Don't Judge but 30/M going from 1200 to 1500 - Nervous

I have to question your weight goal.... 135 or even 145 that I read in a later reply... that sounds awfully low. I am female in my 40's, 5'4",weigh 145 and a size 10. A man of your height and that weight seems like you should be fine where you are. I am all for being healthy not skinny.

Technically, I could stop where I am at and start weight training, but I want to be in the middle of the Body Mass Index scale of "healthy" instead of on the far side close to "overweight" so this is a personal choice of mine.

BMI is a terrible indicator. Most NFL players are considered obese by BMI standards. Body fat percentage is a better goal. You should start lifting heavy now. There is really no need to wait until you weigh a certain amount to starting lifting heavy.

You aren't going to gain any weight at 1,500 calories. You'll still lose about a pound a week; however, it's possible that you'll have a hard time making it to 135 pounds. Your body type will factor into this at some point. A BMI of 23% with eighteen percent body fat is okay, if you're doing the neck and waist measurements. By going down to 135 pounds, you'll need to visit your doctor to see your real body fat measurements using some of the more precise scales. The only reason I'm saying this is because your organs need fat to work.

You'll be fine. Though you should know that at the very beginning you will probably jump a couple pounds. Dont worry about it, your body will readjust and continue losing again soon.

I lost 60lbs in 7 months eating 1200cals/day...now I weigh 130lbs (and have for over a year) and eat about 1800cals/day on AVG...that amount seems to be MY MNT range!! I slowly went up on my cals (from 1200, to 1350, to 1500, 1600, 1700, and now 1800 for AVGs) about every 4-6weeks...and didn't have any probs with gaining.

ok...don't get mad...just giving my 2 cents on the working out...there is always time for a quick workout...I am a single mother, who takes care of all household chores, and works 36hrs/week...and I still find time to fit in at least 30minutes/day. it's all about will...YOU CAN DO THIS!!!

Fear of losing control, and using calories as a control mechanism is a symptom of eating disorders. Have you considered getting counseling?

Fear of losing control, and using calories as a control mechanism is a symptom of eating disorders. Have you considered getting counseling?

I guess I'm not the only one noticing some serious issues.

I don't have much advise on the diet part, but on the cheap workout options, I do.

Ì recently read both books Convict Contitioning and Convict Conditioning 2. They are really great books that focus on calisthenics, or bodyweight exercise. Today it sounds pretty strange to workout like that, but it's been around for thousands of years, it's crazy efficient and it's free... It might sound like a "beginner's" class since it doesn't involve weights, but it's really not. By the time you are done with just the first book, able to do real one handed push-ups, one handed pullups, handstand pushups, leg raises, etc... You'll be one heck of a beast, and probably won't find the need to even go beyond that... but if you do, there is plenty of information too on how to do that

You are basically carrying all day long all you need to do a world class workout, anytime anywhere, and it's free. I like that freedom from that workout program. I have the means to pay for a gym membership, I have for the past 5 years, but this is better. Give it a shot if you want a cheap but nice option

Good luck sir!

First, I have to say my gut instinct is not to reply at all because this sounds like a trap. Based on your responses, you understand that your goal is based on inaccurate information and yet you are pursuing it anyway...

Second, anyone in this day and age who thinks about criticizing you for being a SAHD is not worth your time and certainly gets not respect from me or most other people. So you can definitely ignore anyone like that.

Third, I'm not a doctor, but I think you're not thinking straight... You are at the perfect weight to start working out at home (yes, you can make the time; it's just a matter of priorities). You don't need any special equipment really other than possibly a couple of barbells you can purchase anywhere (including Wal-Mart and sometimes even Goodwill).

I understand about being poor, trust me. This is the first year my wife and I could even think about spending money on gym and personal trainer. My wife is a SAHM, so we are living on my income alone. Because our health was deteriorating (we are in our early 40's, and she was right at 300 lbs and I was over 200), we knew we needed to take action (literally!). So yes, we are spending the big bucks and it aint easy... but she has lost 70 lbs and I have lost over 30 lbs so far since the beginning of the year. My trainer said (in essence) I am at a good weight to start focusing on strength training now and less on weight loss. I am only 5'7" and weigh 176 -- so you can see where my concern for you comes from. I am not a large framed person. My current profile photo shows me at my heaviest (216 lbs). I look nothing like that now (except the hairline! :P).

So don't worry about 1500 calories. I would even bump it up to 1600 or maybe more, try to get your heart rate up to around 140 or so for 30 minutes a day and do some core exercises and you will be a knockout in no time. You can find exercises all over the place on the internet now (including Men's Health online; they have some great stuff!).

Good luck, and be healthy.

I understand your skepticism and I respect it. There are very few people out there as naive as me that would openly admit it but we exist. The internet gives voice to introverts like me, and while most introverts use it to release anger and rage, I use it to constructively figure out my life and get good advice.

I plan on going up to the 1500 after seeing all these comments, I just needed some support. Being highly sensitive brings a lot of fear with it; I can't help that I am naive and very easily tricked into believing things that aren't true (gullibility?) so I have to figure most things out on my own and then ask a board of professionals to set me straight.

I will incorporate exercise as soon as time permits. Even bodyweight exercises (like suggested above) sound affordable to do; it's really just about time at this point. Tonight I am sacrificing 2 hours to this when I should be doing laundry, vacuuming, getting school supplies at a 24 hours supermarket, cooking meat for the morning, and getting the kids to bed (11pm here). So to be responsible for so much with no help makes life a bit difficult to find time alone.

Thank you again for your advice though, I appreciate it.

2 hours for exercise? Most of my workouts never exceed an hour, in fact if you are doing weight training, it is recommended to limit your workout time, because you need to eat something to replace your glycogen stores, and to help your body get the proteins to start repairing the muscle.

Many exercises you can do with your kids. They might even enjoy it. If they are little, take them to the playground, and while they are playing, do a couple of sets of pull ups on the monkey bars, dips on the park bench, and push-ups on the sidewalk or grass. Lunges around the perimeter of the playground, or jump squats work well, too.. Youtube has some tabata exercises that can be done outside, your kids may even want to try them with you.