Hi! :)

EJP

EJP

New member
Hi all, I'm EJ.

I'm 22 years old and I've been overweight for the past 5 years, stemming from some hardcore emotional eating and I've finally decided to get things back in order before I move to a new city.
I'm just here to communicate with people who are also working on getting to healthy weights (or fitness levels, what have you -- I need to improve it all!), as nobody in my life needs to be or is concerned with losing weight/getting in shape.

I look forward to meeting some other people who are in a similar boat! :)
 
Hi EJ and welcome! it's always good to be fit and light in the body. The opposite is living dangerously EJ, the world is filled with illness, it doesn't have to be that way and a lot of it comes from excess fat. Especially as you get older, you'll appreciate good health all the more.

Yes, the people around you can be a big problem when they are not supportive or have any interest in what your trying to accomplish, I know it was for me. So, it's good you've joined a place where people know the struggles of fat loss and be constructive.

knotty
 
Thanks a lot, knotty!

All kinds of heart disease and cholesterol issues run through my mom's side of the family, and unfortunately have killed many of my extended members before age 60, so I get where you're coming from 100% about avoiding illness.

It is a big downer to watch my brother who has a metabolism like I've never seen down a bag of 12" pizza or a bag of Doritos right in front of me without a second thought, while I munch on my roasted chickpeas (which are delish, but ya know). My parents, who I'm staying with until I move, are somewhat into what I'm doing and the changes I'm making, but unfortunately nowhere near as supportive as I'd like them to be. I have a lot of difficulty talking about it with my friends, the majority of whom are tall, thin and gorgeous, so this is very much a private battle for me.
 
Fat loss is pretty much a very personal thing EJ, you know why you want it but seldom do others around you know and sometimes it causes conflicts with people you know.

Speaking for myself, I first determined what a balanced diet consists of, then, I figured out the calories in these foods I've selected. Second, I estimated by online calculators just how much a person my age and lifestyle requires. Third, anything under that daily requirement will cause a fat loss. BUT I can't cut back too much, if I do, I run out of energy to do the necessary workouts. So, you have to find a balance that works for you personally, and you will eventually fine tune all the details. That's about it.

A huge factor for me was cutting out junk foods. Just by doing that alone, a ton of fat came off. Also remember, you can workout for a hour and eat it all back in a few minutes. We actually require very little food to live healthy EJ. You'll find this out when you figure out how much you need daily.

knotty
 
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Another thing that helps me stay focused was to list all the bad things that having too much fat causes and all the good things that comes with losing that weight. It's a no brainer!

A little Googling will bring up a dozens of reasons for the good and bad of fat. Especially the fat that we carry inside our bodies, Visceral Fat.

knotty
 
It's funny how common sense all of this is, eh? When you think of all the educational resources we can easily access, it's hard to imagine why people still eat how they eat.

I have been working out for ~8 months, and I have developed plenty of muscle, which I can feel (if I poke hard enough)! Seeing as I've gotten that far, but my weight has been negligible, I know the next step is to alter my diet. Portion control and my love of cheese (will be my greatest challenges. Unfortunately, the things I eat, for the most part aren't "junk" (in the sense that I don't really eat chips, candy, drink pop or anything from "those aisles"). I love to cook and bake and can't wait to embrace the challenge of finding new recipes that taste great but don't negatively impact my health and weight.

My uncle was put on the GI diet by his doctor, and has found that one works very well. My own doctor recommends it as well, so that's going to be something of my "guide" throughout this and hopefully for the rest of my life. I believe at first, I need to be extremely strict with myself so as to avoid "cheating" or what have you too frequently, which this method seems to have in that it has phases.
 
Welcome to the forum.

Many of us are apt to be emotional eaters... My husband and I have done more than our fair share of that over the years. Taking control can be difficult.

As for cholesterol - I hope that you are trying to eat beans... Baked beans are amazingly good for cholesterol. We choose the low sugar low salt version. Make sure that you get your cholesterol regularly checked by your doctor too. My husband (and his brothers) take simvastatin because heart and cholesterol problems run in his family.

The following link may help you to settle in.
http://weight-loss.fitness.com/threads/57955-My-advice-to-newcomers

Good luck with your project
 
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