Gotta do something-goal 50 pounds gone by Disney? need advice please.

[Xtine76]

Well I was doing good during January and then February came and I gained all the weight back-got bummed during Valentines and went off the diet and was bad. Well anyway I have set a new goal I want to lose 50 pounds by the time I go to disney in August-this is 25 weeks away. Does anyone have experience with losing this amount of weight in this period of time by using portion control? I don't want to go on Atkins-I get a little freaked by the whole ketoacidosis thing-otherwise I would. Any advice would be welcome, thanks!

Is this a realistic goal? I'll be working out at least 3 times a week.

Thanks,
Christine

 

[twotoohappy]

HI Christine
My plan is eating healthy and portion control. I'm not sure how much your total weight to lose so can't really offer advise on if 50 pounds is legit or not. My total to lose in Sept. was 40 - 50 pounds and I've lost 18 pounds so far. I walk, drink lots of water, basically cut out sweets and caffeine, and I'm really trying to eat right. What I do as far as portions is I take a regular plate (not a huge dinner plate) and cut it in quarters. One part meats/proteins, one part carbs, and two parts veggies. For dessert, fruit. (I do cheat here and there, but basically I'm good)
........I didn't give myself a set time to lose my weight, because the pressure would be too much and I thought that it would set me up to fail. ...........................Just say to yourself...I'm going to start eating healthy, drinking water, and exercising and whatever weight I lose will be a bonus. If you fall off the wagon, start right back again. Good luck~

 

[newholiday]

I find that fitday.com helps me
It forces me to actually measure my food.

 

[StitchGirl88]

hi
Well since i am diabetic i have to stict to a strict diet and my dr told me to eat 5 peanuts, 5 walnuts, or 5 almonds. 5 mins. before every meals, or snack so say you and your family go out eat 5 of whatever one of those nuts you would like when you get there then for everything you have liike a salad then a your meal then dessert then you would eat 5 of one of those before each one!! If do you get it cause it is kinda hard to explaine!! If not i'll try to explain better if you would like!

 

[kayeandjim00]

Hi Christine! I am also eating sensibly (I eat 1200 calories per day except for once a week where I eat what I want. I do try not to go completely nuts but occasionaly I do. ) Since mid August I have lost 47 lbs. I was also exercising about 5 days a week until winter when it became a little too difficult to walk or jog with the weather. I began with close to 100 lbs to lose and that will have some bearing on your weight loss. If you have more than 50 lbs to lose you'll probably lose more in the beginning. My other advice would be to drink WATER!! It helps so much in not only helping you to feel full but flushing all those lbs away!! You'd have to average 2 lbs a week to make your goal. You may want to start your plan and after a month or two see where you are at and reevaluate your goal. Either way a trip to WDW is the BEST motivation isn't it?? Best wishes as you begin your weight loss journey.

 

[SnackyStacky]

I think it's WONDERFUL that you're ready to lose! You did it once, you can do it again.

BUT, I do think you've set an unrealistic goal. 50 pounds in 25 weeks is an average of 2 pounds a week, and that's a lot. Doctors say that a pound per week is a healthy goal.

When setting goals, I personally find that time frames set you up for disappointment. If you want to lose 50 pounds, that's a great goal, but don't say that you'll do it by August. Just say that you'll lose 50 pounds.

You can DEFINITELY do it!!!!!!

 

[KathyTX]

I agree with Dan. (I pretty much always agree with Dan. )

50 pounds in 25 weeks is an extremely aggressive goal. It is *possible*, but unless you're on a well-defined plan and working with health or nutritional professionals, it's not likely that you'll be able to both achieve the goal and stay healthy.

Before setting a really strict goal like this, ask yourself: How will you feel if you lose 25 pounds in 25 weeks? That's half of your weight goal... Would you feel like a failure for missing your target date? (I certainly hope not- you'd be 25 pound healthier!)

When you embark on a healthy eating plan like this, you'll probably have weeks with big losses, and weeks with no losses (or even little gains). The goal is to get healthy and fit- you're not in a race with the calendar!

That said, it is nice to set goals and to feel the satisfaction of meeting them. Small goals work best for me- I just watch for that next 5 pound mark.

I don't really set big goals with timelines. I DO chart my weight loss progress and then project where I can be in the future- more of a "It's *possible* for me to lose X pounds by X date." I find that I don't set myself up to feel like I failed if I miss the date. Instead, this is something I can use to motivate myself when a Krispy Kreme doughnut is tempting me... "I can choose to eat this doughnut, *or* I can try to lose that next 5 pounds." Does that make sense?

No matter how you choose to set your goals, or what eating plan you embark on, the MOST important thing is that you are getting healthier. Whether you lose 50 pounds by August or 25 pounds by December, YOU WIN, because you've improved your health!!

Kathy's motto: You don't need to be perfect, you just need to be better.

 

[helenk]

I do not know what your total weight loss goal is, but last year when I went to WDW, I had lost 25 pounds before I went and what a difference it made in my trip from the year before. I had started cutting down my portions in May and then in June started walking at least once a day. By the time my trip came the end of September I felt so much better.
I say set a realistic goal for yourself, you will be surprised what a difference even 25 pounds will make.
If you set an unrealistic goal, you get frustrated when you do not lose fast enough and you set yourself up to fail.

 

[raidermatt]

I agree with the others, 50 pounds in 25 weeks is a pretty aggressive goal. I wasn't able to keep up that kind of pace for that long, but that doesn't mean you can't.

I would put it out there as something to shoot for, but in the end, I think you have to be satisfied with any kind of consistent progress. Think of things in the long term.

Sure, it will be great to go on this trip 50 lbs lighter, but it would also be great to go 25 lbs lighter.

Then, you can pick your program back up when you return, and set another realistic goal.

 

[dizneegirl]

Originally posted by Xtine76
I don't want to go on Atkins-I get a little freaked by the whole ketoacidosis thing-otherwise I would.

I'm not going to push Atkins, or low-carb, on you, but there is a HUGE difference between the state of KETOSIS (which you enter in the weight loss phase of Atkins or other very low-carb plans), and the diabetic state of ketoacidosis.

If you'd like to read more, look here: Isn't ketosis a dangerous state for your body to be in?