Hi, I'm new to these boards. I'm a 20 year old female, 5'3 and weigh about 192 lbs. I am so extremely frustrated! I recently got blood work done and the doctor said that everything is fine... no thyroid problems.. no cholesterol problems, however she did suggest that I should lose weight so I won't have problems in the future (as If I didn't know this already :)).. I got a gym membership earlier this year and I have been trying to go, even though it is so difficult. I usually do the treadmill for 30 minutes and then the glider or something else for another 30, I also try to walk to places during the day. I'm not really sure what I should be eating... I think my eating habits are the biggest problem. Maybe someone can suggest how much carbs, fats, protein I should eat during the day in order to lose about 70 lbs. I want to lose weight in a healthy manor... in order to maintain it later on. Also If someone can suggest their exercise routine and If it has worked for them. I'm also frustrated because I was never this big before... I mean I was never thin but I used to be around the range of 130 lbs. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Good for you for wanting to do something about your weight. You took the first step. The next step is to follow through--the hardest step for me.

What to eat? Well, first of all, you should watch the amount of food you eat overall. And by this I don't mean too much, I mean not eating enough. Most people, when they decide to lose weight, stop eating enough. You should eat fruit, veggies, protein, and starch every day. Try having pasta or cereal once a week.

I'm also at the heaviest weight I've ever been at and am extremely disappointed in myself. I want to lose weight the right way as well. The hardest thing for me is cutting out the junk food. I'm going to try hard to stop with the cookies and ice cream, and also the mentality that I have to deprive myself of everything in order to look good.

Keep going to the gym! Even if you're just walking on the treadmill 4 times a week at 30 min a session, you're helping your cardiovascular system and that is good.

Keep up the good work, we're all here to keep you motivated.

A lot factors into how many calories you should eat and burn. You may want to talk to a dietician for some advice, or a really great website that might help a lot is Fitday.com they will help you plan and anaylize current and future eating plans and its totally free.

I have an eliptical machine (I'd love to run, but I live in Seattle, and its cold and wet). I use it between 40 and 60 minutes a day. I highly recomend it. Your gym probably has one. You don't need to do it as long as I do, but you can burn the same amount of calories that way as walking on a treadmill but it will take about a quarter of the time.

Here's a good calculator to figure out roughly how many calories you lose in a day. Just estimate the time you spend doing each activity (it includes all kinds of exercises, sports, and other activities, like sleeping and reading): http://www.healthstatus.com/calculate/cbc


There's pretty much a healthy alternative to every junkfood. Try eating a sandwich without mayonaise and cheese. Or gardenburgers or boca products instead of cheeseburgers. Theyre really not that bad. Sorbet is a non-fat alternative to icecream, and its quite tasty. Instead of potato chips r frenchfries as your side dish, try a salad. Once you get used to eating these alternatives to junkfood, you barely think about it. You just need to be motivated to force yourself to do it. Keep coming to message boards like this. Keep talking about it to as many people as you can. Keep the idea of weight loss fresh in your mind.

I get easily deterred if I don't keep my diet and exercise plan in mind, i find myself instinctively eating when I'm not that hungry.


Another trick my girlfriend showed me is to make a half cup of popcorn (no butter) and eat that, and drink 2 or 3 glasses of water. It makes you feel extremely full. I haven't done it, but I might try it if i felt inclined. Just force yourself to eat healthy food your not craving, until youre full and not thinking about your craving anymore.

I second the suggestion of visiting the web site fitday.com...the biggest step is already taken, the second big step is to log your food and keep track of what you are eating.

Keep going to the gym and monitor your food intake and the pounds will start to melt off!!! :bouncing:

There is a reason that so many people do low carbs. The good thing about it is that in two weeks you can find out if it is a good way of life for you. You don't have to do extremes to get started. Just cut out obvious carbs, bread, pasta, rice, potatoes and sweets (except maybe small amount fruit). Many people don't even count the carbs, just get all their carbs from vegetables (not root vegetables). If you do that you can let the protein and fat pretty much regulate themselves by appetite and taste. Remember that from a scientific point of view there is no dietary requirement for carbs, and if you're not gaining weight the fat won't hurt you. Your body can make all the glucose from something else. The key thing is trust yourself: are you losing weight ? do you feel better? Are you losing craving for sweets? If not, look for a different diet but ask the same questions. Don't assume that the experts are right and you must be doing something wrong.

There is a reason that so many people do low carbs. The good thing about it is that in two weeks you can find out if it is a good way of life for you. You don't have to do extremes to get started. Just cut out obvious carbs, bread, pasta, rice, potatoes and sweets (except maybe small amount fruit). Many people don't even count the carbs, just get all their carbs from vegetables (not root vegetables). If you do that you can let the protein and fat pretty much regulate themselves by appetite and taste. Remember that from a scientific point of view there is no dietary requirement for carbs, and if you're not gaining weight the fat won't hurt you. Your body can make all the glucose from something else. The key thing is trust yourself: are you losing weight ? do you feel better? Are you losing craving for sweets? If not, look for a different diet but ask the same questions. Don't assume that the experts are right and you must be doing something wrong.
Where did you get the info about how carbs has no dietary requirements? That's news to me! :eek:

Hi there--if you want, read my post on this board dated 11/5, called "I think I finally figured it out!" Maybe that will help!