healthy stuff
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Hi, Like you, I'm 5'7" and I just recently hit 140lbs. Unfortunately I hit this weight from the wrong direction. After I graduated High School, I went from 125 to 140, and it has affected me a lot. I started to develop slight eating disorders, I've made myself throw up and there have been days where I promised myself I wont eat. It's scaring me because I know it's not healthy. Your blog is helping me lose weight a healthy way. I just wanted to thank you, hopefully I can be back to where I was.
hi katie!
i’m so sorry you’ve had to go through such a horrendous experience, but i’m extremely happy you’ve made the important realization that what you were doing was unhealthy.
i know people always talk about how “acceptance is the first step” blah blah blah insert other cliches here. but really, you have no idea how often i get messages in which people ask me how to starve themselves more effectively, lose 20 or so pounds in a week, etc.
so you’re absolutely welcome! i’m so happy to have made a difference— thank you very much for sharing this with me, and best of luck to you on your healthy weight loss journey. :)
it doesn’t help with your health journey at all. in fact, it does nothing for you.
say what? what i mean by this is to add more of the healthy foods that you enjoy to your diet— it’ll satisfy your appetite and prevent you from over-indulging in the junk foods that you may be craving.
sometimes, when we think about our diet, all we think about is cutting this or cutting that. and honestly, it can be discouraging.
so rather than thinking about food denial, or subtraction, focus on the addition. focus on how you’ll allow yourself to eat more watermelon, for example.
just don’t forget to keep an eye on your total caloric intake for the day! ;)
1) Not good/healthy haha. But now that I have a job I should be able to afford to eat healthier. 2) I used to run about a mile as a warm-up and then get on with my workouts. Not much a fan of running, and long-distance just bores me to death. Recently, I haven't done any, which I know is a problem. Cardio is still pretty decent though. 3) A lot of various push-ups and sit-ups: usually somewhere around 100+ push-ups with a set consisting of 10/10/10 of one kind of push-up and then I do (part two)
a different push-up with the same reps. Same with the sit-ups. Usually this lasts me around 15-20 minutes with a 30 second to a minute break between each set.
yikes! sorry that it took so long to reply, nick. i’ve been trying to catch up with private questions that people have been asking, causing me to be pretty MIA with updates and “public” Qs.
anyways, after reading your answer to my first question, your diet is definitely the problem that needs to be addressed. that wide range of weight fluctuation kinda proves how much diet is a factor in your weight.
and i know you said that you’re not interested in losing weight, but if you want to “lose some of the leftover fat,” you may have to— at least in terms of dropping some of that fat mass.
still, based off of your height-to-weight proportion, i’d say that you’re at a weight in which stubborn fat (that is, the last layer of belly fat that is such a challenge to lose) is what you have to target.
so the first thing that i’d suggest is to really take a look at what you’re eating (count your calories for at least three days to gain a perspective on your diet). then it’ll be time to make some changes.
regarding your cardio, i wholeheartedly believe that it’s necessary to get rid of fat. if long distance bores you to death, then i’d like to introduce you to HIIT (high intensity interval training)— which is actually better than regular old long distance.
…the subcutaneous fat loss was ninefold greater in the HIIT program than in the traditional long slow distance cardio program.
and finally, i’m not too sure about just doing push-ups and sit-ups. i mean, it’s still a workout, don’t get me wrong. but i always suggest a little diversity in workouts simply because certain muscle groups need to be isolated. in this regard, i’d recommend doing more than just push-ups and sit-ups (especially because sit-ups can be bad for your back).
if you could, i’d appreciate a little more detail on these “various push-ups and sit-ups.”
what does that mean? well, your body tries to naturally maintain a certain number/weight on the scale.
and according to some research, vigorous exercise (e.g. a workout regimen prior to a special occasion, like a wedding) followed by periods of inactivity (after the wedding’s over, and you get lazy) can raise your fat levels and put strain on your system.
basically, instead of yo-yo dieting, you’re yo-yo exercising— which is just as bad.
so what should you do? adopt an exercise regimen that you can sustain year-round. allow yourself some rest days, but don’t fall into the habit of sitting on your butt for too long.
