Re: [Exercise Videos]LONG! : MFP and fitbit link experiment

March 24, 2012

> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since

> I know you.

thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an

email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my

questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out

what everyone else does because i can always use tips and

pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i

know that i can ask this stuff of you.

>I know how many calories I eat because I count them

> in MFP.

that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log

there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper,

or maybe nothing at all.

>I read that you

> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.

i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.

>I read in WLC or one of

> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.

weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob

know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a

different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from

exercise?

> If I'm more

> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.

it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you

are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think

that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my

stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt

so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better

where i stand on the hunger scale.

> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many

> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at

> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't

> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.

fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base

metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you

want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day

should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially

at the start of the day.

as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure

will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the

website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as

accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation.

(obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this

is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry

that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his

rec is too general).

MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how

fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how

much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you

have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show

you where you stand at any point of the day. this is

extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much

the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep

your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the

deficit you want in order to lose weight.

> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.

yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it

will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss.

on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT

less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those

days so that i dont go over.

> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for

> me to get started again.

::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest

day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon.

even though i love working out, i have to really force myself

to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle.

but really it comes down to mind over matter.

> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym

> which wasn't a good idea!

yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water

in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and

rest and recover after that.

> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in

> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment

> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I

> get home

the calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make

it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the

food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to

see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all

intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming...

knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and

knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and

ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels

more natural and i actually feel like im missing something

important if i dont log or workout. how strange!

>I've heard lately on

> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.

i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body

and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything

that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records

from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each

night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.

> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also

> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.

oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat

%. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not

sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that

(not right now anyway).

> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.

i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good

rest.

> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I

> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more

> time to exercise, bad news less money

im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since

you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?

>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to

> give up sometimes!

i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get

there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like

sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and

make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.

:*carolyn.

March 24, 2012

Thanks but I really don't know how to tweak the Fitbit or MFP so I'm just going to use them for counting my steps and logging my food, that's all. I have done the Trial and error method.....I just keep going up and down the same number of pounds. So I'm going to be more strict about it the rest of this month and next month. Hopefully I can get more sleep which will help.Thanks for caring, Jen

> According to my scale I have to eat 2,300 to maintain my weight.

> I try to keep my calories between 1,200 and 1,600 a day.

hi jen!

what kind of scale do you have? i suppose that you enter your

height, sex and age into it and, along with your weight, it

calculates your BMR, and based on that, it calculates your cal

intake.

so how do you know to eat 1200-1600 a day?

obviously you are trying to take your calorie burn into account

by reducing the intake that the scale recommends for a sedentary

person.

are you using the cal burn calculated by the fitbit to figure

this out?

personally i think that is a big range and that it seems kind of

arbitrary.

i dont mean to seem confrontational as i am trying to help.

i just feel that you should take advantage of the technology that

you have...wear your fitbit, use the food log at fitbit or MFP,

and follow their recommendations on how much to eat. their

recommendations will be much more accurate since they adjust

their calculations all day long based on reality. you dont have

to try to figure anything out or guess.

i detest the whole thing (writing down food, counting cals,

calculating deficits, estimating cal burn), but now that i have

these tools, it is a much more easy and pleasant task and im

finally succeeding.

i just want you nail this stuff down and to succeed too.

> I'm not losing now because I'm not getting enough sleep....I'm

> worrying about stuff instead. So going to bed earlier is my priority.

sleep is important of course, but basically it comes down to cal

burn vs cal intake.

are you saying then, that you eat more, or dont exercise, because

you are tired?

in that way sleep definitely plays a big part.

but even if you are tired and dont exercise, the websites would

adjust for that and tell how much to eat (or not eat), you just

do what it tells you to do.

:*carolyn.

March 24, 2012

Good luck, Jen.

Thanks but I really don't know how to tweak the Fitbit or MFP so I'm just going to use them for counting my steps and logging my food, that's all.

I have done the Trial and error method.....I just keep going up and down the same number of pounds. So I'm going to be more strict about it the rest of this month and next month. Hopefully I can get more sleep which will help.

Thanks for caring, Jen

> According to my scale I have to eat 2,300 to maintain my weight.

> I try to keep my calories between 1,200 and 1,600 a day.

hi jen!

what kind of scale do you have? i suppose that you enter your

height, sex and age into it and, along with your weight, it

calculates your BMR, and based on that, it calculates your cal

intake.

so how do you know to eat 1200-1600 a day?

obviously you are trying to take your calorie burn into account

by reducing the intake that the scale recommends for a sedentary

person.

are you using the cal burn calculated by the fitbit to figure

this out?

personally i think that is a big range and that it seems kind of

arbitrary.

i dont mean to seem confrontational as i am trying to help.

i just feel that you should take advantage of the technology that

you have...wear your fitbit, use the food log at fitbit or MFP,

and follow their recommendations on how much to eat. their

recommendations will be much more accurate since they adjust

their calculations all day long based on reality. you dont have

to try to figure anything out or guess.

i detest the whole thing (writing down food, counting cals,

calculating deficits, estimating cal burn), but now that i have

these tools, it is a much more easy and pleasant task and im

finally succeeding.

i just want you nail this stuff down and to succeed too.

> I'm not losing now because I'm not getting enough sleep....I'm

> worrying about stuff instead. So going to bed earlier is my priority.

sleep is important of course, but basically it comes down to cal

burn vs cal intake.

are you saying then, that you eat more, or dont exercise, because

you are tired?

in that way sleep definitely plays a big part.

but even if you are tired and dont exercise, the websites would

adjust for that and tell how much to eat (or not eat), you just

do what it tells you to do.

:*carolyn.

March 24, 2012

weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob

know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a

different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from

exercise? I may be miss-quoting Bob...it may have been someone else who said it but I don't remember exactly who...I have a few weight loss books. I only eat over 1,600 if I'm really hungry from not eating enough during the day or if I didn't count my calories at all or if I logged them after eating...bad I know.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base

metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you

want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day

should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially

at the start of the day.

as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure

will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the

website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as

accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation.

(obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this

is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry

that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his

rec is too general).

MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how

fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how

much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you

have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show

you where you stand at any point of the day. this is

extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much

the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep

your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the

deficit you want in order to lose weight.

I linked my fitbit to MFP so I'm not sure which one is figuring it out. But I know that if I eat over1,500 a day I gain weight most of the time. I also think there is more to weight loss than calories in and calories out. Everyone has a different metabolism. You have all kinds of hormones that control your body. So like said ti's not a "one size fits ALL" solution. I struggle mostly when I'm starving because I haven't ate enough throughout the day or it's been hours since I've eaten. Then I crave

sweets for energy. Sweets once in a while (if I measure and count them) is fine. I just have to make sure that I ALWAYS count them and that they fit into my food budget.

yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it

will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss.

on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT

less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those

days so that i dont go over.Exercise is also one way of raising HDL and I'm trying to get mine to go up. It's also a way to maintain weight loss.

yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water

in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and

rest and recover after that.I always drink a lot of water at volleyball (between games) but I don't drink water while I'm walking unless I'm on the treadmill. When I come home from an outside walk I drink a lot then.

My scale said I needed to eat 2,386 calories today to maintain my weight. I ate less than that today but with my bad luck I will probably have a gain tomorrow!im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since

you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?

Yes, but now I'm behind again in our rotation. I wrote my rotation up today.

i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get

there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like

sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and

make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.We'll see but I will try not to give up Jen

> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since

> I know you.

thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an

email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my

questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out

what everyone else does because i can always use tips and

pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i

know that i can ask this stuff of you.

>I know how many calories I eat because I count them

> in MFP.

that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log

there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper,

or maybe nothing at all.

>I read that you

> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.

i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.

>I read in WLC or one of

> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.

weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob

know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a

different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from

exercise?

> If I'm more

> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.

it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you

are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think

that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my

stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt

so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better

where i stand on the hunger scale.

> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many

> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at

> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't

> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.

fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base

metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you

want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day

should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially

at the start of the day.

as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure

will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the

website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as

accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation.

(obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this

is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry

that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his

rec is too general).

MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how

fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how

much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you

have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show

you where you stand at any point of the day. this is

extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much

the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep

your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the

deficit you want in order to lose weight.

> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.

yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it

will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss.

on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT

less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those

days so that i dont go over.

> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for

> me to get started again.

::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest

day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon.

even though i love working out, i have to really force myself

to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle.

but really it comes down to mind over matter.

> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym

> which wasn't a good idea!

yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water

in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and

rest and recover after that.

> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in

> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment

> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I

> get home

the calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make

it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the

food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to

see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all

intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming...

knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and

knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and

ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels

more natural and i actually feel like im missing something

important if i dont log or workout. how strange!

>I've heard lately on

> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.

i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body

and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything

that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records

from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each

night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.

> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also

> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.

oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat

%. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not

sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that

(not right now anyway).

> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.

i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good

rest.

> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I

> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more

> time to exercise, bad news less money

im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since

you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?

>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to

> give up sometimes!

i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get

there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like

sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and

make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.

:*carolyn.

March 25, 2012

> I linked my fitbit to MFP so I'm not sure which one is figuring

> it out.

both fitbit.com and MFP will attempt to figure out your calorie

requirements if you have them linked.

>But I know that if I eat over1,500 a day I gain weight

> most of the time.

you know your body the best.

>So like said

> ti's not a " one size fits ALL " solution.

im completely aware of that. i just think that fitbit and MFP

make a very good effort at trying to assist many differet people

with weight loss.

> We'll see but I will try not to give up

thats all anyone can do. but do change that 'try not to give

up' to 'will not give up'

:*carolyn.

March 25, 2012

ï»¿

Just had to pop in though mostly I'm staying out of this because I don't use these tools but...

1. Base metabolism, research shows (I can't quote any studies right now but I know I've read it somewhere), does not differ dramatically between most individuals. Some people do have a higher base metabolism but it is not usually dramatically higher (this is on average, there always exceptions). Men generally have a higher base metabolic rate than women because they usually have greater muscle mass.

2. At its most basic form weight loss IS creating a calorie deficit by burning off more than you take in either with increased exercise, decreased food intake or both.

That said, there are many things that will affect weight loss and there are many methods by which to achieve weight loss. I completely agree with that there is not a one size fits all solution for losing weight. I also see many, many people using whatever method they choose making excuses for not losing weight by blaming it on the method they're using, hormones, lack of sleep, bad moods, the weather, exercise (lack of and too much, take your pick), their mother, their spouse, stress, their coworkers, the phase of the moon, you name it. Any of these things can complicate weight loss but none of them needs to derail it completely and most of them can be controlled. When people admit out loud that they are making an excuse and can change something (though it might be very difficult) they usually do make more progress if it is important enough to them to really work on making the change. Sometimes we think something is going to cause us to gain weight and so we, consciously or not, eat more. My favorite one was my friend who believed that every month when she got her period she gained 5-7 pounds. That might be true but the problem is that even if it was fluid retention that would go away on its own, she often retained the pounds because she said, "I'm going to gain weight anyway, I might as well eat what I want." I've also had a lot of people on low dose steroids for short periods of time (a week or two) say "I'm on steroids so of course I'm going to gain weight." At a low dose and short period of time it usually doesn't cause it... you do. Beliefs about weight loss and our ability to lose weight, whatever they are, can be self-fulfilling prophecies and at their best they can propel us forward but very often their main purpose is to be excuses that often protect us from dealing with fear of failure or other deeper feelings we don't want to acknowledge and they don't always serve us well in the long term.

Medication though is one thing that can complicate weight loss that is very hard to work around for even the most truth-facing, dedicated person. Some meds definitely can interfere with weight loss, including steroids. Some people are on many different medications too and sometimes the combination also makes it difficult to lose weight. In those cases, I tell my members to ask their doctors if their medication is likely to interefere with their weight loss efforts and if so, ask them to tell them what would be a realistic rate of weight loss so they can adjust their expectations accordingly (if your expectations are in line with your reality then you are much more likely to see success as it occurs, feel encouraged and keep working at it despite potential obstacles). I also suggest that they ask their doctors if there is a different medication or combination of medications that would still be effective but that would not promote weight gain. That isn't always possible but it is always worthwhile to ask.

