dortress Member

I squat every time I'm in the gym to lift.

Buy a protein mix and make your own. Much cheaper, much less sugar and infinitely more variety because YOU make them.

All these people are fantastic - they've taken control and so can you. Age has nothing to do with it. Neither does goal weight actually. There was an article in the New York Times this past week about how mid-life exercise / weight loss improved folks' life as they aged. So the real question in front of you is: how to you…

There is no 'toning'. Grrr. Hate that word. Focus on lifting weights that heavy enough that, at the 8 rep mark, you've reached failure. If you can go beyond 8 and still have reserves, you're not lifting heavy enough and raise the weight. Focus on building strength and the right mix of opposing exercises, so you're building…

yes, cutting carbs, in addition to eating the right amount of calories for your activity, is the best way to lose weight, as well reduce risk of diabetes, in the long run. It's not just a matter of calories in / calories out. Ratios count and carbs - as an option component - should not be given the strongest weight.

I can't agree with Bellamarie's post strongly enough. Insulin resistence is a key symptom of PCOS, which mean medically recommended treatments include eating lower carb. It's really not an option if you want to stimulate your body's response to insulin and avoid diabetes. I will say this; lowering your carbs feels daunting…

And Atkins didn't die of his own diet. Not right to attribute his death to unrelated causes. http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/atkinsdiet/a/dratkinsdeath.htm

why anyone would want to screw up their metabolism doing this is simply beyond me...

"you're aware of how HRM's work right? by calculating oxygen consumption?? you're aware that resistance training is anaerobic right? ie: no oxygen?? so how exactly are you proposing a HRM is supposed to track a process that does not use oxygen with a device that calculates oxygen consumption?? hmm??" Really? That's funny,…

My heart rate monitor records changes in my heart rate as related to exertion, over a period of time. Just like it does for cardio - BPM over time, factoring in age and weight (at least on my HRM). Tell me again how cardio is different from strength training if it's a) recording my bursts of BPM increase, over a period of…

HIIT is good for any age level. Also, YOU should do your HIIT first, and not pre-fatigue your muscles with steady state. That way you can push harder on your HARD part of the cycle, and really get a good burst. When you do steady state first, you're eating away at reserves that will diminish your peak performance on the…

HRMs are absolutely NOT useless for lifting. For heaven's sake. the HRM monitor will track your calorie expenditure over a period of time. Get one. That's the best tool you're going to have to track calories you burn during lifting.

As mentioned for butt. THERE IS NO EXERCISE THAT WILL IMPROVE THE PERKINESS OF YOUR BOOBS. PERIOD. Boobs are primarily fatty tissue, held in place by other, fragile web like tissue. There is no muscle there to firm up and once the harnessing tissue stretches out, that's it. Period. no exercise will improve your boobs. Get…

I don't think the question is about WHAT to do (e.g., run, etc.) as much as HOW to do, to build endurance at ANY sort of cardio. And the answer is: intervallic training. On-Off- Hard-Easy, for a series of time. Since you're not at the stamina and endurance that you'd like right now, they simplest way to do intervallic work…

[/quote] But EVERYONE loses weight on Metformin ;) [/quote] No. Not everyone. It's inconsistent and depends on the patient. I've been on it for 1 year now and at best, have lost 10 lbs. And I work out like crazy.

1. Showing some of your food diary would help. 2. cleanses / fastings / etc. are waste of time, energy and screw your metabolism. Don't do that again. 3. Figure out your RMR and what you need to eat at a deficit to lose here: http://www.caloriesperhour.com/index_burn.php 4. What are you doing to 'work out' at the gym? Does…

I also have to respectfully disagree with the advice to not go heavier on proteins. I try to limit my daily mix of P/F/C to 40/30/30 or there abouts. My sugar numbers have been gold for the last two years, and my cholesterol is as well. More protein allows you to build more muscle. Your brain, at best, needs 50g of glucose…

PCOS person here. I can't address the pill part of it. You need to remember however that a key portion of PCOS is insulin sensitivy / insulin resistence. Following the research on this, it becomes IMPERATIVE that you adopt a low carb lifestyle. Not only to reduce your risk of developing diabetes (which PCOS sufferers are…

Yep. It's a natural byproduct of losing weight. And there's really no 'exercise' that's going to improve it. If it's really bothering you, a lower facelift is what you need to consider (as I am).

Add the resistence if, as other posters said, you're doing 10-12 without reaching failure. And yes, while resistence is resistence, it DOES make a difference if it's a machine vs. a weight. By design, machines - even the most adjustable ones - are built to a 'common denominator' where physiology is concerned (e.g., where…

You'll need to use a HRM and enter them manually under cardio, because people vary so much in their intensity on lifting.

Don't focus on a body part. Focus on exercises that will engage the big, compound musle groups. Your legs are 'growing' because you've challenged them by running. This is good. When you do other exercising that engages big muscles groups, your body will catch up by a) lose weight from all over and b) growing muscle in…

In general, weights lifted using a machine will be higher than those done with free weights, because the machine mechanism is aiding you in part of the lift. That's not to take away the benefit of using the machine, it's just the reality. By example: I do one arm bent over rows with a 35 lb dumbbell; on a Hammerstrength…

It's good you're including some weight training. If you've been doing BodyPUmp for awhile though, you've probably 'outgrown' it, and it's now limiting you, as opposed to helping you. Meaning: your body's adapted to the 'routine' and the pace. shake it up. Lose BodyPump and start lifting free weights for real, on a weight…

This - a thousand times - THIS. Eradicate the word 'TONE' from your vocabulary and swear to never, ever use it again. Also, don't stay on the weight lifting machines long. They're a good place to start, to get the feel of moving your muscles along a particular plane, but as soon as you've got a handle on the mechanics of…

Yep. I've been lifting for...3.5 years now, my latest sets have been 5x5s, to build strength. Really, the most important element is to lift HEAVY. Not pink dumbbells, but HEAVY. Heavy is: when you're at failure by the end of 5 sets. When you're struggling at the 5 rep of each set. That's heavy. Don't be afraid of it,…

Not true. If you're eating below your BMR + exercising you WILL put your body into starvation mode. BMR is what your body NEEDS to keep going, even if you're just sitting in a chair. Let me put it this way: a 125 lb, 30 year old woman, @ 5'3" has a BMR of approximate 1200 cals. If she exercised, expending 500 calories…

Here's your formula: BMR (base metabolic rate - e.g., what it costs you calorically to sit and breathe) x overall activity level multiplier (e.g. - light, moderate, vigorous) = equals calories spent in a day. If you ate that amount of calories, you'd maintain your weight. Calories spent in a day + exercise calories = what…