i'm going to pump me up
So, I'm very far from a fitness expert. But I've done the large amount of weight loss thing before (before going back to prior bad habits due to some rather huge & distracting life events) and have now been losing 2 lbs/week for a couple of months.
I don't do official diets. My thing instead is to look to instill new habits that I can repeat on a daily basis. My personal key is that it has to be daily and consistent for it to be permanent. I'm such a flighty and easily distracted personality, that I just can't stick with anything else. It's all or nothing with me.
And, er. I really looked around hard for lots of advice when I first started doing this. So I thought, in that spirit, I should post my personal "program" since that was what I was looking to read at the time. Read if you're interested. *shrugs*
Again, not an expert in any way, shape, or form. But this is what I'm doing.
1. I walk during my lunch break.
At first people looked at me weird - sure. But hey, I'm a slasher and general media fandom whore. I'm used to being a freak. So, you know. Fuck 'em. Plus, after a few weeks I noticed several people at work copying me, and found out that some members of management had noticed it in a positive light - apparently it creates the impression that I'm a highly dedicated individual. (fools! muahahaha.)
So, yeah, every single day when my hour lunch break comes, I eat quick in 10 minutes and then I pick up my iPod (or, you could use a walkman) and wrist watch and walk until my break is over.
I've found that I like to change it up - listen to music one day, listen to an audio book the next day. (www.audible.com, baby) If anyone has any great workout song recommendations, please post! My current fave is "Awful", by Hole, because I am odd.
2. I quit soda.
It's been quoted to me before that heavy drinkers of soda will lose 5 lbs by changing nothing about their eating or exercising habits but ceasing all consumption of soda -- and I believe it. Harder for me to quit than smoking, but every time I've quit it during my life it's made a serious impression on how I feel. (I think this time it's going to stick. Just not worth it.)
3. I eat small and often.
I make sure to eat something every 4 - 5 hours. My typical non-meal snacks: A bran muffin, a piece of toast with some Trader Joe's healthy peanut butter, a cup of light yogurt, a handful of Trader Joe's "Omega Trek Mix". [note: omg, the Omega Trek Mix is sooooo delicious - which is dangerous. What I do is measure out servings (1/4 cup) and put them in plastic baggies to store in a drawer at work.]
I love eating, but I had the horrible habit of eating two big meals - lunch and dinner. Sometimes even only one big lunch. Really had to re-train myself, but after a while it's graduated into habit. I'm never hungry in the slightest, and I feel so much less weighted down. It really changed my energy level.
4. I use common sense when I eat.
Like soda, I find that it's easiest just to go cold turkey on fast food. If I really have to do it - because of, say, social reasons, then I ask if we can go to Subway, or some other place that I know has healthy options. Salads are EVIL and deceptive - the dressing can make them as bad as a cheeseburger. (I've read that while men typically get most of their fat from meat, women get it from salads.) I generally stay away from those as well... though the Trader Joe's salads with raspberry vinegarette aren't that bad. Vinegarette dressings in general are less bad for you than anything creamy.
I'm not super anal about my meals -- just generally try to keep them 300 - 500 calories, and check labels for low saturated/trans fats & high protein and fiber. That's all. Any rules more restrictive, and I find I can't keep it up on an ongoing day-to-day basis.
5. I don't watch tv sitting down.
Whether I'm walking episodes on my laptop, or on the television, I walk back and forth across the room during the shows. Not too fast or hard, just continuous. I don't allow myself to sit down. Again, in my opinion to keep it up this has to be an every time, every day situation. Other than illness, no excuses. At first it feels kinda silly, but you get used to it. I bought one of those little super cheap step-counters to clip to my socks. It's really encouraging to track how many miles you're walking. I can do 3 miles easy.
I don't do official diets. My thing instead is to look to instill new habits that I can repeat on a daily basis. My personal key is that it has to be daily and consistent for it to be permanent. I'm such a flighty and easily distracted personality, that I just can't stick with anything else. It's all or nothing with me.
And, er. I really looked around hard for lots of advice when I first started doing this. So I thought, in that spirit, I should post my personal "program" since that was what I was looking to read at the time. Read if you're interested. *shrugs*
Again, not an expert in any way, shape, or form. But this is what I'm doing.
1. I walk during my lunch break.
At first people looked at me weird - sure. But hey, I'm a slasher and general media fandom whore. I'm used to being a freak. So, you know. Fuck 'em. Plus, after a few weeks I noticed several people at work copying me, and found out that some members of management had noticed it in a positive light - apparently it creates the impression that I'm a highly dedicated individual. (fools! muahahaha.)
So, yeah, every single day when my hour lunch break comes, I eat quick in 10 minutes and then I pick up my iPod (or, you could use a walkman) and wrist watch and walk until my break is over.
I've found that I like to change it up - listen to music one day, listen to an audio book the next day. (www.audible.com, baby) If anyone has any great workout song recommendations, please post! My current fave is "Awful", by Hole, because I am odd.
2. I quit soda.
It's been quoted to me before that heavy drinkers of soda will lose 5 lbs by changing nothing about their eating or exercising habits but ceasing all consumption of soda -- and I believe it. Harder for me to quit than smoking, but every time I've quit it during my life it's made a serious impression on how I feel. (I think this time it's going to stick. Just not worth it.)
3. I eat small and often.
I make sure to eat something every 4 - 5 hours. My typical non-meal snacks: A bran muffin, a piece of toast with some Trader Joe's healthy peanut butter, a cup of light yogurt, a handful of Trader Joe's "Omega Trek Mix". [note: omg, the Omega Trek Mix is sooooo delicious - which is dangerous. What I do is measure out servings (1/4 cup) and put them in plastic baggies to store in a drawer at work.]
I love eating, but I had the horrible habit of eating two big meals - lunch and dinner. Sometimes even only one big lunch. Really had to re-train myself, but after a while it's graduated into habit. I'm never hungry in the slightest, and I feel so much less weighted down. It really changed my energy level.
4. I use common sense when I eat.
Like soda, I find that it's easiest just to go cold turkey on fast food. If I really have to do it - because of, say, social reasons, then I ask if we can go to Subway, or some other place that I know has healthy options. Salads are EVIL and deceptive - the dressing can make them as bad as a cheeseburger. (I've read that while men typically get most of their fat from meat, women get it from salads.) I generally stay away from those as well... though the Trader Joe's salads with raspberry vinegarette aren't that bad. Vinegarette dressings in general are less bad for you than anything creamy.
I'm not super anal about my meals -- just generally try to keep them 300 - 500 calories, and check labels for low saturated/trans fats & high protein and fiber. That's all. Any rules more restrictive, and I find I can't keep it up on an ongoing day-to-day basis.
5. I don't watch tv sitting down.
Whether I'm walking episodes on my laptop, or on the television, I walk back and forth across the room during the shows. Not too fast or hard, just continuous. I don't allow myself to sit down. Again, in my opinion to keep it up this has to be an every time, every day situation. Other than illness, no excuses. At first it feels kinda silly, but you get used to it. I bought one of those little super cheap step-counters to clip to my socks. It's really encouraging to track how many miles you're walking. I can do 3 miles easy.