Hello newbies, and welcome to Buddy slim!
About Me:
When I first signed up with Buddy Slim, I was 280 pounds and desperately wanted to lose weight too. However I had no idea how to make those goals reality. I wandered around the blogs and forums, but I was shy and so never came out with the question, “How do I lose this weight?!”
So instead I wandered around. I found ads on Google for every pill, drink, and shake imaginable, but fortunately not having the money to do that, I didn’t order them.
Finally I found the website Sparkpeople.com and started reading the articles. The calorie range I got from Spark was like Weight Watchers for me. Their articles were like my library or book store…it was all free! And the forums at Buddy Slim & the Wildcats team became my support system.
I don’t/didn’t have that much money to put toward weight loss, but I made it work! You don’t have to have a lot of money. Most of my fitness things I find at thrift shops, discount stores and even yard sales. I recently found my stationary bike at a thrift shop for $10 and my step at a yard sale for .25 cents. You just need to keep your eyes open and you will find these too! Furthermore, because of my support system with Spark and on here, I know what things are worth buying and what is not.
I also do not feel deprived and avoid being termed the word diet. If you ask my mom, she would honestly tell you that I “eat like a horse” and eat the same foods that I did before losing the weight. Which is true in a way. First, you need to eat to lose weight. If you eat too little, your body can go into starvation mode and will store fat instead of losing it. Or even worse, it will sacrifice muscle instead of the fat. So I don’t starve myself and never feel deprived. I still eat at buffets, I just eat a little less of what I would have eaten before. For instance, I will have 1 or 2 cookies instead of 7. If I crave ice cream, I will settle for a portion controlled Skinny Cow treat rather than the 3 cups of ice cream I used to eat. I just calculate these foods into my calories for the day. Some on the site swear by “cheat days” which means that your meal or day is full of something you craved all week. Say you wanted ice cream, then that day you eat the ice cream you wanted and eat healthy the rest of the week. You will find out what works for you!

Purpose of this thread:
The purpose of this thread is to share everything that is working for us, or what we have learned about weight loss. Therefore, anyone new to this site (or even Buddy Slim Veterans) will have a place to find things like reputable websites that help losing weight, instead of scams.
The members of BS are all diverse. Some of them workout in gyms, meet with trainers, or favor classes to meet their needs. Others, like me workout at home using dvds and other things. Some follow specific eating plans such as Weight Watchers, others like me just count calories. Nonetheless, I am hoping they all share their expertise here!

My Weapons for Weight Loss
Websites:
Free Weight Loss Support - Free Diet Journals and Weight Loss Blogs - Weight Loss Buddy Online (you are here

SparkPeople Web Search (for calorie range, recipes, informational articles, fitness demos, workouts)

LIVESTRONG.COM - Health, Fitness, Lifestyle | LIVESTRONG.COM (forums, calorie range, some articles, good for men & those into eating clean/fitness)

3 Fat Chicks on a Diet Weight Loss Community - Powered by vBulletin (forums, good information if you read it)

Fitness: Exercises, Fitness & Nutrition, and Fitness Articles (like the magazine; fitness demonstration, articles, ect)

Favorite Books:

Amazon.com: The Biggest Loser: The Weight Loss Program to Transform Your Body, Health, and Life--Adapted from NBC's Hit Show! (9781594863844): Maggie Greenwood-Robinson, Cheryl Forberg, Michael Dansinger MD, Bob Harper: Books
*There are lots of BL books, I found this at a discount store. Has good motivation & tips, exercise demos, recipes, ect)

Amazon.com: The Abs Diet: The Six-Week Plan to Flatten Your Stomach and Keep You Lean for Life: David Zinczenko, Ted Spiker: Books
*I found this at a yard sale. It has a lot of great info about why diets don’t work, good exercises and how to eat healthier

Amazon.com: Walk Away the Pounds: The Breakthrough 6-Week Program That Helps You Burn Fat, Tone Muscle, and Feel Great Without Dieting (9781931722568): Leslie Sansone: Books
*This is the only book I paid full price for. It is very motivational, great for beginners. Has a really easy plan and a structured exercise plan. Good for beginners or those advanced in Leslie’s program.

