I Want to Get Thinner

[transformer_99]

I highly recommend running or bicycling first and foremost. First off, you'll find out how in shape your abdominal muscles are in the first 1/10 of a mile of a run. You'll also know where you are cardiovascular in the first 5 minutes if you challenge yourself sufficiently with any pace. This way, no contracts and high dollar outlay that you're out if you lose interest.

If you already have a bicycle, set aside 20-30 minutes in the evening or AM when it's coolest time of the day. That shouldn't be that big of a committment to start off with. Some make the mistake of going a great distance in one direction on the bike or a run. The problem there, you may wind up exhausted and a long way from home.

I recently refurbed a touring road bike (tires, tubes and a seat) and ride up a few blocks in one direction, make my right turn and go another block, turn right again, then ride back the other direction that few blocks, turn left and go another block and make the next left. Do that a few blocks at a time and the mileage accumulates and you find you've been at it for 20, 30 even 40 minutes and you're not very far from home. As you condition, set aside a weekend AM to put on a more strenuos effort for a longer distance ride, but just keep setting goals that you can achieve. Once you graduate from this, you'll be fitter and pehaps ready for the gym. You may not even feel that need to join one as you'll be able to set your own goals, newer and more demanding tests. Got a friend or a neighbor, that'll go a long way with the buddy system of getting in shape without doing it alone. But remember, choose a workout buddy that is equal, that way neither of you is undermined by the others capability or lack thereof. Similar goals and drive are key to the right workout buddy. Otherwise you'll both lose interest.

 

[D_Herin_Ghan]

I want to know how to go about losing some weight.

I know, I know... "Your body is beautiful the way it is" and "Well, you're not FAT." Bullshit. My body is not 'beautiful' (to me) and while no, I am not grossly obese - I am, by my own definition, too damn fat.

All ranting aside, I am a 26 year-old Caucasian female. I am 5' 4" tall and I weigh anywhere from 168-175 lbs. I daresay that not much of that is muscle, and while my DD-cup breasts account for a small percentage of the weight, I'm getting sick of my friends saying, "Well, it's all in those huge BOOBS." Get real.

I've seen many well-muscled, trim men on here and several very nicely-shaped women (WildHoney, anyone?? :wink: Very hot) ... So my question is:

How did you do that? :smile:

A great body (except in rare cases - may the fleas of a thousand camels infest their armpits) comes with great effort, and if you all would be so kind as to share your hot-body secrets with the rest of us, I, for one, would be greatly appreciative.

And yes, I know that eating less (junk food anyway) and moving more is key. :wink: Thanks very much!

xoxoxo ~Amie

Here's my secret to a good body...DICIPLINE.

You have to really want it to achieve it. In all but rare cases, more work=better results. Diet is extremely important, but make sure you are not starving yourself. Remove temptation from your cupboards and refrigerator. Stock up on fat free or lowfat yogurt, skim milk, lot's of fruit and veggies, some low cal dressing (I used extra virgin olive-oil and balsamic vinegar), tuna. Soda must be removed in all forms. A diet soda once in a while won't kill ya. Eat lean poultry, beef and fish. Try to stay away from porki, and processed meat.

REMOVE REFINED SUGARS FROM THE HOUSE. I can't stress that tip, it's incredibly important that you stay away from sugars as much as possible. Get your sugar from fruit, not soda. Replace white bread with whole weat and white rice with brown rice. Cook only with extra virgin olive oil (no lard, vegetable oil). Try to eat a limited amount of carbs, and eat them early in the day. Do not hesitate to buy a protein powder either..some taste really good and take up space.

Most importanly, drink LOTS of water, and DO NOT SKIP BREAKFAST. Breakfast is incredibly important to losing weight, as is eating in general. Don't skip meals, it leads to fat retention, and overeating. Water takes up space, and many times people mistake thirst for hunger. By remaining hydrated, you help your body recognize when it's truly hungry. You want to be eating 6 small meals spread throughout the day (and example being an apple, black coffee with non-fat milk and splenda, and yogurt for breakfast, a piece of chicken breast, broccoli, and salad for dinner).



My suggestion for training is as follows:

Since you are a general novice and a female, I'd recommend starting with light cardio 20 minutes a day, four times a week. Vary it up, try swimming, biking, running, elliptical...they all do the trick. When you feel comfortable, step it up to five days, 25 minutes a day.

