Please help

NamesCody
NamesCody Posts: 5
edited November 2023 in Fitness and Exercise
I have just started this Monday and right now im 220 but I want to get down to 170 at least, I try to walk on the treadmill for around 30 minutes each day, 15 in the morning and 15 at night at an incline of around 3 and a spead of around 3.4-3.5 mph, I don't really watch what I eat except I don't eat "midnight snacks". I'm 18 years old, going to online college classes so I don't really get up until 10 or 11 AM and I rarely eat any breakfest, I eat a substantial lunch and around 7 or so that night I eat dinner. After dinner I don't eat anything and I start drinking only water, during the day I'll drink water and maybe iced tea, Since i still live with my parents, I can't choose what to eat because they buy the groceries, and with school, I don't have money to buy my own low-fat food. We do have some low-fat food that I eat such as yogurt, but not much. I have been adding my food to the food diary and last night I was only able to walk for 15 minutes and put that in my log, when I pressed end this days log or whatever it says, it said I would weigh 206 by September 25th.. Is this an accurate reading by me just walking 15 minutes a day and not really watching what I eat but just eating less and not late at night (after 9 pm - I stay up until at least 2-3 am every morning)?

Also, my parents don't know that im on a diet and I don't plan on telling them because they haven't been the best motivators in my life and it wouldn't really matter to them when they go grocery shopping anyway, so are there any other exercises I should be doing besides walking on the treadmill that I could do in my room?

Another reason why I haven't told my parents, is mainly because I dont have to, they aren't here during the day, and I also want to loose maybe 10 lbs before I start telling them what ive been doing.

Replies

  • I have just started this Monday and right now im 220 but I want to get down to 170 at least, I try to walk on the treadmill for around 30 minutes each day, 15 in the morning and 15 at night at an incline of around 3 and a spead of around 3.4-3.5 mph, I don't really watch what I eat except I don't eat "midnight snacks". I'm 18 years old, going to online college classes so I don't really get up until 10 or 11 AM and I rarely eat any breakfest, I eat a substantial lunch and around 7 or so that night I eat dinner. After dinner I don't eat anything and I start drinking only water, during the day I'll drink water and maybe iced tea, Since i still live with my parents, I can't choose what to eat because they buy the groceries, and with school, I don't have money to buy my own low-fat food. We do have some low-fat food that I eat such as yogurt, but not much. I have been adding my food to the food diary and last night I was only able to walk for 15 minutes and put that in my log, when I pressed end this days log or whatever it says, it said I would weigh 206 by September 25th.. Is this an accurate reading by me just walking 15 minutes a day and not really watching what I eat but just eating less and not late at night (after 9 pm - I stay up until at least 2-3 am every morning)?

    Also, my parents don't know that im on a diet and I don't plan on telling them because they haven't been the best motivators in my life and it wouldn't really matter to them when they go grocery shopping anyway, so are there any other exercises I should be doing besides walking on the treadmill that I could do in my room?

    Another reason why I haven't told my parents, is mainly because I dont have to, they aren't here during the day, and I also want to loose maybe 10 lbs before I start telling them what ive been doing.
  • KEEP DOING CARDIO run swim do whatever you have to do to move around.
    I set a low calorie intake goal, that way if I really want a little extra something... between meals I can throw in a little somethign. with treats like ice cream for me (I lovvve ice cream) i get a tiny little 4 oz container and fill it instead of a bowl and take a long time to eat it.

    dont deprive youself! or you'll start yo yo dieting.

    try eating lots of natural foods. if it doesnt grow out of the ground try not to eat it.
    and dont try to call it diet and excersizing....just consider it a lifestyle.
    decide to eat healthy and only eat what you need for here on out and find an excersize or activity that you like.


    good luck!
  • slp2007
    slp2007 Posts: 8
    Some suggetions...eat breakfast! If you skip breakfast it lowers your metabilizism for the day. Keep up the good work with drinking lots of water. Replace all drinks eventually with just water. It will help trust me. As for some exercises...definitely do at least 20 reps of crunches in the morning and at night. Eventually when you see that those are really easy to do...step it up. I am already at 150 in the morning and 150 at night. I saw myself drop a pants size in 2 weeks just from those crunches. They are a great exercise. If you like to dance that is another thing that is really fun and yet you would be surprised how many calories you can burn. Hope this helps. Take care.
  • tnkitty
    tnkitty Posts: 78 Member
    I agree with slp2007...eat some bfast! Even if it's just a little something like a piece of toast. There are all kinds of exercises you can do in your room. You can do situps, pushups (off the wall if you are weak-armed like me lol), lay on the floor and do leg-lifts, really just anything that gets ya moving. And don't forget to stretch! :-)
  • tnkitty
    tnkitty Posts: 78 Member
    I found this on the web for you. Scroll down to the 'Beginner Workouts' section. There are some great exercises there.

    http://exercise.about.com/cs/exbeginners/a/exforbeginners.htm
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,907 Member
    Crunches with a small (12-14 inch ball) under the small of your back makes the abs and other core muscles work double time as you bend back further! OOOh, and buy a $7 exercise stretch band. They come with different exercise suggestions. Target has both (or Walmart, etc.)

