looking to lose 100lbs

[lookingfor100]

Hey guys, this is my first post, and since im not getting any support in my home life, i figured this is the best way to get some! lol.

I am 28yrs old, and i weigh 290 lbs. My issue over the years has been drinking too much soda. I always knew i had a weight issue, but just the other day at my grandmas 85 birthday, a family member that I havent seen in over 10 years comes out of no where and says... " Trevor needs to go on a diet" well i was super embarassed and angry at the same time.

I went and "purchased" the Jillian Michaels 30 day shred, and im doin that now, along with trying to eat a tad more sensibly. No soda, but only water, or drinks that are very low calorie.

I guess what im here asking, is what should i really be eating during the day? I hear that you should really eat wahtever you want, as long as its in moderation. But i figured i better ask you fine people. Also, is doin her 20 minute work out enough? Should i try and hit up the sorry excuse for a gym we have here? (treadmill and and eliptical with a few weights lol) Any information would be greatly appreciated.


Thanks so much everyone.

 

[Harold14370]

I don't think it's accurate to say you should eat whatever you want as long as it's in moderation. It's true, you will lose weight as long as you limit the calorie intake to less than the calories burned, but you will also want to make sure you are getting the nutrition you need. I like to compare my meal plans to the USDA recommendation using .
Twenty minutes is not much exercise to do in a day, but as long as you eat less calories than you burn, you can still lose weight. If you wanted to get more exercise you don't need to go to a gym. You could walk, run, skip rope, do push-ups, things like that.

 

[Greginnd]

I've been where you are. I first want to say to you that it is a long and slow process to lose the weight. DO NOT GET DISCOURAGED! That is the most important thing. You can't expect the weight to come off by tomorrow. It certainly didn't go on that fast. The level of activity and changes you make in your diet must be sustainable for a lifetime if you want to be healthy, and you DO want to be healthy.

First, I think it's a great idea to start with cutting out the sugary drinks and slowly increasing your activity. If your body isn't used to moving you will feel soreness and tiredness as you begin an exercise program. Start modestly and increase your activity level no more than 10-15% a week. You will feel how much you can do and as your body becomes accustomed to exercise you will be able to push more. I think starting with 20 minutes is just fine. The other thing you can do is start walking more. Park your car at the furthest point away in the parking lot, take the stairs instead of the elevators, do everything you can do to increase your overall activity.

As for your diet, start by cutting out as much refined sugar as possible. See how that goes for a few weeks. Then start gradually making other changes. Choose more sensible carbs like brown rice, whole wheat, and sweet potatoes instead of white rice, white flour and white potatoes. Cut out excess fat. Ease your hunger by eating more high volume low calorie foods - yes that means lots of vegetables, especially green leafy ones. Drink lots of water.

Your weight will fluctuate up and down. That's normal based on hydration levels, etc. It takes some time for changes to show up on the scale.

 

[lookingfor100]

thanks so much for that greg. I was intrigued by what you had to say, so i went and read your other posts to see how much you have lots and first i gotta say.. WOW!. You have done awesome.

Second question i have for you is, i dont fully understand weightloss yet, and thats probably the most frusterating thing. I seen your graph about calories taken vs calories burned. Is it safe to say that no matter what to lose weight i have to burn more than i take in? Right now im taking in 2000 calories a day, but only burning roughly 600 - 700 doin the work out i am on. I guess walking for an hour every day is good too, but still that isnt gonna but me at 2000 calories.

I am very dedicated to my diet, and want to lose this 100lbs, but i just have a hard time understanding how. Like i said in my previous post, i dont really have the support/knowledge around me, because all friends and family are in great shape. Thanks for your knowledge and taking the time to help me out

 

[KaraCooks]

Have you read the sticky posts in the forums? Most of the questions you're asking could be answered by reading the sticky posts - that's what they're there for.

I'd suggest you start with the one called "How Many Calories Should I Eat?" and go on from there. Pulling a random number of calories out of the thin air isn't going to really help with weight loss.

Also keep in mind that your body burns calories just by existing. Even if you laid in bed and did nothing more than breathe and sleep, you'd still burn calories. So your goal is NOT to burn 2000+ calories in exercise. It's to figure out how many calories your body needs and eat fewer than that. So if your body needs 3000 calories, and you eat 2000 calories, you'll lose weight.

But on top of that, it's not just calories ... it's the QUALITY of calories. You want to make sure you're eating nutritious and filling calories, and not junk.

Again, read the sticky posts. They'll answer your questions.

 

[Greginnd]

Kara has some great advice for you! Thanks Kara.

I don't have a lot of posts on here yet as I am fairly new to this forum but I have been battling my weight all my life. I've had successes and failures and have swung up and down over the years. I'm on a downward trend right now. At my heaviest in 2002 I was over 300 pounds and I lost 85 of those. Twenty years ago I was up to 285 and lost about 95 pounds. This year I found myself back up to 265 and am trying to get back into it. A couple of years ago I ran 3 full marathons and several half marathons. I love being healthy and athletic but I realized how easy it is to slip back as I've done it many times.

Ok, that being said, I think you have a lot to learn. There's lots of information out there and on these forums. Please keep in mind that not everything you read is gospel truth. Find out what will work for you.

Regarding calories, yes, the only way to reduce weight is to burn more calories than you eat. It really is that simple and no one has found any magic to overcome this. Kara is right that you burn a lot of calories just existing even if you were lying in bed 24/7. I would guess you probably burn 2200-2500 calories a day just living. Any exercise that gets your heartrate up into the aerobic zone or higher is going to burn more calories!

If you want to track your calories carefully I would point you to Fitday.com (or any of the other calorie tracking websites). I enter all the food I eat and in my profile I set it to the most sedentary lifestyle to calculate my background calories that I burn without exercise. I find the other settings tend to overestimate what you burn to exist.

Now, here's the general rule of thumb. A pound of fat is approximately 3500 calories. In order to lose 1 pound per week you need to have a calorie deficit (burn more than you eat) of 500 calories per day. Many people strive for a 1000 calorie per day deficit in order to lose two pounds a week. This is a healthy rate of weight loss and ensures that you do not do damage to your body. If you want to lose weight faster you should consult a doctor as you risk serious side effects due to nutritional difficulties and higher concentrations of fat breakdown products in your body.

Ok, I know this is a long post. As I indicated before, starting out slowly and gradually doing more may be the best strategy. Do some google searches on "clean eating" to learn more about nutrition. As Kara said, there are different kinds of calories with regards to nutrition and how our bodies break down the foods.

The easiest thing to do first is 1) cut out as much refined sugar as possible, 2) eat more vegetables and fruits, and 3) make your body move more throughout the day.

If you start there I think within a few weeks you will start noticing some positive changes.

[links removed]

Good luck. Feel free to write to me any time if you want help or suggestions. I'd be happy to help you out.