advice on losing weight and toning up

googlehead

hi,
I am 30, 5'9" and weigh 12 stone 10lbs. I really want to lose some weight. I really want to lose a stone by July or end of july and also tone my body a bit and lose the belly. So far I have have cut all the junk out of my diet, I eat the odd bar of chocolate maybe once or twice a week.I love chocolate. so far I have been going to the gym. I do 5 min high level intense warm up on bike, then 15 mins 12km/ph speed on the tread mill and then 10 minutes of intense high level on the steper machine, I am pushing myself and I really am sweating after it. I intend on doing 200 situps a day. from tomorrow. and also I am thinking of swimming before I go to work in the morning a few days a weeks.So far thats 6 to 7 seven days a week gym and then maybe some morning swimming, I have dumbells at home so maybe i could also use those.my diet is basically big bowl of cereal in the morning. usually a salad sandwich(brown bread) and drink for lunch, then a normal meal for dinner(trying to eat smaller portions). between this I usually eat maybe 2 bananas and 3 cups of coffee a day. I would really appreciate any advice on how I could get this target, thanks

BossArky

Use this to structure your weight training. Too much cardio will have you looking like a Somalian in no time, yet you'll probably still have an odd little protruding belly.

Snack on a handful of nuts around 11am and 3pm to stave off cravings for junk. Nuts contain "good fats" which actually help you loose weight.

Replace coffee with lots of water.

Stick with one piece of cardio equipment instead of jumping around between 2 or 3 like a demented bunny. You are wasting time changing and breaking the rhythm.

If you are serious about losing weight cut out the chocolate.

Use the return key.

Read the stickies.

googlehead

yes the return key

thanks you very much for your reply:)

Yes i will try to cut out all chocolate,although I crave it. lately for a treat I have been eating soya chocolate moose as a treat, it says it is low in calories .I will give the nuts a go also

thanks

rubadub

I wouldnt bother with 200 situps. They are not a very efficient exercise, i.e. you can benefit more in the same time doing other stuff. I used to do 50 pushups the moment I got up. 100 pushups and 100 bodyweight squats everyday would benefit more. Get a chinning bar and do leg raises for your abs, or get an abwheel. Weighted squats will work your abs well.

Lifting heavy is great for losing fat, take photos and measurements since if you lift you can get thin but remain the same weight, I did, losing fat and gaining muscle at the same rate.

The site in the link in the previous post is excellent.

EileenG

googlehead wrote: »

yes the return key

thanks you very much for your reply:)

Yes i will try to cut out all chocolate,although I crave it. lately for a treat I have been eating soya chocolate moose as a treat, it says it is low in calories .I will give the nuts a go also

thanks

If you are a chocolate addict, acquire a taste for the 99% stuff. Lindt do one which you can buy in several places. It has a great chocolate hit, but no sugar, and it's so strong that you can eat a couple of squares (11 cals a square) and stop. Also, once you are used to it, you'll never be tempted by Dairy Milk again.

googlehead

EileenG wrote: »

If you are a chocolate addict, acquire a taste for the 99% stuff. Lindt do one which you can buy in several places. It has a great chocolate hit, but no sugar, and it's so strong that you can eat a couple of squares (11 cals a square) and stop. Also, once you are used to it, you'll never be tempted by Dairy Milk again.

where can i buy this choclate, do you any links so i can see what it looks like

thanks

xebec

It looks like this



Seriously, check out the Lindt website, the packaging on their 85% chocolate looks like below, couldn't find the 99%.

tadhg1

dont listen to them!!! keep on eating chocolate!!

im a fitness instructor and personal trainer (and i love chocolate). No food should be banned whilst trying to lose weight you can enjoy chocolate in moderation.

if your finding it hard to loose weight there is only one possible answer, your not creating a calorie deficit (your not burning off more than you consume).

