I am probably beating a dead horse here ...

WSG88
WSG88 Posts: 13
in Fitness and Exercise
Okay so I have just recently come back to MFP with new goals this time. I have lost a total of 30 pounds since August of 2012 and I focused way to much on the number on the scale. I thought getting to 140, 130 or in the 120's was going to simply fix everything I didn't like about my body. I am pretty sure at this point you can guess how this has went for me. I fell off the wagon throughout the holidays and gained some of my weight back. While I want to reach my goal weight (which isn't as low as it used to be) this time is different it isn't all about the number on the scale I just want to be happy in my own skin and for me that means I want to be less jiggly and more solid. I don't want to be a bodybuilder or anything I just want to be more 'toned' (I really hate that word >.<) Here is my problem I know most of you are going to tell me to lift weights and while I would LOVE to do that I can't. We don't have the money for a gym membership, and I cant buy my own equipment, so what can I do (if anything) to help me get close to weight lifting results without being able to weight lift? Is there something I can do to lower the number on the scale and tighten everything up? Any advice is much appreciated!
If you need me info I am 25 years old, female, 5'3 (and a half), 145 pounds (was at 177) I am currently eating 1400 calories a day.
Thanks!!
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Replies

  • tayloryay
    tayloryay Posts: 378 Member
    There's nothing wrong with doing body-weight strength training. If you don't have access to weights at all, you can just do normal pushups, crunches, planks, squats, etc. I don't know an exact routine (looking for one myself, actually, same situation as you for weights), but searching around on the internet should give you a few ideas. There are also resistance bands, which take up less space than actual weights, but can still be a little pricy depending on your budget. Really though, if you push yourself and make an effort, body-weight training should be perfectly fine!
  • nmcknny
    nmcknny Posts: 479 Member
    I didn't feel I could afford to join a gym either. I used the book Strong Women Stay Young by Miriam E. Nelson, which includes a plan for weight training that any age woman can do at home, using hand weights, ankle weights, and a few exercises without weights. The weights aren't expensive and you can buy them as you work up to using heavier ones. I'm not a person who likes exercise but I did stick with this and found that it worked.
  • The_WoIverine
    The_WoIverine Posts: 367 Member
    I would suggest you to at least get some resistance bands if you can't afford to buy some dumbbell sets.
    Any strengthening exercise can help you tone. Push ups, pull ups, chair dips, squats, Turkish get ups, Burpees, sit-ups, and many more you could find on YouTube.

    Something you could do is, grab a bag made of fabric, fill it up with sand to use it as a replacement for a sandbag. I've done that myself. Also, a bucket full of water can be used to increase resistance for sumo squats. Be creative as long as you're always safe when improvising.
  • JesterMFP
    JesterMFP Posts: 3,596 Member
    Bodyweight exercises. Google "you are your own gym". Look up the nerdfitness website. There's a lot you can do with bodyweight alone. Since the "jiggle" is fat, what you really need to do is just keep losing the fat, for which you just need to eat at a calorie deficit. Doing some resistance training though will help you hold onto your lean mass and give you more of that "toned" look once you lose the fat. If you like the results, you may be tempted to move onto weights, but that will give you some time to save up for some. When you get to that point, check out ebay, local small adverts, Craigslist etc for good deals.
  • philanthropichelmick
    philanthropichelmick Posts: 24
    use cans of food or bottles of water for weights and do tricep and bicep movements. U'll hafta do 6 reps of 10 to feel the burn. Also, u can jog in ure apt while watching tv or youtube and that's free! I've lost 30 lbs by doing this and I feel great! Good luck to u, Darl'n.
  • paddgirl21
    paddgirl21 Posts: 154 Member
    i didn't have weights when i was younger and as crazy as it sounds, i would go around finding heavy things to lift and do different things with (while making sure not to hurt myself). I would life cinder blocks, wood, tires, basically anything I could find. It worked great. Get creative. put cans in a pillow case (or something equivalent) and lift those... there is plenty of things you just have to look around.
  • tayloryay
    tayloryay Posts: 378 Member
    Thanks for the nerdfitness suggestion, Jester. Very helpful, simple routine!
  • niknokd
    niknokd Posts: 127 Member
    Try googling gymnast workouts. My sister is a gymnast and has formed soo much muscle just doing bodyweight exercises. She's never lifted in her life and she looks awesome. I've googled and youtubed searched gymnastics workout and I've found some great moves to steal for my workouts!
  • cafeaulait7
    cafeaulait7 Posts: 2,459 Member
    You can buy bags of sand at construction or landscaping places and they hold up pretty well :)

