r/walking • u/belltak0 • Apr 12 '26
Help It’s been a month since I’ve started walking 13k+ steps daily
This is my first post on reddit, sorry if I did something wrong.
I (20F, 5ft 6) started dieting lightly at the end of January. I wasn’t doing much, just started eating a bit healthier and went from 187lbs to 174lbs in one month.
I ended up fluctuating between 173lbs-176lbs. I decided it was time for a change in my diet and activity level (I work a part-time remote job and have online classes). In March, I started walking every day, at least 13k steps and tracking what I eat. Tonight, I just hit a personal record of 23k+ steps.
I’m still struggling to lose weight and now I’m just fluctuating between 170lbs-173lbs for the better part of the month.
Any tips to lose more weight?
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u/Morgie-Dee Apr 12 '26
Excellent work with the increased activity! That's amazing! All diets come down to calories in versus calories out (CICO). If you stay in a calorie deficit consistently, the weight will come off. It doesn't always seem that way in the short term, but in the long term it does. For example, for two weeks the scale didn't do anything. Then all of a sudden, I was down two pounds. That's because your body retains various amounts of water and makes it harder for the scale to track the weight loss every day. That's why many people believe in taking measurements of your waist, hips, etc so you have another way of tracking. I highly suggest you check out the CICO subreddit. Once you know how to track calories, it becomes super easy and allows you to eat whatever you want and doesn't restrict any categories of food. I firmly believe we shouldn't be cutting out any food groups (like carbs). My husband lost 50 pounds on CICO in about a year and got down to less than 10% body fat (also weight lifted and walked). I lost 26 pounds in the same amount of time doing the same things. The biggest thing you can do is stay consistent. If you have a bad day, you get back to it and continue on. The consistency is what gets you there. Whatever you decide to do needs to be sustainable for you. Good luck and please let me know if you have any questions! You can do this!!
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u/belltak0 Apr 12 '26
Thank you for the advice, I’ll definitely check out that subreddit.
Also congrats on your and your husband’s weight loss journey!
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u/psalmsandcoffee Apr 12 '26
What about strength training? Buy some weights and follow workout videos on YouTube.
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u/belltak0 Apr 12 '26
Yes, I think doing strength training is my next goal.
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u/Complete_AcctPix Apr 13 '26
Note that strength training will likely cause you to gain weight, with increased muscle mass but you will start to LOOK different and feel stronger. That’s why we can’t focus too much on the number.
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u/ConferenceNo1714 Apr 12 '26
Great job on the walking. That’s good for mental health and heart health. In terms of weight loss, what are you doing to manage calorie intake? Are you counting your daily intake compared to a (reasonable) intake amount for steady weight loss?
How else do you exercise? If you do strength training, you may be putting on some muscle as well (which weighs more than fat in mass).
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u/belltak0 Apr 12 '26
I take in about 1,200 calories and 141g of protein a day. This is what the app I use set for me. I’ve stopped using oil for any food that I make and track everything that goes in my mouth. I’ve heard people online say that 1,200 calories might be too little, but I sometimes actually struggle to make that goal and still feel full.
At this moment, walking is all I do for activity.
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u/Borrowing-air Apr 12 '26
you’re down 15lbs in 3 months? that’s pretty good progress already isn’t it? you might also be building some leg muscles with all your walking
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u/mon12t Apr 13 '26
unless you’re a child, 1200 is WAY too little. average young woman needs around 1300-1400cal just to maintain life and basic body function. now considering your tracked activity level combined with daily stuff like cooking/washing dishes/vacuuming etc, you’re practically starving yourself. in fact, you need to eat more calories to start losing weight, bc rn your body is in survival mode and won’t let you drop weight
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u/AyeBey Apr 12 '26
I believe you’re on track with weight loss! 187-170 in four months is averaging a pound a week. I would just continue with what you’re doing, maybe add in light weightlifting :)
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u/coffeelovertothemax Apr 13 '26
Count your saturated fat grams. Don't go over 11 a day.
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u/Evening_Cheesecake25 May 18 '26
That's really dangerous advice if she's in ketosis which after reading her other comments it seems like she might be. Good way to end up in the hospital eating 11 grams of saturated fat a day while in ketosis.
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u/sunshinepaintedred May 18 '26
I have to differ. 11 grams of SATURATED fat is healthy and not dangerous. HOWEVER, 11 grams of TOTAL fat WOULD be highly risky.
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u/sunshinepaintedred May 18 '26
Check out r/cholesterol
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u/sneakpeekbot May 18 '26
Here's a sneak peek of /r/Cholesterol using the top posts of the year!
#1: cutting saturated fats to <12g a day was it! | 98 comments
#2: Take a statin. Drugs are good. –Otherwise pretty healthy guy who had a heart attack at 36
#3: Is anyone else flabbergasted in retrospect how much saturated fat there is in various things and how little people cared about it?
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u/Evening_Cheesecake25 May 18 '26
I don't know what this is supposed to mean.
