Weight loss

Annette1973

Hi, I am a busy mum of 5 with a full time job. I am about 2 stone overweight and would appreciate any help with losing weight and toning up my stomach muscles. Can anyone give me advise on the best exercise to help me with this?

ironwalk

Walking....slow, not "cool" but very effective.
You can go as fast/slow/far as you like- stick in your earphones and listen to podcasts or music while you walk.

Alternatively, Pilates is the business for toning up your middle and if you get a good teacher you will work very hard for the 45-60minutes of your class.
It's also great for your general posture.

Alternatively, would you use a DVD or follow a work out on YouTube?

Dial Hard

This thread is better suited to Fitness/N&D but while we're waiting for it to be moved...

ironwalk wrote:

Walking....slow, not "cool" but very effective. You can go as fast/slow/far as you like- stick in your earphones and listen to podcasts or music while you walk.

Walking is really ineffective for weight loss. Sure, it's better than *no* exercise but the OP could walk miles and miles and miles every day and see pretty much zero effect on her weight if she's eating rings around herself in the meantime.

OP, weight is pretty much 90% what you eat and around 10% exercise. What's a typical day's/week food intake for you?

Ursus Horribilis

The vast majority of weight loss comes from what you put into your mouth. I hear the advice of "go to the gym" trotted out all over the place as a way to lose weight. While it certainly is a good thing to do for many reasons, you're never going to shift that weight by exercise alone. I've also seen that 90%/10% stat Dial Hard has mentioned. If you're serious about losing weight you're going to have to make changes to what you eat. Even if you don't join up a slimming class such as Slimming World or Weight Watchers, it's well worth looking online at what they do. There are a lot of sites/blogs with recipes and information about what you can eat lots of and what you should be eating less of.

khaldrogo

Slimming world

Annette1973 wrote:

Hi, I am a busy mum of 5 with a full time job. I am about 2 stone overweight and would appreciate any help with losing weight and toning up my stomach muscles. Can anyone give me advise on the best exercise to help me with this?

Arrival

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is the best way to lose weight with minimal time/effort. You can do it while running, swimming, rowing, skipping etc. You can even just do running in the spot in your living room if you'd like, the most important thing is just sticking to the specific timings of the intervals and not taking a longer break than set out as it's specifically designed to get your heart rate racing and burn more calories even after you've finished.

There are three parts to an interval; the warm-up, the high intensity training and the break. To start with for example you could do a 10 second warm-up, 20 seconds of working as hard as you can and a 60 second break. As soon as the 60 second break ends, you start your second round, no matter what. Do at least 4 rounds and work your way up to doing 8 rounds. When you're comfortably able to do 8 rounds, start increasing the length of the rounds, e.g. 15 second warm-up, 30 seconds of working out but stick to the 60 seconds of a break. Keep going until again you're comfortably doing 8 rounds of these at which point increase the time's to 20 second warm-up, 40 seconds of working out and 60 second break.

This will take you more than likely a few months but it is very effective and easy to manage as it will only take 10-20 minutes, 3 nights per week. Just be sure to eat clean and within your calorie limit during this and you absolutely WILL lose weight.

Dial Hard wrote: »

This thread is better suited to Fitness/N&D but while we're waiting for it to be moved...



Walking is really ineffective for weight loss. Sure, it's better than *no* exercise but the OP could walk miles and miles and miles every day and see pretty much zero effect on her weight if she's eating rings around herself in the meantime.

OP, weight is pretty much 90% what you eat and around 10% exercise. What's a typical day's/week food intake for you?

This, walking and any light exercise like that is ****e for losing weight lmao

mikemac2

Slimming world is for everyone but many/most members are just like you

silverharp

its 80% diet 20% exercise, the problem most people have is eating too much sugar and processed carbs. there is no one perfect approach but look into low carb, intermittent fasting as background to constructing a sustainable diet

LeinsterDub

Arrival wrote: »

Just be sure to eat clean and within your calorie limit during this and you absolutely WILL lose weight.

You throw this end at the end like it's an afterthought when it's the most important aspect.

toetatoe

Apps like My Fitness Pal are useful for tracking the calorific and nutritional value of the foods you’re eating. Have a small kitchen scales handy also so that you can measure your food quantities exactly.

Vicxas

My Fitness Pal works wonders to keep track of what you're eating.


I started the gym last year and still ate the crap i ate, and wondered why i didn't lose weight.

Then i started my diet back in December and I've lost 2 stone already.

Cannot stress the diet hard enough.

ncmc

Diet is absolutely the most important thing. Put it this way, a 5km jog will burn about 250 calories, that’s about the equivalent of a slice of toast with real butter and cheese! So what takes you less than 5 mins to eat, could take you over 30 mins to burn off. Now of course exercise is important for your physical and mental well being, but unless you are devoting a huge amount of time to it, it’s unlikely to cause you to lose weight without significant other changes.

My fitness pal is good, but it does involve tracking and weighing food which isn’t for everyone. I found it a bit fiddly when I was making food from scratch as you have to work out the calories in everything and divide by the number of portions. I really recommend slimming world, it is so easy and it really, really works. I know people who’ve lost multiples of what you need to lose and you won’t believe how much you can eat. I think is suits busy people who might not be very clued in about nutrition as it just really simplifies things. Plus the group weigh in acts as a great incentive to stay on plan!

The most important thing is to be organised and plan your meals in advance. Make sure you have healthy snacks in the house and get rid of all the junk. Batch cook and freeze so you have healthy meals on hand if you’re short on time so you’re not tempted to hit the takeaway!

