new and need help

[dezpez]

Hi, I'm new to this site, to body building and pretty much working out all together.

I'm 24, 5'4 and about 155. I'm not sure what my body fat % is, but I'm sure its fairly high. I don't have a very active lifestyle. My family and I are pretty much homebodies. And most of the muscle I have now is from carrying around my 35 pound 4 year old. I've tried working out before, I had a gym membership but stopped going after my kids had a bad experience with the daycare there and my husband's schedule didn't allow for him to watch them while I went. I've done Jillian Michael's 30 day shred, but I lasted maybe 15 days. I tried EA Active on the Wii, Wii Fit and now EA Active 2 on the xbox. So pretty much the gimmicky video game work out programs.

I've been feeling horrible about my weight lately and I'm not happy with the work outs from the Ea active 2. I thought to myself "body builders know how to get fit why don't I look into that?" And I found this website. I started the 12 week Jamie Eason plan for fat loss, but since I'm working out at home I need to modify or completely skip some exercises. I do have dumbbells and resistance bands but not a barbell.

My main questions are about the diet and working out at home. My family and I eat fairly clean. We don't eat boxed meals, we cook our dinners and try to use fresh veggies as much as possible. We do need to work on some things like not eating mashed potatoes so much, or at all and not having the occassional pizza. But I've read on a lot of the women transformations about their diets and they scare me. How do moms with little kids (especially picky eaters) make the chicken dinners? I have a hard time finding meals that the kids will eat and I dont want to have to make 2 or 3 separate meals everynight. Are those examples for the cutting process or for the weightloss? Also without having access to a gym, is it possible to get results. I've looked for alternatives to leg curls and extensions with the machines but the majority of what I've found is to just do squats or lunges. I know I need to get more weights, especially heavier dumbbells and a barbell, but in the mean time does it work to hold dumbbells in substitute for a barbell? Also I've read that women need to lift heavy instead of doing more reps with smaller weights. My husband is among those that believe women will bulk up if they lift heavy. Are there any good books that you've come across that explain that? Or any good books about lifting or working out. There are so many that I don't know where to start.

Sorry this post got so long. I appreciate any help and feed back :)

[Jeshi]

Hi, I'm new to this site, to body building and pretty much working out all together.

I'm 24, 5'4 and about 155. I'm not sure what my body fat % is, but I'm sure its fairly high. I don't have a very active lifestyle. My family and I are pretty much homebodies. And most of the muscle I have now is from carrying around my 35 pound 4 year old. I've tried working out before, I had a gym membership but stopped going after my kids had a bad experience with the daycare there and my husband's schedule didn't allow for him to watch them while I went. I've done Jillian Michael's 30 day shred, but I lasted maybe 15 days. I tried EA Active on the Wii, Wii Fit and now EA Active 2 on the xbox. So pretty much the gimmicky video game work out programs.

I've been feeling horrible about my weight lately and I'm not happy with the work outs from the Ea active 2. I thought to myself "body builders know how to get fit why don't I look into that?" And I found this website. I started the 12 week Jamie Eason plan for fat loss, but since I'm working out at home I need to modify or completely skip some exercises. I do have dumbbells and resistance bands but not a barbell.

My main questions are about the diet and working out at home. My family and I eat fairly clean. We don't eat boxed meals, we cook our dinners and try to use fresh veggies as much as possible. We do need to work on some things like not eating mashed potatoes so much, or at all and not having the occassional pizza. But I've read on a lot of the women transformations about their diets and they scare me. How do moms with little kids (especially picky eaters) make the chicken dinners? I have a hard time finding meals that the kids will eat and I dont want to have to make 2 or 3 separate meals everynight. Are those examples for the cutting process or for the weightloss? Also without having access to a gym, is it possible to get results. I've looked for alternatives to leg curls and extensions with the machines but the majority of what I've found is to just do squats or lunges. I know I need to get more weights, especially heavier dumbbells and a barbell, but in the mean time does it work to hold dumbbells in substitute for a barbell? Also I've read that women need to lift heavy instead of doing more reps with smaller weights. My husband is among those that believe women will bulk up if they lift heavy. Are there any good books that you've come across that explain that? Or any good books about lifting or working out. There are so many that I don't know where to start.

Sorry this post got so long. I appreciate any help and feed back :)

Book: New Rules of Lifting for Women. On the front of the cover it says "Lift like a man, look like a goddess" :P

In the book is a nutrition plan, I am doing my own diet type thing (Counting cals, which I reccommend -> go to female section Nutrition forum and there is a sticky about Calories and maintenance)

What I like about the book is it gives you a workout plan for 6 months I believe, lots of variety. I work out at home as well. Right now I have dumbells + swiss ball. But that is about it. I can do most of the exercises (for the rows, deadlifts and squats I can use dumbells... I don't have a lot pulldown machine (need ez bar for alternative) and I don't have step ups right now :P ).

