the FAQ. You should too.

> I am very good at following instructions. I just need some damn instructions! Please and thank you.

Okay. Follow my instructions:


  1. Read this section on diet from the r/Fitness FAQ.
    • You weigh 164 pounds, so aim for 164g of protein daily. You might want to buy a thing of this if you're having trouble getting all your protein from meat.
    • Your BMR is 1780 (I'm disregarding your activity rate). Start with that for one week. Week two and onwards, eat 1500 calories.
  2. Find a low carb diet.
    • Keto is really easy to follow, the #1 rule is don't eat any carbs. It's not a magical weight loss solution, it just takes a lot of thinking out of weight loss.
  3. Read the section on exercise and the section on weight loss.
  4. You're going to be doing Starting Strength. Buy the book (hold out on your next video game purchase) and a gym membership (a legit gym, not planet fitness).
    • You follow the plan exactly as it is laid out. You do not modify the plan.
    • You workout three times a week -- Monday, Wednesday, Friday or Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday.
    • Check out the Starting Strength wiki.
    • If you have to start with the bar, you start with the bar.
    • Do not use a smith machine past the first week. You do squats in the squat rack. You bench like this.
    • Form is important.
    • Form is important.
  5. Have a scoop of whey mixed in one glass of milk 0-30 minutes before you work out.
  6. Keep track of calories. Find something to do it for you, like MyFitnessPal or DailyPlate. If something isn't on there, either you enter it or you find the closest match.
  7. Read the FAQ (all of it) every weekend.
  8. Come back in a month or two and ask if you're doing it right.
u/tracy_tracy · 3 pointsr/loseit

2nd this. I've had this one: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0032TNPOE/ref=cm_sw_su_dp for about 8 months & I love it. My parents bought one too.

I initially thought the massive # of reviews was a bit weird (I think there were exactly 1200 when I bought mine), but they actively encourage customers to do an Amazon review. In fact, there was a "Please Review!" note in the box when I got mine, and I did (which is rare for me) because it is a great scale for a really reasonable price.

u/HermionesBook · 2 pointsr/loseit

not a dumb question at all, i didn't even know it was a thing until i found this sub. this is a food scale: https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00V5IM5PY/ref=sxts_sxwds-tsp_3?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_p=3007296082&pd_rd_wg=P0Kcd&pf_rd_r=RRT7AV9M9FZ0XNRAYK9X&pf_rd_s=desktop-sx-top-slot&pf_rd_t=301&pd_rd_i=B00V5IM5PY&pd_rd_w=x2s1w&pf_rd_i=food+scale&pd_rd_r=ARSH36Z39Z90ASMVGQD0&ie=UTF8&qid=1500429657&sr=3

you use it to measure your food so that you can input it into MFP to count calories. lets say the packaging says 1 serving size of strawberries is 30 calories and next to that it says (100g). you put a bowl on the food scale, press a "TARE" function which takes away the weight of the bowl, and you put enough strawberries on the scale so that it reaches 100g. you just got the serving size. we recommend weighing raw meat as well, like raw chicken, before cooking it. the packaging may say 4oz is 140 calories, but when you weigh one of the chicken breasts the actual chicken breast ends up being actually 8oz so you're eating double and probably ruining your deficit. cooked chicken also weighs differently than raw chicken so it can change the calorie count if you're weighing the cooked chicken and not using the right MFP entries for it.

it's helpful because of how accurate it is. a lot of people weigh with measuring cups and spoons. these are wildly inaccurate because they're all made differently. a lot of people that come here with "why am i not losing weight?" posts usually aren't using a food scale. it takes a lot of the guessing work out of counting calories.

hopefully that helps. if you have any more questions feel free to ask! :) /r/loseit is really big on using food scales. i bought mine just to measure cheese every now and then and now i use it for everything that i eat.

u/zeppelinfromled · 4 pointsr/loseit

It's true that weight doesn't matter on its own. It's just a tool that we use to track fat loss. But depending on how quickly you're losing weight, it would be very difficult to put on muscle at the same rate, especially from cardio, as opposed to weight training. Muscle growth caps out around a couple pounds per month for most people. The world's strongest man may be around 400 lbs, but he can also deadlift over 1,000 pounds. It's just important to keep some perspective on that, because none of us are on his level.

It sounds like the psoriasis could play a role in the fat percent reading. You could try to use one of the impedance testers that goes through your hands (like this one). But I think the bigger factor is that the impedance fat percent testing just isn't that accurate to begin with. It can be influenced by all kinds of thing. When I test mine at night versus the following morning, it can easily differ by 4 or 5%. So I don't really trust it. The calipers are a good alternative, as long as you're careful to use them correctly, and the same each time.

