Advice on how to get the ball rolling

S

sarrab11

New member
I've always had issues with my weight. I currently weigh 167 lbs, but I've been in the 190's a few years ago. I recently started college, gained the freshman 15, lost it and then some. I run 4-5 times a week for 2-3 miles at a time (30 minutes ) sometimes more. I strength train 3 times a week and work on different parts of my body. I like to play tennis, cross train, and bike also.

I've always generally watched what I ate, but within the past month I've drastically cleansed my diet and currently try to focus on only healthy food. I eat a lot of lowfat/nonfat dairy, whole grains, plenty of vegetables and fruits, lean white meat, fish, and vegetarian "meat" products. I never drink soda and occasionally drink alcohol with friends.

Despite all that, my weight is only slowly inching its way down. I've been working hard for months and i've noticed that my arms and legs have gotten quite toned, but the weight won't budge. I've been withing the same 10 lb range for 2 years now.

any advice on how to really kick it up a notch?
sorry this is such a long one
 
spend time reading the stickied threads around the forum...

And if you're noticing an improvement in your body -what difference does it make what the scale says - do you wear a sign over your head that says you weight XX? people generally lose weight to look better.. you're looking better... the scale number isn't important.

Find the thread entitled the Scale Mentality and read it twice..
 
Simply eating "healthy" foods isn't going to make you lose weight. You have to eat LESS calories than you burn.

Some of the veggie meat products have nearly the same calorie content (including the saturated fat) as meat so it's not necessarily any more healthy for you. You have to read labels and record calories. Keeping track of the macronutrients (protein, carbs and fat) is also really helpful.
 
madness said:
Simply eating "healthy" foods isn't going to make you lose weight. You have to eat LESS calories than you burn.

Some of the veggie meat products have nearly the same calorie content (including the saturated fat) as meat so it's not necessarily any more healthy for you. You have to read labels and record calories. Keeping track of the macronutrients (protein, carbs and fat) is also really helpful.
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The veggie products are boca burgers and gardenburgers which have half the sat fats and cholesterol and generally around 100 calories per patty. I try to be very label conscientious.

I think my biggest problem is the amount of food I eat in a day and don't realize. I have a hard time calorie counting because its so time consuming.
Is there a way into tricking myself to feel fuller after I eat a meal? I stick to 3 main meals a day averaging about 400 calories each and snacks of fruit or yogurt inbetween.
 
Is there a way into tricking myself to feel fuller after I eat a meal?
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Make sure you're eating enough calories... (the stickied thread in nutrition will give you a link to a calculator for approximate amount of calories)

Get an account at and keep track of what you'e eating being sure to measure portion sizes.

And protein/fat/carbs at each meal helps with that fgullnbess feeliong asa well as eating slower... (chopsticks help with that too :D
 
sarrab11 said:
I've been told I eat way too fast. :eek:
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One of my big triumphs for portion control was slowing down my eating. I have two older brothers and always grew up eating as much as fast as I could otherwise there wouldn't be any left. But most people overeat when they eat fast since it takes time for your brain to be told that your stomach is full (has that been scientifically proven or is that one of those wives tales?). Anyway, I know from personal experience that I eat less when I eat slower. My fiance is the world's slowest eater so I try to pace myself with him. It helps a lot!
 
You've probably gained at least 5lb of muscle in the last few months, perhaps more, if you've been training hard and eating correctly. That would account for you not losing too much weight, even if you've lost significant amounts of fat.

As madness indicated you have to be running a calorie deficit. The key is to keep your basal metabolic rate up, so you don't want to eat too little calories. Make sure you're not eating too much white rice. Many people tend to rely on food like chicken terraki when they're losing weight. The white rice has a very high glycemic index and the sauce is loaded with sugar.

Try upping your intensity when you weight train. You don't indicate how you strength train, but high intensity training to failure for short duration is usually best for building muscle. I found that to be not only the most effective, but the quickest for packing on muscle in a relative (for me) hurry.

Also cut back on the fruit a bit, and eat more green vegetables instead. Fruit is loaded with sugar. Although it's far lower glycemic index than table sugar, white rice or flour, it's still easy to eat to much of it. Also watch which vegetables you eat. Carrots, for example, have fairly high glycemic index, even though their total glycemic load is fairly low. Their GI is about 70-75, about the same as cake (w/o frosting) or vanilla wafers.

You'll get there. Look at your body composition, and forget what the scale weighs you at. Get one that measures body composition instead. Hope any of this helps.
 
BigFatLoser said:
You've probably gained at least 5lb of muscle in the last few months, perhaps more, if you've been training hard and eating correctly. That would account for you not losing too much weight, even if you've lost significant amounts of fat.

As madness indicated you have to be running a calorie deficit. The key is to keep your basal metabolic rate up, so you don't want to eat too little calories. Make sure you're not eating too much white rice. Many people tend to rely on food like chicken terraki when they're losing weight. The white rice has a very high glycemic index and the sauce is loaded with sugar.

Try upping your intensity when you weight train. You don't indicate how you strength train, but high intensity training to failure for short duration is usually best for building muscle. I found that to be not only the most effective, but the quickest for packing on muscle in a relative (for me) hurry.

Also cut back on the fruit a bit, and eat more green vegetables instead. Fruit is loaded with sugar. Although it's far lower glycemic index than table sugar, white rice or flour, it's still easy to eat to much of it. Also watch which vegetables you eat. Carrots, for example, have fairly high glycemic index, even though their total glycemic load is fairly low. Their GI is about 70-75, about the same as cake (w/o frosting) or vanilla wafers.

You'll get there. Look at your body composition, and forget what the scale weighs you at. Get one that measures body composition instead. Hope any of this helps.
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Thanks for the advice! I've never really taken into account glycemic index. As far as white rice goes, though, there aren't any white flour products in my house anymore haha all whole grains. I dont' order takeout either.

Strength training wise I pick a body part or two to work on in a day (3-4 days a week) and I spend about 45 minutes to an hour working them out with different moves. I do 2-3 sets of 12 -15 repetitions depending on what it is.
 
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