Health and Fitness

[CatAshtrophy]

The way I deal with tricep flab is that I work out my triceps to build muscle there. For me, my arm looks very flabby there, but in reality, the muscle is just loose. I use hand weights to work this muscle because for me it's very hard to get that muscle engaged. Usually my biceps take over.

Here is my tricep exercise. I work one arm at a time so that I can focus on good form. I start with my arm raised straight above my head, but keep it alined with my shoulder properly. Make sure not to lock your arms. Then I bend my elbow until my arm makes about a 90 angle behind my head. I watch my shadow on th wall to make sure I don't cheat. Then I raise my arm to the straight (but not locked) upright position again. I use really light weights, just 2 or 3 pounds. I do about 25 reps several times a day. I keep the handweight around my house where I walk by it frequently. So I just stop and do a set when I go by and remember. It's super speedy. Then I do regular bicep curls at the same time to make sure that my arms stay balanced. The exercise isn't a miracle worker, but it helps me some.

[jinx]

Because of some issues I had in high school (for three months, I consumed somewhere around a 1/2 cup of rice per day...in essence, I stopped eating), I do not weigh myself.  In fact, I won't even look at the scale or allow them to tell me the number at the doctor's office. For the same reason, I don't traditionally "diet," or, rather...I don't call it dieting.  xD

What I've started to do is eat more intelligently.  Lots of salad.  The more I eat salad, the more I crave it.  It's a little weird, but I've always been really weird about food.  O.o  I also started out doing Pilates and a good bit of cardio 4-5 times a week.  Now, I've slacked off for the better part of two weeks, due to pain issues.  If it were anywhere but my mouth, I'd be fine.  I can't get into see the dentist until the 7th.  I'm thinking it's my wisdom teeth (again).  Either way, I can only eat when I can manage the pain enough to chew (yes, it's that bad), so I find that, after putting in an 8 hour day at work and an hour or two of studying...there is absolutely no energy left to try to exercise.

Once I get my teeth taken care of, I'll get right back on track.  I hate thinking that I stopped, but it really couldn't be helped.  Oh, and as for tracking my progress, the plan is to measure myself every 2-3 weeks.  I know, it's very nearly the same thing as weighing, but it doesn't putz with my head for some reason.  O.o

[eloquentXI]

Not being able to get to the gym has really been about economics (I live more than 20 minutes from one of the cities that has a gym, and it's even more than 30 to the one I've comfortable at).  Here in three weeks though, once I get moved into my dorm room, I'm more than determined to start going to the gym every morning, even if I get the job over at the Gateway Center or not. It's going to be hard, because I've never really done anything like this before and there's going to be a lot of tempting things around, c'mon, I'm starting college, I've already heard of the Freshman Fifteen but I'm more than determined to drop a few pounds before TRF. It'd be kind of nice to do the reverse Freshman Fifteen, yeah? 

I know that I naturally have a large frame, but I'd like to get down where I can fit into some clothes a bit more comfortably, where I feel better. I know the reason that I'm easily tired now is because I don't get out and exercise much. I've been watching what I've been eating lately, and lessening the portion size and drinking A LOT more water (I don't drink pop but maybe once a week, if that, if I go into town/see friends).

It's really motivating to hear other people having good luck, and are maintaining it. I hope that here in a few months, I'll be able to report back the same.

[Tremayne]

I hear ya onethe financial end of things. As gyms go, I like the one I'm currently a member of--but at $350 I see now way I'm going to be able to renew.    But I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. For now, I want to establish a habit of going more regularly.

[eloquentXI]

Aye, I'll have free access to the gym on campus so I'm going to take full advantage of that while I still have it.

[Escarlata]

I find that I have to establish a very set routine based on some other activity. Right now, I've tied exercise to part of my general wake up routine. I get up, recycle, weigh, get dressed in pre-selected clothes and hit the door for my walk. If I do anything else, get distracted by anything or have to change my morning routine for any reason, it's a good chance I won't get my exercise done.

That really paid off this morning when I realized after I was already out the door that I really didn't feel like walking today. At that point I just said, "Hey, you're already out here, just do it."

*shrugs* It may not apply to anyone else, but it works for me.

[eloquentXI]

No, thats actually what I was planning on doing- making it a set routine so I automatically get up and pull on clothes and walk over to the Rec center, so that I do the same thing, that by the time I'm out the door, I won't be able to talk myself out of it.

Thanks for the tip, Esc!

[CatAshtrophy]

Routine is totally the way to go. Your gym might be open late too, which might be a good option if you aren't a morning person. It's awfully tempting to sleep as late as you can in college. At A&M they would sometimes have some free exercise classes that were offered. Maybe your school will have some of those too.

