Hey! So I'm new here, and need some help.

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Twisted189
Twisted189 Posts: 2 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am out of shape, haven't gotten much exercise at all... So I need to start off small. I am very motivated to lose belly fat (I'm not over-weight, just a little belly fat I'd like to turn to abs). My main goal is to eat a healthy diet, work my arms, back, shoulders, well a full body work out mostly. I would like to build some muscle and tone.

Any recommendations on the correct diet/exercise for my goal?
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Replies

  • bosskaren
    bosskaren Posts: 9 Member
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    Try not to focus too much on appearance and focus more on small goals. For example: make a goal to eat lean protein and vegetables at every meal. I too have wanted abs and even 5 years of crossfit and a year of Olympic lifting hasn't given them to me (genetics). When you don't see these results it's easy to get frustrated and stop your commitment to a healthier life.

    Once you achieve these other goals, the abs may be a by-product if you're lucky :)
  • MegaMooseEsq
    MegaMooseEsq Posts: 3,118 Member
    edited April 2018
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    For exercise, I'd recommend starting with the easiest form of exercise that sounds fun to you - walking being the classic, of course. Set a goal for yourself that's so easy to meet you'd feel silly not doing it. And then every week or so, ramp up the difficulty just a little bit. Walk (or bike, or zumba, or whatever) faster, longer, or with some extra weights on your back. If you find yourself making excuses to avoid exercise, ask yourself if it's because your goal is too difficult, or because you don't enjoy what you're doing. Both of those can be corrected. And look into strength training, because it's a fantastic way to improve your health and your body composition.

    For weight loss, you need to eat at a deficit. That's all. Eat whatever you want in whatever combo you like. You can't target your belly through specific exercises or diet, although building some muscle might help. This thread has good pointers: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1161603/so-you-want-a-nice-stomach/p1

    Good luck!
  • Quasita
    Quasita Posts: 1,530 Member
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    I have enjoyed using DailyBurn to get back into the swing of things. They have a free trial still I believe. You answer some simple questions and they structure a reintroduction schedule for you that focuses on mobility first so that you don't injure yourself trying to do too much too soon. Even those beginning mobility workouts gave me serious DOMs so they were definitely in my wheelhouse of great.

    Hard to know what calorie goals to set when we don't know stats so I'd just start with the basics. Usually that means logging your normal diet for a week to see where you're currently at, then adjusting what is easiest for you to adjust to meet the deficit that you want. For people with only a small amount to lose, the deficit doesn't have to be huge and you'll probably see the numbers and inches change by doing some minor adjustments to your current habits.
  • FlyingMolly
    FlyingMolly Posts: 490 Member
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    Find a gym that offers classes! You can try a little of everything, and you may find something you love. Instructors will offer variations of the exercises so you can pick the intensity that you need right now.
  • Cherimoose
    Cherimoose Posts: 5,209 Member
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    Since you're new, read the pinned posts in this forum and the Fitness forum. If any questions come up, ask away. :+1:
  • DavidJohnson29
    DavidJohnson29 Posts: 14 Member
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    one great first step is to start drinking water instead of any calorie-dense drink. and definitely reading the pinned posts
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,423 Member
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    First of all you cannot turn belly fat into abs. It's a complete different different type of tissue. I mean, you can't turn hair into teeth either. Your abs are always there, otherwise you would not be able to walk and stay upright in a half-decent posture. They are just hidden behind the padding. Thus you need to get rid of the padding. Best way to do this is to eat at a small calorie deficit. You say you don't have much to lose. So set a small deficit, eat a little bit less, maybe move a bit more to preserve muscles (calorie restriction not only reduces fat but also muscles), and make sure you're measuring your calorie intake accurately. It won't be fast, but it works.
  • jdwils14
    jdwils14 Posts: 154 Member
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    knightreader wrote: »
    my advice would be to only listen to about half the people on this site. the other half have no idea what they are talking about. find what works for you, then stick with it. be prepared to sacrifice. and don't weigh yourself.

    But if weighing herself works for her, should she weight?