Re: LONG! : MFP and fitbit link experiment

weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?I also think there is more to weight loss than calories in and calories out. Everyone has a different metabolism. You have all kinds of hormones that control your body. So like said ti's not a "one size fits ALL" solution. I struggle mostly when I'm starving because I haven't ate enough throughout the day or it's been hours since I've eaten. Then I crave sweets for energy. Sweets once in a while (if I measure and count them) is fine. I just have to make sure that I ALWAYS count them and that they fit into my food budget.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.Exercise is also one way of raising HDL and I'm trying to get mine to go up. It's also a way to maintain weight loss.yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.I always drink a lot of water at volleyball (between games) but I don't drink water while I'm walking unless I'm on the treadmill. When I come home from an outside walk I drink a lot then.My scale said I needed to eat 2,386 calories today to maintain my weight. I ate less than that today but with my bad luck I will probably have a gain tomorrow!im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?Yes, but now I'm behind again in our rotation. I wrote my rotation up today.i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.We'll see but I will try not to give up Jen> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 25, 2012

, you just brought something up, an excuse I hear that always drives me NUTS!Â I can't stand it when people blame their age, thyroid, hormones etc as an excuse for them not losing weight.Â Yes, these can be a factor to some extent but really the solution is so simple - EAT LESS, EXERCISE MORE.Â That's it.

We try to make it more complicated than it is to try and trick the system but as Carolyn says and I love to quote her on this, " the hard work must be done'.Â For me that is less beer, burritos and pizza.Â I already work out plenty.Â I am fat because I eat too much!Â Not because of my thyroid or that I'm a middle aged woman!

Â

ï»¿

Just had to pop in though mostly I'm staying out of this because I don't use these tools but...

Â

1. Base metabolism, research shows (I can't quote any studies right now but I know I've read it somewhere), does not differ dramatically between mostÂ individuals. Some people do have a higher base metabolism but it is not usually dramatically higher (this is on average, there always exceptions). Men generally have a higher base metabolic rate than women because they usually have greater muscle mass.

Â

2. At its most basic form weight loss IS creating a calorie deficit by burning off more than you take in either with increased exercise, decreased food intake or both.

Â

That said, there are many things that will affect weight loss and there are many methods by which to achieve weight loss. I completelyÂ agree with that there is not a one size fits all solutionÂ for losing weight. I alsoÂ see many, many people using whatever method they choose making excuses for not losing weight by blaming it on the method they're using, hormones, lack of sleep, bad moods, the weather, exercise (lack of and too much, take your pick), their mother, their spouse, stress, their coworkers, the phase of the moon, you name it. Any of these things can complicate weight lossÂ but none of them needs to derail it completely and most of them can be controlled. When people admit out loud that they are making an excuse and can change something (though it might be very difficult) they usually do make more progress if it is important enough to them to really work on making the change. Sometimes we think something is going to cause us to gain weight and so we, consciously or not, eat more. My favorite one was my friend who believed that every month when she got her period she gained 5-7 pounds. That might be true but the problem is that even if it was fluid retention that would go away on its own, she often retained the pounds because she said, " I'm going to gain weight anyway, I might as well eat what I want. " I've also had a lot of people on low dose steroids for short periods of time (a week or two) say " I'm on steroids so of course I'm going to gain weight. " At a low dose and short period of time it usually doesn't cause it... you do. Beliefs about weight loss and our ability to lose weight, whatever they are,Â can be self-fulfilling prophecies and at their best they can propel us forward but very often their main purpose is to beÂ excuses that often protect us from dealing with fear of failure or other deeper feelings we don't want to acknowledge and they don't always serve us well in the long term.

Â

Medication though is one thing that can complicate weight loss that is very hard to work around for even the most truth-facing, dedicated person. Some meds definitely can interfere with weight loss, including steroids.Â Some people are on many different medications too and sometimes the combination also makes it difficult to lose weight. In those cases, I tell my members to ask their doctors if their medication is likely to interefere with their weight loss efforts and if so, askÂ them to tell them what would be a realistic rate of weight loss so they can adjust their expectations accordingly (if your expectations are in line with your reality then you are much more likely to see success as it occurs, feel encouraged and keep working at it despite potential obstacles). I also suggest that they ask their doctors if there is a different medication or combination of medications that would still be effective but that would not promote weight gain. That isn't always possible but it is always worthwhile to ask.

Â

Re: LONG! : MFP and fitbit link experiment

Â

weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?I also think there is more to weight loss than calories in and calories out.Â Everyone has a different metabolism.Â You have all kinds of hormones that control your body.Â So like said ti's not a " one size fits ALL " solution.Â I struggle mostly when I'm starving because I haven't ate enough throughout the day or it's been hours since I've eaten.Â Then I crave sweets for energy.Â Sweets once in a while (if I measure and count them) is fine.Â I just have to make sure that I ALWAYS count them and that they fit into my food budget.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.Exercise is also one way of raising HDL and I'm trying to get mine to go up.Â It's also a way to maintain weight loss.yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.I always drink a lot of water at volleyball (between games) but I don't drink water while I'm walking unless I'm on the treadmill.Â When I come home from an outside walk I drink a lot then.My scale said I needed to eat 2,386 calories today to maintain my weight.Â I ate less than that today but with my bad luck I will probably have a gain tomorrow!im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?Yes, but now I'm behind again in our rotation.Â I wrote my rotation up today.i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.We'll see but I will try not to give upÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Jen> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 25, 2012

