Will JUST walking help me lose weight?

[reeneitak]

I've been told a few times that walking can be more beneficial for sustained weight loss than any other sort of activity. Is that true? Has anyone seen weight loss by just walking and not really changing any other habits? Not trying to get out of weight training or other activities, but I enjoy walking & reading on the treadmill so I wonder if this would be good for losing some extra pounds 

[debb21]

January 2015, I had rotator cuff surgery, joined ww, and started walking with a fitbit.  I started 2 miles at 20 minutes a mile because I was in a sling for 8 weeks.  Just walking and ww, I lost 50 lbs in 10 months.  I didn't do any other exercise, but I did increase my distance and speed.  

[USAF-Larry]

You make the point, @debb21 - the original question was "Will JUST walking help me lose weight?", and you say "Just walking and ww, I lost 50 lbs in 10 months". So you lost weight because of Weight Watchers AND walking, not just walking. Good point!

[OCDOC]

@reeneitak

You ask re dietary advice given you are a picky/junk food eater. It's kinda like asking what jeans will look best on you; there is no easy answer..you have to try things out and see what you like.

However, there are some guidelines that are nearly universally agreed upon:

1) No sugary beverages. Period. Non-negotiable. Some will suggest no 'sugar-free' stuff either.

2) No processed/refined foods. If a substance was created in a factory, don't eat it.

Based on your sample diet, this leaves you with zero to eat 🙂 Obviously you must eat something...try finding things you like that meet the 2 rules and take it from there.  Good luck!

[jbyers]

Yes you can!  I started Jan 26th at 265lbs.  My heaviest ever and with using fitbit and tracking my food intake of 1900 calories and walking 5-7 miles a day I am at an amazing 202 today.  And I am not done yet!

I ate terrible before and didn't think it was possible but a picture of my wife and I disguisted me and I knew I had to make a change.  We both downloaded a food app, bought fitbits and got to eating better and walking!  She is down 32lbs in the same time frame and couldn't feel better.  You can do it!

[emili]

I would be starving if that's what I ate all day. I eat twice as much per day as that for half the calories. Your body is working so hard to digest all that unhealthy processed fatty food. I know its not easy for a picky eater, but for the sake of your health, please try new things. Or at least, eat the same things in healthier versions. instead of chips go for air popped popcorn. Instead of the jimmy dean have an english muffin with egg white. pretzels are OK. string cheese is OK too, but a half a cup of cottage cheese with some fruit or cheerios in it will fill you up for about 50 additional calories. make your own pizza so you control the cheese and sauce- try triscuits topped with half a cherry tomato and a sprinkle of parm cheese- lightly toasted. be creative and please please try a veg or two. best, E..

[WendyB]

You can do all the 5Ks you want. You cant out run a bad diet

[SunsetRunner]

I aim for a minimum of 10 miles a day 7 days a week. Walking is the only exercise i do. However if i dont watch my calories I easily put on weight. I don't think there would be enough hours in the day to out run my fork if i  let go and ate as much as I wanted.

Losing weight is 80-90% diet and the rest exercise.

PS I drink around 8 cups of black tea a day with milk and it hasnt had a negative affect in my weight loss. In fact it has helped, as this is all I consume til lunchtime. The fluid and milk keep me full. Without it i would be very hungry and it would be hard for me to stay under my daily calories.

[SunsetRunner]

they do say to drink a cup a water first, as sometimes you are thristy not hungry, don't know how true it is, but hey, if it helps me to lose weight, fine by me 😉

[CallieM]

Wow, there are so many great tips and opinions on this thread. @reeneitak I hope you've been able to get some good tips. Which ones have you found to be the most helpful so far? Have you changed your diet at all?

@shipo I really like green tea, but mostly just use Trader Joe's Green Tea teabags... I'm assuming this isn't the best quality, although I do love Trader Joe's. It would be great to hear where you buy your tea, if you drink it hot or cold, and how you prepare it (you seem to be a green tea veteran!) 

[shipo]

@CallieM, I typically buy my tea online (unless I'm over in Asia, then I buy several kilos to bring back with me).  Depending in the online purveyor my favorite teas are Formosa Oolongs from a mountainous area south west of Taipei.  The area where I visited has wild honeysuckle growing around the tea fields; that said, it is hard to know which fields any given tea comes from when buying the tea online.

