Try, try and try again.

280tofit2014

Hello everyone!

I'm Nicole I'm 18 and that dreaded "O" word. Yep. Obese.

I'm 5'6 and approx 280lbs. I have tried many times to lose weight. I've gone through those "No more bull- I'm doing it this time attitude!" Only to lose 20lbs and then quit and gain 30lbs back. I recently lost my father and entered a really bad depressed state. I gave up on everything but I don't want to live that way. I want to be a healthy, happy person. So this time, it's succeed or die trying but no giving up! I joined fitness pal looking for support. I don't really have a support system at home as my mom and brother are going through their own grieving process and dieting and exercising is the farthest thing from their mind.

I'm pretty new at the whole exercising thing and fitness in general. Any tips would be greatly appreciated. I recently purchased a stationary bike, an elliptical, a stepper, and an upright bike, polar ft4 and some workout DVDs. If anyone could help me gather a great workout routine with these things I'd love you forever.

I would also like to start weight training, I just am not sure when to incorporate it?

I've signed up for the color run 5k hitting my city in September and I damn well plan on completing it.

Thank you everyone!!

ElvenToad

You sound very motivated! I started here 102 days ago at 268lbs. I have lost 35 so far and I still have a long way to go but at least now I know HOW to lose weight and plan on using this site forever to continue and maintain what I lose and never go back to where I was. My entire life I did the same as you, got really motivated lost a little, lost motivation, gained it all back. NEVER again! I had no clue how weight loss actually worked so I was blindly eating who knows how many calories per day and frustrated when the scale stopped moving.

I started off just by reading this thread

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

I bought a food scale, learned how to accurately weigh and log my food, and I bought a Fitbit to get a more accurate tdee (total daily energy expenditure). Bought a heart rate monitor for my workouts. These things are vital to me in this process. They allow you to see exactly how many calories go in vs out of your body. Fitness is great, and I workout at least 5x a week but your food intake is the absolute most important part of the process.

Good luck and feel free to friend me if you wish!

ElvenToad

Oh I forgot to mention your workout machines you said you bought, those are great btw.. I think the best way to start yourself into a workout routine is just try to do 10 minutes say on the Elliptical, and 10 minutes on the bike. Set small goals, like I'm going to do 5-10 minutes on those 2 today, and then tomorrow try to do the same on the other 2 machines. Do that for a week or so and then when you feel like you've got that down try to do 15 on each etc.

Workout DVD's are great there are a ton of free ones on Youtube. I love the Leslie Sansone walk at home videos (youtube) because I am so uncoordinated and also because you don't have to learn a bunch of moves. It is a great workout for me. She has a 20 min one that's about a mile, all the way up to hour long 5 mile vids.

It's best to mix up your routine throughout the week, and start the strength training as soon as possible. It will help you retain lean muscle mass while losing fat from your calorie deficit. Also make sure you give yourself at least 1-2 rest days per week, its very important to give your body those days to recover.

Read through the forums, there are a ton of topics with excellent information

280tofit2014

Oh I forgot to mention your workout machines you said you bought, those are great btw.. I think the best way to start yourself into a workout routine is just try to do 10 minutes say on the Elliptical, and 10 minutes on the bike. Set small goals, like I'm going to do 5-10 minutes on those 2 today, and then tomorrow try to do the same on the other 2 machines. Do that for a week or so and then when you feel like you've got that down try to do 15 on each etc.

Workout DVD's are great there are a ton of free ones on Youtube. I love the Leslie Sansone walk at home videos (youtube) because I am so uncoordinated and also because you don't have to learn a bunch of moves. It is a great workout for me. She has a 20 min one that's about a mile, all the way up to hour long 5 mile vids.

It's best to mix up your routine throughout the week, and start the strength training as soon as possible. It will help you retain lean muscle mass while losing fat from your calorie deficit. Also make sure you give yourself at least 1-2 rest days per week, its very important to give your body those days to recover.