ï»¿

Thank you, , those things drive me insane too. I had a member have an aha moment last week, realizing and admitting she was completely making excuses. You could see the light bulb over her! She didn't jump up and say, "I'll change everything now!" but she did seem much more thoughtful in her responses the rest of the meeting. She's been coming up with "reasons" for years too so this was really cool. We'll see what happens. On the other hand, I had another woman once again saying, "I've got medical restrictions and can't do any kind of exertion, not even any housework, all I can do is sit so I can't lose any weight." She had a different but similar excuse before her medical restrictions came up and she's also been in my meeting for years also not losing any weight. I often send notes of encouragement to struggling members and when I work with receptionists they go through the records, see people that have gained or are having a rought time and address cards for me and tell me a bit about why they've given me the card for the member. I told the receptionist in charge of the cards at that meeting, "Please, don't give me a card for her today. Maybe once a month, but that's it!" She said that's pretty much been her strategy and I was so glad she was thinking the same thing I was. The woman was NOT struggling. She was set where she was comfortable and even if she didn't like it, she didn't not like it enough to do anything about it. I absolutely won't give up on her but it takes me a lot of time to write those cards and honestly, I've got enough to do already. About once a month though, with people like her, I do Iike to just send a quick note that lets them know I'm thinking about them, don't give up, stick with it, that kind of thing, just hoping...

Like Carolyn's quote there's someone on VF that has in her sig line something like this... "Losing weight is hard and etting healthy is hard. Being overweight and unhealthy is hard. Pick your hard." I LOVE that and quote it (or misquote it as the case may be) to my groups when someone is whining about how hard it is to lose weight. Yeah, it really can be... but pick your hard.

Re: LONG! : MFP and fitbit link experiment

weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?I also think there is more to weight loss than calories in and calories out. Everyone has a different metabolism. You have all kinds of hormones that control your body. So like said ti's not a "one size fits ALL" solution. I struggle mostly when I'm starving because I haven't ate enough throughout the day or it's been hours since I've eaten. Then I crave sweets for energy. Sweets once in a while (if I measure and count them) is fine. I just have to make sure that I ALWAYS count them and that they fit into my food budget.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.Exercise is also one way of raising HDL and I'm trying to get mine to go up. It's also a way to maintain weight loss.yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.I always drink a lot of water at volleyball (between games) but I don't drink water while I'm walking unless I'm on the treadmill. When I come home from an outside walk I drink a lot then.My scale said I needed to eat 2,386 calories today to maintain my weight. I ate less than that today but with my bad luck I will probably have a gain tomorrow!im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?Yes, but now I'm behind again in our rotation. I wrote my rotation up today.i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.We'll see but I will try not to give up Jen> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 25, 2012

Great post, . I've been thinking about this all day. I feel like I need to explain what I meant by " trial and error. " I might not have been clear in my post. It doesn't mean that we try something, and maybe it works, and maybe it doesn't, and oh well! I meant using " trial and error " as a feedback loop. Error loops back to the next trial. If it doesn't loop back, then there's no improvement.Â

What I mean by trial and error is a scientific approach where you make use of your results, good or bad. It really worked for me even when all I was using was a simple 3 column spreadsheet, a paperback calorie book, a paper journal, a pen, and a simple exercise scale of 1-5. I didn't have a heart rate monitor. Â All I had was a TV and VCR. I weight 196 pounds when I started. I could barely walk around the block, I was in such bad shape. I felt horrible. I needed meds. My family was worried!

11 years ago it clicked. I took responsibility for how I had gotten in such bad shape. I took responsibility for changing my life.Â So, I logged all my food. I logged my exercise intensity. I tried to hit a weekly goal. At the end of the week, if I didn't lose a little weight, I knew I had to either increase my exercise or cut my food calories. I tried to keep it simple by changing only one variable at a time. That's how I learned what works for me.Â Â Oh, and I also took an upper division nutrition course at the university. Â I changed what I was eating.

I also have to say that real life does get in the way. Family deaths, a parent with dementia, injuries, bouts with migraines, medications, accidents, infections, menopause, a child with special needs, insomnia, overwork, work stress, an autoimmune disorder: over the past 11 years, I've had all of these. I bet everyone here could provide a comparable list. Not one person here has a magical, problem-free existence. Even when meds are the cause, you can still do things for yourself.Â

The " error " in " trial and error " is where the learning happens, no matter what, because shit happens -- to everyone. Everyone grieves. Everyone suffers. The task is to learn to adapt and change. It's your responsibility to learn to use your tools. Don't tell me that you won't do it because you don't know how. Learn.Â

Or you decide not to learn. Or you decide it's not the path for you, but then you need to make your peace with it. No more complaining or excuses or defensiveness. You learn to love your body the way it is now, and live your life as if it's your only life, with gratitude. Â Truly accept yourself the way you are now.Â

ï»¿

Just had to pop in though mostly I'm staying out of this because I don't use these tools but...

Â

1. Base metabolism, research shows (I can't quote any studies right now but I know I've read it somewhere), does not differ dramatically between mostÂ individuals. Some people do have a higher base metabolism but it is not usually dramatically higher (this is on average, there always exceptions). Men generally have a higher base metabolic rate than women because they usually have greater muscle mass.

Â

2. At its most basic form weight loss IS creating a calorie deficit by burning off more than you take in either with increased exercise, decreased food intake or both.

Â

That said, there are many things that will affect weight loss and there are many methods by which to achieve weight loss. I completelyÂ agree with that there is not a one size fits all solutionÂ for losing weight. I alsoÂ see many, many people using whatever method they choose making excuses for not losing weight by blaming it on the method they're using, hormones, lack of sleep, bad moods, the weather, exercise (lack of and too much, take your pick), their mother, their spouse, stress, their coworkers, the phase of the moon, you name it. Any of these things can complicate weight lossÂ but none of them needs to derail it completely and most of them can be controlled. When people admit out loud that they are making an excuse and can change something (though it might be very difficult) they usually do make more progress if it is important enough to them to really work on making the change. Sometimes we think something is going to cause us to gain weight and so we, consciously or not, eat more. My favorite one was my friend who believed that every month when she got her period she gained 5-7 pounds. That might be true but the problem is that even if it was fluid retention that would go away on its own, she often retained the pounds because she said, " I'm going to gain weight anyway, I might as well eat what I want. " I've also had a lot of people on low dose steroids for short periods of time (a week or two) say " I'm on steroids so of course I'm going to gain weight. " At a low dose and short period of time it usually doesn't cause it... you do. Beliefs about weight loss and our ability to lose weight, whatever they are,Â can be self-fulfilling prophecies and at their best they can propel us forward but very often their main purpose is to beÂ excuses that often protect us from dealing with fear of failure or other deeper feelings we don't want to acknowledge and they don't always serve us well in the long term.

