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I'm a teenager, approx 275ish pounds and have no weights at home and get too anxious in gyms. I need some workouts that are beneficial but quick. I want to lose 100lbs by mid March 2026 and need help 🙏

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  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 37,053 Member

    One warning: If you're under 18, you're not even supposed to join here. Calorie and nutrition needs are different for bodies that are still growing/maturing.

    If you want strength workouts, maybe take a look at this thread, where many MFP-ers share programs they've found helpful.

    Despite the title, it does include some programs that are bodyweight oriented, and require no or minimal equipment. Some of those might suit you.

    This thread may also be useful, helping to understand how to think about strength development:

    Again, many of those same principles would apply to a bodyweight program.

    Some cardiovascular exercise is also important. If you haven't previously been active, walking is a good start. As you get lighter and develop a reasonable cardiovascular base, one of the couch to 5k programs could be good. (C25k is a shortened name for the same.) If you're not comfortable walking out in public, consider some of the free indoor walking workout videos on YouTube. Leslie Sansone's channel is a popular example.

    I have to admit, I'm a bit concerned about your timeline. You're talking about 100 pounds in 8-9 months, close to or over 3 pounds a week. That's pretty aggressive, possibly risky to health. A common suggestion here is to lose no faster than 0.5-1% of current weight per week, with a bias toward the lower end of that range unless severely obese AND under medical supervision for nutritional deficiencies or health complications. That range, at your current weight, would be around 1.4-2.8 pounds per week, preferably closer to the 1.4. You're suggesting more than twice that 1.4.

    Since you're young, and only if you're in excellent general health with an overall low-stress life, you might get away with as much as 2 pounds a week at the start, but that should slow down as you get lighter. Good health is important, and fast loss doesn't foster good health. Don't believe all the nonsense you see on reality TV or in the blogosphere about people losing tens of pounds really fast.

    As a teenager, you're in a perfect position to find and develop the healthy habits that will create a thriving future for you long term. Pushing hard on dieting is more likely to initiate a future of yo-yo loss and regain, plus a difficult relationship with food and eating, that's nowhere near thriving.

    I know that patience is super hard as a teen. A year or two seems really long. I'd so strongly encourage you to start taking the long view, thinking of all the decades ahead that can be happy and healthy if you make a year or two's investment now in finding those good permanent habits.

    As you might guess from this, I'm really old. I know that nearly no one learns from other people's mistakes. But I'd encourage you to give your future self some thought, think about developing the habits that will keep her happy and healthy for decades. I wish I'd done a better job of that . . . deeply wish that.

    Wishing you the best!