Read through the forums, there are a ton of topics with excellent information

Hi!! Thanks so much for replying to my post and all the tips. I ended up doing 30 minutes on the bike today even tho my thighs begged me to quit! Lol. I don't have my HRM in yet so I can't start calorie burn tracking yet but I can't wait until I do!! I noticed you said you weigh your food- I've never heard of that. Is it different than doing serving sizes? Do you strength train? Should I just get hand weights? Thanks!

ElvenToad

Oh I forgot to mention your workout machines you said you bought, those are great btw.. I think the best way to start yourself into a workout routine is just try to do 10 minutes say on the Elliptical, and 10 minutes on the bike. Set small goals, like I'm going to do 5-10 minutes on those 2 today, and then tomorrow try to do the same on the other 2 machines. Do that for a week or so and then when you feel like you've got that down try to do 15 on each etc.

Workout DVD's are great there are a ton of free ones on Youtube. I love the Leslie Sansone walk at home videos (youtube) because I am so uncoordinated and also because you don't have to learn a bunch of moves. It is a great workout for me. She has a 20 min one that's about a mile, all the way up to hour long 5 mile vids.

It's best to mix up your routine throughout the week, and start the strength training as soon as possible. It will help you retain lean muscle mass while losing fat from your calorie deficit. Also make sure you give yourself at least 1-2 rest days per week, its very important to give your body those days to recover.

Read through the forums, there are a ton of topics with excellent information

Hi!! Thanks so much for replying to my post and all the tips. I ended up doing 30 minutes on the bike today even tho my thighs begged me to quit! Lol. I don't have my HRM in yet so I can't start calorie burn tracking yet but I can't wait until I do!! I noticed you said you weigh your food- I've never heard of that. Is it different than doing serving sizes? Do you strength train? Should I just get hand weights? Thanks!

You're welcome! 30 minutes a day is wonderful! I started out doing only 10 minutes a day and thought I was going to die!
Yes weighing your food is the only accurate way to know how many calories you are eating. Weigh all solids and measure liquids in a measuring cup. Often the serving sizes on the packages will be in grams ex. 1 serving of cheerios says 3/4 cup (28g) is 110 calories so what you want to do is weigh out 28g on your food scale. A food scale will run you about $20 at walmart or amazon and will be your absolute number #1 weight loss tool. If you were to pour 3/4 cup of cheerios into a measuring cup and say ok that's 3/4 cup and then you weigh out that portion it will end up being over 28g and therefore you could end up eating an extra 50 calories without even knowing it. It's not meant to be an obsession or some big time consuming ordeal, once you do it for a few weeks you will have a much better understanding of portion sizes, and it will help you learn moderation.

I would recommend reading this thread for how to enter your food into the database correctly as well. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1234699-logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide

You can use hand weights, look up videos on Youtube for them and you can learn a few routines.

Another thing worth mentioning is mfp is set up to eat your exercise calories back, your calorie deficit is already built into your daily food goal. So once you get your hrm and get an accurate calorie burn aim to eat at least 80% of those calories back. I say 80% to make room for any margin of error.

pastybuns

Hey Nicole, welcome!

I'm sorry to hear about your current support system, but I think you'll find that most everyone here is extremely encouraging of your goals, regardless of what they are or their size.

Sounds like you've made some big steps in the right direction, which is awesome. If I might be so bold, I would like to offer just one piece of advice - which is mainly based off of your topic title. Don't ever quit! I know, it sounds lame and cliche, but I really think it's where many people ultimately fall off the wagon.

Diet and exercise shouldn't (in my opinion) be thought of in a perfect, rigid manner. It is a lifestyle you're trying to change/achieve and nobody lives perfectly. I'd recommend being honest to the log: record everything - the good and the bad. Otherwise, why use it? Just remember it's not the end of the world when you don't get that exercise in on a day or you have something outside your defined "diet". Don't ever think, "I've already screwed up - might as well eat <insert guilty pleasure here>".

Keep the overall lifestyle goal in mind. As long as you're eating and exercising how you want to live the rest of your life a vast majority of the time, it's okay to not be perfect 100%. Because no one is.

Anyway, that's my 2 cents. But their just my opinions really, do what works best for you and let people support you along the way. I wish you the very best health! And be sure to add me as a friend if you think I'd be a fitting cheerleader ;D