Favorite Workout Dvds:
Beginners:
Amazon.com: Leslie Sansone: Walk Away the Pounds - Complete In-Home Walking System: Leslie Sansone: Movies & TV
As with the book, I love Leslie! I started out with these exact dvds, but I lost them when my friend borrowed but never returned them…you can use or decide not to use the weights.

Amazon.com: Kathy Smith: Lift Weights to Lose Weight, Vol. 1 - 2: Kathy Smith: Movies & TV
*If you are interested in a good strength program, this is good for beginners and advanced alike.

Amazon.com: Billy Blanks' Tae-Bo Cardio: Billy Blanks: Movies & TV
*I am not sure if this should be advanced or beginner…but when I did this particular workout I didn’t find it as hard as some of his others.


Intermediate & Advanced:

Amazon.com: Jillian Michaels 3 Pack: 30 Day Shred - Banish Fat, Boost Metabolism - No More Trouble Zones - 3 Pack Bundle: Jillian Michaels, Andrea Ambandos: Movies & TV
*The shred and trouble zones can be used as strength workouts and the metabolism one cardio

Amazon.com: The Biggest Loser: The Workout - Boot Camp: Bob Harper, Cal Pozo: Movies & TV
I am getting this workout for Christmas! But I heard it is tough

Amazon.com: The Biggest Loser: The Workout - Last Chance Workout: Jillian Michaels: Movies & TV
I just got this. It is great when you want only about 50 minutes to work out and need to do cardio & strength

Favorite Equipment:
*Dumbbells
*Swiss/Stability Ball
*Balance board
*Step
*Yoga/Pilates mat
*Pedometer
*Chair or stairs (for tricep dips, ect)

Motivation Tips
Join a team! I joined the Wildcats which really helped me! You have a team that supports you, and that you can reach out to. Knowing that I would be accountable with my food and exercise motivates me to eat better or exercise.

Sparkpoints-I am always motivated to earn sparkpoints! I started reading 1-3 spark articles each day, got spark points and lots of knowledge

Stickers! I was not seeing results at first, so I made a list of goals and bought some cute, but cheap stickers. Each day I stuck to about 80% of my goals (like eating the right amount of calories, drinking my water, eating veggies/fruits ect) I put a sticker on the calendar for that day. Eventually the month was filled most of the way, and I started seeing results!

Make non-weight related goals: I made nutrition goals such as meeting my calcium needs, or to lower my sodium. Fitness goals such as finishing the mile quicker than you have done previously, or even running a 5k or 10k are other great goals. Do not be discouraged if you do not meet your goals everyday or don’t meet a big fitness goal. I am sure that even if you could not run the entire 5k, you ran more than you did before you started exercising!

Weight Loss Pitfalls & Myths

Diet Pills & Supplements: Fact or Fiction?
12 Ways to Spot a Fad Diet
9 Cold, Hard Weight Loss Truths
Breakfast Cereal Scams
Detox Diets: Helpful or Full of Hype?
Expert Solutions: Metabolism Mistakes
Stop Dieting and Start Living!
How to Get Ripped Off - Guaranteed!
6 Weight Loss Mistakes to Avoid
6 Diet Rules Meant to be Broken
Discussion about Alli
Myths Debunked - Diet and Nutrition Center - EverydayHealth.com


Don't fall for these

My Favorite foods:
Breakfasts ideas:
Fiber one cereal
Kashi cereal
Thomas English muffin w/ egg (like a Mcdonald’s egg mcmuffin)
Fiber one pancake mix with added fruit (like berries, pineapple, strawberries)
Oatmeal with mixed fruit (like cinnamon & fresh apple, berries, banana)

Lunch:
Tuna sandwich
Peanut butter & banana sandwich
Peanut butter & blue berry sandwich
Broccoli & shrimp (if at Chinese restaurant)
Salad w/turkey
*Sandwiches on whole wheat bread

Snacks:
Almonds
Apple w/pb
Kiwi (I love fruits, so anything fruit)
Low cal yogurt
Crackers (like kashi or wheat thins) w/ Laughing cow cheese
Kashi snack bars
Cheerios w/ milk

Dinner:
Anything fish-flounder, haddock, salmon
Veggies: broccoli, cauliflower
Soups: chili, veggie soup
Quick lunch meals-kashi or lean cuisine frozen meals

I wasn't sure if I should include what I eat regularly, but I am including it.

