Diet Time!!! I'm starting, you're invited...

thanks Taylor Walker59 for the chart 🙂
Of course you helped! Even if what works for one person doesn't necessarily work for everyone, hearing about someone else's experience really helps me decide my next move 🙂
I wouldn't follow some strict, rigid diet. Honestly, I just stick to healthy foods, watch what I eat, and yeah, I slip up sometimes... but the weight is slowly dropping 😉 so slow and steady wins the race 😬 (fingers crossed!) 😬

Charles Kern28 said:thanks Taylor Walker59 for the chart 🙂
Of course you helped! Even if what works for one person doesn't necessarily work for everyone, hearing about someone else's experience really helps me decide my next move 🙂
I wouldn't follow some strict, rigid diet. Honestly, I just stick to healthy foods, watch what I eat, and yeah, I slip up sometimes... but the weight is slowly dropping 😉 so slow and steady wins the race 😬 (fingers crossed!) 😬

Slow and steady wins the race when it comes to losing weight. I dropped 44 pounds over three years, which averages out to about 15 pounds a year. Plenty of diets promise you that if you just stick to the plan, you'll drop 30 to 50 pounds in a mere three months—kind of like those UN diets—but that is way too fast.

When you commit to long-term weight loss, your body eventually adapts and starts demanding less food. It’s a physiological shift. Back when I was strictly dieting, my parents and brother used to snack on cookies and chocolate constantly—they actually had to hide the sweets from me just so I wouldn't be tempted to slip up. Now, they eat whatever they want right in front of me, and I honestly have zero desire to touch them. Sure, I'll have something sweet every once in a while, but that intense craving for sugar has completely died down.

Step by step, pound by pound, and you won't even realize it's happening—before you know it, the weight will just be gone.👍

Hey guys!!! I'm back after a little break. I usually stay quiet on the weekends because I'm away from home, but I'm gonna try to change that. Let me give you a quick rundown of what's been happening lately... 🙂
On Saturday, I headed over to Canada with my boyfriend's mom to make some jam at his aunt's place. We were out picking plums and pears in the morning, so for breakfast, I just grabbed a few plums and half a pear, kept them next to me, and just snacked on them throughout the morning. 😍
Lunch was a bit trickier because I feel super awkward being stingy with food when I'm visiting someone I've only met twice. They served chicken fried in a mountain of oil, fries, and a salad of tomato and cucumber, but I managed to hold my own even though my teeth were practically watering for it. I snagged about four helpings of fries—which I somehow managed to scavenge—and spread them all out across my plate. I ate them one by one, followed by mouthful after mouthful of salad, and honestly, I stuffed myself like a champ, but not enough to be unable to breathe. I was satisfied.
Around 7:00 PM, everyone decided they wanted pizza, so did I. But I ordered a tiny, tiny one, just with tomato sauce and a few mushrooms, and once again, I didn't really feel "full"—more like I overdid it slightly—but I was satiated. After that, we went for a massive hour-and-a-half walk! 👍
Sunday breakfast was oatmeal as usual, lunch was a bit of potato with a tomato and cucumber salad and one chicken wing, and dinner was just a handful of plums.
Yesterday—oatmeal again, then lunch was a salad of potato, tomato, and cucumber with a little boiled meat, and for dinner, I just couldn't resist, so I polished off three pieces of toast with a bit of that famous homemade jam, oops... So go ahead and judge me if you want, but I don't think I overdid it because folks... I LOST 7.7 POUNDS IN 2 WEEKS!!!!!!! WOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOO... 🎉
Look, Taylor Walker59, I'm just trying to help her through all of this 🙂
Truth is, I messed up a few times over the last two weeks, but success still knocked on my door. What helped was that after I slipped up, I didn't just give up and spiral into a binge; I just kept going. Before, I would've fallen into a depression and just kept eating because I'd feel like some loser who can't do what they set their mind to, but I'm only human! And that "will of steel" you guys talk about? You have to build that over time. 😉
Guys, we can totally do this!!!!! 😘 😘 😘

I've noticed that some of you tend to go with meat and salad for lunch, or maybe potatoes and salad... do you personally feel that the meat should be kept separate from the potatoes on your plate?

