Is this healthy for weight loss? Plus any exercise tips?

Posted by on Friday, February 4, 2011 · 4 Comments 

I’m looking to lose weight for the summer, started a bit late I know!

But this is what I ate today, and I just wondered if it is healthy & will aid weight loss? :]

Breakfast – fat free natural yoghurt, red grapes, blueberries & ground cinnamon
Lunch – rocket, spinach, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, king prawns
Dinner – grilled & skinless chicken breast with steamed broccoli, carrots & cauliflower and mashed potato (made without fat/milk), chicken bovril (as gravy!)
Drinks – 2litres water, 2 cups coffee with skimmed milk (one decaff, one not), cup of peppermint tea

This is only a sample of what I intend to eat, but it will all be along the same lines every day (except Saturday when I will eat out either an Indian or Chinese!!)

I’m also looking for some exercise tips – I previously joined a gym but didn’t go, and I find trying to workout at home (I have an exercise bike, DVDs, step aerobics, etc) too easy to avoid. I’m thinking of joining a different gym that’s closer to home and has a swimming pool as well.

What is the best way to start exercising without over doing it or getting bored? Like a way to ease myself into it so that I can learn to love it but which will also maximise weight loss/toning?

I’m 5ft10, broadly built, size UK18, currently about 220lbs, and looking to lose 30lbs as a starting point.

All help appreciated :]

Thanks muchies.
xxxxxx
Rocket – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eruca_sativa ;]

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Comments

4 Responses to “Is this healthy for weight loss? Plus any exercise tips?”
  1. Rawr! says:
    February 4, 2011 at 10:46 am

    I haven’t added up the calories but it looks OK. You need to add some protein at breakfast though.

    Rocket? Oh I see. Never heard it called that. :)

    Oh and about exercising: if you can find a fun activity it’s much easier. I like hula hooping.

  2. Webster says:
    February 4, 2011 at 11:30 am

    You definitely sound like you are on the right track with your diet, and good for you allowing an indulgence, that can help keep you from over doing it if you always deny yourself the things you love.

    Joining a gym closer to home can be a good incentive to attend, especially when they keep charging you each month whether you attend or not :)

    One thing you can do is get a personal trainer, or at least talk with one about your fitness goals. They will be able to design a program around you, and help give you that push you need to get into shape.

    If a trainer is not the route for you, I find fitness magazines always have a great variety of workouts which can help you avoid getting into a routine rut – which is great, because it’s better for your body to switch things up anyway, you’ll see better results in the long run!

    Also, get a workout buddy! That way, you can both motivate each other when one of you feels like skipping the gym, or a workout.

    Hope this helps, good luck!

  3. Thomas St. Awesome says:
    February 4, 2011 at 11:36 am

    Ok, what youre planning on eating actually sounds like a good habit to start. Remember to throw in some salads, but avoid cream based dressings like the devil.

    A good way to start? Just start. Go for a run. Jog, walk, anything. If you go out to eat at lunch now, pick a spot you could walk to instead of driving, order something healthy (you can do no wrong with leafy greens and chicken)

    Chinese food is notoriously high in fat and excess calories. I would avoid it unless your cheat day food is that, but still.

    Also, set a smaller first time goal. Go for 10 lbs first, so when you hit that goal, you know its working, and set another. 30lbs is a lot to try and get started with, trust me, i know.

    I was 300lbs at one point, and i just got fed up. I joined gyms and never went, wasted money on DVDs (sound familiar?) So i just decided one day i was going to change. It was really hard at first, and i fell down a few times, but i stuck to it.

    Good luck!

  4. Erik says:
    February 4, 2011 at 12:01 pm

    I am a student of human nutrition and I believe I can be of some help to you.

    As for your diet, you will only lose weight if you consume less calories than you use. This means if you eat 3000 calories per day and only burn 2000 you will constantly increase your weight. I suggest finding out your recommended intake and reducing that by at least 500 per day. I’m not exactly sure but 2000 May be around the right amount. It will be hard but make sure you eat a BALANCED diet.

    since 2000 or so calories really isn’t very much for 1 day you must make sure you are eating only non-calorie dense foods and eating the recommended amount from all the food groups. A calorie dense food is one where you get many calories compared to the nutritional value. Otherwise known as, “junk food”.

    Not only will you become more healthy physically, but you will feel better, have more energy and overall wellness along with feeling better about yourself. In return, you will be hungry often, but try to change how you view food. Look forward to each meal and make sure you enjoy everything you eat. A tip i can give is to eat foods which keep you full longer such as foods high in fiber.

    ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~

    Diet is only half of it. Exercise is the other important part, especially if you have a weight loss goal. It’s very important to have a realistic goal to wok for and I believe your goal of 30 lbs. is great.

    Don’t get me wrong it’s not easy, but is anything worth doing ever easy? You will want a combination of cardio, some type of aerobics and weight training. Examples of cardio are, jogging, the bicycle machine, walking and so on. Anything to get your heart rate up. Swimming is my personal favorite form of cardio and its surprisingly effective at burning calories.

    I learned in my nutrition coarse that the most effective way to burn FAT is intense weight training. Meaning pushing yourself until you can no longer lift the weight. You must do this in a safe manner and it’s a good idea to go with a supportive friend who would also like to work out and set a similar goal.

    Combine diet and exercise to make it so that you are eating everything your body needs and burning more calories than you use. You can do it, you just have to reach that goal.