I've been lifting heavily for some time now (while eating on a deficit), and muscle growth has certainly happened, but not quickly enough to stop weight loss. I find it's a lot harder to track getting healthy without being able to put some numbers to it. To each his own, though.

u/Sapphi_ · 2 pointsr/loseit

The first one I bought was this one from Amazon because I saw it recommended multiple times on here but I didn't like it much; it's cheaply made and the buttons are annoying. Then I bought this one, also from Amazon and I'm much happier with it. It's much slimmer, which makes storage easier and the weighing surface is larger so my food isn't falling off the edges like it was with the other one. Also, it looks sexy :-D

u/8-BitBaker · 1 pointr/loseit

You can get a food scale and a real scale online fairly cheap, so hopefully you won't have to save up too long! Amazon has them for as low as $8 with good reviews as well as actual scales for around $18. If you buy a 'slightly' more expensive scale, that would push the order to $25, which would qualify it for free shipping.

I hope this helps (and might help with saving)! A food scale is definitely the most important thing, but having an accurate scale can be really good for morale as well. I definitely think this journey would be much harder if I couldn't weigh myself at least once a week.

u/caffeinated_panda · 1 pointr/loseit

Don't get discouraged, you're doing great! You've lost an average of over a pound a week, which is awesome. :) That said, here are two things you may want to check on:

  1. Your TDEE number is just an estimate based on what is typical for people of your age, height, and weight. It may be inaccurate (high) if you have a higher percentage of body fat than the calculator assumes, or if your metabolism just happens to be a little on the slower side. To get a more accurate number, you can either pay to have your body composition analyzed, or just estimate and judge by trial and error.

  2. If you don't have a food scale, you may be eating more calories than you think you are. Sometimes the serving sizes on packages are way off (a slice of cheese or a cup of cereal weighs more than what the package says it does), and you can end up eating more calories than you logged. You can get a good scale really cheaply. I own this one.

    Remember that a safe rate of loss is generally in the 1-2 lbs. a week range, so it sounds like you're exactly where you should be. Keep up the good work!
u/fatfuckery · 2 pointsr/loseit

First things first: congrats on the weight loss, man!

Now: you don't need equipment to exercise. Do something like Convict Conditioning or some other bodyweight program for your resistance training, and run laps around your house at night or get some exercise DVDs or something for your cardio.

The important thing: Don't neglect the strength component of your workout. People trying to lose weight seem to always focus on cardio and then get demotivated when they don't lose weight, or get super hungry, or look decrepit and emaciated, or whatever. I understand the hesitation about being overweight and exercising in public, believe me, but I really urge you to rethink things and consider getting a gym membership. For less that the $200 you want to spend on a clothes rack/treadmill, you can pay for a copy of Starting Strength and a one year membership at Gold's when they have their $9.99/month sale. They have all the cardio and strength training equipment you'll need and they have some 24-hour locations so you can go after midnight, when there's no one there.

Good luck and continued success!

u/video-girl · 1 pointr/loseit

I buy PB2 which is like peanut butter but with like 90% less fat (its powdered). You mix it with water and it actually tastes a lot like peanut butter, or i use it in protein shakes if i want a peanut butter taste. I like it quite a bit, but it is kind of expensive. Or Id say just to have some peanut butter! Buy the stuff that doesnt have a lot of added salt or sugar, and only have the recommended serving size (usually 2 tablespoons). Peanut butter is fine in moderation just makes sure you dont go over board.





PB2:http://www.amazon.com/PB2-Powdered-Peanut-Butter-6-5/dp/B002GJ9JWS

u/SideAccountForMeeeee · 2 pointsr/loseit

Oh yes, I did this about 7 months ago. I took control of my own habits. My weight plateaued (sometimes increased) for about 8 weeks while I was doing this. But then I noticed it became easier to say, "No I don't want to eat that," because I was able to control my choices better. Very slowly and gradually I noticed I started to change my choices. Veryyyyy slowly. But it happened.

Took 7 months to fully make that change and start seeing results. Today I am only 15lbs away from my goal, so I am very close to where I want to be! I'm happy with where I am. Doc says I'm very healthy and on track.

My approach came from a different angle. It wasn't "weight loss" persay, it was instead all focused on "my habits". This book talks about the science of how your brain creates and uses habits. Educating myself on this helped me a lot.

u/RedditDoombot · 3 pointsr/loseit

I have that one as well. It's VERY accurate. I get the same weight ever time I step on it within a short time period.

A reviewer at Amazon (and myself) wondered if it was just keeping the old weight in memory. I had someone else step on it and then I tried it again. Again, same weight.

The review at amazon had a similar result.

My old scale was a Taylor scale and it would jump 1 pound in either direction (sometimes two).

It's nice to have a scale that just works. Also you can just step on it without having to tap it before hand like with other scales. Not a big deal but it's nice.

Get it. =)

It's only $28.95 if you're a Yank.

