New & wanting as much info as possible...

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ldtapp

New member
My STRUGGLE ~
All my life I have battled weight issues. I was overweight throughout my entire childhood & teens. Not until after graduating from high school did I begin to lose weight. I have done EVERYTHING imaginable to try losing weight… LOTS of $$ on diet pills, Atkins, South Beach, eating disorders, you name it ~ I’ve done it. The most I ever weighed was 211 lbs & the least being 128. My best weight is around 135-140 which is what I am striving to get at now.
What I've LEARNED ~
There are no miracle pills or even a miracle diet; only pure determination which comes along with a mindset of success. I know where I am & where I want to be. I have learned that I was NOT born this way… though 95% of my family is overweight. I have learned there is nothing easy about it & I will always struggle, but I am at least putting forth all the effort I can to succeed! I have learned this IS a way of life just as I have always been told it was; if you wanted to succeed. I have learned you can have those things you love, but it is SO hard to not overindulge. The best thing I have learned is the way my life changes when I invest the time into myself to be happy & do something for me!
CURRENTLY ~
For the past 5 weeks I have been going to the gym at least 5 days p/ week... mostly 7 days though, doing NO LESS than 1 hour cardio. I have NOT seen any results aside from my increased endurance. I have also been trying to keep my calories in the 1200-1600 p/ day range. Yesterday I decided to change up my workout since it hasn't given results thusfar. My new routine is: begin w/ 10 minutes elliptical (doing intervals), 40 minutes on weights focusing on 1-2 muscle groups per day, finishing my hour workout w/ 10 minutes on treadmill (walk 1 minute, run 2) + 5 minute cool down. I am going to do this 4 days p/ week + 1 day per week I will do cardio only + 1 day per week I will do intervals on a hill in my neighborhood = workout 6 days p/ week
GOAL ~
I want to lose 20 pounds by May 17!!

Will someone PLEASE help??? I am trying VERY hard to not get discouraged, but it's very difficult when I have put forth so much effort already & haven't lost a single pound. Does my NEW routine sound like it is better modified to show results, without a doubt?

Thanks!
 
Well for one, I think it would be best for you to do at least 20 to 30 minutes of cardio continuously without stopping to do weights in between. You might see better results from just maintaining a target heart rate for the duration of the cardio workout. Also, I am not a huge fan of only 1 or 2 muscle groups per day for someone wanting to primarily lose weight. I think alternating upper body and lower body would be better for you. However, with how much work you are already putting in I think you should be seeing "some" results assuming you really are only eating 1200 to 1600 calories a day. If you keep going at this rate you are going to be burned out in no time. So take a deep breath and put your thinking cap on because now is the time to use some brain muscles.

I have a few questions to get you thinking and I will also try to help.

How many meals do you eat per day?

How many snacks do you eat per day?

How many sodas do you drink per day?

Are you pretty confident you really are consuming ONLY 1600 calories or less per day?

What is your heart rate range when you are doing cardio?

Start there. I will check back tomorrow.
 
How many meals do you eat per day? 3

How many snacks do you eat per day? typically 3

How many sodas do you drink per day? maybe 3 p/ week (Diet Dr. Pepper)

Are you pretty confident you really are consuming ONLY 1600 calories or less per day? I keep a journal & think I am for the most part, but could pay closer attention to this. I will begin TODAY & post this next FR so we can look at an entire week.

What is your heart rate range when you are doing cardio? have NO idea

Day 1 of strength training = biceps & back
Day 2 = triceps & chest
Today I am running intervals on incline for 30 minutes

Maybe when I post my journal next week, I'll be seeing results from this change in routine.
 
I agree with Derrick with the fact that since you are doing a lot of work that you should be seeing some results. Three meals and three snacks is the way to go to keep your metabolism going, plus drinking lots of water. Are you sure you're accurate with your calorie count? What is your height/weight? The issue is normally within the diet, rather than the exercise. If you went from not exercising to exercising a lot, something has to be working there.

20 lbs could be an attainable goal for May 17th, considering you might lose a fair amount of water weight to begin with. Try not to focus on the scale as much and maybe measure yourself...measure hips, waist, bust, thighs, arms, and remeasure weekly or every other week to see if there's any change. The scale might not budge, but it is very motivating to see that inches have been lost.
 
I am 5'7" & weigh 161 this morning. I am a daily weigher!! I need to stop this because it's becoming obsessive! I will take your advice & measure myself in the morning. I am sure the weight not coming off IS in my diet, though I eat pretty healthy, I tend to slip once every week or two. I'm sticking strict with the feedback I have gotten & we'll see where I am this time next week. Is 1200 calories per day the way to go? Or should it be more. I REALLY want to be at 140 by May 17!! Workout routine ideas would be great to know as well. Thanks SO MUCH for all the input, keep it coming.
 
Are you getting a lot stronger?

