Change for Summertime! - 3 Fat Chicks on a Diet Weight Loss Community

Sun_Flower2 · 02-20-2008, 05:32 PM

Heylo! I'm back again after a long absence.

I have a goal! And I want to lose weight for a music festival that is happening in July, in 22 weeks from now. I want to lose 50lbs by then. Mostly because I want to be a HOT ROCKER GIRRLL!

And also, because I tired of being fat, I don't want to go and be all hot and sweaty and uncomfortable in the summer heat and humidity.

Please if you have any suggestions for me on speeding up my weight loss and also keeping it consistently dropping let me know! Let me know what works for you!

I need tips on increasing lean protein with out upping my fat intake, because I already have trouble keeping my fat % down.

I'm doing cardio 4x a week and am going to add another day pretty soon. I do free weights and ab exercises too and alternate what I do every other time. I am seriously pumped uip and excited, I've already lost about 6lbs in the last 3 weeks and hope to keep it up! I could use some exercise tips on people who are/were 200+ and are seeing great results too!

Any weight loss tips you know to work for you would help me alot and at least inspire me to keep trying new things and reign in my eating.

michellenew · 02-20-2008, 05:45 PM

back
i count calories, i track my food and activities at dailyplate.
i drink lots of water....eat fruits and veggies....
good luck to you!
michellenew

JayEll · 02-20-2008, 05:57 PM

Hey! Welcome back!

Counting calories is an easy way to do it--check out the Calorie Counters forum for some FAQs.

Protein foods without a lot of fat: Canned tuna in water, 2% cottage cheese, lowfat string cheese, egg whites or eggbeaters (but actually, I prefer whole eggs)... and there are a number of protein powders that you can add to water or 1% or skim milk for a protein boost...

Jay

Jasmine31 · 02-20-2008, 05:59 PM

I count calories and walk 60-80 minutes a day. Best thing to do is find a plan and stick with it!

walking2lose · 02-20-2008, 06:02 PM

Hey there - your goal sounds very achievable to me. If I were you, I'd go under goals and read some of the very inspirational and very informative weight loss stories. These are from the people who have been successful, so it's great advice - some of the stories I think you should definitely read are Meg's, Mel's, Glory's, Lilly's, Amanda's (Mandalinn), and Robin (RockinRobin). I think most of them have cut out the junk, counted calories, and exercised.

What music festival is it? I was wondering if it's Bonnaroo?

Good luck!

mandalinn82 · 02-20-2008, 06:11 PM

Calorie counting seems to be the most approachable for a lot of people...nothing is out of reach, you don't need any special equipment beyond a computer or a calorie-counting book and a piece of paper, and you can start right away, without buying a guide to tell you how. It doesn't work, though, for people who need a lot of guidance on what to eat and when. Lots of calorie counters have other goals, like eating mostly whole foods or getting certain amounts of protein. A combination of these might work for you.

My favorite low-cal, low-fat sources of protein are egg whites, deli meats, chicken breast, ground turkey breast, and pork tenderloin. Shrimp make a nice change. Even beef jerky, the ultimate transportable protein, is made with relatively lowfat cuts of meat. I also eat a lot of yogurt, which is great for both protein and calcium.

SunshineRunner · 02-20-2008, 10:21 PM

Good News! You can do this! I'm actually in my 22nd week and have lost 56lbs and the week isn't over yet!!!

What I do: Count Calories. Focus on Calories in (for me it's ~1400 give or take) try to be reasonable on fat grams but I honestly don't count them, keep my sodium below 2400 mg/day (very hard, but I'm learning and some days I'm only at half that number - yay!), and keep my fiber and protein HIGH. I eat at least 35-40 grams of fiber per day if not more. I aim for 50 grams of protein...but fiber focus has worked for me and I'm not running from it at all.

I work out 5 nights a week. 3-5 miles between the elliptical and the treadmill (yes, I can run now for a mile at a time) then add in 30-45 minutes with weight lifting (legs, arms, abs, etc).

Focus Focus Focus. Schedule your works outs. If you ever want to see what I eat in my days...check out my blog, I post sample meals there from time to time.

Good luck and keep us updated!
~Amanda

Sun_Flower2 · 02-22-2008, 06:11 PM

OMG PEOPLE! THANKS SO MUCH for all the tips and advice and encouragement!

