I had been tempted to start an NSC Fitness/Weight Loss Thread for some time, but this sounds like it might become that.
I'd been slowly gaining weight over the last 5 years (about half a stone a year) until I checked myself back in Sept 2019 and realised I was 17 stone 9 pounds. My eating habits were ****ing atrocious - fast food all the time, probably doing at least 2,500-3,000 calories a day, with very little protein - all carbs and fat.
That slightly shocking revelation - and the realisation that I want to set a good example for my young son and to be active with him as much as possible, as well as wanting to extend my life expectancy to see him grow up - meant going on a health kick, which started in late 2019 but really kicked on from 1st Jan 2020 onwards.
So far I have lost just over 2 stone (nearly halfway through an overall goal of losing 5), doing the following;
1. Drink shitloads of water - has tonnes of associated benefits, helps keep you feeling full, sorts things like skin, hair, nails right out etc.
2. Walk 10,000 steps a day - there are genuine arguments to be made for walking being better than jogging for pure weight loss. This is because jogging/intense exercise can spike your Cortisol hormone which means you feel more hungry after jogging than walking.
3. Jog/Football/Badminton 2-3 times a week - fortunately I really enjoy exercise, otherwise I'd be much larger already.
4. Have more protein in your diet - You might already be good at this, I wasn't. Means you will feel fuller on less calories, and evens out your hormones so you aren't reliant on sugar for energy, which can also cause mood and energy swings.
5. Intermittent Fasting - Sounds like you might have to do this anyway, given that you're looking at 800 calories a day. I now don't eat anything past around 8pm and tend not to break fast until around 11am. You will get a few days of feeling a bit hungry but your body does get used to the new routine after a while.
6. Calorie Deficit - Bit of an obvious one, but making sure less calories in than out.
7. Minimal Snacking - This was a really hard one for me, but it's totally possible to retrain your brain. We don't need to snack. We're bored and just want to. Have water instead, or at least something relatively healthy like fruit or nuts. I now crave fast/crap food far less than I did even a couple of months back.
8. Some weight training - even if you're not looking to put on a load of muscle, just a bit will help swing weight loss in a positive direction, as resting muscle burns more fat than resting fat does, and you'll feel more energised generally.
9. Be patient and consistent - You won't always see the results straight away - or you may see an early weight loss (this is water weight being lost quite often) and then a plateau where it feels like you can't get past a certain point. I've had weeks where I've been certain that I've done really well, and then the scales tell another story. It's also not just about weight loss - it's body fat %, and also body composition which you can sometimes just see from looking in the mirror. It's the extra energy and better mood you'll hopefully/probably have too!
Good luck with your journey mate, keep us updated in here.
