I'm in bad shape and have little free time or self control. What's your advice?
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Anonymous
| So you are overweight? Because your first post says you want to get in shape I thought you just want to exercise, but you need to lose weight too? For that cutting calories is the answer. I was out of shape, but not overweight(maybe 5lbs) and once I started exercising I liked it. I do yoga and when I first started I used to run and walk a ton, but due to past Lyme running is hard on my body, so now I do elliptical and find that burns a lot of calories but is easier on my body. What I've done, is that my teen also joined a gym and we go together. I do yoga, she does much more, and she is great force for my will to do it. How old are your kids? Old enough to exercise? I suggest you go and maybe spend money on a gym membership if you don't already, once I was paying the fee, I was much more motivated to go. Or sign up for a class, once you are paying, you are more likely to make sure you go. When my kids were younger, I was in a a great shape, like insane, when kids were from 3 to 9 years old, I also had a physically demanding job. But, still almost every evening, I would leave them with DH and go to the nearby gym. I loved it. It was also my time to have alone time, it was never over an hour, but I was addicted. The reason I write this, is that once I stopped, it was so hard to find the will to do it again, and I didn't know I had Lyme disease for a few years. and btw, I also bought long ago elliptical... never worked having it at home for me, just took space, yes I put it in TV room too, never used it, gym worked so much better for me. Anyway, if you need tips on fast, healthy meals planning, I am happy to post, I wish you good luck. |
Anonymous
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I work fifty hours a week and have two kids under five. Single mom. Here's what I do:
Walk whenever possible. Use the stairs instead of the elevator. My building has a gym so I'll pop in, do fifteen minutes of body weight exercises and fifteen minutes on the elliptical. I have a cheesy Jane Fonda exercise video and each module is ten minutes - I'll pop it in after I've finished cleaning up for the night. A few minutes here and there adds up. Re: diet. I eat a lot less and do NSNG as much as possible. Food is boring but filling (ie fuel). Scrambled eggs with spinach for breakfast. Salad with chicken breast for lunch. Pork chop and veggies for dinner. Lots of water. No added sugar. No alcohol. Also keep in mind that it's okay not to adhere 100% to something. Even if you increase your activity by a little, you're making a difference. If you stop adding sugar to your coffee, it makes a difference. It's easy to want to make a total lifestyle change overnight but I find that to be a good recipe for disappointment, and failure. Start small. |
Anonymous
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A lot of people say make small changes but that never works for me. OP, if I were you, I’d start Whole30. Google it and find the grocery list so that you know what you can eat. Watch how much of the high calorie foods you eat - nuts, avocados and oils in large quantities can prevent weight loss.
As for exercise, biking to work or buying equipment might help. But you still have to make time to do it. Personally I always prefer to spend time with my family but they dont suffer if I’m not around for an hour or so. And they benefit from a better me. I find that morning is best so Im at the gym by 6 am. I also try to walk during lunch. |
Anonymous
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Try platejoy.com. You can enter what kind of eating you want to do, what kind of time you want to spend cooking, whether you want to make enough for leftovers, how many meals you want to do, how many people you are feeding, if you want to lose weight, etc. it generates a menu and a shopping list. You can take that list to the store or you can send it through Instacart and have you groceries delivered.
Do a free trial. If you are prediabetic it may be covered by your insurance. It is not a lot of money. Meal planning and shopping is a big hurdle for changing your eating. |
Anonymous
My friend founded Platejoy. It's a great service. |
Anonymous
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I got an instant pot,make a couple big veggie based dishes on the weekend and I eat for lunch and dinner.
I walk to work a few days a week in addition to gym. Most of your intitial weight loss comes from.diet, so I'd focus there, adding daily exercise where you can, and ramp up.as you lose and feel.motivated. I also wear.a Fitbit and try for 85k steps a week.. helps with deciding to do that 10 min walk, get up earlier to walk to work, etc. I do weights while watching TV , I have two shoes I watch and break them up inton4 weekly half hour sessions.... |
Anonymous
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Agreed. Even though I sometimes feel bulky, it’s been a few years of seriously lifting to even see major progress. I was also a cardio person for years and never as toned or muscular.
But every body is different. Some woman tone and slim quickly with the same workouts. Sometimes I want to quit it all and see what just yoga and Pilates would do for me but I get so antsy and bored with those. |
Anonymous
| Np who could written this op. This post and its responses inspired me to go for a walk before talking my kids to the pool. Will go again tomorrow and try to go before work too. It’s true that many of us want it, but not bad enough. I need to change that. |
Anonymous
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OP, I sort of agree with the first response about how being fit is a choice...but it's helpful to ease into it.