As for lifting, I'd suggest circuit training to tone muscle. Muscle requires a lot of energy to maintain, and can be a huge blow to your fat reserves.

Hope that helped!:biggrin1:

 

[snoozan]

I walk a lot at work (I'm a waitress) so my body has gotten used to that kind of exercise. My BF says that running is terrible for your joints, since he did so much in the Marines and now has bad knees/ankles.

I walk and run around at work as well to the point where I am in a lot of pain at the end of a 12-14 hour day. What I've learned is that this isn't the same as getting 30-60 minutes of intense cardio every day. You will be surprised that no matter what you think you're used to at work, if you're sustaining your target heart rate for 30-60 minutes, it's a lot different.

I did have a gym membership, which I never used and couldn't afford anyways... but no one to go with. I live in a very rural community and good luck finding anyone who cares much about their physique! I wish to God I had enough money to invest in a personal trainer! If I had someone to be accountable to for the food I'm eating and my exercise routine, I think I'd see some success.

Most people can't afford a personal trainer or even a gym membership. However, most everyone can find a park or a trail or a few streets to walk, run, or jog on. This website: Introduction to WalkJogRun let's you map out a route, determine how much time it will take you at the speed of your choice, and calculate the amount of calories you burned. It's a handy tool.

Even if you have a personal trainer, ultimately, the only person you can be accountable to is yourself. That's the hardest part of losing weight and the hardest part of maintaining the weight loss. No matter what, the only person that can make you exercise or keep you from eating tempting foods is you. No one can follow you around goading you to exercise, watching what you eat, dragging you to the gym, getting you outside, making yourself move, etc. A personal trainer, nutritionist, gym, or weight loss program can only offer tools to help. The good part about all this is that this means you absolutely are not at a disadvantage because you can't afford the accoutrements of modern fitness. All that stuff is really just fluff. You don't need it.

Counting calories and nutrition is hard if you eat out a lot. I'd suggest cutting out eating out as much as you can, including "healthy" alternatives. Most restaurants offer salads and the like, but they can be deceptively fattening. If you do eat out, do it at a restaurant that offers nutrition information. Learn how to cook your favorite foods in a more healthy, controlled way. Cooking for yourself can be very satisfying and even fun.

Great idea :biggrin1: We have a lot of trails around here that would be fun ... Need to figure out how I'd incorporate my 5-yr-old daughter though. She can ride her bicycle, but not to keep up with a workout ride.

Someone mentioned something you can tow, or get a baby seat for your bike. If you walk, drag her in her wagon. My son loves that, and it adds some extra weight to the walking. I've found that I make that 30-60 minutes a day mine-- I don't take the dog, only my ipod and something I want to listen to and do it just for me. However, having a 5 year old is a huge advantage-- playing with her is good exercise! Do it as much as you can. It's good for both of you.

Calories are tough ... a friend of mine joined Weight Watchers a few months ago and has lost 30+ lbs. I might try that, but again I can't go over budget. Sorry to sound like a ceaseless whiner! lol

Check out websites for the restaurants you eat in-- many have nutrition info. Read labels. Get a good set of measuring cups, spoons, and a food scale. There are a lot of calorie counting websites out there that give you nutrition info on almost anything. I use Calorie Counter and Diet Tracking, Nutrition Data, Water Consumption - TheDailyPlate.com . It does all the math for you and everything, and keeps a calendar. You don't need Weight Watchers if you can't afford it. You can do it yourself.

Another thing-- a lot of people mentioned having a workout buddy, but sometimes that can make things worse because you give each other too much permission to slack off. Yes, you can help each other, but a lot of times you just wnd up being partners in crime. The workout buddy's always been a mixed bag for me.

think my main hurdle will be those few weeks that I first stop eating and drinking a certain fatty food or soda that I'm used to. I've come to realize that I have an internal voice telling me that I'm going to starve if I don't eat this or drink that RIGHT NOW. I need to learn how to quiet that voice.

The first few weeks will be among the hardest, but be prepared to have a lot of bumps on the way. You are not changing just to lose weight, you are changing your entire lifestyle. You have to think that way or you'll gain the weight right back. This isn't something where you make a goal and then you're done. You are changing for good. That's what I'm having the most anxiety about, personally. I know I can get to where I'm going, but keeping the momentum going after you've reached your goal is harder.

