Howdy. Im 23 and I am overweoght, I have been all my life. I have been on diet after diet after diet and I always get discouraged and give up andg ain back all the weight I lost (the usual sob story). The thing is, I have been single for 3 years becuase I have been focused on school, BUT I graduate in May, and I will be moving away, so my goal is to loose 100 pounds by then. I would be happy with loosing 2-3 lbs per week. I know I can do it, I just need some advice, maybe from someone whos been there.
Here’s what I am doing.
last monday I started my new weight loss routine. I eat no more than 20 grams of fat per day and I try to stay away from the packaged foods and I try to eat as much whole foods as possible. I have cut out ALL fried food, sweets and junk food although I have not cut sugar out of my diet becuase I would like to keep fruit in my diet and healthy sugars. Also, if I cut sugars completely out, I will go crazy and I would have given up by now. I dont snack and I eat 4-5 small meals a day. I am also drinking about a gallon of water every day. So theres an idea of my eating habits, now for the excercise. I do aerobics such as Crunch dance videos at about 50 minutes a piece or Tae Bo five nights a week in addition to a brink walk for about 30 minutes prior. I havnt added weights yet becuase Im afraid of gaining too much muscle. I was wondering if there are any home remedies I can do to boost my weight loss so I see results here shortly so I dont get discouraged. I would liek to stay away from weight loss pills and so it all naturally. I have heard of drinking apple cider vinegar before bed helps to flush out your system, but I dont know. Thank you for taking time to read this and does anyone have any other ideas that might give me a little boost. xoxo and thanks for the support.
A good diet needs to be low-calorie, based around 40% protein, 30% low GI carbohydrates, and 30% healthy fats. You need to get plenty of water as well. You should be having 3 small meals a day and 2-3 small snacks to speed up your metabolism.
Don't just go by calories, whether or not the food is healthy matters just as much, contrary to popular belief. Fat-loss is not as simple as the calories consumed and the calories lost. Change whatever your current meal plan is to something more like the following:
Breakfast: Oatmeal, 1 whole egg, 1 orange
Snack: Oat bran bread and a serving of lean chicken
Lunch: Serving of lean beef/ lean chicken/fish, and an apple
Pre-workout Snack: Scoop of Whey protein in water, and a serving of fruit.
Snack (Post-workout): Either have a small serving of fish here, or you can have a protein supplement (Whey is the best) mixed with all natural organic peanut butter, water/milk, and possibly fruit too, especially if this is after a workout
Dinner: Serving of fish
Before bed: Cup of cottage cheese, or a scoop of casein protein
For exercise, do HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). HIIT is the most effective cardio exercise, burning fat 9 times more effectively than any other cardio. It should only be done 2-3 times a week, non-consecutively, due to it's intensity. It is also the only cardio that does not burn muscle mass (which will help you reach a nice, toned look).
About weight-training, you should definitely start. Muscle mass actually helps burn fat, and females can not get bulky without the use of steroids, since females have 1/10 the amount of testosterone as males. Do weight-training 4-5 times a week, and do HIIT on off days.
Use heavy weights and low reps, I cannot stress this enough, there is so much misinformation about low weights and high reps toning, but that's all completely myths. All low weights and high reps do are increase endurance and completely fatigue slow-twitch muscle fibers, they do not tone!
Another thing you need to know, you require 2 full days of rest minimum for a muscle that you have worked out to repair and rebuild. You can still workout everyday, this just means that for 2 days, the muscle you just worked out will not be worked out.
Here is a sample exercise routine for you:
Monday: Deltoids, Triceps
Tuesday: Traps
Wednesday: HIIT
Thursday: Legs, Forearms
Friday: Chest, Biceps
Saturday: HIIT
Sunday: HIIT