new to this and need help

ctbarton5

Hello everyone my name is Crystal and I am from the mountains of western NC. I have started on day 2 of my journey but need help. I have begun by doing 20 minutes of cardio yesterday and today but my biggest issue is the food and what to eat. When I do eat I try not to eat alot but find myself eating the same things over and over and need ideas on different stuff. I am not a huge veggie eater so that is an issue as well. I also don't have money for a gym membership or to go out and buy weight stuff so does anyone have any ideas to help me get results?

beachcomber

Hi Crystal. Of course walking is a good . I like to go to the local HS and walk the track there. Also can you rent some excersice videos? Also check your cable channels for fitness programs that you can work out along with.

Try planning you meals ahead of time and try to stick to it. and also eating small meals throughout the day helps too.
I always try to keep myself busy and try not to think about food.

Good luck with your journey. We are all in this together!!

Chenoachem

Welcome.

Depending on what your calorie goal for each day is, you will probably find people who have public food diaries. ( Mine is) It can be a good resource for new ideas.

Workouts don't have to be expensive. Depending on your access, youtube has videos, if you want to run C25K program is good, Fitness channel or on demand has things, or just purchase a cheap DVD and work on it. If you have any video game systems for your kids both PlayStation 2 and the Wii have workout "games" that you can do. Or just go for a walk.

Good Luck.

BigdaddyJ

HI!

You might be able to borrow some exercise video at your local library, if they have a good selection you can xchange them every now and then.

as for equipment, I've built a descent set of weights from the trift store for very cheap, I just bought a dumbell with 35 lbs on it for 5$, it would have cost me over 60$ for new stuff. You can also buy a real cheap set of resistance straps a wallmart for about 15-20$, they're not the best out there but if your just starting it should be all right!

Hope that helped!!

JF

lt_mrcook

No gym or weights required. Body weight exercises are great (push ups, sit ups, pull ups[you'll be amazed where you can do them]) and you have one of the best cardio machines ever invented already attached to you and ready to go. Walk, jog, run, sprint, etc. Plus if you do you exercises back-back-back with no rest and push hard it turns into a cardio workout too...:) Don't over do it, but it shouldn't feel comfortable either.

As far as diet, TRY to get as many different colors on your plate as you can. Avoid processed food (especially High Fructose Corn Syrup) as much as you can. Just try to add a little change every week when you shop. If you try all at once, you might get sick of it and quit. A tree doesn't get all of it branches right away or at the same time. Spread your diet out little by little. For the most part you should start off looking at calories in verses calories out. Worry about the specifics later as you get more fit/serious/etc. If you do find yourself hungry too often, just try to add something with a little protein & fat to level out your carbs and keep your blood sugar more even.

I'm not a pro, so feel free to get other opinions and advice. Good luck to you and ROck On! You started and that's more than a lot of people can say...:)

mromnek

Crystal, welcome to MFP and congratulations on the first step in your journey!!! With determination, you will be able to achieve your goals, because there is only one obstacle to your success... you.

Food:
This website is not about dieting, but developing healthy eating habits. I suspect that you are not on this website because you are already eating healthy. The food diary causes you to look at what you are eating. Remember when we were kids and we saw the food pyramid? Yeah, that's the thing we forgot about when we hit our teen years. Well, find a copy and start there.

Some suggestions. Go to Wal-mart and get yourself a wok. Stir fry is quick, easy, tasty, and fits into this program nicely. Most people like Chinese food, so you can get your veggies without "eating veggies." Brocolli, onions, tomatoes, carrots, squash, peas, and just about any vegetable you can think of goes well in stir fry.

Pay close attention to your nutritional labels. Ask yourself if there are healthier ways of eating your favorite foods.

Portion control. I love to eat... and eat... and eat. My favorite food is pizza. My favorite way to eat pizza... buffett. All you can eat is like a challenge to me. Gotta get my money's worth. That took some changing. We made pizza the other night (first time since December I had pizza). The homemade dough with lots of veggies kept the pizza reasonable for my caloric intake.

Exercise: Walk, walk, walk. Walking if free. That being said, I can't walk because of physical pain related to cardio walking. Additionally, I have bad knees and shoulders. I went and invested in a recumbent bike, and I use it. Try an exercise video/dvd. Turn the TV to a fitness channel. If you have stairs, use them... they even made a piece of exercise equipment based on stairs. Chase your kids around the yard/park. When it gets warmer, take up tennis. Buy/borrow a bicycle.

If you haven't noticed... I am talking about completely changing your lifestyle. Yup. I have yo-yo dieted for years. It never worked. I needed to change my lifestyle. I am currently looking forward to the weather warming up and being able to start riding my bicycle... something I haven't done since high school. Bottom line, what I have done for the past 25+ years hasn't worked.