1. try to consume about 1800 - 1900 cal per day
2. eat 5-6 times per day at about 3 hour intervuls
3. stick to Low fat, Low GI, unprocessed foods (buy a book called "the GI Diet")
4. Exercise for 1 hour 5 time per week, 3 days cardio and 2 days toning.
5. If you need motavating join "weight watchers" or get a personal trainer
6. Any diet that advocates losing more than 3lbs per week is most likely a load of bollox and bad for your health.
7. it's all about consistency!!!! be cosistant with your diet and exercise

Good luck!

aye

i love chocolate. i substitute the bars by eating yoplait chocolate yogurts, well nice.
you dont need to stop on chocolate altogether, but no harm substituting such a calorie dense, insulin raising food.

as said to lose weight you need to be calorie deficit.

also dont base all your exercise on cardio, get some weights in. building muscle will increase your metabolism, increasing body fat percentage loss.

in the gym ask for a balanced weights program, constituting compund movements.
chest press, seated row, shoulder press, lat pulldown, leg press, leg curls etc.

celestial

tadhg1 wrote: »

dont listen to them!!! keep on eating chocolate!!

im a fitness instructor and personal trainer (and i love chocolate). No food should be banned whilst trying to lose weight you can enjoy chocolate in moderation.

if your finding it hard to loose weight there is only one possible answer, your not creating a calorie deficit (your not burning off more than you consume).

1. try to consume about 1800 - 1900 cal per day
2. eat 5-6 times per day at about 3 hour intervuls
3. stick to Low fat, Low GI, unprocessed foods (buy a book called "the GI Diet")
4. Exercise for 1 hour 5 time per week, 3 days cardio and 2 days toning.
5. If you need motavating join "weight watchers" or get a personal trainer
6. Any diet that advocates losing more than 3lbs per week is most likely a load of bollox and bad for your health.
7. it's all about consistency!!!! be cosistant with your diet and exercise

Good luck!

Everyone is different but I don't agree with that - for some (in fact, a LOT of people) a sweet tooth is their downfall - giving up chocolate/cakes and all the sweet rubbish can result in people losing their taste/desire for all that junk, which can have a really beneficial effect on fat loss. After all how easy is it to not eat chocolate when you've lost the taste for it? I know that's how it worked for me.

Don't forget that a regular processed sugar intake (which regular chocolate is) is probably the main reason more and more people are walking around with overflowing guts.

eclectichoney

I agree celestial. I find once i am 'in the zone' of eating well, it's so much easier. You don't even think about chocolate etc., let alone miss it. i find an all or nothing approach works best for me. But it may be different for other people of course

EileenG

googlehead wrote: »

where can i buy this choclate, do you any links so i can see what it looks like

thanks

If you are in Dublin, you can buy it in Fresh food markets, Fallon & Byrne in Wicklow Street, Avoca Food hall and JC supermarket in Swords. It normally costs 2.99 a bar.

EileenG

tadhg1 wrote: »

dont listen to them!!! keep on eating chocolate!!

im a fitness instructor and personal trainer (and i love chocolate). No food should be banned whilst trying to lose weight you can enjoy chocolate in moderation.

if your finding it hard to loose weight there is only one possible answer, your not creating a calorie deficit (your not burning off more than you consume).

1. try to consume about 1800 - 1900 cal per day
2. eat 5-6 times per day at about 3 hour intervuls
3. stick to Low fat, Low GI, unprocessed foods (buy a book called "the GI Diet")
4. Exercise for 1 hour 5 time per week, 3 days cardio and 2 days toning.
5. If you need motavating join "weight watchers" or get a personal trainer
6. Any diet that advocates losing more than 3lbs per week is most likely a load of bollox and bad for your health.
7. it's all about consistency!!!! be cosistant with your diet and exercise

Good luck!

Excuse me, where did anyone advocate losing more than 3lb a week or cutting out chocolate completely?

paperclip2

googlehead wrote: »

where can i buy this choclate, do you any links so i can see what it looks like

thanks

I get it in my local Tesco. You can also get Green and Blacks organic 90% chocolate. I get this occasionally in Tescos but more often in my local Healthfood shop.:)

tadhg1

EileenG wrote: »

Excuse me, where did anyone advocate losing more than 3lb a week or cutting out chocolate completely?

there are plenty of diets that advocate losing more than 3lbs per week and banning foods. just pick up any womens mag like "Now" or "Closer" and on the front cover u'll see "Lose 7 pounds in 7 days" on page 2 a story the danger of crash dieting......ahhhh....hypocrites. these mags are trash and should be boycotted by women!!

cozmik

tadhg1 wrote: »

these mags are trash and should be boycotted by women!!

wise words.