A uni student seeking ideas for weight loss

[freestyla365]

def increase ur protein n cut carbs after 3:30pm have things like brown rice,soya milk,oranges etc during the day and i agree with teamfat boy you dont need too many supplements.Chicken breast,tuna and other fish rich in omega 3 will do the trick.Instead of having 2 big meals break your meals up into 5-6 smaller meals.Good luck bro!being a uni student is hard!

[Jigga]

def increase ur protein n cut carbs after 3:30pm have things like brown rice,soya milk,oranges etc during the day and i agree with teamfat boy you dont need too many supplements.Chicken breast,tuna and other fish rich in omega 3 will do the trick.Instead of having 2 big meals break your meals up into 5-6 smaller meals.Good luck bro!being a uni student is hard!

Great username.

[mjm89]

Um... I knew I should have paid more attention in English class :grin:

The general thinking is that rates of weight loss greater than roughly one kilo/ week aren't necessarily "dangerous", but sustained loss at that rate is often not long-lived... the body responds by going into survival mode, and the backlash when the savage routine ends, often means a horrid rebound, and yo-yo dieting. In setting a slow, steady routine, the body handles it differently, and it is more likely to deliver long-term success.

As for MJ's initial rate of loss, if this is the start of her training, then that's not unusual - when I first started training, doing anything at all would have the weight falling off, so I'd not think that's entirely unusual.

Metabolisms are freakishly individual things - based on age/ ethnicity/ gender/ daily activity levels, all sorts of things. So, as each of us learns how our body responds to adjusting the protein/carb/fat levels, calorie levels and meal timings, we have to do that as individuals - a "plan in a can" off a website or a magazine won't teach you anything. But, once you learn that for your own circumstances, you can achieve heaps!

Why train with weights/ resistance, rather than just cardio? It's not just about weight loss, it's about muscle tone. While there's not really such a thing as spot reduction, weights work really does help. It is possible to shed weight and end-up skinny-fat, the sort of person who only looks good standing still....

Uni is hard! 1 and a 1/2 years to go! \:D/

Okay so I must admit that I'm wanting to lose weight for superficial reasons, before joining this site, I wouldn't mind if I was "skinny-fat" lol :pfft:

Now thinking about it, I would like to tone thus weight-loss been my primary goal \:D/

Weight training is a new one for me! I would consult my brother about this topic but I can already predict his response as he would going over the top making me train 10 hours a day or something through pure competitiveness :roll: my bf is useless as he thinks I don't have to lose weight blah, blah, blah... It's more about maintaining a healthy life style and been at a suitable weight for me :wink: is what he doesn't get :disgusted: anyway, tips on this would be great!

Oh and what's the deal with protein powders??? can they substitute for food or is it just a supplement?

[mjm89]

def increase ur protein n cut carbs after 3:30pm have things like brown rice,soya milk,oranges etc during the day and i agree with teamfat boy you dont need too many supplements.Chicken breast,tuna and other fish rich in omega 3 will do the trick.Instead of having 2 big meals break your meals up into 5-6 smaller meals.Good luck bro!being a uni student is hard!

3:30pm?? I can hardly maintain the 5pm mark I have!!! lol

Before heading to the supermarket, I jotted down the foods you suggested so will try and incorporate that into my diet from tomorrow..

5-6 meals? is that like breakfast, morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner in small portions? is this what you do? does it work? atm I have 3 meals a day but they aren't big or small kinda mid-size :?

Thanks for the encouragement, I have an assignment due in 11 hours that I should be doing instead of spending ages on the forums! :shifty: I need to balance the two! hehe

[teamfatboy]

Okay so I must admit that I'm wanting to lose weight for superficial reasons, before joining this site, I wouldn't mind if I was "skinny-fat" lol :pfft:

Now thinking about it, I would like to tone thus weight-loss been my primary goal \:D/

Weight training is a new one for me! I would consult my brother about this topic but I can already predict his response as he would going over the top making me train 10 hours a day or something through pure competitiveness :roll: my bf is useless as he thinks I don't have to lose weight blah, blah, blah... It's more about maintaining a healthy life style and been at a suitable weight for me :wink: is what he doesn't get :disgusted: anyway, tips on this would be great!

