18 yo. Just starting out, need support and buddies!

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  • aless820
    aless820 Posts: 101 Member
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    Hi! i'm 18 years old as well and have just started college. I was never really fat to begin with, I started off at 127 lbs on Jan.1. Today, I weigh a healthy 115 lbs. I try to work out atleast 5 times a week (cardio), and eat 1200 calories a day (with cheat days of course). I have completely cut out soda and fast food restaurants, but other than that, I eat whatever I want as long as it is under 1200 calories (cereal, cookies, sandwiches, you name it!). Now that I've reached my goal weight, I'm going to start upping my calories and start weight training :)
    Great for you! You sound so healthy now! You should feel proud of your accomplishments!
  • aless820
    aless820 Posts: 101 Member
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    I'm 18 as well and i started at your current weight 172ish! Im about 150
    That's fantastic! I can't wait to get to that weight! A long way to go but so worth it! Good for you!
  • aless820
    aless820 Posts: 101 Member
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    Your goal is quite aggressive for the amount of weight you have to lose. If you find that you're restricting calories too much, add some back, and rework your plan. Good luck !
    I want to push myself enough so that I'll feel bad about myself if I don't meet my goals. If I don't push myself, I'll fall off from it, and that's certainly not good!
  • Lizzymk
    Lizzymk Posts: 7 Member
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    I'm 18 also and will be attending college this coming Fall, sent you a friend's request :).
  • aless820
    aless820 Posts: 101 Member
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    I'm 18 also and will be attending college this coming Fall, sent you a friend's request :).

    great!!
  • sloth3toes
    sloth3toes Posts: 2,212 Member
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    Your goal is quite aggressive for the amount of weight you have to lose. If you find that you're restricting calories too much, add some back, and rework your plan. Good luck !
    I want to push myself enough so that I'll feel bad about myself if I don't meet my goals. If I don't push myself, I'll fall off from it, and that's certainly not good!

    Pushing yourself is great.... but if you push yourself too hard, and don't meet your goals, and feel bad enough about yourself, you're likely to give up. It's extremely common. I'm just sayin'....

    s-JON-STEWART-large.jpg

    There's nothing wrong with having a fall-back plan. If you're restricting close to 1,000 calories / day to lose almost 2 lbs per week... and it gets too tough... just rework your goals.
  • shaneanigans1
    shaneanigans1 Posts: 38
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    just sent a friend request!! I am also a 16 year old natural bodybuilder, I just started up my own bodybuilding channel on youtube, ill be making videos giving advise on diet and training, motivational videos, workout videos that are both edited and raw footage, honest and unbiased reviews on supplements, etc. in the near future, if you have a youtube channel you should subscribe to me to show your support, it would mean a lot to me if you did! :)http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCteluW7hZ-eddCJ5ckf0Lcg
  • byarbrough1116
    byarbrough1116 Posts: 5
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    I commend you for getting on track now, while you're still young. I was 170 when I was your age and didn't fix it.. fast forward 11 years later and a baby...it's out of control. stay on top of it and don't let yourself get out of control like I did. I regret it so much. You can do it! good luck!
  • a_stronger_me13
    a_stronger_me13 Posts: 812 Member
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    1) When should I start doing strength training? Yesterday. There is no set weight which is appropriate for strength training. While in a deficit, some form of resistance training, like weight lifting, helps with retaining muscle as you lose weight. Contrary to what some people may tell you, when you lose weight you are losing both muscle and fat. You can minimize the muscle lost with a good strength training program and eating adequate protein.

    2) My goal right now would be to lose 10 pounds by April 1 and to lose 20 pounds by May 15. I'd like to be leaner and toned by the summer time. The calorie deficit required to lose 10lbs in 5 weeks is fairly aggressive and you can potentially burn out from losing so quickly. Not to mention, aggressive calorie deficits don't do anything to help retain lean body mass like I mentioned above. You're probably better off shooting for 1lb per week or 500 calories per day deficit for multiple reasons including better end results because of LBM retention, i.e. "leaner and toned"

    Check out this link and follow its advice: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

    Edited for grammar and spelling.
  • Cranquistador
    Cranquistador Posts: 39,744 Member
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    1) When should I start doing strength training? Yesterday. There is no set weight which is appropriate for strength training. While in a deficit, some form of resistance training, like weight lifting, helps with retaining muscle as you lose weight. Contrary to what some people may tell you, when you lose weight you are losing both muscle and fat. You can minimize the muscle lost with a good strength training program and eating adequate protein.

    2) My goal right now would be to lose 10 pounds by April 1 and to lose 20 pounds by May 15. I'd like to be leaner and toned by the summer time. The calorie deficit required to lose 10lbs in 5 weeks is fairly aggressive and you can potentially burn out from losing so quickly. Not to mention, aggressive calorie deficits don't do anything to help retain lean body mass like I mentioned above. You're probably better off shooting for 1lb per week or 500 calories per day deficit for multiple reasons including better end results because of LBM retention, i.e. "leaner and toned"

    Check out this link and follow its advice: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

    Edited for grammar and spelling.
    ^this

    It's more about how you LOOK than the number on the scale...give up some of those cardio sessions and pick up a barbell. I wish I did when I was your age.
  • theseus82
    theseus82 Posts: 255 Member
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    I've sent a friend request! Also, anyone else who wants to add me, feel free! I love the support in the MFP community!
  • tuneout
    tuneout Posts: 12
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    Awesome that you're starting it out so young. I gained all of my weight my first year of college... being away from home-cooked meals and stress of jobs and class.. yikes! I think you'll enjoy strength training, I love being in my campus gym and being motivated by other similarly-aged people working towards a goal. I love that there's no judgments in a university gym! (or at least mine).
  • 39laurita39
    39laurita39 Posts: 43 Member
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    just sent you a request because i could relate to your post =) I'm 18yo too & had been overweight all my life. two years ago i decided to change that, i started at 165 and now i am 110 though i'm aiming to get under 100. at this point i just know I'll make it because i've come a long way and i know it's possible so aim as high as you wish because with focus, patience & time it IS possible =) my best advice is enjoy the process and don't get discouraged if you have a lot to lose just take it 1 pound at a time & work hard because time passes anyway, i know I loved every day of my journey because i think that every day i do well it's just making me skinnier faster..
  • aless820
    aless820 Posts: 101 Member
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    Thank you for the support and suggestions everyone!

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