So leading up to my 30th birthday this fall, I indulged plenty in food/wine. I've put on around 10 lbs. The past two weeks I have been eating mostly vegetables with a little protien. I drink water, coffee or unsweetened tea only. The scale hasn't shown a whole lot of progress. Maybe a pound or two. Any of you ladies have diets or tips that worked for you? P.S. I don't work out. 

I use the app "Lose It!" to track calories. You can put in your wt and your goal wt and it will calculate your calorie limit and give you a projected end date. It also considers excerecise that you have completed daily and figures that in on your daily calorie limit. I've been using it now for two weeks and it sure keeps you honest and thinking about what you eat and how much you excercise!... I can eat whatever I want, log it in and as long as I stay within my limit I am good... and I've lost weight!

Keto .......

1. In summary, eat real low-carb foods like meat, fish, eggs, vegetables and natural fats like butter or olive oil. ...
2. Here's what you should not eat on a keto diet – foods full of sugar and starch. ...
3. Drink water, coffee, tea or the occasional glass of wine.

I count macros and really like it. There are not "bad" foods or lists of foods that are not allowed, if it fits in your macros you eat it! Both Macros Inc and IIFYM have free information and free aps like MyfitnessPal make logging easy. The more you use it the more your food data base gets built up and the quicker it becomes to log and preplan. It really reaffirms how simple it is with it all coming down to calories in vs calories out

Yes!! Google flexible dieting. Definitely download myfitnesspal and you can add your goals and it will calculate your macros for you. 

Welcome to my world the last week.  My goal is to stay pretty strict with it until May and then take a hard look at it.  I'm on the heavier side of where I like to maintain right now and ugh!!!  I've just added in walking on my lunch hour 2 miles and hoping that kicks it over.  I wound up with the flu/pnemonia in Dec and REALLY enjoyed the holidays this year.

 Actually, a pound or two in a two week period is a nice loss.  You didn't gain it overnight and you will not lose it overnight.  Do you know how many calories you are eating vs how many calories you are buring each day?  Barring any medical conditions, you need to burn more calories than you are eating to lose weight.  A lot of people think because they eat "healthy" they will auotmatically lose weight, but you can over-eat  your calorie burn in healthy food also.  I use my fitbit app to track what I'm eating and how many calories I burn each day and it is very helpful in keeping me on track to reach my fitness and weight loss goals.

Weight loss can be challenging - the weight latches on so easily however it does not let go so easily.  Best of luck to you!!

Thanks for the tips so far :). I am using myfitness pal and it has given me a daily calorie goal of 1200. I normally eat 100+ calories less than that. I work a desk job but since daylight savings have spent more time at the barn/riding in the evenings. Hopefully the increase in activity will help. A co worker of mine had great results with Keto. I am trying my best to clean up my overall diet. Sweets and cola are my favorite things on earth

Are you tiny?  That's not many calories - I have a desk job also - 5'6 at 160 and way more calories.  Just curious - I do exercise 3-5 days a week besides normal barn/farm stuff.....whch gives me more calories to consume.  I would perish on 1200 calores.

I just tried setting up myfitnesspal - and it says for me to stay under 1200 calories as well.  I'm going to give it a go for a week and see if that makes a difference. (and no, I'm not tiny!  LOL 5'8" and 145)

That's just sounds crazy to me!!  Even with a desk job - we DO stuff! Clean house, chase kids, feed horses, fix dinner....maybe that's just me and I realize everyone is different....I would think 1200 would be for someone who sits at a desk all day AND on the couch all night.  Unless you put in more aggressive weight loss goal??  Sorry - it just baffles me with all the stuff I read about weight loss/fitness etc.  Even on myfitnesspal... oh good lort - it has me at 1200 too!!! LOL (I logged in real quick, I don't really use it because my fitbit app does basically the same thing)

I did a bodyscan for a workout challenge and it set me up at 1390 calories to lose 1 pound a week and at the end it has me 4.5 lbs lighter and upped my calories to 1420 for the same weight loss goal.  But it also showed pure fat loss and no loss on the lean muscle mass. BUT my fitbit says I can have up to 1700 calories on work out days.  So maybe some of it is contradictory and we need to find what works best for us as individuals.

What I'm noticing is that while the scale is not moving a ton - lifting 50# bags of feed and hay bales IS getting easier and my britches are getting bigger, so I'm super happy with that - although the overall scale only shows 3 or 4 lbs.

Don’t be afraid of carbs - just be aware of where you’re getting them from.  Focus on complex carbs not added sugars and white bread.  You need a fair amount of protein as well.  It is about balance.  And drink water - if you’re not properly hydrated you could be holding onto water weight as well.

Lifting weights will burn more than cardio and continue to burn.  Your body also gets very use to your “normal” activity level.  Where walking a mile may be enough for someone very out of shape, someone in reasonable shape (like a barrel racer) is going to need to push their body to the next level verses someone who literally works at a desk and plays video games all night.  It’s all relative 

A pound of fat is 3,500 calories.  Losing more than 1-2lbs a week once you’re past the quick loss waterweight stage is considered unhealthy.  

I did most of a Whole30 and felt great - I’ve since fallen off the wagon and indulged a little too much in the sweet tooth and boy, I felt it when I was able to get back in the gym this morning.  There is a definitive link for me between sugar and joint pain - my knees were killing me!  Time to get back on the bus.

A lot depends on how you have it set. If you have it set to lose 1-2lbs a week it essentially falls in to a cutting phase and that would be about right, depending on your age and activity level.

I follow a weightlifting work out plan and the cutting phase meal plan has me at 1,200 calories a day, but with the food on the meal plan I can barely eat that much, I usually end up being 100-150 calories under.

I have a desk job, but outside of the 9 hrs in the office I am very active + working out and lifting weights.

I focus on a healthy, balanced diet. Something I can maintain.

I dont obsess of calories but started tracking them for an 8 week challenge and I was right on target. IMO what is more important is your type of carbs and protein intake. Protein makes me feel fuller longer, so I am on a higher protein diet. I dont eliminate anything because I think it sets me up to fail but I make smarter choices.

For example:

-turkey bacon vs regular bacon

-regular greek yogurt vs sour cream

-brown rice vs white rice

- peanut butter for treats. Bananna w/honey and cinnamon is also a favorite for me.

I do workout in the winter, summer I am getting more than enough exercise. So I do about 30 min cardio and 45min to an hour of lifting/strength training. So my numbers will be much different than yours. However, look at making simple changes that wont send you flying off the bandwagon. Thats my advice.

I'm 5'1 and 138 lb. My goal is to get back to my normal weight of 127lb. 

I do well with calorie tracking and just making sure I have a calorie deficit, while also eating mostly healthy foods. But I also allow myself to indulge a bit on weekends. If you're on Insta or FB, look up James Smith PT. He's got a mouth on him and is pretty danged blunt but is all about a calorie deficit to lose weight, and he pretty well makes it his mission to clear up all the BS floating around the fitness industry. 

He sounds like my kinda guy! :) 

He's hilarious and British to boot! Definitely look him up! Just don't listen to his videos around small children....LOL!