Best of luck. I know it probably seems like a massive challenge, but 2 stone isn’t a huge amount in the scheme of things. With a bit of hard work and dedication, you could lose that by the end of the summer!

eviltwin

I go to Slimming world, like you I have a family and work full time and it's the only thing that works for me. It's also family friendly, I don't want the hassle of cooking different meals. You could lose the two stone within a few months.

Dial Hard

ncmc wrote: »

My fitness pal is good, but it does involve tracking and weighing food which isn’t for everyone. I found it a bit fiddly when I was making food from scratch as you have to work out the calories in everything and divide by the number of portions.

MFP takes a bit of work at first but you can save recipes (and the number of portions in each) as you make them and then just pick them from your database going forward. It's dead handy. I have a huge portfolio of saved recipes in mine.

Graces7

ironwalk wrote: »

Walking....slow, not "cool" but very effective.
You can go as fast/slow/far as you like- stick in your earphones and listen to podcasts or music while you walk.

Alternatively, Pilates is the business for toning up your middle and if you get a good teacher you will work very hard for the 45-60minutes of your class.
It's also great for your general posture.

Alternatively, would you use a DVD or follow a work out on YouTube?

Please be careful wearing earphones when out. You need to be able to hear traffic,dogs etc for your safety .

Neyite

Hi OP, I moved your thread where you might get some more tailored responses

Alf Veedersane

Arrival wrote: »

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is the best way to lose weight with minimal time/effort.

Well, it's not minimal effort. The effort is increased because you're trying to exert as much energy in a shorter space of time

Though I would say, for the OP right now, the best exercise is the one they will continue to do. If that's walking, so be it.

Transform

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

Well, it's not minimal effort. The effort is increased because you're trying to exert as much energy in a shorter space of time

Though I would say, for the OP right now, the best exercise is the one they will continue to do. If that's walking, so be it.

Agreed and HIIT might be a time efficient way to elevate HR and burn calories but at what cost? Is it really sensible to tell people to go eyeballs out in all training sessions, how sustainable is that?

rolling boh

like others have said diet is the big one . Are you eating a lot of food high in calories snacking during the day can really add up if you cut out those it will make a big difference.I know its hard and especially with a house full of children but tidying up your diet you can drop a couple of pounds each week easy enough.I am sure you know the good foods to include in your daily diet and watch out portion sizes of things like rice pasta .You wont have to spend mad hours exercising if your diet is good enough so if you find an exercise you like all the better.

Alf Veedersane

rolling boh wrote: »

I am sure you know the good foods to include in your daily diet and watch out portion sizes of things like rice pasta

Portion sizes of other foods that aren't carbs also.

Transform

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

Portion sizes of other foods that aren't carbs also.

Agreed - like every single “healthy treat” from the likes of the happy
Pear et al, all very calorie dense even if nutrient dense also

rolling boh

Transform wrote: »

Agreed - like every single “healthy treat” from the likes of the happy
Pear et al, all very calorie dense even if nutrient dense also

yeah really meant to say watch portion sizes across the board

Transform

rolling boh wrote: »

yeah really meant to say watch portion sizes across the board

Id add that "watch" doesnt work for the vast majority of clients we work with as its too vague. People need to break out the scales and actually measure their food for about 2-3 weeks so they get better at knowing exact calories in foods otherwise its guesswork

Overall, the goal is to NOT have to track and record so you get more proficient at portion and calorie control. This process is made more miserable the less you exercise as you then automatically have far less calories to play with

rolling boh

Fair point my comments were fairly general based on my own expierance of dropping weight.I don't know what the posters diet is like at the moment or what weight she is. Two stone is fairly doable I think even with a few subtle changes.

surfinbiz

I need advice too. I am on the heavy side myself.

rolling boh

You may have to give a few details to get a response if not there are a few threads on this subject already on here .

Mars Bar

surfinbiz wrote: »

I need advice too. I am on the heavy side myself.

And there you are dishing out "advice" in another thread saying you should avoid carbs and reduce meat intake and increase fish.

So why has that not worked for you?

browneire

I agree with above re a general 80/20 diet/exercise.

However i have found the below helps me considerably.
Weigh yourself same time every morning. And record.
Get to bed early, up early
Brush your teeth with the kids and don't eat for the rest of the evening
Get out for 30+mins walk or run every day. Get faster every day. Preferably in morning.

It helped me get back on track last year, wobbled a but in the last two months but back on right track again. I find i need to run 30k/wk to balance my sedentary job and my diet. 6'2" 86kg (targeting 80).

ILoveYourVibes

Walking or biking whichever you prefer. But everyday.

Mat Pilates. Partic for the abs. Maybe 10 mins a day. Or 45 mins a week x2. Its a lot more taxing than people think when done right. But you really can fail to get the most out of the moves if the teacher is not good or you don't understand the moves.

When lockdown ends you can look into a gym then.

What sport have you always wanted to try? Do what you LIKE doing


A healthy diet cutting out junk and processed foods like white flour or white sugar etc and any 'extras' while still respecting your body. Go natural. Drink water. Think long term. Watch portions. Be intuitive but mindful and really know what you are putting in your body. Steam don't fry. Instead of crisps have one serving of popcorn or some raw nuts. Eat fruit or dried fruit instead of sugar. If you eat bread try to get a bread very low in sugar high in fibre and higher in protein. Get enough protein. Try to snack at trigger times like in the evening.

Only eat when hungry.

Buy smaller plates.

See how far this takes you. Don't do it all at once.

Good luck and welcome to the forum!