Newbie - Need to drop some fat weight

UPDATE:
Sorry it's been a while and I've been a busy guy. Anyway, I have lost 11 pounds and feel pretty good. The diet tracking in fit tracker has helped tremendously. Along with my handy dandy scale and various measuring spoons I can track pretty accurately what goes into my body, just as Cassie said. Also completely dropping the sodas,sweets,potatoes and fats I'm sure has had a lot to do with it. Still a long way from my goal but making progress.

Cassie,
Again thanks for the help, I will probably keep updating this post from time to time on my progress. And also if i have questions,comments, or concerns. So, check back every now and then if you can.

Rgds, Raz

Hi Raz!

Gosh thanks so much for the update! 11 pounds! I'm so happy I'm jumping up and down on my desk right now! Ok not really, but would be if i wasn't at work. Great job man! You should be so proud of your progress!!!

Yes, do please keep checking in now and again to give us updates. Also, you should take some photos so you can look back and see the progress you're making over time.

Great job!

Cassie

Yup i'm pretty thrilled! I've taken a couple pictures and will probably take more, even though the clothes speak to my progress just fine. This weekend I wore slacks that I couldn't even pull all the way up before. Pretty amazing, plus jeans that were a death trap now fit me. As of today I am dangerously close to 13 pounds gone! So a big thank you Cassie and Thank You Shapefit.com!!! I can't wait to report that I've reached my goal of 25 pounds off (by Christmas), I'm thinking it's reasonable and probably doable. Even if not, just getting closer and closer every week even 1 pound at a time is enough to keep me on track.

!!!

Yup i'm pretty thrilled! I've taken a couple pictures and will probably take more, even though the clothes speak to my progress just fine. This weekend I wore slacks that I couldn't even pull all the way up before. Pretty amazing, plus jeans that were a death trap now fit me. As of today I am dangerously close to 13 pounds gone! So a big thank you Cassie and Thank You Shapefit.com!!! I can't wait to report that I've reached my goal of 25 pounds off (by Christmas), I'm thinking it's reasonable and probably doable. Even if not, just getting closer and closer every week even 1 pound at a time is enough to keep me on track.

Great job!

I'm very happy to hear that you are having such great success! Its SUCH a great feeling when you go to put on a pair of pants that previously weren't fitting and you find that they fit just right!! So you want to lose 25 MORE pound by Christmas or just a total of 25 pounds? Assuming you're going for a total you only have 12 more pounds to go in 10 weeks. Thats very much possible. To lose 25 MORE pounds by Christmas you would need to be losing over 2.5 pounds a week... that would be pushing it. You really don't want to lose more than 2 lbs a week and I really like to see people losing closer to 1-1.5.

You are doing so great! Keep up the awesome work!

Cassie

25 more pounds by Christmas would be OUTSTANDING but just a total of 25 would be okay and acceptable. In the long run i would like to get down to 188-195 and stay there. Right now i'm 229.8 and i started at 242.6
So we'll see, i know i can reach that final goal i just have to stay focused and hopefully not over do it so i feel like quitting, which hasn't happened yet.

Hmmm... I think 25 more by Christmas would really be pushing it. Like you said, you really don't want to push yourself too hard because then you'll be burned out and not make your final goal. At the same time, its important to push yourself hard enough so you do see consistent progress, which will motivate you to keep working hard in order to keep seeing results. There really is such a fine line between pushing yourself too hard, not pushing hard enough, and making steady healthy progress. What if you went for 20 pounds by Christmas? Thats about 2 pounds a week. Totally possible. Then for the next 35 I would shoot for 1-1.5 per week as its most likely going to become harder to lose the weight the longer you go... so maybe for the next 35 lbs make a goal of June-August. The slower you lose it the easier it is to keep off.

Keep going, and don't over do it. I agree about the 20lbs loss by Christmas. Trying to lose another 25lbs, could be a little harder on you mentally and emotionally, and really you can be focusing on building yourself up on both fronts, not knocking yourself down. Especially as it's probably getting to the stage now, where you're getting good synchronicity between the mental, emotional and physical aspects of the task in hand.