EatSmart Precision Digital Bathroom Scale

Edit: I also got a tape measure with it. Not sure if that's good everywhere but I only got it about one month ago. I presume they are still including tape measures.

u/phidda · 2 pointsr/loseit

If you think you are an idiot when it comes to lifting weight, buy or download starting strength. http://www.amazon.com/Starting-Strength-3rd-Mark-Rippetoe/dp/0982522738/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1334523317&sr=8-1 It keeps it simple and straightforward -- no need to guess what muscle you are going to "isolate" on a workout. Great for beginners.

Read it, download the logbook calculator (http://startingstrength.wikia.com/wiki/Tools_and_Downloads) and join a gym that has a squat rack (a real one, not a machine). If you start now, you will see some real results by July (bathing suit time). Seriously. Start now.

I thought the same thing as you. I didn't play football in HS, and never took a weight training class. Weightlifting is for meatheads, right? Well, I realized that I was way too weak for where I wanted to be and that I could use a little meatheadishness. I tried bodyweight lifthing but frankly, I was so weak that I wasn't seeing the gains.

So I bought Starting Strength, read it, downloaded the workout tracking spreadsheet and started in January. Very happy with my decision because as my fat melts, I am starting to see muscles replace it, which is very satisfying.

u/Beef_Enchilada · 2 pointsr/loseit

If I were you, I wouldn't buy a fitness tracker yet. Buy a scale (/u/jslowick recommended a good one) and buy a food scale. Focus completely on your diet. Once you have your diet figured out, and you've made some progress, then get yourself a fitness tracker as a reward (for example after losing 25 pounds). This will help you focus on the most important thing (diet), and you'll get a reward for doing so.

u/mrsmissms · 3 pointsr/loseit

I've lost 50 lbs in 3 months (still have at least another 50 to go), and this subreddit did help. Everyone here has such fantastic advice, I'll just tell you what I am doing since it's surprisingly very simple. I'm sure it's been said but just wanted to throw my two cents in.

  • download My Fitness Pal. Log everything you eat, even the bites and licks of things. Use measuring cups and spoons and a food scale like this cheap one from amazon. Look at the side of the box of whatever your eating and try to eat the suggested serving size. Portion control, which was my biggest downfall before I started measuring! And literally log everything, I was making my children peanut butter sandwiches and licked the leftovers off the knife and decided to log it ... 70 calories! Anything that you put in your mouth, log. Follow the calories Fitness Pal gives you to eat. Don't go hardcore and eat 1600 calories only (as a male, never eat less than 1600 even when you hit your goal weight - which you will!!) Allow yourself a cheat meal once a week. Notice how I said cheat meal, not day. This was my downfall in the beginning, I would have a day of high calories then spend 3 days getting back on track, which ended up slowing my overall loss. With this said, if you are on track but get a bag of chips from the gas station and eat it, your day isn't ruined. Just start eating good immediately. Don't let one item of food dictate that your day is "ruined".

  • only liquids I drink are water and milk. This was hard, I was a Pepsi freak. But when you are counting calories, all those wasted calories on Pepsi that I could of had food instead made it easier to just drink water. Try to drink 2L a day. It's hard, but soon it gets easier. Buy a big water bottle and visually seeing the water get down helps. Set goals for your water consumption like by noon to have half the bottle empty.

  • for exercise, start slow. Walk down the block and back. Then make it 2 blocks. Then 3. Increase gradually over many weeks. You need to take care of your joints. Lots of people suggest swimming but if you're not comfortable with a pool, just walk the block. You don't need to be a gym rat. I do not go to the gym. I just go for half an hour walks. I found buying a FitBit really helped me get to 10,000 steps a day. In the beginning it was so surprising to see how I was hardly getting any steps! It's almost like a game to hit the 10k steps. I still have many days I don't, but now I am getting closer!

    Just remember this is a 1lbs journey at a time. I would get discouraged easily because it felt like the finish line was so far away. But as the weeks pass, it gets easier and easier and the lbs loss add up and before you know it you will have lost a substantial amount of weight! You CAN do this, and you will!
u/aeb1022 · 1 pointr/loseit

The LoseIt forums on the website are really nice and helpful if you have any questions specific to LoseIt. We also have a LoseIt community group for Redditors.

Tracking calories involves some effort on your part, the apps don't do it for you- but it's well worth it! Don't get discouraged. You'll need a food scale for best results. Godspeed!

u/lunarflorist · 3 pointsr/loseit

I second the EatSmart Scale but I got a slightly different one. Great scale, wide base, and excellent customer service.

Also, it's slim enough that my bathroom door opens overtop of it so I have more flexibility in where I place it. High weight limit, too!

u/SegataSanshiro · 1 pointr/loseit

I actually didn't notice that the price had gone up from the $50ish that I spent. It's a particularly great scale for a ton of reasons, but now that I see the price I'd probably consider the test kitchen's best value pick for $11(though I don't have personal experience with it), because I'm not sure I'd say the scale I have is $90 worth of better, just $40 worth. I trusted this recommendation when I was buying a scale for baking, long before I decided to start losing weight, and happening to have a great food scale was just a boon.