Â

Medication though is one thing that can complicate weight loss that is very hard to work around for even the most truth-facing, dedicated person. Some meds definitely can interfere with weight loss, including steroids.Â Some people are on many different medications too and sometimes the combination also makes it difficult to lose weight. In those cases, I tell my members to ask their doctors if their medication is likely to interefere with their weight loss efforts and if so, askÂ them to tell them what would be a realistic rate of weight loss so they can adjust their expectations accordingly (if your expectations are in line with your reality then you are much more likely to see success as it occurs, feel encouraged and keep working at it despite potential obstacles). I also suggest that they ask their doctors if there is a different medication or combination of medications that would still be effective but that would not promote weight gain. That isn't always possible but it is always worthwhile to ask.

Â

Re: LONG! : MFP and fitbit link experiment

Â

weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?I also think there is more to weight loss than calories in and calories out.Â Everyone has a different metabolism.Â You have all kinds of hormones that control your body.Â So like said ti's not a " one size fits ALL " solution.Â I struggle mostly when I'm starving because I haven't ate enough throughout the day or it's been hours since I've eaten.Â Then I crave sweets for energy.Â Sweets once in a while (if I measure and count them) is fine.Â I just have to make sure that I ALWAYS count them and that they fit into my food budget.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.Exercise is also one way of raising HDL and I'm trying to get mine to go up.Â It's also a way to maintain weight loss.yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.I always drink a lot of water at volleyball (between games) but I don't drink water while I'm walking unless I'm on the treadmill.Â When I come home from an outside walk I drink a lot then.My scale said I needed to eat 2,386 calories today to maintain my weight.Â I ate less than that today but with my bad luck I will probably have a gain tomorrow!im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?Yes, but now I'm behind again in our rotation.Â I wrote my rotation up today.i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.We'll see but I will try not to give upÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Jen> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 25, 2012

Amen. Man, I loves me some wine, LOL. Man, do I love to eat. I love it so! I can out-eat any amount of exercise. If i don't lean out, it's because of my actions!Really, nobody has a magical, super easy existence. Life throws curveballs at EVERYONE. As adults, we need to adapt and make adjustments, or make peace with it!Â

Another quote that I like, even though I cannot stand the TV doctor who says this: " HOW'S THAT WORKING FOR YA? " That bounces around in my head. Reality check.

, you just brought something up, an excuse I hear that always drives me NUTS!Â I can't stand it when people blame their age, thyroid, hormones etc as an excuse for them not losing weight.Â Yes, these can be a factor to some extent but really the solution is so simple - EAT LESS, EXERCISE MORE.Â That's it.

We try to make it more complicated than it is to try and trick the system but as Carolyn says and I love to quote her on this, " the hard work must be done'.Â For me that is less beer, burritos and pizza.Â I already work out plenty.Â I am fat because I eat too much!Â Not because of my thyroid or that I'm a middle aged woman!

Â

ï»¿

Just had to pop in though mostly I'm staying out of this because I don't use these tools but...

Â

1. Base metabolism, research shows (I can't quote any studies right now but I know I've read it somewhere), does not differ dramatically between mostÂ individuals. Some people do have a higher base metabolism but it is not usually dramatically higher (this is on average, there always exceptions). Men generally have a higher base metabolic rate than women because they usually have greater muscle mass.

Â

2. At its most basic form weight loss IS creating a calorie deficit by burning off more than you take in either with increased exercise, decreased food intake or both.

Â

That said, there are many things that will affect weight loss and there are many methods by which to achieve weight loss. I completelyÂ agree with that there is not a one size fits all solutionÂ for losing weight. I alsoÂ see many, many people using whatever method they choose making excuses for not losing weight by blaming it on the method they're using, hormones, lack of sleep, bad moods, the weather, exercise (lack of and too much, take your pick), their mother, their spouse, stress, their coworkers, the phase of the moon, you name it. Any of these things can complicate weight lossÂ but none of them needs to derail it completely and most of them can be controlled. When people admit out loud that they are making an excuse and can change something (though it might be very difficult) they usually do make more progress if it is important enough to them to really work on making the change. Sometimes we think something is going to cause us to gain weight and so we, consciously or not, eat more. My favorite one was my friend who believed that every month when she got her period she gained 5-7 pounds. That might be true but the problem is that even if it was fluid retention that would go away on its own, she often retained the pounds because she said, " I'm going to gain weight anyway, I might as well eat what I want. " I've also had a lot of people on low dose steroids for short periods of time (a week or two) say " I'm on steroids so of course I'm going to gain weight. " At a low dose and short period of time it usually doesn't cause it... you do. Beliefs about weight loss and our ability to lose weight, whatever they are,Â can be self-fulfilling prophecies and at their best they can propel us forward but very often their main purpose is to beÂ excuses that often protect us from dealing with fear of failure or other deeper feelings we don't want to acknowledge and they don't always serve us well in the long term.

Â

Medication though is one thing that can complicate weight loss that is very hard to work around for even the most truth-facing, dedicated person. Some meds definitely can interfere with weight loss, including steroids.Â Some people are on many different medications too and sometimes the combination also makes it difficult to lose weight. In those cases, I tell my members to ask their doctors if their medication is likely to interefere with their weight loss efforts and if so, askÂ them to tell them what would be a realistic rate of weight loss so they can adjust their expectations accordingly (if your expectations are in line with your reality then you are much more likely to see success as it occurs, feel encouraged and keep working at it despite potential obstacles). I also suggest that they ask their doctors if there is a different medication or combination of medications that would still be effective but that would not promote weight gain. That isn't always possible but it is always worthwhile to ask.

