Losing Weight, the New Old-Fashioned Way

Last fall I finally decided to do something about my excess weight, mostly to try to lower my cholesterol. I'd put this off for a long time because I couldn't decide how to go about losing weight. I asked myself, which diet did I want to follow? The answer was none. I've dieted before, and lost weight, but I always gained it all back and then some.

I finally decided that the best method would be old-fashioned calorie counting. The hope was that by not changing my food intake to conform to someone else's idea of what I should be eating I might actually be able to maintain the weight loss. But calorie counting can be a drag. So I looked for some help at the Apple Apps Store. There I found the app for My Fitness Pal, a free app that was highly rated, with a corresponding website, http://www.myfitnesspal.com/.

I set up an account and the program helped my figure out how fast I wanted to lose and how many calories I could consume on a daily basis. I elected to lose fairly slowly because I knew I'd have limited patience for a very low calorie diet. I ended up at about 1700 calories per day, which turned out to be quite doable. The calorie counting is much easier now when the computer does most of the work for you. My Fitness Pal has a huge database of foods, and nowadays manufacturers list calories on many food items, plus the computer (or iPhone app does the addition for you.  I often just have to check off the foods I've eaten from a master list of my favorites. This made the whole process much easier to stick with. At the website, you can even invite friends to diet with you. If you decide to try it, look me up. My name there is lyndilamont.

Now, eight months later, I've lost 28 pounds and my cholesterol is back in the normal range. Color me happy. If you're looking to lose weight, I recommend this plan. It's free and easier than ever.

Linda aka Lyndi

Linda aka Lyndi Lamont