Oh and what's the deal with protein powders??? can they substitute for food or is it just a supplement?

Hopefully some of the great women on this site could help you with the programming - there's no point in taking on a mega-bulk-up-build-super-beef programme if that's not what you want...

Protein powders are a useful source of protein, but ideally you want to use them as "augmentation" to whole foods. If, for example, your diet calls for a protein-and-carbs meal right after a workout, it's not convenient to whip out a lump of chicken or a can of tuna, so a protein shake works... but I've found that protein powder is a) good to help boost protein levels in breakfast; b) good post workout; and c) good for last-thing-at-night; the rest of the time, aim for things that still look like food!

Six small meals/day is aimed at reducing the major metabolic spikes... they don't need to be big meals (little 'Glad' containers that fit in your bag would work) - plus they help inhibit the urge to snack. Remember that for an eating plan to work, you want to cut down the 'random extra' calories :naughty: :grin:

[runveerun]

Hopefully some of the great women on this site could help you with the programming - there's no point in taking on a mega-bulk-up-build-super-beef programme if that's not what you want...

Um they are away ATM but I can lend some advice! :grin:

TFB has great advice.

Now thinking about it, I would like to tone thus weight-loss been my primary goal \:D/

Tone is muscle, without muscle there is no tone.

The chicks you want to look like have muscle, maybe not giant muscles but they have muscle all the same!

Skinny fat is not cool, everything still jiggles and waves about in the breeze!

A good place to start might be BFL:

http://bodyforlife.com/

That's doing weights x3 a week and cardio 20mins a day x3 times a week.

It's a good beginners programme (Vee waits for the flaming) I got started with this programme and it teaches you what foods to eat too.

It's a simple programme and totally worth a look.

Otherwise as TFB said eat sensible foods, protein, carbs, veges, fruit cut out all junk.

You can mix up weights and cardio however you need to to fit it into your life. Maybe look at some of the girls journals Chillicat, VampireChick, BecBecs and mine and see what they are all up to, the other girls do cardio and weights mixing it up. I am avoiding cardio at the moment as I want to grow lots of muscle! But doing this I have to eat squeaky clean or else I just get fat :-(

I find diet is as important as the training, if I eat crap I look like crap.

Um dunno if this is helpful but it's worth having a look around at what others are doing and check out BFL.

[teamfatboy]

Vee's right, there's nothing wrong with BFL for a place to start from. She's also a smart chick, and strong!

[runveerun]

Vee's right, there's nothing wrong with BFL for a place to start from. She's also a smart chick, and strong!

Thanks TFB I'll give you that money later :pfft:

[mjm89]

cut out all junk.

But doing this I have to eat squeaky clean or else I just get fat :-(

.

How do you discipline yourself? I live in an environment where eating junk is an okay thing..I'm not saying that's all they eat but I do feel the temptation when other people around me are eating junk food which makes me forget about eating healthy...

[runveerun]

How do you discipline yourself? I live in an environment where eating junk is an okay thing..I'm not saying that's all they eat but I do feel the temptation when other people around me are eating junk food which makes me forget about eating healthy...

Start saying no to people offering you junk.

It might be weird at first but once you've done it once or twice it becomes easier.

There's always a birthday, celebration, weekend, evening, god there's so many excuses to eat crap. Make sure you have good food on hand to eat while everybody else is stuffing there faces with junk.

You will stop craving it after a couple of weeks and it will be even easier to say no! You don't have to eat crap, let everybody else eat it!

If they give you a hard time stand your ground and fight back tell them this is what you are doing to get a better body.

At my work they are all "Vee doesn't like chocolate" But I LOVE the stuff they are just used to me saying no thanks!

[teamfatboy]

Vee is oh so very right !

I've been the lard-ball, and I resolved never to go back there. To do that, I had to teach myself that no-one will give me what I want, I have to make it for and by myself.

