Those of you who have lost 40 or 50 pounds in 6 months or so what was your workout routine?

shadows2424

Im trying to lose 40 pounds in six months or less. Id like to know if you worked out what was your routine or what did you do to lose it?

cwolfman13

I rode my bike a lot...and still do.

Losing weight is about consuming less energy than you are expending. You can do all of the exercise in the world but if you're consuming more than you're expending, you're not going to lose weight.

I cycle 80-100 miles per week and have lost weight, maintained weight, and gained weight doing that...the difference being how much I was eating.

tlflag1620

A couple years ago I lost 40 lbs in 7 months. No change in activity level, just eating less than I was burning.

Sued0nim

Personal trainer once a week - 20 mins cardio, weights, bodyweight
Workout twice a week, used to do one as a one hour cardio but generally 2 sessions of cardio / weights
Walked ...tried to hit 5 miles a day when not working out

But the weight came off by food intake
48lbs in 9 months, 52-55kbs overall, maintaining for 10 months

Still do 3 x workouts, weights and 1 PT session. Probably only walk around 4 miles on average still watch food but at 2300 cals roughly per day

shabaity

The time I did it I wouldn't say I had an exercise routine persay I was a waitress full time and took the stairs to the 3rd floor twice a week. I was also not eating much due to a medication's side effects.

callsitlikeiseeit

thats a pretty aggressive goal depending on your stats.

i lost 70 pounds last year eating (on an average) of 1500 calories per day and working out (cardio) abut 5 days week for an hour

Escloflowne

MFP suggested calories + eating back burned calories + food scale: 100lbs in 12 months

Paulina1230

Escloflowne wrote: »

MFP suggested calories + eating back burned calories + food scale: 100lbs in 12 months

Awesome job...I am following MFP's guidelines to a "t", and they are working perfectly. Love how easy this program is to follow and that I'll be able to continue this for life. Im down 68 pounds.

GreyKnight120

Also depends a lot on your starting-out weight. With a pretty rigorous exercise plan and healthy eating habits I was able to go from 390.4 lbs. to 324.2 lbs. since August 24th of last year. But I have no expectation that the next 66 lbs. will fall off in the same 4.5 months.

galgenstrick

I lost ~42lbs in 6 months doing stronglifts 5x5 and HIIT on the elliptical 2 days a week. Also tried to walk as much as possible on my work breaks. I gained back 20 on a steady bulk by cutting back on the cardio, eating more and changing to a 5 day/week weight lifting program. Now, I'm cutting again, but I decided to not go so aggressive this time. Aiming for a 1lb/week loss and staring my calories high and adding cardio as needed to adjust for plateaus.

cthakkar1985

I lost exactly 40 pounds in 6 months from July 2013 to January 2014.

- I did cardio 6 days/week which was 20 minutes on treadmill + 30 minutes on elliptical.
- I lifted weights 3 days/week. 20 sets each day. Day 1 - chest/shoulders/triceps. Day 2 - Back/Biceps. Day 3 - Legs & abs.
- I ate 1,800 calories 6 days/week.
- I had 1 cheat meal every week where I could have a few alcoholic drinks (usually hard liquor) + whatever I want to eat. I would end up around 2,600 calories for that day.

That was it!

Danimri84

Went from 249 to 178 in about 9ish months. Started with walking, did 30 day shred, just mixed it up.

Radiant8888

I think your time frame for your weight loss is realistic and doable - that's about 1.5lbs per week. I think you can afford to think about the exercise in a slightly different way - do you need to get more flexible, more toned, stronger, better cardiovascular health, etc? Also, what will you actually follow through on and enjoy - and therefore be able to sustain? I don't really enjoy working out in front of other people - so I do workouts at home from DVDs (I'm happy to run outdoors though). I love running, walking, Pilates, Yoga and aerobic workouts. HIIT is good for weight loss and muscle gain. I would just think about what you really want and what suits your preferences and lifestyle and start to build your routine around that.

Redbeard333

GreyKnight120 wrote: »

Also depends a lot on your starting-out weight. With a pretty rigorous exercise plan and healthy eating habits I was able to go from 390.4 lbs. to 324.2 lbs. since August 24th of last year. But I have no expectation that the next 66 lbs. will fall off in the same 4.5 months.

Exactly!! I lost 50 pounds in 5 months, but I was starting out at 286.8 with a BMI of 40.1. The next 34 pounds took 7 months. What's really cool is I can see the graph of my weight sloping less steep over the last few months...

After losing 20 pounds, I picked up a Fitbit Charge and started trying to walk more. No gym, no weights, just walking. I've been able to hit 10k/day for the last month, but it's required me to dust off my treadmill because of the weather.

ridge4mfp

I have lost 55 lbs in 6 months, mainly by eating at a deficit. I also do water aerobics once a week, yoga once a week, and walk a lot. Of note, my starting weight was quite high at 286 lbs.

