azwen Member

I have a friend who is crazy strong, although he is not large. He does lots of bodyweight exercises, including handstand pushups and those pushups where you basically propel your whole body up off the ground, do a pike, then come back down. At the gym yesterday, I observed a woman doing walking lunges with a barbell…

I go to an LA Fitness. I am motivated by being around other people getting fit. I sometimes get ideas for ways to change up my workouts. My trainer is great! People are friendly. It's five minutes from my house. There are classes that I enjoy (yoga, kickboxing, Zumba, etc.) - I still want to try a spin class.

About 19% since last July; I'm down about 29% from my highest weight. About 6-10 lbs. of fat to lose, then I hope to gain 10 lbs. of muscle. (That will take awhile.)

Great job! I cleaned out my closet over the weekend. I have lost 25 lbs. since last summer, with about 7-10 to go. I have gone from a 12-14 to a 6-8. Hopefully by the end of this year, I will be a 4-6.

Sometimes. But I try not to rest more than two days in a row. If I'm just stuffed up, I will go to the gym and try to do at least strength training. Then I decide if I feel up to cardio. Actually, when I'm congested, sometimes cardio helps (although then I have to keep stopping to blow/wipe my nose). I usually rest 1-2…

I'm 48 and 5'7". I weigh 126.4 (today). My measurements are about 35"-28"-39" right now; I'm wearing a 6 or 8, depending on the style and brand. I had been quite overfat; my body fat % now is 26.5%. I'm working on getting my body fat % to 20% eventually. I lift weights at the gym three times a week followed by 30 or so…

I'm not an expert, but from what I have learned... Strength and growth are not the same. You can get stronger in a deficit, but not bigger (except the "newbie gains" some people experience).

I'm still working on barbell squats; just started recently. But I do squats with dumbbells or with a plate or kettle bell. I do walking lunges with dumbbells. I do deadlifts (30 lb. bar) or cable deadlifts. I do the leg press machine (horizontal) or the vertical one in the free weights area. I do other bodyweight things…

Twice a week, sometimes more. But it is rarely a burger and fries. Usually when I get "fast food", it is a bowl with brown rice, veggies, and chicken from Chipotle, or a salad from Chick-fil-A (half the dressing, no other toppings). About twice a month, I may get a burger and fries. Oh, we also like Panda Express (I get…

I am not terribly coordinated, and depending on the teacher, I can be very awkward in Zumba. But there are other awkward people there, too, and the important thing is to try and to get some exercise. So who cares? I'm also not very flexible, so I'm not great in yoga class. But I never feel embarrassed or uncomfortable.…

DavPul, if I could work out on the beach, I totally would. Who cares who anyone thinks? You are getting healthy and enjoying the beauty of the beach.

I can relate to your concerns! I really want to get lean and fit. From July to October, I managed to drop my body fat % from 39 to 27 -- not bad. Based on how many pounds I lost, I clearly gained a little muscle as well as dropping fat. However, by December my body fat % hadn't changed, although I lost some weight. Bad.…

For a dance-style workout DVD that's a little easier (and low impact), you might want to look at Hip Hop Abs (also from Beachbody). It's already pretty low impact, and there's a modifier. I enjoy it for cardio on days I don't want to go outside. :-)

That's weird. I had no trouble connecting the two apps, and the calories from my hikes automatically show up on MFP. Have you gone to the mapmyhike website?

That website has that design in different styles, including tanks.

Many gyms have staff who can give you an introduction to the gym and give suggestions of what you should focus on based on your goals. There are also lots of books and websites. JoRocka mentions some of the most highly-regarded ones. I go to my gym 3-4 times a week, doing strength training, cardio machines, and classes. We…

I'm on week 3. Sometimes I use the treadmill at the gym (after strength training), but my husband and I ran around the neighborhood the other day, and that was more fun. :-) I don't know if I will ever become a runner, but I thought I should give it a fair try, and as I'm at kind of a plateau with my weight loss, I thought…

I'm at 211 days. :-)

I'm not at maintenance yet; still trying to lose 7-10 lbs. I'm at the point where I don't look bad in clothes, but when I am undressed, I see the fat that's still there, and I'm displeased. I still have trouble accepting that I wear smaller sizes now. I actually wear the same size in jeans that I wore when I was a…

Make a commitment to do something active every day. Try different activities/workouts to find things you like. Once it becomes a habit to be active, it will be easier. Also, once you start exercising consistently, you'll see/feel results, which will be motivating as well.

It's almost impossible to get bulky muscle and shed fat at the same time. If you are eating at a deficit (to lose fat), I recommend doing some strength or resistance training a few times a week to help you retain muscle.

This book looks interesting, but I'm wondering if it's really geared towards men, so that I wouldn't really benefit. What do y'all think?

Is this them? There's a print that looks very similar, perhaps even the same. http://www.onzie.com/capri-pant/

I'm 47 and have lost 20 lbs. in the past six months. I've gotten my body fat down from 39% to 27%. I'm actually fitter than I've ever been. (I was skinny fat and never exercised when I was young.) I've got about 5-10 lbs. of fat to lose, then I will focus on building some more muscle and continuing to improve my…

I am wearing the same size jeans I wore when I was in college and when I met my husband. Now, there is still some fat to lose and muscle to gain, but seriously, I cannot believe I am wearing this size! I have never been lean, only "skinny fat", so it is actually possible I will be in the next smaller size when I reach my…

A big part of looking "toned" is losing the fat that is hiding your muscles. So if you've gained 15 lbs. and are uncomfortable with your body, you probably do need to lose some fat. Doing some strength/resistance training a few times a week will also help you maintain more muscle as you lose fat. In my experience, losing…

Oatmeal with protein powder, a cup of Crio Bru with half & half.

Beans. I know they are a great source of protein and fiber, but I just don't like the texture. Bleh. I do make chili with beans, but I try to make each spoonful have more meat and tomatoes than beans. I'm like a five-year-old.

Goma shio! Mmm. (It's a blend of toasted sesame seeds and salt -- we love it!)

I have fun doing Hip Hop Abs. It's mostly cardio, but it really has made a difference in my core strength, too. I enjoy it, and I like having something to do at home on non-strength-training days. It's inexpensive, too.