Articles on Interest:
Lots of them here,
Meals and Food
Help choosing bread here,
Baffled by Bread? How to Choose the Best Loaf
Superfoods from The Abs Diet book,
Nutritious Powerfoods For The Abs Diet : Men's Health

Everything I know about Pilates

I tried Pilates almost a year ago, but I didn't like the instructor (Denise Austin) but eventually I found some workouts that were my favorites. Pilates focuses on the core or "powerhouse" (think your abs).

Amazon.com: Pilates Workout for Dummies: Michelle Dozois, Andrea Ambandos: Movies & TV
Pilates for dummies is good for beginners, there are helpful tips that pop up reminding you form and other things. However, an intermediate Pilates person would enjoy this too since there is an intermediate workout disc too.

Amazon.com: 5 VHS Winsor Pilates Set: Accelerated Body Sculpting, 20 Minute Workout, Basics Step-By-Step, Fat Burning, Accelerated Fat Burning: Daisy Fuentes Mary Winsor: Video
I found a Winsor Pilates workout at Good Will one day for $2! These are expensive, but good. If you keep your eye out for them, you might find them in thrift shops or yard sales.

Sites that might be helpful
Pilates - Exercises and Equipment for Strength and Flexibility - Pilates DVD Reviews and More

Pilates Exercises - Free Pilates Exercise Instructions

Pilates | Pilates Equipment | Exercise Guides | Fitness Equipment | Pilates Training

If your computer is fast enough to play a 12 minute workout online, consider trying this quick, 12 minute workout with Coach Nicole
VIDEO: 12-Minute Pilates Abs Workout

Free Workouts (Online!)

My computer (or maybe my internet) is fast enough to play online workouts.

YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.
I use youtube as my personal trainer. Need to see a demonstration of a push-up? Want to find some ideas of what to do with that Swiss ball you got for Christmas? Search youtube and you might find what you are looking for.
Also, I like to search for titles of dvds and see clips of them. It gives you an idea of the instructor and difficulty of the workout, and can help you make the decision of buying or not buying the dvd.

MSN Health & Fitness - Tools to Empower Your Best Health
Toward the bottom of the page are mini workouts for your upper, lower and core. They range from a few seconds to over a minute.

Exercise, Fitness, and How to Lose Weight - ExerciseTV
You can search by trainer and workout type here. Some of these are free, but others not.

Videos - Information and Articles
All of these workouts are free! And printouts are available for most.

Other Ideas:
MJ's Workout Dvd Swap
Check out the local library

MJ-I hope you are ok with me linking to your forum? If not, I will remove it

Essentials of Water
Drinking Water
12 Tips to Drink 8 Cups a Day

Emotional Eating, Overeating, and Night time eating
Take Action Against Emotional Eating
Busting the Top 5 Excuses to Overindulge During the Holidays
Is Evening Eating Destroying Your Weight Loss Efforts?
Is Evening Eating Destroying Your Weight Loss Efforts?
How to Stop Sugar Cravings
Stop Emotional Eating Before It Starts
Tips to Stay Full Longer
Overcoming Overeating
Outsmart Your Cravings with These Smarter Temptations

Dagny,

You have provided quite a lot of helpful tips on how to lose weight and also keep it off. I think the key is to be aware of making good food choices. Just like you I eat everything but in moderation. For the first 6 months after getting started on a weight loss program I did not touch a cookie, did not eat french fries. But as days went by, I started getting a feeling of deprivation all the time and I craved for junk food more. So I started eating everything again but in small portions and in moderation. That is what I have been doing for the last 1 year and I am happy to have reached a healthy weight where I don't have to be worried about being overweight. I don't care too much about having an ideal weight, I just hope I can keep off the weight I lost and live a healthy life style.

Need a good laugh?
Laugh and Lose Weight