My mom has been overweight for most of her life and almost two years ago she went to a doctor and he told her that it doesn't matter what you eat, it's how much you eat. Although eating healthy food is important, it's also about portions. Overeating is overeating. He told her to eat 4 times a day and whatever she was eating it has to be the size of her fist, you can eat whatever you want. It might sound difficult at first but you get used to it! She has lost almost 40 pounds!
yeah, you’re definitely right! overeating is overeating, regardless of what particular food is being eaten. however, i’m more concerned with the inside than the outside of one’s body.
while it is indeed possible to lose a lot of weight by simply eating junk (and i’m no way saying that that’s what your mom is eating), i don’t like it.
when it comes to weight loss, yes… it does come down to the numbers.
without considering exercise/calorie expenditure, here’s an example: you can eat 3000 calories of fruits and vegetables and the good stuff every day, or 1800 of ice cream, chips, and candy. obviously, you’re gonna gain weight with the former because your caloric intake is higher, even though the food is better for you.
and while obesity in itself raises one’s risks for certain diseases, the “ice cream diet” isn’t much better, as it ups the bad cholesterol levels in one’s body in addition to increasing other health risks.
the fist-size portion four times a day probably works simply because it prevents overeating. that and it’s easier than having to count out one’s calories per meal.
since it’s working wonderfully for her, sweet! but for others, it’s just as easy to achieve the same result by monitoring one’s daily caloric intake (though it takes some practice and a little bit of thought).
tell her congrats on the 40 pounds though— that’s quite a feat! :)
I've got a quick question: I'm not interested in losing weight, I'm comfortable where I am and with my size (5'8" and 143-152 lbs depending on the day and how much I ate the day before), but I do want to lose some of the leftover fat I have on me that I haven't been able to get rid of even when I used to work out hard 5-6 days a week. I mainly do bodyweight exercises at a quick pace but I've had little to no results losing the fat. Any advice? You can touch on anything you deem necessary :)
hey there, nick!
before i unleash all that i know, i have a few questions for you.
1) what does your diet look like? how many calories/give me a general idea of what kind of food you eat.
2) do you factor in aerobic exercise into your workouts? if so, how often/how much/how long?
3) describe your “bodyweight” workouts. give me a lil detail about how many sets/reps you do.
thanks in advance! :)
i've been running 2-3 miles 3 times a week for about 6 weeks + weight lifting and i still see no results. i guess i'm in the 'healthy' weight (i'm 5'2'' and 123lbs) but i'm really flabby and i just want to tone. workout suggestions?
Anonymous
hello! well, first off, kudos to you for working out regularly! :)
you’re most likely in the zone where weight loss through exercise alone is difficult. since you didn’t give me any details regarding your diet/nutrition, i can only guess that you’ve been focusing solely on your workouts.
obviously, you are improving health-wise in terms of aerobic capacity and strength, right? you’re definitely toning your muscles underneath the “flab” (though i doubt it’s really that bad— your weight to height ratio is perfectly fine!).
what i’d suggest is to begin looking at your diet and making changes. remember: the most effective way to lose weight is by making adjustments to one’s diet.
you’re probably all toned up underneath but need to make a few small changes with your caloric intake and meal/snack decisions.
keep up the good work with working out, and eat right! good luck.
Do you agree with the idea that if it has a food label it isn't food? One more thing, love the workouts!! :)
hi there michelle!
while i’d definitely say that eating foods without labels would be the ideal, as it implies fresh fruits, veggies, and the like (aka the good stuff), i think that to expect people to go along with this idea, especially in this day and age, would be ridiculous. i mean, i sure don’t follow such a guideline.
having tasted the edible wonders that factories can produce for us, i’d say that for the majority, switching to non-labels would be extremely difficult/near-impossible.
but this doesn’t mean that we can’t limit how much processed stuff we take in. i’ve always been about moderation and taking little steps, so i’d say cutting out artificial foods one at a time or even simply limiting the overall amount of processed foods would be a good start to any health journey.
oh, and thanks— i’m glad you enjoy them! :)
;)
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