Some advice please to lose weight. Help

A

amandabhere

0
Hi,

I'm Amanda and at age 14. Since I was 7 I started to gain weight. By 4th grade I already weighed about 220 pounds. Now I'm about 340 pounds and at age 14. I use to fit into a size 28, now I fit into a 30. My jeans seem to get smaller on me everyday. Shirts don't even seem to fit me. I can't even find my size in Wal-Mart or Target no more. I can't even find my size in the mall either. I felt so ashamed of myself when I walked into a plus size store for women and they only went up to size 26. I stare at myself and see how big I'm gettin'. How my cheeks are huge and how I have a double chin. How I can't even run in P.E. That I start to die after 3 minutes of running. When the coaches tell us to run 5 laps around the gym, it's not even that big, I can't even run 2 whole laps. I feel so ashamed of myself. :( My father keeps pushing me and telling me that I will feel better if I lose weight and I do believe him. But for some reason, I never do it. I don't like it either. When I exercise it's never fun and I run out of breath. I want to do somethin' fun but there's nothin' around me. I hate runnin' though. I wouldn't mind to run, but I just hate it. I need some advice really bad. Help me with my eatin' habits and tell me what's good or not. I need some good exercisin' tips that are fun and don't get so bored easily. Help please. :(
 
I am not an expert but you have to change your lifestyle. Start with changing your eating habits. You can not learn about healthy diet within a day. Read on internet, there are a lot of websites. Dont crash diet, because whatever your lose, as soon as you stop with a diet, most of the weight will come back. Once you change your healthy eating habits, it should be changed for life.

Stay away from fried food, from fast food, from sweets and bread products. Eat a lot of fruit (can kill your sweets cravings), veggies, meat and whole wheat products. I know you are only 14 and its tough to eat all that especially if you are not the one who cooks in the house. Maybe this is a good way for you to learn how to cook. It will pay off in a long run.

You will not lose 150lbs overnight. It will take a lot of motivation, time, strenght and patience. But you have to believe in yourself and really want to do it.

You already did a good thing. You wrote here on forum asking for help and ideas. And the sooner you do something more about it the better.

When it comes to fitness, you wont be able to start running and doing exercises just like that. You are out of shape. Even skinny athletes when they get out of shape it takes time to get back to where they were.

So start with walking, before school in the morning if you can and after school. Every day! Try with regular walking then try little bit faster then start jogging and eventually you will start running.

If there is a gym in your area and if you can afford, it would be good idea to join. For some people its easier to walk on treadmill. But if you join the gym dont go lifting heavy weights because heavy weights make muscles and you dont want them, you want to lose weight first.

This is not a short term project, this is a life time project.

I hope you wont give up if it gets hard, and it will probably. Unhealthy weight is a serious problem and will cause a big heath issues for you in the future.

All the best!
 
If your going to change the way you eat...diet. You have to do that the rest of your life. Thats why they say once you stop you gain it back.
 
Amanda,
You need to talk to your doctor about what to do to lose weight. You are severely overweight and you really should get a professional opinion. You're only going to have more health problems as you get older. You need to increase your activity and clean up your diet. Not *diet*...just take out the fast food and junk food. Drink water instead of pop...stuff like that. Dieting never works.

As far as fun exercise...do you like dancing? Playing sports? Anything that gets you moving!

Jassy...that's not true that overweight people shouldn't lift heavy weights. I've seen you post that a few times now and I really wish you wouldn't.
 
Dieting is a way of life. Changing ones diet is not something one does for a few months, rather something that is done forever. Not everyone can eat whatever they want and look like a super model. Not eating what you want when you want is dieting. I have been doing it my entire life, it is possible. Dieting can have a lot of meanings. In my point of view it means to eat what one must in order to achieve ones goals.
 
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Please don't feel ashamed. This is not a "bad person" vs "good person" thing, this is a lifetime of bad habits that has caught up with you. You are YOUNG and can make some changes NOW to have the quality of life you seek.

When I quit smoking, I got big, and when I went to the store that last time for bigger clothes, I got MAD and decided that NO, I'm not going to continue getting bigger and that day bought a pilates video and got on my way to better health.