Thank God I don't have a strong love for bread... except that reeeally great homemade kind from Pietro's in Grand Rapids. *sigh* :wink:

Another thing, don't deprive yourself of things that you truly love. Treat yourself sometimes-- social events, a day a week where you relax, something like that. I do 6 days on and 1 day off usually. I've found as time progresses, that 7th day I still don't eat that much and I'm eating better anyway.

The biggest hurdle to overcome is your own mind. Ultimately, the work you're doing is happening in your brain and you follow with your body. If you spend time trying to work through your bad eating habits, the body will follow. Fortunately, you're not off the wago so badly that you've got a lot to lose and a lot of bad habits to break. I gained 60 pounds after I had my son and even though I've lost a lot of weight and am in better shape, I have a long way to go and a lot more bad habits to break.

I'm not an expert at all on this. I'm just letting you know what I do for me. Some of what I've said might work, other stuff might fall flat. At any rate, those are my opinions. Take care and good luck.

You want to be eating 6 small meals spread throughout the day (and example being an apple, black coffee with non-fat milk and splenda, and yogurt for breakfast, a piece of chicken breast, broccoli, and salad for dinner).

I'm just adding to this because I just read this reply. Your specific example is why I was terrified of dieting-- I hate grilled chicken, not a fan of yogurt, steamed broccoili and salad don't do it for me. Fortunately, I've figured out how I can eat the things I like and I've found new things that I really enjoy. I also don't like to eat 6 meals a day-- and research has not borne out that it really makes any difference. Also, you need to eat carbs, and unless you're bodybuilding, you really only need about 50 grams of protein or so a day. Eaten in moderation, carbs are good for you-- you need them to make glycogen. I agree with you, though, that refined sugar is to be avoided as much as possible. Anyway, my point is that I was able to find a way to eat even though the 6 meals a day of bland steamed food isn't workable for me. It's always calories in, calories out anyway.

 

[amiegrrl]

we learn all about this stuf at college, once u start 2 read a lot of stuff and get a valuble knowledge of what u need 2 do u can cantrol ur weight with relative ease, i learned that when you understand what you have 2 do urself, rather than being told by sum1, u can cantrol ur weight a lot easier.

get readin

Oh honey... You're giving me a headache with all of that abbreviating... lol Sorry, I've always been a fan of old-fashioned write-it-correctly. :wink: But thank you for posting anyhow. I will do more research.

 

[amiegrrl]

This is another approach I've heard of, especially for chronic over-eaters. "Eat to live - Don't live to eat." We need to understand that not eating at a precise moment is NOT going to kill or harm us. A glass of water probably WILL taste good... especially if the craving is for soda. It's all about mind games sometimes. :wink: Thanks!

I've never had a weight problem and I eat what I want when I want, I think a lot of people don't listen to their bodies and eat by the clock, they'll have breakfast at such and such a time, lunch at 1 or so and dinner whenever, whether they're actually hungry or not. I only ever eat when I'm hungry and I seldom finish what I start to eat, the minute I've had enough I stop eating whereas many people will feel impelled to clear their plate. Friends often laugh cos I'll leave just a forkful, but I've had enough I'm not going to stuff myself. Eating at set times means you're often eating when you don't really need it. If you can manage it just eat when your body's actually hungry, the minute you've had enough to stop feeling hungry stop eating, and although I don't do this friends who've lost weight did, if you feel hungry have a glass of water, if you still feel hungry 10 minutes later then eat.

The simple logistics of it are if you eat more than you need whatever it is you're eating is going to make you gain weight. If you're sitting at a desk all day you really don't need huge amounts of calories.

Diets don't work they're temporary, I think it's more a matter of re-assessing your view on food. Good food, don't load your plate and stop when you're no longer hungry.

 

[amiegrrl]

You sound... really... HOT. *sigh* :biggrin1: Congrats on your success!

Thanks for the info... the only thing I'm concerned about are diet sodas and 'fat free', 'low-fat', and 'low-cal' dressings, etc. I've heard that they are worse for your body overall than just eating the original item, fat and all.