I am going out tonight to a "reuse it" store which is basically a thrift store, but they accept everything and anything. I am going to look for an "ez bar" and a "barbell". They have tons of exercise stuff, maybe look for a place around you?

As for food, look for ways to make "bad" recipes more healthy. I make healthy meatloaf, shepherds pie, chicken burgers, etc. They are a lot of fun! And it is fun to come up with it.

[ladyflo]

Hi,
I'm also a mother with fussy eaters, I've found that involving the kids in the new healthy eating lifestyle has helped. Having them help with prep of veg and eating a bit as they go is good. Also making a promise that every week you ll all try something new has worked quite well for us, then i've slowly incorporated it into our regular diet. As far as recipes go making potato wedges/chips (fries in the US i think) from scratch, white potatoes for the kids and sweet potatoes for you sprinkle a bit of paprika on tastes good and they can all go in the oven together. Then do some baked chicken with herbs and garlic, and then some steamed carrots and broccoli, then gravy for the kids non for you. Stir frys are good chicken then any veg they ll eat, add a little soy sauce so some flavour but not too strong serve with brown rice or whole wheat noodles. When making tomato sauce based dishes cook some veg and blend it in with the tomatoes they ll never notice plus no lumps! I've also substituted beef mince for turkey mince, if they re having mash pots just stick a sweet potato in the oven for you. But basically you do the cooking and they ll soon come round to the idea of eating what mummy eats, they wont starve, reward good eating habits
and ignore any protest just take the food away and say there is nothing else. Hope you found this useful as far as the food side of things goes.

Stick with it and the results are worth it !!!

[xraychick]

There are those for dummies books out there..weight loss for dummies and weight lifting for dummies.

listen, to lose weight and get in shape takes work and motivation. Its not easy by any means. Look at p90x and insanity workouts. they are 'at home' and they are tough. Also, if you are trying to lose weight, you wont bulk up no matter how many weights you lift. You need a calorie deficit to lose fat and a cal surplus to gain muscle. So its one or the other. If you lift, sure your muscles will get firmer but thats about it. Cardio will make you lose weight. You can always try running in your neighborhood, or get a treadmill. I know you have kids, and its tough to find the time to workout with them, but you can if you really wanted to. You can also engage them to workout with you. As far as cooking meals, make them eat what you cook. you are the parent. and if you want to have healthy kids then they need to be taught young how to live properly healthy lives. Chicken isnt the only healthy type of meal. I am a vegetarian, so i cant and wont say to eat animals, but whole grain pastas and rice, beans, fresh veg are all healthy choices.

Women can 'bulk' up if they body build. No, they wont get as big as a man. men are naturally bigger than women anyways, so of course they'll have more muscles they can put on their frames. There is a biological limit for everyone for as how much muscle one can put on. Those big dudes you see in gyms, the huge ones, use steriods or whatnot to get that big.

so if you want lose weight, you need to do some cardio and watch your calorie intake. There is a formula called BMR..basal metabolic rate and they can be found by googling. find your bmr and add your activity level and find out how many calories you need to intake to maintain your current weight, then subtract from there to lose weight. it takes 3500 cals to make one lb of fat. So to lose a lb of fat you need to burn or not intake 3500 cals. usually people divide this up over a week. so 500 less cals a day equals loss of 1 lb of fat.

[csvt18]

There are those for dummies books out there..weight loss for dummies and weight lifting for dummies.

listen, to lose weight and get in shape takes work and motivation. Its not easy by any means. Look at p90x and insanity workouts. they are 'at home' and they are tough. Also, if you are trying to lose weight, you wont bulk up no matter how many weights you lift. You need a calorie deficit to lose fat and a cal surplus to gain muscle. So its one or the other. If you lift, sure your muscles will get firmer but thats about it. Cardio will make you lose weight. You can always try running in your neighborhood, or get a treadmill. I know you have kids, and its tough to find the time to workout with them, but you can if you really wanted to. You can also engage them to workout with you. As far as cooking meals, make them eat what you cook. you are the parent. and if you want to have healthy kids then they need to be taught young how to live properly healthy lives. Chicken isnt the only healthy type of meal. I am a vegetarian, so i cant and wont say to eat animals, but whole grain pastas and rice, beans, fresh veg are all healthy choices.

Women can 'bulk' up if they body build. No, they wont get as big as a man. men are naturally bigger than women anyways, so of course they'll have more muscles they can put on their frames. There is a biological limit for everyone for as how much muscle one can put on. Those big dudes you see in gyms, the huge ones, use steriods or whatnot to get that big.

so if you want lose weight, you need to do some cardio and watch your calorie intake. There is a formula called BMR..basal metabolic rate and they can be found by googling. find your bmr and add your activity level and find out how many calories you need to intake to maintain your current weight, then subtract from there to lose weight. it takes 3500 cals to make one lb of fat. So to lose a lb of fat you need to burn or not intake 3500 cals. usually people divide this up over a week. so 500 less cals a day equals loss of 1 lb of fat.


