Trying to lose weight

[XXxxMidnightMitress12xxXX]

Hello there, I'm sure most of ya'll can relate. I am 5'5" and 247pds. Not heathly at all for my weight. gonk I am trying to go to Curves and excercise but I don't know what else to do. Does anyone have any tips on helping me along? I am trying to get down to 132lbs.

[XXxxMidnightMitress12xxXX]

bump

[Grind_It]

Exercise alone won't force you to lose weight. You need to modify your diet as well. Start by cutting out processed sugars & junk food -- you don't need them and you can get natural sugars from things like fruit. Soda pop? Juice? It's junk. It has no nutritional value and is just empty calories. Up your water intake -- staying hydrated is a key factor in losing weight.

Eating things like chips, cookies, cake, crackers, etc -- they are only going to hinder you in the long run. Essentially you need to be consuming less calories than you do now so what I would tell you to do is keep a food diary for a week or so. Write down EVERYTHING that you eat. Even if it's a piece of candy -- log it in. Calculate the total amount of calories you're eating, the grams of fat, etc, and take an objective look at what you're consuming. Personally I never go over 1,300 calories a day and that's simply because myself (and my family) eat everything home cooked, we don't eat (or buy) junk food, and we drink a lot of water, etc. Start doing similar things -- if you know you have an affinity for junk food -- stop giving in to the temptation to buy it. Eat filling things that are good for you -- example, for breakfast have a bowl of fresh oatmeal, low-fat yogurt with granola, an egg white omelet with fresh veggies and cheese, a whole grain bagel & salmon. Something that is healthy & filling. If you get the need to snack steer clear of chips, cookies, crackers, etc. Why not get some baby carrots, make some celery sticks, pepper sticks and hummus and eat that instead? For dinner eat things like brown rice (more nutritional than white rice), chicken cooked in herbs, and lots of steamed veggies/salad? Dessert could be anything from a fruit smoothie to a fruit & honey parfait.

The options are endless and don't have to be bland or disgusting. But really changing what you're putting into your body is going to make a world of difference. Food is fuel and if you fuel yourself with junk you're not going to have energy to think, work out, or motivate yourself to lose weight. Fuel yourself with good, healthy things and you're going to start feeling a lot better and have a lot more energy.

Aside from that -- start doing things to be more active. Go for long walks through your neighborhood. Walk your neighbors dog, walk up and down your stairs, jog around your block, go outside and do some gardening, wash your car, etc. ANYTHING that gets you up and moving is going to help you. I have a friend who lost over 200 pounds simply through eating healthier, cutting out the junk, walking (and eventually running, when the weight started coming off), and doing things like pushups, jumping jacks, etc. You don't need a gym membership to lose weight.


Good luck! If you have any questions PM me, please.

[Brittenstein]

Hey there! As one who lost 70 pounds (I am 5'6", and began at 220 pounds), I can DEFINITELY relate! I'm very glad that you're on your way to a healthier lifestyle. Allow me to give you some tips that got me started. biggrin

The first step to losing weight is knowing your basal metabolic rate (BMR). This is the amount of calories your body naturally burns each day. Use this one to calculate yours: BMR Calculator. This step must come first because it will help you determine how much you can eat a day. Make sure to choose the correct activity level by pretending that you aren't working out and choose the option that best fits your lifestyle. If you're like me, you might work out every day, but you still work a desk job or sit at school all day. That's why I choose sedentary. xp

The next step is to plan your calories according to your BMR. If you want to maximize your weight loss, you want to choose a number below your BMR to create a calorie deficit. My BMR is about 1800, so normally I choose 1200 calories to eat per day. Unfortunately, this is the step that many people fail with - they often choose calorie levels that are too low, end up feeling crazy hungry, and give up with their dieting. That's why it's best to choose something realistic (between 500-700 calories below your BMR is probably good, but choose something that's comfortable for you). Remember that by exercising you are also burning calories, so use an online calculator like this one to calculate what you're burning.

heart My biggest tip? Log EVERYTHING that you eat! I keep a Word document saved to my desktop and I always list down what I eat and how many calories I take in. There are several great websites now that will tell you the approximate calories of items you have no clue about, too (try this one)!

heart Make it easy on yourself since you're just starting out - don't worry about fat, carbs, or protein levels for now. Get yourself used to the process of calorie counting and seeing the pounds drop off first.

heart Once you're ready to drop your calories drastically, try not to drop below at least 1200 calories per day. This is the base requirement average-height/weight bodies need for proper organ function, etc.

heart All calculators on fitness machines and calories listed by websites (even those I have listed above) display approximate estimates. Calories burned by exercise are best judged by a heart monitor, but since those are expensive, assume you're burning a little less than what the machines are telling you (if a machine tells me I've burned 200 calories, I usually tell myself I've burned 170).

Once you find your perfect medium between watching calories and exercise, you're going to be perfectly comfortable losing weight AND keeping it off. It won't be easy, though, so keep your chin up and stay positive! You can do this!

[XXxxMidnightMitress12xxXX]

Thanks so much for ur comments already. smile Getting started is the hardest but I am working on it. Slowly and surely I will get there. 3nodding

[Iced Vodka]

Counting calories is a good way to start your weight loss program. You do have to record down what you eat just in case though. I've found that it also changes my eating habits because all the low calorie foods are usually the simplest to cook and make and therefore less.... junk in it.

[aldz23]

hi! im 5'5 and used to weight 176 lbs. I started running last august 2012 and i lose some weights. I stopped for two months because i suffered a flu and now im running again. my weight now is 168lbs..

[Sanity-In-A-Handbag]

I would recommend slowly working up to hardcore if you want to go that way, going cold turkey is really hard and doesn't help cravings. I would recommend trying to eat better and exercise more without compromising what exercise you get everyday by walking or standing or anything besides sitting down. Don't be afraid to give into your cravings, portion control is key because if you keep putting off your cravings you'll eventually give in and possibly risk binging… that's about all I got for now.

[PhilliBilliful]

While I'm certainly not your size. (I'm about 5'8" and 170 lbs - female) I just picked up a new at-home fitness DVD set called Insanity by Shaun T. I will be starting it here next week. A bunch of my classmates at school have done it and they're in amazing shape now.

[Siiyuan]

aw man i should proabably get back into running. It's so difficult to do it though cause it's winter season atm :C