It is indeed tough to lose weight. Set a goal at first, small increments at a time, and dont get discouraged if it takes awhile. Excercises to do that will make you sexier are core exercies E.G situps, hanging knee raises, russian twists etc etc. If or when you work out, go for light weight and high reps..this will make you toned rather than "strong" (even though strength will come). Eating right is key as well. Kashi cereals and products are great for losing weight and adding healthiness into your diet. Fruits and vegetables are also a great addition. However none of us are perfect..and we will be wanting the fast food at certain points..go with the grilled chicken and other grilled items, light or fat free dressings are good on salads, nothing fried..

I have a little sucess story of my own. At the end of football season I weighed just under 300 LBS. I cut back on all the crap food I was eating, began eating correctly, and started taking several supplements from BSN (gotta get RIPPED for football :smile: ) and have dropped 25 LBS and added a solid 55 LBS to my bench, not to mention dropping 10% body fat. Oh oh oh and another thing with the exercises...run, walk, jog...if you have a pet..walk it (people walk cats). From personal experience, excercising and eating right have made me feel 100% better. I'm happier, my body is happier, I have pecs now rather than man boobs, and my overall body fat is down from 26% to 16%, and at 270 LBS..thats a wonderful thing!

Hope some of this helps.

 

[amiegrrl]

Thanks Snoozan :smile: I appreciate you sharing your story and advice. No - the walking I do at work is definitely NOT the kind that is going to help me change my body. Unfortunately ... that'd be just too easy!! :wink:

I love to cook, and I do cook when I make the time... ergh, must add that to the 'list'. Just before buying a bike, a wagon, and good athletic shoes. Makayla will *loooove* that wagon idea! The BF and I work opposite schedules, so it's hard to get out without her .. but I'll definitely be taking a little advantage when he's around. :biggrin1:

I agree that the 'Lifestyle' idea is daunting. Hopefully when it becomes habit, I'll be feeling so good that it won't be so hard to maintain. *crossing my fingers*

I walk and run around at work as well to the point where I am in a lot of pain at the end of a 12-14 hour day. What I've learned is that this isn't the same as getting 30-60 minutes of intense cardio every day. You will be surprised that no matter what you think you're used to at work, if you're sustaining your target heart rate for 30-60 minutes, it's a lot different.

Most people can't afford a personal trainer or even a gym membership. However, most everyone can find a park or a trail or a few streets to walk, run, or jog on. This website: Introduction to WalkJogRun let's you map out a route, determine how much time it will take you at the speed of your choice, and calculate the amount of calories you burned. It's a handy tool.

Even if you have a personal trainer, ultimately, the only person you can be accountable to is yourself. That's the hardest part of losing weight and the hardest part of maintaining the weight loss. No matter what, the only person that can make you exercise or keep you from eating tempting foods is you. No one can follow you around goading you to exercise, watching what you eat, dragging you to the gym, getting you outside, making yourself move, etc. A personal trainer, nutritionist, gym, or weight loss program can only offer tools to help. The good part about all this is that this means you absolutely are not at a disadvantage because you can't afford the accoutrements of modern fitness. All that stuff is really just fluff. You don't need it.

Counting calories and nutrition is hard if you eat out a lot. I'd suggest cutting out eating out as much as you can, including "healthy" alternatives. Most restaurants offer salads and the like, but they can be deceptively fattening. If you do eat out, do it at a restaurant that offers nutrition information. Learn how to cook your favorite foods in a more healthy, controlled way. Cooking for yourself can be very satisfying and even fun.

Someone mentioned something you can tow, or get a baby seat for your bike. If you walk, drag her in her wagon. My son loves that, and it adds some extra weight to the walking. I've found that I make that 30-60 minutes a day mine-- I don't take the dog, only my ipod and something I want to listen to and do it just for me. However, having a 5 year old is a huge advantage-- playing with her is good exercise! Do it as much as you can. It's good for both of you.

Check out websites for the restaurants you eat in-- many have nutrition info. Read labels. Get a good set of measuring cups, spoons, and a food scale. There are a lot of calorie counting websites out there that give you nutrition info on almost anything. I use Calorie Counter and Diet Tracking, Nutrition Data, Water Consumption - TheDailyPlate.com . It does all the math for you and everything, and keeps a calendar. You don't need Weight Watchers if you can't afford it. You can do it yourself.