    Call around to physical therapists and you can buy resistance bands there for really cheap. I have a PT, but I'd think you might find one who just lets you buy them. Make sure to go heavy even with those. Don't get the light resistance ones meant for rehab because they won't do much, lol :)
  • jaz050465
    jaz050465 Posts: 3,508 Member
    Look at 'Body by You' book. It's the same author as 'You are your own gym' but is designed for women. It's a great progressive bodyweight programme. .
  • HollisGrant
    HollisGrant Posts: 2,022 Member
    I saw an ad saying Planet Fitness is only $10 a month. I don't know how long they are running that price. All the other suggestions are great.
  • janeite1990
    janeite1990 Posts: 671 Member
    Agree with all of the above! Body weight exercises work really well. I like the Jillian Michaels videos that use these exercises with cardio, too. You can start without weights and add in 5 pound dumbbells when you are ready.
  • DMZ_1
    DMZ_1 Posts: 2,889 Member
    You can get results from a variety of body weight exercises such as pushups, situps, burpees, squats, lunges, running. Best wishes!
  • msjac23
    msjac23 Posts: 140 Member
    Your body weight is good enough to use ti get tone. I heard also doing yoga and pilates also helps to tone your body.
  • 2dayirunforme
    2dayirunforme Posts: 171 Member
    push ups, plank push ups incline push ups walk out push ups...and any other variations you can find for push ups. Burpees jumping jack int Burpees and other variations. lunges and squats and Tricep dips and as for lifting i guess you could re-arrange your furniture a coupe times a week. or get an old tire if you have the space outside
  • mamacoates
    mamacoates Posts: 430 Member
    Try strength training that incorporates body weight exercises ... pushups, tricep dips, lunges, box jumps, etc., etc. There are also lots of video programs you can do at home and routines you can find on-line. YouTube can be a great resource for you to find new routines. You can also make "weights" with empty milk jugs filled with water or sand. You just have to get creative. Also take a look at exercise routines incorporating TRX Suspension training. While the TRX brand straps are very expensive, there are cost-effective knock offs available through Amazon and other on-line resources.

    Not having a gym membership is never an excuse for not maintaining good health and strong bodies!!
  • WSG88
    WSG88 Posts: 13
    Wow! Thanks for all of the very helpful advice! I am looking into resistance bands now, they aren't too pricey so I think I will be able to get some and thank you for all of the ideas! Nerdfitness is an awesome website, I just checked it out and I will be using some ideas from there as well. I plan on losing about 20 more pounds but I want to do some strength training now so I don't lose anymore muscle mass. Thanks again to all of you for taking the time to reply to my post, I appreciate it very very much!!
  • flumi_f
    flumi_f Posts: 1,888 Member
    All of the above.

    I have recently discovered youtube to be a great place to find free workouts ;-)

    You can find Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred, Lean Machines 10 min workouts, P90x ....the list is endless. Look for something you like and start there.
  • bwogilvie
    bwogilvie Posts: 2,130 Member
    Stumptuous.com is another useful site for weight training; it's aimed at women. Krista doesn't update it as much as in the past, but it is still a great fount of wisdom, including many suggestions for bodyweight exercises and DIY weights.
  • alikonda
    alikonda Posts: 2,358 Member
    While I'd like to get into weight lifting at some point, I don't currently have a gym membership or the appropriate equipment. Give these bodyweight workouts a try: http://neilarey.com/workouts.html :flowerforyou:
  • gymteachermommy
    gymteachermommy Posts: 13
    If you are on Facebook, there are a bunch of different fitness "pages" you can "like" that pump great articles, workout routines, healthy recipes, etc into your newsfeed. I like MindbodyGreen and SkinnyMs just to name a couple. Also, I teach PE and we do a lot of all the suggestions listed above! Good luck!
  • yogicarl
    yogicarl Posts: 1,260 Member
    No dead horse here -

