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Obese and don't know where to start!
hey since I've come to uni my weight has been slowly slipping up from large portions and alcohol, I got on the scales the other day and I was disgusted at how much I weigh I'm 5'3 and weigh 11stone 6 which i'm pretty much sure is obese... I don't want this to effect my health or confidence so I've decided I better start losing weight but I don't know where to start... I walk 40mins to uni and 40 mins back everyday so I do exercise and I'm in a catered hall so I pretty much eat what I'm given... any suggestions on losing weight and on how much I should aim to lose a week? thanks x
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Watch the portion sizes in your hall canteen. Don't finish a big plate of something just because it's there, and try to remember to eat fruit and veg. Other than that watch your alcohol intake, and try to do some exercise. Even aerobics in your room can help; it doesn't have to be anything big.
As I'm sure Why would tell you, walking isn't going to help much in losing weight. You want to try and get yourself a gym membership, or go for runs every day / every two days. Regular, committed exercise is the only way to really lose weight -as I've found out to my chagrin, having tried almost every method under the sun - and thus using X-trainers, treadmills, rowing machines for cardio in the gym is the best way forward. One other tip: if you have access to a fridge, buy salad and some sort of meat to put in it (prawn salad, tunafish salad etc)... they're really nice, filling, especially with cherry tomatoes; and are only about 150/200 cals, if that, and really healthy. Just skip the catered food (or eat their salad and fruit), make your own. If you exercise regularly, and eat well, you should begin to see results within 2 weeks. 
blondie_xxx
hey since I've come to uni my weight has been slowly slipping up from large portions and alcohol, I got on the scales the other day and I was disgusted at how much I weigh I'm 5'3 and weigh 11stone 6 which i'm pretty much sure is obese... I don't want this to effect my health or confidence so I've decided I better start losing weight but I don't know where to start... I walk 40mins to uni and 40 mins back everyday so I do exercise and I'm in a catered hall so I pretty much eat what I'm given... any suggestions on losing weight and on how much I should aim to lose a week? thanks x
Walking = exercise? Barely - especially not if you're actually trying to shift lots of fat. Exercise is when you're out of breath, sweating and feel like you don't want to carry on doing whatever it is you're doing. If you're actually disgusted with your weight then that should provide motivation. Swim, run, play sport, etc - walking is transport and depending on how slowly you go is barely useful.
Having said that, the food side is more important. You eat whatever is at the canteen? That's hardly very responsible. It's fairly simple, if you consume fewer calories every per day than you use then you'll lose weight. To fill up eat lots of vegetables and lean meat (ie. not the skin on chickens and not greasy burgers, but grilled chicken or fish). Don't eat too many carbohydrates. Also, easy one, don't drink anything except water if possible - alcohol in particular is fattening as anything. Cut out all the other crap too. And drink lots of water too.
check out the weight loss society in the fitness section. also check the stickied posts before you start.
reduce the amount of fatty, sugary, processed, and white-grain foods (i.e. if something uses "wheat flour" instead of "wholewheat flour" avoid it, same goes for avoiding "white rice" and chooseing "brown rice"; avoid anything with "glucose-furctose syrup/corn syrup/glucose/sugar; avoid butter, oil; things with a lot of chemicals.
instead choose wholegrains & bran (brown rice, wild/red rice, quinoa, buckwheat, rye, oats, any bran), lean meats (turkey/chicken), fish (tuna/cod/haddock= low fat, salmon/mackerel/sardines = fatty but good), eggs/low fat dairy, soya products/quorn, pulses (lentils/beans), VEGETABLES AND FRUIT, healthy sources of fats (avocado/nuts/fish - remember to watch portion sizes here)
it migh tbe hard to stick to the following but this is just an example menu for a day:
b: -porridge (made with a little skimmed milk, sweetener) with banana or other fruit OR a wholemeal english muffin/2x toast + 100% fruit jam, a piece of fruit OR cereal (wholgrain like wheatabix or shredded wheat or bran, look for low sugar), skimmed milk & fruit OR egg on toast with mushrooms
-tea/coffee/herbal tea
s: low fat plain yogurt with fruit and sweetener OR 1-2 pc fruit (not banana) OR 3 x veg OR low fat hummous with veggie sticks OR ryvita/rice cakes with lf cottage cheese
l: soup (not cream or potato based), wholegrain bread OR salad with protein source in it OR sandwich with salad and fish/low fat cheese/meat/bean paste OR a salad with a grain/pulse OR a jacket potato with tuna/beans
s: as earlier
d: as above OR brown pasta/rice with veggie based sauce & meat/fish/pulse/quorn (e.g. pasta with homemade spicey tomato sauce, courgettes, mushrooms, and quorn sauceages) OR omlette with veggies & cottage cheese... or salmon with asparagus, brocolli and quinoa, or lentil stew...
allow yourself a snack before bed if you're hungry - this could be something like fruit & yogurt as that's dessert like, or you could allow yourself a treat like a 'be good to yourself' pudding (bread & butter pid/ chocolate puds are great)
sugar free jelly is also a fantastic way to have dessert for very few calories.
drink hot fluids to fill your belly and dont forget to drink enough water - often "hunger" is actually thirst
if you find out how many calories you need to maintain your weight, subtract 500 from this and eat that number of calories per day. at this stage perhaps you should build up to doing exercise by making sure you do something evryday, even if it's just walking. even better if you can do cycling, swimming, running, sport, aerobics etc - but if you want to add this later on then at least do the walking for now.
don't try to limit your fruit & veg intake, as these are so low calorie tha you should learn to enjoy them as much as possible. they will satisfy cravings by providing you with a wide range of vitamins and flavours, and are great for snacks.
reduce the amount of fatty, sugary, processed, and white-grain foods (i.e. if something uses "wheat flour" instead of "wholewheat flour" avoid it, same goes for avoiding "white rice" and chooseing "brown rice"; avoid anything with "glucose-furctose syrup/corn syrup/glucose/sugar; avoid butter, oil; things with a lot of chemicals.
instead choose wholegrains & bran (brown rice, wild/red rice, quinoa, buckwheat, rye, oats, any bran), lean meats (turkey/chicken), fish (tuna/cod/haddock= low fat, salmon/mackerel/sardines = fatty but good), eggs/low fat dairy, soya products/quorn, pulses (lentils/beans), VEGETABLES AND FRUIT, healthy sources of fats (avocado/nuts/fish - remember to watch portion sizes here)
it migh tbe hard to stick to the following but this is just an example menu for a day:
b: -porridge (made with a little skimmed milk, sweetener) with banana or other fruit OR a wholemeal english muffin/2x toast + 100% fruit jam, a piece of fruit OR cereal (wholgrain like wheatabix or shredded wheat or bran, look for low sugar), skimmed milk & fruit OR egg on toast with mushrooms
-tea/coffee/herbal tea
s: low fat plain yogurt with fruit and sweetener OR 1-2 pc fruit (not banana) OR 3 x veg OR low fat hummous with veggie sticks OR ryvita/rice cakes with lf cottage cheese
l: soup (not cream or potato based), wholegrain bread OR salad with protein source in it OR sandwich with salad and fish/low fat cheese/meat/bean paste OR a salad with a grain/pulse OR a jacket potato with tuna/beans
s: as earlier
d: as above OR brown pasta/rice with veggie based sauce & meat/fish/pulse/quorn (e.g. pasta with homemade spicey tomato sauce, courgettes, mushrooms, and quorn sauceages) OR omlette with veggies & cottage cheese... or salmon with asparagus, brocolli and quinoa, or lentil stew...
allow yourself a snack before bed if you're hungry - this could be something like fruit & yogurt as that's dessert like, or you could allow yourself a treat like a 'be good to yourself' pudding (bread & butter pid/ chocolate puds are great)
sugar free jelly is also a fantastic way to have dessert for very few calories.
drink hot fluids to fill your belly and dont forget to drink enough water - often "hunger" is actually thirst
if you find out how many calories you need to maintain your weight, subtract 500 from this and eat that number of calories per day. at this stage perhaps you should build up to doing exercise by making sure you do something evryday, even if it's just walking. even better if you can do cycling, swimming, running, sport, aerobics etc - but if you want to add this later on then at least do the walking for now.
don't try to limit your fruit & veg intake, as these are so low calorie tha you should learn to enjoy them as much as possible. they will satisfy cravings by providing you with a wide range of vitamins and flavours, and are great for snacks.
You've gotten loads of good advice...I do think that brisk walking will help though. I don't mean a stroll...get your heart race up ie when you get to your destination you should be slightly sweaty. Walking is a good form of exercise but people often do it wrong and it's also good if you're really overweight and need to kick start your weight loss. Even though I don't think you're THAT overweight. I do think that if you can you should join a gym, it'll be more of a challenge and the effects are better.
Loads of water...make sure you always have a bottle of water with you.
You already know food that's bad for you-sweets, chocolate, crisps etc. Avoid that stuff! Have what you want one day a week (your cheat day) but don't over do it. Counting calories works for me...not everyone can be bothered though...but you should aim for 1200-1500 a day. Cut down on carbs...all the bread and pasta and fried stuff.
Portions!!!Have significantly less than you normally do. There are loads of good weight loss websites, google them.
Sorry if this has all been said before, but this is what has worked for me! Lost 50 pounds!
Loads of water...make sure you always have a bottle of water with you.
You already know food that's bad for you-sweets, chocolate, crisps etc. Avoid that stuff! Have what you want one day a week (your cheat day) but don't over do it. Counting calories works for me...not everyone can be bothered though...but you should aim for 1200-1500 a day. Cut down on carbs...all the bread and pasta and fried stuff.
Portions!!!Have significantly less than you normally do. There are loads of good weight loss websites, google them.