    Hehe, I like to be funny. Putting theory into practice for something that has no immediate reward is inherently hard. Diets with a name are often talked about here, and debated whether it works or not. I tend to eat lower carbs but not for dieting purposes. I just get outrageous fartstorms if I eat too much fruit or rice. I don’t really know why.

    Best thing to do is find your motivation and get into a routine. Weight loss starts in the kitchen, and working out keeps it in check.

    Fitbit is motivating for me. While I haven’t dedicated myself enough to losing weight yet, it has helped me maintain so I can start losing when I am ready without buying bigger clothes for the short term. I also quit smoking almost a month ago, so weight loss has been put on the back burner. Almost ready.

    Weight loss is a mindset. Remember that.

    Have fun!
  • knightreader
    knightreader Posts: 813 Member
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    kommodevaran wrote: »
    Poisonedpawn78 wrote: »
    knightreader wrote: »
    my advice would be to only listen to about half the people on this site. the other half have no idea what they are talking about. find what works for you, then stick with it. be prepared to sacrifice. and don't weigh yourself.

    I find this comment funny. Dont listen to half the people because they dont know what they are talking about... then dont weight yourself cuz reasons lol...

    Weighing yourself is useful information especially when looking at longer period trends. Why would you ignore useful information.

    But poster didn't say which half he himself belonged to :/

    Good point. I like to think I know what I'm talking about mostly b/c I won't offer advice on something I'm not very sure of. I am by no means an expert and try not to come across as one. I hope to just offer bits and pieces of real advice based on my knowledge and experience, both gained here.

    Weighing yourself seems like an often debated topic here. For me, when I weighed myself solely for the purpose of finding out the exact number of my weight, I turned into a number chaser. Whatever the number was, it was never low enough and I wanted it to be lower. Looking back on my weight loss of just over 80 pounds, I am now able to see that the healthiest version of me wasn't the lightest version of me.

    For me, weighing myself wasn't working. I get just as useful information by looking in the mirror, judging by how my clothes fit and by how I feel. Weight is similar to age, simply a number. Neither should be dictating how I act or feel.

    Good luck to all.

  • Twisted189
    Twisted189 Posts: 2 Member
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    So thank you all for the responses. I know I was pretty vague in first post. I'm starting my workout routine today. I know that abs are always there for one poster above, I just have the 'padding' like you said I need to burn off. I used to have abs when I was younger, I'm now 27 and got a little chubby over the years. I don't plan to 'enjoy' working out very much, but I want to get in shape, and tone up. I don't really expect a 6 pack abs v cut body (which I used to have til I got lazy and turned into a dad), but I do expect myself to be able to tone and firm up my mid section where there is some definition.

    My main goal in posting was asking for recommended body work outs for strengthening and toning what I listed. (shoulders, back, abs, forearms, legs) I didn't really know what to search or which video's to watch on youtube, so I was looking for a little insight.

    So my stats right now are: age: 27; weight: 170; Height: 5'7 I'm not sure what other stats are useful for this.

    Like I mentioned, I'm completely new to this, I've always just worked physically and only exercise I did when I was younger was push ups, sit ups, cruches, and pull ups. I was just curious the best exercises and equipment to target which shoulder muscles. And a proper diet, I have always heard chicken and fish are good lean meats to eat, so I was just curious on what may be a good diet, which you guys have answered and I appreciate it!

    Thanks again for all your comments! Hope everyone else is doing well with their goals!
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,182 Member
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    @Twisted189 MegaMoose posted a link up there. Click it. Read it. Rejoice.
  • mlsh1969
    mlsh1969 Posts: 138 Member
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    kommodevaran wrote: »
    Calorie deficit, varied and balanced diet, food you like, get moving.

    This is pretty much my advise to u and u could look on you tube for some free low impact workouts. Best of luck friend
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
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    JeromeBarry1 wrote: »
    @Twisted189 MegaMoose posted a link up there. Click it. Read it. Rejoice.

    QFT
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 13,716 Member
    edited April 2018
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    kimny72 wrote: »
    JeromeBarry1 wrote: »
    @Twisted189 MegaMoose posted a link up there. Click it. Read it. Rejoice.

    QFT

    Listen to the moose already!

    And also look for @psuLemon 's thread about "which lifting program is right for me"

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