I've tried counting calories before but I never am consistent, I've done TDP, journals, I even have a program on my Palm Pilot that I can use, but my problem is I never keep up with it or do it consistently. This time I try and do it most days but I've realized it's easier for me to just write it down wherever and so I can see it that day and know what I did and what I could improve on.. So somedays I do it on TDP and other days on my Palm and other days I write it down. That seems to be helping me now, untill I can learn to be consistent on one of them.

Thanks JayEll & madalinn for the protein tips, I should get some protein powders, because I'm doing strength training and I've read that it's good to get some complete protein's in within in 1hr of finishing workout to help with muscle rebuilding. My question now, what is a good brand, I'm lactose intolerant so I can't have milk based ones, but I'm thinking of the rice protein powder ones... But I don't know, right now I'm drinking a glass of my Lactaid FatFree milk after a workout. And I never thought of beef jerky! I love beef jerky, I guess I always thought of it as junk food, but I could find the low fat and enjoy it without the guilt!

re: walking2lose I read Meg's before, that was last year and I got motivated but I lost it soon, I was so impressed! I should go back and reread those everyweek to inspire me so I don't give up. Oh, and it's um the Rockstar Energy Mayhem Festival... Slipknot, Disturbed & Machine Head are the reason's I'm going! I don't really know any of the other bands. But I have had a couple invitations to go to Bonnaroo with some friends, I've never been to it, but I would love to see Robert Plant!!! And a lot of the others on the list!

re: gataramanda! OMGosh! you are my dream come true! I wasn't sure if I was thinking of an unattainable goal, but you have done it and I can do it too! 56lbs! That's amazing! I would feel like a miracle has happened if I get to 22 wks and I'm at my goal of 50lbs! But I know it will take every day and everyweek sticking to my exercises and checking my food intake. I do have a horrible time with sodium! Some times I'm over 3x the recommended intake, it's no wonder I'm so bloated up! But I'm working on that too, I had been doing good cutting out fast foods but this last week I ate pretty bad, so I know my sodium was out of control. I can't wait till I can run at all! My legs start to hurt if I go for above the 4.5mph range at all.. I have been doing 2 interval work outs a week, I am up to 3- 1 min speed intvls of 4.3mph and then I walk at 3.4mph for 5mins for a total of 33mins. I'm going to a min next week and do 3 -2min intvls a, then I will start upping my speeds the week after that too and keep increasing.

Thanks to everyone who responded! I will keep coming back to 3fc for more tips, inspiration and helpful advice and to update my progress (oooo and my ticker!!!)! I am not going to slack off this time!

~Lu

Sun_Flower2 · 02-22-2008, 06:38 PM

Well, thanks so much again to everyone!

Thursday's have been my weigh in dates and yesterday I was down 1.4lbs. I'm thrilled because I only worked out twice last week (granted it was 90mins each time) and I ate fast food 4x and Chinese 1x. Now I'm super motivated this week to not eat fast-food more than 1x and try not eat out (at a restaurant) more than 1x and if I do get something healthy -to pass on the fries & bread!

I think the only reason I lost is because my other meals I've been doing well with. Breakfast is usually a South Beach Diet High Protein Cereal Bar, they keep me full for about 3 hrs till I can eat a snack and then I eat Lean Cuisine Panini's for lunch with a Green Giant Simply Steam veggie pack & I’m not ready to give up my chip habit so I started buying the 1oz pre-packed bags, that way I get variety and they're pre-weighed, so I don’t eat like half a bag! So hopefully next Thursday I will see a little bit bigger number, especially if I want to see a -50lbs in 22 wks!

And my new favorite convenience food is the Grape & Apple Bites. I've only seen them at Super Wal-Mart, they are awesome, because if I buy a sack of apples and I buy a bag of grapes, they just sit in the bottom of my crisper & never to come out again until they've rotted and I have to throw them out. But these Grape & Apple Bites are pre-packed and I can grab them as I pack my lunch cooler and just throw them in, no prep needed, which is good for me.

~Lu

Hat Trick · 02-22-2008, 07:26 PM

Watch how much canned tuna you consume -- there's mercury in there. High mercury levels in people is awful and hard to dx.

Sun_Flower2 · 02-22-2008, 07:57 PM

thanks for the info, but I don't eat tuna, I've never been able to stomach the taste... I do like Chicken Chunk! The only fish I like is Salmon seasoned with Garlic & Parsley. I do eat other seafood tho.