< Home < Health and Beauty ~ exercise help?

rock&republic · : 02-19-2008, 04:53 AM

i'm looking to lose a bit of weight but i don't exactly know how to go about ... doing it and i was hoping you guys could help me out!
for the past week or two, i've been pretty vigilant with my exercise. i do some cardio and i hit the weights almost every day and on the off days where the weights are just devil-children, i go for a jog outside for a good half an hour to an hour. i also snowboard but right after, i polish the day off with a small coke, a cookie, and an egg sandwich. i know, it's not healthy but i figured a couple hours up on the slopes and one 'unhealthy' meal isn't going to kill me. i also read somewhere that snowboarding burns off about 400 cals/hour. but the thing is, i have no idea if my diet is correct or if its restraining me. i really really like hummus. it's this obsession of mine so every morning, i eat some hummus with some carrots or with rice crackers -- the low fat kind. my eating habits are okay, i'd say. i usually eat until i feel like i've had enough to feel content and not bloaty (on a scale of 1-10 i'd say a 6-7?) but i dont have a routine and a set time for eating. i only eat when i feel like it and i try to make smart choices. i eat quite a bit of fruit, hummus, antipasto, salads, grilled chicken, chicken wraps, and seafood. i dont really eat rice but i do have a thing for yams and edamame beans ... which is ... good for me? i hope? i googled the nutritional info and its got zero fat which i'm hoping is a good thing

anyway, maybe you guys could tell me what i'm doing right/wrong? i can definitely see the results of the cardio -- i can see the upper abs but the lowers arent as defined. my arms are harder but i'd like to get rid of the underarm 'flab' (or as i'd like to call em, my 'batman wings') and the inner thighs have to go. i'm thinking it's because i have a layer of fat covering all the muscles? i have no idea. i'm also taking up boxing on tuesdays and thursdays, yoga on wednesdays and the weekends and i run generally every day. i dont drink soda at all -- hate the stuff but i do dig my vodka. i do light weights at the gym (8 -10 pound weights) and i dont wanna 'bulk up' y'know? i want the 'slim and lean' figure. ideal body image would be jessica alba or miranda kerr (sexy bitches). my weight has not changed at all and i dont know if it will. i'm hoping it will but i'm fairly slim as it is, i'd just like to drop a few pounds and a size or two. so any help you guys could give me, i'd appreciate loads.

tia!

Marilyn_M · : 02-19-2008, 05:18 PM

I think if you are doing the exercise that you say you are, you should be getting in great shape. Please stick with your exercise routine even if you do not see results right away..results take time and patience. Also, do not be afraid to change up what kind of cardio you are doing or exercises with weights,etc.

As far as your eating routine..I think you should definitely sit down and make a schedule (or something like a schedule). For women, normally eating 5-6 small meals per day is perfect and exactly what a woman's body needs to keep it going and to keep the metabolism up.

I would also encoruage you to join sparkpeople.com. There you can keep track of your calories that you are eating, see food suggestions, and get new exercises as well..and log your exercises/calories burnt too..
Good luck!

dieselsmomma · : 02-19-2008, 10:06 PM

you could join the "anyone want to join me" sticky to brag about your progress and set goals (or goals to keep) as well

I'm finding it helps because I can't tell myself I did "good" if I have to post that really I wasn't.

MiztaMike · : 02-19-2008, 11:00 PM

sounds like you know what you're doing, after 1-2 weeks you shouldn't see too much of a change, just keep it up.

lower abs are hard as fuck to get defined, probably the hardest of anything, so just give it time

and the reason you probably haven't lost weight is because you've gained muscle (muscle weighs more than fat)

losing weight is as simple as calories in < calories out

CUTUP · : 02-20-2008, 01:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MiztaMike

sounds like you know what you're doing, after 1-2 weeks you shouldn't see too much of a change, just keep it up.

lower abs are hard as fuck to get defined, probably the hardest of anything, so just give it time

and the reason you probably haven't lost weight is because you've gained muscle (muscle weighs more than fat)

losing weight is as simple as calories in < calories out

Well said and to the point ^^

Abs wont show unless your bodyfat is very low, like %8-9 and under, and that is %90 dependant on your diet. You can excersise for hours a day, but if your intaking more calories then you burn, you will never loose weight.

Your body responds the best within the first 3 months of heavy working out, after that gains are slow and steady, so dont loose hope if your gains/losses taper off.