    Here's the good news - nobody needs to lift weights to maintain existing muscle mass and build on existing strength.

    Start out with push-ups, bodyweight squats and a variation of chin-ups or pull-ups depending on how strong you currently are.

    Aim for several sets of around 5-8 reps for each exercise if it is strength you are looking to build. Look at You Are Your Own Gym and Body By You for excellent programmes and a guy on You Tube called Al Kavadlo for awesome (but reachable) advanced bodyweight stuff and for motivation.

    There's also a group on MFP for progressive bodyweight folks.

    (bodyweight and yoga enthusiast)
  • S0nsh1ne
    S0nsh1ne Posts: 218 Member
    Thanks for nerdfitness info. :smile:
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
    No dead horse here -

    Here's the good news - nobody needs to lift weights to maintain existing muscle mass and build on existing strength.

    Start out with push-ups, bodyweight squats and a variation of chin-ups or pull-ups depending on how strong you currently are.

    Aim for several sets of around 5-8 reps for each exercise if it is strength you are looking to build. Look at You Are Your Own Gym and Body By You for excellent programmes and a guy on You Tube called Al Kavadlo for awesome (but reachable) advanced bodyweight stuff and for motivation.

    There's also a group on MFP for progressive bodyweight folks.

    (bodyweight and yoga enthusiast)

    I approve of this bodyweight/yoga-centric post on this particular thread.

    :flowerforyou:
  • blackmax78
    blackmax78 Posts: 28 Member
    a gallon jug of water is 8 lbs... ez handle too.
  • _SABOTEUR_
    _SABOTEUR_ Posts: 6,833 Member
    No dead horse here -

    Here's the good news - nobody needs to lift weights to maintain existing muscle mass and build on existing strength.

    Start out with push-ups, bodyweight squats and a variation of chin-ups or pull-ups depending on how strong you currently are.

    Aim for several sets of around 5-8 reps for each exercise if it is strength you are looking to build. Look at You Are Your Own Gym and Body By You for excellent programmes and a guy on You Tube called Al Kavadlo for awesome (but reachable) advanced bodyweight stuff and for motivation.

    There's also a group on MFP for progressive bodyweight folks.

    (bodyweight and yoga enthusiast)

    ^This.

    Convict Conditioning is good as well.
  • PetulantOne
    PetulantOne Posts: 2,131 Member
    Bodyweight exercises. Google "you are your own gym". Look up the nerdfitness website. There's a lot you can do with bodyweight alone. Since the "jiggle" is fat, what you really need to do is just keep losing the fat, for which you just need to eat at a calorie deficit. Doing some resistance training though will help you hold onto your lean mass and give you more of that "toned" look once you lose the fat. If you like the results, you may be tempted to move onto weights, but that will give you some time to save up for some. When you get to that point, check out ebay, local small adverts, Craigslist etc for good deals.

    ^ All of this.
  • hofi2010
    hofi2010 Posts: 15
    Again all of the above, but something not mentioned here so far is the frequency. Try to exercise with your body weight 3-4 times a week for about 45-60 mins, like the length of a gym class. Less is ok as well, but you will get faster results with a more vigorous workout routine.
  • ogiesmom
    ogiesmom Posts: 25 Member
    I use resistance bands, but these are great ideas to change things up.
  • GiGiBeans
    GiGiBeans Posts: 1,062 Member
    Another vote for resistance bands. I even bring one to work and use it when I'm bored. Check out Craigslist also, sometimes ya find weights super cheap.

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