    Good luck!
    Cheryl
  • One thing to consider is that it take appr. 15minutes for you body to kick in to "fat burning" mode...if possible try to put the two sessions together. That way you are reaping high benefits of that second 15minutes.
  • Thanks for all of the help and suggestions, would it be better to do the cardio in the morning or at night? I've heard in the morning is better since you haven't eaten anything but not sure. I eventually want to get to 30 min when I wake up and 30 min before bed but I dont want to jump straight into that, I want to gradually get up to that. So maybe 15 minutes one of the times, and 30 the other time.
  • yes please do keep up the good work. you do need to start toning though, with crunches and hand weihghts and try to put the two workouts together so you can burn fat. be brutally honest with yourself and think positively, keep a mental picture of how good youll look and how good youll feel when you get to your goal. dont let your parents or anyone else stop you from getting healthy. if theyre not supportive then find people that are like hello everyone here. lol
  • i prefer my cardio in the morning because it gets me pumped for work but night cardio is ok since you stay up late, i dont think it makes a big difference. just dont work out before you plan on going to sleep because youll be to hyper.
  • on the treadmill there are two hand weights to use, I guess they could be 2-3 lbs. should I use them also? or should it be a higher lb?
  • They say statistically you are more likely to obtain your exercise goals if you do it in the morning...as a routine. I agree that you must focus on "toning" as increasing your muscle mass increases your ability to burn fat. Keep in mind that fat with not turn to muscle but will assist in burning it off.
  • Today (Monday, August 27, 2007 @ 12:37 AM) I just got done walking on the treadmill for 26 minutes, walked over 1.3 miles and over 200 cals. with an incline of 3.0 and for the majority of the walk the speed was at 3.5, during the 20 minute mark, I lowered it down to 3.0 for 2 minutes, then 2.5 for 2 minutes, then I gradually increased it back to 3.5 for the remainder of the walk, is this a good idea? I also used the 2-3 lb. hand weights for 10 minutes of the walk, holding them with my arms out, in front of me and behind me, and holding them like some power walkers do.

    After the walk, I did 10 jumping jacks, 10 crunches and 10 wall push ups, I plan to increase these by 5 after every walk until I get up to 50 or so (Dont want to increase it to high, right after the walk) I also plan on doing the jumping jacks, push ups and crunches when I wake up in the morning and increasing them by 5 as well.

    I drink water after around 10 PM (since I stay up until 1-2 AM) and have cut soda down to only 1-2 a day, which I don't drink soda everyday. I mainly drink tea, which is made in a gallon jub, with 1 cup of sugar and 5 defaf louisiana tea bags. (Not sure how many calories that is per 8 oz. cup).

    I don't eat after 9 PM either.

    am I doing everything right to get down past the 200 mark by Christmas? If not how can I improve? If so, will it be below the 200 mark?

    On this site when you click on "complete todays log" It says that if I do it how Im doing it I will be down to 206 lbs by September 30th, is that right? with me not watching what I eat, just making sure I don't eat over the 1730 calories a day?
  • wdeons
    wdeons Posts: 21 Member
    Just remember jsut becasue its cooked doesnt mean you ahve to eat it, eat wahts healthy, if its somthing bad just less of it.
    try to use less butter and salt, if your mom adds salt while cooking, jsut dont add anymore at the table. ect
  • kjllose
    kjllose Posts: 948 Member
    You said you drink alot of tea with a cup of sugar. Have you tried Splenda? I have used it for quite awhile now. There is no calories in it like there is in sugar. They sell by the bag or individual packets.
    Do you have any friends who would like to go for a walk with you outside? I find I like walking more if I can do it outside. I find the treadmill boring unless I put some really great music on. Sometimes I walk faster if the beat is really moving. Keep on working at it. I know it's worth the effort.
  • Skinnier_Me
    Skinnier_Me Posts: 341 Member
    I Can't Believe It's Not Butter has 0 calories, 0 fat & 0 carbs.

    I use it all the time.

    Like the previous poster said, use Splenda.

    Cut down on little things like that and it will make a huge difference.
  • apojones
    apojones Posts: 56 Member
    The table sugar in the tea will kill your calories for the day and you won't be able to eat enough food to make yourself feel full. Have you tried the Nestle flavored waters--I buy mine at Sams Club because they are cheaper, but they are also available at Walmart. They are flavored and sweet, but no sugar, no calories, no carbonation, no sodium, nothing but good ol' water with a little zip.

    Also, eat vegetables any way you can get them. They will fill you up. Today I ate so many vegetables (Birds Eye Asian stir-fry with some added shrimp, waterchestnuts and mushrooms) that I can't seem to consume all the calories I need to for the day. I'm still full. WHAT A WONDERFUL PROBLEM!

    When I first started, I used a rule of eating on a small salad plate, instead of a dinner plate. 1/2 was piled with lettuce with a little low fat dressing, a sprinkle of low-fat sharp cheddar cheese and some cherry tomatoes. The other half was divided equally between a piece of chicken, fish, low fat pork-loin, or chicken sausage (purchased at Sams--AWESOME!) and a pile of some other vegetable with spray butter on it and sometimes some Garlic Salt on them for interest. This was a good rule to start off with since I needed my stomach to shrink to help me feel full more quickly. If I was still hungry after eating all that and waiting 20 mins. I would allow myself to eat all the lettuce with a little low fat dressing that I wanted until I felt full.

    Check the calories. You can eat a whole lot of lettuce without ruining your daily caloric intake. Hope these tips help. It really is all the effort it takes to find what works for you.

    I also try to choose things with lots of flavor so I don't feel like I'm being cheated. Not just regular Salmon, but blackened, chicken tenders baked with grilling seasoning, tilapia with lemon zest seasoning on it. Use garlic and pepper to flavor the vegetables. I look for every opportunity to add fiber with black beans (rinsed well) or waterchestnuts, which are crunchy and basically flavorless so they won't ruin a dish.

    Again, you'll just pick up things from people and learn what works for you over time. It really is a new way of life. Let me know if any of these work for you. Good luck!

    Watermelon, peaches and cantaloupe work well for dessert.
  • apaden4
    apaden4 Posts: 137 Member
    Skinnier_Me - I use can't believe it's not butter too... but mine has calories... are you using a low fat kind or what? Where can I find the 0 calorie one?
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