Not Sure where or how to start

I am not only new to this forum, but also new to the world of weight loss.

I spent all last night on goggle and was blown away by the amount of info thats out there and to be honest it was scary.

I have no idea where to start, only that I really need to do something about my weight, my lifestyle and it has to be a change for life, not just a few months.

So where do I start?

Thats why I am here, I have no idea where to start, but this forum seemed to stand out from the crowd, maybe it was the forum rules and lack of "spam" on the posts that sold this forum to me, but I hope with your help I can start my journey to a better life.

Ok so maybe I should tell you alittle about me.

My name is Chris, I am 36 years old, a stay at home dad. It seems as I stayed at home with the kids I lost touch with friends and started the bad habits that have caused me so many problems now. I eat to much, I dont do any exercise and the last few years started to drink to much also.

With such a poor lifestyle came health problems, the biggest surprise for me was when my I was told I was suffering with depression. I found talking to anyone about this really hard and after a few months of feeling really down and unsure of what to do I decided that I needed to find support and advice to turn things around.

So this is my first step, hopefully I can find out where to start and what to do to lose weight, I think my issues with weight is the corner stone to putting my life back on track.

So the big question, where do I start?
 
Hi Chris, Well done for deciding that you want to do something about it! Now your off to a better lifestyle and healthier as well.

This is a fab site and I know you are going to get all the help and advice you need - and some you don't..lol!..:D

Have you decided which regime you are going to follow or will you just do calorie counting?
When you have that sorted - and it means putting some effort into getting info on the subject - you can then start up a diary to let us know how you are getting on and we can visit you to keep an eye on what you are up to!!...:)

Well, if that hasn't put you off by now nothing will, hey?

All the very best to you...
 
Thank you for your reply and warm welcome Emmaline, The choices are staggering, and if I am honest it seems as if theres too much choice!

So far my simple plan that I formed in my head was :-

1. Do some form of exercise, that can be done behind closed doors, dont think I have the confidence to go to the gym or swimming just yet.

2. Lose a lot of weight.

3. Stop drinking so much alcohol.

Thats as far as I have got with it, just some simple goals, I thought just goggle it and we see one or 2 options, but my god this 100's if not 1000's of different guides, diets, pills etc.

All I know at the moment it has to be a lifestyle change and not just a quick fix, from reading the wondeful posts on here it seems I need to set some real goals, target weights to aim for, just not sure what my ideal weight would be.

So really I am a complete newbie, so any advice would be most welcome.


 
Hi chris,

Well done for taking the first step and deciding to improve your health. You've found a wonderful forum that is here 24/7 to help inspire you and keep you focused on whichever plan you wish to follow & the great thing is if you ever feel stuck on your weightloss journey or anything there will be people on here that will give you great advice, encouragement & virtual hugs too keep you going.

I am following slimming world and find it's great as I get to enjoy the food that I like and it's easy to cook food that all of the family will enjoy and find it much less restrictive than any other eating plan that I have come accross. Each eating plan on here has it's own community but we all have the same goal which is to lose weight and improve our health.

Depression affects people in different ways. Although it may have been a bit of a shock to be diagnosed with it which is understandable the good thing is that you are aware of what is making you feel this way. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is a good way of trying to overcome depression & anxiety hopefully without the need to go onto long term medication but each case is individual and you need to speak to your GP about the best treatment for you.

All the best on your journey to great health and happiness. The link to my food diary is below my rambling I just hope it helps.:)
 
Thanks Lady A, One of the main reasons for my compelete lifestyle change is because my GP told me I should go on medication, something I wish to avoid.
I know I need to be more active, but its a bit like the chicken and the egg, I dont feel I can go do things in public because of my weight, I try to hide my body shape by wearing big coats and lots of layers, I just cant face going swimming for example, my son has been asking me forever to take him and I just cant face it. But I need to be more active to help lose weight, a nasty catch 22 and I now understand why some peope can have such a problem.

Knowing what you have to do and doing it is miles apart, I know what I have to do to be healthy, the hard part is learning to do it!

Anyway, I feel like the weight of the world is lifted from my back, just by talking to someone about this and I really do have hope that this is the start of a new beginning.

