|
complaisant2u -> RE: weight loss (5/30/2007 9:22:35 AM)
|
Only way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you consume. Like Prince Charming who posted earlier, I also had to shed some weight. Since I wasn't playing football, there was no need to look like an offensive lineman. I dropped 40lbs, took a break and am working to lose about 30lbs more. From my experience:
- If you have to have the a structure then use a diet. I just follow a general decreased calorie consumption with exercise. Like for breakfast, I'll have a cup of yogurt, lunch a can of soup, midday a whey protien drink, and for dinner a salad.
- If you like cheese, use the Kraft No Fat Cheese. You can pick up a Pizza Crust from the biscuit section and make low fat veggie pizzas. Pizza is my weakness so, that helps. I save it for Friday as a reward.
- I've often heard that water will help flush the fat that you're losing. Not sure how true that is. But also consider cutting out sugar as much as you can since it's just empty calories that you'll have to work off. Use Splenda in your iced tea and get used to that diet drink flavor.
- Avoid startches like spaghetti, cheap white bread, potatoes. Eat lean meat like fish and chicken. Grill up some chicken, blacken it in a pan and serve it with two veggies instead of a veggie and rice/potatoe. I found that I could eat a lot of cheap white bread, but the better quality and denser bread, like Pepperidge Farm, I'd be full after a couple slices. If you must eat bread look at the thinly sliced dense bread.
- Soups are low in calories, so eat a can of Progresso soup. Also boullion helps. Although it's a bit salty, it has low fat/calories and can help fill you up.
- You can get a head of cabbage, cook it with some water, add some salt, and you got something pretty tasty, filling and no-fat/low calorie. I kind of got the idea from the "cabbage soup diet".
- Eat salads. Kraft Light Done Right are good dressings with half the fat as normal dressings. The light done right 3 cheese ranch is supurb... I think it's just called Light now though. I also like Wishbone Fat Free Blue cheese. Find light and no fat dressings you like and avoid bacon and croutons. Balsamic vinegar with basil and oregeno is good too.
- Sugar free puddings made with skim milk are good for dessert. Top with light or no fat whip cream. If you like sweets, this will help a lot.
- Decide that while you're dieting, you're meals aren't going to be all that special. Get used to being hungry. For me it was pretty bad the first week. Kept me from sleeping well, but I got used to it and my body got used to eating less, so the craving wasn't as bad.
- Stay sober. You'll avoid the calories in the booze and mixers and the munchies. And it's much easier to exercise without a hangover.
- Since I'm trying to lose weight, I have to exercise every day and if I can, twice a day. I focus on my heart rate mainly. I got a heart rate moniter and try to keep it within the cardio limits as long as I can, which for me is between 170-190bpm. Target is 20 minutes in the zone per exercise session.
- Change up your exercise so you don't get bored. I grew up swimming competitively, so swimming is super boring for me. And because of all the hours in the pool, I'm clumsy and find running to be a tremendous challenge. For me nothing says "feel the burn" like running does. But I got to add some weight lifting/resistance training in there to make it more enjoyable. You can lift weights for toning, so givie it a try. If you're in any way masochistic, remember you can always enjoy the pain of the exercise. Endorphine flows that follow the exercise are cool too.
- Join a gym. It can be something nice with trainers, or it could be something cheaper. As long as it has the equipment you need, it's great. Going to a gym has a purpose (which is to exercise) and will help get you excercising. It doesn't hurt to find a gym with hot bods you can sneak peeks at.
Getting started, staying motivated are the hardest parts of exercise especially if you're not an active person. I got lucky and one of my motivators is beating afternoon traffic by going to the gym three blocks away from work. Another way to stay motivated is to find your muse... someone who you're doing it for, someone who inspires you to do it. I'd avoid finding a workout partner unless they are equally or greater motiaved. Don't let a partner drag you down. But ultimately you have to do it for yourself.
|
|
|
|
