*Time for a BIG CHANGE*

[AbitDown]

OK. So I am a 17 year old lady who has been overweight ever since 3 years ago. Most of my fat is concentrated on my hips, thighs, stomach and boobs.

My stats are as follows.

weight: 78kg (was 82kg 2 months ago)

height: approx 1.70m

Now I know that It doesnt really matter because BMI isnt the best way to compare yourself as of muscle weight and all that other stuff. However I can say that I never ever go out in a bikini as I hate my body atm. I wear size 14-16 clothes but I used to be a size 10-12. My navel measures about 95cm.

I would really like some advice on nutrition and exercise plans that I can use for about 9 weeks before UNI starts and I join the gym.

As far as I know I need a high protein intake and intense cardio at least 3 times a week. I absolutely hate running but if that is what itl take, il try my best.

I want to be a the person that I am inside. Its hard to though when your outside brings you down and you are surrounded by sisters and cousins who can prance in their bikinis with no problem and have all the boys always after them.

Please help :cry:

[Jigga]

So you want to start training before you get access to a gym? Running is the best way to get your heart rate up and would be the most effective way for you to drop your BF. Cycling is a less jarring alternative but not as effective for beginners to exercise imo. If your just wanting to drop a bit of fat you can do that probably more effectively without a gym. If you lack drive though and find it easier to train in a more fun environment (i.e aerobics) joining the gym would be worthwhile. In terms of a training program I wouldn't really bother with weights (unless it interests you) - they won't "firm" up your arms or anything even though there is some truth to spot reduction. If your serious about getting rid of the fat all you have to do is get out and run every day for 30mins with your heart rate sitting around 65%. Each day aim to increase the distance/time you run - it gives you a goal each time you head out and ensures your making consistent progress. Your body will be shocked initially and you won't be able to run every day but you can slowly build up the frequency as your body adapts. Start off with 2-3 times a week. You won't need a lot of protein (comparitive to bbers) - just try cutting a lot of the simple carbs and fat out of your diet.

If you want numbers you can find exact protein/carb/fat ratios for weightloss online aswell as running programs (I'm unsure how much running an untrained female athlete can handle). The key to you succeeding will really come down to your will to make it happen, losing weight isn't rocket science it just takes hard work. When you get down to a weight your happy with you can drop the cardio if you like and just watch your diet instead. This is my perspective on it anyway, it may differ to some of the lady's on here.

[jimjim83]

Eat healthy and do some brisk walking instead of running less injuries.

[IronHyde]

Jigga - I think she means that she is waiting to go to Uni so she can use the uni gym as it is cheap. So between now and that time she wants to make a start.

Diet is definatley key here and i am sure some of the girls will help you out in terms of what food you should look at eating. You will need to workout how many calories you need to consume in a day to live then from there you can plan your meals. Eating at regular intervals throught the day is great for getting your metabolism going which requires people to eat 5 or more smaller meals a day rather than the standard 3 big meals a day.

And as jimjim said, going for brisk walks is probably going to be more beneficial. Atleast until you have shed a few kgs and taken some load off your joints. Going for a 30 minute brisk walk before breakfast could possibly be the go.

And again, some others will have different views on the above.

[becbec]

Post up your diet

[Chillicat]

I lost a wee bit of weight last year, and I found that making small changes every week or so was a managable way of doing it. Too much of a diet overhaul can be very daunting and make you feel like you're making drastic changes, when you can start seeing results just with small changes every week.

Post up your typical day's food intake (and be honest - you're only fooling yourself if you're not). We can maybe make some suggestions of where you could make some changes.

I also think you should start a food journal today. Note down every single thing you eat - it keeps you honest and accountable. That way you won't 'forget' the extra biccies and whatever that always creep into the day's eats, and knowing that you're going to write it down sometimes makes you think twice about eating something.

[teamfatboy]

Firstly, well done for coming along and being so up-front with where you're at... that takes guts :clap:

Also, well done for losing the first couple of kg on your own. That's a good start.

There are some really awesome women on here who've done great things, and I'm sure they'd help.

For exercise, almost anything that a) gets the heart rate up to the right area (like jigga says, around 65%), and b) you can do with the time and resources you've got, but do consistently, is what you're after. If you want to work out in private, or otherwise on your own, a heart rate monitor ensures you don't cheat yourself, or overextend yourself to begin with, and there's often simple ones on Trade Me.

How do you feel your actual fitness is at the moment - no great dramas with a couple of flights of stairs, that kind of thing? As you know, %bodyfat isn't necessarily linked to being totally unfit.

Changing the way you eat will be critical - and this change is not about a "diet" - it's about making changes for good, getting out of bad habits forever, and learning what your own body needs.

It's not about magic pills and potions either. You can get the results you want with whole foods, once you know what each food does. So, be honest with yourself, and do a quick food journal of a day's food, with times of day, and quantities, roughly.

One simple place to start - soft drinks. Often filled with high fructose corn syrup, these can cripple the best of intentions.

[cantygirl]

Ive found a great cardio routine for the non-runner. Great for the butt and hamstrings. Incline walking, start on speed 6.0 and incline 6.0. Every 5 mins increase your incline only by 1.0 so that by 30 mins you are on incline 11, its a fantastic calorie burn and low impact. I am very fit and strong and find this cardio routine great for a change and when I finish my 30 minutes I am sweating heaps. Give it a go.

