Advice on getting back into shape and taking off the pounds please!!!

[juli_jewels]

Well a good friend recommended this site and I am thinking I owe him a big one for this...Now all you women seem like you know a lot so maybe you can help a total newbie at this stuff!!!

I've been the official couch potato for the past, well too many years! Now the doctors are telling me I have something they call "insulin resistance syndrome" and if I don't get my act together and get moving and eating healthy I will develop diabetes within the year. YUCK! I really don't want that. So here is what I have been doing, any advice in simpleton terms is much appreciated!

First off, I do not have a gym membership and it is not an option right now, but maybe after the first of the year. I've reduced my calorie intake to right between 1200-1400 a day. I'm walking, fast quick walking, half an hour in the morning. Coming home after work and running for 40 minutes fairly hard on my treadmill and then back to the park for another half an hour. After the walk at night I am coming home and doing some basic stretches and some sit ups to work on the tummy muscles. I've been doing this for close to a month now and while I am feeling MUCH better, my outlook is improved, I'm sleeping at night etc etc etc, I have yet to loose an inch or a pound. What on earth am I doing wrong??? Any ideas of things I can change? I'm eating my food in 6 meals a day, its become necessary as about every 3 hours my tummy starts growling letting me know its food time. I'm eating good veggies and fruits, staying away from ANY processed foods and balancing my carbs and proteins....sooooooo any thoughts?

 

[Pink Space Biscuit]

Do you have any weight lifting in there?

Also 1200 calories is definitely low, 1400 could be low depending on what your stats are like. You need to eat to lose. Are you getting healthy fats in your diet?

I'd say you are doing too much cardio too. 100 minutes a day right?

Post your diet too please.

 

[FitFossil]

...I'm eating my food in 6 meals a day, its become necessary as about every 3 hours my tummy starts growling letting me know its food time....

Your tummy is SMART - listen to it . My life is much-improved since I changed to the 6 meal plan. No longer do I experience the blood sugar rollercoaster. My energy and outlook stay UP throughout the day. I can make better food choices too, because eating every 3 hours or so, I don't get as ravenous, which was always when I used to reach for something extremely sweet and carby. Welcome to the boards!

I second what PSB said, it sounds like too much cardio. Trade some of that cardio time for weight training. You don't necessarily have to join a gym. A weight bench and a few dumbells aren't that expensive, and they'll pay your body back with great dividends.

 

[grlpwrd]

Re: Re: Advice on getting back into shape and taking off the pounds please!!!

I second what PSB said, it sounds like too much cardio. Trade some of that cardio time for weight training. You don't necessarily have to join a gym. A weight bench and a few dumbells aren't that expensive, and they'll pay your body back with great dividends.

I agree. I ballooned up to 217 lbs and last year started getting more intense. I started out with walking to and from the bus stop to pick up my kids after school and now I do more cardio and more strength workouts.

I go to the gym, but I also have a little gym area in my house with a basic bench from WalMart and a dumbbell set made by York Barbell Co. from Target. It doesn't cost much.

You might also want to restrict your intake of white stuff, like bread, sugar, etc. I added more whole grains, fruits, and veggies and it has made a big difference. I agree, too, that your calories are low and might actually be hindering your progress.

Hope this helps and welcome!

 

[juli_jewels]

Pink Space Biscuit
Do you have any weight lifting in there?

Also 1200 calories is definitely low, 1400 could be low depending on what your stats are like. You need to eat to lose. Are you getting healthy fats in your diet?

No weight lifting in there...I don't have any weights or a way to purchase them. Right now anything and everything I have at home is what I need to work with. As far as my stats...are you referring to my height weight etc? If so...take a breath and please dont laugh! I'm 5'11 and weighing in around 289 last time I was on a scale...Define a healthy fat would you mind? I'm pretty ignorant when it comes to some of this stuff thats why I need as much help as possible.

