weight loss mission

Get the MyFitnessPal app, stick to 1200 calories per day or thereabouts, and run. Use the C25k app if you haven't run before to help you get started. A gym will help tone you up, but you need cardio, fat-burning exercise and running is the most efficient and cheapest way of achieving this. I run 4 days a week - 3 miles on a Monday, Wednesday and Fridaya no then a longer run on a Saturday (I'm up to 6.5 miles now) but I started at 1 mile each time and worked up from there. I lost 1.5 stone int he last six months doing this. Also, cut out wine/other alcohol and wheat, to stop you bloating.

One word.. Slimming World!! I'm not on it myself but I know so many people that have been really successful with it! My Auntie lost about 3 stone in less than a year I think!

If you don't want to attend the groups or can't afford to I think you can do a 3 month trial online and by this point you will know the ins and outs and can continue!

I need to get my arse in gear and do it myself

Hi thanks for the app ideas ive just added them to my phone and will start tomorrow. Heard about slimming world but it confuses me. I dont understand all the syns etc but everyone I know who has used it raves about it x

Alcohol is definitely empty calories, but don't make such a drastic change to your diet as cutting out wheat without doing research and trials first, and ideally consulting a doctor. Not everyone suffers bloating and many wheat products, especially wholemeal bread etc, have good nutrients in them. I find that if I eat a lot of carbs my digestive system feels sluggish, but I never feel or look bloated or see any difference in the amount of weight I lose (as long as I'm sticking within my calories obvs).

I would always advocate lifting weights over too much cardio. After a weights session your body will continue to burn calories as it repairs itself, and you'll get a strong body which I think most people would agree is more desirable than looking like a skinny rake. Just make sure you're feeding your body with plenty of protein before and after a workout, your muscles will use this protein to repair and recover and you'll get better results.

Try a kettlebell workout or ask an instructor at the gym for ideas for a dumbbell workout.

I would recommend slimming world as well. I lost 3stone on slimming world but since then I have out a stone back on. Want to get it off by May for our wedding but I can't seem to get motivated. It's killing me x

Slimming World reccommendation here too :0) It really is fab. You eat loads but its clean fresh healthy food and the weight loss is really good.

I'm currently on the Cambridge Weight Plan but only as a last resort.....it's hard! x

I find exercises classes at the gym really good.

Slimming world!! Best 'diet' out there.

Slimming World. I lost 4 stones in 6 months for my first wedding. First photo is January, second one July.

I know it's a cliche but healthy eating & exercise is really the only way to lose weight and keep it off. Fad diets are exactly that; a fad. As soon as you start eating 'normally' again, you'll pile the weight back on because your body is essentially starving itself during a diet and as soon as the high fat food hits you, your body will desperately try to regain the missing weight. That's why so many people do things like Atkins, lose a massive amount and then put it all back on again very quickly.

JontyDoggle has the right idea. Use apps to help you and build up your fitness. You'll feel so much better all round and you'll look great too and you'll really feel like you've worked hard to achieve it. Running is great for general weight loss (and it's free!), but if you want something low impact try visiting your local pool and doing some laps. Swimming is a great calorie burner.

Melanchloie thats amazing!! Was that purely slimming world or did u do exercise as well and if so what did u do. I wanna try slimming world but it seems quite complicated... also I dont get how u can eat as much as u want and still lose weight? Surely portion size must come into it? X

You can't eat as much as you want. It's just a different way of organising healthy eating, which is fine if that's the way that works for you, but it costs money where calorie counting is free. I'm also dubious about SW's use of "syns" as I feel attaching that word to certain foods just encourages people to feel even more guilty about what they eat when they're already struggling. And yes I know it's spelled with a Y, but it has the same meaning (if you look up 70s/80s SW material, they did used to spell it with an I).

I had a friend who did SW and was once a fairly radical feminist activist. When I questioned the syns thing on Facebook, she just launched into a lengthy explanation of what they are and how they work ("some people don't even use theirs!") I knew that already, and I'm pretty sure she knew that wasn't my concern. It was scary to see how evangelical she'd become. Riots not diets, indeed.

Anyway, I digress. The point is that all diets boil down to taking in fewer calories, and if you want to use a tool like SW to get you there then do so, but it isn't magic. It just provides the structure that you might not be able/inclined to make on your own.

Slimming World and 2 x 1hr sessions at the gym each week doing general cardio and mild weights work (e.g. kettlebells).

