My fat self. Need advice.

[1091MAC]

First of all do not be too hard on your self. Being overweight results in not getting enough exercise and either poor food choices, eating too much or both.

You will get some great info on here but here a a few tips.
1. eat 4-6 SMALL meals throughout the day.
2. Keep a journal of what you eat and the calorie content of the items. You will be amazed how many calories are in certain foods.
3. Drink lots of water. Some people often eat when they really just thirsty. Water will fill you up, without calories and keep you hydrated.
4. Make a comittment to exzercise, but start slowly and dont be overly amitious. Write down some easily attainable goals and stick with them. Start with walking. Take the stairs rather than the elevator.
5. DO NOT be afarioad about what people might say about you if you work out in a gym. Do it for you and not them. There was a guy who was 6'2'' and weighed 450 he had tits bigger than most women. I never heard anyone make fun of him behind his back. Most were impressed that he was trying.

The key to all this is committment and regualrity. Kepp on a strict schedule. Eat and exercise at the same time and gert enough sleep and you will do better.

I could go on forever, but I know that others will say the same things that I will so, I will just say, good luck!

Also have a trainer help you initially and make a plan for you. Check in with him or her once a month.

 

[bankside]

Just a sec, it sounds like you are avoiding certain exercises because it might end up making some parts look bigger.
It doesn't work that way.

The only advice I have is don't expect the gym to be the only solution. To get to the weight you want, it means putting a little more activity in the day. Bike to work 3 days a week instead of driving. It takes a little longer than driving, but then you have dealt with your work-out at the same time. Life is too short to spend it in the gym chasing a certain number on the scale. But it is easy to shake things up a bit and replace some sofa time with some moving around, and then your goals become automatic.

What are the parts of your day where you sit still the longest? What are the parts of your day where you usually reach for snacks, even after you have had a healthy meal.

Eating and sitting around can sometimes become hobbies.. They are actually good hobbies if you don't do it all the time! But pick a few days a week where you plan to try something different, and then you can have the best of both worlds.

 

[panda29]

Red XXXX 's looking good LOL

 

[KaraBulut]

You're correct- this is the no flame zone but we are very frank in telling posters our thoughts. We don't do it with malice, we do it because we actually care.

The pictures are helpful to us and they will be helpful to you.

There are three issues that you're dealing with:

1. Finding a balance between lean mass (muscle) and adipose tissue (fat).
2. Finding a balance between getting the nutrition and exercise that you need to build muscle yet still stressing your body enough that you lose fat.
3. Having a realistic self-image, realistic goals and the patience to work through your issues with both.

Muscle-Fat Balance

Based upon your pictures, you have a good mesomorphic frame. You have a solid shoulder-arm-chest muscle group that will develop easily once you begin a mass-building program. You didn't give us shots of your lower body but if you're like most guys with your body type, building leg and butt muscles is not your challenge.

You're going to be developing a series of workout programs that you will be doing for the next 2-3 years.

Where do you start? Start with hiring a trainer. Most guys who are in the position you are in have very weak musculature in your abdomen and spine. This makes you prone to injury. So, you will need to start with basic calisthenic-type exercises and basic resistance exercise to build up the strength in your "core". The trainer will help you put together an exercise program and will spend 3-5 sessions showing you the proper way to do them. After that, you need to work on your own until you're ready to begin a more advanced program- then you work with the trainer again to develop the next phase of your workout.


Diet and Nutrition

You're also going to have to come up with a more balanced diet that emphasizes protein and vegetables. You're going to need to restrict simple carbohydrates. And you're going to need to do aerobic exercise like running, treadmill, elliptical, walking or bicycle.

Several people here have had luck with Wii-Fit. Others do better joining a spin class or a yoga class where they work out with other people. Find what works for you.


Self-Image and Motivation

Get baseline measurements of your shoulders, arms, legs, waist and butt. And you put copies of these pictures and the measurements near your mirror to remind you where you started. It will be difficult for you to see the changes- your friends will see them before you do. This is why you need to focus on your measurements and not on your weight or the "mental image" you have of your body.

What you see is a fat, out of shape guy. What we see is a guy who has the right frame but doesn't know how to go about building muscle and trimming fat. Believe it or not, the workout program is the easy part. The hard part is finding the motivation and the persistence/resolve to stay with the program until you see the results that you want.

 

[Corny]

I did not see the pics posted here, but just judging from what we can see in your avatar and the other pics I remember seeing from you before, you are far away from the obeseness that will leave you with the big skin flaps, but it might still be noticeable.
But there are ways to reduce them again, too. Most important is that you lose the fat first, then you can care about the rest.

 

[KaraBulut]

It's just really shitty...
I'm trying.

As I mentioned before, you need to get periodic measurements and set goals for yourself. Don't rely solely upon what you see on the scale. If you're successful in your workout, you can add muscle and take off fat and still end up at the same weight- however your waist would be smaller but your arms, chest and legs would be larger from muscle gain.

Someone even told me that even if ya work out your still gonna have ugly saggy skin.

Oh, pfffftttttt!

If you are 300 pounds or larger and you lose over 100 pounds, then yes- you will have saggy skin. You don't have that issue and you're young, so saggy skin is the least of your worries.

Oh- to answer one of your earlier questions... treadmill is effective, especially if you add incline but your body adjusts to the effort very quickly. To lose weight, you have to ensure that you stress your body by giving it conditions that it doesn't expect. On the threadmill, this is the "hills" setting that makes it look like you're running on a rippled terrain. On the bicycle, there is a similar setting.

You can vary your routine by doing treadmill, ellipytical and bicycle in combination or on alternate days.

 

[KaraBulut]

But yeah wait, I don't even know what ellipytical is, I Gotta look that up. hah.

An ellipytical. The pedals go up/down and side/back to form an ellipytical circle.

All I know is I used to be able to do no pushups at all maybe 2 or 3, but now i can do 20. (Not much, but better than 0)

That's a significant improvement. It shows signficant strength gains in your back, upper arms and chest.

So I should take my measurements eh?
I've been taking a bunch of pictures every week also to remind myself.
My friend said everytime you get hungry job naked infront of a mirror,
she says you won't wanna eat after that. lol

Pictures are good but you won't see the changes in the pictures (or in your body) as quickly as you'll see changes in your measurements. It's not uncommon to notice that your pants are falling down, your belt is a notch tighter or your underwear is loose long before you actually notice the change in your body.

You can always combine the above and take naked pictures in front of a mirror. It seems to be the thing to do these days.

But i don't think foods the problem.

Yes and no. It's not the food, it's the portions and the high carb/high fat diet that most Americans meet to enjoy. You will not lose fat or gain muscle unless you eat- you just need to eat the right stuff.

And when I get home from the gym, me and my moms friend do Excersizes with a broomstick, we look stupid as all hell, but there's so much to do for your stomach, and i feel like DEATH afterwards, so I guess it's not that stupid.

Those are core exercises. They strengthen the muscles around the spine and in the abdomen.

Think about using a trainer, though. It helps with planning your workout- what you're doing, when you're doing it and ensuring you do it in the right way.