advice on slimming down?

[xsnowwhite]

hey
i need some tips about working out.
so im about 15-20 lbs overweight, which i am working on dropping. I was wondering if yall could give me some suggestions of exercizes that i can do that wont make me bulky
i really am just looking to slim down and i dont want alot of obvious muscles (if that makes sense at all?)
so yeah any tips are greatly appreciated!!
thanks in advance!

 

[Showgirl]

walk, walk, walk, walk. You can do other exercises to define muscles / get a harder workout, etc. but generally it is accepted that walking's the best all round exercise for weight loss and fat buring.

 

[Katja]

I would suggest altering your diet (depending on how much you intake already and if this is effecting your gain in weight), and adding a good cardiovascular regime to your routine. Start out with any aerobic exercise (basically anything that will increase your heartrate and maintain it for a given amount of time) ie. walking, jogging, running, elliptical, cycling, skating, rollerblading, cardio kickboxing, jumproping, swimming, etc.

I would start out slow, as to avoid injury. Always start with a 5-10 minute warmup, like walking. Then you can increase your intensity from there. Your body will tell you when you're ready to increase intensity and frequency. Try starting with 3-4 days a week, or whatever your schedule can handle.

If you're not looking to build muscle, then weight training isn't necessary, although, I believe a good balance of weight training and cardio is the best way to burn calories and create a nice physique.

Good luck!!

 

[Katja]

Also diet is very important. Approximately how many calories do you intake per day?

 

[xsnowwhite]

ok thanks for the suggestions everyone! that helps alot.
hmm how many calories? oh man i dont know. I eat a normal amount I just have been really lazy so im thinking thats how i gained the weight ( i mean not all at once, but over the years it just kind of happend lol)

 

[Katja]

Well, you could take your weight and multiply it by 10, and that's how many calories you can consume in a day. If you are extremely active, then one would need to intake a little more, but if you're looking to lose weight you should keep your daily caloric intake under 2,000 at least.

Are you eating steady meals? Including breakfast?

 

[Katja]

Additionally, what type of beverages do you usually intake during the day?

 

[xsnowwhite]

oh ok thanks
yeah i just eat like usually an egg for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
And typically all i drink is water but occasionally calorie free cherry coke

 

[choseck]

While exercise is VERY important - eating right, I feel brings faster results. I recently lost 75+ lbs and it wasn't until I really started watching my diet that the weight started coming off. Also, if you do work out - lifting weights is very important. Thats another thing that really got my metabolism going - and nothing looks better than toned arms and legs! My trainer recently recommended doing block sets and then running a lap inbetween sets. Adding those laps took my workout to another level.

Sorry, I could go on and on - I'm so into health and nutrition it isn't funny!

 

[xsnowwhite]

thanks for the tip! i will try that tomorrow! Anything else you noticed brought faster results? lol i want to be smaller at spring break which is in like a month. I dont even know if its possible but im trying hahaha

 

[Katja]

It's possible to slim down in a month, but you should be realistic in how much you can drop in one month.

Like I said, I think the combination of diet and exercise is essential if you're looking to lose weight in a healthy manner. We all know the other options of losing weight, but those aren't at all healthy for you.

As for your current diet, I don't see a huge problem, unless you are literally eating one egg for breakfast, lunch, AND dinner.

I don't think you meant that, so I'll take it as just an egg for breakfast, then you eat a lunch and dinner. I would suggest having 5-6 small meals throughout the day, to maintain metabolism, but it's not necessary. I like to eat a light breakfast, usually whole wheat oatmeal, then a morning snack, lunch, an afternoon snack, and then dinner(of course, watch your caloric intake throughout the day). Water is great for hydration, and if you're drinking the soda in moderation, that shouldn't be a deterent.

Good luck hun!

 

[xsnowwhite]

haha no i didnt mean that
thanks so much for the help!

 

[medusalox]

Walk, especially at a fast pace

It's how I lost 20lbs, even though I eat a LOT of junk food.

Swap out soda for green tea. Green tea has this amazing ability to boost metabolism, and it's just generally good for you

Plus, my best friend did nothing but stop drinking soda all together, and she lost 7lbs quickly.

Good luck!!

 

[Miss Jo]

If you don't mind getting down to your nearest pool, I find that swimming is a good way of exercising and isn't quite so boring as walking.

 

[thestarsfall]

Walking is good as a beginning stage, but an excellent supplement to that would be interval training. For example: walk briskly for 5-10 minutes to warm up, run or jog for one minute, and then walk for 3 minutes, and repeat this a few times and then walk for 10 minutes to cool down.

I highly recommend strength training for everyone: it helps with so many things its a shame that so many people avoid it. It will not make you bulky. It takes a lot of time and effort to get big and bulky and it takes certain genetics which like 99% of the population doesn't have.

Definitely add some squats, lunges, pushups and situps to your cardio regime for quicker results. Those are just basic ones that practically anyone can do anywhere...
When doing strength training you should aim for a weightload that gets you tired between 10-15 reps, perform each rep slowly (2 counts on the actual contraction, 3 counts on the going back to start phase). Do 2-3 sets of each rep.

Another tip I have is to drink a large glass of water before your meals, that way you fill up quicker because there is more in your stomach.

And yeah, green tea is good, if you like the taste.