Yakoob on 31/7/2008 at 06:33
So I am trying to lose weight (finally) and got a good start, I think. I figured that maybe I can get some pointers from the uber athletically hot guys and gals of TTLG :D
Ok, so me is:
Height: 5'4
Weight: ~200 pounds
BMI: wowobese :|
I've improved my diet at the beginning of summer and for the past month I've been going jogging too.
Food wise, my typical meal day looks something like this:
- breakfast: half cup cereal/oatmeal + half cup soymilk + half banana
- lunch: sammich with lettuce, tomato, peppr, onion, turkey/ham, cheese and pickle
- dinner: veggie + pasta/rice stir fry OR scrambled eggs (whites only) with veggies OR something else involving these things
though I am trying to break into more smaller meals (i.e. I'm breaking my sandwich into two and throwing a banana/orange/grapes/other in between and also having a smaller dinner with something after it later on). I don't snack (save maybe a one small piece of chocolate once a week or a slice of pickle when making a sandwich, which is pretty negligible), I drink only water (save soymilk in cereal).
I've been using (
http://www.thedailyplate.com/) to track my calories and I'm usually around 1,200 cals per day. Given that my required calorie intake is around 2000 - 2400 (depending on which e-calculator I use), I think I'm in the "lose 2 pounds a week" range. I do feel a little hungry sometimes in the evening but it's not too bad and I learned not to trust my hunger (I used to be hungry back when I was eating so much I was gaining weight, so yeah).
On top of that, I am also jogging 4 days a week (Mon/Tue/Thurs/Fri). I started at 5 minutes a month ago and being dead afterwords (I was utterly out of shape) and now can pull off 20-30 minutes of constant jog (2-3 miles), hoping to get it to 1 hour by the end of summer and keep it. I also walk around 5-10 miles on the weekend and just started walking a mile on a weekdays in the evening.
Also, in a month when I go back to college, I plan to pickup some weight lifting (yay campus gym!). I might give up jogging if I do enough leg exercises there, not sure (though I hear jogging = cardio which is better for losing weight than weight lifting).
So yea, that's my plan so far, I'd appreciate any thoughts and comments. My only concern is that I may be not eating enough (counting in the exercise) and it may end up backfiring, but we'll see.
Mr. K. on 31/7/2008 at 07:44
Congratulations on your new goal, you'll feel really better with a healthier body composition. :)
There are two really important things for any weight change program:
1) Realize that you're not just going to go on a diet. You're going to change your lifestyle. What good does starving yourself for two months and gaining all that weight back (and then some more!) 6 months down the road? Whatever changes you take, make sure you can stick with them forever. You want to become healthier AND stay that way.
2) The most important thing you can do for your diet is not eating/drinking anything that comes in a colorful plastic wrap / can. Snacks, sodas and the like are loaded with sugar, which is what makes you fat (way more than actual fats). Eat natural things, exercise regularly and you'll see an improvement over time, not only in weight, but also in your energy levels and general health.
Sure, a very strict diet will work faster, but you won't be able to keep it up for long, and once you leave it, you'll gain all the weight you lost and a bit more, the body just works that way. Better to make it easier for you and follow a sensible plan you can stick with.
Also, it's better if you take 5-6 meals a day and they are smaller meals.
I can give you more advice if you want, and I know there are other people here who have experience with weight changing programs, but an excellent resource for this kind of information are bodybuilding sites/forums, as they are experts in shedding fat without losing muscle, which equals being a lot healthier and with a nicer look. Even if you don't want to reach the extremes they go for, the way they control their body fat will help you a lot.
Best wishes!
WAREAGLE on 31/7/2008 at 07:52
You are eating FAR too little!!! Step it up. It sounds like you are eating the right stuff, just eat more of it. aim for 2,000-2,500 calories. Get some more meat in there around lunch time and ditch the cheese and bread. Make sure you cook most of everything yourself so you can avoid buttered down veggies. Switch your dinner meal plan with your lunch meal plan. Instead of a nice healthy sandwich make it a nice healthy salad. Eat MORE MORE MORE. For one it will get your metabolism up and this is most important. Eating under 1500 calories will starve your body. You want to burn off excess weight healthily, and starving your body isnt the way your body wants to loose the weight.
