modath:

@Might love,hw u doin?yep,minimum for cardio to be effective for weight loss is between 45-60 mins.when you build up strenght and endurance 30 mins of running or 20 mins of HIIT.but pls dont try anything high intensity for now,i beg u.Romeo is right on the money.

modath, am good. thanks oh.
i thought 30 mins was minimum oh. from today i will start doing 40 mins and then increase it gradually to at least 45 mins per session. I want to make sure i am getting enough excercise so that i will loose considerably.oh, i forgot to mention to you that i got the elliptical cross trainer at sports world, ceddi .couldnt wait till i travel to lag cos that would have been next year.


yesterday's logs
BF: 3 slices of bread and 2 fried eggs
Brunch: very small size of semovita with ewedu soup and 1 piece of meat.
Lunch: 2 servings of yam prridge with efo
Dinner: a cup of garri and sugar.
Also ate about 3 spoons of spaghetti from my husband's food (longer throat), very small cup of pap with sugar.
water: over 3 litres
snacks: a handful of chin chin

I dont know what came over me yesterday. i ate all the wrong things and too many meals. I will make sure i pay for it and i wont let it happen again, not in the weeks or months to come.

excercise:
35 minutes on the elliptical machine
jumped rope 116 times, my legs were too tired from pedalling on the elliptical machine, couldnt jump more.

Might love,never i repeat never use exercise to compensate for overeating,its a vicious circle.a one cheat meal/day/or even week will not ruin your plans if you take healthy living as a journey and not a destination.what we do occassionally doesnt define us,it what we make a habit of that mark us.
Its a new lifestyle and you deserve kudos for even making an effort but i beg you to make it count by making a commitment and seeing it through.this is also a test of character.
Try the 80/20 approach,80% of the time you follow through with all your plans while 20% is for your sanity if you know what i mean.

P.s=sorry if i came on strong,i can be passionate about stuff ugghh.

Thanks people,

Yesterdays log(Thursday 11-11-10)
Breakfast: Small plate of rice and plantain
Lunch: 2 apples and vanilla shake
Dinner: Big bowl of spinach,green pepper,fish and beef
Snack: 5 handfuls of peanuts

Exercise:
Squats:1 set of 12 reps without a barbell and 3 sets of 12 reps with a barbell
Shoulder press: 3 sets of 12 reps with dumbells since the barbell was too heavy for me.
Crunches

i'll be doing more of strength training as opposed to long cardio workouts. I think they are more effective and besides with HIIT, your body continues to burn fat long after the workout as opposed to long slow cardio.

@ all I am fine oh.

Doc recommended rest for moi, I have been off exercises and eating like hell.
Checked my weight yesterday and I am now weighing 83kg from 80.5kg.
Thats the result of no exercise for about a month.

Logs
12/11/2010

B 2 servings of rice and chicken
L 1.5 servings of wheat and egusi soup + 2 pieces of chicken
D 2 servings of boiled rice + 2 pieces of dodo + 1 piece of chicken

Snacks 2 handfuls of groundnut + 4 slices of water melon
Water 2L +
Exercise Nil.

Yesterdays log(Friday 12-11-10)

Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs with green pepper and onion, 1 slice of pineapple with lots of water
Snack: Handful of peanuts and 1 apple
Lunch:Spinach salad
Snack:2 bananas and peanuts
Dinner:A bowl of oats and milk with a boiled egg.

yep, i know. Too many eggs.

Exercise:none

hi guys. love this thread.
my name is propofol and i weigh a whooping 114kg!place!!
need help fast. want to try meal replacement with exercise. pls can anyone tell me how much those protein shakes cost and where to buy? i live in lagos.

@mightlove -

Don't worry or beat yourself up about it. Just try to be consistent regarding diet and exercise. Increase the cardio times, add in some resistance exercises - high reps, and soldier on. You don't have to do the elliptical and skipping on the same day - in fact, you shouldn't; unless you plan to workout for a min 1hr 20mins (40mins/exercise).

Todays log(Saturday 13-11-10)

Breakfast= 2 scrambled eggs and pineapple
Lunch=yogurt,3 bananas,peanuts and 3 pieces of liver
Dinner=Big bowl of chicken and lettuce salad

Exercise:

Deadlift 3 sets of 12 reps with a barbell
Assisted pull ups 3 sets of 8 reps

Welcome to the thread Propofol - interesting name!

Protein shakes and Meal Replacement shakes are not the same. Meal Replacement shakes by nature have more calories in them, due the addition of simple sugars - Dextrose, Glucose, or Maltodextrin. They are intended to replace a meal. The downside to them is that they only contain simple carbohydrates (sugars), which you want to avoid in a weight loss program.
You have to be an athlete, or recovering from an illness for you to gain any benefit from them. You may as well have a glass of milk with 5 spoons of sugar and save yourself the money!

Anyway, in any weight loss programme, you NEED to be eating complex carbs. Because they break down far more slowly than simple carbs, 2 things happen - (1) The energy from complex carbs is released more slowly into you body. This ensures there is not a lot of excess sugars circulating in your bloodstream that will consequently be turned to fat; (2) Your body utilises a lot of calories to metabolise the complex carbs. This means you are burning more calories, and thereby an increase in metabolic rate - a good thing in a weight loss programme.