Another thing-- a lot of people mentioned having a workout buddy, but sometimes that can make things worse because you give each other too much permission to slack off. Yes, you can help each other, but a lot of times you just wnd up being partners in crime. The workout buddy's always been a mixed bag for me.

The first few weeks will be among the hardest, but be prepared to have a lot of bumps on the way. You are not changing just to lose weight, you are changing your entire lifestyle. You have to think that way or you'll gain the weight right back. This isn't something where you make a goal and then you're done. You are changing for good. That's what I'm having the most anxiety about, personally. I know I can get to where I'm going, but keeping the momentum going after you've reached your goal is harder.

Another thing, don't deprive yourself of things that you truly love. Treat yourself sometimes-- social events, a day a week where you relax, something like that. I do 6 days on and 1 day off usually. I've found as time progresses, that 7th day I still don't eat that much and I'm eating better anyway.

The biggest hurdle to overcome is your own mind. Ultimately, the work you're doing is happening in your brain and you follow with your body. If you spend time trying to work through your bad eating habits, the body will follow. Fortunately, you're not off the wago so badly that you've got a lot to lose and a lot of bad habits to break. I gained 60 pounds after I had my son and even though I've lost a lot of weight and am in better shape, I have a long way to go and a lot more bad habits to break.

I'm not an expert at all on this. I'm just letting you know what I do for me. Some of what I've said might work, other stuff might fall flat. At any rate, those are my opinions. Take care and good luck.

 

[snoozan]

I agree that the 'Lifestyle' idea is daunting. Hopefully when it becomes habit, I'll be feeling so good that it won't be so hard to maintain. *crossing my fingers*

I'm hoping this too. I'll cross my fingers and toes with you. :biggrin1:

 

[naughty]

I think we should start a section for health and fitness. It sounds like this is a common theme here. Amie I wish you all the luck sweetheart in getting your weight where you wish it to be.

 

[Long&Thick]

You sound... really... HOT. *sigh* :biggrin1: Congrats on your success!

Thanks for the info... the only thing I'm concerned about are diet sodas and 'fat free', 'low-fat', and 'low-cal' dressings, etc. I've heard that they are worse for your body overall than just eating the original item, fat and all.

Worse in what way? I ate them all the time and still do (red wine vinegrette for me). If these lower fat dressings and whatnot actually harm your health dont use them..theres nothing wrong with eating salad...plain. :tongue: As for diet sodas..I haven't had a soda or carbinated beverage in over a year, I thought it was going to be something tough to cut out...but when I never bought them it was out of site out of mind. Candy and sugar the same way...although I do get a nasty hankerin for Mike & Ikes now and again.

Oh and thank you very much for the compliment :biggrin1:

 

[MASSIVEPKGO_CHUCK]

I want to know how to go about losing some weight.

I know, I know... "Your body is beautiful the way it is" and "Well, you're not FAT." Bullshit. My body is not 'beautiful' (to me) and while no, I am not grossly obese - I am, by my own definition, too damn fat.

All ranting aside, I am a 26 year-old Caucasian female. I am 5' 4" tall and I weigh anywhere from 168-175 lbs. I daresay that not much of that is muscle, and while my DD-cup breasts account for a small percentage of the weight, I'm getting sick of my friends saying, "Well, it's all in those huge BOOBS." Get real.

I've seen many well-muscled, trim men on here and several very nicely-shaped women (WildHoney, anyone?? :wink: Very hot) ... So my question is:

How did you do that? :smile:

A great body (except in rare cases - may the fleas of a thousand camels infest their armpits) comes with great effort, and if you all would be so kind as to share your hot-body secrets with the rest of us, I, for one, would be greatly appreciative.

And yes, I know that eating less (junk food anyway) and moving more is key. :wink: Thanks very much!

xoxoxo ~Amie

Eat what you want, only in small portions, don't starve yourself, you'll lose protein & muscle tissue. Keep yourself constantly hydrated with water. Add on fresh fruit and veggies with every meal. Find an activity that you can build up a good sweat & enjoy.

 

[WildHoney]

see below....double post

 

[Blocko]

If you want to lose weight, consider taking up dancing. After I put on a lot of weight (back in my vegetarian days), that was the exercise that lost me the most weight.

 

[WildHoney]

Hi Amie , I have had computer "issues" last week and have been unable to reply top this thread.

