real newbie help

daniel0810
daniel0810 Posts: 1 Member
edited February 26 in Health and Weight Loss
hi everyone, and thank you in advance for any help you give us. My wife and i are just starting to try and get in shape. she wants to lose some belly fat from having kids and just generally get in better shape, and i want to bulk up slightly and increase my overall fitness(dont need to lose weight at all). we have a hard time staying motivated and staying on schedule, and its especially hard with 2 little kids. we cant go running and we cant go to the gym. its very hard and a little expensive for us to eat healthy and make good homemade dinners all the time too. is there any beginners guide to everything on here or anything like that? or like a personal trainer on here we can talk to day to day to stay on track and make sure we are doing things right?

Replies

  • BigT555
    BigT555 Posts: 2,067 Member
    read this;
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

    along with the other stickies at the top of general diet and weight loss help. that should give you a really good base of knowledge to get you started
  • SnuggleSmacks
    SnuggleSmacks Posts: 3,731 Member
    hi everyone, and thank you in advance for any help you give us. My wife and i are just starting to try and get in shape. she wants to lose some belly fat from having kids and just generally get in better shape, and i want to bulk up slightly and increase my overall fitness(dont need to lose weight at all). we have a hard time staying motivated and staying on schedule, and its especially hard with 2 little kids. we cant go running and we cant go to the gym. its very hard and a little expensive for us to eat healthy and make good homemade dinners all the time too. is there any beginners guide to everything on here or anything like that? or like a personal trainer on here we can talk to day to day to stay on track and make sure we are doing things right?

    It's a sad state of affairs when a diet of McDonald's is more economical than the neighborhood co-op, but this is the world we live in. Still, you can often find great deals at farmer's markets on local produce, and you can check your neighborhood for small butchers and meat markets. Sometimes they're super pricey, but sometimes you find one that blows all the chains away.

    Sticking to a budget can raise some challenges, but it's doable. Eating healthy doesn't have to be expensive. Even Wal-Mart is in the process of marketing affordable organics, and this will hopefully drive the price down in other establishments.

    Planning and buying staples in bulk are keys to making it work. If you have a membership warehouse like Costco or BJs, it's well worth the membership price, especially if they also have a gas station.

    Good luck!
  • Psychgrrl
    Psychgrrl Posts: 3,177 Member
    Try not to overthink your meals. I eat healthy (most of the time) and pretty inexpensively. There are great grains (quinoa, amaranth) you can buy in bulk plus high fiber/protein bread, frozen veggies, frozen fruit, greek yogurt, egg whites, chicken breasts (etc.) you can stock up on. Some fresh fruits and veggies. The "healthy" processed frozen dinners aren't as healthy as they seem and can be costly. I also tend to be OK eating the same stuff day-to-day. I like consistency. :) And don't forget spices, they limit the need for salt and fat for yummy taste.

    Maybe get a magazine subscription to Cooking Light (or something similar) or a cookbook and try out new options. You'll be teaching your kids great habits, too!

    My diary's open, if that helps. :)
  • littlefoot612
    littlefoot612 Posts: 156 Member
    I find scratch cooking far cheaper than buying packaged and prepared foods. Buy in season produce, meat/chicken/fish on sale, buy grains (couscous,quinoa,brown rice etc) from the bulk bins instead of packaged. I feed two adults, one teenaged boy(who inhales food) and my daycare kids for just under $100/week.
    If your kids are stroller age, invest in a 3 wheel jogging stroller (maybe check Craigslist) and take them on your runs.Many gyms also have childminding available for a nominal fee.
  • Roughgalaxy
    Roughgalaxy Posts: 219 Member
    I personally am a fan of planning all my meals for the week and buying in bulk when I can. For example, say I've decided to have pork chops for lunch at work for the week. I will cook my chops, veggies, and carb-of-the-week all at once and package them for the week ahead. This helps cut down on electricity used in cooking, and saves a lot of time and day to day guess work too.
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