Confused Teen with Diet and Workout Questions

[GameDude216]

I am 19 and just finished my first year of college and inevitably gained the freshman 15 (maybe even 20!). I am 6'2" and weigh 240 lbs and am unsatisfied with my weight. My family and I have committed to joining a gym this summer and for the past 2 1/2 weeks I have been going about 4 or 5 times a week for an hour each time. One of my goals this summer is to get in the habit of exercising and eating healthily so when I go back to school in the fall it will be routine and I won't fall into my old ways.

A question I have is was what exactly should I be doing at the gym? When I go, I usually use the elliptical for the full hour, doing around 6 miles, and burning around 800 calories (according to the machine). More recently I have been using the rowing machine for 10 or 20 minutes as well. When I go to the gym I am not sure what I should be using and really how to use it. Should I be doing more things with weights or is just aerobic exercise ok or should it be combination of the two? One problem I have is that a lot of the machines look kinda scary and I don't know how to use them properly and understand the whole 'rep thing' and when to rest. Also, what target weight should I be working towards and what can I expect to loose by the end of the summer?

Other questions lie with diet. For the best results should I be cutting my intake drastically and resorting to a no carb intense diet or should it be something more balanced?

I would appreciate any and all help, as I am trying to make this summer count and really try to cut down as much as possible. Thanks!

 

[KaraCooks]

Hi and welcome.

The first thing I'd suggest is figuring out how many calories you need to be eating by reading this thread: http://weight-loss.fitness.com/nutrition/40273-how-many-calories-should-i-eat.html

Then register for a free account on FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal or Calorie Counter, Diet Tracking, Food Journal, Nutrition Facts at The Daily Plate and start to log your food. This will let you see how many calories you're eating and how your nutrition levels are breaking down. Once you know that, you'll be able to see more clearly where you can make adjustments, cut back, change your nutrition, etc.

The next thing I'd suggest is checking out the various sticky posts in the exercise area of the forum (Weight Loss Through Exercise - Weight Loss Forum). There are some very good posts on exercise, both cardio/aerobic and on incorporating weight lifting into your exercise plans. I'd especially suggest reading the one called "The Conceptual Side of Weight Lifting".

Finally, I'd say you should read as much as you can of the posts on the board, especially anything that's marked "sticky". There is a ton of good information around here and a lot of times questions that new folks have has already been answered very thoroughly - so do take the time to look around and read.

Hope that helps you to get started.