You could be a woman who gains muscle fairly easy and perhaps you have lost body fat but gained muscle too. I think like Shep03 said, if you take body measurements every 2 to 4 weeks you will see if you are getting trimmer. 1200 calories is still maybe a little too low for 160 lbs. I think 1400 would be better but I guess 1200 would be acceptable.

Do you feel like you have energy during your workouts?
If no, maybe increase the percentage of carbs. If yes, try increasing the percentage of protein while decreasing the carbs and fat intake.

When you are snacking, are they healthy snacks or are they junk food?

Finally, I personally think you should probably make a more significant change to your workout format since you have not had results after 4 weeks. I normally don't get this detailed with anyone on this site but I feel bad that you are busting your butt and not seeing results yet. I am not a personal trainer or an expert but I know many men and women have had great success with the following format. This is similar to the Bill Phillips Body for Life method but some of the fine details have been changed a little.

Week 1
Monday = 30 to 60 minutes of aerobic excercise. Be sure to accumulate at least 20 minutes in your target heart rate zone. For you it might be 125 to 155.
Tuesday = Upper Body workout (Chest, Shoulders, Back, Triceps, Biceps) 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps for each body part. The last rep should be very difficult but not impossible. If you get 11 reps and feel like you can't do another rep then you know you are using the right amount of weight. If you only get 8 reps you are still using the right amount of weight. However, if you can easily do 12 reps then you are probably too light. In contrast, if you can only get 7 reps you are using too much weight.
Wednesday = 20 to 30 minutes of high intenisty interval training. Sounds like you already know what this is.
Thursday = Lower Body workout (Thighs, Glutes, Hamstrings and Calfs) Same thing here. 3 sets of 8 to 12 but I would suggest trying to use a weight that allows you to do around 12 reps until your form gets really good. Squats are great if you can do them correctly and have no knee or back problems. I would say leg press for the 3 big leg muslces, seated leg raises for the thighs, lying leg curls for the hams, walking LUNGES to completely fatigue the 3 big muscles and finally calf raises. I am a huge fan of lunges though. Just use light weights at first, say 10 lb dumbells.
Friday = 30 to 60 minutes of areobic excercise. Same as Monday.
Saturday = Upper Body Workout. Same as Tuesday.
Sunday = Rest and at least one cheat meal.

Week 2
Monday = Same as week 1.
Tuesday = Lower Body Workout. Same way as last time.
Wednesday = Same as week 1.
Thursday = Upper Body Workout. Same way as usual.
Friday = Same as week 1.
Saturday = Lower Body Workout. Same as usual.
Sunday = Rest and at least one cheat meal.

In addition you should be warming up before and also be doing light to moderate stretching each workout, preferably before and after each workout. Also, you can do any kind of ab excercises on weight training days. I usually only did them on lower body days.

So every 2 weeks you will have completed 3 upper body workouts, 3 lower body workouts, 120 to 240 minutes of moderate intensity aerobic excercise and 40 to 60 minutes of high intensity aerobic excercise. Assuming you are consuming around 1400 calories per day, you should lose at least 4 to 8 lbs the first 4 weeks. But, like Shep03 said, you should measure your belly, waist and thighs also. Measure today and then in 2 weeks on Friday morning and finally again 2 weeks later on Friday morning.

This is just a suggestion. I wish you luck with your journey and don't get discouraged. You definitely have the guts.
 
AWESOME suggestions & I really appreciate them. I am seeing that my endurance is much more than when I started, but I just added weights this past week since the 5 weeks of cardio wasn't showing results! I am going to stay focused & will certainly take your recommended routine... can't hurt!
To answer your questions regarding my snacking, these are always healthy snacks. Does it matter if I eat them late in the evening? Sometimes I'll have some cheerios or a 1/2 "8 whole wheat tortilla w/ 1 tbsp of peanut butter. I really think I need to tighten up my journal & make sure the slack isn't in the caloric intake. thanks for all the advice & motivation! 140 lbs, here I come ~ I am determined & have the drive, without a doubt. Thanks again.
 
ldtapp said:
I am 5'7" & weigh 161 this morning. I am a daily weigher!! I need to stop this because it's becoming obsessive! I will take your advice & measure myself in the morning. I am sure the weight not coming off IS in my diet, though I eat pretty healthy, I tend to slip once every week or two. I'm sticking strict with the feedback I have gotten & we'll see where I am this time next week. Is 1200 calories per day the way to go? Or should it be more. I REALLY want to be at 140 by May 17!! Workout routine ideas would be great to know as well. Thanks SO MUCH for all the input, keep it coming.
Click to expand...

Do you drink alcohol? If you do, you should know that drinking alcohol interfers with your body's natural ability to burn fat, AKA - lose weight. That might be why you're not losing weight. I don't know if you drink or not, but that was just a thought that I had.
 
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