And the higher your muscle percentage, the greater amount of fat you burn, so be sure to do some free weights with your cardio. Many women never do free weight or machine excersises, and that is a huge factor in loosing weight and leaning up.

What do you eat in a typical day and at what times ( enclude everything) and I can give you some reccamendations

rock&republic · : 02-20-2008, 02:08 AM

bah my eating habits are absolute shit!

in the morning, i usually eat some hummus with rice crackers or instant oatmeal (the reduced sugar one) with a pear or something

around 10? 10 30? i eat an orange and today i drank some chocolate soymilk (so good? -- the brand .. the actual drink itself was pretty good too, to be honest) at lunch time (around 1-130), i go down to whole foods with some friends and have a little bit of protein (chicken in today's case) with cauliflower and yams. i wash that all down with some green tea. tonight, i just ate more hummus with carrots, antipasto with rice crackers, some almonds, some fake crab meat, and half a sandwich but the bread wasn't whole wheat. whooops. i usually eat better than this! i did try to go for a jog today except i've just discovered that i've got the shin splints and my calves are fucking killing me.

apparently im supposed to start off slow and stretch. i've only started working out again/running in the last .. week/week and a half and my friend told me that i shouldn't be jogging that much, im supposed to take it slow? i'm going to bikram yoga tomorrow and im thinking ill take it easy for a week and start off jogging again but this time, ill build up my endurance? i have no idea how to go about doing that.

overall, i'd like to burn body fat and that's proving to be realllly difficult. i dont want to get the 'muscled' look but i definitely want to get rid of the flab. but i'm looking into that website you posted, momma

thanks for the help guys!

MiztaMike · : 02-20-2008, 02:17 AM

shin splints!? YIKEEES. I had those back in the day of cross country and was out a whole season. get some anti-inflammatory, take ice baths, and stretch a lot. you might even want to look into physical therapy depending on how bad it is.

if you do go jog, do it on really soft surfaces, no pavement or anything, and seriously, take it slow. the worst thing that can happen is just injuring yourself even more.

i love hummus as well, but i'm pretty sure it's quite high in fat, so i'd watch that. just imo

CUTUP · 02:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rock&republic

bah my eating habits are absolute shit!

in the morning, i usually eat some hummus with rice crackers or instant oatmeal (the reduced sugar one) with a pear or something

around 10? 10 30? i eat an orange and today i drank some chocolate soymilk (so good? -- the brand .. the actual drink itself was pretty good too, to be honest) at lunch time (around 1-130), i go down to whole foods with some friends and have a little bit of protein (chicken in today's case) with cauliflower and yams. i wash that all down with some green tea. tonight, i just ate more hummus with carrots, antipasto with rice crackers, some almonds, some fake crab meat, and half a sandwich but the bread wasn't whole wheat. whooops. i usually eat better than this! i did try to go for a jog today except i've just discovered that i've got the shin splints and my calves are fucking killing me.

apparently im supposed to start off slow and stretch. i've only started working out again/running in the last .. week/week and a half and my friend told me that i shouldn't be jogging that much, im supposed to take it slow? i'm going to bikram yoga tomorrow and im thinking ill take it easy for a week and start off jogging again but this time, ill build up my endurance? i have no idea how to go about doing that.

overall, i'd like to burn body fat and that's proving to be realllly difficult. i dont want to get the 'muscled' look but i definitely want to get rid of the flab. but i'm looking into that website you posted, momma

thanks for the help guys!

Your diet is actually quite good compared to the average person. The trick is to eat well %90 of the time, and treat yourself the other 10% ( as that helps you not to binge eat)

If your shins are already killing you, dont jog. And if you have to, buy some asics running shoes which will cushion your foot ( way better then Nikes) and stop the pain in the shins.

And if your going to run, a 10-15 minute round of stretching can mean the difference between pulling or tearing your muscles, or working them out properly, stretching is also the most important when your first starting off. Your body isnt used to the shock of putting itself to the test, so you need to give it time to adapt. Be sure to take a rest and not work ouot every day, I would never go past 4-5 days fora female.

Also be sure to look into proper supplementation. Glucosmaine for your joints, a good multivitamin, and some flax seed oil are great standbuys. It will take around 3 months to notice a difference from the supplements, but they do wonders for lubricating and strengthening your joints, as well as keeping your body in good running order.

People who work out use up their nutrients way faster then the average person, therefore they need to be replenished more quickly and in a greater quantity then the average person would need them to be replenished.