Melissa Perez10, honestly, I don't even know what to tell you about that... I've heard just about everything... 🙂
Charles Kern28, just keep going, girl!!! Don't let your mom get under your skin. Sometimes the people around us just don't get why we do what we do, mostly because they love us and accept us exactly as we are, but a few kind words can fix just about anything 😘 Just say "thank you" to her every single time; eventually, she'll get sick of hearing it... 😉

I’m stuck at that 5 kg mark; sometimes it creeps up to 6, but then it just slides right back...
Honestly, I haven't had much of an appetite lately because I've been dealing with some heavy heartbreak 😢 and yeah...

Hey there! So, this is my first time jumping into the conversation. Ladies, I am rooting for you all! I went through this entire process last year, and honestly? I feel absolutely fantastic now. Every single moment of stress and frustration was worth it!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just make sure you stay relentless and don't give up on yourselves!!! Kiss

Hey you lunatics!!! Sam Hughes5 here. Most of my day yesterday was just fruit—not even because I was forcing myself, my body just kind of demanded it 🙂
Heading out to Canada today, ugh... All those amazing pies 😁 Plus, it's peak bell pepper season, so I'll probably be breaking out in hives from all the spice, Hihihihih... 👍
SPECIAL, don't let your heartbreak drive you straight to the fridge, you gotta look out for yourself, girl! 😍
Anyway, I'll check back in on Monday. Fingers crossed for me, and keep the comments coming... 😘

Ugh, honestly, I told you I wasn't eating anything because of that... 🙂
I even totally forgot to stay hydrated, so now my lips are super chapped 😲

Mark Stewart4 said:Hey you lunatics!!! Sam Hughes5 here. Most of my day yesterday was just fruit—not even because I was forcing myself, my body just kind of demanded it 🙂
Heading out to Canada today, ugh... All those amazing pies 😁 Plus, it's peak bell pepper season, so I'll probably be breaking out in hives from all the spice, Hihihihih... 👍
SPECIAL, don't let your heartbreak drive you straight to the fridge, you gotta look out for yourself, girl! 😍
Anyway, I'll check back in on Monday. Fingers crossed for me, and keep the comments coming... 😘

The pies aren't the issue—the dough is egg-free, though one should be cautious about the selection (fillings can be quite light or incredibly high in calories). I usually make spinach pie with cheese without any eggs, or just a simple cheese pie—no heavy fats added—and everything stays perfectly fine.

Huge congrats to Taylor Walker59. Dropping 44 kg isn't some small feat—anyone who’s managed to shed 30 or more knows exactly how much grit that takes. We aren't doing too bad ourselves. For me, the weight slipped away through writing everything down and counting calories. No deprivation here; I eat everything, even chocolate. The only rule is if you overdo it one meal, you have to scale back later in the day to balance it out. My limit was 1500 kcal, though most days I hovered around 1200-1300. It’s honestly hard to believe how much food you can whip up using a mountain of vegetables and just a small piece of meat while staying under a few hundred calories. That still leaves room for fruit or a little indulgence. It's a shame so many people push back against the idea of counting calories. There really isn't a healthier way to eat for the body or the soul.👍 👍 👍

Unless you're sitting at 330 lbs, dieting isn't a rational move... You're just draining your system. First, you lose muscle mass, and only then do you touch the fat. I see people after two days of some fad diet going, "Oh, I already lost 4 pounds!" My thought? IDIOTS. It’s just water weight... the scale measures total body mass, not your actual body fat percentage. Instead of those extreme diets where every year there's a NEW AND MOST ANNOYINGLY "BEST" one... try actually moving. Like, jog for thirty minutes every other day, hit the gym 2 or 3 times a week, and most importantly... switch to a way of eating that is SUSTAINABLY manageable long-term.

Go ahead and tell all those people bragging about their diets: "IDIOTS... Instead of your carb-heavy, fruit-filled, watery cheat days, get moving, run, and eat right..."

And if you want proof of what healthy eating and a real lifestyle look like, go get a full blood panel done today—that's the only real evidence of what's happening inside your body. Do the same thing again in two months and you'll see that proper nutrition combined with consistent physical activity is the only real solution for your health!!!!!4>>

DON'T TALK ABOUT DIETS!!! TALK ABOUT SPORTS!!!

