Hi guys! You seem like a friendly forum and I don’t know where else to ask. I am a 21, female, 5’7" and overweight - 196lbs. I am trying to lose weight and regain fitness. Lifting is my favourite type of exercise - can anybody recommend some form of program?
I can work out around six days a week, how much aerobic exercise should I be doing compared to lifting? I am looking to lose fat and tone. I am trying to eat less than 2000 cals a day - is this correct?
I am sorry I am so ignorant about this subject - I hope you can help me. Cheers! -
Now that you have some nutrition information to help you out, let's get into training. I suggest some Dawg School training for beginners. So go ahead and check out "The Beginner's Blast Off Program" found here: http://testosterone.net/html/130dawg.html
After that, check out some mistakes to avoid in another issue of Dawg School found here: http://t-mag.com/html/114dawg.html. Now, you should be well on your way to starting things off correctly. Please read this articles, print them out, read them again, and follow the advice to a "T" and you will make stellar progress. If you have anymore questions, feel free to ask.
Juanita, welcome to the forum! Nate Dogg has given you some excellent articles for you to get started on…all are well worth reading. It would be useful if you could tell us a little more about your current exercise routine as well, so we have something to go on. Besides that, you have come to the right place, and like nate said, feel free to ask more specific questions
You have taken the first step in realizing you are not happy as you are. Sometimes when you get overweight your mind suffers as well. Where are you mentally? Are you able to run right now? What kind of stuff do you have access too? The more detail you can give the better people here can help. Peace, K
Wow cheers for the quick and really helpful replies!
My weight seems a lot but it is very evenly spread if that makes sense (apart from a bit extra on the hips and thighs!) - I don’t look like I weigh as much as I do, people are shocked when I tell them. I don’t like running too much, for my cardio I usually swim, play squash or use rowers, steppers etc.
Currently I usually lift 2/3 times a week, but it is very unstructured, I seem to find myself using most of the machines without much of an aim. Should I be devoting each day to specific muscle groups? I also have dumbells to use at home. I have one rest day and I do one hours cardio on the other days. I appreciate I should be doing more cardio - do I do this in the morning before eating?
As for my mental state, I am happy in my life -I just love eating and I wasn't exercising at all. I am willing to put a lot of effort into a program, I just want to make sure I am doing the most effective one.
Definitely read those articles. It sounds like your diet will need the most tweaking, especially if you “love to eat.” There’s nothing wrong with that. As I love to eat as well, but I eat clean and I do enough exercise to burn up any extra calories. You should definitely have some goals in mind when doing your weight training and other workouts. Don’t just go in and go through the motions or do what you feel like doing on that particular day. So the beginner’s blast-off program would be a good start to form a structured plan. Check it out!
Nate is right read those articles. Failure to plan is planning to fail. It sounds like you are starting from a good position so all you need to do now is re-direct yourself to what you want. Nutrition is by far the most important aspect when it comes to weight control. I will not bullshit you. It will not be easy but the payoffs are well worth the sacrifice. There is no way to eat anything you want exercise and stay slender\athletic. It is a package deal. It takes a lot and it must come from within. It sounds like that part is already there so the rest is just taking those steps. Good luck keep reading this site but stay with your plan and adjust it when you should example if the program says do it for 8 weeks then do it for 8 weeks then if it doesn’t work to well for you switch to another etc… Finding what works for you is the hardest part of this thing. That means nutritionally as well as exercise wise. Peace, K
Juanita - the above advice that you’ve recieved above is all you really need to know to get started…as long as you implement it! The only thing I really have to add is that I would strongly suggest that you use a food log to track you food intake values- Strength Training, Bodybuilding & Online Supplement Store - T NATION - this article by Shugart “the missing ingredient” will give you all the info you need to get started…also set some ‘measurement goals’ in regards to body composition, when you undertake your fat loss regimen and engage in lifting, the scale can lie!..the inches, however, do not. Good luck!
welcome! jrandall made a very good point, the scale WILL lie to you. i have found a great motivator for my fat loss. i bought new pants. it sounds dumb, but as fat goes away and muscle builds you’re going to find that the scale is a very bad indicator of your progress. my problem is my stomach and ass, so i bought new pants that were snug enough to be uncomfortable. then i put them away for two weeks…when i tried them on again they FIT. i think i spent the entire day grinning. it’s a great motivator!!! keep us posted!