Firstly, thanksfor the compliment :smile: :redface:

I want to say to you , I take 20 pics and get 3 goods ones..in the others, I look really quite bad ...and ..I am tall and I have a genetic body shape that means big boobs ( mine are surgically altered after kids) and a flat tummy which never gets round .....even when I am heavy....so alot of it is what you are born with.....you are looking at the best of me, I have other pics I should send you to show you I am in no way perfect...I am 36, have had 3 kids and party way too much.

I have been really overweight after babies. I see pregnancy as a licence to eat ( not good I know) and put on over 100 pounds each time!!

I lose weight quickest when I restrict my calories to under 1300, and I try and avoid carbs after 5 pm. I keep an eating joural so i dont kids myself how much i consume and I keep it by my bed to write in every night.

I have heaps of sex, and I walk everywhere, other than that if I do heaps of cardio or weights I actually do not lose weight...sounds weird but that is just how it is for me when i am looking to drop weight ( toning up is another story!)

My last baby is 4 in October, after he was born I had 70 pounds to lose. It is daunting and hard work, but as someone stated above, it takes dedication and a will to look your best. I always ask myself before I eat Mac Donalds, do i want this more than i want to look slim.

..and I got to tell you..NOTHING tatses as good as feeling fabulous about your body feels :smile: :smile:

Good luck, and let us know how you go


xx

Honey

 

[amiegrrl]

Works for me! (Seeing as how becoming thinner/healthier is certainly not JUST a "Women's Issue")

What say the Powers-That-Be? :smile:

I think we should start a section for health and fitness. It sounds like this is a common theme here. Amie I wish you all the luck sweetheart in getting your weight where you wish it to be.

 

[amiegrrl]

Awesome idea! I was just discussing that earlier today with the BF ... I'm thinking a hip-hop class or latin dance. He's all for it, so long as he doesn't have to be my partner :wink: (I'm cool with that *snort*)

If you want to lose weight, consider taking up dancing. After I put on a lot of weight (back in my vegetarian days), that was the exercise that lost me the most weight.

 

[amiegrrl]

Hiya Miss Honey :smile: You're more than welcome!

First of all, you're really depressing me with all of that "I'm tall and I never look fat" stuff. :wink: lol j/k But kudos to you for getting back into such great shape at 36 and after 3 kids!! At 26 with only 1 daughter to blame my shape on... Yeah, it's time to get up off my ass.

This Eating Journal idea keeps coming up, so I'll be investing in one soon... or hell, a spiral notebook would probably work, eh? :tongue: Along with the new running shoes and two workout DVD's I just bought (Power Yoga and The Biggest Loser: The Workout), tomorrow is looking like a lighter day! Now all I have to do is save up for that bicycle and dance classes... Whew!

I guess I'm a little late to be down to my goal-weight by swimsuit season, but my goal is to fill out a hot little pair of ski pants by winter... :biggrin1:

Hi Amie , I have had computer "issues" last week and have been unable to reply top this thread.

Firstly, thanksfor the compliment :smile: :redface:

I want to say to you , I take 20 pics and get 3 goods ones..in the others, I look really quite bad ...and ..I am tall and I have a genetic body shape that means big boobs ( mine are surgically altered after kids) and a flat tummy which never gets round .....even when I am heavy....so alot of it is what you are born with.....you are looking at the best of me, I have other pics I should send you to show you I am in no way perfect...I am 36, have had 3 kids and party way too much.

I have been really overweight after babies. I see pregnancy as a licence to eat ( not good I know) and put on over 100 pounds each time!!

I lose weight quickest when I restrict my calories to under 1300, and I try and avoid carbs after 5 pm. I keep an eating joural so i dont kids myself how much i consume and I keep it by my bed to write in every night.

I have heaps of sex, and I walk everywhere, other than that if I do heaps of cardio or weights I actually do not lose weight...sounds weird but that is just how it is for me when i am looking to drop weight ( toning up is another story!)

My last baby is 4 in October, after he was born I had 70 pounds to lose. It is daunting and hard work, but as someone stated above, it takes dedication and a will to look your best. I always ask myself before I eat Mac Donalds, do i want this more than i want to look slim.