So I have decided that because I dont think I can face going to groups, I will try calorie counting with some form of light workout at home, hopefully when I feel better about myself I can take the next step and join a gym or even manage to go swimming!

Thanks again for the support and hopefully we can all reach our goals.
 
Now you have taken the next step and chosen the calorie counting which is partly what I am doing along with the v. old WW. It is good to have something to refer to for your cc and may I suggest a little book that I have found invaluable.
It's the Collins Carb Counter and it's pocket sized, costs literally only a few pence and you can buy it online from Amazon. It gives the breakdown of carbs, fibre, calories, protein and fat for a tremendous amount of foods including some take-away meals like McDonalds and the like. Even gives menu suggestion for a variety of slimming regimes, it's a fab little book and I just know it will help you a great deal.
AND it will give you the correct intake of calories you should be having for your gender and height!!

Nuff said, go to it Chris, and all the very best to a slimmer and happier and more confident you....:)
 
Chris - take a look at the Atkins forum on here. It's a diet men often do well on as you ear lots of meat, cheese, butter and eggs. You have to cut out carbohydrates like bread, pasta, sweet things, but you can eat loads of the high protein and fat foods. We have a couple of guys on the forum who have lost masses of weight and will know how you feel.
 
Thanks Lady A, One of the main reasons for my compelete lifestyle change is because my GP told me I should go on medication, something I wish to avoid.
I know I need to be more active, but its a bit like the chicken and the egg, I dont feel I can go do things in public because of my weight, I try to hide my body shape by wearing big coats and lots of layers, I just cant face going swimming for example, my son has been asking me forever to take him and I just cant face it. But I need to be more active to help lose weight, a nasty catch 22 and I now understand why some peope can have such a problem.

Knowing what you have to do and doing it is miles apart, I know what I have to do to be healthy, the hard part is learning to do it!

Anyway, I feel like the weight of the world is lifted from my back, just by talking to someone about this and I really do have hope that this is the start of a new beginning.

So I have decided that because I dont think I can face going to groups, I will try calorie counting with some form of light workout at home, hopefully when I feel better about myself I can take the next step and join a gym or even manage to go swimming!

Thanks again for the support and hopefully we can all reach our goals.


Hey Chris no worries about the support I'm just one of many of the lovely people on here :D Jokes aside I'm so pleased that you have decided to calorie count and do light exercises as every little helps. You'll be playing football in the park with the kids in no time! All the best on your journey hun. Gimme a shout if you need any help. :)
 
Hi and welcome. You have been given a lot of advice. I like your plan too.

Instead of going to a class have you considered following the diet online. Check out the websites of well-known diets. Also firms like Boots, Tesco and Sainsburys have diet advice.

Good luck

Irene xx
 
hi chris welcome to minimins if ur calorie counting there is a site called myfitnesspal where you have an online diary that u fill in each day and it takes the cals off for you it will also tell you how many cals you should be on and it's free use it as well as minimins for a bit of extra support good luck losing the lbs :)
 
Thanks again to everyone for your advice and tips.

I have become a member of myfitnesspal and will start using that from tomorrow.

Its been a confusing first week, but I think I am starting to work out a plan of action. My first week has not really been the best from a diet view point, I had all the wrong foods in the fridge!

So I took the view that I would not waste the foods, but I would eat less of them and now this week I can buy more healthy shopping.

I have tried to drink 8 glasses of water a day, but i am not used to it and on the first week it seems I avg around 3-4 glasses, but its a start.

on the plus said I have managed 20 mins light workout using a game on my sons xbox 360, called the biggest loser. Its been fun, but has shown me how unfit I really am, basic things have been very hard.

I am also quite pleased that I managed to stay off the wine all week and only had 2 glasses on saturday and Sunday, thats a big improvement for me.

So, I will start a diary from tomorrow and start to really track everything from then, I hope I havent put any weight on this week and I have stayed off the scales until tomorrow, with luck I have stayed the same or maybe even lost a pound or two.

Right, so off I go to make a eating plan for next week and a shopping list.

I think I will try to do 1600 kcals per day, is that too low or not low enough?

thanks again for the support!
 
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