Phentermine, Exercise, & Dieting: How are you losing the weight?

[Aleshia]

I am new to this forum and my doctor just prescribed phentermine and prozac(Dr. Branch in Plano). 37.5 mg generic phentermine once a day. I am eating 1,000 to 1,200 calories a day. Limiting fat, sodium, sugar, and alcohol intake. I am also trying to only eat meat once a week on my "cheat day". I am fast-walking/sprinting 2 miles six times a week. I don't have a scale so I don't know how I've progressed. I was wondering what everyone elses eating and exercise regimen is like? How successful has your weightloss been?

[KaysKidz]

I have been on phen for almost 4mo. I have lost nearly 70lbs. I try to keep the calories around 1200 and fat around 30grams. I have cut out a lot of unhealthy foods (fried foods, butter, pop etc). I eat 5 small meals per day. I drink a lot more water. I walk/jog 15mi per week and use hand weights for toning my arms. I put an exercise bike on lay-a-way for me for Christmas, so I can add that to my daily routine as well...plus replace walking on bad weather days. I prefer the walking as I enjoy the fresh air, but I know the time will come that mother nature will not be so helpful in my journey to get healthy!

I think a big key for me has been portion control. I have also learned how to make healtheir choices, especially when eating out. And last, I acknowledged that this is not a 'diet' but a lifestyle change...and it's forever! Because I want the weight to not only come off, but stay off!

[AirsoftWidow]

Phen; no sugar/flour/high-fructose corn syrup; few carbs, lots of fat and protein; calories at least 1500*; no exercise except for housework and walking; losing at approximately -1% of my total body weight per week.

*My basal metabolism, the calories burned if I stayed in bed all day, was measured at just over 1800. Lots of calories with few carbs (which is my diabetic husband's diet) works better for me than few calories.

[s_mkalfred]

I don't believe in eliminating any type of food from your diet..i.e. carbs, fat etc.. I have done every fad diet known to man over the past 10 years and never succeeded until this past year! What I have done this year is change how much I eat of things, started exercising regularly and drinking lots of water! I have stopped drinking my calories with the exception of milk and the occasional glass of juice. I eat approximentally 1100 calories a day and exercise at least 3 days a week but more often 4 and occasionally 5. If I know I ate really bad during a given week or I know I'm going to eat bad I exercise more to compensate. My exercise consists of elliptical for 30-60 minutes and weith training on my arms for 20 minutes with a variety of exercises. I also do 30 leg lifts for each leg and as many situps as I can possibly stand. All of my exercise usually adds up to about 2.5 hours cardio a week and 60-80 minutes of muscle work. i read on the biggest loser website that you should eat 7X your weight in calories/day to lose weight. Since i started following this method I have lost much more than I was before.

As far as my success goes, this is my second cycle on Phen. See my signature below to see how I have done since my first cycle which started in September 2008. I am very pleased with my progress and so is everyone who knows me. I have not lost 100's of pounds but slow and steady wins the race. This truly is a lifestyle change for me and I never intend to gain any of the weight back. I know anyone who has ever tried to lose weight has heard that saying before but until you actually believe it and follow it, you will always want to know the secret. When the truth is there is no secret, it just takes time and determination. Everytime I get fustrated with a small loss I remember how far I have come and how great it will be when I finally reach that flat tummy skinny jean look I have always dreamed of.
Good Luck!

[Windygirl]

I take phen, eat 1200-1500 calories a day. I have a biggest loser workout DVD that I do about 30 minutes of high intensity cardio every night that I can. I had a double hernia and have 2 patches sewn into my stomach and so I have to be careful of doing too much because I don't want to rip anything or tear stitches. So I do the workout DVD for a night or two, and then I rest a night or two. I was walking/jogging 1.5 miles in the evenings when I don't do the workout DVD, but here lately it's been cold out at night & I haven't felt like it. I lost weight real good the first couple of weeks, then it planed off. Then I lost another 6 pounds at the beginning of month 2, but now I haven't lost anything for the last 3 and a half weeks. I read that if you are exercising then you should eat more calories because if you only eat 1200 a day and then burn some of that off exercising, you could put your body into starvation mode. I am pretty sure that's what happened to me here lately, because I was strictly eating no more than 1200, and exercising. The last 2 days I have added a few more calories back, we will see how that works.

[sosassafrass]

Originally Posted by Aleshia

I am new to this forum and my doctor just prescribed phentermine and prozac(Dr. Branch in Plano). 37.5 mg generic phentermine once a day. I am eating 1,000 to 1,200 calories a day. Limiting fat, sodium, sugar, and alcohol intake. I am also trying to only eat meat once a week on my "cheat day". I am fast-walking/sprinting 2 miles six times a week. I don't have a scale so I don't know how I've progressed. I was wondering what everyone elses eating and exercise regimen is like? How successful has your weightloss been?

Welcome aboard...

currently i'm taking 37.5 phentermine (white tablets with blue speckles)
I eat between 1200-1400 cal/day...i try to hover around 1300cal though. I do cardio (treadmill...my goal is to be able to jog on the treadmill) for 30 min and weight/resistance training for 30 min- 3x/week. I try to get in 5 days of exercise...so I might swim for 30 minutes and tread water for 15 minutes on 2 days...or i might take a couple of spin classes for my 2 days...or one of each.

I've cut back on the sweets...my weakness is cotton candy, but the one I eat...a serving is 1 oz. and its 110 calories...but i might eat 1 serving every other week.

I don't have a cheat day because I know how I am...a cheat day will turn into a cheat week...then next thing you know i've fallen off the wagon. So, where i'm not super stringent...I still eat what I like, just in moderation and i've found healthy alternatives. I won't die if I go over 1400 cal, but I know that if I do...I have to make up for it with exercise.

So far i've lost 13 lb. in 24 days, so i'm elated...even though for next month, I might not get those same results, as long as the scale isn't creeping back up I'm cool.

[Jon3sgte]

Aleshia - Sugar and Alcohol will be the two biggest things to cut back or cut out. I wouldnt worry about the sodium much. You will sweat it out when you work out. Also, lean meats and meat high in protein you will want to keep in your diet such as chicken breast, fish, shrimp etc... Your body needs the protein. Try to work out for at least 30 minutes or longer instead of a set distance. If you are walking shoot for an hour.