I need a LOT of direction in this area...

[Inflikted]

So I'm a 24-year old guy, and while I'm not obese, or anything, I could definitely stand to lose some pounds, lean up a little, and especially change my eating habits for the better. This post is going to be a bit long, because I don't know the first thing about living a healthier lifestyle, so I want to be as detailed as I can. Let me break this topic down into "Eating habits" and "Working out".

 

Eating habits

 

If I had to shift percentage between unhealthy-healthy in terms of my eating habits, I'd probably put it at 100-0. Let me start out by saying right now, I'm not looking to change that to 0-100; rather, my end goal is closer to 35-60. I want to generally have better eating habits, but I'd also like to be able to go out on the weekends or eat something less "healthy" on occasion without giving it much thought. In other words, I still want to be able to enjoy myself and indulge every now and again, but I want the majority of my eating habits to be better than they are now. Make sense?

 

Anyway, eating habits are a major issue with me. I've never really watched what I eat, it's just what tastes good. Typically, I only eat one meal a day, somewhere between lunch time and dinner time, anything else is usually just snacks. On the weekend, I like to "treat" myself and eat out, though sometimes I succumb to a desire during the week to go get a pizza, or something.

 

The hardest thing for me is going to be drinking habits, too, because I'm very much addicted to caffeine and more specifically, Coke. I just can't drink water, but that seems to be the only "healthy" drink that also tastes good. I only really drink two cans a day, but if I can find something else that tastes good, I could cut it down to one can a day, and continue to ween myself off it from there.

 

Another issue is that I don't really have a lot of time to cook and/ or prepare a lot of meals per day. Hence why I usually only eat one meal a day, because that's all the time I have to prepare a meal. I've been wondering, are those "healthy choice" pre-prepared meals ("TV dinners", if you will) an acceptable substitute? I'm not really sure how I can get on to eating a healthier number of meals per day, otherwise.

 

Again, I'm not looking to go 100% healthy, so I'll probably indulge in the less healthy stuff on the weekends (not binge eat, of course, but just eat what I want). But I'd like to get a solid meal plan going for the week days.

 

Working out

 

If I'm being honest, I don't think I'll start seriously thinking about working out until I've gotten a better grasp of my eating habits. I'm not a "cold turkey" kind of person; I don't think I can make two big changes in my life at once. Once I adjust my eating habits, they'll become more, well, habitual, and I can focus on adding working out to my routine. But I still want to do it eventually, so it's worth talking about.

 

My living arrangements are a bit too cramped to do much exercising at home, and my neighborhood is a bit unsafe (last year, someone was shot and killed in a random act of violence on the street I live on, and just last month, I saw someone down the street getting arrested and being VERY resistant and belligerent to the police), so I'm wary about going out for a jog (not to mention, once the winter rolls around, I get hit with too much snow for that to be feasible anyway).

 

I've never liked the idea of a gym, because I'm very self-conscious, and honestly, I've never stepped foot inside a gym, and even more, I don't know the first thing about exercising or working out. But, there's a Planet Fitness not too far from where I live, so I've been pondering eventually signing up there. Like I said before, though, it's going to be an issue trying to budget time to get there on a regular basis. I feel like right about now, I'd only be able to budget enough time to go there 1-2 days a week.

[krz12]

My personal thoughts.

 

1. How picky are you about what you eat? Ie, can you prepare enough food for several meals, refrigerate, and eat leftovers? TV dinners are generally more expensive, less healthy, and with more crappy ingredients than anything you make on your own.

 

2. 2 cans of coke is nearly 300 calories. You're tacking on basically half of a meal. And what is a 'snack' (plural?)?

 

3. Planet Fitness is a $10 a month gym with cardio machines and dumbbells. If shelling out a tiny amount of cash gets you to go, its worth it. Showing up is half the battle. It's been good enough for me. For the record, unless you're in a wheelchair, or you're a pretty girl wearing close to nothing, I've found that everyone is pretty much anonymous at the gym.

 

 

 

Ultimately its about desire.

[TaraMaiden]

Check this out.

It's simple - and it works.

 

(And it's 'fast' as in fasting/abstention, not 'fast' as in quick-cure, which I don't prescribe to at all.

I've lost a stone since the 12th June, and I eat pretty well most days, thanks!)

[tman666]

Check this out.

It's simple - and it works.

 

(And it's 'fast' as in fasting/abstention, not 'fast' as in quick-cure, which I don't prescribe to at all.

I've lost a stone since the 12th June, and I eat pretty well most days, thanks!)

 

OP, if you're going to do intermittent fasting, you don't need to buy any book(s)...

 

(Google Leangains).

 

 

 

Here's the problem with making small changes: you'll get small results.

 

I understand why you're apprehensive about changing too much too fast, and how it probably seems so completely overwhelming, but doing too little will yield negligible results. Don't let anyone kid you into thinking otherwise.

 

In addition to healthier eating, frequent, consistent, and intense exercising is a must. You're 24 years old, and I'm assuming you don't have any health conditions/injuries that would prevent you from pushing yourself in the gym.

 

You don't need to spend hours and hours in the gym every day. If you are getting after it (like you should be), you should be able to see some great results from going 4 days a week and keeping it to around 45 minutes to an hour. The way you make this work is by sticking to high "training economy" movements such as squats, presses, rows/pull ups, deadlifts, sprints, dips, etc.

 

As far as diet goes, you will probably save money by switching to buying "bulk" items such as potatoes, rice, chicken breasts, lean ground beef, onions, greens (kale, chard, spinach), beans, bananas, eggs, etc., and figuring out combinations to cook tasty/nutritious meals. As far as time management, cooking a larger batch and then eating leftovers is key.

 

If you stay away from processed foods (TV dinners/frozen entrees, canned goods, deli meats, etc.) you'll be saving money and improving your nutrition. In general, if it comes in a plastic wrapper or can, it's most likely crappy for you.

 

Don't worry about not knowing what to do when you join a gym. Nobody is going to judge you (especially at a Planet Fitness ). Most people are more than happy to answer questions/give advice to newbies, especially if said newb is courteous and receptive to the advice.

 

There are a lot of good resources out there to help you get started. Bodybuilding.com has their "celebrity trainer" programs for free, which would provide you with at least a starting point, despite not being the most comprehensive programming in the world.

 

As a rank beginner, don't worry so much about whether or not you're doing things exactly right (and what is "exactly right" anyway, hmmm?). The big thing is establishing consistency and making permanent lifestyle changes. Once that's established, you'll have something to tinker with and tweak depending on your goals.

 

Good luck! Jump in with both feet and never look back!