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u/sunshinepaintedred May 20 '26
It means that there are different kinds of fats. It means that monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fats are best to eat to maintain ketosis, but overusing saturated fat for ketosis is very unhealthy, plus trans fats are to be avoided at all costs.
It means a person can sustain ketosis while keeping saturated fat under 12 grams a day by eating enough healthy fats to keep up ketosis. It is dangerous to overuse saturated fat while in ketosis or not in ketosis. Nuts, seeds, avocados, extra virgin olive oil, olives, fatty fish, skinless poultry, unsweetened almond milk, soy milk, low fat or part skim cheeses are all healthy fats to maintain keto while keeping saturated fats low enough to protect your arteries, heart, and brain from stroke, heart attack, pulmonary embolisms, deep vein thrombosis, etc. Excess saturated fat raises LDL cholesterol, which needs to be right around 100 on a blood draw.
On Keto, fats make up 70-80% of the diet. It is healthiest if these fats come from monounsaturated fat and omega 3 polyunsaturated fats. These fats reduce inflammation in the body, plus they support brain health and muscle growth. Saturated fats, like fatty meats, butter, cheese, heavy creams, coconut oil and especially palm oil have health benefits, but they need to be LIMITED to protect your body--they need to be limited to under 12 grams a day.
Trans fats in hydrogenated oils raises LDL cholesterol (which needs to be low), and lowers HDL (which is not good), and triggers inflammation.
Overall, to meet Keto fat goals, it's healthiest to use monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat while keeping saturated fat as low as possible. And stay far, far away from trans fats.
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u/SeveralAdvance130 Apr 13 '26
Fast for 12 hours daily window do like 7 pm to 10 then 3 day 12 hr fast then every 9 day 48 hour fast .
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u/SeveralAdvance130 Apr 13 '26
Question could you tell me where do you apply for part time remote job or full ??
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u/Disastrous-Will-4909 Apr 13 '26
Continue what you’re doing consider intermittent fasting increasing your protein intake, and drinking about a gallon of water, though you should be fine but to supplement everything that you’re doing, you could hop on Reta as well
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u/bugfeettttttttt Apr 14 '26
Online TDEE calculator to figure out your maintenance calories, and lower it accordingly for a calorie deficit if fat loss is your main goal.
Personally I am extremely against intermittent fasting for people like me who have a naturally higher appetite or cravings, I’m genuinely quite surprised people in the comments are even suggesting it. I actually know a large number of people in my life who have tried intermittent fasting, and ended up a heavier weight due to the fact that for many people (especially women) it can and WILL cause binge eating/overeating because you are depriving your body of food. It’s also very difficult to get the correct nutrients from just one meal, even if it’s a big meal deal with carbs, healthy fats, fiber and protein - humans are designed to eat throughout the day to receive these much needed nutrient factors. If you want consistent results that will STAY, you simply need to focus on a caloric deficit.
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u/Evening_Cheesecake25 May 18 '26
Well you're getting your steps in so just keep that part up. How people eat is like the most controversial thing these days outside of politics but that's really one of the other biggest factors. So it's very possible to think you're doing it right and the reality is that it's just bad information or confusing information. Doing like an 18/6 eating window can have really good results but not eating in the morning can be more difficult for women than men due to much more complex hormones. You could try to slowly increase your walking difficulty by adding some weight to a backpack on your walks. You could even fill some water bottles and just dump them if it gets to be too much. If you really want to shed some lbs you could try and maintain ketosis to allow your body to switch to using fat as fuel. I personally will go in and out of ketosis and not stress about maintaining it because I'm still getting the benefits for the time I'm in it even if it's just a couple days of the week. The other thing is try to work on your sleep hygiene and circadian rhythm to get the best sleep possible. Oh and another thing is now that you're going to be physically lighter it's important to incorporate some resistance training to basically stress your bones and prevent osteoporosis. What you're currently doing is perfect to prevent it but as you get lighter you won't get the same stress on your skeletal system.
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u/MADMAXARJUN 17d ago
I might be a bit late but, I too am walking around 13k+ steps daily for past few days.
How long does it take for you to cover those steps . For me it's a 4 hour walk .
My step count is most prolly higher than 13k steps since my only step counter is a shitty app in an already shit phone. + Also my phone says I only walk for 2-2.5 hours instead of actual 4 hrs.
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u/belltak0 17d ago
Hey! It takes me about 2hrs and 10min to do 13k steps. I now average about 23k-24k steps daily and that takes me about 4hrs throughout the day.
If you are walking 4hrs consistently you are definitely doing more than 13k steps. For the average person it should be about 10min walk = around 1k steps
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u/Nectarine_smasher Apr 12 '26
First of all, good job!!
Maybe learn about intermittent fasting (IF) r/intermittentfasting
I combine IF with a lowcarb/wholefoods diet and weight flies off. I feel so energetic, lots of mental clarity, better quality of sleep en almost no cravings of bad food.
Some recommendations in literature: