A
female
age
30-35,
anonymous
writes:I am aware this is not a diet or healthy eating site but I need help.I quite literally have no money anymore (don't ask long story), I cant afford to buy my own food and drink so I have to eat whats available at home. Which isn't much, we have special k, noodles, uhmm...yeah thats about it. My mum usually buys what we have for supper on that day or if she cant be bothered she gets take-out.I'm very unhappy with my weight. Always have been but when I get down about it I comfort eat =(I am 21 years old, Im 5'1 and I weigh 270lbs and a UK size 22/24. I will admit I don't look huge or anything, I'm in proportion and look good for a fat person but I don't want to be fat.How can I lose weight?? Whats the best kind of exercise for free and how can I get around the eating thing...my mum wont buy something because I ask her to.
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reader, anonymous, writes (22 April 2011): Despite the way it feels, losing weight isn't a mysterious process. It's a simple matter of burning more calories than you eat. But, if it were really that simple, none of us would have a weight problem, would we? Weight loss can be such a struggle that we start thinking we have to do something drastic to see results -- diets, pills or those weird fitness gadgets on infomercials that promise instant success. A lot of people try new crash diets and lose a few pounds but it's impossible to continue doing it for a longer duration and as soon as they stop they gain even more weight when they started out.First of don't trust all the big health and diet companies/magazines; they're only after your money, only a few of them are real. Because of all the media you see today about weight loss most people are misinformed, one source say one thing and another source says the opposite.First things first. Before you start a diet, I strongly recommend that you commit to making a lifestyle change. Many people who began a program simply just do whatever the program is... and that's it. Unfortunately, this is not going to work. The reason why is because you have to also ensure that you are exercising at least 3 times a week, drinking a lot of water, cleansing your body (detoxifying), getting plenty of sleep, etc.Second, eat at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables per day Fruits and vegetables are packed with beneficial fibres, vitamins and antioxidants. They fill up your stomach fast so you feel full earlier. They are also low in calories and helps to keep your calorie count low.Third, most people get caught up with the typical mindset that in order to lose weight, all they have to do is the "eat less move more" approach. My friend, please do not think that this is all that it's going to take to get in shape. I thought the same thing, and the only thing that ended up happening was my metabolism slowed down and I had a loss of energy!The best thing to do is to stop going on crazy crash diets and go the natural way so you can still enjoy what you're eating, say no to weight loss pills and say no to multimillion dollar companies that are trying to scam you with their latest myths. Stick to a simple diet plan that you can still enjoy and you will see results before you know it. You can also learn how you can lose your first 8 pounds in one week and discover The 5 foods that fight the Abdominal fat that has helped thousands of people including me to lose those extra pounds of the Abdominal fat.www.howtolosetheabdomianfat.blogspot.comand you can also contact me on [email address blocked] I’ll be more than happy out there to help
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reader, anonymous, writes (20 April 2011): jmc930 you're talking about "dieting" only, 1200 calories is not enough calories to sustain any kind of high level of physical activity. I'm not saying it won't work, it will but when she already has a very limited intake of food nutritionally it's a very bad idea to cut that down so severely. http://www.everydiet.org/diet/1200-calorie-dietjmc930 that kind of diet has to be very carefully managed because it's the bare minimum, you have to be very careful what you eat to make sure you get the full range of nutrients, vitamins, protein, fat, etc. The OP said she doesn't have that option. She's not going to get her full range of nutrients if she both eats mainly takeaways and then cuts that down to 1200.Plus do you know how difficult it is to measure food when it's something you prepare yourself? (I assume you do) It's a chore, it really is, now try and measure how much calories is in that takeaway food her mom just bought and you make that ten times harder to quantify. Not only that but takeaway food is very high in calories, a single take away meal usually consists of about 1500 calories on its own, whether that's chicken curry and rice, or burger and chips. The size she would have to portion that into would be miniscule and she'd feel very hungry all the time. Not only that but the willpower required to stick to it when you're body feels hungry all the time because you've made such a drastic change to your diet is a lot. I know I couldn't sustain it.OP back to your question, one thing came to mind last night after I had answered your question, you say you have no money for food and when your mom is feeling lazy you eat takeaways, why don't you cook instead? Why don't you go shopping with her next time and buy the food you need to prepare some recipes yourself? I mean if she's spending 20 quid on a takeaway that's far more costly that preparing a delicious healthy meal. You have no money as you said, so you must have some free time, if she buys the food that you eat on that day, why don't you look up some cheaper alternative recipes, there are lots online and Jamie Oliver has tonnes of very cheap, easy to make, tasty recipes. Go