It sounds like you have reached that point, too, where you just can't take it anymore and have to do something about it. Good for you!!

You have done the right thing by asking the questions and knowing you need some help. So, start with believing in yourself as you take on the coming challenges. You CAN do this, but please ease into it - change is easier to maintain if you do it in small does. Like, cut out pop first, and when you think you have that handled, phase out pizza or burgers, then the other one and on and on until you have cut out most bad foods and replaced with good foods.

People have given you good ideas - start with lots of walking and changing your diet. Make both of these into habits you can stick with. Your body will thank you and reward you!

Very best of luck - keep posting so we know how you are doing!
 
Just keep researching weight loss information. It will take a lot of hard work. I would talk to your parents about the sort of foods they are buying. You can only really eat what your parents buy becuase of your age. But if you talk to them and go shoping with them it will be easier to make good choices. You pretty much will have to eat only fruits, vegys, and lean meats like chicken or fish. Not the kind of chicken from KFC it is a lot more healthy if you cook it at home. I would stay away from all juices that are not squeezed fresh in your kitchen. A lot of sugar is added to fruit juice + it is not half as healthy as freshly squeezed. Stay away from soda as much as possible nothing good comes from that stuff. People like to suggest eating a lot of small meals per day, but I find that very difficult to do. I used to weight almost double what I weight now and I only eat three times a day breakfast, lunch, and dinner. That is just me though you will have to see what you like better. It is possible to lose weight just by diet change. Althout that would take a lot longer, but it is possible. You should focus on walking, swimming, and biking for cardio. Running is very boring and very difficult for the over weight. If you do not have a gym membership buy a bike you can ride around town. That would be a great way to do cardio. I hope I provided the help that you desired. I wish you the best of luck.
 
Hey thanks alot ppl. Thank you for replyin' too. Jassy25 thanks for your help, you gave me alot of tips. Thank you. Eidolon I see what the mean by the diet thing. I went on the no carb diet for 4 weeks and I lost 4 pounds. But after I quit, I gained it all back plus more. lol. I've been searchin' on the internet for a long time and there are alot of websites that help alot. I should go shoppin' with them more offen. Maybe then I can pick out the better food then they pick out. I'll look more carefully for freeshly squeezed juice. Thanks. I love bike ridin'. I don't know why I didn't think of that thanks alot! Teresand77 since I was like 7 I've been goin' to the doctor about my weight. They tell me the same things over and over. I'm always afraid I'm goin' to become dieabet or w/e you spell it when I get older. It's really scary. But thanks for the diet tip. Smalling, thanks. I did get tired of it. Lol. Thanks for the dietin' tip too. It reminds me of when someone eats a piece of cake, but then as the days go they take off a little bit of the cake each night and eat the rest of the cake till one day you have the power not the eat the whole cake. Thanks. I'll keep postin' as I go into the summer and do all these tips and helpful ideas. :)
 
I agree that it would be a good idea to see a doctor. I'm sorry if yours isn't very helpful but maybe you should see a different doctor or a nutritionist. It may sound kind of ominous or akward but they can give you some really good diets. Good luck whatever you decide. And no matter what happens always keep trying- that's the only way you'll ever lose weight.
 
Well what does the doctor tell you? If they give you a weight loss plan you should definitely try to follow it. Like slickzchik said if your doctor isn't helpful you should go to another one.

What is your diet like right now? Maybe we can give you some suggestions. What about exercise? Do you do any right now?

Good luck!
 