..and I got to tell you..NOTHING tatses as good as feeling fabulous about your body feels :smile: :smile:

Good luck, and let us know how you go


xx

Honey

 

[MASSIVEPKGO_CHUCK]

And remembr, it's ok to snack; you have to constantly keep your body energized, but remember; don't gorge, just enough to be filled up.

 

[10.5andproudofit]

i played college football (1aa) and my playing weight was 325-330 lbs. now i hang out around 265-275.

i think the best off the shelf diet right now is the south beach. low carb intake, though miserable works. Don't eliminate carbs all together, just cut them way down.

i did lose a good bit of muscle mass, but i cut my body fat percentage from 23% overall to 14% overall.

pm me if i can help

 

[amh]

Hi amiegrrl,
A lot of good advice here from a lot of people. I’ll add my $0.02, and probably end up repeating some of what others have said… at least it’ll all be in one place!

First of all, don’t look at your goal as losing weight so much as building healthy habits that you’ll continue for the rest of your life. Don’t “go on a diet.” That implies a temporary state, and you’ll end up gaining weight again when you stop. Also, two pounds a week is about the most *fat* you’ll be able to lose long term. Any additional weight will probably just be water and muscle, which is counter-productive in the long run.
It will be a lot of work, and it will be inconvenient. Find someone to be accountable to, so you can stay on track until the habits form.

In order to lose weight, you have to run a calorie deficit. Unfortunately, humans have millions of years of evolution working against them here. If you run a deficit that’s too big, or run a small one for too long, your body will go into “starvation avoidance” mode and slow your metabolism, try to store as much fat as possible, and burn muscle. NOT what you want to happen, and also why most people will lose weight at first, then hit a wall.

There are a few things you can do to avoid starvation avoidance mode. Don’t run a big calorie deficit (over 500cal/day). Don’t run a deficit for more than about three days at a time. Every 4th day, increase your calorie intake to equal your daily expenditure, or even 100-200 over. NEVER skip meals! In fact, you should be eating a balanced meal or snack about five (for women) or six (for men) times a day. This tells your body that food is plentiful, and there’s no need to store fat! Just be careful not to end up eating too much this way.

In order to have such fine control over your calorie intake you will need to keep careful track of exactly what you’re eating. (told you it would be inconvenient!) In addition to that, you need to know how many calories you’re burning. There are formulas out there to calculate this based on body fat percentage and activity level (the book Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle by Tom Venuto is a good source). You can get body fat calipers designed to be used on yourself for about $20. Alternatively, there is a new product out called the Bodybugg(sp?) that you strap to an arm, and it will tell you exactly how many calories you’re burning. I think they’re rather expensive ($200-$300), however.

Exercise. You’ll want to do primarily cardio, since this is what burns calories. As others have said, this doesn't have to be on the treadmill in a gym - find something fun. However, you MUST do resistance training! If you don’t, you will lose muscle along with the fat, which will mean you burn fewer calories. If you plan on losing quite a bit of fat, and you’re female, don’t worry too much about getting “too buff.” It’s easy to lose muscle, and it will burn more calories in the meantime. (keep in mind that even if your overall weight doesn’t change, it might just be because you gained 1lb of muscle and lost 1lb of fat. This is progress! You just won't see it if you don't measure properly! This is why it’s important to keep track of body fat percentage.)

Diet. As others have said, ignore fad diets (or *any* packaged diet, really), and stay balanced. Each meal should contain carbohydrates (both starchy and fibrous), protein, and fat (unsaturated, like from salmon, etc). Regulate your overall calorie intake instead. What you should do is to eat good quality food. For example, an apple is high quality, apple sauce is somewhat lower, sweetened or otherwise processed applesauce is even lower, and apple pie is the worst. Basically, eat foods that are as close as possible to their natural state. Eat whole wheat pasta instead of regular, etc. Also, some foods (lettuce and celery are two, I think) actually take more calories to digest than they provide! If you really want to tweak things, arrange your meals so that you eat most of your starchy foods earlier in the day, and more fibrous ones toward evening. Plan on one “cheat” meal per week, but don’t totally blow out your calorie budget. You’ll do it anyway, might as well just do it and not feel guilty about it (and keep it under control at the same time)!

I think that’s quite enough for now…
Good luck!

Yes, I practice what I preach... I'm 6'0", 165, with high-single-digit fat %.