into the supermarket and compare how much the ingredients would cost versus a takeaway. Your mom will easily be convinced if you start cooking some of the meals and if they turn out to be more cost effective too. FYI: just in case you're wondering, everyone can cook and we can all cook good recipes well, it just takes practice.Back to losing weight, personally I have very little will power when it comes to regulating food intake, I actually like having takeaways once or twice a week and I also like to binge drink beer the entire weekend. There is absolutely no way I could or would even try to cut any of that out. Life would just be too boring sitting down for 7 days a week counting what I'm eating and having nothing extra because it would mess up the "diet". I enjoy my beer, I enjoy socializing and when I'm drunk all talk of "diet" would go out the window anyway. I like to eat pretty much whatever I like. Plus if I was so limited by what I could do physically then I'd have nothing to do but sit around waiting for my weight to go down. That's why I chose high level physical activity instead. Weights, calisthenics and cardio. To lose weight. Seriously I don't know how people can sit there with their friends in a pub or a party and refuse to drink because they're on a "diet", or sit there in a fast food place watching them eat ice cream and refuse because you're on a "diet". I actually laugh at my friends that do that (I do support them too, just think it's funny they go to such drastic measures for something in which I could do without changing my lifestyle) I'd rather not live my life like a monk just to lose weight when all I had to do was exercise properly and exercise well, then I could pretty much live the way I live normally without having to make drastic changes to it. My goal was a change in physique a few years back I was quite fat and unhealthy, so I started working out. I eat well during the week, then the weekends I go mad on beer and takeaways. It took 6 months to lose most of my weight and after about a year I had a sleek athletic figure, six pack and all, and I haven't gained any of that fat back since then even though I eat more now than I ever did 2600-2800 calories a day. Without any major change to my lifestyle, working out only takes me 1 and 1/2 to 2 hours every second day. That's time I have to spare so it's not inconvenient. I break it up that day.With more efficient, stronger, well fueled muscles I can go a month without exercising if I like and I still won't gain any of that weight back, because my body is fitter and healthier and my metabolism is much faster because of that. Walking and jogging are good exercises for losing weight and for general fitness, but they're inefficient as a means of weight loss. Resistance training and calisthenics improve your muscles, they improve strength, endurance, stamina they improve the working of your muscles and burn more calories than walking, plus healthier muscles burn calories more quickly even when sitting down doing nothing. In case your worried that you will build muscle and become big and bulky, that doesn't happen in women, they don't have the testosterone levels required to build big muscles and even if it did happen, all you'd have to do is stop and the muscles will soften and get smaller again. Basically OP you can do what the ladies here suggested, which would work. You can sit there, feeling hungry all the time and severely test your willpower, eat very little of the foods you like, sit there and watch your friends eat what they want while you struggle to maintain a limited diet, and get pissed off at yourself for having that burger which brings you up to 1400 for the day, only to gain that weight back again as soon as you stop that diet (you do have to keep regulating your food intake after that too).You see that kind of diet is the essence of yo-yoing. I bet if you ask anyone who has been on this diet if they've had to go back on it after they stopped they'll tell you they did, probably more than once. In fact the girls that I know that do that kind of thing are the typical seasonal dieters. They get exercise dvd's at xmas with good intentions, then it gets close to the summer and they want a bikini body so they go on a crash diet, which this is, they get to their goal in about 2-3 months all the while severely limiting their lifestyle and fun for those months then they gain all that weight back over the course of the summer because they want to enjoy themselves. They then diet again in the winter because they feel guilty and gain it all back at xmas because they want to enjoy themselves again. I get to enjoy myself all the time and seeing as I do all my exercise at home and for free, I can do it anywhere, even when I'm on holidays. With better physical conditioning I can also do any physical activity I want very easily, climb small mountains (which I have done) surf, run marathons, swim for miles etc etc. Even the little things like opening jars, running for the bus, tying my shoe laces, getting out of bed in the mornings they all became a million times easier and I've had to sacrifice nothing nor have I had to use any willpower at all. Because working out is a major buzz, it makes you feel spectacular and you miss that feeling on the days you don't workout as much that you actually look forward to the next one.Your choice OP.
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reader, anonymous, writes (20 April 2011): Cerberus, I think Masquerade's calorie-count is spot-on, if the OP is intending to lose weight. I am 5'4" and 150, and my daily calorie count for weight loss is 1,200. My metabolism hasn't bottomed-out, either.
OP, control your portion sizes and shoot for food high in fiber, which help keep you full longer. Running and walking is free and effective, if your GP says that you are OK to exercise.
