Greetings!

I've been on 3FC for a couple of weeks and I'm happy to find this thread :)

I recently turned 25 and I still cannot believe that I am now in my mid-20s! I am in my third and final year of law school. No kids, and I am single. Now that the basics are out of the way...

Similar to ddran, I have dieted since the age of 11. Since 17 my weight has fluctuated A LOT. I have weighed as much as 175lbs, and as low as 134lbs. I used to run a lot but honestly, I hate exercise and mainly try to control my weight based on what I eat. I need to maintain a decent weight...this is getting old.

Currently I am 157lbs. My size 10 clothing fits so so and my stomach is out of control. I want to get back into my size 8 and 6 clothing!

My goal is to lose weight and - I know that everyone says this - develop a lifestyle change. In the past, what worked for me is sticking to a plan and writing down everything that I eat. If left to just "eat sensibly" or whatever, I overeat, get off track, and the next thing I know I gain 15 pounds!

Looking forward to posting and reading about you all!

Hey all I am new here I'm 45 years old and a grandmother. So I have to keep all together as an example for the next generation. I'm currently into bodybuilding something I am looking forward to doing through my golden years.

You look great! You are an inspiration to all of us. If you can do it at 45 there is no reason why I cannot be fit and fine at 25 :)

Would you mind sharing your tips with us? I am curious to know your food and caloric intake.

First let me say thank you.My oldest is your age so I guess that makes me the mama figure lol
I eat between 1200-1600 calories a day I zig zag my calories so that I never eat the same amount more than two days in a row. going from high to low.
I don't eat any fried foods, fast food, or junk food not that you can't eat these foods and lose weight it is just I'm a health nut so in our house it is all natural. I drink lots of water and I weight train hard because I am into natural bodybuilding so for me it is about losing the fat and building hard muscle. I spend 6 hours a week doing cardio and 6 hours a week pumping iron. So find what works for you and do it you are an attractive young lady and I am sure you will reach your goals just stay strong. I wish you well.

Hi Everyone :p ,

(Warning, this is a repost from my introduction post, but I wanted to introduce myself to you ladies too).

I just wanted to introduce myself to everyone. Anyways, I'm 26, married (since July 05), and I'm a graduate student. I'm 5'7 and weigh around 175 pounds.

My story:
Seems as if I have always been aware of my weight and have been trying to control it. For the last 4 years my weight has always flunctutated in the 165 - 170 pound range, but then two weeks ago I was up to 180 pounds so I knew I needed to make a change. My mother is always telling me to "take care of myself" because diabetes run in the family. I've always been a little chunkier than my brother and sister so I guess she felt that it was important to stress it to me. 3 years ago I did Weight Watchers and lost about 25 pounds (got down to 148), but we all know that if you don't stick to the principles then the weight comes back. Oh, I love Weight Watchers by the way. In Jan. my husband and I did Body for Life. From WW, we had a good background on the food aspect (small portion, high fiber, whole grains), but BFL helped us really develop an exercise regimen. We stuck to the program for about 4.5-5 months (lost 12 pounds, BF went down by about 10%, and my overall fitness and endurance really improved), but Life came in the way (husband is a computer consultant and got a client out of state, and I did my proposal for my research and had no time) and well we fell off.

From BFL we felt so great though about our fitness that we decided to sign up for the Chicago Marathon. But since the time that we did BFL and the time that we signed up for the marathon, I had gained back all the weight and even more (that's when I went up to 180). So right now we are training for the marathon, and I'm focusing on trying to lose some weight. My goal is to be a size 8 (okay really a 6, but honestly I don't know if that is possible so I say a size 8). I figure I need to be around the 145 - 150 pound weight for the size 8..... :?:

My plan: I'm just counting calories and working out....I know what I need to do, I just need to do it.

Okay, sorry for the very long post. Just wanted to say that I am here and I look forward to being on this weight loss and lifestyle change journey with you.