Mark Stewart4 said:Hey guys!!! I'm back after a little break. I usually stay quiet on the weekends because I'm away from home, but I'm gonna try to change that. Let me give you a quick rundown of what's been happening lately... 🙂
On Saturday, I headed over to Canada with my boyfriend's mom to make some jam at his aunt's place. We were out picking plums and pears in the morning, so for breakfast, I just grabbed a few plums and half a pear, kept them next to me, and just snacked on them throughout the morning. 😍
Lunch was a bit trickier because I feel super awkward being stingy with food when I'm visiting someone I've only met twice. They served chicken fried in a mountain of oil, fries, and a salad of tomato and cucumber, but I managed to hold my own even though my teeth were practically watering for it. I snagged about four helpings of fries—which I somehow managed to scavenge—and spread them all out across my plate. I ate them one by one, followed by mouthful after mouthful of salad, and honestly, I stuffed myself like a champ, but not enough to be unable to breathe. I was satisfied.
Around 7:00 PM, everyone decided they wanted pizza, so did I. But I ordered a tiny, tiny one, just with tomato sauce and a few mushrooms, and once again, I didn't really feel "full"—more like I overdid it slightly—but I was satiated. After that, we went for a massive hour-and-a-half walk! 👍
Sunday breakfast was oatmeal as usual, lunch was a bit of potato with a tomato and cucumber salad and one chicken wing, and dinner was just a handful of plums.
Yesterday—oatmeal again, then lunch was a salad of potato, tomato, and cucumber with a little boiled meat, and for dinner, I just couldn't resist, so I polished off three pieces of toast with a bit of that famous homemade jam, oops... So go ahead and judge me if you want, but I don't think I overdid it because folks... I LOST 7.7 POUNDS IN 2 WEEKS!!!!!!! WOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOO... 🎉
Look, Taylor Walker59, I'm just trying to help her through all of this 🙂
Truth is, I messed up a few times over the last two weeks, but success still knocked on my door. What helped was that after I slipped up, I didn't just give up and spiral into a binge; I just kept going. Before, I would've fallen into a depression and just kept eating because I'd feel like some loser who can't do what they set their mind to, but I'm only human! And that "will of steel" you guys talk about? You have to build that over time. 😉
Guys, we can totally do this!!!!! 😘 😘 😘

Pure irrationality right here...

There is no such thing as an effective diet for dropping pounds; what you actually need to change is your entire way of life.
Any diet that forces you to deprive yourself of things you love—where you cut out specific food groups just to see the scale drop quickly—is fundamentally a bad diet.
Eat everything you enjoy. Just be mindful of your portions and pay attention to when you’re eating. Drink plenty of water. Get moving every single day. Find a sport or some kind of activity that you genuinely enjoy, rather than picking something solely because its purpose is weight loss. If you hate what you're doing, it becomes incredibly easy to just quit.😉
Weighing yourself every day is toxic. Honestly, being obsessed with the number on the scale isn't healthy. Regardless of what that number says, make an effort to dress well and feel good in your own skin. Because as long as you are unhappy with yourself, you'll keep trying to solve that dissatisfaction the only way you know how: through food.
Try not to eat for several hours before you go to bed. Aim to eat your main meals earlier in the evening. Break your food intake up into more frequent, smaller meals. And NO!! Do not let yourself get hungry.

How fast the pounds come off doesn't even matter. Look at it this way: if you had been losing just one pound a month over the last year—something you wouldn't even really notice—you would be 12 pounds lighter right now. Now, take a moment to think about how your weight has fluctuated over this past year, and think about how much you've sacrificed, struggled, and felt disappointed.

The math is pretty simple. 🙂

Gerald Kern77 said:There is no magic child or secret formula—only one rule: watch your calorie intake. Cut out the high-calorie stuff (fats), empty calories (like soda or alcohol), and those hidden sugars tucked away in everything from cereal to flavored water... then try to load up on fruits and vegetables (especially low-glycemic ones), eat five meals a day, and get moving. It doesn't have to be a gym session; simply walking instead of driving or taking the bus, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or a quick bike ride—it all works. Results might not be instant, but they tend to stick.

