I want to lose weight...how long will it take?

[empirestate87]

So here is the lowdown. I'm 5'9" black male who weighs 190 pounds and I have man-boobs (ugh). I want to lose 40 pounds while also putting on some muscle (to which I have next to none). But I have a couple questions.

 

What is the most effective way to lose weight (workout routine, I mean) in a short of amount of time?

 

How long will it take to lose 40 pounds and put on a couple pounds of muscle?

 

I'm at the end of my wits and I couple really use some help. Thank you!

[empirestate87]

any thoughts? anyone?

[FitChick]

Write down everything you eat in a week. Then eliminate 500 calories per day. You will lose one pound per week if you change nothing else in your life.

[tman666]

I recommend that you learn how to lift weights and do it regularly. You might consider investing in Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe. It is widely considered to be one of the best resources for someone who wants to learn how to strength train properly.

 

Your diet is also going to need to be looked at. Cutting back on your calories may not be the right answer yet. Instead, you might need to start by re-vamping your typical macronutrient intake. Shoot for 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight per day. The remainder of your calories should come from carbs and fats.

 

Determining how many calories you need per day can be a little bit tricky, but I would start off by, as Fitchick suggested, logging your food intake for a week to determine what your typical daily caloric intake and macronutrient breakdown is. If your weight has been mostly stable, I would work off of that number (unless it's below 2,000 calories) as your "maintenance level caloric intake", subtract 200 to 500 calories, figure out your protein macro, and split the remaining calories you have somewhat equally between carbs and fats.

 

This stuff can seem daunting at first, but remember that Rome wasn't built in a day. You're not going to "get it right" the first time. The important thing now is to establish better eating habits (don't think of your diet as short term), establish a strength-training based exercise routine that you are consistent with, and just keep trucking.

[fortyninethousand322]

When I was 15, I lost 45 lbs in 2.5 months. It was a crash diet and all I did was lose weight I didn't really get "in shape" or gain muscle mass. It was before I knew anything about nutrition and physical fitness and I was desperate to not be obese anymore. So, it is possible though not at all recommended to lose weight in a short amount of time.

 

As others have said examine your diet and look into a workout routine. I wouldn't worry about calories per se, but focus on eating right first and foremost. Fruits and lots of green vegetables. Avoid processed food and simple carbs (crackers, cookies, snack food, etc.).

 

If you watch what you eat, lift weights and run (or play basketball or mountain bike or whatever) you should be able to lose 10-15 lbs a month, give or take.

[blindotter]

Try logging your food/calories every day, and keep track of your activities/calories burned, do weight training as well as increasing cardiovascular activity. This is a neat, evidence-based bodyweight simulator using age and current activity level: LBM: Body Weight Simulator

 

Myfitnesspal.com has a good tracker and you can print reports.

[empirestate87]

I recommend that you learn how to lift weights and do it regularly. You might consider investing in Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe. It is widely considered to be one of the best resources for someone who wants to learn how to strength train properly.

 

Your diet is also going to need to be looked at. Cutting back on your calories may not be the right answer yet. Instead, you might need to start by re-vamping your typical macronutrient intake. Shoot for 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight per day. The remainder of your calories should come from carbs and fats.

 

Determining how many calories you need per day can be a little bit tricky, but I would start off by, as Fitchick suggested, logging your food intake for a week to determine what your typical daily caloric intake and macronutrient breakdown is. If your weight has been mostly stable, I would work off of that number (unless it's below 2,000 calories) as your "maintenance level caloric intake", subtract 200 to 500 calories, figure out your protein macro, and split the remaining calories you have somewhat equally between carbs and fats.

 

This stuff can seem daunting at first, but remember that Rome wasn't built in a day. You're not going to "get it right" the first time. The important thing now is to establish better eating habits (don't think of your diet as short term), establish a strength-training based exercise routine that you are consistent with, and just keep trucking.

 

Thank you, so much. That really helped. Do you think I should see a nutritionist? On average I eat one big meal per day (I know, it's bad) and my gym activities is well...next to nothing. I also need motivation. Do you know any general ideas on how people get motivated to go to the gym besides the goal itself (being healthy, looking good etc)?

[blindotter]

Here's an interesting article that I read today:

http://shine.yahoo.com/healthy-living/surprising-truth-8-common-diet-strategies-153500816.html - The truth about 8 common dieting strategies

[empirestate87]

Here's an interesting article that I read today:

Yahoo! Shine - Women's Lifestyle | Healthy Living and Fashion Blogs - The truth about 8 common dieting strategies

 

Thank you!

