Success weight loss stories

great advise folks! I like the fasting thing I think that would work for me. Must win this time, Sons wedding coming up, not til next year so have lots of time!! I am 11st and a bit (a big bit) and want to be 9 stone! I will do it...

I'm not really bothered either Ella, it just brought to my attention how easy it is to type the wrong word.

Possibly could be a loose flesh woman if I lose too much weight shysal!

Bananas don't take it to heart, we're not really bothered!

BAnanas . Are you sure you are not a loose woman? It would be a fun way to lose weight!

There's a thread about confusing loose and lose and I've just re read my post and I've put the wrong word I should have said lose weight not loose, it's easily done, I'm not a loose woman, but I am trying to lose weight!

I have been doing alternate day fasting since August and very easily lost 2.5 stone, but have come to a bit of a standstill at the moment. It means I eat only 500 calories every other day and anything I like in between. I plan to continue until my BMI is in the healthy range, perhaps being a bit more careful on eating days. There is a thread on this subject here. Intermittent fasting
Good luck to all who are starting out!

Is it not true that almost everyone who loses weight through dieting puts it all back on again? I believe we need food from all the four main food groups and it can be harmful to cut one out completely. I don't like 'low fat' options because they seem to contain other things to give them flavour. I have decided I would rather have a little butter than any amount of spread which has been filled out artificially. I don't like sweet things, so I never eat cake, biscuits. crisps or sweets. I never fry anything and there are no take-aways in my part of France. I really believe that it is better to eat smaller portions of 'normal' meals rather than diet or low fat versions.
I lost two stones in two years through taking long walks every day except when it was raining heavily. I am lucky to live in perfect walking country and to be totally free of all commitments so I have all the time in the world.
I put a few pounds back on over Christmas, as the only walking I could do was round Morrisons with my sister, and she tends to give me huge portions which I don't like to leave. I was able to walk for an hour yesterday and two hours today (although I had to be careful as the lane was covered in packed snow and was quite slippy). I hope to get back to 10 stone by the time I go to New Zealand in five weeks. I will be taking plenty of exercise there, as my daughter and her family love walking, swimming and kayaking.
I can't afford to put weight back on, as I have got rid of all my size 18 clothes and bought new size 14s.
I didn't set out to lose weight, just to enjoy walking, but it has certainly helped my health - my blood pressure is down and I no longer suffer from arthritic pain in my knees, hips or back. My posture has improved and walking makes me feel happy and relaxed. I look back in shame on the years when I lived in Chelsea and drove to work in Kensington High Street, and had a three course restaurant meal several times a week with plenty of wine. Now, I drink a glass of red wine with my dinner every night, but I use two thirds wine to one third water.

I should have added that I kept track of what I ate via an app on my iPhone called My Net Diary. I think this focussed the mind on what you were eating.

I managed to lose 2 stones a couple of years ago for my daughter's wedding. I just watched what I ate (calories) and did cut out bread, cakes, biscuits and pasta. I also cut down on potatoes and chocolates, but not completely. I started in the July and the wedding was at the end of October. I have managed to keep the weight off and can wear a Size 14 now when a Size 18 was getting a little tight.

I really don't eat a lot of bread now or pasta, but do indulge in cakes and biscuits now and then. And, of course, CHOCOLATE. I just keep an eye on what I eat and if I over-induldge, then I go carefully for a few days. I'm not a big drinker so I don't consume a lot of empty calorie.

I don't feel that I am depriving myself of anything I like. I'm just careful.

I am trying the 5/2 diet only started on Monday its going to be slow going for me and I really haven't noticed the 'fasting' day yet , I chose to just drink water on those days and chose Monday and Thursdays so I've only done one fasting day so far... I need to throw out all the Christmas leftovers though or its going to be a non starter... good luck BAnanas..
When I see a show with really obese people losing stones and stones I do ask myself how hard can it be to just lose a stone and a half? even one stone and I'd be over the moon..

cheelu, I'm embarking on the 5/2 diet, 5 days of eating normally and 2 days of 500 calories, today is a 500 calorie day and so far I'm getting through it with loads of green tea, but time will tell how successful it's going to be for me. The 2 hard days should not be consecutive. I'm taking a long term approach and am not looking for a rapid weight loss but one I can sustain. The two people I know who have done it for a while said it has made them feel a lot better and have more energy as well as reaching their desired weight, and more energy is something else I would like as well as weight loss. Like most I have piled on more than I would like to have done over the last decade, I used to be 8 stone before I had my children and stayed around 9 stone for a long time whilst they were growing up. I was diagnosed with an under active thyroid in my mid 40s and take 100 mcg of thyroxine for this, which I thought would help me loose loads of weight when I first started taking it,but it hasn't! I tried the no carbs diet a while back, can't remember what it's called now, although I lost weight rapidly, it gives you real meat eating dinosaur breath and leaves you very constipated and for me it made me crave things I wouldn't normally want to eat like fruit cake and frankly after a while you'd kill for a banana! It wasn't for me. I know you have kicked off with this post cheelu, but I would be interested to know if there are any GNs out there on the 5/2 diet, and if so, how are you finding it?