Have you lost weight since you got your Fitbit?

[Rnda]

I am the exact same weight as I was when I got my Flex 3 1/2 months ago!

How about you?

I'm hoping with Spring here and Summer around the corner, that my walking will increase. 

Moderator edit: title

[HemantP]

Thank you Dominique. I have already started logging the food to ensure my diet is in order too. I will surely take note of all what you have said. Appreciate it.

[ska45]

Whenever I am stuck I take an extra look at my diet. I might plateau for a
while but keeping on track with the diet normally helps. I lost 10 kg last
year until April and decided to take a break from loosing until January
this year. I put on 2 kg during that time but kept walking my 10.000 steps
a day and didn't do much about my diet. Now I started dieting again. I
lost 3 kg on 1550 kcal/day and follow the trainer with Fitbit Premium (I
increase my calories out from week to week - right now I burn 2550 kcal/day
but aim at 2700 before may).

[Dominique]

You may have heard things like "you can’t out-train a poor diet" or "the fork is mightier than the foot", and it’s very true. Even without formally logging everything (I’ll admit I’ve never done that), it can be eye-opening to weigh a few of the things you’re putting in your mouth and assess their caloric content: it’s so easy and fast to eat 500 calories, but it takes a lot more time and effort to burn the same amount through exercise. As to resistance training, it is important when planning to lose a lot of weight, so as to minimize loss of lean mass (muscle) and not end up "skinny fat".

[Dominique]

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@Dominique wrote:

@HemantP: Since you’ve joined a gym, I would suggest you use it for resistance training (whether with free weights or machines), since you can walk outside the gym.

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I see you’re based in the UAE, which probably makes walking outdoors difficult for you. Shopping malls can be a great alternative, if there are some not too far from you. I personally prefer walking in a mall (especially at quiet times of the day) to being stuck on a treadmill . Plus you can get floors as well, in malls spread across several levels.

[Dominique]

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@Igottalose30lbs wrote:

Unfortunately I am a die hard salt-aholic!

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@Igottalose30lbs: salt is very much an acquired taste (so is sugar). You can progressively reduce your intake (same with sugar), and also use alternative spices (like pepper, chili etc.). One reason I love Indian cuisine is the amazing number of spices they use in their dishes. Many people start adding salt to their plate even without tasting it first, just out of habit. It’s a good way to start: taste it first, and only add salt if it’s really bland.

[Dominique]

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@ska45 wrote:
I lost 10 kg last
year until April and decided to take a break from losing until January this year.

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@ska45: what you’ve done sounds like the full diet break approach described by Lyle McDonald (a really smart guy on the subject of nutrition). It’s like one step backward, two steps forward. 

[HemantP]

: Yes Dominique. You are perfectly right about the muscle preservation. Though I have never done weights and resistance training in my life yet, I have realized how important it is now in my aim to achieve my goals and therefore it has now been a perfect time for me to hit the gym for resistance training. I too prefer walks outside the gym environment where you get and breathe fresh air and seems very natural. I will never be giving up walks as this will be part of the lifestyle now.
 

[HemantP]

Thanks Ska.I do the calories based on my BMR (but 500 less as my goal is to reduce weight) and also walk a lot every day just so that if I slip in the diet a little, the extra exercise takes up the fall, though this is very rare occurrence. If I feel I am not gonna walk today, I ensure that I don't eat more than the goal calories for the day. I love this fitbit community where I have just joined the premium membership and everyone is so helpful. 

[HemantP]

You are absolutely right. Salt is the DANGER ingredient for High BP. I am low on salt as already on high bp medications. But what I have seen recently (since joining fitbit, my bp readings these days are always little below what they should normally be and this has happened just due to walks). Also, I have started treating refined sugar and sugar as kinda poison (also diabetic and on those medications) so I now am very careful about sugar and salt. Self determination, persistence, consistency and a reasonable goal is what we all need to succed in this journey to be able to live a good and healthy life. My journey has begun.

[Roboharrogate]

HI

You should aim to burn between 3-3500 calories per day. The 10,000 is a good indicator of activity but you need to get the heart rate significantly up so your kick in a higher metabolic rate, which in turn burns more calories for much longer. You can do this by walking quicker or intervals when walking. 5 mins at a very quick walking pace 2 mins slower and 5 mins much quicker. I don’t know your wight or age but as a rule of thumb your maximum heat rate (should be aimed for) is 220 - your age. On the fit bit this will show up as red on the activity log.