My family, friends and colleagues have gotten used to it, and no-body else matters.

Somewhere I've got an article about "saboteurs", the people who either want you to fail 'cos it makes them feel better, or 'cos they are jealous, or whatever... but I like a quote from Clint Eastwood's "Heartbreak Ridge" movie - "Don't give them the satisfaction!".

There's no doubt in my mind that some of the most mentally-strong men, but particularly women, I've met are those on here who've mastered training their body and mind. Learn how to handle that, and you're on your

way to great things!

Very soon you'll start to see results; shortly thereafter if you stick at it, you'll get folks noticing your improvements - use those moments to reinforce your discipline.

In the meantime, go surfing on here, you'll find ideas for foods that will fill some of the cravings, or allow you to 'take part' while not blowing your goals out of the water. F'rinstance, I was just on a two week business trip - everyone else was drinking beers, I was on tall glasses of soda water with a splash of lime.

[mjm89]

Vee's right, there's nothing wrong with BFL for a place to start from. She's also a smart chick, and strong!

Thanks TFB I'll give you that money later :pfft:

Is BFL like weight watches, Jenny craigs, etc? just more for the body builder type???

[mjm89]

How do you discipline yourself? I live in an environment where eating junk is an okay thing..I'm not saying that's all they eat but I do feel the temptation when other people around me are eating junk food which makes me forget about eating healthy...

Start saying no to people offering you junk.

It might be weird at first but once you've done it once or twice it becomes easier.

There's always a birthday, celebration, weekend, evening, god there's so many excuses to eat crap. Make sure you have good food on hand to eat while everybody else is stuffing there faces with junk.

You will stop craving it after a couple of weeks and it will be even easier to say no! You don't have to eat crap, let everybody else eat it!

If they give you a hard time stand your ground and fight back tell them this is what you are doing to get a better body.

At my work they are all "Vee doesn't like chocolate" But I LOVE the stuff they are just used to me saying no thanks!

This may sound like an excuse, but I kinda have a reputation for making poor choices when it comes to food and everyone that knows me would back me up on this claim. I agree that it will be weird for me to say no to junk food when offered to me... I know for sure my friends and family will probably tease me for it :roll:

I started my diet about 9 days ago now and so far so good however I am starting to crave chocolate to the point I'm too scared to go up town in fear that I might buy a whole lot of junk food and go back to my old eating habits :cry:

I'm very interested to follow your guys journals for a little motivation to keep me on track. Since registering, I've been on here everyday reading hundreds of posts and jotting down notes for my own fitness requirements.

I'm not sure if this is an inappropriate question but it's regarding breast size? If I were to incorporate weight training into my exercise regime will it reduce my cup size? I read a thread somewhere saying if all gals got "boob jobs" or something like that.. :shifty:

[runveerun]

Is BFL like weight watches, Jenny craigs, etc? just more for the body builder type???

No not really it's a basic BB intro for 12 weeks it uses all the basic elements that BBers incorporate in their daily lives. It's a introduction into it.

This may sound like an excuse, but I kinda have a reputation for making poor choices when it comes to food and everyone that knows me would back me up on this claim. I agree that it will be weird for me to say no to junk food when offered to me... I know for sure my friends and family will probably tease me for it :roll:

I started my diet about 9 days ago now and so far so good however I am starting to crave chocolate to the point I'm too scared to go up town in fear that I might buy a whole lot of junk food and go back to my old eating habits :cry:

I'm very interested to follow your guys journals for a little motivation to keep me on track. Since registering, I've been on here everyday reading hundreds of posts and jotting down notes for my own fitness requirements.

I'm not sure if this is an inappropriate question but it's regarding breast size? If I were to incorporate weight training into my exercise regime will it reduce my cup size? I read a thread somewhere saying if all gals got "boob jobs" or something like that.. :shifty:

You do lose the sweet tooth you should be on your way to losing it by now after 9 days. Just eat every couple of hours so you are never hungry enough to choose bad food. Just don't buy it then it's easy not to eat it.