It looks like my scale is available for the price I paid at other retailers, though, Amazon is just charging more than they should and I neglected to look at the price. Sorry! :(

u/aissela · 1 pointr/loseit

This is the scale I use. I find it is accurate. If I step on holding a 1-lb dumbell, it detects that difference. However, it is n't "easily hidden." It is a square, glass and silver-colored scale, that works best when kept in one place, on hard, stable, even flooring.

There are travel sizes scales that you can look into, which are "miniature" and easily hidden. Be sure to read the reviews before you invest in one.

If you tend to obsess over scales, as you've said, you'll be better off weighing less often, or using a trend-setting app like "HappyScale" that will calculate your fluctuations into a general trend, so that you don't go crazy over the day-to-day changes.

If weighing yourself truly stresses you out, sets the mood for your day, or keeps you in a negative mental state, please seek the help of a mental health professional.

u/FuriousKitten · 1 pointr/loseit

Don't beat yourself up too much! I think what has happened is that you've fallen into a set of not-so-great habits.


Borrowing liberally from Power of Habit:


Habits are composed of three parts: Trigger >> Action >> Reward

For example:

  • Your eye catches the bag of snacks on my desk >> Eat them >> Yum~

  • You put your dinner plate in the sink >> Eat a piece of chocolate >> Yum~

  • You're feeling super stressed >> Eat a bag of chips >> Forget about stress for a few min

    When the trigger happens, it kicks off an automatic sequence of actions that can have you feeling like "Do I even have control over myself?"


    The best way to change habits is to remove the triggers (don't keep snacks on your desk) or, if you can't do that, link the trigger to a new action that is just as rewarding as the old one (have a piece of fruit or some Halo Top instead of chocolate after dinner). Changing habits isn't about beating yourself up and restricting yourself. It's about finding new, more healthy ways of satisfying your needs. (It's okay to have needs!)


    So I'd suggest:

  1. Think about what your triggers are throughout the day. When you eat something unhealthy -- what prompted it?

  2. Come up with a plan for each of those triggers. It can involve removing the trigger, creating a new behavior, or pre-planning so that you've already made the decision for that moment.

  3. Just go one habit at a time! No need to do it all at once. In fact, focusing on establishing just one new habit can have a snowball effect and make it easier to change all the others.
u/wartornhero · 2 pointsr/loseit

I recently stalled out, I mean stopped losing according to the scale completely. It hasn't moved in 4-5 weeks. Eventually I stopped looking at the scale and now I don't weigh myself every day like I used to. I am seeing much more progress in strength gains and physical NSVs such as clothes fitting better and more muscle definition. If you want to take fat% measurements I wouldn't suggest using a scale but rather either calipers as they are the most accurate but also the most work or if you have just a regular scale and know how much you weigh then you can do a handheld electrical impedance unit such as this one. The electrical ones wont be nearly as accurate as the calipers but are more work because you will need to do more math and maybe have someone help take measurements.

As for preventing losing muscle mass is to work out more and specifically focus on doing more resistance and strength training. Who knows maybe working out more will help to stimulate your appetite more.

u/kmc_v3 · 1 pointr/loseit

I have this one. At $11 it's a great deal. I can't speak to the accuracy or precision but it's definitely good enough. All I care about is that the numbers go down over time!

u/megannne · 2 pointsr/loseit

I don't think 8 months is crazy at all! If you really make every effort to commit yourself to loosing weight for 8 months, I think you'll be more motivated to keep going than ever by the time you're 4 months in.

I use myfitnesspal along with a lot of others on this sub and it's a great tool, as long as you are using it daily and honestly. I would also suggest buying a food scale (like this one: https://www.amazon.com/Ozeri-Digital-Multifunction-Kitchen-Elegant/dp/B004164SRA/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1466449321&sr=8-3&keywords=food+scale) so that you accurately track what you are eating. I learned I had been way over portioning a lot of foods. I would also to be sure to read the sidebar to understand what your TDEE is and what your daily calroie goal should be.


And again, making the effort is the absolute hardest part so there is no more 5 days of tracking and then "forgetting it". If you want this, you can do it. If you ever have any other questions, please don't hesitate to ask. I come here every day and read posts and if I don't come across something I'm curious about or having issues with, there are so many wonderful people here who will offer up advice.

u/GooGooGajoob67 · 2 pointsr/loseit

I can't for the life of me remember what brand I have (I'm at work), but I think it might be this one for $12.58.

Mine's really easy to use and seems to be accurate, and even if this isn't the one I have, this one has some pretty good reviews on Amazon.

u/Eloiseriley · 1 pointr/loseit

I use a basic digital scale by EatSmart. It's relatively cheap, easy to use, attractive looking, and so far seems really accurate. I love it and their customer service seems amazing so I'm not too worried about it breaking anytime soon.

