23 Year Old Looking For Weight Loss Advice

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lwhite115
lwhite115 Posts: 4
in Getting Started
Hello,

I am currently looking for a workout/meal plan to get to my ideal figure and would greatly appreciate any and all help. I have looked off and on for various workouts and nutrition plans various times the past couple years, but every time I try I find so much information and it is all a bit overwhelming. I do not know what is/isn't for me or what is/isn't best for me.

A little background info:
I am 23 years old and 5’10. I used to be 310 lbs. at my heaviest during my sophomore year in high school. Through dieting and cutting calories alone I went down to around 175 lbs, and my current weight is around 200-210 lbs. My current lifestyle is almost completely sedentary, I work 5-8 hours a day, and am finishing school at nights. My diet is pretty poor. I eat a lot of processed foods, especially chicken fingers and pizza, and little vegetables or fruits. My current calorie intake is roughly 1500-2200 on any given day. It is also important to note I do not eat red meat, pork, ham, or bacon.

My Goals/What I want to achieve:
Mostly I want to slim down and tone up, I am not necessarily looking to be ripped or a body builder, I just want to have better self-image and not be embarrassed to take off my shirt at the pool. Also, my arms are very small, and I would like them to gain some mass/girth, and not look like pencils in a T-shirt, however, this goal is secondary.
I am very flabby, especially in my love handles and thighs, and have excess flab on my stomach and breast (though not to the love handles/thigh extent).
I would really love to tone up as fast as possible; though want to remain realistic and grounded.

My Limitations:
I do not really have access to a gym and am unable to join one.
I do not have much workout equipment at home. There is an exercise bike and some 15 lb. dumbbells that I do have.
I am completely open to changing my diet, within reason. I do not have the financial flexibility to really afford an expensive meal plan. And I want to avoid all meat besides chicken/fish (I grew up in a family that did not eat these, and the thought is just personally unappealing).

If you need to ask anything, feel free. This is my first time asking for help and not exactly sure what I need to provide. I can provide pictures if needed.

I appreciate any and all help, as I would really like to have a more appealing image, that leads to a happier healthier life.

Thank you!

Replies

  • _Zardoz_
    _Zardoz_ Posts: 3,987 Member
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    This should help you

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1175494-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants?hl=guide+to+sexypants
  • lwhite115
    lwhite115 Posts: 4
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    Thank you!

    All the links on that post were broken/down. Any recommendation on specific foods/workouts etc.?
  • MissMissle
    MissMissle Posts: 293 Member
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    Im pretty much 100% sedentary too. I drive an hour to work in the am, sit at a desk for 9 hours, then drive an hour to my second job, sit more, then drive a half hour home...and at that point, all i want to do is shower, eat, and sleep.

    First off, congrats on holding down a job and finishing school - sounds like you are really trying to set yourself up for sucess, so why not set your health up for sucess too? Listen, I'm by no means a professional, I've struggeled with my weight my entire life and only joinced recently, and only lost 13 pounds...Im just trying to be supportive and motivational!

    I HATE going to the gym. Its exhausting, and boring, and I honestly don't have time. Losing weight / toning up is hard, and quite frankly it sucks. It's way easier to gain. But the hard work pays off and we just have to do it. I do something really, really simple every day - 10 (girl style) pushups, 10 crunches, 30 seconds of plank. This literally takes 2 minutes. 2 minutes. You have 2 minutes. After a while I started adding reps and adding weights to my crunches. Right now I'm only at 3 sets of ten... it's not much but it's more than nothing, its fast and easy enough that I can do it every night, because I know even though I'd like to think Id want too...Im never going to pop in an insanity DVR and do something like that. I'm not going to get as great as results as people who are really willing to comit more - you just have to decide your goals, and remember, your goals can change all the time and thats ok. I also don't beat myself up if I miss a day, or two days - I'm still better than where I was one month ago.

    As far as flab... I have a ton too, my arms are like huge sausages, they are literally as wide as my head... I have no idea how to get rid of flab but my guess is it takes a loooong time!

    Finally, log what you eat every day and just stay at a deficit! Everyone on here will tell you to weigh everything ... which, yeah, is totally sound advice, but again, even if you can't weight everything just start logging generically to give yourself an idea of what you are eating - thats basically what Im doing, just giving myself an idea...its better than nothing and I'm hoping it will lead me to betetr eating decisiosn, which it already has.

    Good luck! Friend me if you like, my diary is always open and Im on here alot!
  • allaboutthecake
    allaboutthecake Posts: 1,531 Member
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    Thank you!

    All the links on that post were broken/down. Any recommendation on specific foods/workouts etc.?

    Try entering it in by hand. Or go to Community, Search, (box pops up that says Search The Forums), type in sexypants in the box...bingo, it will take you there.

    Valuable link. highly recommended. Plus, it makes sense and it works.
  • mackeyj
    mackeyj Posts: 11 Member
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    Thank you!

    All the links on that post were broken/down. Any recommendation on specific foods/workouts etc.?

    I would head over to reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness and read their FAQ. They lay out beginner routines and how to accomplish them. You shouldn't need much, if any equipment that you don't already have. Maybe some type of pull-up bar.

    I imagine that it will be more comprehensive and informational than a scattering of posts you would get here.

