Health Question; How to get in better shape for summer?

[frecklefaced]

Hey guys,

I want to get in a lot better shape!

I am 5'3.5

130 pounds

34-27-35

link

That's me in the middle with the pink bikkni(:

I would like to lose about 10 pounds or so

What should I

1. Eat / NOT eat

2. DO for a workout

I'm willing to work hard

Updates

+1 y

Thank you guys for all the help!

[Anonymous]

You need to incorporate stretching before and after working out.

Stretching also helps your muscles become less sore the next day.

Dynamic stretching before workout and long static stretching after a workout.

working out builds muscles and without stretching they will tighten up and you will lose a lot of flexibility in a short amount of time if you are not careful.

I would suggest trail running for 45 to 60 minuets 3 times a week because it is more fun and go slow if you are trying to lose weight because going fast makes you gain more muscle while you can keep up a slow run longer and burn more calories.

Run in an area with hills if you want a change of resistance though out the workout.

running is a great way to get amazing abs because it takes a lot of balance to run even though we don't often notice it.

Try to do workouts that incorporate balance into it, that way you are constantly working out your abs in more ways than you would with situps.

- squats on a bosu ball with medicine ball

- push pus on a bosu ball or medicine balls

- do dumbbell press lying on a exercise ball

- lunges with weights

- Incline pull ups

- dumbbell step ups

- mountain climber

Power sets are also really good for working out because the rest between sets lowers body temp which causes less fat burn so if you do your arms or legs then during you rest time go the other one so that you are constantly moving. Or you can also just do something easy during rest like step ups or jump rope.

After a work out you should not feel exhausted but energized like you could fly. If you feel like you've just been toughly beaten by a world champion in boxing then you have pushed yourself too hard.

It is important to go easy to begin with and then increase intensity.

You should also change you routine every 3-4 month because you body adjusts to you work out and is no longer challenged so it doesn't need to improve...

Between changes of workout you should take a week off so that your body can have time to repair itself, and it helps prevent injury. ( I was a bit obsessed with heavy weight training and didn't start slow or rest and now I had to stop because my wrist can't take the strain anymore. =(. )

I also suggest taking up a sport because it is much more fun way to burn more fat and make you training that much more worth while. At least that is what I find =)

I personally lose the most weight when I stop working out... when I worked out and played sports I weighed 17 pounds more and with just sports I weight 7 pounds more xD when I did neither I weighed 103 and I am 5 foot 2.5

[frecklefaced]

Thank you so much<3 this was awesome. I think I will start doing slow runs for 30 min and then slowly increasing the time AND I will stretch!

[peace-love-couture]

I'm 5'3 and use to weigh 130 and now I've dropped down to about 113 by exercising.

-30 to 60 minutes of cardio a day(running,jogging,elliptical trainer,jump roping,swimming etc)

-Strength training 2-3x a week(resistance training,weight training,yoga,pilates,calisthenics etc)

-Eliminate liquid calories such as cokes and fruit juices and transition to water

-Try to limit fast food and processed foods

-Eat a well balanced diet:Breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, snack. Make the snacks healthy but filling and no more than 200 calories and they say your major meals should start out with alot, but as the day progresses they should get lighter and lighter.

[frecklefaced]

Great simple advice!

[dan123z4]

as a personal trainer and someone who did a lot of research in nutrition I believe weight loss is pretty simple and diets and articles complicate it in people head. The number one thing is nutrition. Now I have 5 sisters with whom I'm always fighting about this, most girls eat to little. Yes to little. I'm assuming you don't stuff you're face bec than your answer would be obvious, but usually there's that final stubborn 10 lbs. What happens when you don't eat enough is your body goes into starvation mode and stores everything you eat. Instead have 3 balanced meals good source of protien carbs and fat. For ex. A piece of salmon with veggies. Plus 3 snacks a day like an apple and yogart. So you should be eating something every 2 to 3 hrs. Now about working out girls are scared of weights bec they don't want to get bulky. Jessica alba hits the weights 6 times a week. Does she look like a linebacker to you? A female body without steroids can't produce a lot of muscle. So eat healthy( you dnt have to go crazy just don't eat anything stupid) and workout a with weights a few times a week and some cardio also. A good book for you would be womens health big book of exercise, or the workout by gunnar peterson

[frecklefaced]

wonderful, thank you!

[iSkydive]

Some people posting on here are making this look like rocket surgery. It's not hard.

1) Eat only protein and vegetables for every meal. Eat at least 130 grams of protein a day.

2) The ONLY time you eat carbs is the meal you have right after working out. And, the only carbs you can have come from WHOLE GRAINS. Things like oatmeal or whole grain (not whole wheat) bread. My favorite post-workout meal is spaghetti with whole grain noodles.

3) You workout should be focused on building muscle. However, when you're dieting you're not going to be building much of anything. The point is to preserve your muscles because they are the POWERHOUSES of the body that burn FAT.

4) Do HIIT (high intensity interval training) three times a week. It's been shown SCIENTIFICALLY to re-engineer the body to to burn more fat than your body stores. Basically, your body will become the fat burning machine nature intended it to be.

There. That's it. A 100% fool-proof method of losing fat. I know it works because I've done it more times than I can count. There is no need to count calories or anything. Just do the above and the fat will basically melt away.

[frecklefaced]

I'll try it! What would one normally eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner that only has veggies and protein?

[iSkydive]

Speaking only for myself.. .my protein consists mostly of eggs, steak, chicken, whey supplements, etc. Vegetables will be mixed just to make sure I cover my vitamin and mineral requirements. Basically consume at least 130 grams of protein for your weight (no more than 200) and eat as many vegetables as you can stomach. I guarantee you won't eat too many. But, start SLOW! Like one meal at a time for a few days at a time.

[BeerME]

1. Eat. Not eating will be the death of your metabolism. 10 lbs. is not a dramatic amount of weight so I wouldn't say that you need to completely overhaul your diet. Cutting down on calories a bit should do just fine. Some people will say go low carb, which is fine if you're looking to go with a diet only weight loss plan, but for someone looking to exercise I'd suggest going with complex carbs such as wholegrain. They're very good for you and will give you plenty of energy for your workouts.

2. Cardio, cardio, cardio. When you're done with those, do more cardio. Running is the most effective but it's best that you find something you enjoy doing. You'll likely have better results if you like working out. It's also generally a good idea to mix it up a bit. For example, if you run a lot, you might want to ride a bike or swim laps every once in a while. It's more fun this way and it keeps your body from adjusting to the activity.

Working on your muscles won't burn as many calories and isn't nearly as effective for weight loss, particularly in the short term. However, if you mix some light weight lifting and ab exercises into your workout, it will tighten and tone your body. Building muscle will also increase your metabolism which will help you lose weight and keep it off.

Good Luck

[Anonymous]

1. lots of fiber (they make things that taste good but are high in fiber, be on the look out for that). lots of vegetables (more than fruit because fruits have natural sugars in them and sugars are fat), not to say to completely ignore fruit, just better to eat your veges, protein (yes, this means meat (if your a meat eater)) meat does have fat in it just as long as you don't go overboard on it. there's a diff. between eating a lot and eating a little. keep your junk food to a minimum but don't cut it out completely. maybe once or twice a week but no more than like a cookie or w/e a day. (I could go on and on about what to eat but you get the point)

2. cardio. womens number one cause of death relating to not exercising is the heart. keep running at least a half hour a day or so. if you want to body build (which not very many women do), look up a body building plan online that looks good to you (helps to have an idol so you can look up what she does in her workouts)

hope this helps :) and for what its worth. I honestly don't think you need to lose any weight, but I know that's not what your looking for. just thought id chime my opinion in :P

[frecklefaced]

Thank you for the eating advise!

[Opinion Owner]

np

[kriskiss]

Do P90x it works like a charm and just follow the program that's all I gotta say. They have a diet guide for you to follow. lots of veggies, carbs, protein, ideally eat 5 or so small meals a day. and do cardio 3-5 days a week and 3-4 days of weightlifting. but yeah p90x is the way to go just order it its really affective and fun. good luck.

[iSkydive]

Or try his newest one: Insanity.

[frecklefaced]

Thank you !

[Livestrong58]

Best thing you can do is do compound exercises for specific muscle groups while doing HIIT instead of long duration cardio. The pic didn't work for me, but going by your measurements, I would suggest doing exercises involving the posterior chain on days you don't do the interval training. A major thing about weight loss though is that its not something you have to do all at once, takes time. For most people, losing weight is called cutting, regardless of whether or not you are a bodybuilder, and people doing this only work out 4x-ish a week, but their exercises are very purposeful. If you're curious about what specific exercises let me know, but Id do research on those concepts and pick out what you can do with what is available to you. Best of luck!

[Lis4Loca]

girl... you have a completely flat stomach! You are an average weight for your height and in a healthy BMI. Honestly... I think you have a great bikini body. I work out 6 days a week and I don't look half as bangin in a bikini... just sayin! Love what you have!

[frecklefaced]

Thank you, that's very sweet!

[Livestrong58]

Éirinn go brách!