Here's a link to my scale on Amazon

u/losingme · 2 pointsr/loseit

It's a scale made by a company called EatSmart. They seem like a good company, have excellent reviews and I really like the scale so far. They even tossed in a clicking tape measure for body measurements. (Wasn't mentioned where I bought it so that was a nice bonus.)

Here's the link: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001KXZ808

u/petitanomie · 4 pointsr/loseit

i like this one on amazon. cheap, cheerful, the batteries have lasted over a year and i bought a second one to use at my parents' home.

the only features i care about are a clean surface, the ability to "tare" (reset the scale to 0) and switch between and metric units.

u/lunartalk · 5 pointsr/loseit

as far as stores go, Im pretty sure you can find one at Walmart, Target, or Bestbuy


online (amazon) is usually a really good place to find them as well.
You can read reviews and find better deals sometimes.

Here are a couple links to ones that i have seen recommended on this sub :)

https://www.amazon.com/Mosiso®-Digital-Kitchen-Scale-Capacity/dp/B00JRFB2YM

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004164SRA?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00





here are a few links to threads about food scales

https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/537f97/the_importance_of_a_food_scale_1700_vs_2900/

https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/3cp23p/if_youre_thinking_of_buying_a_food_scale/

https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/55dci3/the_importance_of_a_food_scale/

u/J-squire · 3 pointsr/loseit

Check the batteries, but if you need a new scale this https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004164SRA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
is only $11 and I love it. I mostly bought it because it looked like it was weighing out weed and I like a company with a sense of humor about how their products are used. But I find that it's accurate and quick to react. I had bought a different food scale in December from Bed Bath and Beyond and it took forever to register a change on the scale. Fine when I'm just weighing 1 thing, but when you are mixing and it takes more than 30 seconds to accurately measure a new item added, it's frustrating.

u/loseitbetty · 1 pointr/loseit

That honestly sounds pretty healthy. Definitely try MyFitnessPal, that would probably help you a lot. This is the food scale I have and it's lasted far longer than any other scales I've had in the past.

u/intelix · 1 pointr/loseit

You can use this to add in your recipes easily
http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php

My fitness pal also has a easy to use recipe calculator as well. If your not using a website recipe the easiest thing to do is just write everything out in notepad then hit "enter recipe manually" on that page. Then it will bring up a text box that you can paste everything into and you can adjust from there.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/box

As far as knowing how many grams are in a cup of whatever your using I would suggest this scale. Its cheap and easy to use.
http://www.amazon.com/EatSmart-Precision-Digital-Kitchen-Silver/dp/B001N07KUE


u/thevulturesbecame · 2 pointsr/loseit

I feel you on the scale thing, my old one did the same thing lol. Wildly different! I ordered this one on Amazon which is cheap and I haven't had that problem with it: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001KXZ808/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1473172890&sr=8-2&pi=SY200_QL40&keywords=scale&dpPl=1&dpID=41pqd-hroEL&ref=plSrch

It doesn't do anything fancy like bf% or heart rate, so maybe you wanna splurge more than I did.

As for loose skin, don't fear it. It's the lesser of two evils. It also probably won't be as bad as you think. Lose steadily, moisturize your skin, stay hydrated, and gain muscle tone. If you're too upset by your loose skin, I think lace one-pieces are super sexy too!: http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/img-thing?.out=jpg&size=l&tid=49914043 (random one from Google)

u/psykotedy · 1 pointr/loseit

Honestly, I would say that grabbing a copy of Starting Strength and running through that is your best bet. Start light (lighter than you think), and work your way up very gradually.

Or go check out /r/bodyweightfitness and /r/overcominggravity to avoid weights altogether.

And even though everybody else has already said it, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that you have made some tremendous progress and look gorgeous.

u/DadeMurphyNYC · 1 pointr/loseit

I bought this scale recently. It's reasonably priced and I'm very happy with it:


https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0032TNPOE?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf



It would be best to weigh yourself at least once a week consistently to follow a trend of weight loss and make adjustments as you go along. Good luck!


u/ForeverAWino · 1 pointr/loseit

I usually do two weighs just to be sure. If I get the same thing twice I stick with it. I just got a new scale from the hubs for Christmas and I tested it with hand weights to make sure it was accurate. It syncs with an app on my phone which is pretty cool. With my old scale if I thought it was acting up I would take the battery out and put it back in to reset. I don't know if that worked or not, but it put my mind at ease. My old one was just a digital one from Walmart. My new one that I really like so far is this one: https://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Connected-Backlit-Greater-Goods/dp/B00N9ENKDI

u/gungadin · 2 pointsr/loseit

I was using this one for a while and was happy with it. I've since upgraded to a withings, which I'm also happy with but clearly costs more money :)

u/Keroseneslickback · 2 pointsr/loseit

How about exercise? How much do you do?