Â

Re: LONG! : MFP and fitbit link experiment

Â

weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?I also think there is more to weight loss than calories in and calories out.Â Everyone has a different metabolism.Â You have all kinds of hormones that control your body.Â So like said ti's not a " one size fits ALL " solution.Â I struggle mostly when I'm starving because I haven't ate enough throughout the day or it's been hours since I've eaten.Â Then I crave sweets for energy.Â Sweets once in a while (if I measure and count them) is fine.Â I just have to make sure that I ALWAYS count them and that they fit into my food budget.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.Exercise is also one way of raising HDL and I'm trying to get mine to go up.Â It's also a way to maintain weight loss.yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.I always drink a lot of water at volleyball (between games) but I don't drink water while I'm walking unless I'm on the treadmill.Â When I come home from an outside walk I drink a lot then.My scale said I needed to eat 2,386 calories today to maintain my weight.Â I ate less than that today but with my bad luck I will probably have a gain tomorrow!im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?Yes, but now I'm behind again in our rotation.Â I wrote my rotation up today.i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.We'll see but I will try not to give upÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Jen> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 25, 2012

ï»¿

I use that quote too and can't stand him either. Great quote though! Drives my members nuts when I use it on them because they know the answer!

Re: LONG! : MFP and fitbit link experiment

weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?I also think there is more to weight loss than calories in and calories out. Everyone has a different metabolism. You have all kinds of hormones that control your body. So like said ti's not a "one size fits ALL" solution. I struggle mostly when I'm starving because I haven't ate enough throughout the day or it's been hours since I've eaten. Then I crave sweets for energy. Sweets once in a while (if I measure and count them) is fine. I just have to make sure that I ALWAYS count them and that they fit into my food budget.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.Exercise is also one way of raising HDL and I'm trying to get mine to go up. It's also a way to maintain weight loss.yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.I always drink a lot of water at volleyball (between games) but I don't drink water while I'm walking unless I'm on the treadmill. When I come home from an outside walk I drink a lot then.My scale said I needed to eat 2,386 calories today to maintain my weight. I ate less than that today but with my bad luck I will probably have a gain tomorrow!im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?Yes, but now I'm behind again in our rotation. I wrote my rotation up today.i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.We'll see but I will try not to give up Jen> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 25, 2012

ï»¿

Wow, wow and wow! I cannot for a second imagine you at 196 pounds and in awful shape. Wow. Amazing. Your trial and error feedback loop is so simple yet so difficult for so many people to do. You really were dedicated to improving your health and to facing the choices you'd made and taking responsibility for them. That is so hard. Many people like Weight Watchers meetings because of the accountability at the scale but it isn't enough for too many still because they don't take responsibility for their choices. They get the feedback but they don't try hard enough to figure out what isn't working because they don't really want to make the changes necessary. I don't know how to make people do that either. (If I did I'd be very, very rich.) I do wish I could print your post and hand it to all my members (and family members and friends) who are stuck in unhealthy loops where they aren't using the feedback loop to move to the next trial too.

You're so right too about all the things that can get in the way and about not letting them be game enders, just changers. They can be tremendous challenges and while it is totally okay to stop for a while and simply grieve or deal with immediately difficult situations it is when we allow them to become chronic conditions in themselves and we use them to define ourselves (I'm a victim of my circumstances way of thinking) we lose our way and it is so hard to get back. I see that a lot and have been that myself at times too (but not in many years thankfully). I have to admit because I've been there done that with so many difficult situations that I'm extremely compassionate to anyone in the midst of the shock, pain and terror of them but not so patient with those who seem to want to use them them endlessly to "explain" why they can't do this that and the other thing, including losing weight and getting healthy. I feel like I'm a harsh judge sometimes because who am I to say "it's time to get back to work" to someone else but I had to do that to myself. I really try hard not to let my impatience show though because it won't help them either.

Amen to your boldfaced statement. Amen. Very, very powerful. I wish I could print that part out too and just hand it to people. Pick your hard.

Re: LONG! : MFP and fitbit link experiment

weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?I also think there is more to weight loss than calories in and calories out. Everyone has a different metabolism. You have all kinds of hormones that control your body. So like said ti's not a "one size fits ALL" solution. I struggle mostly when I'm starving because I haven't ate enough throughout the day or it's been hours since I've eaten. Then I crave sweets for energy. Sweets once in a while (if I measure and count them) is fine. I just have to make sure that I ALWAYS count them and that they fit into my food budget.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.Exercise is also one way of raising HDL and I'm trying to get mine to go up. It's also a way to maintain weight loss.yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.I always drink a lot of water at volleyball (between games) but I don't drink water while I'm walking unless I'm on the treadmill. When I come home from an outside walk I drink a lot then.My scale said I needed to eat 2,386 calories today to maintain my weight. I ate less than that today but with my bad luck I will probably have a gain tomorrow!im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?Yes, but now I'm behind again in our rotation. I wrote my rotation up today.i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.

We'll see but I will try not to give up Jen> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 25, 2012

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I have been writing back and forth with a member who is also a friend who had done very well then just sort of stalled. She made some not so great choices that resulted in weight gain and allowed it to knock her down for months. It has been very hard for her to get back up but she is choosing to do so now and told me about some of the new choices she's making about how she handles things. Between my conversations with her and with all of you but especially after reading this post from you, , I thought of this and sent it to her.

Choices are just experiments. Some go incredibly well, some backfire in our face but we'd all be in the dark if Edison had given up after some of his experiments! Don't give up!

:-)

Re: LONG! : MFP and fitbit link experiment

weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?I also think there is more to weight loss than calories in and calories out. Everyone has a different metabolism. You have all kinds of hormones that control your body. So like said ti's not a "one size fits ALL" solution. I struggle mostly when I'm starving because I haven't ate enough throughout the day or it's been hours since I've eaten. Then I crave sweets for energy. Sweets once in a while (if I measure and count them) is fine. I just have to make sure that I ALWAYS count them and that they fit into my food budget.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.Exercise is also one way of raising HDL and I'm trying to get mine to go up. It's also a way to maintain weight loss.yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.I always drink a lot of water at volleyball (between games) but I don't drink water while I'm walking unless I'm on the treadmill. When I come home from an outside walk I drink a lot then.My scale said I needed to eat 2,386 calories today to maintain my weight. I ate less than that today but with my bad luck I will probably have a gain tomorrow!im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?Yes, but now I'm behind again in our rotation. I wrote my rotation up today.i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.

