Can I really lose six inches or more off my waist?

[Anonymous]

Do you like salmon and eat it cold over salad? I went to costco, picked up one and cooked it with a little salt, pepper and lime juice. Will eat it over lettuce and tomatoes with light dressing most of the week. Easy.

[Anonymous]

I think that number of inches, given the relatively modest amount of weight you need to lose, is probably unrealistic. My hunch is you'll lose 3-4 inches, but probably not six.

I struggle with that same number. I've lost a LOT of weight over the past 16 months, am now a healthy weight, and have lost 19 inches off my waist. And I'm still at 39inches. I can't imagine how much more weight I'd need to lose to get below 35, but am sure I would be uncomfortably/unhealthily skinny at whatever weight that took. (Or I'd need to have skin removal surgery.)

I've decided not to obsess about that particular number. Sounds like maybe you'll be in a similar position - pick which of the metrics correlates with optimal weight and health, and accept that you may not have "perfect" numbers across the board and that's ok.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think that number of inches, given the relatively modest amount of weight you need to lose, is probably unrealistic. My hunch is you'll lose 3-4 inches, but probably not six.

I struggle with that same number. I've lost a LOT of weight over the past 16 months, am now a healthy weight, and have lost 19 inches off my waist. And I'm still at 39inches. I can't imagine how much more weight I'd need to lose to get below 35, but am sure I would be uncomfortably/unhealthily skinny at whatever weight that took. (Or I'd need to have skin removal surgery.)

I've decided not to obsess about that particular number. Sounds like maybe you'll be in a similar position - pick which of the metrics correlates with optimal weight and health, and accept that you may not have "perfect" numbers across the board and that's ok.

Good luck!

OP here, and yes you are right. I was going off the >35 inch waist risk for women, but I was measuring my hips, not my waist. I am at 37 inches so do think I can lose enough to get under 35 inches. My concern isn’t to look lean or lose pounds (though I won’t mind both!), but to lose the visceral fat that is increasing my risks for disease in later years. I’ve already lost an inch, and believe the changes I am making will get me under 35 inches eventually. I’m in this for the long run, I can’t wait to be strong and healthy!

[Anonymous]

Op again, I meant, when I originally measured my “waist”, I was incorrectly measuring my hips. My real waist measurement is 37!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op again, I meant, when I originally measured my “waist”, I was incorrectly measuring my hips. My real waist measurement is 37!

Since you’ve lost four pounds you are now in the higher end of normal weight range for your height. Continue with strength training and healthful eating and you will feel and look better. Pelvises widens with age in women, there is loss of collagen/elasticity and genetic factors that determine fat deposition. I wouldn’t focus so much on waist measurement/visceral fat - exercise, eat healthy and focus on keeping your lipid profile within normal limits.

[Anonymous]

OP here, checking in. I’m down five pounds overall and about half an inch. I’m still tracking my macros and eating pretty well (definitely “clean” unprocessed food). I took a week off working out but still tried to get my daily 10k+ steps in. Progress is slow going, but I feel good and it’s all going in the right direction. I just realized last night that I am not having any food noise anymore. I don’t crave sweet or salty foods and I’m not “emotionally” eating like I used to. That’s a big win in my book!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op again, I meant, when I originally measured my “waist”, I was incorrectly measuring my hips. My real waist measurement is 37!

Since you’ve lost four pounds you are now in the higher end of normal weight range for your height. Continue with strength training and healthful eating and you will feel and look better. Pelvises widens with age in women, there is loss of collagen/elasticity and genetic factors that determine fat deposition. I wouldn’t focus so much on waist measurement/visceral fat - exercise, eat healthy and focus on keeping your lipid profile within normal limits.

I appreciate what you are saying, but I literally could pass as a pregnant woman because I’m carrying a lot of extra fat in my midsection. I hate that!

[Anonymous]

The glp1s are amazing for losing weight around your waist. It just disappears. I highly recommend them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, checking in. I’m down five pounds overall and about half an inch. I’m still tracking my macros and eating pretty well (definitely “clean” unprocessed food). I took a week off working out but still tried to get my daily 10k+ steps in. Progress is slow going, but I feel good and it’s all going in the right direction. I just realized last night that I am not having any food noise anymore. I don’t crave sweet or salty foods and I’m not “emotionally” eating like I used to. That’s a big win in my book!

Congrats! If you started this program a month ago (that's about when your first post was), 5 lbs is great and right on track. Slow progress is sustainable progress.

-someone who started a very similar program 10 months ago and is holding steady down 15 lbs (and lots of inches)

[Anonymous]

I’m in the same situation as OP but struggling to eat consistently due to high stress job, busy kids, and little time for food prep. I usually start off well with breakfast but have a hard time with what to prep for lunch which results in late afternoon snacking. Any suggestions for easy breakfast and lunch on the go? I’m better with dinners.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m in the same situation as OP but struggling to eat consistently due to high stress job, busy kids, and little time for food prep. I usually start off well with breakfast but have a hard time with what to prep for lunch which results in late afternoon snacking. Any suggestions for easy breakfast and lunch on the go? I’m better with dinners.

OP here - can you do leftovers for lunch? This week I made a big batch of sheet pan fajitas (marinated and sliced chicken breast, sliced peppers and onions, bake). Had it for lunch for two days afterwards with a half cup of Trader Joe’s rice medley and 2 tablespoons of TJ’s salsa.

Another easy lunch meal is rotisserie chicken over salad with a piece of sourdough or a wrap. Get a rotisserie chicken on Sunday and shred it Sunday night - lasts about three days.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The glp1s are amazing for losing weight around your waist. It just disappears. I highly recommend them.

I don’t doubt that they are amazing - but I’m working on building healthier habits (eating well, working out) for my weight loss. So far it’s working for me, even though it’s slow. I want a lifestyle change, not a quick change.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The glp1s are amazing for losing weight around your waist. It just disappears. I highly recommend them.

I don’t doubt that they are amazing - but I’m working on building healthier habits (eating well, working out) for my weight loss. So far it’s working for me, even though it’s slow. I want a lifestyle change, not a quick change.

Op again - no shade at glp1s! Just saying I don’t need those right now since what I’m doing is working well for me!

[Anonymous]

If you can do dairy, for breakfast target something that involves greek yogurt or cottage cheese. I can't do dairy and have protein smoothie (oat milk, protein powder, fruit).

I second OP's suggestion of leftover meat for lunch. Rotisserie chicken is good. I use the instantpot to make shredded chicken thighs with mexican flavors and it's great to have aon hand. Canned tuna is good. Trader Joe's has pre-cooked lentils (though are also pretty easy to prepare ahead and have on hand).

For lunch, I often throw together a salad with greens, whatever meat I have that week, lentils, maybe a hard boiled egg, and then either leftover roast veggies or some chopped fresh vegetables. If you are at home, steaming shrimp from frozen only takes about 5 minutes.

[Anonymous]

Yes you absolutely can.