    To say that you want to get tone, while a popular phrase, is a misnomer. You're looking to build muscle, and/or lose fat. In order to build muscle, you need to do some type of resistance(read weight, whether that be bodyweight exercises, dumbbell, or barbell training) and operate at a caloric surplus. If you want to lose fat, you operate at a caloric deficit. I'm sure you know all this though.

    You're not going to accidentally get ripped or develop the physique of a body builder.

    You shouldn't need to change your diet, depending on your current protein intake. You want to aim for .8g per lb of your lean body mass. This should be a bare minimum, you hear people saying 1g per lb of bodyweight and while that provides a lot of leeway it isn't necessary.

    You can force yourself to follow any program you want, finding something that you enjoy doing is what's going to make it successful.
  • lady6starlight
    lady6starlight Posts: 127 Member
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    Hey, nice to meet a fellow 23 year old!

    I'm pretty sedentary too as I work and I go to class in the evenings. I've tried to squeeze in as much exercise into those longer days as possible. If your boss allows at work, when you finish a task, get up and do a walk around the office or some jumping jacks.

    As for your meals, try planning your meals in advance if you have a day off!

    Hope this helps :]
  • lwhite115
    lwhite115 Posts: 4
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    I want to thank all of you for the advice/words of encouragement.

    Regarding the sexypants post, I meant the links in her post were dead, not the actual post itself. My apologies for the confusion!
    Regarding the reddit body builder beginner stuff, I will look at this first thing when I get home tonight!

    Okay now for a couple really nooby/ignorant questions:
    Is it possible to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time? I wish to lose fat in my legs/stomach/chest areas, and gain muscle in my arms, as they are pretty much like sticks.

    What is and how do I find my lean body mass?

    Once again, thank you to everyone who has commented so far, all the help/encouragement really does mean a lot!
  • mackeyj
    mackeyj Posts: 11 Member
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    As a novice, it's possible to build muscle and lose fat. As time goes on though you won't be able to do both at once, you'll have to work towards one or the other.

    You can choose where to add muscle, but you cannot choose where you lose fat from. We've all got to live with it, don't let it stop you. The biggest thing is just starting to do something. Finding a program is great because it will give you a scheme for progression, but you don't start it and aren't consistent the best programs in the world will suck.

    In order to calculate lean body mass you have to know your body fat percentage. The lean mass is everything except for body fat. You can take a rough guess at it. If you're 5'-10" and 215 while sedentary and little to no muscle don't be surprised if you're 35-40%. From there you just multiple your weight, by the percentage as a decimal (lets say 40%, .4) and subtract it from your overall. Your LBM is probably around 120-130lb.
  • MagnumBurrito
    MagnumBurrito Posts: 1,070 Member
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    Since you have no equipment/gym access, I suggest checking out Convict Conditioning. It's a progressive BW program.

    Eat right below maintenance. Get tons of protein. Take pics regularly because the scale will confuse you while you lose fat/build muscle.

    Good luck
  • lwhite115
    lwhite115 Posts: 4
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    Thank you for the lean body mass explanation and I will check out convict conditioning, just from initially googleing it, it sounds like something I was looking for.

    Also, another question, how often should I be exercising, and for how much time per session?
    I have read a lot that every other day, and session lengths from anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour.

    Currently I have just been riding the exercise bike at my house for 20 minutes every morning and then 20 minutes at night.
  • Clendenen49
    Clendenen49 Posts: 49 Member
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    Hey buddy if you really wanna lose some fat quick I can help in a quick response. So here it goes: Stop eating all foods that will cause a spike in your insulin, Because of your history your resistance to insulin is poor or very sensitive to carbohydrates. You need to correct this, by getting a strong resistance to insulin, which happens when you keep insulin out of your bloodstream. Your safest bet is to eat absolutely zero carbohydrate rich foods. Meat, eggs, cheese, nuts, greens will be your diet, how much you eat of that stuff is not going to be a issue. make yourself a huge plate of chicken stir fry with any vegetables of your choice whenever you begin to get hungry.
    Eat 2 hours before bed have some protein and fat. Around 5 hours later your body will be in fat burning mode until you wake up. Then do some light jogging in place for 40 minutes then have breakfast after. No carbs remind you. You will see remarkable results quickly. For added fat loss support add about 15 minutes of 30 second intervals of light jogging in place with 30 seconds of 90% all effort sprints in place. do this later in the day at least 6 hours. you don't need a gym just a better resistance to insulin and a floor to run on.
  • dsb188
    dsb188 Posts: 121 Member
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    I work from home and I sit all day. I use videos from YouTube for excercise and bought some weights for 20 bucks at Walmart but you don't need them immediately. I am doing keto low carb. Its working for me. You may want to research that.
  • MagnumBurrito
    MagnumBurrito Posts: 1,070 Member
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    how often should I be exercising, and for how much time per session?
    I have read a lot that every other day, and session lengths from anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour.

    Currently I have just been riding the exercise bike at my house for 20 minutes every morning and then 20 minutes at night.

    40 minutes / workout is fine. Make sure to go hard though.

    If you're doing only BW workouts, you can workout everyday if you want too. Workout at least 4 times / week, though. Eat slightly more on workout days, and eat most of your carbs after you workout.

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