Rai

PS: Buffedstuff, you are my inspiration. Great job! As I mentioned above I used to do Body for Life. The weight training program consisted of alternating between upper and lower body (ex. Upper Body (UBW) on Monday, cardio Tuesday, Lower Body on Wed, cardio on Thurs, UBW on Friday....). Do you have any advice where I can find a good overall body workout. I would like to hit all the muscles 2x a week.

PPS: whit, whit: I'm in chicago too!

For Rai
 

Thank you, I can give you a copy of my schedule and you can modify it for your level if you would like: warning I train hard and I eat clean



Monday – Legs, calves, hams, glutes, quads and cardio
· Squats 4 sets of 12, 10, 8, and 6 reps
· Leg press 4 sets of 12, 10, 8, and 6 reps
· Leg extension machine 4 sets of 12, 10, 8 and 6 reps
· Side-lying straight-leg raises 4 sets of 12, 10,8 and 6 reps
· Inner leg raises 4 sets of 12, 10 and 6 reps
· Scissors 4 sets of 12, 10 and 6 reps
· Hamstring Curls 4 sets of 12, 10 and 6 reps
· Standing calf raises 4 sets of 12, 10 and 6 reps
· Cardio wind sprints 3 miles
· Bike ride 1 mile
Tuesday Cardio and Abs
· Crunches 4 sets of 30 reps
· Reverse Crunches 4 sets of 30 reps
· Elbow to knee crunches 4 sets of 30 reps
· Wind sprints 3 miles
· Bike ride 1 mile
Wednesday Shoulders, , chest , biceps, cardio
· Front military press barbell 4 sets of 12, 10,8 and 6 reps
· Arnold press 4 sets of 12, 10 8and 6 reps
· Side raise dumbbells 4 sets of 12, 10,8 and 6 reps
· Front raise dumbbells 4 sets of 12, 10, 8 and 6
· Bench Press Barbell 4 sets of 12, 10,8 and 6 reps
· Incline Press Barbell 4 sets of 12, 10,8 and 6 reps
· Bicep Curls 4 sets of 12, 10,8 and 6 reps
· Concentration curl dumbbell 4 sets of 12, 10,8 and 6 reps
· Wind sprints 3 miles
· Bike ride 1 mile
Thursday Cardio and abs
· Crunches 4 sets of 30 reps
· Reverse Crunches 4 sets of 30 reps
· Elbow to knee crunches 4 sets of 30 reps
· Wind sprints 3 miles
· Bike ride 1 mile
__________________________________________________ ______________
Friday Back, lat, triceps
· Deadlift barbell 4 sets of 12, 10 and 6 reps
· Bent-over row barbell 4 sets of 12, 10 and 6 reps
· Lat pull down front 4 sets of 12, 10,8 and 6 reps
· Shrug barbells4sets of 12, 10,8 and 6 reps
· Narrow grip bench press barbell 4 sets of 12, 10,8 and 6 reps
· Wind sprints 3 miles and bike ride one mile
Saturday Cardio and abs follow same routine as Tuesday and Thursday

that is the level I am on now hey I wish you well in whatever you do blessings upon you..

Thanks so much for the information. I'm going to look over it this weekend in detail and modify it to suit my needs. Yeah, you were not playing when you say you lift hard. From the sequence of the reps, it looks like you lift from lighter to heavier (weights). Do you lift the last rep to failure?

Oh yeah, you started at where I am now...Do you have a blog or anything, I am interested in reading your journey. How long did it take you to get down to 150 pounds and to where you are now?

Welcome Rai!

I'm not in Chicago, I'm in Champaign. I'm in law school so we have a lot in common - trying to lose weight while completing challenging academic programs.

I have began walking. I hate going to the gym. I won't bother joining again because all I ever do is waste the membership. So I've been going to the track walking 2 miles. My goal is to get up to 4 miles. And I plan to walk 4-5 days per week.

I used to run in the past, but I doubt I will begin running again.

Best wishes!

My weight is STILL at 157...I need to buckle down. I hate this, but it is necessary.

Lost a pound this past week. I'm not complaining though. This brings total loss to 6 lbs within the past two weeks.

Hope all is well with everyone else.