For scales, I've seen these exact ones in my doctor's office before (alongside the proper ones). Out of like 12,000 reviews, a 4.6/5 score is damn good. Regardless of some problems, it should be a good scale if your luck isn't completely terrible. But with all glass scales: Make sure they're on a flat surface. I personally use the smaller one with a max of 400lbs.

What I can recommend to you is this:

You should speak with your doctor about what's going on. Perhaps they have more insight. If they hadn't done a hormone blood test, they probably would.

As with most "Help, I'm not losing weight" posts, if there's no problem with you counting calories or with your body, then it's down to either: Eating less calories. Or, exercising more. 2000 calories at your weight is quite the cut (at my 6' 233lbs, 2200 calories and that's deep for me). Because of that I'd recommend exercising more. If you're not walking (on top of normal activity) everyday, do so everyday. At least thirty minutes, and an hour is great. More than an hour depends on how you feel.

u/MKorostoff · 2 pointsr/loseit

Thanks for your reply. I'm 5 foot 8.5 inches. I'm still 2 pounds overweight and, yes, I'm sure I'd benefit from more fat loss. My end goal is 155, which I estimate would equate to 9% body fat. I've heard that at a low enough body fat the skin starts to kind of grab on to the muscle, but THIS amount of skin is just sort of hard to picture ever tightening.

I guess in an ideal world I'd get my body fat measured in one of those water tanks, but failing that I'm not sure where I'd find a better measurement option than BIA. I imagine calipers would be utterly worthless on my body given how much skin I'm able to pinch. I use this device which is pretty accurate from what I can tell. When I follow the instructions the reading is pretty consistent, and I've had a few buddies try it out, and they've all gotten readings that agreed with earlier measurements (and also just seemed to make sense visually). And for what it's worth, the Amazon reviews are glowing.

u/SaxyGeek · 1 pointr/loseit

I'll strongly suggest picking up a food scale! This way you can be confident in your calorie intake, and learn a lot more about portion sizes. I use this one. It's super cheap and works very well!

u/yubman · 1 pointr/loseit

Don't know about the scales, but the newer hand held units are pretty good and affordable:

Omron HBF-306C Fat Loss Monitor

There are rules to ensure a more accurate reading, ie no readings after meals, when you first wake up etc.

u/born_mystery · 1 pointr/loseit

I love this scale. I've had it since 2012 and it works great - even comes with a cloth measuring tape for tracking inches. It also has over 27,000 reviews with an average of 4 out of 5 stars, if that matters to you.

I have large tiles in my bathroom, so I just make sure the feet are all set on the same square.

u/Rashkh · 1 pointr/loseit

I bought this scale for weighing myself around February of last year. Works great, super quick, and dirt cheap.

I've also bought this food scale in May and it's also been working great for food, tea, and coffee measurements. Being very cheap also helped. It's smaller than it looks though and so may not work for you.

u/Milady_Kitteh · 2 pointsr/loseit

I posted it an earlier thread, but this one has remained consistent for over a year now for me! They have great customer support if you do notice an issue too.

https://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Connected-Solution-including-Backlit/dp/B00N9ENKDI

u/chems89 · 2 pointsr/loseit

Much less fat! You can order it off Amazon, its just a tbsp of powder plus a few tbsp of water, mix it up. It's not 100
% like peanut butter of course, but in a smoothie with tons of fat in it, you can't even tell it's just a peanut butter-y taste :) I just add a half a tbsp and it's wonderful!

u/LegalEagle80 · 1 pointr/loseit

I got mine for $15 on Amazon. Honestly, they're all kinda similar. Just make sure they measure multiple types of weights (mine does grams, ounces, kilograms and pounds) and has a "tare" function that can zero out the scale after you've put something on it.

Something like this would be good: https://www.amazon.com/Ozeri-ZK14-T-Digital-Multifunction-Kitchen/dp/B004164SRA/ref=s9_simh_gw_g79_i1_r?_encoding=UTF8&fpl=fresh&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=&pf_rd_r=AXV0EB1NS9GMDWC4V2GS&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=6aad23bd-3035-4a40-b691-0eefb1a18396&pf_rd_i=desktop&th=1

u/JDSchu · 3 pointsr/loseit

Really depends on how much you pack it in there, I guess.

