Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Quoting this, because it's really the only advice you should heed. Your advice should come from your doctor. You say "every chest pain" you feel....well getting chest pains enough to claim "every" one makes you feel some way, is not normal. It is a sign that there is something medically wrong with you, in addition to your weight.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jasper12
You need to start with your doctor, and have a clearance for exercise, and a referral to a dietician, check into your insurance, you may be eligible for surigical options as well, or direct medical supervision for your weight loss program.
If you joined a gym, you need to talk to the "trainers" and find one that has a degree in exercise and sport science, not just someone who says that they are a trainer.
Good luck...and maybe consider some marriage counseling, because the very people who are supposed to help us with wieght loss, are the same ones that sabotage us...for reasons they may not even understand...
Congratulations! I agree that you should keep a journal of your activities, and food intake. Definitely talk to your physician or certified nutrition specialist. If you haven't been active in terms of exercises, take it slow. Don't push yourself too much, even if you hire a personal trainer and he/she says to push - listen to your body! Many clinics/hospitals offer weight management classes that you can attend. Check with your insurance policy...often they provide free guidance.
My job also had some sort of biggest loser challenge and at one point they offered free weight watchers to those people that had to lose more than 50lbs (I think). It benefits the company because weight gain is associated with many other health issues. Therefore if you are healthy you will utilize insurance less in the long run (or at least less instense stuff).
I assume you have spoken with your doctor regarding the possible chest pains. Other than that - "Kick Ass Army Chick" had the best advice. Start on a low carb diet immediately....which simply means eating all the naturally occurring fruits, veggies, meats, dairies, and whole grains.
Cut out processed foods and refined sugars (pretty much anything with a food label). Processed foods are mostly simple carbohydrates. Otherwise, eat as much as you want. You will find that you will get fuller faster and feel fuller for a longer time. At the end of the day, you will end up having lesser calories than you normally would have.
Once you start losing the weight, you will also gain alot of energy. That's when you can start the exercise part as advised by Kick Ass Army Chick.
There's alot of books out there on low carb eating. One of the easiest ones to understand low carb eating is "Fat to Skinny".
[Note: I have no affiliation with the author]
Definitely get with a doctor and be honest about everything. Keep that honesty throughout everything and you'll do well. A lie is a lie and it never helps anything..
Assuming you're good to go with the doctor, just start cutting back and reading labels. One of the only good things about being very overweight is it's easy to lose weight in the beginning. You're used to huge caloric intakes, so going down to something normal is going to make you lose weight. Down side is that wears off after a while, so you have to keep stepping it up. Start slow, especially with exercise, but increase it over time. Other nice tricks include not eating out of bags, take a portion out of the bag and leave the area. Never eat in front of the TV either. Think about every calorie you take in and decide if it's actually worth it; it rarely is.. I was checking out those new triple double stuffed Oreos the other day and they're 100 calories PER COOKIE. That is absolutely pathetic and I'm so glad I don't buy that crap any more. It's much better to get your junk from other people. Eat a fry off their plate or take one of their cookies, but don't buy the whole package for yourself. You obviously have to ask first, though.. most people don't mind.
Finally, find good for you foods that you enjoy. Some of my favorites are beef jerky (only get the very low fat and high protein kinds, yogurt with fresh fruit (real fruit that is low in calories like a strawberry and good yogurt with no fat and little or no sugar), and those fiber bars. Those things make you feel like you're having a chocolate bar, but they're actually pretty good for you. Some are as low as 90 calories and the fiber helps make sure they don't stick around long.
So be honest, get help, portion control, think before you eat, keep increasing the exercise level, and don't give up. It is SO much better being on the lighter side.. I was in your shoes and it really sucks.
You have gotten some great advice here already, with the most important is starting with your doctor, then getting a good dietician; hopefully you can afford one. If you can't, keep comming back here. I also believe ther are help groups out there like overeaters anonymous.
I lost 53 Lbs earlier this year and the one piece of solid advice is keep a journal of everything you consume on a daily basis. For me, I researched on line and found out how many calories I could consume on a daily basis to lose 2 Lbs/week.
My wife measured everything out which was a PIA, but taught us portion control.
I then wrote everything down in a small 3x5 book that I carried with me. Yeah, getting calorie counts was also PIA at first, but after a while you learn the counts. Most importantly: "Writing everything down on a daily basis keeps you honest."
Weight watchers is also a good approach, as they work on points VS calories, and if you join, you have access to local meetings and the online support forum.
you can read my thread in the exercise and fitness forum "Help? Female trying to lose weight fast" just look it up in the search bar and you will find it. Or it could be floating around on the front page of the forum, its now locked though but gives great advice. I would not ask for help on that forum as you can see some of the posters there were everything but helpful and nice.
I think the OP should concentrate on diet right now. Definitely get out there and walk, but that's probably it for exercise right now. At my heaviest, I was about 350 and I know there was no way I was going to go out running any distance further than from my car to an air conditioned building.. I can imagine how difficult it would be with an extra nearly 100 pounds.
However, once some of that weight starts coming off, your steps will get lighter and you'll actually feel like moving more. That's how it was after my GB surgery. I started walking, but after a little while I actually got the urge to run and as it became easier, I kept going further and further. My method was to first start out walking, just to get the blood flowing and warm everything up a little (easy to do in Texas!) and once I got to this point that was 1.5 miles away, I would jog for about .5 miles and then walk the last mile back home. Then I would look around where I stopped that jog and find something (usually a road sign) further down the street and I would run to that the next time. Before I knew it, I was up to a mile, then two, three, four, and now 5+ is hardly anything and that's in 100+ degree heat!
Slow, but steady, that's the only way to do it. Try to go too fast and you'll either hurt yourself or get sick of it. Going slow should make your brain want to push it further and further over time and that's exactly what you need. I believe many of the people that have problems reaching a certain weight and suddenly stopping are not increasing their workouts. I would feel like I was ripping myself off if I only ran half a mile right now and I know my body would laugh at me and my weight would probably start going back up again; that will never happen, though..
don't bring into the house things that are not good for you. if you must change from real ice cream to sorbet or skinny cow. same thing with your sweet and salty treats. get back to it every time you "fall off the wagon" pretty soon the change will just be how you eat.
you also need to change your mind set. like quitting smoking everytime a craving for something hits you need to cope another way instead of reaching for a cookie or what ever your down fall is. try chewing on flavored toothpicks or chew on a straw, take a walk. learn to go through a craving. all of them have a starting point, a peak and and end. just get past the cravings one at a time. they only last a few minutes. the longer you put into practice not giving in to a craving the more it becomes automatic and soon there is no more craving. you have over come.
get out and walk, and walk, and walk. if you fall down, do not allow yourself to stay down, get up and get started again. good luck
Eat less junk, eat more healthier alternative-- focus on that: meal planning, and meal preparation.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
most people don't mind.
