Losing Weight, Toning Muscles, Bulking Up...Help!

A

alyspeach

0
Hey All!
Here's the deal...What I need to accomplish, I have to do a few times a week at the gym, and a lot at home on commercial breaks. I'm currently 6 feet tall and 220-230 pounds. Here is what I need to do and what I need advice on. In no particular order...

Toning...Of course I would like to tone all my muscles, but I'm unsure of what methods work best for each muscle group. My legs are real strong, but not too bulky...toning them up would be great. But what I wouldn't give to have my abs show. I have strong abs, but they aren't visible. I say strong because the huge ab machine at the gym goes up to 250 pounds and I can do those crunches. So, the abs are there, they just aren't showing.

Losing Weight...I'm looking to radically change my diet. Right now I eat the typical junk food far too often when I watch tv, and I can easily switch to healthy things such as carrots, nuts, pretzels, celery, etc. What I need help on is healthy food for meals. Things that go well together, taste good, and aren't a chore to prepare. I want to stop eating prepackaged meals and at fast food joints. I'm not much overweight, but I still want to change my diet.

Bulking Up...mainly my chest, back, and arms. The rest of me has enough muscles. I can do almost infinite situps, but hardly any pushups. I want to change that. Obviously I know the exercises that help build biceps, but I want to talk to someone that knows more about building a better body than myself.

Supplements...all I've tried is Xenadrine (the one WITH ephedrine). I like Xenadrine because it gives me energy and really helps my asthma which usually hinders any cardio I try and do. But I want something that will help my to lose fat and build muscle. Something effective but not too expensive.

Cardio...being an asthmatic really makes this a tough area for me. I love exercising, but I can't do the regular things like run on a treadmill. I'm wheezing like mad after a quarter mile of jogging, yet I can play DDR or ride a bike all day long. I'm looking for other cardio options though so that things don't get too redundant.

Online Help...this is the most important. If any of you out there think you can help me with any of the areas that I have listed above, I want you to contact me and talk with me periodically to give me ideas on how to achieve my goals and to help keep me motivated. I can be reached in the following manners.

E-Mail - alyspeach@yahoo.com or videogamer81@hotmail.com
Yahoo Messenger - alyspeach
MSN Messenger - videogamer81@hotmail.com
AIM/AOL Messenger - alyspeach81

Thank you all so very much in advance for any and all help that you can provide me with. I want you to know that I genuinely appreciate it.
 
well, unfortunately, its very difficult to pack on muslce mass and lose fat at the same time. cardio and diet will help you lose weight, and therefore help you see your abs, and may also help your muscles look better defined. since you have asthma, it is a bit more difficult...i dont know how severe your asthma is, but i know i had similar problems when i was younger. try keeping the intensity of your cardio at a level where it doesnt agitate your lungs. you mentioned biking, treadmill...both perfect. not sure what DDR is, but if it burns calories, also great.

as far as putting on msulce...hit the weights...it sounds like you may have some experience with lifting, so im not sure what level you are at...

the key to both cardio and lifting is consistiency. you have to do it regularly, or it wont do much. and be patient.

one thing i forgot: those dieting suppliments are bad news. steer clear of them. will they help you lose weight? probably. are they harmful to your body? YES! DEFINATELY! the only fitness suppliments i recommend for anyone are protein, glutamine, and creatine, all three of which would be BAD for your goals, because they make you gain weight. so for your purposes, i recommend no fitness suppliments (except, of course, a multivitamin). bear in mind that many illegal drugs, especially amphetamines, got their start as diet pills. the only way to healthily and effectively lose weight is diet and exercise. while both are important, i have more faith in the latter than the former. dont believe any of that crap they try to sell you on TV. diet and exercise are the best way to lose weight.
 
Last edited:
Protein supplements are simply food. If my body needs 3000 calories a day and I consume 2500 from foods and 500 from a protein supplement, I will not gain weight in theory.

I could consume less calories than what my body requires and I would not put on mass, regardless of consuming a protein supplement or not. Now there may be a difference in the amount of protein I consume when comparing my diet with whole foods versus a diet of whole foods + protein supplementation.

I recommend protein supplementation post-workout for convience. I.e. making a shake with lots of carbohydrates and protein that can be consumed during, and immediately after a work-out. But you could accomplish this by eating a bowl of cereal with milk. And by cereal, something sweet, like fruit loops :)
 
I don't have to lose fat and gain muscle at the same time...The only area where I want to lost fat is on my stomach...and I'm only worried about bulding upper body muiscles because my lower body is plenty strong as it is.

What kinds of cardio do you reccomend for an asthmatic? DDR is kinda like step aerobics without the step. DDR stands for Dance Dance Revolution, and it's a videogame with one of those pads. It has a calorie calculator and stuff as well.

I want to over time have higher intesity cardio workouts, and for longer periods of time. Stamina is something that I would like to gain. I've been tempted to buy a large punching bag because that seems like something I would actually use on a regular basis. However, since I'm not a fitness guru I don't know how that would help me in any of the areas that I posted about.

As far as lifting weights to have more muscle in my chest and arms, what exercises do you reccomend, how many reps, sets, etc... I can do a million crunches, but only around a half a dozen push ups. I want to build it up so that I can do 50-100 push ups at a time. I want to work up to doing 500-1000 crunches and 500-1000 push ups everyday.

Well...that's my response to the first reply in the topic...
 
I'm 6 feet tall and 220-230 pounds...I want to be at 180-200. How many calories should I be intaking daily? BTW, I'm 21 if that makes a difference in calculating that.

As far as what I should be eating and drinking to reach my goals, could someone make out a list of what would be acceptable and in what portions and I'll pick all that stuff up the next time I go grocery shopping (which will be this week).

I know nothing about making those shakes with protein and carbs...what does one put into those? Do they taste alright?

I could easily do the cereal thing. I don't eat the sugary cereals though. I prefer things such as raisin bran, total, cheerios, etc.

Is there anything that I should or should not be drinking in addition to lost of water? Does it make a difference if I am drinking room temp water vs ice cold? I heard that cold water burns a few more calories...

Well, thats my response to reply number 2
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top