For future reference, it's SUPER cheap to pick up a digital food scale. I got mine for $12 off Amazon and it's pretty versatile and works flawlessly. http://www.amazon.com/Ozeri-Digital-Multifunction-Kitchen-Elegant/dp/B004164SRA/ref=pd_sim_79_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=51RcCqW6n8L&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR151%2C160_&refRID=0P7TEA31XQCSAVVP5A82

u/_thisismyworkaccount · 1 pointr/loseit
I bought this kitchen scale, so I can measure meats and cheeses: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005OSUIYG/ref=cm_sw_r_udp_awd_QbyWtb1EWFBKG


I also use a set of measuring cups, you can pick them up super cheap at Wal-Mart, the dollar store, or if you want a nicer set you can go to TJMaxx

)
u/AXP878 · 1 pointr/loseit

Calculators are never very accurate. I would recommend getting a body fat percentage caliper, they're much more accurate. You could also try an electronic device although my fitness trainer friend recommends the calipers as more accurate. You want to focus more on trends rather than the daily number.

u/karmicbias · 2 pointsr/loseit

Easiest way to figure this out is to put your oil container on the food scale (you have a food scale, right? If not, amazon is your friend, that one is cheap and works great.).

If you're just pouring out a small amount quickly and that's it, put the oil container on the scale before you start, tare/zero the scale, use as much oil as you're going to use, then put the oil container back on the scale. The amount shown (it should be a negative number) is how much oil you used.

If cooking is going to be a more extended affair (my scale tends to time out if you don't work fairly quickly), you may want to zero the scale first, weigh the container in its pre-cooking state & write down the weight, then zero the scale and weigh it again after using the oil.

Either way use grams if possible, and that will give you an accurate idea of how much oil you used! If there's a ton of oil left in the pan, well, you were probably using too much and can add less next time. But you could always weigh that and subtract it from your 'used' amount if you want to be super accurate!

u/daiko7 · 3 pointsr/loseit

I have two. This was the first one I bought last year. It still works great. It's scuffed up a bit, though.

I bought this to keep at work. It works pretty well too.

u/MaebiusKiyak · 2 pointsr/loseit

Do yourself a huge favor and don't restrict your exercise to cardio. If anything strength training is much more important and will yield much faster results.

Read this book cover to cover (for serious): http://www.amazon.com/Starting-Strength-3rd-Mark-Rippetoe/dp/0982522738

Check out r/fitness and r/weightroom.

u/denovosibi · 3 pointsr/loseit

I would invest in a good food scale then and I think you'll see some improvements. I use this one and love it. Also, it's cheap!

u/Silver_kitty · 1 pointr/loseit

I've got this one from Amazon. It's a huge help in knowing the weight of the chicken that I'm making, as well as keeping me true to one serving when I do have cereal or chips.

u/Degenic · 1 pointr/loseit

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0113UZJE2/ref=yo_ii_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This is the one I have. It only has one issue, sometimes (I mean like 1 in a couple hundred weigh ins, it freezes and you need to take the batteries out. Easy to clean and cool looking too!

u/miz_nyc · 2 pointsr/loseit

I have this one from amazon $12.99
http://www.amazon.com/Etekcity-Digital-Multifunction-Stainless-Kitchen/dp/B0113UZJE2/ref=zg_bs_678508011_3

but I've seen some people find cheaper scales at walmart, target.

Good luck!

u/chocochips · 1 pointr/loseit

Welcome! This scale on amazon is what I bought when I started out. Cheap and reliable. Getting a scale was the best decision I made for myself with regards to my health!

u/KegM4n · 2 pointsr/loseit

This one is a really good value - mine has been going strong for 2 years now!

u/74bpa · 1 pointr/loseit

This is the one I have and I love it. It's been accurate when weighing weights and been very close to my doctor's scale. I don't get multiple weights on different tries. best scale I've owned.

https://www.amazon.ca/EatSmart-Precision-Bathroom-3-5-Inch-Technology/dp/B001KXZ808/ref=gp_aw_ybh_a_26?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=NPWZ32QVZP94D4XJ4CY8

u/diggdeserter · 8 pointsr/loseit

You should check this stuff out. Its peanut butter powder. Most of the fat has been removed. It takes just like peanut butter. I use it in shakes, eat a teaspoon plain, add it to greek yogurt, or mix with a little water to get a pretty good analog of real peanut butter without the calories. This shit is surprisingly good.

u/dante437 · 1 pointr/loseit

Anytime! Best wishes--just keep trying. Another tip is to get a kitchen scale--I have this Amazon model: http://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-Digital-Kitchen-Scale-Display/dp/B00V5IM5PY/ref=lp_289787_1_4?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1464531224&sr=1-4

For $10, I can weigh out anything--it's been a lifesaver.

FYI--My daily breakfast is one serving of plain cheerios along with a serving of unsweetened cashew milk (only 25/cal per serving), and a banana.

u/MorbidandBack · 2 pointsr/loseit

I use an Omron handheld device:

Amazon Linky

What I will say is that most consumer level Body Fat % devices are inaccurate, in the sense that the numbers they give will be a fair bit off from what an actual scientific, doctor led lab analysis will yield.

That doesn't really matter though, in the same way that different scales can vary so can these devices. You have to use these BF% devices at the same time of day and under the same circumstances each time.

Just treat the BF% calculator the same as you would a scale, and even if the number it reads isn't scientifically accurate it will go down over time which is what you really care about.