We'll see but I will try not to give up Jen> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 25, 2012

So I guess having hypothyroidism, stress ie worrying about personal issues and lack of sleep aren't reasons why I continue to go up and down in my weight....? REALLY? Jen> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 25, 2012

They can to a degree but I think often people use them as a crutch for an excuse.Â I hear it from lazy coworkers all the time (I wasn't directing this at you)

Â

Â Â So I guess having hypothyroidism, stress ie worrying about personal issues and lack of sleep aren't reasons why I continue to go up and down in my weight....?Â REALLY?

Â Â Â Â Â Jen> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 26, 2012

It seemed that way to me when this conversation was between Carolyn and I. She asked me some questions and I was just answering them. From now on I won't post those discussions here, I will email her privately as she is more compassionate, understanding and helpful. If you know what to do , why haven't you lost the weight? It's not so much fun when someone else throws it back at you. Jen > It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 26, 2012

I haven't lost weight because I eat too much, Jen, pure and simple. Â Not because of my age, hormones or thyroid. Â That's all I'm saying. Â We all need to take ownership of our problems and work to change them, not blame external factors all the time. Â Â

You get defensive and hurt so easily, even when others have tried to help you. Â How you feel or react is entirely up to you. Â Whether you wish to post your weekly weight stats and/or workouts is also up to you.

Â

Â Â It seemed that way to me when this conversation was between Carolyn and I.Â She asked me some questions and I was just answering them.Â From now on I won't post those discussions here, I will email her privately as she is more compassionate, understanding and helpful.

Â Â Â If you know what to do , why haven't you lost the weight?Â It's not so much fun when someone else throws it back at you.Â Â Â Â Â Â Â JenÂ Â > It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 26, 2012

To , I guess I expected too much. I expected more support and less lecture.Just remember you and EVERYONE ELSE here needs to take ownership for what they do too.I'm very disappointed with your response especially when I wasn't complaining or asking for help losing weight. I was only answering Carolyn's questions.I will keep posting my workouts (you rarely reply to them anyway) but not my weight-loss.When I achieve my mini-weight loss goals I will post them here but that's it. I belong to an actual weight-loss group that is encouraging...imagine that! Jen> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 26, 2012

Hi ,Thanks, and yep, I wore a size 20. You can use that post any way you like, edit or adapt it, if you think it'll help. Just take out any identifying info.Â Still, even though it doesn't always seem to sink in, at least you're introducing people to an idea. Keep planting those seeds.

I used to have photos posted, but I think I took them down at some point. I'll see if I can find my " before " pics

ï»¿

Wow, wow and wow! I cannot for a second imagine you at 196 pounds and in awful shape. Wow. Amazing. Your trial and error feedback loop is so simple yet so difficult for so many people to do. You really were dedicated to improving your health and to facing the choices you'd made and taking responsibility for them. That is so hard. Many people like Weight Watchers meetings because of the accountability at the scale but it isn't enough for too many still because they don't take responsibility for their choices. They get the feedback but they don't try hard enough to figure out what isn't working because they don't really want to make the changes necessary. I don't know how to make people do that either. (If I did I'd be very, very rich.)Â I doÂ wish I could print your post and hand it to all my members (and family members and friends) who are stuck in unhealthy loops where they aren't using the feedback loop to move to the next trial too.

Â

You're so right too about all the things that can get in the way and about not letting them be game enders, just changers. They can be tremendous challenges and while it is totally okay to stop for a while and simply grieve or deal with immediately difficult situations it is when we allow them toÂ become chronic conditions in themselves and we use them toÂ define ourselves (I'm a victim of my circumstances way of thinking) we lose our way and it is so hard to get back. I see that a lot and have been that myself at times too (but not in many years thankfully). I have to admit because I've been there done that with so many difficult situations that I'm extremely compassionate to anyone in the midst of the shock, pain and terror of them but not so patient with those who seem to want to use them them endlessly to " explain " why they can't do this that and the other thing, including losing weight and getting healthy. I feel likeÂ I'm a harsh judge sometimes because who am I to say " it's time to get back to work " to someone else but I had to do that to myself.Â I really try hard not to let my impatience show though because it won't help them either.

Â

Amen to your boldfaced statement. Amen. Very, very powerful. I wish I could print that part out too and just hand it to people. Pick your hard.

Â

Re: LONG! : MFP and fitbit link experiment

Â

weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?I also think there is more to weight loss than calories in and calories out.Â Everyone has a different metabolism.Â You have all kinds of hormones that control your body.Â So like said ti's not a " one size fits ALL " solution.Â I struggle mostly when I'm starving because I haven't ate enough throughout the day or it's been hours since I've eaten.Â Then I crave sweets for energy.Â Sweets once in a while (if I measure and count them) is fine.Â I just have to make sure that I ALWAYS count them and that they fit into my food budget.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.Exercise is also one way of raising HDL and I'm trying to get mine to go up.Â It's also a way to maintain weight loss.yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.I always drink a lot of water at volleyball (between games) but I don't drink water while I'm walking unless I'm on the treadmill.Â When I come home from an outside walk I drink a lot then.My scale said I needed to eat 2,386 calories today to maintain my weight.Â I ate less than that today but with my bad luck I will probably have a gain tomorrow!im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?Yes, but now I'm behind again in our rotation.Â I wrote my rotation up today.i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.

