Need advice

Hey guys. I am in need of some advice. I am trying to achieve a new slimmer me for my wedding in October and I am not really sure what I should do to maintain steady weight loss at this time. I have always been confident at my weight, but now I want to fit into my fantasy dress and I really want my future husband to be in a state of wow. And please, no flaming. I know I am not a 10 on the scale, I just want some honest help to achieve my goals. I am growing my hair back out to fit my face a tad more. Shaved my head and donated my hair to charity on 02/23/12. My future husband has supported me this entire time, but I want to show him that there is a skinny me hidden under all the layers of what he calls my "loveliness".

My Most Recent Photo 02/15/2013 with Valentine Gift:


So onto the numbers:

Height: 5' 9"
Weight: 230 lbs

Pant Size: ~14-16 depending on brand.

I can provide more if needed.

Goals:

Weight: ~170 lbs
Pant Size: ~8-10

I am new to dieting as I have always been the type to just eat whatever is around. I also need a workout that's good as a starting point. I have been walking around my neighborhood, but that's about it. My only inspiration is my wedding date so its been hard to stay motivated. I work around ~32 hours a week so I need a routine thats flexible.

What gives you the inspiration to work out?
What do you do to maintain even weight loss?
How can I make working out fun?

I intend on making this a progress thread as soon as I get on a steady routine. As of now, my routine is the equivalent of a mountain range. Up and down!
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Well to start off, it's good to hear that you're looking at getting healthier, I myself have lost over 100 pounds so I'm speaking from experience. Now, when you first start losing fat, you'll lose the most in the first week, depending if you push really hard every week, but usually the first week is the gamechanger. I myself weigh every day, but depending on the person, they might get depressed if they see the scale hasn't moved, or that they have gained a pound or two since the previous day, so weight once a week, in the morning after you piss/and or shit =p. Each time you weigh, try to have the same amount of clothing on, possibly bra/underwear, or the same weight of clothing as the previous time. For me, inspiration to work out comes from my goal of joining the Army, and also just to get healthy myself, and from what I see, your inspiration is for your wedding, which is good, but also do it for yourself. There's really no way to make working out fun, as sometimes you can be really lazy, but you must push yourself to work out. The only thing that I see is if you have a treadmill in front of a TV, or if you have a friend that is going to work out with you. Personally as a guy, I just put on some death metal and get working out lol.

 

I appreciate your input. Well I really want to do this for myself. I recently lost 60 lbs after battling a bout of depression due to migraines. But I did not change my diet or add in any kind of exercise. I kind of stalled at my current weight and I cannot stand going clothes shopping anymore. I think that my chest is whats killing me. Thanks to my previous weight gain, I have hit the DDD marker. Sad to say, but sometimes exercise hurts even with accurate support. Was curious to see if there were other females on the site that have the same issue and if there was a non surgical solution to reduce them.

 

As with everything, persistence is crucial. Now, I see that you've set a realistic goal time-wise, which is nice. You can do wonders for your look and general health in half a year!

I can't really fully put myself in your shoes because I'm a very active person, so gaining weight is not an issue for me. I can, however, give you some advice. Rather than go on a strict diet alone, start exercising. Running is the single most efficient way to burn calories and anybody who is telling you otherwise probably doesn't know better or is trying to sell you something.

To put things into perspective; a slow and steady 50-minute run will burn about 700 calories, depending on your size and weight. You just can't get that efficiency elsewhere. That's almost half of your maintenance cals right there!

When I started running about 3 years ago, I was completely out of shape. I don't mean overweight, but I couldn't run 5 minutes in a row. The first month was just rough. The second got easier. And guess what? By the time I was at month 3, I couldn't wait to go out for a run (now 35 miles a week is nothing extraordinary, on top of multiple swimming sessions).

The key is persistence. Stick with it and I promise you you'll love it. Now add to that a diet where you cut out fast food and voila, you're on the way to slimming up. There is a small ocean of information on dieting and losing weight and it's very easy to get lost in the midst of all the new information, so I'll sum it up for you in two points:

• Take up running and make it a daily thing
• Cut out fast food and sweets from your diet. NO EXCEPTIONS!

Feel free to PM me if you need any more advice, particularly about running. I'd like to think I've learned a thing or two since I started

Also one big hug for choosing to try and do something. And an even bigger one for when you're done.

 

I have to disagree where you say "running is the single most efficient way to lose weight" that is very false. I know from personal experience that when you do strength training, as in lifting weights, that burns fat the most. You burn 6x as much fat while lifting weights than you would doing anything else. I know this for a fact, as I've lost over 100 pounds myself.

 

Well I respect both of your training styles. I personally am just looking to burn fat. I want to do this in the most efficient manner for my current size. I can honestly say, I am a victim of the American diet. Soda and fast food reigns supreme in my household. I am looking to eat healthier, but I am very picky.

 

That simply is not true. During an intense 1 hour lifting session you're lucky to burn 500 calories. An hour of running, if you're at least trying, will burn more.

Source: http://www.livestrong.com/article/303645-does-lifting-weights-burn-more-calories-than-running/

It's true that if you build up mass, you'll raise your maintenance calories and in turn burn more in the long run, but if you line up both exercises there is no question. You must also account for the fact that women are less prone to building up actual muscle mass, so I don't really think there's much of a debate here.

 

At first I was like, "GL brah".. then I realized.

Gl achieving your goal, many ladies have done it on dailymail (no gastric band).

 

whoops lol

 

It is because I will be the one in the dress. Aka I am a girl. Though you paint a good picture xD
I am looking to tone not bulk up. Thanks!

 

I also have to agree, running and cardio is PRIMARY in trying to lose weight. If you want to build muscle, then lifting weights is what you want to do. But if you're new to lifting weights of course you are going to burn fat and lose weight but that will not maintain. You need to add cardio. So I would do some research on your part, going to the gym and lifting weights but doing some extreme cardio and go on a low carb / low fat diet you will see some real difference.

I wish you the best of luck with your wedding and your goals!

 

Thank you for your support. Would anyone have a routine that I could follow? I am not sure what is healthyto do just starting out.

 

well i feel like a piece of shit. scratch that, go for runs then lol. this is why i dont try to help people

 

http://running.about.com/c/ec/10.htm

This right here is a great way to get started, just make sure you stick with it! It assumes you're a complete beginner.