Hi all. I'm a total newbie here, both to the site and to the world of fitness. (used to work out in college and was a very skinny 9.5 stones but life intervened)While my results in the 6 weeks I've been going back to the gym have been impressive, I really need some advice on what I need to do nutrition wise to take it to the next level. Or even to know what that level should be.
2 Months ago, my life and my body were both a total mess. I was 13 stones (I'm 5'5 so that was way overweight), drinking nearly every night, tired, miserable, deeply depressed and had given up all hope. I decided to do something about it and have since lost a stone, (for anyone not familiar with it, a stone is 14 pounds.) go to the gym a minimum of 3 times a week and usually 4. I generally only drink one day a week now. Occasionally I may still have a bit of fast food, but generally my diet is good. I still have a belly of sorts but it is more just puppy fat now and you can't see it through my clothes. I am happier and healthier than I've been in years but my problem is now where to go from here?
A friend of mine who trains for MMA advised me to try the 6 small meals a day regime, with no carbs after a certain time etc and I am going to try that initially to see if it is workable for me. The problem however is I'm really not sure what my goal is now that I've already achieved a short term goal of weight loss. Am I just happy losing more weight and getting more aerobically fit? Or do I try to go down the road of getting really ripped. One goal I do have in my head in the medium term is to be able to do a leg of the my local marathon next year, so I am incorporating a little bit of light running into my regime first with a view to potentially get involved with a running club and developing my running ability that way. I'm really not sure however if I'm cut out for road running though so I want to be careful so as I don't feck up my knees. (I'm 29 by the way)
I also want to be clear however that I am an average guy, I'm not looking to become an elite athlete or anything but I do want to feel healthier and also happier about how I look. I want to really push myself to achieve my goal(when I find out what that really is)but also want to be realistic. Improving my mental health was a major reason for doing this so I don't want a situation where I'm becoming so obsessed about whether I'm doing the right things that I inadvertently end up making myself miserable. I
So I guess what I'm looking to see should I focus more on?
1. Aerobic fitness with a view to taking up running (I have woeful balance in my legs so cycling is pretty much out)
2. Losing the puppy fat and achieving a flat stomach though not necessarily a 6 pack
3. Getting ripped
For each of those scenarios what do I need to be looking at from a nutrition point of view. I'm tending towards either 1 or 2 because I'm not sure I'd have the discipline required to get totally ripped, but I at least want to have an idea what it would take nutrition wise (based on the assumption that I continue doing a mix of weights and cardio 4 days a week)to achieve these and what road you would recommend I go down based on what I have told you about my regime and where I've come from. I'm after getting so enthusiastic now about working out that I don't want to neglect it, but I really need some guidance so I don't get caught in a rut. Thanks.
2 Months ago, my life and my body were both a total mess. I was 13 stones (I'm 5'5 so that was way overweight), drinking nearly every night, tired, miserable, deeply depressed and had given up all hope. I decided to do something about it and have since lost a stone, (for anyone not familiar with it, a stone is 14 pounds.) go to the gym a minimum of 3 times a week and usually 4. I generally only drink one day a week now. Occasionally I may still have a bit of fast food, but generally my diet is good. I still have a belly of sorts but it is more just puppy fat now and you can't see it through my clothes. I am happier and healthier than I've been in years but my problem is now where to go from here?
A friend of mine who trains for MMA advised me to try the 6 small meals a day regime, with no carbs after a certain time etc and I am going to try that initially to see if it is workable for me. The problem however is I'm really not sure what my goal is now that I've already achieved a short term goal of weight loss. Am I just happy losing more weight and getting more aerobically fit? Or do I try to go down the road of getting really ripped. One goal I do have in my head in the medium term is to be able to do a leg of the my local marathon next year, so I am incorporating a little bit of light running into my regime first with a view to potentially get involved with a running club and developing my running ability that way. I'm really not sure however if I'm cut out for road running though so I want to be careful so as I don't feck up my knees. (I'm 29 by the way)
I also want to be clear however that I am an average guy, I'm not looking to become an elite athlete or anything but I do want to feel healthier and also happier about how I look. I want to really push myself to achieve my goal(when I find out what that really is)but also want to be realistic. Improving my mental health was a major reason for doing this so I don't want a situation where I'm becoming so obsessed about whether I'm doing the right things that I inadvertently end up making myself miserable. I
So I guess what I'm looking to see should I focus more on?
1. Aerobic fitness with a view to taking up running (I have woeful balance in my legs so cycling is pretty much out)
2. Losing the puppy fat and achieving a flat stomach though not necessarily a 6 pack
3. Getting ripped
For each of those scenarios what do I need to be looking at from a nutrition point of view. I'm tending towards either 1 or 2 because I'm not sure I'd have the discipline required to get totally ripped, but I at least want to have an idea what it would take nutrition wise (based on the assumption that I continue doing a mix of weights and cardio 4 days a week)to achieve these and what road you would recommend I go down based on what I have told you about my regime and where I've come from. I'm after getting so enthusiastic now about working out that I don't want to neglect it, but I really need some guidance so I don't get caught in a rut. Thanks.