[Uncle Indy]

Go to a gym and ask for a training session. Most gyms will give 1 free training session. Ask that you would like some sort of 1 week schedule you can follow for the next few months. Follow it religiously and eat healthy. No fast food, pizza, etc. No junk food.

[tman666]

Thank you, so much. That really helped. Do you think I should see a nutritionist? On average I eat one big meal per day (I know, it's bad) and my gym activities is well...next to nothing. I also need motivation. Do you know any general ideas on how people get motivated to go to the gym besides the goal itself (being healthy, looking good etc)?

 

Sorry for the communication lapse, but no, I don't think you need to see a nutritionist. I was suggesting that you take a careful look at and develop a vested interest in your own diet. This involves (at least temporarily) carefully measuring your overall caloric and what breakdown of that intake is comprised of protein, fats, carbs, and alcohol.

 

The other thing to examine is the types of foods that you're eating. Are you eating lean meats or fattier cuts? Are you eating a lot of sugars or are more of your carbs coming from complex sources such as potatoes, rice, quinoa, and veggies? Are your fats obtained from primarily animal sources or plant sources?

 

In general, it is advised that your diet should gravitate towards leaner cuts of meat, slower digesting carbohydrates, and fats obtained from sources like avocados, nuts, fish, and eggs. In addition, sodium intake should be minimized and you should make an effort to eat plenty of vegetables, not only for their light caloric density, but also their fiber content and micronutritional value.

 

I personally think that most people would benefit greatly from adopting "paleo" style eating habits. "Paleo" nutrition emphasizes whole foods from unprocessed sources.

 

As full disclosure, I am not any sort of expert in the nuances of the Paleo diet, but I do think it is one of the better guidelines out there for people needing a nutritional overhaul.

 

As far as motivation goes, that is different for everyone. Some people get motivation from group support (you could always look into joining Fitocracy, for example), some people's motivation comes from within. The trick is to find your own reason(s) why you are doing what you're doing. If you don't have a reason to do something, you're not going to stick with it very long.

 

Results stem from long term commitments to consistently applied habits. Don't worry so much yet about whether or not you are doing everything "right". The important thing is that you do something and do it often.

[tman666]

Also, when I refer to "diet", I am speaking of your eating habits overall. Don't think of your diet as a short term endeavor.

[Mr Scorpio]

Combine walking and jogging in ten minute intervals. In other words, jog for three minutes and then walk seven. Complete six cycles per workout for one hour of exercise. After a few weeks, jog four minutes and walk six. The goal is to eventually be able to jog the full ten minutes. Once you achieve that, you can vary in it any number of ways. If you're on a treadmill, you can simply increase the speed.

[Feelin Frisky]

That is a lot to do at the same time. If you're going to build muscle you must eat. So, perhaps you should think of it as a conversion. Would you be OK weighing 165 and being muscular? Try to view it as a commitment to a life-style and not a race to get somewhere. You want to turn off your eating for pleasure machine and replace it with an eat by planned regimen to achieve goals. It is said at Weight Watchers that "if you fail to plan, you plan to fail" and that is absolutely true. I've been on diets and had weight issues all my life and the only time I had sustained success is when I took complete control and planned out all my meals days in advance and prepared them in advance so I would never be asking the question "what do I "feel" like eating? To get anywhere this has to go. You must accept that this kind of living can not co-exist with weight reduction regimens. This will determine how long it takes to get to your goals. If you even keep one or two toes in the "fail to plan" world of "what do you feel like" you will endanger and probably set back your whole effort and despise yourself. So, consider if you have other people in your life who might undermine your living this way and plan to deal with them. You might have to get some cooperation. And that is not always easy. If you are alone, it's much easier to buy in bulk and make three or four days worth of food. Don't eat the stuff you cook--"eat before and just cook and store".

 

How much you can eat will have to be adjusted for how much activity you do. If you want a muscle conversion, you'll eat more and take protein supplements. Tell yourself that it gets easier after the "threshold of adjustment" which takes a few weeks to settle in. It's true. Your brain will adjust to less pleasure-seeking and planned meal sustenance over a threshold period. If you mess up during the threshold, food may taste so good you'll go nuts on it and wonder if you have the goods to win. So, you have to be prepared to get through some adjustments which can be tough. When you get near your goals you'll still have to live a plan to keep your new form. But you can think of it as maintaining and "policing" yourself rather than changing yourself so dramatically. Best of luck.