[VampireChick]

Ive found a great cardio routine for the non-runner. Great for the butt and hamstrings. Incline walking, start on speed 6.0 and incline 6.0. Every 5 mins increase your incline only by 1.0 so that by 30 mins you are on incline 11, its a fantastic calorie burn and low impact. I am very fit and strong and find this cardio routine great for a change and when I finish my 30 minutes I am sweating heaps. Give it a go.

Ooh. I'm gonna give that a shot.

[Peachy]

^^ me too. Anything to make cardio more interesting!!

[jimjim83]

^^ me too. Anything to make cardio more interesting!!

Cardio sucks end of story cant be made more interesting uless you drop some acid!!

[Jigga]

^^ me too. Anything to make cardio more interesting!!

Cardio sucks end of story cant be made more interesting uless you drop some acid!!

Expensive way to get fit

[AbitDown]

Well at th moment my diet is preety good i'd say. I have recently strated going on an al vegie, fruit and lean meat diet.. with the basic nuts and dairy intake. As for liquids... I stay clear away from sugarry drinks. My main intake is water and maybe a bit of aloe vera every now and then.

I'll be sure to post my daily diet everyday from now on (comments and input would be greatly appreciated).

Cheers everyone! Its great to know that you arent alone and there are people willing to help.

[jimjim83]

^^ me too. Anything to make cardio more interesting!!

Cardio sucks end of story cant be made more interesting uless you drop some acid!!

Expensive way to get fit

Fun tho!! :pfft:

[AbitDown]

22 May 2010 Diet:

Breakfast: 1 medium banana, 1 mandarin, small handful almonds and bowl of ricies. WATER

Snack: Pear

Lunch: 1 Apple, Sweet chilli tuna on crackers. WATER

Dinner: BOwl of rice with chicken and vegies: (carrot, broccolli, courgette)

WATER

Not that hard for me to stick to a good diet as I love vegies and fruit. Its the exercise that will be hard. :shifty:

[cantygirl]

There are a few things you could change regard your nutrition however, if you are coping okay on your plan and still dropping weight, don't fix what aint broken.

If you hit a plateau, I have some ideas to get things cracking.

All the best

[lilfatty]

That's all you eat? ... wow!

[*Fitmiss*]

Not that hard for me to stick to a good diet as I love vegies and fruit. Its the exercise that will be hard. :shifty:

Wow that's great, most people find sticking to a diet the hardest part! (including me)

[Jigga]

me 2

[Lazarus]

Taking progress pics of yourself can be a great motivator, it can be hard to notice differences when they happen slowly over time, and scales are not always the best indication as they don`t tell you if you have replaced any fat with muscle.

But I`m sure you will be fine, you have already got the ball rolling and there are plenty of people here who will help you on your way. All the best!

[bellajoshua]

Hey

I also hate running -pretty much always have! I walk my dog for half an hour or more most days and a couple of times a week put ankle weights on I think they are 5pounds each, but they really work well and are very cheap to buy.I imagine if you found some hilly streets to walk around on they'd work even better!

:grin:

[morattigirl]

22 May 2010 Diet

Not that hard for me to stick to a good diet as I love vegies and fruit. Its the exercise that will be hard. :shifty:

Have you got an Ipod? I find doing cardio while listening to soundz makes it alot easier, shifts your concentration... doesn't work so much for me while doing weights tho as I get caught up in the songs and loose count of how many reps I've done

[VampireChick]

22 May 2010 Diet

Not that hard for me to stick to a good diet as I love vegies and fruit. Its the exercise that will be hard. :shifty:

Have you got an Ipod? I find doing cardio while listening to soundz makes it alot easier, shifts your concentration... doesn't work so much for me while doing weights tho as I get caught up in the songs and loose count of how many reps I've done

I completely agree with this. If I've got some decent sounds, I can go nuts with the cardio. For a bit of variety, I'll chuck in a boxing class (so you're forced to go hard when you're feeling a bit shattered)

[pushme]

Wow 'ABitDown' you go girl! Very proud of you!

Will admit, you've helped give me the kick in the arse

to get back on track!

Had gone away for 2weeks and lost 5kg's! Dispite I ate like

a horse over there! but have come back and wel yea it's

piled bak on! Not happy

So i'm gonna follow you and your progress gurl, will take all the advice

I can get from you all!

I surly know that i've gota stop doing so much weight/pump

classes! Gota crank up my cardio!

So you go gurl!

[AbitDown]

So on the day I posted my first stats (19th May) I weighed 78kg. Weighed myself today.. and im sitting at 74.9kg which im stoked about. Im not actually a big girl.. I just seem to have quite a bit of fat on my tummy hips and thighs. Any ideas on how to lose my freakin love handles?? they are my main concern right now. I do go for a run everyday at this stage but tackling my lovehandles??? I have no idea how. I know that im supposed to have the natural female curves, tho my lovehandles seem to be just fat and some of my smaller shorts from ages ago make them "POP" over but the shorts do fit me well. Help?