FitFossil
I appreciate the advice on where to get a weight bench and what not, however I live on an extremly extremly fixed budget right now and it is just not in the budget to get anything. It was a gigantic problem getting the cash together to purchase a decent pair of tennis shoes to walk/run in. Any other ideas? I've heard of things like filling up gallon milk jugs? Hahaha, sounds funny but would it work???

grlpwrd
You might also want to restrict your intake of white stuff, like bread, sugar, etc. I added more whole grains, fruits, and veggies and it has made a big difference. I agree, too, that your calories are low and might actually be hindering your progress.

I am not eating any breads or what you might call white stuff. Its all been cut out of my diet. I'm basically sticking strictly too fruits veggies and meats. I don't really eat too much else. I'm afraid to increase my calorie intake and hinder the weight loss, am I just being stupid?

Does anyone have any advice on what are the best veggies and fruits to eat to achieve success? I know spatts in another posting said no to banana's but I have been eating a lot of those and apples. Also, carrots are bad? And lettuce? Whew! So much has changed since I learned the basic food groups as a kid!

Should I be eating close to every 2 hours instead of the 3 I have been sticking too? I know I am getting hungry and just holding out and I can feel myself dragging and getting crabby! haha, not a good thing! As far as water goes...its the ONLY thing I drink in a days time. I'm drinking well over a gallon a day.

As far as being worried about bulking up from lifting weights. Honestly its the furthest thing from my mind. I'm already "bulked up" just not in the good way!

Ugh I feel more frustrated then ever!!! sorry guys, I'm a mess!

 

[FitFossil]

That's clever thinking on the milk jugs! They'd work for lower body exercises like squats, lunges, and stiff-legged deadlifts. You could also do bent over rows, lateral raises, front raises w/ them. They might be a bit awkward for other exercises though. I'm sure you could find other objects around the house that could do double duty in your home gym, but be careful.

You can find great bargains for used sports equipment (that probably never got much use to begin with). Check out the newspaper classifieds or yard sales. People will practically give the stuff away. Once I was walking down the street and saw a perfectly good exercise bike on the sidewalk with a sign saying "Please TAKE me!"

Also, there are numerous people hoarding equipment they never plan to use again, but they're afraid to admit it to themselves. If you know anyone like this, you can ask to borrow it with the stipulation you'll give it back as soon as they want it. They'll either tell you to just keep it, or they'll never ask you to return it.

 

[Pink Space Biscuit]

Honestly even walking and moving could have gained you muscle. But try girlie push ups, gallons of water (8 lbs), and if you don't want to go to a store and purcase weights, you can sometimes find free shipping at sportsauthority.com

But seriously a set of crappy adjustable dumbbells is only $25-30 and should come with 40 or so lbs. If you get too strong, just load it all on one and alternate. I got the ones I have at like wal mart or something. Dumbbells can be used for EVERY bodypart and are a perfect place to start.

Building muscle will burn that fat and IGNORE the scale. You're going to fluctuate with water and muscle. Keep in mind what your pants fit like, how you look in the mirror, flex your arms and poke around for muscles. Just screw the scale for now.

And being a 5'11" amazon you are definitely not eating enough calories! Spatts is 5'9" I think, so her diet should work pretty well for you. I'm just a barely 5'4" midget and I eat more than what you are.

For your cardio, keep it to the morning, a good moderate 60 minutes if you can. And alternate that with 30 or so minute sessions of sprint interval training.

Walking at night also in the park isn't going to hurt you, but don't speed walk, just walk and enjoy the outside. You don't want to eat away at the muscle you have. Keeping moving and active never killed anyone though, do what you enjoy.

 

[Pink Space Biscuit]

Ooh another thing for weights, check the classifieds and if you have a swap meet place go there. I go to the swap meet here every couple of months for fun and they always have db's and benches and lots of fitness stuff that's been collecting dust.

 

[Thaibox]

I've got a way for you to burn those calories Juli Jewels

To all helping her out...this girl has tons of heart and nothing is out of reach for her. She's beautiful and I'm getting kinda tired of seeing her down on herself because she's let her body slack.

See Jewels, I told you this place is great. Spatts is a huge asset here.

Karma for eveyone helping out my bud, thanks

 

[Thaibox]

Well a good friend recommended this site and I am thinking I owe him a big one for this...

Well, we'll work that out later just don't tell Kat