[Obesity Discussion]

Originally Posted by inlove

I need to lose about 15 pounds I know that is not much but it is killing me looking at myself. And being 5 feet tall does not help that either.
My husband is 6'2 and weighs 255 or so and needs to lose too.

Any tips or suggestions?/

He works out about 3 times a week running about 2 miles and lifting weights...and has not seen any weight lose.

Me I admit have not been doing anything other than abdominal work and such.

Regarding your weight loss efforts, eating right is going to be the biggest influence on your weight loss since it does not appear that you exercise as well. At the end of the day, what will cause you to lose weight will be if you are consuming less calories a day than you are expending. Have you considered going to the gym with your husband? Might be a good way to spend time together and you get the bonus of aiding your weight loss efforts.

Regarding his weight loss, since he lifts weights, you cannot just look at the scales. Muscle weighs more than fat, and it could be that he's putting on muscle while losing fat, which could cause you to see little to no weight loss on the scale. How does he look? How long has he been doing this? How are his eating habits? Again for him, at the end of the day, what is most important for weight loss that he consumes less calories than he expends.

Originally Posted by VegasGirl

Has he done anything to change his eating habits? Or has he checked his measurements to see if he has lost inches instead of lbs?.

Bingo. Another way to check his true fat loss progress would be to get a hydrostatic body fat test performed (water bodyfat testing tank).

Originally Posted by VegasGirl

In the past, I have done 6 days of workout.

Monday - Upper Body
Tuesday - Cardio
Wednesday - Lower Body
Thursday - Cardio
Friday - Upper Body
Saturday - Free day
Sunday - Cardio
and then continue the process.

It seemed to work for me. Each cardio section i did anywhere from 30-60 minutes and i didnt do the same thing each time. Maybe running one day and bike the next etc. And when i did the cardio, i would increase me speed every few minutes gradually until i couldnt go up any further and then decrease. Like if im on the bike, id go with level 1 for 3-4 minutes then increase to level 2 for 3-4 minutes etc until i got to a level i couldnt do very well. Typically when the burn was too much. At that point i would go back down to level 1 and start my way back up. Some people say more cardio some people say 20 minutes is enough.

I think it just works differently for different people. Some like to work out in the morning cause it makes them feel energized. If you can get up early to work out then do it so you have ZERO excuses in the evening. I like to do it in the evening because frankly i LOVE sleeping in.

The length of time you were doing cardio is great, and your exercise ritual looks solid.

The "rule of thumb" for years with respect to cardio has been that you do not really start burning fat until after about 20 minutes of cardio. That is probably where you have heard the 20 minutes. 20 minutes should be a minimum, and is a great number to shoot for if you are someone who is just getting started doing cardio. Those who are looking to gain maximum muscle mass also frequently look to do a minimum amount of cardio as well. There is nothing wrong with doing 60 minutes, and in fact, that's a great number if you can pull it off. I do about an hour of cardiovascular exercise on days where I do not lift weights, and about 20-30 minutes on days where I do lift weights.

Originally Posted by inlove

Thanks. Well the eating habits will be my fault. I tried eating healthy as much as our wallets will allow. You know? .

I myself would love to drop these 15 pounds but have a hard time getting modivated at first.[/quote]

A big portion of it how much you eat (calories), but yes the type of food you eat has a big impact too. Eat a little less and your wallet and your weight will both go in the right direction You should shoot for a target calorie range through eating to help you acheive your weight loss goals. This would help both you and your husband get jump started to losing weight. I am curious, can you give us a full sample of what you and your husband might eat in a given day, including details like condements, snacks, etc?

Originally Posted by VegasGirl

I agree that eating healthy is not a cheap adventure. I have gone to the grocery store twice this week just to make sure i have fresh herbs and produce. And both times i spent well over $50 just on small things.

Also, try to eat at least 5 times a day. It sounds so tough I know. I only get four in but i could probably get 5 in. The easiest way to do it is to have snacks like an apple and some slices of low fat cheese. I buy blocks of the low fat cheddar and cut up a few slices to go with my apple.

Or, if you HATE cottage cheese, then mix it in the blender with flavored yogurt. Its a good midday snack. I hate the texture of cottage cheese so the blending helps me.

Also, i have done carrots and natural peanut butter as a snack but im not sure thats entirely healthy but it does help cover the protein aspect.

I also did protein shakes here and there and split one up into two snacks during the day so i didnt have to hassle with putting other things together. But they arent cheap for the most part and most people cant stomach them.

Most of my suggestions come from a program i did about four years back called Body For Life. It took me three years to gain 15 lbs back from that diet so it worked for the most part. It kept me conscience of what i needed to eat.

My biggest downfalls are carbs and alcohol. Once i cut the alcohol out of my life and maybe had a glass or two of red wine once a week, i lost serious weight. I also cut out soda and any foofie coffee drinks from starbucks.

Eating healthy is not cheap, however there are ways you can make it cheaper. Buying in bulk and freezing helps. I buy mass quantities of chicken breast at Costco/Sams Club and freeze them individually, and defrost in the refridgerator in advance as needed. Same goes for turkey breast, fish, etc. Then again I always find that people waste money in other areas they could spend on eating healthier. When it comes to your health I don't think you can put a price on it.

Small meals do help for many, as it can give the impression that they are eating more frequently. People tend to eat so fast that sometimes their brainwaves cannot keep up, so that even though they are full, their brain doesn't send that signal until you've eaten past the full stage. By having small meals I feel you can prevent yourself from "overeating" just a little bit more instead of eating "full bore" 2-3 times a day.

If you were having problems with protein shakes, you should look into shakes that are 100% or almost fully lactose free. Those seem to help some people stomach them. A big problem is that people also drink some very disgusting tasting shakes. There are numerous protein shakes on the market these days that taste incredible, so if you can find a good one you like, that might help you stomach it better.

Natural peanut butter is good for you, in moderation. Make sure you don't eat too much. Each serving is almost 200 calories. Getting rid of alcohol and soda makes a huge difference. I've seen people lose 15lbs in a year just from ditching soda. Those foo foo coffee drinks are the worst though. Up to 900 calories for one! That's a six-pack of beer!

It seems as if you have a very good basic understanding of what good ways to lose weight and be healthy Talia.