Ummm cup size? Boobs are just fat so you lose fat you lose boobage!

[vongi]

Tone is muscle, without muscle there is no tone.

The chicks you want to look like have muscle, maybe not giant muscles but they have muscle all the same!

Skinny fat is not cool, everything still jiggles and waves about in the breeze!

yes. skinny is one thing. skinny fat is another. :oops: working on it! totally sucks tho.

Umm cup size? Boobs are just fat so you lose fat you lose boobage!

This is true, I can vouch for that, lol, but boobs can get annoying esp when running so 8) watevz (and they don't really reduce much in size as much as you think, besides, with the proper weight training (i.e. the chest area etc) you can probably make em look perkier :nod: well, thats what I'm noticing (unless of course you're seriously reducing bodyfat which isn't the case)

Uni is hard! 1 and a 1/2 years to go!

Okay so I must admit that I'm wanting to lose weight for superficial reasons, before joining this site, I wouldn't mind if I was "skinny-fat" lol :pfft:

Now thinking about it, I would like to tone thus weight-loss been my primary goal \:D/

Weight training is a new one for me! I would consult my brother about this topic but I can already predict his response as he would going over the top making me train 10 hours a day or something through pure competitiveness :roll: my bf is useless as he thinks I don't have to lose weight blah, blah, blah... It's more about maintaining a healthy life style and been at a suitable weight for me :wink: is what he doesn't get :disgusted: anyway, tips on this would be great!

Oh and what's the deal with protein powders??? can they substitute for food or is it just a supplement?

1st off, hardout to the uni thing, sometimes everything else takes a back seat esp when it comes to exam time (soon!!! :doh: ).

2nd, Weight training aint that bad, you'd be supprised. You could see a PT about putting together a suitable training programme for you

As for protein powders, they're good too, esp after training (weight) as your muscles will thank you for the protein to build em back up again. Good to supplement your diet with the 6meals a day thing if your strapped for time esp at uni - even those horley's carb less protein bars? They're a lil more female friendly since us gals don't need a whole lotta protein or cals in general as much as men do. You could see a nutritionist about that one if you're really interested in it.

Also, I'm working on the healthy lifestyle thing now too, better to implement it while we're in uni so that its kinda second nature as we get older (like driving) so food choices are easier etc. lol, but in response to all your above posts, it takes time to learn how to listen to what your body really needs!

And trust me; skinny fat sucks. everyone still thinks your skinny but its just poos and wees.

Good luck with your weightloss goals and exams!

[poos_n_wees]

...skinny fat sucks. everyone still thinks your skinny but its just poos and wees.

Hey, I resent that!

Lots of great advice given already :nod:

Like everyone else, I'd definitely encourage you to give weight training a go. Us girls will NOT get big and bulky like the guys do.. We just don't have the hormones to support it.

And on the plus side.. Once you lose the fat, you'll have some muscle underneath to show

[r-dizzle]

Ohh man mjm89, im so in the same boat as you! I got really sick of feeling all yuck coz of being unfit! I've started running again yesterday and feel so much better.. (bit sore today tho). I also feel like my diet is letting me down and i do no weights training. I'm such a chocoholic, like you seem to be too which does make it hard, especially when I know there is a bit block of choc in th cupboard.. Was wondering for all you advice givers if there is a better was of satisfying chocolate cravings? like hard candys or something??

Oh and this person! will definately try this to mix it up abit, I get sick of the same run and doing the same thing!

...two ways you can do the cardio you could either do a short high intensity jog sprint an example of this is 4 minutes jogging then 20 seconds full sprint 10 seconds jog 20 secs sprint 10 secs jog ........do the 20 sec sprint then 10 sec jog cycle ten times then 4 minutes jog to warm down...so all up 12 minutes although this is intense cardio the other option is that you could do 30-60 minutes cardio of medium intensity (this would probably be the better option if your just starting out)...end of the day just do what you can mate but do it first thing in the morning definitely...