That's a false positive statement... not all of em.

[Londonlady]

Hi, I'm new to this site, to body building and pretty much working out all together.

I'm 24, 5'4 and about 155. I'm not sure what my body fat % is, but I'm sure its fairly high. I don't have a very active lifestyle. My family and I are pretty much homebodies. And most of the muscle I have now is from carrying around my 35 pound 4 year old. I've tried working out before, I had a gym membership but stopped going after my kids had a bad experience with the daycare there and my husband's schedule didn't allow for him to watch them while I went. I've done Jillian Michael's 30 day shred, but I lasted maybe 15 days. I tried EA Active on the Wii, Wii Fit and now EA Active 2 on the xbox. So pretty much the gimmicky video game work out programs.

I've been feeling horrible about my weight lately and I'm not happy with the work outs from the Ea active 2. I thought to myself "body builders know how to get fit why don't I look into that?" And I found this website. I started the 12 week Jamie Eason plan for fat loss, but since I'm working out at home I need to modify or completely skip some exercises. I do have dumbbells and resistance bands but not a barbell.

My main questions are about the diet and working out at home. My family and I eat fairly clean. We don't eat boxed meals, we cook our dinners and try to use fresh veggies as much as possible. We do need to work on some things like not eating mashed potatoes so much, or at all and not having the occassional pizza. But I've read on a lot of the women transformations about their diets and they scare me. How do moms with little kids (especially picky eaters) make the chicken dinners? I have a hard time finding meals that the kids will eat and I dont want to have to make 2 or 3 separate meals everynight. Are those examples for the cutting process or for the weightloss? Also without having access to a gym, is it possible to get results. I've looked for alternatives to leg curls and extensions with the machines but the majority of what I've found is to just do squats or lunges. I know I need to get more weights, especially heavier dumbbells and a barbell, but in the mean time does it work to hold dumbbells in substitute for a barbell? Also I've read that women need to lift heavy instead of doing more reps with smaller weights. My husband is among those that believe women will bulk up if they lift heavy. Are there any good books that you've come across that explain that? Or any good books about lifting or working out. There are so many that I don't know where to start.

Sorry this post got so long. I appreciate any help and feed back :)

Hi! I am also 5'4 and have a 2yr old and work out at home. I don't have alot of experience in this field but I'll share my experience with you. Firstly working out; I make a plan to get up everymorning before my child does and get my workout in. That way I know it will get done and I feel ready for the day. I have been doing P90X and am on my last month of it. I have progressed to lifting heavier weights and I have seen a difference and felt a difference in my body and how my clothes fit. From what I have read and from what the other ladies have posted here, you will not bulk up like a man if you lift heavy. You'll gain muscle and shape your body, but you won't look like a bodybuilder. I am going to get the book New Rules of Lifting for Women; the other ladies here recommend it!
As for eating, my toddler is VERY picky about what goes in his mouth. He won't eat veggies of anykind right now, even though I offer them at every meal. I sneak pureed veggies into pasta sauce, muffins etc. I usually try to keep my meals healthy for my whole family. My husband loves meat & potatoes, so I've been making alot of chicken, lean beef and using Yams/Sweet Potatoes in place of white potatoes. If we do have pizza for a night, I make the crust, whole wheat and my own tomato sauce, TONS of veggies and a lean meat, then a little cheese. There are alot of recipes out there that can be tasty and healthy that the whole family can enjoy.
It was tough for me to get modivated to get my butt in gear after I had my little one and it's only been in the past few months I've committed to myself. As a mom, you definately need to take care of yourself and make time for you. Even if it means getting up early to have your workout time, where you can focus on you.
Wishing you the best in your journey; you can do it, just take it a day at a time. Good Luck!

[tntbabe]

New Rules of Lifting for Women will help you out tremendously... It goes over nutrition and misconceptions about women working out. Also regarding the home workouts, there are endless amounts exercises with dumbbells that are almost exactly the same as the barbell exercises. The barbell just helps for stabilization and putting on really heavy weights. Hope this helps a little... good luck with your journey!

[irngirl]

Hi Dez,

I'm feelin ya on the front with having kids and making this a lifestyle. This HAS TO be a lifestyle change if its going to work. You have to "Fuel the desire until the desire fuels you."

I have 3 girls and very often there is no agreement on dinner. The worst question to ask is "What do you want for dinner?" I get 3 different answers every time. Make the meal and if they are hungry enough they will eat. Chances are they'll complain... but they'll eat.

If you're just starting out. Don't put too much pressure on yourself to be a certain # on the scale. It's not the best judge of progress. Make some small changes and BE CONSISTENT!!! Consistency is the most important thing in my opinion to make a change in your physique. Both with diet and exercise. They have to work together and continuously. Give yourself time. It will NOT happen in 1 week or even 4 weeks. Set a very specific goal and STICK TO IT! I know you can do it girl!

PM me if you want. AND... don't take the negativity you may receive from people in life or on the forums. You can do anything you want! **smile**