Trying to Lose a Few Pounds with My Fitness Pal.
Before I had kids, I weighed around 95 pounds, no matter what I ate. I am 5'2", Asian, I love to eat, and I didn't exercise. I just didn't gain wait.
After I had kids, my weight went up to 140 pounds during pregnancy, and eventually settled at 105 pounds or so. Lately, at 50 years old, I find that weight to be creeping up to 108 . . . 109 but I was sure I wasn't eating more than I used to. I notice that clothes are tighter on me. I like to wear stretchy and sloppier clothes, and when I go go shopping, I can't find anything that looks good on me anymore. Finally, I decided to start thinking about losing some weight and exercising. There are no short cuts, but having an App that helps me stay vigilant is a fun way to lose a few pounds.,
Needing to work towards a tangible goal and to know that I'm making progress, I started to check out some smartphone apps to help me out. I started to use an App called My Fitness Pal. This App which you can download through the Google Playstore, or through itunes, asks for my age: 50, height: 5'2" current weight: 108'. It then asks me what is the weight I'd like to be at: 104. So with the goal of losing four pounds in 5 weeks, the App calculates that I should eat no more than 1200 calories worth of food each day. This food allotment increased if I add in some cardiovascular exercise. I have to diligently log in every food item I ate each day. For example, a cup of coffee with low fat milk is 67 calories. Two cups is 124. If I eat a bagel, it's 350, so on and so forth. If I consistently go over my 1200 calories target, the App tells me that in 5 weeks, I will be gaining weight. If I am under the 1200 calories goal, then the App tells me that in 5 weeks, I can be down to my goal of 104 pounds. This App forces me to be more aware of how much, and what kind of food I eat, and how many calories they contain.
I soon realized that 1200 calories go by with no effort. My eating habits are such that I constantly take in more than 1200 calories and since I don't exercise, I just keep gaining weight, little by little. I have now been using My Fitness Pal for 3 weeks. I am constantly inputting data of my food intake into the App, and I am definitely more aware of how much I like to empty calorie food items such as a glass of wine or beer here and there. I've started to cut back on high calorie food and relying more on salads, etc. If I over indulge, I will get on the exercise bike, or take walks so that I try to not go over the 1200 goal. I think I've lost about a couple of pounds so far, but I also know I need to keep at it in order to not gain everything back. I definitely feel healthier and more aware of my food intake and exercise needs.
I also use an App called Runkeeper to keep track of my activities such as running, or walking. As long as my GPS on my Samsung Player is turned on, the Runkeeper App keeps track of how far I walked, where I walked, and how many calories I burned. It is pretty cool. I now use it whenever I take walks outside the house.
Weight loss and staying healthy especially for middle aged people like myself requires vigilance and hard work. There are no short cuts, but having a couple of Apps that help you along is a fun and informative way to stay on target.
After I had kids, my weight went up to 140 pounds during pregnancy, and eventually settled at 105 pounds or so. Lately, at 50 years old, I find that weight to be creeping up to 108 . . . 109 but I was sure I wasn't eating more than I used to. I notice that clothes are tighter on me. I like to wear stretchy and sloppier clothes, and when I go go shopping, I can't find anything that looks good on me anymore. Finally, I decided to start thinking about losing some weight and exercising. There are no short cuts, but having an App that helps me stay vigilant is a fun way to lose a few pounds.,
Needing to work towards a tangible goal and to know that I'm making progress, I started to check out some smartphone apps to help me out. I started to use an App called My Fitness Pal. This App which you can download through the Google Playstore, or through itunes, asks for my age: 50, height: 5'2" current weight: 108'. It then asks me what is the weight I'd like to be at: 104. So with the goal of losing four pounds in 5 weeks, the App calculates that I should eat no more than 1200 calories worth of food each day. This food allotment increased if I add in some cardiovascular exercise. I have to diligently log in every food item I ate each day. For example, a cup of coffee with low fat milk is 67 calories. Two cups is 124. If I eat a bagel, it's 350, so on and so forth. If I consistently go over my 1200 calories target, the App tells me that in 5 weeks, I will be gaining weight. If I am under the 1200 calories goal, then the App tells me that in 5 weeks, I can be down to my goal of 104 pounds. This App forces me to be more aware of how much, and what kind of food I eat, and how many calories they contain.
I soon realized that 1200 calories go by with no effort. My eating habits are such that I constantly take in more than 1200 calories and since I don't exercise, I just keep gaining weight, little by little. I have now been using My Fitness Pal for 3 weeks. I am constantly inputting data of my food intake into the App, and I am definitely more aware of how much I like to empty calorie food items such as a glass of wine or beer here and there. I've started to cut back on high calorie food and relying more on salads, etc. If I over indulge, I will get on the exercise bike, or take walks so that I try to not go over the 1200 goal. I think I've lost about a couple of pounds so far, but I also know I need to keep at it in order to not gain everything back. I definitely feel healthier and more aware of my food intake and exercise needs.
I also use an App called Runkeeper to keep track of my activities such as running, or walking. As long as my GPS on my Samsung Player is turned on, the Runkeeper App keeps track of how far I walked, where I walked, and how many calories I burned. It is pretty cool. I now use it whenever I take walks outside the house.
Weight loss and staying healthy especially for middle aged people like myself requires vigilance and hard work. There are no short cuts, but having a couple of Apps that help you along is a fun and informative way to stay on target.
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