My weight has fluctuated my entire life—standing 5'7", I've gone from a low of 105 to a high of 158 lbs—and I carry more weight in my lower body. Those shifts were relatively easy to manage when I was younger, but once I hit 35, the scale mostly goes up, and coming back down becomes a struggle, regardless of the diet. Because of high cholesterol a few years back, I had to overhaul my diet completely, and I’ve stayed steady at around 128 lbs since. After a few months of this new way of eating—slashing fats, sticking to turkey or chicken breast, plenty of fish, veggies, and fruit, and drinking nothing but water or sugar-free coffee—my palate shifted entirely. I used to crave chocolate; now, I can't even look at it, though I'll lose my mind over a bowl of strawberries...

Work keeps me busy, so I don't have time for constant workouts, but I never use the elevator, I park far away from my office entrance, and I try to find time at least three times a week to go rollerblading through Central Park—it's much more my speed than the gym. 👍

The truth lives here👍 👍

Mark Stewart4 said:Yeah, yeah... I’m honestly just laughing at myself at this point!!! Once again, I decided to take a "big leap" and once again, I completely blew it!!! Way to go, me!!! I don't even know how to deal with this anymore when my willpower is basically non-existent.
Everything feels totally pointless right now. I am so done with the constant setbacks and then the massive mood swings that hit immediately after I try to "fix things" with whatever quick fix comes my way!!!
Seriously though, how do you guys actually pull this off?!?!?! Is there even any hope for someone like me?! Why does everything feel ten times harder now than it used to be?! Does anyone even have an answer for that?!
It feels like everyone here has stopped posting too, and I’m left feeling like everyone has just given up on me—and honestly, mostly I've just given up on myself!!!
But look, even though I’m spiraling right now, I think I’ll actually make that kale dish stormylynx4 was talking about for lunch...
I feel terrible, just awful... My period is coming and I honestly feel like I could bite my own head off!!!

When you "mess up," just get back on track immediately. It's like a toddler learning to walk; they fall down constantly, but eventually, they start running. Soon enough, walking just becomes second nature.🙂

ironnomad14 said:I'm grabbing some burgers today... I mean, if I stick to the plan for two weeks and then mess up for just one day... it's not that big of a deal, right? I'll just get back to it for another two weeks... I guess it's just about taking two steps forward and one step back... maybe.

Why on earth would kebabs be a step backward? 😕
If you just grab the smaller portion, you're golden. It's never a good idea to completely deprive yourself of the things you actually love.😉

Totally backing Emily Hayes here!
Just eat normally—if you're actually trying to drop some weight, just try not to eat late at night (though if you're starving, grab a tiny snack) -- say, after 8 PM. You've gotta be patient. Also, finding a way to move that doesn't feel like torture is huge! For me, hitting play on my MP3 player and going for a run is pure bliss; just me, the road, and the music. And honestly, swap the sodas for water—those juices pack way more calories than you realize. Walking helps a ton too, and in a city like Los Angeles, it’s not even that much different whether you walk or catch a bus—the city isn't as massive as it looks at first glance (takes me about 45 mins by bus or an hour and 15 mins walking from home to campus, maybe 4.4 miles miles)
Can't think of anything else to add so I'll leave it at that
cheers👋

I started dropping weight once I swapped out my daily commute snacks. Instead of grabbing a pastry or a sandwich on the way to work, I started buying a pound of nectarines and eating those until lunch.

Sam Alvarez29 said:Unless you're sitting at 330 lbs, dieting isn't a rational move... You're just draining your system. First, you lose muscle mass, and only then do you touch the fat. I see people after two days of some fad diet going, "Oh, I already lost 4 pounds!" My thought? IDIOTS. It’s just water weight... the scale measures total body mass, not your actual body fat percentage. Instead of those extreme diets where every year there's a NEW AND MOST ANNOYINGLY "BEST" one... try actually moving. Like, jog for thirty minutes every other day, hit the gym 2 or 3 times a week, and most importantly... switch to a way of eating that is SUSTAINABLY manageable long-term.

