22 year old female, trying to go from 162, BACK to 125-130

[brittanynesmith]

I got married in 2008, and at that time was 125-130. My husband was in the army, and got medically retired for having messed up knees. Every year, we have both gained a LOT of weight. I use to be small, skinny, and I enjoyed it but over time have let myself go and would like to go back to feeling better about myself. I do however have a couple problems. ( I am going to take a picture of me tonight and upload, to show the spots I am not comfortable with. It's mainly my stomach and inner legs. I don't want to get HUGE or buff, but I don't mind gaining muscle and looking good.



First of all, I go to school full time, I am the manager at a Verizon store, and I take care of the house (husband and three dogs). So time is an issue, but for the past couple days I have been able to get up before class or work(depending on the day) and make it to the gym at 5 until 6-6:30. My biggest issue is getting up in the morning, and not staying up all night. I REALLY need to find a loud alarm clock instead of my quiet little Iphone! But over all, time is an issue.. that I am going to have to figure out.



Another thing is I am CLUELESS about what to do at the gym. Here recently I have been on the treadmill and doing some of the machines, but I would like to get on a SET day to day schedule.



Another issue is I LOVE food. Before this past week, I was eating Mcdonalds or Taco Bell DAILY and going through 6-12 Mountain Dews a day, and a sweet snack at night like ice cream. So my first question is - how do you get around those sweet cravings? The past couple days I have tried to eat healthier, but always revert back to "I will eat icecream just this last time, and I won't anymore".. and then the next day comes, and I want it again. Are there sweet things to eat that aren't full of calories? ANother thing is is there a good meal guide or some ideas? If you look below, I am planning on using a shake after workout at 5am, protein shake mixed with bananas and strawberries, along with Skim Millk. And then for lunch having the meal replacement. I just need to know what is good, or if this is good. I plan on having a banana before workout at 5AM omw to the gym, and then when I get home from working out having the protein shake. Then for lunch have the meal replacement. A couple hours after that have something like the Quaker rice cakes. They have 50 calories per, so maybe have 1 or 2? And then for dinner find something that has low calories in it. Anyone see anything I can fix, or have any suggestions ? I dont mind seriously changing everything. I'm really wanting to loose weight!



Also - I bought numerous things at the GNA. I talked to numerous people and they all said to get these three things.


Women's Ultra Mega Active Dietary Supplement - Vitapak for women. He said to take all of these a day, which I think is 7 pills. Is there anyone on here that uses these, and if so can I take them all at the beginning of a day or do I have to take them at wierd times? I also bought


He also said to get this - Which is a meal replacement. He said to have this for lunch. Anyone use this, and if so, what did you think? I got the Vanilla and Cookies and Creme.


The last thing he told me to get was for after work outs. Gold Standard 100% Whey Proten - ON. He told me to mix this with water, or silk and fruits.


So looking over what I bought, is this a good idea??



I know I seem 110% clueless, but I really am wanting to look good like I use to I'm glad I found this forumn and really can't wait to loose the weight. I've looked at some of the before and afters on here, and you guys look so good! Send some motivation my way

 

[Munch1]

I think you have a lot of things right. Calorie counting is the way to go, at least for me. I like that I'm able to have fast food sometimes, as long as I have the calories for it. Mostly, however, I've stayed away from it. As far as all those things the people at GNC got you to buy, the only thing I think is ok would be the vitamins. Even those I'd suggest you just get from walmart. A simple one a day for women would do the trick. Everything at GNC is overpriced and they always try to sell you stuff you don't need. The shakes might be ok, but watch the serving size. Usually it's a few scoops, which turns out to be a calorie killer sometimes. It's all about calories in and calories out. You need to burn more than you consume. Keep hitting the gym and watch your calories and you should start slimming down.


I'd recommend you start a diary here on the forum. They're really good at keeping you accountable and you'll get lots of support and motivation.

 

[Peterg]

Where to start. . .


The only thing that matters with weight loss is Calories in vs Calories out. So you need to calculate your BMR (base metabolic rate) and eat some where around that. Your BMR is the number of calories you burn every day even if you never move out of your bed. Eating less than your BMR can put your body in a type of "survival mode" where it shuts down some processes, decreases brain function and several other issues. So for example I'm a 23 year old guy, 6'1 with a middle of the road type of build, my BMR is around 1850, so I eat 1850 calories a day. But since I leave my bed, most days atleast, I likely burn around 2350 calories a day without doing any "exercise". As a result this would mean I burn 500 calories more a day than I eat, since there are 7 days in a week I burn 3,500 calories extra a week more than I eat, so I'd loose 1lb per week.


So to sum up all that crap I just wrote what I'm saying is weight loss is about 99.9% diet. If you low calories no matter how inactive you are you can see that number on the scale slimming up as much as you will.


Now what you eat can help you feel less hungry, make your skin look better, make you happier, and so on and so forth. Eating low glycemic index foods will make you feel more full, give you more energy and just overall make you more satisfied. Also regulating your caloric intake as to eating a balanced diet, 20-30% fat daily, 40-60% carbs daily, 20-30% protein daily.


Now for working out. There are 3 kinds of work outs, steady state cardio, anerobic training, and HIIT. Steady state cardio is anything that raises your heart rate, its important to really get it up, if running is too hard rather than walking hop on a stair master or a rowing machine. Anything where you can get your heart rate closer to peak for a 20 minute plus duration.


As for worrying about getting big. . . dont. Very, very few girls can even gain a large amount of bulk. The reason is you need a higher testosterone level to really build alot of bulk. Aside from that you'll see that bulk gain long in advance then you can simply stop raising the weights you are lifting and just increase reps/number of sets to maintain current condition. As to finding out a good weight training routine, look for videos online and look for exercises that hit certain areas of your body. Start off and on day 1 do core (abs, obliques) chest, day 2 do back, day 3 legs. Rinse and repeat. Try to hit each muscle group with a few different exercises.


Good luck!