There is NO healthy sustainable quick fix to weight loss. It will take time, hard work, a change in lifestyle and a total shift in your relationship with food.

If you want to do that, we are all here to help. All the best.

You are welcome propofol, Are you male or female and whats your height? what is your goal weight and have you started any exercise routine?

Hey Modath, just a quick one regarding HIIT. The problem with the HIIT style is that it is really only beneficial to athletes/sportsmen who are looking to improve performance, endurance, cardiovascular capacity and their VO2 Max.
By its very nature, it is of little benefit in a weight loss program because (1) An overweight person will find it impossible to generate the intensity needed (2) It will only burn blood glucose and muscle glycogen due to its short duration.

@modath and rome: thanks for your input.
@prpofol: welcome
@romeo; i will start the resistance training next week

yesterday's logs (12-11-2010)

BF: 4 slices of bread with a 33cl canned shweppes
L: fist size eba with wedu soup and 2 pieces of meat
D: 2 servings of beans and rice with a piece of meat
snack: a hanful of chin chin

water: over 3 litres


excercise: 45 minutes on the elliptical trainer


today's log

BF: 3 servings of bean and rice, a pice of meat with a hot cup of beverage 9no sugar0
L:
D: fist size semo with plenty vegetable soup and a piece of meat
snacks: about 6 pieces of nasco short cake, was out all day and got very thirsty so i took a 33cl can of schweppes

excercise: 45 minutes on the croos trainer

thanks guys. i m thinking of going on a very lowv calorie diet for 2 weeks to jump start my weight loss process. any ideas ? anyone?

yesterdays logs

B 1 serving of rice + chicken
L 1 serving of ice cream +suya
D 1 serving of fried rice + 2 pieces of chicken

Snack packet of plantain chips.

Water 1L +
Exercise Nil except for walking around the Lag trade fair venue.

@Romeo,
How are you doing?i never did HIIT when i was a baby whale cos i would have died for sure but i do it now(2x weekly) to kick my metabolism to the stratosphere and i have found it beneficial. when i started my initial brand of hiit was short runs interspersed with my brisk walks and it helped me break my plateaus.i gleaned from other forum contributors at caloriecount.about.com and sparkpeople.com. That their body too gets used to steady state cardio as they get stronger.
Romeo,my relatives(who i care about and respect their opinions) are complaining that am too skinny,was not built to be that skinny(76kg),they also said am giving people the impression that am either depressed,my husband is maltreating me,or am impoverished.i cant avoid them for now cos we are together @ my grandma's for the eid celebration."Are they blind cant they see my gut" i know they will soon get used to it but they want to kill me now.

@mightlove,
Hope you are doing great,i'd luv it if you can join sparkpeople.com,check out contributor's blogs on the forum.but most importantly i'd really like it if you can check out a chick called "Rikkielle" blog.it has been of monumental motivation and benefit to me.i do hope you will derive the same benefit and pleasure.
@Propofol,
welcome,you are in the right place,my friend too started too at the same weight in may and she has dropped 13kg,slow i know but she is doing it the healthy way.as our resident guru(Romeo) has highlighted to you dont waste your money on crap that will neither nourish your body nor your soul,rather save it for splurges on clothes and accessories you will start craving when you start seeing results.
@Sammie,
welcome back,take things easy for now,health is wealth.when you are well and able,its like riding a bike or driving,once mastered never forgotten.
@Eja,
How body and the lil bun in the oven.

modath:


Romeo,my relatives(who i care about and respect their opinions) are complaining that am too skinny,was not built to be that skinny(76kg),they also said am giving people the impression that am either depressed,my husband is maltreating me,or am impoverished.i cant avoid them for now cos we are together @ my grandma's for the eid celebration."Are they blind cant they see my gut" i know they will soon get used to it but they want to kill me now.

Hi modath. I'm fine thank you. From what you've written it sounds like you are in a Yoruba family. You can't really blame them as a married skinny woman is perceived to be suffering or not being taken of. A bit of it is some jealousy. I advice that you find a balance. I realize that you have a goal but try to balance it sha. What about your husband? If he's okay with it then no probs. Please dnt let them kill you o



@ all,hi. Is mayonnaise okay for a pregnant woman to eat? I've been craving a sandwich for a while now but i remember reading somewhere that a preg woman shouldn't eat mayonnaise,true? I know it's not the healthiest of choices but help before I tear my hair out.

@Eja,
My hussy is the bestest ,he is not only my one man cheerleading team.he supports anything i do(within reason),to the extent that some people are of the opinion that i have done some yoruba magic to him,but the truth is that i just let him be the man.
As for my people ,you know my yoruba people well.na so we dey.one of them even ingeniously "advised" me to leave myself the way God intended me to be and just get a good "Girdle" to rein in all the bits,pieces and jiggly mass i have cos that is what other women do. What ignorance!