The two types I like are Tung Ting Jade (some are bitter, some taste like burnt toast, and some are floral, not sure why such a cross section of tastes other than maybe this class of Oolong comes from different fields and/or are prepared differently), and Spring Dragon.  Both are fairly expensive, like $150-$250 per kilogram, however, that amount of tea makes literally hundreds of pots of tea.  My advice would be to find an online vendor and buy some samples (which only make few pots of tea).  Not sure if site policies allow me to post a link to my current vendor, but I'd be happy to send you a PM with the link.

As for hardware, you'll need the following items:

• Steeping pot of about 1 quart/liter, typically cast iron with an embedded straining basket.
• Extraction pot, typically clay or ceramic roughly the size of the steeping pot.
• A fine mesh funnel shaped strainer.
• A water boiler with settable temperature control and/or a thermometer which allows relatively precise measurement between 170°F and 200°F.

As for prep:

• Add two teaspoons of whole leaf tea to the straining basket in the steeping pot.
• Heat the water to no more than 190°F (if the water comes to a boil, wait until the temperature is under 190°F before pouring to the steeping pot).  Note on water temperature; experiment with temperatures; typically 170°F to 190°F yield the best flavor; too high and the tea becomes bitter, too low and the tea is too weak.  It seems every batch of tea is a bit different.
• First steeping: steep for two minutes (2:00)
• Second steeping: steep for two minutes fifteen seconds (2:15)
• Third steeping: steep for two minutes forty-five seconds (2:45)
• Fourth steeping: steep for five minutes (5:00)

After the fourth steeping, discard the leaves; they work great as mulch, or ground up in a food processor they work well as fertilizer for a vegetable garden or flower garden.

[pcobb8]

my joints were in terrible shape due to my weight and gout.    I eat properly and my only exercise has been walking.   I lost my 1st 30 pounds averaging 7K steps a day.   My next 30 averaging 10k a day.   Now I am up to 13K a day and I am just starting to add in more serious workouts since now my body can handle it.  

[SECONDCHANCE]

I have always found food to be my reward for...losing weight, celebrating, being sad, you name it.  I love food. I have felt, in the past, eating healthy was a punishment. I ballooned to my top weight two years ago. I looked at pictures of myself and was embarassed. I joined Weight Watchers and lost over 50 pounds. What I love about it, is that it is a lifestlye, not a diet. If I want to eat birthday cake, I eat it. If I want to eat pizza, I eat it, however, I make myself accountable for it. This is a lifestyle you can maintain. Give it a try!

[CallieM]

@shipo wow - thank you for the detailed instructions! You can definitely post the vendor you use on here, as you aren't coming to our Community for promotional purposes for that company. It's a great idea to buy some samples. I'm excited to try this.

I'll also need to get steeping tools. I have a French Press that often gets used for coffee, and so I wouldn't want to overtake the gentle flavor of the tea with the strong flavor of coffee. I'll probably check on Amazon for something on the cheaper side... Usually I just boil tea in my teapot and use a teabag.

When you mention the 1st through 4th steeping, is this all for one pot of tea, or is this for individual pots of tea (assuming that we must steep tea leaves longer, the more they get used). 

Thanks again for taking the time to explain this!

[shipo]

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@CallieFitbit wrote:

@shipo wow - thank you for the detailed instructions! You can definitely post the vendor you use on here, as you aren't coming to our Community for promotional purposes for that company. It's a great idea to buy some samples. I'm excited to try this.

I'll also need to get steeping tools. I have a French Press that often gets used for coffee, and so I wouldn't want to overtake the gentle flavor of the tea with the strong flavor of coffee. I'll probably check on Amazon for something on the cheaper side... Usually I just boil tea in my teapot and use a teabag.

When you mention the 1st through 4th steeping, is this all for one pot of tea, or is this for individual pots of tea (assuming that we must steep tea leaves longer, the more they get used). 

Thanks again for taking the time to explain this!

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Each steeping makes a full pot of tea; each pot has a distinctly different flavor; said another way, two teaspoons of whole leaf tea makes roughly a gallon of tea.

I typically buy Spring Dragon from Upton Tea Imports; here's the link to my current favorite Oolong:

• http://uptontea.com/store/item.asp?from=catalog.asp&itemID=TT88&begin=0&parent=Teas%3EOolong%3EFormo...