An introduction/getting back in shape.

[Freddy110392]

I suppose I'll make this my introduction, giving you guys an insight so that you may be able to help me.

I'm 20 years old, weigh in at 106Kg (approx: 233 Ibs), and have been obese for the better part of the last 5 years.

I used to be very slim and athletic thanks mainly to the very limited diet my mother had out me on and the amount of time spent doing sport/exercising(I cannot remember my exact weight, but I know it was borderline underweight).

I've had a rather troubled and difficult past. (NOT looking for sympathy here, I'm merely stating the facts so that people know the cause) Which left me emotionally drained and mentally very unstable.

As a result of which I had ended up being in foster care since the age of 13 (roughly). The radical changes in environment also affected my school life and grades, which needless to say plummeted after I'd given in.

I began to isolate myself from friends, classmates, only sticking with a few, and doing things I probably shouldn't have. I also began to "comfort eat". It was a way for me to subdue/repress the emotional pain I was in at the time. Stopped doing sports, went out less, became really depressed and lethargic.

Long story short, before I bore you all to death.

I've been making a good mental recovery over the last 2 years and even tried a few times to get back into shape, with little success.

I had managed to get my weight down to 90Kg about a year ago, something I was very proud of at the time. But then came the winter, I took the car to work, the food was too nice and, well you get the rest..

Since then I've been stuck at 106Kg and I hate it. I hate myself, the way I look, the way I act, social situations are intimidating for me. Bla bla bla, yadda yadda yadda..

My aim is to get back in shape, reach my target weight of 70/75Kg and to maintain it.

I've been doing yoga steadily over the past month, and I enjoy it. (hidden in my room where no one can see me).

Now from what I've heard and read there are different ways to go about improving my fitness.

Either by doing cardio or strength. I've heard that doing both equally at the same time works but that it takes a lot longer and the results don't show until after a long time.

Personally I would prefer to concentrate on strength training. With some cardio.

Notes: I eat a healthy and balanced diet. 1800-2000 calories a day. 3 meals a day. - I don't have a gym partner (scared of going by myself, I feel intimidated, probably all in my head >.<) I've tried asking friends but they all stop coming after one or two times, saying they can't be bothered.

Is there any other information anyone reading this would like?

What can be done?

Last but not least, excuse the lengthy post. I thought its best to supply as much information as possible.

[musculArgirl2]

I'm not much help in the areas of what you should do. But i will commend you for being honest and open about your struggles. You've been through a lot!! I have a hard time myself going to the gym by myself as well.

You could do body weight exercises for strength training at home. Like pull ups, pushup variatations, and dumb bell exercises from home. could look at you tube for some good examples. Sparkpeople also has basic weight routines you could start at at home. http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/fit ... erator.asp

another thought is what i would do go when it's not busy,. my old gym was open 24 hours a 4am workouts i could manage a lot of times.

one other option is if they sell p90x or other strength training workouts from home you could buy the dvds and as long as you have the needed equipment at home workout at home. For p90x all you need is weights or resistsance band, pullup bar or resistance band, and that's pretty much it.

Congrats on your success so far! Hopefully those suggestions can help some.

[urfitness]

You can lose weight either by decreasing your caloric intake or increase your fat burning read complete article Quickest way to lose weight

[Freddy110392]

I'm not much help in the areas of what you should do. But i will commend you for being honest and open about your struggles. You've been through a lot!! I have a hard time myself going to the gym by myself as well.

You could do body weight exercises for strength training at home. Like pull ups, pushup variatations, and dumb bell exercises from home. could look at you tube for some good examples. Sparkpeople also has basic weight routines you could start at at home. http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/fit ... erator.asp

another thought is what i would do go when it's not busy,. my old gym was open 24 hours a 4am workouts i could manage a lot of times.

one other option is if they sell p90x or other strength training workouts from home you could buy the dvds and as long as you have the needed equipment at home workout at home. For p90x all you need is weights or resistsance band, pullup bar or resistance band, and that's pretty much it.

Congrats on your success so far! Hopefully those suggestions can help some.

Thank you for your suggestions.

I wish there was a 24h gym near here. I would love to go when the place is quiet. Sadly the gym which I used to go to http://www.ellwoodsfitnessworld.com/ isn't open long enough. Although I'll go down a few times in the coming week and see for myself when it's busiest/quietest.

Thank you for the site link as well. My muscles are in very poor shape, so I need to find a way to gradually build up some strength before attempting exercises such as pull-ups. Do you have any further tips on this?

[musculArgirl2]

I'm sorry i don't really. I know cassie who use to post on here recommended exercises like lunges, squats, deadlifts, pushups, dips, rows, bench press, and pull ups for beginners.

I'm not that familiar wth weights so i don't have any other suggestions myself. Hopefully someone else can help you too!

[Boss Man]

This is a copy of something I gave to someone else a while back.

These are the sort of things I post sometimes that might help.

Any other questions feel free to ask.

Breakfast

Option 1.

Bowl of Whole-grain Cereal + grilled Bacon and scrambled Eggs, (Fat trimmed off the Bacon, 2 Egg Whites + Yolk)

Option 2.

