jmjatlanta

I think what you'll find is that the jury is still out. Research that I found is old. The 8 glasses a day rule was outdated when it came out, and that was decades ago. Even if we drink 8 glasses a day, we would still be getting a good portion of our daily intake from food. Generally, sedentary people drink more water than…

What worked for me: Slowly replace the crappy food with the healthy food. What is healthy? That's where MyFitnessPal comes in! Log everything. Add the sodium column to your log if you haven't already. I upped my meals to 6 per day. Some use 3, some use 1. 6 works for me because I can't stand to eat big meals. There are…

I warm up with 10 minutes of cardio each day, end with 20 minutes (if I can). Rest over the weekend... Monday: Chest & Back - 8 exercises, usually 3 sets of 6 reps Tuesday: Shoulders and Triceps Wednesday: Cardio Thursday: Quads, hamstrings, calves Friday: Triceps and forearms. If you're a JEFit member, you can see my…

The body is an amazing machine. And we're all unique! As we approach the weight we wish to be, it seems the body gets to a weight it thinks we wish to be. There are many options, and that of course is because there are many causes. At three weeks, the biggest thing I can say is "Don't stress about it." Stress causes…

If doing what you did 2 years ago didn't help, and doing what you did 1 year ago didn't help, and doing what you did this year didn't help... Don't give up! Keep trying. Keep educating yourself on nutrition. Also, look for other methods of measurements. Body fat percentage, waist/hip/thigh measurements and other indicators…

Welcome aboard. It sounds like your employer is helping, and you're taking advantage of it. Kudos to both! My employer is doing the same thing, and I love it. The proverb I like to use (and I don't know who wrote it) is "The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago. The second best time is right now." The road ahead…

There is a small minority here that are looking to gain. Myself, I actually want the ultimate. I want to lose my fat, but gain muscle. I'm about 162 / 163 now and falling, and about 18% body fat and falling. My ultimate goal is about 200 lbs. with 10-12% body fat. That's over a year away probably. So the current goal is to…

Welcome aboard. I hope you do great with your goals, and you find plenty of help on these boards. My manager is from Louisville, but not a cats fan for sure. He says U of L has a 1 in 5 shot this weekend, but he's still holding out hope. I'm a self proclaimed gear head myself, although I'm in to keeping them running more…

For some, diet and exercise is a chore. It is a huge process with many labor intensive steps. It looks like a huge mountain. For others, diet and exercise is a lifestyle. What worked for me is not making radical changes to my routine. I don't have the mindset of "Starting tomorrow, I'm going to be at the gym 7 days a week…

You're taking the right steps. You are exercising You are watching what and how much you eat. You are exercising. Those things are what will make you healthy. But you will need patience. You weren't born 139 pounds were you? :) Give your new lifestyle some time. Four weeks is a very small portion of your life so far. Don't…

Wow, that's a tall order without knowing a bit about you. What is known: 34yr old female Flipping through the diary I see that the caloric goal is constantly changing. It is hard to hit a moving target. Do you know how many calories (approximately) you should be eating to maintain your current weight? If not, with some…

If you keep doing what you're doing, you'll keep getting what you're getting. So switch it up! Exercise doesn't have to be all-or-nothing. Continue to run, continue to cross train, just do it less often. This gives you time for swimming, weight lifting, yoga, etc. My preference is to find something I haven't done before,…

Wifey and I are going through the same thing at this time. We decided to buy 1 or 2 outfits that fit while still wearing our ill-fitting clothes. This pushes us to not slow down, but keep pressing hard to get to our goals. We'll need the money saved by not buying a bunch of "in between" clothes so we can afford to buy the…

Do you have a break room with a microwave / toaster oven? That opens up some more options. Some of my favorites: Tuna & Noodle Casserole Crock-Pot Chicken & Salsa Both of these meals can be made ahead of time, made healthy, store well, heated quickly, and are filling. While not as healthy (in my opinion), I also keep Whey…

The best time to have planted a tree was 20 years ago... The 2nd best time is right now. Staying at your ideal weight is easier than changing habits to get there. But just because you're going to have to work to get there is not an excuse to never start the journey. Plant the tree. Write down your reasons and your plans in…

Do it! Let us know the results. Enjoy the workout.

Awesome plan. I keep a drawer at my desk and a bag in the company break room refrigerator stocked with only healthy goodies. I only break certain things out at certain times. This does a number of things for me: 1) I only buy what I need, and know what to look for at the store (no browsing). 2) I don't snack all day, only…

At 221 pounds, and 24% body fat, according to the Katch-McArdle formula, your Base Metabolic Rate is 2015. So if you were in a coma, you'd need 2015 calories to maintain your weight. With a "lightly active" lifestyle and average diet, it is estimated that you need 2620 to 2821 calories to maintain your weight. If you…

Care to take a guess at your body fat percentage? There are websites that will help you guess, if you take some measurements. Body fat percentage, while not a complete picture, is a much better number than BMI. From the numbers given so far, along with BF%, you can get some numbers that help you plan. You may check local…

BMI number is a bad number to go by. It doesn't take in enough factors. Let's have some fun and calculate your BMR. Can you guess or have you measured your body fat percentage? Would you say you're: Sedentary (little or no exercise, desk job) Lightly Active (Little daily activity & light exercise 3-5 days per week)…

Wow, what an overwhelming response. It looks like I simply need to invite him over for meals once in a while, and hope and wait for him to make the move. Oh, and for the "cash" comment... LOL... Thanks for the input.

Plateaus are normal, and unfortunately very discouraging. I agree with the previous posters about increasing your intake, if only briefly. Think of it this way: You're at weight level 10, trying to get to 9. You keep doing the same things, but can't break 10. Take a step backwards for 1 week and you may end up at 11, 10,…

You are probably encountering a common problem. I ran into the same wall a while back. Here was my fix: 1) Change the workout routine. I love being in the gym 5 days / week. Cardio each day. I was doing upper body on Monday and Thursday, lower body on Tuesday and Friday. Wednesday was reserved for extra cardio. I did the…

Funny you should ask. I never have... until Monday. I was trying out a new (to me) exercise, the reverse fly. I was prone on a bench, dumbells to the side. First lift and R.I.P. A quick check revealed 2 guys in the freeweight area, both with headphones. I was spared most of the embarrassment. The minute of terror passed…