2 things: 1) The idea of simply committing to exercise everyday, no matter how little, is important. I've always prioritized fitness, but there have been times when it's hard or I've been too stressed etc. I've always told myself, "Okay, I'll just go to the gym for 10 minutes on the way home." Or, "I'll just do 3 sun salutations today." The amount of exercise was probably nothing...but the routine was important. And often the 10 min would turn into 30 min really quickly. It's the habit and the mental state that matter for getting to a place of committing to your health. 2) I think how to approach diet (usually the most important for losing weight) can vary. One approach is a complete reset, like Whole30 or (even better, IMHO) South Beach. The important thing about these diets is that they help break your addiction to a lot of food additives and excess sugar that are common in American diets. Another approach that works better for me is just to cut out the most unhealthy thing...which for most Americans is added sugar. Not so hard to cut out dessert, but you'd be shocked how much added sugar is in various processes food. I eat very few desserts or sweets, and I was still shocked by how every spice packet has excess sugar in it. Commit to doing a dietary change for 1 month, and then reevaluating. A lot of getting in shape is overcoming the habits that keep us out of shape. DH was very active and fit when we met, but work, stress, and time led to his gettiing very out of shape. A month ago he committed to a colleague that if they achieved a certain outcome on a project, he'd start showing up to the work gym at 6am to meet him everyday. DH "lost" the bet (as in, project worked out well). Since starting his gym routine, he's more energetic, eats better, sleeps better etc. I can tell he's losing weight and much, much happier. All because he made one change and has stuck to it. |
Anonymous
| The secret to fitness is routine. Yes it sucks to start. I had to get my ass off the couch 2 years ago, I remember. After awhile once you've been consistent it just becomes what you do. Your body will crave movement so working out won't suck anymore, it's like a release of energy. Your habits will mean that when you do slip on workouts for a week or go on vacation and eat what you like, it's easy to get back on track and bounce back afterward. It really is a self perpetuating cycle but you do have to get the cycle going. |
Anonymous
| I'm lucky that I can workout on my lunch break. On days when I'm home with the kids, I work out while they watch a show or are doing something else. Sometimes they work out with me. I like that they see me workout - we have to be good to our bodies and that includes exercising them. |
Anonymous
I don’t think it’s harsh but it does smack of being myopic. Some people have long commutes. For example, I am up at 5 am but am doing things (finishing packing lunches -the things that need to be heated, getting ready for work). I get home from work and then it’s sports for my kids, study for work certification, dinner clean up, kids to bed, prep for the next day and boom it’s 10 pm. I don’t even sleep 8 hours. Getting up at 4:30 won’t happen because I am already in sleep deficient. |
Anonymous
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Here are some tangible ideas, that can work regardless of your situation (Work outside the home, single parent, no gym available, etc):
- Drink a gallon of water every day. You will be hydrated, you will want to eat less, and all your organs will function better - If going to the gym or exercising outside the house before or after work isn't an option (which, for me, as a single mom with little kids way back when, wasn't), get yourself an online fitness workout and buy whatever weights or kettlebells you need in order to do the workout, and then... DO IT!! I got myself back into shape after my second child was born by doing the kettleworks DVDs (i know, this ages me... but hey, after my first child was born I got into shape using VHS cassettes!! LOL!!). I bought a 10 pound and a 15 pound kettle bell at sports authority, and the DVD workouts were only about 28 minutes long, so I truly had no excuse. I am a firm believer that pretty much 96% of the population can carve 28 minutes out of their day to work out. The results came really quickly b/c the workouts were hard, but the fact that they were so short made them doable. - See where you can cut white processed foods out of your diet, and then stick to that for a month. you'll see that after a month, skipping a morning bagel or muffin isn't quite so hard and that substituting it for some hard boiled eggs is fine. Same with substituting zuchini noodles for pasta. Etc. I'm not saying go whole30 and cut out every gram of sugar from your life, but look at your diet and see where the processed foods are, and try to phase them out. And drink that gallon of water!! You will be amazed at how good you feel!! |
Anonymous
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I started using my kids' sports practice times to work out. The practices were never long enough to actually go anywhere and do anything, so I'd end up sitting at the field chatting with other parents for 45 min to an hour. Now I pack my running shoes or bike, and go laps around the field or neighborhood while they are practicing.
Biking to work is also a great idea. |
Anonymous
| Weight loss is 80% diet and 20% exercise. Focus on food first. Add exercise later. |