Personally, I would use the eliptical trainer and the stairmaster religiously. They burn way more calories ( around 2-3 times more) per minute, and its much easier on the body.

And stop eating carbs after 7:00-8:00 if your trying to loose weight. When you get ready for bed your body/metabolism begin to shut down, and every caloire that you eat that would ahve gone to be used as energy, will be mostly added to your fat/water stores.

Any questions, just drop me a line

And Mike is right, humus is high in fat so watch out

rock&republic · : 02-20-2008, 02:22 AM

oh ... shit. ijust googled the nutritional info for hummus
yikes! i ... need to go chuck that shit out
but yeah, the shin splints are sucking pretty badly over here. im going to have to stop jogging for a week to let them rest. i also have to start stretching lol

rock&republic · : 02-20-2008, 02:36 AM

what would fall under the category 'carbs?' cause ive been told that fruits have carbs and pretty much everything else so i've pretty much given up eating past 6 30. as for the supplementation, i'll look into GNC tomorrow and pick some up! but for the elliptical and the stairmaster, ive always thought that it doesnt work the entire body. the reason why im running is because im under the impression that running works the entire body with the movement and all. apparently im dead wrong on that... sucks for me. ill look into resting more cause at the pace im going, im either doing cardio or some form of exercise every day and i can see your point -- it's taking its toll in the form of shin splints. at least, thats the way im interpreting it.

thank you so much for the help guys, i'd love to drop you a line but i still haven't gone membership yet. i'll do it ... soon, i hope (:

ps just threw out my carton of hummus. i nearly cried

addynicky · : 03-04-2008, 05:11 AM

hummus is not so bad. I eat it almost every day and I lost and kept off 30 lbs.

Saturated and trans fats should be your primary concerns when it comes to fats. The thing is, with fat, comes calories (9 calories/gram of fat). Your caloric intake vs. calories burned while exercising and calories burned during the day (for example, basal metabolic rate) determine how much weight you gain/lose. Eat more nutrient dense foods, i.e. foods with higher nutritional content and lower calories. Legumes are great though. They offer protein, fiber, and fat. I don't eat much meat so...

If you are interested in nutrition, check out Nutrition Action magazine. Some of this stuff is way over my head but you can check out recent and past studies at PubMed Home. The abstracts offer a quick overview and you can sometimes get free full-text articles. There has been a lot of research on low-carb diets, etc.

What everyone has said so far is really good advice and they really know what they are doing.

p.s. I just checked out sparkpeople.com, cool website!

courtzzzz69 · : 03-04-2008, 05:47 AM

I lost 40 lbs and kept it off (except a hormonal weight gain lately) by including some kind of protein at each meal to help me feel full longer and satisfied. I agree with watching saturated fat intake and AVOID trans-fats at all costs!!!!

This is a typical day for me:
Breakfast: mccanns oatmeal with skim milk and whey protein occassionally, topped with raw sunflower seeds, dried cranberries or fresh fruit
Snack: chocolate milk, fruit, low-fat yogurt, cottage cheese, allegro cheese or raw veggies.
Lunch: poached salmon w/ steamed veggies with a little bit of olive oil and lemon juice
Snack: canned tuna, edamame, fresh fruit or veggies, all natural pb or almond butter on whole wheat bread
Dinner: lean protein and veggie and sometimes rice, soy burger, salad, home made tortilla pizzas

My advice too is avocado is your best friend for delicious sandwiches and salads in moderation!!!

Exercise wise I walk to college from residence several times a day but I also go to the gym 4-5 days/week and do cardio for 30-40minutes and weightlifting about 20-30 minutes

addynicky · : 03-04-2008, 10:47 AM

Yes, avoid trans-fat! I try over and over to tell my parents to eat healthier. Its a battle that never ends

courtzzzz69, I really like your food choices and your workout routine. I love edamame

Protein really does help to feel full longer. Actualy, fats help with satiety too. Avocado is really good.

I have a question though. Is mercury in tuna a serious issue? I like canned tuna but I don't eat too much because I fear mercury poisoning.

courtzzzz69 · : 03-04-2008, 04:49 PM

^there are some types of tuna that is higher in mercury like albacore. I would look at the species type of tuna and do a search for mercury content.

hipslikemonroe · : 03-04-2008, 05:59 PM

Chris, i was banned from the gym a few years back for being 13%.. :/