Cardio is a kick ass way to loose weight. Dont worry about gyms and such, thats all alot of hype. Just run/jog/walk as much as you can as LONG as you can. its not about how far you go, its about how long you do it. Plus dont run or jog the whole time. Walk then jog, then run, then sprint. Do it in rotations of 3-5 minutes each (except the sprinting). This will make your heart and body work faster and not become accustomed to the work, burning fat faster over a long period of time. Do as many pushups and situps as possible ina given session as well.
Above all, keep it simple.
BEAR on 31/7/2008 at 08:07
The one thing that I would say is don't get too caught up on calories and pounds. Health is the issue, and you don't want to gain one at the detrimnent of the other. Really reducing your caloric intake might not really help and could possibly hurt, you just want to get the right stuff. Losing excess weight is good for the whole system but peoples metabolisms work differently, so exercise and good diet will lead to better health.
Also running incredible amounts or walking for hours isn't necessarily the best way to lose weight, yeah you'll burn calories but keeping the metabolism pumping is what you want. For that, its hard to beat serious aerobic exercise. You can incorporate full body stuff and you are always changing pace and muscle groups so your body doesn't have time to get into a groove that can cause your metabolism to slow back down (or so I understand, I'm not an expert but I know its a lot more of a workout). Sitting around all day and then going to the gym and running for an hour followed by more sitting kind of confuses your body, if you are going to run/jog etc try and do it a few times a day when you can, its better for you and you'll feel better.
If you are avoiding meat, a good source of protein is boiled eggs (rather than fried, less oil and what not). I've heard (I've never done it in terms of weight loss, but in terms of feeling better) that eating smaller portions more often helps. Boiled eggs are good for that.
One thing that I know has worked for other people I know (like my mother) is stopping sugar, pretty much all sugar. Sugar aggravated her arthritis as well, but when she stopped totally she immediately started losing weight. She had been overweight since I and my brother were born and now in her 50's she's the most fit she's been in 20+ years, largely in part to stopping sugar (alcohol too if applicable).
Shayde on 31/7/2008 at 09:11
I agree with WAREAGLE, you need to eat more - that amount is not sustainable over the long term.
I'd say give up majorly bad things like sugar, sweets, fizzy drinks, processed things like white bread (rather go for wholegrains) and take out etc. And eat 6small, healthy meals a day. I've heard that you shouldn't eat anything late at night but I'm not 100% sure that makes a difference.
Take up athletic hobbies that you enjoy. Forcing yourself to run 4 times a week if you loathe it is not sustainable. Sooner or later it will rain and you won't go for a few days and before you know it, it's over. If you do enjoy it then good for you, just be careful of your knees - running when that heavy can do damage.
Some suggestions for activities; rockclimbing (try find an indoor gym, they have easy walls for people who are very unfit and big), hiking, kickboxing hell even golf gets you out and walking.
Good luck! :thumb:
D'Juhn Keep on 31/7/2008 at 11:09
Agreeing with everything posted above me.
Especially the bit that says YOU'RE NOT EATING ENOUGH.
Seriously, 1200 calories will not help you one little bit. Eat enough and exercise well and you'll get results. Starving yourself will only lead to failure and disenchantment. I used to be overweight - 29 BMI - then got back to decent shape just by eating decently, cycling a bit and doing karate twice a week. Then I lost more weight by running - not jogging - 20 minutes a day and doing weights - squats, deadlifts, bench presses, military presses and bent over rows, nothing else - 3 days a week. As well as cycling about 40km a week.
Good on you for starting to take charge of your fitness but make sure you do it sensibly. Good luck!!
TTK12G3 on 31/7/2008 at 12:03
I'd go with eating closer to 2000 calories and exercising more. You could always go with biking and jogging. Pushing yourself isn't bad, but you should not put yourself on the brink of unhealthy behavior in doing so.
Starrfall on 31/7/2008 at 14:09
2000 calories is too high for someone who weighs 200 pounds at 5-4. Losing too slowly is just as bad for motivation as eating so little that you're miserable.
However 1200 IS on the low end and only eating that much just sucks. Plus your lean protein and fiber intakes are probably questionable. (Maybe not fiber if you're using whole wheat bread and brown rice and so on and depending on how many veggies you actually eat.) I'd suggest aiming for 1600 or so, that should still keep you losing a pound or two per week, will give you more flexibility in meal planning, and isn't that shitty.
Lifting weights ++
Koki on 31/7/2008 at 15:57
Jogging is for slim people. Bike or swim.