What I do is take my readings first thing in the morning and take about 3-4 readings and average them together to get a more steady number. Over the last two months this has proven to show a steady decline in my BF %.

u/LevitatingTurtles · 1 pointr/loseit

I got this scale a month or two ago... it works great and it was a great price.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001KXZ808/ref=oh_details_o02_s00_i00

u/rebelterp · 1 pointr/loseit

It's not too expensive if you get it from amazon. This 5lb tub lasts me 6 months http://www.amazon.com/Optimum-Nutrition-Standard-Double-Chocolate/dp/B000QSNYGI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1381073336&sr=8-1&keywords=whey+protein


If still too pricey, keep some boiled eggs on hand and eat two after a workout. About 160 calories and they are great way to prevent a binge after working out.

u/marymango1 · 3 pointsr/loseit

I'm surprised no one has mentioned this, but get a food scale! It's like $12 on amazon, and pretty essential for CICO. Volume measurements can be so inaccurate, I bet if you start weighing your food you will start to see the pounds go. This is the one a lot of us use: https://www.amazon.com/Ozeri-Digital-Multifunction-Kitchen-Elegant/dp/B004164SRA/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1468379761&sr=8-3&keywords=food+scale

Also, do not eat back the exercise calories! They way overestimate how much you burn and you can't trust it.

u/Yarzospatflute · 1 pointr/loseit

Wow. I think bodybuilders go for 2+g/lb, most of the rest of us just need about 1g/lb. Some say 1g/lb of LBM, some say 1g/lb of total weight just to make sure. Where did you read that?

More to your question though, a protein powder like this one is 120 calories per 24g of protein. For food chicken breasts are probably going to give you the most protein for fewest calories.

u/ChotatoPip · 2 pointsr/loseit

Along line with what ff said, the Eatsmart Precision Digital Scale is also a good buy if you just want a basic and accurate scale minus the bells and whistles for $30. Ozeri has a nearly identical scale for the same price, and their food scales are top notch as well.

u/birthdaycake247 · 1 pointr/loseit

A food scale like [this one ](Ozeri Pronto Digital Multifunction Kitchen and Food Scale, Elegant Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004164SRA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_HnGsybNMM38YS) would help take the guesswork out of CICO. It might take some getting used to but once you've got it figured out, it's really easy to integrate into your new lifestyle going forward.

u/ChaoticHungry · 1 pointr/loseit

This is the scale I bought though the price might be higher than what you're looking for. I'm very satisfied with the purchase. It's easy to use (just step on to it) and the readout is large and bright.

u/TheContrarian2 · 0 pointsr/loseit

It's probably muscle weight. Muscle is dense and heavy, but it's good to have. If you have one of those body fat scales, or calipers or other ways of accurately measuring body fat, you'll see. I have one of these (but I only paid about $40.00 for mine, I wonder if it's a different model). It will show that if your body fat is going down but your weight is going up as you work out, you're just gaining muscle. I'd be 400 pounds if it were all muscle!

u/AvesAvi · 3 pointsr/loseit

The Etekcity scale is the Amazon's Choice scale, but there's a worrying amount of reviews saying the scale randomly shattered without being touched.

The EatSmart scale has super good reviews praising its accuracy, and a lot less reports of the thing spontaneously shattering.

Anybody have some anecdotes with these?

u/misoranomegami · 2 pointsr/loseit

I don't know about reliability or what not, but I saw an add for [this] (http://www.amazon.com/Etekcity-Digital-Weight-Technology-Pounds/dp/B00F3J9G1W) scale on Amazon the other day for $20 and it goes up to 400 lbs if you're just looking to have a digital scale at home.
It really depends on you though. I like being able to weigh myself in the privacy of my own house, after using the bathroom in the morning and before eating anything or putting anything on. I just accept that it's going to go up and down and at time significantly.

u/mcfreakinloseit · 1 pointr/loseit

There are but you'll likely have to order online. Years ago when I started I was just a bit over 350 and my scale only goes to 345, it was a great day when I saw a weight on my scale instead of an E. If you've been at it for a month since you last weighed in you'll probably be right close to dropping below 350.

heres a link for a 400 lb capacity scale on amazon

u/deathfreshener · 1 pointr/loseit

Breakfast:

Clean Lean Protein shake with banana and powdered peanut butter, made with almond milk.

Lunch:

Giant handful of spinach, diced tomato, 1/4 - 1/2 cup brown rice, two eggs, sometimes avocado, always with a bit of pecorino romano cheese.

Dinner:

Sometimes the same as lunch or a spinach, grilled chicken and rice bowl with broccoli, bell pepper and avocado. Dab of coy sauce or sriracha.

Snacks:

We love the whole grain Fig Bars we get from costco, also Mama Chia is a fave as well. We also get the 1 lb dark chocolate bars from Trader Joe's and have a square after lunch and dinner.