Protain shake, small portion of Nuts, (excluding higher carb ones like Cashews, Chestnuts and Grapenuts), + Apple. Give the Apple 10-15 minutes to digest to improve digestion.


Snack

Option 1.

Portion of Turkey + Orange

Option 2.

Small Portion of Peanuts, some Chicken + Raw Carrott.


Lunch

Option 1.

Large Beef Sandwich with trimmings, I.E. Tomato, Lettuce, Cucumber etc.

Option 2.

Bowl of Chicken Soup, + Pot of yoghurt.


Snack

Option 1.

Turkey + Cashews

Option 2.

Ham + 2 large Tomatos


Dinner

Option 1.

Pork with Peas + mashed Potato.

Option 2.

Chicken and Mushroom with Rice

Option 3.

100g Halibut + Broccoli


Snack

Option 1.

Beans on Toast

Option 2.

Ham Sandwich, no trimmings.

Easy on the bread with both options.

You could add a few things to certain meals, like Sea Salt, Cracked Black Pepper. Parsley, Mustard, Herbs, Garlic.

As for the training you could do a schedule something like this.

Squats, 2 sets, 10 reps

Lunges, 2 sets, 10 reps

Deadlifts, 2 sets, 10 reps

Bent over Barbell Rows, 2 sets, 10 reps

Bench Press, 2 sets, 10 reps

Shrugs, 2 sets, 10 reps

Planks 30 seconds.

An instructor would be able to help you.

If you do Cardio, you could be looking at interval training for 30 minutes a time, or maybe something like Sprints or HIIT.

So your weights and cardio schedule could look something like this.

Day 1. Weights

Day 2. Cardio

Day 3. Weights

Day 4. Day off

Day 5. Cardio

Day 6. Weights

Day 7. Day off.

As I say, any other questions or minor modifications, especially to diet options, feel free to ask.

[Freddy110392]

Thank you for your response Boss Man.

I noticed that you'd put a few snacks in between the main meals?

Normally I eat 3 meals a day. Looking something like this:

Breakfast - 2 Wheetabix/small bowl of bran flakes with just enough semi-skimmed milk.

Lunch - chicken breast sandwich with tomatoes/cucumber and lettuce. Or, 2 slices of whole grain toast with very thinly spread butter.

Dinner - Usually a portion of meat either chicken or beef, with mashed/jacket potato, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, and gravy, with very little salt.

For drinks I mainly drink water. I've managed to stop drinking coffee and tea because of the caffeine. Although I miss it

I barely know anything about how nutrition and fitness work with each other, carbs, proteins, etc. So I'm trying to educate myself as best I can. Is my meal plan any good? What can I change/improve?

[Boss Man]

Thank you for your response Boss Man.

I noticed that you'd put a few snacks in between the main meals?

Normally I eat 3 meals a day. Looking something like this:

Breakfast - 2 Wheetabix/small bowl of bran flakes with just enough semi-skimmed milk.

(Have more protein in here, like Chicken, Turkey, Eggs, Ham etc)

Lunch - chicken breast sandwich with tomatoes/cucumber and lettuce. Or, 2 slices of whole grain toast with very thinly spread butter.

(Don't sub the Sandwich for the Toast, though you could use the Toast instead of Bread and keep the chicken filling, so sometimes have a Chicken Sandwich, sometimes a Chicken Toastie)

Dinner - Usually a portion of meat either chicken or beef, with mashed/jacket potato, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, and gravy, with very little salt.

(Fine)

(I would reccomend certainly between meals 1-2 and meals 2-3 you add an extra meal around mid morning and mid afternoon, so things like a decent sized portion of Peanuts, Low Fat Cheese, Salads, Microwave Beans, Rice or Soup Dishes, or a portion of Flesh with something like an Apple or a Banana, or a large portion of Nut Yoghurt, possibly with Fruit, or some Flesh and Nuts together, as examples.

There alterations to your plan would make you plan work as an alternative to my plan, so now you have my plan with two options per meal or your amended one, so there's plenty of choice now for you, without over complicating things .)

[Freddy110392]

I don't reckon it'd be a problem to add the things you mentioned.

Another quick question. This time regarding the drinks, I sometimes drink sugar free orange squash. Is this ok? I read somewhere that the sugar free drinks usually contain some other form of sweetener, such as aspartame, which are apparently worse than sugar. Is this true? In which case would I be better off with fresh orange juice? (with the bits). Or should I just stick to the water?

I know ideally/optimally I should stick with water. What do you think?

[Boss Man]

Sugar free drinks can be okay. In regards to Aspartame, it's a contencious substance. However the two amino acids Phenylalanine and Aspartic Acid are present in proteins and there's more Methanol in Orangs than Aspartame.

Phenylalanine is also an essential Amino Acid which I know exerts some effects on mood hormones, in conjunction with Tryptophan, but I believe it also exerts effects on energy transmission to cells, to help mediate the levels and quality of cells in the body and I think help to mediate cell functions.

These two links might enlighten you further.

Anti-aspartame rhetoric

Doctor Eric Walters