Sorry if this has all been said before, but this is what has worked for me! Lost 50 pounds!
blondie_xxx
hey since I've come to uni my weight has been slowly slipping up from large portions and alcohol, I got on the scales the other day and I was disgusted at how much I weigh I'm 5'3 and weigh 11stone 6 which i'm pretty much sure is obese... I don't want this to effect my health or confidence so I've decided I better start losing weight but I don't know where to start... I walk 40mins to uni and 40 mins back everyday so I do exercise and I'm in a catered hall so I pretty much eat what I'm given... any suggestions on losing weight and on how much I should aim to lose a week? thanks x
Start with eating more of fruits and vegetables.
A lot of what people have said here is impractical from a financial point of view - I'm a student in catered halls and would like to lose weight, but I don't have the cash to keep going out and buying my own food, especially not loads of meat to grill! I would advise you to try to always get some sort of salad and veg with your meals and go for the healthiest option you can, but definitely definitely do more exercise. I have started playing squash a lot and plan to do it nigh on every day. Find a sport that you like (for me this is game sports, really, and squash is my favourite) and that you can do cheaply (there must be loads of cheap ones at uni - check out your clubs and socs) and get going!
Good luck
Good luck
hey I used to be 5"3 and nearly 12 stone at xmas but now I've been losing weight first through just diet because I was too down and energyless to excercise but I've started excercise three times a week properly (30 mins cardio and then at least 10 laps swimming) and I have a job at least 11 hours a week that I stand and move around a lot(not proper excercise but at least keeps metabolism going). I am now 9 stone 11-12 lbs and have just over a stone to lose till I'll be my ideal weight. Why am I telling you this? Because this shows you CAN do it! Just be determined, don't completely restrict yourself, have a treat a few times a week, I limit myself to about 300-350 of "bad foods" a week and include it in my 1000 a day limit(which excludes fruit in moderation). Good luck and just stay determined,if after a brilliant first month you end up having a binge don't give up hope,theirs bene about 3-5 times I've gone completely off the rails.
Good luck hun 
Good luck hun
Your quite short like me so I'd only eat two meals if I was you. Breakfast and dinner and no lunch.
I only eat 1200 calories a day. 2000 cals is the recommended for women but its firstly an overestimate. It's a figure based on taller, more active (than the avg student) women.
Remember food companies want us to eat more. 2000 cals is too many for a 5'3 woman to eat. You need to cut your cals to 1500 and exercise to drop the already existing weight. It's hard work but that's life.
I only eat 1200 calories a day. 2000 cals is the recommended for women but its firstly an overestimate. It's a figure based on taller, more active (than the avg student) women.
Remember food companies want us to eat more. 2000 cals is too many for a 5'3 woman to eat. You need to cut your cals to 1500 and exercise to drop the already existing weight. It's hard work but that's life.
blondie_xxx
hey since I've come to uni my weight has been slowly slipping up from large portions and alcohol, I got on the scales the other day and I was disgusted at how much I weigh I'm 5'3 and weigh 11stone 6 which i'm pretty much sure is obese... I don't want this to effect my health or confidence so I've decided I better start losing weight but I don't know where to start... I walk 40mins to uni and 40 mins back everyday so I do exercise and I'm in a catered hall so I pretty much eat what I'm given... any suggestions on losing weight and on how much I should aim to lose a week? thanks x
well duh, stop eating junk!!
Melissa85
Your quite short like me so I'd only eat two meals if I was you. Breakfast and dinner and no lunch.
I only eat 1200 calories a day. 2000 cals is the recommended for women but its firstly an overestimate. It's a figure based on taller, more active (than the avg student) women.
Remember food companies want us to eat more. 2000 cals is too many for a 5'3 woman to eat. You need to cut your cals to 1500 and exercise to drop the already existing weight. It's hard work but that's life.
I only eat 1200 calories a day. 2000 cals is the recommended for women but its firstly an overestimate. It's a figure based on taller, more active (than the avg student) women.
Remember food companies want us to eat more. 2000 cals is too many for a 5'3 woman to eat. You need to cut your cals to 1500 and exercise to drop the already existing weight. It's hard work but that's life.
Are you stupid?, course you have to eat some lunch. Ideally you need 3 meals a day.
Lilian
just cus your short doesn't mean you have to eat so little, probably around 1700-1800 for maintaining your weight if your 5"2-5"4ish I'd say(Just totally guessing) But then 5"5 and 5"6 and above is surely 2000?
Last time I calculated mine it was 1700 to maintain my current weight- I'm 5'1 and 10 stone (i.e. overweight)... dunno is that helps anyone else work out what they ought to be eating.
I'm 5"8 and live on about 1600-1800 calories a day on average. (I don't count my calories anymore but this just tends to be what I eat.) But then I don't tend to do much exercise.
OP, if you can take all drinks etc down to diet versions, up your exercise and find the right diet plan that will work for you
Some people can cut out the crap food in their lives, others however can't and fin it easier to just limit them but still satisfy themselves with a little sin
Join the gym or go swimming regulary. It will really help!
OP, if you can take all drinks etc down to diet versions, up your exercise and find the right diet plan that will work for you
Some people can cut out the crap food in their lives, others however can't and fin it easier to just limit them but still satisfy themselves with a little sin
Join the gym or go swimming regulary.
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