The stronger you are and more confident in your own ability over the coming weeks, the better it will be, not to let yourself spend 5-7 days over Christmas, having a really big slide, where you potentially don't exercise and indulge too much.

Getting confidence in your ability to choose the right foods is a good thing, because learning to utilise such phrases as no thanks or not for me thanks, are a cornerstone to your success, without which you may succumb too often, and have fall off the wagon periods, lasting a few days sometimes.

So I concur with what Cassie said. Don't overstretch yourself, or aim a little too high, when you don't need to. Patience is the key to things like this and taking another 6-8 weeks than anticipated perhaps in the long-term, is better than forcing the issue and taking even longer, when you're spending too much time recovering from needless screw-ups.

It looks like you're on the right track and that's all that matters, that you be patient with yourself, and don't overstretch or over extend yourself emotionally and mentally with very taxing mini targets. You didn't start out with a really massive weight issue, like 350-400lbs +, judging by what you said, so you're not likely to be overstressing your vital organs right now, at the weight you are, so that's less to worry about too.

Slow and steady always wins the race fella, so keep taking it one day at a time, and no worries okay .

Well this is an amazing experience and I'm very pleased with the results so far. I definitely haven't over worked or tired myself out, mostly the opposite is true because I'm never hungry and don't feel as tired as before. Also I have to report that I am currently at 225.6 pounds and very excited. For a few days I thought i was beginning to plateau but then another pound came off so still doing well. Now i'm pleasantly annoyed that my once super tight pants are loose and baggy, LOL.

Well this is an amazing experience and I'm very pleased with the results so far. I definitely haven't over worked or tired myself out, mostly the opposite is true because I'm never hungry and don't feel as tired as before. Also I have to report that I am currently at 225.6 pounds and very excited. For a few days I thought i was beginning to plateau but then another pound came off so still doing well. Now i'm pleasantly annoyed that my once super tight pants are loose and baggy, LOL.

Isnt the whole pant thing such a giant pain in the a$$?! I totally know what you mean about being pleasantly annoyed... thats a funny way to put it. With that aside, AWESOME job on the weight loss! You're doing so great! How many pounds down are you now?

Well this is an amazing experience and I'm very pleased with the results so far. I definitely haven't over worked or tired myself out, mostly the opposite is true because I'm never hungry and don't feel as tired as before. Also I have to report that I am currently at 225.6 pounds and very excited. For a few days I thought i was beginning to plateau but then another pound came off so still doing well. Now i'm pleasantly annoyed that my once super tight pants are loose and baggy, LOL.

I refuse to buy new pants, so about half of mine are two sizes too big, and I have to roll the waistband down to keep them up.

Congratulations! It's a good feeling, eh?

Well this is an amazing experience and I'm very pleased with the results so far. I definitely haven't over worked or tired myself out, mostly the opposite is true because I'm never hungry and don't feel as tired as before. Also I have to report that I am currently at 225.6 pounds and very excited. For a few days I thought i was beginning to plateau but then another pound came off so still doing well. Now i'm pleasantly annoyed that my once super tight pants are loose and baggy, LOL.

I refuse to buy new pants, so about half of mine are two sizes too big, and I have to roll the waistband down to keep them up.

Congratulations! It's a good feeling, eh?

I've had to break down now on two occasions to buy new pants. I've gone from a size 7-8 (pushing 9-10) to a size 3-4, almost 1-2 at this point with dress pants. When mine get too big i go for safety pins... but even those only last you so long before they start to look ridiculous. Losing weight is great but it can be damn expensive! At this point i refuse to buy anything smaller than a 3-4 as i know i'm not going to be this size for very long. Long shirts and sturdy safety pins are a staple in my wardrobe right now!

Ya problem is at work i almost always tuck in my shirt. Luckily i have so many clothes which have not fit me nor have i even tried on for like 3 years so i've got some stuff to wear as the weight continues to come off. This last weekend i put on a size 38 pant and was comfortable! this is down from 40-42. those 38's i couldn't even pull all the way up not too long ago. I even have a bunch of size 36 pants that are just calling my name not too mention tons of shirts that i will hopefully soon be able to wear. the weight gain in the last 4 years has been so annoying that i refused to buy clothes only when i absolutely had to. so, i have more "small" clothes than "big" clothes.