Lol. Modath deal with them wisely. It's frustrating trying to explain something that's good and that works to someone who just refuses to learn. My motto is if my husband is happy with me the way I am or with what I am doing then to hell with other people,within reason. See, my goal weight is 70kg but my husband has told me not to try it. He's Yoruba you see and gave me all those reasons your people gave you So I'll have to compromise. You sound like you have a bit of a temper,no offense meant. Just deal with your peeps with wisdom,bear the unrequested advice and continue with your life when you return to Abj. After all it's your life. But do not stop your healthy living because of someone else. My 2 kobo. Have a nice holiday

Eja,
no offence taken,you hit the nail on the head about my temper.i used to have a major anger management issues in the past(it alienated some people till date) but as am maturing and growing am gradually getting over it.am still a work in progress but i didnt talk back at anyone,just not bothered one bit.
The issue is that i look so different from the last time they saw me and they find the transformation strange.

same with me

@modath: lol, dont mind all those people. i am with you all the way, even though my opinion does not count as much as your husband's.infact i am looking forward to when they will start passing such comments and giving me such advice . can you imagine, what my tailor told me? i told her i am not sewing any more clothes until i loose weight considerably and she told me bluntly that i can never loose weight again after having a baby. i guess she said that cos she is overweight too (even bigger than me) and she is not ready to do anything about it and wonders why anyone else should do. she wants us all to remain that way so that she can have some consolation. as for me hell no, i will work until i loose all the excess baggage i have and i will work on maintaining it too.

@eja: how are you doing? i really dont know about mayonnaise and pregnant women oh. i ate it well when i was pregnant. i will do some search on it though. i guess romeo should know.

yesterdays logs:
breakfast: 2 .5 slices of bread with vegetable and a hot cup of beverage
lunch: fist size pounded yam with lots of vegetable soup
dinner: 5 pieces of nasco biscuit with a 33cl of amstel malta, a portion of vegetable soup
snacks: Nil
water: >2litres

excercise:
Nil (decided to rest)

weight as at yesterday: 94kg.

@General house
Hi all,hw y'all doing?
@might love,
I do hope you are still on the wagon.as for your tailor, just ignore her.

@all: how are you all doing?
@modath: yeah, i am still very much on the wagon and improving everyday. i have hit 50 minutes on the elliptical trainer now. i'll keep increasing it gradually. what should be the maximum one can do at a stretch?

I will be away from the forum until after next week cos i have an exam to write and i am reading for it.
I will however eat healthy and do my routine workout religiously. i will post the logs when i am back.
see you all when i am back.

@mightlove,
You are doing perfectly okay as it is,just make sure you feel the burn and your heart rate is up.when its time to increase it your body will cue you.

@Romeo,alpha tango
Squadron leader,you have gone awol again,report back to base asap.over!

@General house,
Where is everyone
i tire ooo,its lonely to be here all by myself.

Hallo modath. I wanted to post yesterday but somehow I forgot. I forget a lot these days.

Yesterday 22/11/2010
B - 3 slices of fruit bread and a mug of lipton tea
L - 3 servings of jollof rice,green peas,dodo and a pc of chicken
Snack - a bowl of fruit salad(pawpaw,watermelon and pineapple)
D - 3 servings jollof rice,green peas and a pc of chicken
9:30pm - a bowl of fruit salad
Water - about 2L
Exercise - nil

I think I made good choices yesterday

@Eja,
Yes you did,and if i know like i feel i do you were filled and was satisfied.keep it up.

Thanks modath.

Very embarrassing but I can't remember what I ate yesterday. I have cracked and cracked my brain but it eludes me.

Today 23/11/2010
8am - 4 slices fruit bread and a mug of lipton tea
2pm - 2 gala and a small cake with a bottle of fanta(was seeing stars by then and bought what was around me)
4:30pm - a bowl of cornflakes
5pm - 4 small pcs of yam and veg sauce
8pm - wheatmeal and vegetable soup with dry fish
I forsee another bowl of cornflakes before I sleep.
Water - approx 2L

hi my name is coxty
i wish to loss my weight but no body to encourage me in the area i leave i plan to be jogging at least 30m in a day i but i found that becos i jog so boys started following me and it always in the morning around 6:00-6:30am, secondly i eat what so ever i see in the morning some time i don't eat in my area we only have pinapple which is the contour type the sugar so i didn't like it so i didn't no what to do and on the big size pls help me. am in badagry area.

@Coxty,
Welcome,i dont want to come across but i need to ask you some questions.
1.how old are
2.what is present and goal weight
3.are the boys following you ruffians/thugs/criminals or idle neighbourhood kids.
4.are you new to jogging?
Your response will guide the recommendation.

@Eja,
You are killing me,why didn't you have water with the gala and cake(which the baby needed promptly).you are a naughty one ooooo.

modath:

@Eja,
You are killing me,why didn't you have water with the gala and cake(which the baby needed promptly).you are a naughty one ooooo.

I drank water o but I was shaking with hunger by then so I bought fanta for quick blood sugar(or so i thought) and taste After that I still drank almost a liter of water.

Welcome Coxty.