[othersideofthepillow]

I would suggest investing in the P90X program. You have a ton of options to but but the basic one is only $100. With the cost of gym memberships these days (usually around $30-$60 depending on what you have in your area) it will pay for itself in no time. I used to go to the gym constantly, eat right (or so i thought) and I did see results (I was also a certified personal trainer as well) but no where near the amount I wanted even with all the work I put in.

 

I am 6'0 and started at an even 200lbs. I have only been on it for about 40 days and I am already down 22 pounds and I did it the healthy way! All my friends thought I was crazy and that I didn't need to lose anything but trust me when you start getting lean..heads turn

 

It's def worth it cause not only will you get amazing workouts but you get a great nutrition guide that will speed up your workouts even more! It'll kick your a** like no other but all you have to do is get in the mental state of mind to just press play EVERYDAY (workouts last about 60 min / Yoga 90 min) and the results WILL be there in only 90 days!!!

 

As far as motivation goes, that's mostly comes from inside yourself!! If you need a visual though, it does help to find someone (celebrity or whatnot) that you would like to look like, and have their picture up everyday as a reminder of your overall goal. Doing that will help you push forward and not give up!

 

Good Luck!!!

Edited May 2, 2013 by othersideofthepillow

[Robert Z]

P90X

Zumba

[Emilia]

Do you know any general ideas on how people get motivated to go to the gym besides the goal itself (being healthy, looking good etc)?

 

I joined a weightlifters gym 2 weeks ago and we train in pairs or in threes. Being surrounded by hard working people is the best way to stay motivated for me.

[wandapickrell]

Losing weight maybe a difficult task especially if we are at the starting point, of course we want to lose weight as fast as we can. Diet is very important factor in losing weight, following certain diet ways or technique is not that necessary, we can have our own diet as long as we know how to control and manage our eating habit.

[Leegh]

It's best to exercise early in the day, so you don't have to think about it the rest of the day, in other words, it's over for that day. I think losing weight is all about eating less and exercising more. I have seen ads, for example, that

state: "pay $1 dollar, lose 1 pound, etc". Why pay someone for you to lose weight? Walking is free, and there's no need to buy equipment, unless you have extra money. I have seen people lose a tremendous amount of weight from walking. Also, of course, one has to eat less.

[Shepp]

I could talk about a detailed fitness plan but you've already got a lot of good advice so all im going to say is concentrate on eating healthy and running, swimming, cycling till you lose half the weight you want to.

Then bring in the weight training and push ups, sit ups, pull ups.

[FlockaFlex]

Okay listen man, if you wanna lose all the weight then the best thing to do would find your local cross fit gym and start doing that almost daily and go to the gym and do weight training.

 

Then you also got eat right. Carb cycling is the best for losing weight. Make sure you drink protein shakes after working out. Eat lots and lots of protein.

 

I did this and Ive lost a lot of fat and put on some muscle. Just takes time and dedication

[CherryT]

Create a support system, whether it's something you tell yourself when you're less motivated or people. Feel free to PM me as I work in health and wellness and can probably relay some tips if you need.

 

Planing your means is super important. You can go to the gym and workout as hard as you can, but your meals will be a significant part of your weight loss. I helped my father lose 50 pounds in 6 months with cardio, weight lifting, and clean eating. He's also not the youngest, so he didn't strain himself going too hard in the beginning. He actually is now in crossfit at the young age of 60. Another thing is you want to drink A LOT of water and make sure you get adequate sleep (preferably 8 hours per night). Sleep will help you with your weight loss.

Edited May 30, 2013 by CherryT

[cathyM]

I think you need to firm up your breast muscle and you can do that by lifting weights. Try to go to a gym, they will be able to give you assistance on that. My cousin had the same problem. Weight lifting and dieting helped him address the issue. He also took a pill called Prescopodene to curb his appetite and boost his metabolism. It worked pretty well on him as he can now wear fitting shirts and not be conscious about his chest. I'm not sure though as to how long it took him to reach his current weight.

[crederer]

It depends on a lot of things. Diet is the most influencial part but don't crash diet because you end up gaining it all back once you go back.