Please help a desperate new guy

[clash]

Hi guys. I have been looking around this site for a week and I have found good information. But I would still appreciate some one on one help.

Anyways, here is my sad story. I am 17 and currently 190 pounds, 5'10-5'11. As a kid, I used to be very fat. Then, at 15, I decided to lose weight. But I did it all wrong. I basically starved myself and did a lot of exercise. I did not really know any better. So what ended up happening was that I lost a lot of weight and I was about 5'9 155 pounds. The only problem was, I still had a lot of fat but no muscle. So from starving myself and by over-exercising, I ended up losing muscle but I was still fat from the outside.

So I became very frustrated with all of this and basically gave up. I started eating whatever and not caring at all for my health. I also got very busy at school and gave up any chance of becoming fit. So now, after a little less than two years, I'm 190 pounds and around 5'10, maybe a little taller. Now, I know that if I was a big muscular guy, 190 pounds wouldn't be too bad but I'm not. I'm fat. I have fat around my hips, my chest, my back etc. However, I am now serious about doing this right.

So I need advice. What should I do? What should I eat? How should I lose this fat? I know you can't gain muscle and lose fat but I just want to be in a normal weight range, not have so much flab and look decent with my shirt off. I don't hope to become a male model and I don't expect a great muscular body anytime soon. I know it takes effort and years of dedication. But don't think that I'm not ready to put in effort, because I am.

But please help me out and help me set up some plans.

 

[H_T_]

isn't this site 18+?

 

[clash]

I don't know but come on. I'm almost 18. This is probably the best place for me to get help. Going up to some of my friends who are muscular give the same crap advice: "come work out the gym bro, I can bench 200 now! Heres a protein shake".

These guys have been athletic since they were 5. They already have a good base established so I have nowhere else to go.

 

[fEkuaR.]

You can post here at any age as far as i know..... i have seen alot of people post here under 18. Just wait clash someone will give you some good advice

 

[alex2678]

Hi guys. I have been looking around this site for a week and I have found good information. But I would still appreciate some one on one help.

Anyways, here is my sad story. I am 17 and currently 190 pounds, 5'10-5'11. As a kid, I used to be very fat. Then, at 15, I decided to lose weight. But I did it all wrong. I basically starved myself and did a lot of exercise. I did not really know any better. So what ended up happening was that I lost a lot of weight and I was about 5'9 155 pounds. The only problem was, I still had a lot of fat but no muscle. So from starving myself and by over-exercising, I ended up losing muscle but I was still fat from the outside.

So I became very frustrated with all of this and basically gave up. I started eating whatever and not caring at all for my health. I also got very busy at school and gave up any chance of becoming fit. So now, after a little less than two years, I'm 190 pounds and around 5'10, maybe a little taller. Now, I know that if I was a big muscular guy, 190 pounds wouldn't be too bad but I'm not. I'm fat. I have fat around my hips, my chest, my back etc. However, I am now serious about doing this right.

So I need advice. What should I do? What should I eat? How should I lose this fat? I know you can't gain muscle and lose fat but I just want to be in a normal weight range, not have so much flab and look decent with my shirt off. I don't hope to become a male model and I don't expect a great muscular body anytime soon. I know it takes effort and years of dedication. But don't think that I'm not ready to put in effort, because I am.

But please help me out and help me set up some plans.

Sounds a lot like what I went through in high school. Only I took it to a whole new level and got down to under 130 pounds at 6'1. lol

For training stick to the basics. 3x a week full body routine done with free weights. Only basic exercises and no isolation work. Bench press, barbell row, full squat, deadlift, shoulder press, lying tricep extensions and barbell curls. Low sets (3 sets max) and keep the reps in the 4-8 range. Your goal should be to get stronger every session. Meaning try to get at least one more rep with the same weight you did last time or add 5 pounds to the bar and get the same number of reps.

For cardio, fast walking on the treadmill (with an incline if you can) I've always found worked well. 45 minutes to an hour.

Diet start with 10x your bodyweight in total calories spread throughout the day. Everyone's body is different however. Write everything down that you eat for a week and make note of your progress. Losing too much weight and strength? Increase your calories. Not losing any bodyfat? Decrease the portion size of your meals.

As long as your strength is increasing every week, your diet is clean and you're doing some cardio you should look a lot different over time. Best of luck.

 

[HiDnGoD]

I'm not sure about the 18+ thing. But I would suggest reading around the site. Gain knowledge. Read the personal logs. Read the stickies. Stick to the diet & exercise forums.
As a guideline, since you're trying to gain muscle mass, 12X bodyweight, for total calories. 40% protein, 30% carbs, 30% fat. Broken up into 5-6 meals per day.
For protein, white meat & fish are best, with red meat a coupla times per week. Stay away from processed meats. Whey protein shakes to fill out your day. Stay away from soy.
For carbs, stay away from white flour based breads & pasta's. Lots of veggies, namely cruciferous & leafy green.
Fats will come with the meats. Stay away from too much butter, or anything hydrogenated oil based. Olive oil is great for cooking & as a condiment.
Avoid any processed meals/foods.
Allow yourself one cheat meal per weak. At this point, eat whatever you want, but eat a reasonable amount.

Exercise. Cardio: High intensity cardio for 20-30 minutes, 2-3 times per week Build up your tolerance. Don't start full blast.
Weights: Start with lighter weights than you think you can handle. Work up to tougher weights. Compound lifts (look it up). 3 - 4 exercises per workout, 3 sets per exercise, 10-12 reps per set. Do that 3 times per week. Allow yourself one day of rest per week.
Use all this as a starting point only. Do research. There are a lot of smart people on here. Read their stuff.
Good luck.

 

[clash]

Hey thanks. I do not have a treadmill but how about this: I walk home from school everyday? I live about 30-35 minutes of walking distance and it is a nice walk. I think this way, I'll incorporate my cardio exercise into my day very easily plus it will save me some money from bus tickets.

 

[HiDnGoD]

Hey thanks. I do not have a treadmill but how about this: I walk home from school everyday? I live about 30-35 minutes of walking distance and it is a nice walk. I think this way, I'll incorporate my cardio exercise into my day very easily plus it will save me some money from bus tickets.

Can you lift at home? Do you have a gym membership, or a school gym?
The walk home sounds good, but I would also suggest some kind of interval running, or jogging. 1 minute walk, 1 minute run. Or 30 sec run, 90 seconds walk. Whatever you have to do, and can do.

 

[clash]

Yes, interval training sounds like a good idea.

I work out at home because I have some of my brother's old equipment left over. There is a bench, couple of bars, and a whle bunch of weights. I an easily go and buy more weights,

As far as a membership goes, I didn't bother getting one from school this year. Like I said in my first post, I had really given up on exercise at the beginning on this year. Plus this was my final year and I was going to apply to a good university so I thought that I would have too much studying to do and probably would not bother exercising. But now that everything has gone down well, I want to start again. However, I will not bother getting a membership now from school because there are less than two months of school left and they will ask for a year's charge.

 

[Cucumber_Jones]

17 is very young. You have ages to figure stuff out. It's nice to see you being proactive at this age, so please listen and digest all that is offered to you. Good diet, proper training & rest is what you should focus on now. 3 times a week with weights is perfect. Your metabolism is like a shrews at this age, so more training is often not better. Train, Eat, Grow.