Hi everyone, my question is... For those of you who have been very successful and really lost alot of weight especially reasonable fast, what did you do or not do that made you as successful as you have been. On the flip side people who have not done that good, are there things you would recommend doing differently?

Thanks

Every Sunday I sit down and look over my food and exercise journal and decide 1 thing that I could improve on. Then I implement that 1 improvement for the next week.

This gives me constant improvement without the shock of having to change my whole life at once like you do with a new years resolution. Its like the couch to 5K running program, just get better a little at a time until you are where you want to be.

And have a positive attitude. If you believe you are going to do well you will. Its like the old saying "Whether you think you can or think your cant, your probably right"

Good luck.

I eat healthier foods, and exercise 5-6 times a week. I don't knock my socks off exercising, but each time it is for at least 30 minutes - walking, biking, hiking, ellipical machine, whatever. I also use the strength machines at the local "Y" for toning and keep my Protein up. When I hit a plateau, it helped to increase my protein by adding a drink to my day and cutting calories elsewhere.

I never journaled until the past several weeks so I could get the rest of my weight off and concentrate on what changes I needed to make and if I saw any patterns that I needed to address.

I also think support is very important - whether it be from your significant other, an exercise buddy, friend, co-worker, support group, mentor. Somebody who gets you going even when you may not want to and someone that is encouraging and helps you stay focused (not nagging).

The longer I go on this journey the more I understand about myself. I'm alot different person than I was at the beginning and much of it has to do with the band getting me started, but alot has to do with going thru this whole process. I've had ups and down, times when I was focused and other times when I struggled, but the biggest difference is when I would gain a few pounds - it was just a few lbs and not 15-20 like before. For the first time I felt like I had more control over food. That was a biggie for me. The band and the slower progress of losing has helped me get more understanding of how food was so much apart of my life and how to deal with it now. All I ever wanted at the beginning was to feel normal and healthy. Now I do and I am. That is what I focus on and what I'm celebrating.

I used an app on my iPhone to track my calories and what I ate for the day. I followed my doctor's instructions and the most important thing I did was start exercising once I started feeling able to. My favorite activities are hiking and cycling. I'm not into them hardcore, but I do enjoy them. I'm into photography, so hiking with my camera was a way to add weight, especially carrying a backpack with my lenses and extra bodies in them. Made for more of a workout. I did have to have shoulder surgery in january and I am still recovering from it, so anything involving straining my right shoulder is out of the question.

I also learned substitution! Desserts? No problem! sugar free all the way and stick to the proper serving size! Going out to dinner? How about getting a salad instead of that starchy tater? Worked for me.

I used an app on my iPhone to track my calories and what I ate for the day. .

Would you tell me what app you use?

Hi everyone, my question is... For those of you who have been very successful and really lost alot of weight especially reasonable fast, what did you do or not do that made you as successful as you have been. On the flip side people who have not done that good, are there things you would recommend doing differently?

Thanks

'Good' is a very subjective thing. First you have to define good.

My definition of 'good' didn't involve losing a lot of weight fast so perhaps you would not consider me successful.

What I wanted out of this was to learn to eat like a normal person. I really didn't care how long it took me to take the weight off.

My surgery was 11/3/09 and in that 9 months I've lost 50 pounds while learning the limitations of the band, discovering what 'too full' (amount in band) meant, and other nifty discoveries of the band.

I consider myself successful because I recently had an unfill to the point where I have no restriction. I can eat as much of anything that I want...but I haven't. In fact, I've lost another 5 pounds since my unfill. My attitude towards food over the last 9 months has changed. I'll take that over fast weight loss any day.

.

Would you tell me what app you use?

Yes! I use a couple. I started with Lose It! Which is great, but I also have FatSecret. I love both programs and switch between the two.

I use a weight tracking program pretty much exclusively now because I have met and gone below goal. Since I'm pregnant I am trying to make sure my weight stays on track with what I need to gain to have a healthy pregnancy. It's called TargetWeight.