Hey I'm back again. Well I've been to the doctor alot of times about my weight. All he tells me is that I need to lose weight. When I had my first asthma attack when I was 11, all these doctors told me that I just needed to lose weight. They never did give me a weight lose chart or diet chart, just a chart at the Austin's Hospital with a diet plan so I was eattin' healthy for 3 straight days at least. My town is small and we don't have that much good doctors. Heck we have only one foot doctor in the whole town. I dunno when I discuss this with my family I tell them that I need to go to the doctor. But they don't do nothin', if I was old enough to drive a car I would get up and go to one. But the thing is my parents don't have the money.. It was like the doctor cost 5 dollars and it when up to 7 my parents got so ticked... Money is a big problem in my family really, so I'm afraid that it'll cost too much. I can't even have a therapist either, becuz I kinda have probs with anger. Life these days seems to get alot more pricie then back then. I remember when an piece of land was like under a dollar... Now it's like thousands of dollars. Doctors are too much these days.. and I think I'm still payin' off my hospital stay. And I should go to another doctor, my doctor don't help me with nothin'. Thanks Slickzchik, I will talk to my parents more about goin' to another doctor that can really help me no matter if I have to save all my money. Well teresand77 thanks alot too. I really do need a diet plan. Well right now my diet is just eattin' fruit in the mornin' and drinkin' water. Lunch I just eat whatever is at school becuz when that thing started with the less eattin' at schools.. well we only get a burger and lettece really... Kinda sucks. The best meal at school is kinda the Salad becuz it comes with more but it still sucks... I remember how we had frenchfries everyday now we only have them on Weds...We barely get anythin' to eat so I just eat whatever is on my plate and I still get very hungry. I bet that's why I get so hungry durin' school and come home and pig out. My friends are thin and they complain more than me. Thrus I just had Ramen Noodles Shrimp for lunch and then Speggetai or w/e you spell it for dinner and some tea then water before I went to bed. Friday same thing for lunch and I had stew mixed with all kinds of stuff like potatoes, tomatoes, onions, and meat. Then I just had some water. I wouldn't mind more suggestions. Well Monday, okay let me say this first. I live in TX, so it's really hot. So far it's gone up to 110. So my next door neighbor wants her house repainted. I get paid 2500 hundred, but I only get 256 out of it... really really sucks.. anyways my dad rearranged it for me becuz he wants me to lose weight. I havent exercised yet, but my dad is tellin' me this weekend to really stretch and all that but not to sweat bad so Monday I won't be complainin'. So all through May I'm goin' to be exercisin' everyday, even after school. So it'll be a good work out for me. Thanks ppl, I'll check back in next week!
 
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If your doctors have said that all you need to do is lose weight, then you are lucky. Trust me, it's a blessing. That means that you can just slowly alter your choices a little at a time to get it where you want it to be. I know that the whole going slowly thing doesn't sound too appealing (it's so much nicer to think about losing 100+ lbs in a couple of months), but it will be the most effective way. It will give you the life you want. You just work on it a little at a time.

Start adding more walking time to your day. It doesn't have to be a whole lot at first. Maybe just parking on the other side of the mall and walking through the mall to the store you want to go to, or doing an extra lap around the supermarket before you go to the check out counter, or (when it's cooler out again) parking a little further away. Even taking a short walk after dinner. The best way is to alter something that is already in your daily routine. Because you're young, it's a little more difficult to guess what it is. For me, it was hand delivering inter-office documents (instead of putting it in the mail, I would just walk over). Little changes like that doesn't add a whole lot of strenuous activity but in about 3 days, you just start to feel better, less winded, and a little more healthy.

Then you'll want to eat better and maybe add some more walking. After a while you will feel better able to do other forms of exercise and more comfortable doing them. It will feel natural to move around alot and not something that you "have" to do.

The food thing is the same. Start slow. After you add more walking, start taking out candy or pop. If you've been doing a lot of sugar, there will be a little bit of withdrawl time, but the additional walking will offset some of that.

Get a book on nutrition. There are tons of them. I like the ADA one. It's huge and talks about all kinds of health aspects. Which ever one you choose, make sure that it has food charts and explains them. If you know a little bit more about what your body needs at any point in time, what you're eating and what it does for your body, it will be easier to choose what to eat based on what you're feeling.

Eating healthy doesn't have to be expensive and exercise doesn't have to be hard. The best moment is when you realize that you don't have to think about it because it's just an extention of who you are...a way that you express yourself. The trick is just to give yourself the chance to do that without obsessing over it. They are just choices. All you have to do is make one choice at a time. If there is a healthier option, then decide if that option is going to worth it. You don't have to be upset over it. Your life is still something to celebrate. Just pick ways to celebrate it that make you feel better, longer.

Good luck hon. You have a your whole life ahead of you...enjoy it!
 
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