We'll see but I will try not to give upÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Jen> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

March 27, 2012

ï»¿

Hi ,

And wow again, I can hardly believe it. What a wonderful success story you are!! Thank you for sharing your story and you with us! If I use anything, I will be sure to take out all identifying information. That "planting seeds" thing is something I always have to keep in mind. It is easy to get discouraged sometimes, seeing some people go all out then fizzle and drop out, but now that I've been doing this a few years I see they do end up coming back quite often. Then I remember how many times I had to come back before it all finally clicked (too many to count)!! :-)

Re: LONG! : MFP and fitbit link experiment

weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?I also think there is more to weight loss than calories in and calories out. Everyone has a different metabolism. You have all kinds of hormones that control your body. So like said ti's not a "one size fits ALL" solution. I struggle mostly when I'm starving because I haven't ate enough throughout the day or it's been hours since I've eaten. Then I crave sweets for energy. Sweets once in a while (if I measure and count them) is fine. I just have to make sure that I ALWAYS count them and that they fit into my food budget.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.Exercise is also one way of raising HDL and I'm trying to get mine to go up. It's also a way to maintain weight loss.yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.I always drink a lot of water at volleyball (between games) but I don't drink water while I'm walking unless I'm on the treadmill. When I come home from an outside walk I drink a lot then.My scale said I needed to eat 2,386 calories today to maintain my weight. I ate less than that today but with my bad luck I will probably have a gain tomorrow!im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?Yes, but now I'm behind again in our rotation. I wrote my rotation up today.i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.

We'll see but I will try not to give up Jen> It is kind of confrontational but I won't take it that way since> I know you.thankyou jen. it is so hard to sound the way i want to in an email. im glad that you dont take offense to all of my questions. i am trying to help but im also trying to find out what everyone else does because i can always use tips and pointers to try to improve my own situation. we are friends, i know that i can ask this stuff of you.>I know how many calories I eat because I count them> in MFP.that is fantastic. i wasnt sure if you were using the food log there, or somewhere else, or just using your own pen and paper, or maybe nothing at all.>I read that you> shouldn't eat lower than 1,200 calories.i totally agree with the lower range of 1200 cals.>I read in WLC or one of> Bob Greene's that you can eat 1,600 to lose weight.weeellll, that 1600 does sound arbitrary to me. how does bob know that and how can he recommend that to everyone who has a different metabolic rate and a different burn each day from exercise?> If I'm more> hungry I eat more (up to 1,600) if I'm not hungry then I eat less.it is great that you listen to your body and do not eat if you are not hungry. i was having trouble gauging that... i think that over-eating for some time made it so i was ignoring what my stomach was telling me. finally my stomach rebelled and i felt so bad that i cleaned up my act and now i can tell much better where i stand on the hunger scale.> I don't think that the fitbit or the MFP is accurate for how many> calories I can eat. For example, yesterday I didn't exercise at> all but it said that I can eat 2,042 calories...I just don't> think that's right when I didn't exercise at all.fitbit.com will be trying to take into account your base metabolism, your past activity level, and the deficit that you want, and trying to predict what your calorie intake for the day should be. so that is why the number seems so high, especially at the start of the day.as you eat and exercise during the day, the cal intake figure will change up or down. if you have all of the settings on the website, and on your fitbit, set properly then this figure is as accurate as it can be for a website using a calculation. (obviously nothing is going to be exact, but i do feel that this is more accurate than a rec from bob greene in a book -- im sorry that sounds kind of snotty... i do love bob, but i think that his rec is too general).MFP.com does pretty much the same thing, but i like how fitbit.com will also show you the real-time stats... exactly how much your intake is compared to the actual amt of calories you have burned through base metabolism and exercise and will show you where you stand at any point of the day. this is extremely helpful because it doesnt really matter then how much the website tells you to eat in a day. you just have to keep your cals in lower than your cals out, by an amount equal to the deficit you want in order to lose weight.> I just think that I need to be more consistent with exercising.yes exercising will allow you to eat more, if you want. or it will give you a bigger deficit for more or faster weight loss. on days that i dont exercise, fitbit.com forces me to eat ALOT less food. i really have to watch my dashboard closely on those days so that i dont go over.> When I get derailed like I did from my foot injury it's hard for> me to get started again.::nodding:: i have the same problem. im ok if i take one rest day, but anything more than that then ive fallen off the wagon. even though i love working out, i have to really force myself to do it at those times. it can be quite a mental battle. but really it comes down to mind over matter.> I went for a long walk AND played volleyball in a HOT gym> which wasn't a good idea!yes, that would be draining! we really need to chug the water in those situations. you are smart to listen to your body and rest and recover after that.> I also need to be more consistent about recording my calories in> MFP and eating something small before going to a job assignment> (or at the place if possible) so that I won't be starving when I> get homethe calorie recording is a PITA, but at least the websites make it easier for us. of course it is very important to keep the food log or the whole thing is for nothing. there is no way to see where we stand in terms of weight loss if we dont log all intake for every day. but this seems a bit overwhelming... knowing that i have to log all food day in and day out, and knowing that i have to workout every single day, for ever and ever! but now that ive been doing it for a while, it feels more natural and i actually feel like im missing something important if i dont log or workout. how strange!>I've heard lately on> the news how stress and loss of sleep affects weight loss.i think that it this is true... lack of sleep stresses the body and mind and we cannot concentrate on, or perform, everything that we need to do. ive been looking at my sleep records from the fitbit and i have to be in bed for an extra 45 min each night just to get enough sleep due to all of the wake-ups.> I have a Tanita scale that measures weight and fat % and also> shows how many calories to maintain your weight.oh!! i have a tanita scale too, it just does weight and body fat %. i actually only use it as a regular scale because im not sure how accurate it is for body fat %. i dont really track that (not right now anyway).> Ok I had better get off here now so I'm not up all night again.i hope that i didnt keep you up too late and that you got a good rest.> p.s. I'm losing 8 hours of work a week because the student I> interpreted for in college dropped her classes...good news more> time to exercise, bad news less money :(im sorry to hear that jen at least exercising is free since you have all of the gear you need and the workouts, right?>I get very FRUSTRATED and want to> give up sometimes!i know. it is hard. please please dont give up. you will get there because you recognize the things that you need to do (like sleeping, logging food and exercise). keep trying hard, and make it as high a priority as you can, and it will come.:*carolyn.

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Re: [Exercise Videos]LONG! : MFP and fitbit link experiment

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