Go ahead and tell all those people bragging about their diets: "IDIOTS... Instead of your carb-heavy, fruit-filled, watery cheat days, get moving, run, and eat right..."

And if you want proof of what healthy eating and a real lifestyle look like, go get a full blood panel done today—that's the only real evidence of what's happening inside your body. Do the same thing again in two months and you'll see that proper nutrition combined with consistent physical activity is the only real solution for your health!!!!!4>>

DON'T TALK ABOUT DIETS!!! TALK ABOUT SPORTS!!!

And what if you actually weigh 330 lbs? Then gastric bypass is your only real move. Been there, done that. Dropped 130 pounds in a single year. Gone for good. No diet on earth is hitting those kinds of numbers. Sure, eating right matters, but when someone's got over 100 pounds to drop, they’d need to be on a strict regimen for years just to lose it and stay there. Good luck finding anyone with that kind of discipline for years on end. 🙄

Also, go Mediterranean. More fish, less meat, tons of veggies and fruit, olive oil. You'll live to be 100. 😍

brightlynx11 said:And what if you actually weigh 330 lbs? Then gastric bypass is your only real move. Been there, done that. Dropped 130 pounds in a single year. Gone for good. No diet on earth is hitting those kinds of numbers. Sure, eating right matters, but when someone's got over 100 pounds to drop, they’d need to be on a strict regimen for years just to lose it and stay there. Good luck finding anyone with that kind of discipline for years on end. 🙄

Also, go Mediterranean. More fish, less meat, tons of veggies and fruit, olive oil. You'll live to be 100. 😍

I have to disagree here.
Look, surgery is definitely one option on the table. I'm not here to bash that route, nor am I criticizing you for choosing it for yourself.
The thing is, a healthy lifestyle isn't just some temporary "diet" you stick to for a few months or a year; it's a complete shift in how you eat. It's a collection of habits that you carry with you for the rest of your life.
The only real difference here is that you reached your goal much faster. Normally, this process takes more time. But honestly, once your body starts "singing" because you finally started treating it with the respect it deserves, the number on the scale becomes secondary. It doesn't matter if you lost 60 pounds or 30 pounds in a single year—what matters is that you feel better.
I respect your path and the choice you've made.
I just ask that you respect everyone else's paths and choices, too.
Please don't claim that your way is the only "right" or "good" way to do things. 😉

Look, I never claimed my way was the only way, just that it delivers the best results. Studies show about 90% of people cut their weight in half within two years of getting a gastric band. Most of them actually keep the weight off even after the band comes out. In the rest of the world, this is a routine fix for morbid obesity, and for tons of people, it’s literally a lifesaver.

I’m not so sure an 1100-calorie restrictive diet can really become someone's "lifestyle." Personally, I figured out which foods were healthy and what I should be eating a long time ago—mostly because both my parents had heart bypass surgery—but I ended up eating WAY too much of those "healthy" foods. It isn't just about *what* you eat; it's about how much. My issue wasn't my food structure, it was volume, and that's where the band helps because it physically limits how much you can shove in.
The magic part about the band is that you can stick to an 1100-calorie limit without feeling like you're starving. Not feeling hungry is HUGE, and anyone who’s ever tried to diet knows exactly what I mean. Right now, I get full off one tiny yogurt and stay satisfied for like 5 or 6 hours.
Why did I see results so fast? Because I stuck to that restrictive diet 99.99% of the time (okay, I had a slice of birthday cake), I didn't fail because I wasn't even hungry, and I crushed an hour on the elliptical every single day.
One big reason people crash and burn on diets is pure hunger—they can't stand it. And the heavier a person is, the bigger the stomach, which makes that hunger even worse. So, for anyone with a massive BMI (like, over 40), the most logical move is to get the band and solve the problem once and for all. Just because the medical establishment here in America is conservative about this method doesn't change the fact that globally, this is standard procedure, often done as an outpatient thing.
Besides, it’s not like this is the only life-saving surgery out there, so I don't get why everyone is making such a huge deal out of it.

Of course, whether or not someone actually goes through with getting the band is a personal call. You have to be honest with yourself and promise you'll actually follow the rules...