It's not complicated at all. There are only certain foods where you can eat as much as you like. Eat when you're hungry and stop when you're full (even if you haven't finished what's on your plate) and there's no problem.

The thing SW has over things like Atkins is that it is a balanced healthy eating plan and you can stick to it forever without it impinging on your lifestyle. I find it better than pure calorie counting (I have done MFP unsuccessfully) because it's too easy to use your calories on the wrong things and justify it by saying you're within your calories.

Wife lost 8 stone and daughter 5 stone without the help of any groups...just sheer attitude.

Beware of Slimming Worlds "free veg"......it isn't, count those calories as well...believing they are free will potentially slow down your weight loss.

Different diets work for different people....you just need to find the one that works for you. For the wife and daughter, it was their own hard work and strict calorie counting of all food intake, no excuses or calorie "carry overs" from one day to the next. Find the calorie intake that gives you a steady weight loss and stick to that. Be prepared for a week when the weight doesn't shift....you are all individual and weight does not shift logically. They allowed themselves one day off a week, including alcohol and any food they wanted, although apart from that stuck to their plan and combined have lost precisely what I weigh!!!!!

I have suggested that they blog what they have achieved including the range of recipes they use.

Peter

Calorie counting and going to the gym did it for me. I have lost two stone and yes it did take me a year to do it, but I now also have a toned body as well as a smaller body. I use a personal trainer once a month, she does my workouts for me and changes them regularly so I don't get bored. She also helped me with my nutrition - what to eat when and all that.

I use use the app 'Mu Net Diary.' It's free and it will ask you all sorts of questions and then tell you how many calories you can eat per day to lose X amount of weight in X amount of time. When you count calories you can eat what you want, as long as you count the calories. The biggest thing I have found is that attitude makes ALOT of difference - you have to get your head straight.

Good luck to everyone trying to lose a bit of weight and get a bit fitter.

My fitness pal, calorie counting, for a month - just to get a better idea of how much I should be eating - plus gyming worked well for me

Oo! I just remembered an interesting fact. To lose 1lb in weight you need to cut 3,500 calories from your diet. So next time you think 'I've only lost a 1lb' remember just how much effort it takes to lose 'just' a pound.

Thanks for all the replies. Well new day new start. Have downloaded some of the apps and will be tryin those alongside calorie counting for the next month. If no joy I will switch to slimming world. Appreciate all the help and advise xx

Totally agree with the majority of comments on here. I downloaded My Fitness Pal app at end of March. Stuck to 1200 per day (apart from a week in Florida and easter day). Also do spinning, zumba and light weights 4-5 times per week. I have lost 1 1/2 stone and gone down two dress sizes. I was a full size 12 to start with and now a large 8 at 5 ft 4 inches. I had no will control and love food, so if I can do it, anyone can! Good luck x

I'm rubbish at diets and just can't stop myself eating crap so I have been doing the dreaded 5:2 and also just exercising more often. I find the 5:2 really easy as on my 2 fast days,I do Tuesdays and Thursdays, I just keep thinking 'I can eat tomorrow!' And it gets me through. I literally eat and drink whatever I want on my 5 normal days and have lost 1.5 st over about 6 months. You shouldn't exercise on your fast days though as its dangerous.

I have myself just lost 3 stone in a year and with another 5 months until my wedding hoping to lose a stone more. I haven't joined any slimming groups, I hate being told what to do and eat. Instead I bought a FITBIT you can buy these from currys/PC world and amazon prices starting from around £40. It records all the activity you do and tells you how many calories you are burning. I then use myfitnesspal.com to record everything and I mean everything I eat and drink. I'm allowed 1300 calories a day but the more calories I burn the more I can eat. I have 6 days a week where I eat 1000 calories less than I burn so say I burn 3000kcals I can eat between 1300 and 2000kcals then Saturday is my cheat day and I eat has many calories has I want, but still record everything so I know I'm not going too mad. I eat whatever I want everyday but just keep in my limits. You do need willpower to stay within your limit to start with but I found within a few weeks I was fine.

I go to the gym 4 times a week, 2 hours at a time, I spend 1.5 hours doing intervel training cardio ( 45 cross trainer, 45 jogging/running) then 30mins doing weights. The cardio is great for calorie and fat burn but weights are really important for a toned body.

Hope this helps and good luck.