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reader, anonymous, writes (19 April 2011): First off speak to your GP and get advice from them. You also need to ask them if it's okay to start an exercise regime. Do not start one without the okay from your GP.I'm sorry to contradict masquerade711 but her calorie count is FAR too low. 1500 is the minimum a woman needs to eat a day assuming she does nothing all day but sit on her ass watching TV, seriously 1500 is the minimum requirement any lower and it starts to have serious negative effects."The FDA recommends that women intake between 1500 to 2000 calories a day, depending on activity, height, weight and health of a woman. Less than 1500 calories a day will slow down the metabolism."I honestly don't know where she got that figure from the individual in question must have been 3 feet tall and 100 pounds but it sounds like a fad "crash diet" and they don't work. If you follow that calorie count, you slow down your metabolism and you force your body to store fat not get rid of it and if you eat a lot of takeaways then you're just going to get very little nutritional value from food. The fastest most efficient way to lose weight healthily, is to exercise (a combination of weights/resistance and cardio)and to control but not cut down your calories that much. Again ask your GP for a recommendation on the number of calories you should consume a day whilst doing an exercise regime, they know your body best, seriously don't look for it on the internet they're a waste of time and everyone is too physiologically different for one scale to be accurate for all people. My guess would be 16-1700 depending on the intensity and type of exercise again I could be very wrong.OP please try not to be one of these people that thinks they need a quick, easy fix, there's no such thing, the quick easy fixes are the ones that are unsustainable in the long term because they're unhealthy and you will just gain all that weight again as soon as you stop. (Yo-yo dieting)Proper long term exercise regime, coupled with better diet will yield the results you want. It won't happen over night, there are no magic pills, no quick fixes, you have to be patient and persevere but I personally find it very important not to set a goal such as weight or dress size, it only leads to disappointment and makes people do stupid things just to achieve that goal. Make better health and fitness your goal and you will achieve that in your first workout and every consequent workout will be a goal achieved. After a while it will become addictive to workout and after that it will become routine. I've been doing it years now and I honestly don't know why people think it's so hard, it's the easiest thing in the world.
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female
reader, catcher00  +, writes (19 April 2011):
If you can't control the quality of food, control the quantity. Portion control. Ppl who have the luxury of affording nutritious food are encouraged to eat often but in small portions and healthy food. In your case, id suggest you just focus on not eating a lot. The trick to losing weight is burning more than you consume. So eat light and run ....YouTube some workout videos and best of luck to you.
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reader, anonymous, writes (19 April 2011): What do you mean, if your mum can't be bothered to cook? Takeaways are soooooo full of carbs and fat it is untrue. I think you need to sit your mum down and tell her you are very unhappy about your weight and that you would like to take over buying the food and learning to cook together healthy meals. Plenty of fresh veggies (go to the market, not the supermarket, much cheaper) and cut down on the carbs (noodles, rice, potatoes, pasta). The best meal my kids and I love is a beef stew from the slow cooker (a great gadget if your mum has no time) - just chuck everything in with some beef stock, water and seasoning and leave for 6 hours - takes 15 minutes to prep and you have a healthy, nourishing, filling hot meal. Don't add potatoes or dumplings - you will be full on the veg and natural gravy. Alternatively, a small skinless chicken breast with some cajun seasoning and a salad - perfect for this time of year. It doesn't have to be expensive to eat healthily hun.As for exercise - if you don't want to go for a walk, take the stairs, not the lift, take two at a time, not just one. Good luck. I think you need to take the bull by the horns though and start with that talk with your mum.
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female
reader, masquerade711  +, writes (19 April 2011):
 Oh, and just a disclaimer. The calorie amounts below are intended for this individual only, based on her current weight, goal weight and height provided in the question.
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female
reader, masquerade711 +, writes (19 April 2011):
Weight loss comes down to calories in, calories out. You should be eating between 1,200-1,400 calories per day, so I wouldn't worry so much about WHAT you're eating at this point, since you don't have many options. I would just count calories religiously. As for exercising, get out and walk. There's a whole host of options for fitness that you can choose from once your financial situation changes a bit, but for now, get out and walk. And I'm not talking about a stroll around the block. POWER WALK, baby! Good luck!
masq
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female
reader, anonymous, writes (19 April 2011): Just eat regulary all you gotta do is check for the cal. and the fat and you'll be all right. The healthy snacks are not really healthy, they may have a lower number calories but like a lot of fat and all the bad stuff
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female
reader, chigirl  +, writes (19 April 2011):
 Lay off the breakfast cereals too, they are high in sugars and fat. Just check the box. Even if they claim to be healthy, most of them really aren't.
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female
reader, chigirl +, writes (19 April 2011):
Cut away the fat from what ever is served, don't eat the sauce, stick to the veggies and potatoes and so on. There is plenty of exercises to do at home, just run a quick google for the body part you wish to work on and there will be several options you can choose between. For most of them all you need is a floor, maybe a chair too. Working out every other day is a good routine. If you want to loose weight running is the best option, or skipping, or an activity that gets you sweating. Does your mom cook unhealthy food? Have you tried to talk to her about it in a proper way? Do you have family meetings where you could all talk about the food?
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reader, anonymous, writes (19 April 2011): Well, there are plenty of meals that you can buy that aren't high in fat. If your mum still doesn't buy healthy food then eat less of it. Exercise is free, go for a walk, go jogging.
If you're overweight and want to start a healthy eating programme, then speak to your GP. They can give you advice about what you can eat and help you with an exercise programme.
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