If you fire up the metabolism the calories will drop off

[Roboharrogate]

Good alternative to salt are Capers, low salt soy sales and samphire. I use Samphire for salads and to snack on. Low sodium salt is also good. I think people get used to putting salt I food, particularly vegetables. When you wean yourself of salt then you find when you sue it it spoils the food flavour, or it does for me !

[Roboharrogate]

Herman

All the PT people I have spoken to only really use the cardio kit in the gym for warmups or intervals. Most focus on building the core and muscles; weights, resistance and body work such as squats, burpees etc.

I now do 15 minutes of ABS work every evening. I play a game that when the adverts are on I will do 3 rounds of various ABS work such as planks, Iron cross etc. Building muscle and core is essential and although it weighs more than fat it will change your shape and as the fat disappears you will look far more toned, you will also be able to do far more in the gym and outside.

Outside is the place to run and walk !

[HemantP]

Thanks Roboharrogate, all your pointed are noted and I am sure they will help me. The whole purpose of joining the gym was for resistance training and this will assist me in burning more fat eventually (by building muscle). Though the tummy fat is the one i want out very soon, our body is more intelligent and behaves in its own way when it comes to reducing fat. 

[Dave001]

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@Roboharrogate wrote:
Low sodium salt is also good.

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This point needs to be taken with a pinch of... well, you know!

Low salt still contains Sodium, but some of it is replaced with Potassium.

I think "less bad" would be a better description of it. 

However, if you have kidney problems, have high blood pressure or are on medication for high blood pressure, it'd be wise to consult your doctor before using or switching to low sodium salt products. 

[Dominique]

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@Roboharrogate wrote:
You should aim to burn between 3-3500 calories per day.

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Calories burned depend a lot on the person: 3500 calories may be realistic for a tall, youngish male, but totally unrealistic for an older, shorter woman.

If you fire up the metabolism the calories will drop off

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Whenever reading about "boosting/stoking/firing up" metabolism, one should remember that under-eating (which is the necessary condition for losing weight) will actually slow down your metabolism. You can of course affect how much and how fast your metabolism will slow down: for instance, eating 2000 and expending 3000 will be better than eating 1000 and expending 2000, even if the deficit is the same (1000 calories); but eating 2500 and expending 3000 would likely let you go further ahead before metabolic adaptation kicks in and your weight loss stalls.

[SunsetRunner]

I 5"5' and Im 21 i can say i have not burn 3000+ calories in one day .. 2800 calories burn is the most i have done. I trying to use some weight and stay that weight give or take 

[Dominique]

@SunsetRunner: the good news is you don’t have to burn crazy high amounts of energy in order to lose weight. All you need is a reasonable and sustainable caloric deficit.

[Running777]

I really agree! You need to keep a healthy Outlook to achieve your healthy outcome😁

[Dominique]

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@Igottalose30lbs wrote:

I'm even considering trying Nutrasystem, but I'm not yet confident that it will help.  I'm afraid of getting caught up in an internet scam.  Does anyone have any suggestions about Nutrasystem?  Did it work or not?

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@Igottalose30lbs: do you mean Nutrisystem (Nutri, not Nutra)? If so, it does look like a scam to me (selling expensive packaged/processed food, whereas you would want to eat as much whole/unprocessed food as possible). If you need advice on what to eat, pay a qualified nutritionist for that service, not a company looking to sell you food (anyone should be able to buy their food on their own).

[Dominique]

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@Igottalose30lbs wrote:

But doesn't protein put on weight if you aren't active enough?

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Protein is just a macronutrient: it has 4 calories per gram (same as carbohydrates), whereas fat has 9 calories per gram. What causes weight gain is overeating calories, it doesn’t really matter where they come from. Studies show eating enough protein is beneficial for both fat loss (when in a caloric deficit) and muscle gain (when in a caloric surplus). One reason (for fat loss) is that it tends to be highly satiating. Another reason is it has a higher thermic effect of food (TEF) than other macronutrients. But you still need to be in a caloric deficit in order to lose weight/fat, there’s no way around it.