Keith3481

I was able to lose about 30 lbs in the first six months by aiming for the MFP goal of 1.5 lb/week. My actual results were about 1.2 lb/week during that time, which was still good progress. How did I get there? It's all about the deficit. I added 30 minutes/day x 6 days/week of indoor biking on a road bike hooked up to a trainer. I managed my food intake to create the rest of the deficit. Maybe I didn't get that third piece of pizza or the second breadstick at the Italian place. Over time all those deficits add up. Just manage your daily food intake and exercise plan to a reasonable, sustainable amount based on the goals MFP gives you and stick to your plan.

missblondi2u

I went from about 206 to 166 in about 6 months. My exercise was all over the place, but I lost consistently because I generally stayed within my calorie goal regardless of exercise.

snowflake930

You have to consume less calories than you burn. How you achieve that is up to you.

I read this quote yesterday:

"You can't exercise enough to overcome a poor diet. Diet comes first."

It is entirely possible to gain weight, even if you exercise every day, if you eat more calories than you burn.

lalfaro01

rabbitjb wrote: »

Personal trainer once a week - 20 mins cardio, weights, bodyweight
Workout twice a week, used to do one as a one hour cardio but generally 2 sessions of cardio / weights
Walked ...tried to hit 5 miles a day when not working out

But the weight came off by food intake
48lbs in 9 months, 52-55kbs overall, maintaining for 10 months

Still do 3 x workouts, weights and 1 PT session. Probably only walk around 4 miles on average still watch food but at 2300 cals roughly per day

Rabbit, what was your calorie intake while you were losing weight?

chalonera

I have recently qualified in Health and nutrition, and understanding the facts and basics for me is extremely helpful... so I hope this helps you too...

• You’re BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) – what you need to consume on a daily basis to walk, talk, sleep etc…
• You’re PAL (Personal activity Level) – Even if you are sedentary you still move throughout the day - your PAL is what you multiply your BMR by to calculate your daily amount of energy (calories) per day needed based on how active you are.
• No 1 person has the same amount of daily calories, the 2000/2500 per day is a good guideline, but is easier than you think to calculate your own energy requirement! http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
• Drink at least 1.5L of fluids that aren’t Tea, Coffee, or fizzy drinks per day (preferably water!) It is important your body stay hydrated to carry out its daily functions properly, if it isn’t hydrated enough, your body won’t absorb the right nutrients you need. If you are exercising it should be more than 3L depending on how much)
• Don’t skip Breakfast! Even if it’s at 10am rather than 8…eating breakfast kick starts your system into working again after its rest overnight, you need energy to function.
• No more than 6g of salt per day, don’t add! Adults eat way more salt than they need to for what is healthy, too much salt can lead to High cholesterol and Heart Disease… don’t add it to your food! Look for other things to flavour. Also look at the salt content of the food you are already eating! It will surprise you. (Bacon…)
• Substitute or replace for healthier alternatives! Swap Milk for semi- or skimmed. Use yoghurt or low fat crème fraiche rather than crèam or milk in cooking. Swap chocolate for yoghurt coated raisins etc…
• Variety is the key to a healthy diet, you should aim for the following daily;
o 33% carbohydrates (try wholegrain or wholemeal as it contains more vitamins and minerals than white and lower in calories as it’s not so processed.)
o 33% Fruit and veg
 No more than 2 portions of fruit per day (to keep your sugar down).
 Juice will only ever count as 1 portion, no matter how much you drink!)
 Beans and pulses only count as 1 portion also.
 Normal Potatoes do not count as 1 of your 5 a day. Sweet potatoes do!
 80g of each fruit or veg is counted as 1 portion. Measure it!
 Smoothies only count as 2 portions max, no matter how many fruit or veg is in them.
o 15% Meat and Protein (try at least 2 portions of fish per week)
o 15% Milk and dairy (semi or skimmed milk only, we don’t need full fat )
o 4% or less of fatty or sugary food. (natural sugars and non-saturated fat like nuts, seeds, olive oils and vegetable oils)
• To gain or lose 1lb of fat you have to either (it takes however long you want it to, healthily)
o Consume 3500 less calories than you burn.
o Or burn 3500 calories more than you consume.

The calculations to work out your BMR are as follows:

Male – 66 + (6.23 x weight in lbs) + (12.7 x height in inches) – (6.8 x age in years) = BMR.
Female – 655 + (4.35 x Weight in lbs) + (4.7 x height in inches) – (4.7 x Age in years) = BMR

Your PAL is worked out simply by being honest about your weight and activity as the changing factors.

L1 – Sedentary – Little or no Exercise – multiply your BMR by 1.2
L2 – Light Exercise – Frequent walking for work or 1 hour intense exercise per week – multiply your BMR by 1.375
L3 – Moderate – A Physical Job or intense activity 30 – 60 mins 3 or 4 times per week – multiply your BMR by 1.55
L4 – Very Active – Highly physical job or 60 mins of exercise 5 to 7 times per week – multiply your BMR by 1.725
L5 - Extreme – Athlete!! Training every day of the week – multiply your BMR by 1.9

To get your personal daily calorie intake you times your BMR by your PAL. Be aware that this will change constantly! As your weight fluctuates and you grow older! So this will be monitored every few weeks and re-calculated.

dawnsnarks

I lost 50 lbs in a little over 6 months by setting my deficit at 1 lb/week loss, using my elliptical 5x a week and only eating back about half of the exercise calories. No slow downs, no stalls...it was like magic! Granted, a really really really extended magic trick but still.

ETA: went from 180 to 130 in this time frame.