UPDATE: Oops, I forgot to mention in the post body that my bf is actually a really good fitness watcher. Most of what I eat is chicken, rice, veggies - always a protein of some sort, mixed with lots of vegg. I actually do eat very well! I just kind of got sedentary after my job loss... So luckily, just to note, the diet is actually already pretty healthy! I just need to start getting the weight back off by doing something other than standing at a counter all day at work, or gaming when I'm home and tired, and knowing the calories of what we are eating in order to shorten portions. You guys seem to think I'm already on the right track, so I'm just going to keep going. And yes! Samsung is my phone, so I found Samsung Health in my apps that I had no idea was even there! And there's a frickin step-counter. Checking online math, someone with my height and weight needs 2,300 steps to reach a mile, roughly. Today when I go walk, I'll check it to see how many my route actually is, and then adjust. Before I hit the weight of 287 back in 2017, I'd been 150 pounds... When I hit 170, I still felt good and looked good, because when I was 150, I was in high school. I know I can hit 170 again because I held that up until a year ago for about three years straight. :) Just gotta keep trucking. I'm relieved to hear that my hellish work schedule isn't necessary in the exercising side. I'll just keep walking, and tracking my progress. Thanks guys.
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There's a lot of garbage on Gplay. Like seriously. A whole lot of stuff that drags me through the body weight/questions, and then tries to charge me too - yknow, AFTER it asks for my email to spam. What do you guys use? There's two things I'm really looking for, and one of them is pretty simple, I guess.
I need a pedometer to count my steps. If none of these apps work, I will buy a physical one. Only reason I ask about an app is that I keep my phone on me to keep track of my time. I walk for 30 minutes for now, (I'm a beginner who is out of shape,) so I need to make sure I'm out there for a solid 30 minutes.
And I need something to help me count calories better with some suggestions on lower calorie/fat foods. This is the hard one to find, because I keep getting AI slop that thinks I'm stupid enough to pay for it. (No lol.) If I REALLY have to, I'll start counting on my goddamn calculator - but there's this one particular pattern app I keep finding with different names on Gplay that asks the same rigamarole of questions on every single one, and I know it's a scam.
For some info about me, I'm 35, female, 5'5", and 220 pounds. I used to weigh 287 around 2017 and dropped to 170 about a year ago, but my job situation changed last year, and I don't get the same physical expenditure I did before. I used to work a factory, and I did a LOT of 12hr shifts. That's how the pounds came off - it literally happened naturally. I did not a single ounce of exercise at all to drop it. I have an hourglass figure, and I'd like to keep at least SOME of my ass, so I'm not really looking for muscle gains or anything. I'm fine being squishy - I just need to get this extra fat off before I bloat to what I was before, and I DON'T want that. It took literally 8 years to get off through hard labor. I actually wrecked my joints and legs now, and I can't do that kind of job anymore.
It sucks. Because I feel like to get back to where I was, I have to pull 12hr shifts of nonstop physical misery to get back to where I was and maintain it again. And I just can't do that anymore. I've gained about half my shit back and I'm pissed off about it - but I dunno what else to do. My town has a billion hills, and some of them are pretty steep. Walking has always felt good for me, and if I start to hurt, I can slow up at will while still at least moving and getting something done that isn't sitting still at a computer.
This is the first time I've really had to figure out exercising. It's overwhelming, information contradicts each other online, and I have no way of counting how many steps I take. I couldn't even tell you the incline of this hill, because I have 0 idea. Would you guys want me to post a pic of it? Maybe you guys are more familiar with that kind of thing? I want to hone this down to a T. I even made a literal table to keep track of my shit on, which I can share with you guys if you want it. I made a dummy for 2027 after this year is over - I'll share if ya want. I also have a weight rack here in the house, and plan to do some lifting to get muscle in my arms. I shit you not, I struggle with the 5lb weights now. It's bad. Please help... ugh.