Hello. I did not know this group was here.

[amyrose2712]

Just wanted to say hello. I need to lose weight. I have no will power! I have been logging my calories, but I am not doing very well. I have never really had to control my weight. Up until I was 29 I was 115lbs. Then I had a hysterectomy and a very fast 10 years has gone by and I am a chubbo. I know that I most likely won't get back down to 115 but 125 or 130 would be nice. I am thinking about buying a treadmill or something like that because a gym is out of the question and, although it was almost 70 today in NJ, it SHOULD be freezing outside. Any pep talk or advice would be welcome! The hardest part is my coffee. I use lots of flavored creamer and have a Starbucks problem. The problem being the location, right across the street !

[mdmc]

1. needed to lose 40

Now I've decided just to lose thirty because I can't see m to lose a thing

[handmade34]

2. Hi... be positive

we all have our own best way to deal with food, exercise and 'will power'... mine was to eliminate all sugar (and artificial sweetners) from my diet... this has helped to end my previous constant cravings... you will find yours

[noamnety]

3. Hi - welcome to the group!

Before investing in the treadmill, I would suggest reading up on cardio and weight loss. A lot of people seem to find that a lot of cardio, while burning calories, also increases your appetite. Also your body can adapt to the additional workload by trying to conserve calories. It's counterintuitive, but it may not be your best bet if your goal is just pure reduction of fat. Short term it's a great way to kickstart a diet program, but longer term you may want to look more at high intensity interval training.

I've been doing really well with a 25lb kettle bell, doing a basic two handed kettlebell swing, which works your entire core in a much more demanding way. I only do about 15-20 minutes a day of exercise, and probably half of that is down time between sets.

Another thing I've done that's really helpful for sticking with my plan is doing 6 days a week of strict diet, and one day a week of at least one meal (sometimes two) of whatever I want. Today's a cheat day, so I had a strict breakfast and lunch (eggs, vegetables). But since I came home I had a lot of dried pears, way too many cookies, and I plan on having some homemade bread with dinner. (Normally I do no bread or wheat, no sugar).

On the coffee, if you make "bulletproof coffee" it will be higher fat but lower calories than your normal sweetener, and you can use cinnamon and vanilla extract for flavoring. I had to wean my self off the flavored creamers this summer, so I feel for you. It was a rough transition. One other thing that helped was using a cheap thrift shop french press, so the process of making coffee feels more like a ritual and the taste is richer. Once it's bulletproofed, it feels rich as if I'd added cream. If you start making it yourself, keep track of how much you save by not buying at starbucks, and use that to treat yourself to a new pair of slacks or jeans when you hit each little weight loss goal.

[amyrose2712]

4. HI! Thanks for the warm welcome...

when you say "bulletproof" are you saying put butter in my coffee? Cause I think that is what I am hearing. That seems worse to me.

[noamnety]

5. yes, butter.

I'm using 1 tablespoon for a 16 ounce coffee, which comes out to 102 calories. Hitting with a stick blender's important, otherwise it doesn't make the whole thing creamy.

I've gone low carb so some extra fat's allowed (it's always a tradeoff). The flavored creamer would be about half those calories (little less) for a tablespoon. The difference is that for a 16 oz coffee, I was using at least 2 tbs of the creamer, and the sugar in it increased my appetite/cravings whereas the plain butter leaves me feeling more full for longer. With the creamer, I'd be going back for seconds, sucking down coffee (and more creamer) all morning on weekends when I'm home.

Whether or not that's a good choice for you completely depends on what strategy you're using for the diet. Are you going with a particular plan?

[keyon]

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