[Rahne]

wow, thanks for all the responses.  Diabetes does run in the family. My grandmother, mother, 3 of her sisters and one brother all have type 2 diabetes.  As far as I go not sure that it's an issue of medical stuff yet.  I am due for my yearly physical soon and will ask about it though. It can't hurt. I did have some cholesterol and Triglyceride issues 2 years ago, and couldn't take any of the meds because they caused terrible muscle spasms in my back and calves.  I started taking fish oil and exercising more and my numbers in that area are great, and so far my fasting blood work for sugar has been OK.   I think my problem may be more one of consistency and getting discouraged and giving up.  I only got really serious again at the end of May knowing I have the brown belt test coming up, and at the doctor's office I work in (I'm an RN in a community mental health clinic.) we started a biggest looser competition.  We have had 8 weigh ins (8 weeks) and I've lost 10 pounds that have stayed off so far.  was 15 but that 5 pound gain last week after starting at the gym put me back to only 10 lost.  Still for 8 weeks that is not bad.  I think it has started going down again now. I'll know on Friday when we do the official weigh in.  The competition has been great to keep me on track, and I actually won on week 7.  The prize is $70.  I'm putting it in my stash so I can buy a Chinese broad sword I've been looking at all season at the GLMF.  Maybe I'll get lucky and win again this week that would give me 2/3 of the cost of the sword without dipping into the household budget money.

[Elennare]

Alas, one can not spot-reduce.

Best we can do is burn calories, which gets rid of fat.  The body decides where to burn it from, and in which order, though. :/  Resistance exercise (apparently not always weight lifting, or so I was told on Monday), will help add muscle definition, which might help w/a problem spot as well.  And if nothing else, like was mentioned earlier, it ups the calorie-burning of your muscles all the time, which also helps w/getting rid of fat.

I hope that makes sense.  I'm really tired right now, so I may have just typed something incoherent and not have realized it.

[Rahne]

yes that makes sense.  I have noticed some major inch loss with just 2 weeks of the weight training verses a whole month of walking 2 miles every morning before work.  Between the 10 min on the elliptical 3-4 days a week and then 30 min of weight lifting. It seems to be a good combo for now.  I need to lose weight all over, but I was hoping for some specific things that relay help tone my specific problem areas.  I've gotten a few suggestions and I'll give those a try.

[Rahne]

OK, so I made it to the gym this morning at 4:30 in the morning, thank goodness it is a go any time place or I would never get there. 
I ate a banana on my way out the door before working out, and some toast around 6:30 before I left for work.  All morning I was starving.  I ate a cheese stick about 9 still hungry.  One of the drug reps brought in fruit and doughnuts.  I ate about 2 cups of mixed fruit, still hungry ate a granola bar still hungry.  Finally had a roast beef sandwich with some cheese on it and a yogurt for lunch at noon and finally wasn't hungry any more.  Can't say I felt full, but at least not starving.  I don't really like eggs or oat meal.  any suggestions on something to eat in the morning that will stick around after a work out, and not undo what I'm trying to do.

[CatAshtrophy]

First, make sure you drink lots of water. Many people mistake the feeling of thirst for the feeling of hunger.

I like to start my day by making sure I eat something with alot of fiber. I eat a properly measured out bowl of shredded wheat cereal every morning. Frosted Mini Wheats cereal is nice because it has a pretty big serving size and it's actually tasty too. The fiber helps keep me fuller longer. Also look lower calorie foods with lots of volume. So if you can stand to eat a low calorie soup in the morning, go for it. A soup with meat will help give you some protein too which might stick to you better than fruit. Think of of the box and don't just go for traditional breakfast food in the morning.

I also don't really eat full meals ever except for my cereal breakfast. Instead, I eat small portions of something every two or three hours. You could eat something before your workout, and exercise and munch on something afterwards too.  This way it never seems like I will never make it until I eat again, so I don't feel the need to cheat. I don't get full, but I don't get starved either. For the first week or two that I did that, it was hard because I felt more hungry. But I kept it up, and don't feel hungry anymore. Just not full. To make sure I don't eat too much (or too little, cause that's important too!) I record everything I eat and strive for a preset calorie amount every day. Even if I go over, I never consider it a disaster.

[Tremayne]

Rahne, did you short yourself on sleep to make this early morning workout? If so, that could be the source of the excessive hunger. When your body doesn't get enough sleep it fails to release an appetite suppression hormone (it's assuming you need to eat more because you're going to be active longer, I'm guessing). I have interrupted sleep and so am plagued with an out-of-control appetite myself. Just as you mentioned, it usually doesn't let up until the afternoon. It's EXTREMELY annoying. Unfortunately, no sleep aids have ever eliminated the problem (even prescription) and a sleep study costs about $2000 because I don't have insurance. 

I like Cat's suggestion of a bulky cereal before your workout. Also, how about pancakes--just use a light coat of jelly or honey instead of pouring on the syrup.

I'm managing to get to the gym every other day instead of every day because my lunch hour is filled with the business of trying to start a business. I avoid going in the evening because it tends to wake me up--which doesn't help the sleep issue mentioned above. I also can't do morning workouts because it creates a fade-out throughout the rest of the day (seems to be a residual effect of my bout of lyme disease) and general health back-sliding. Don't know what my body is doing the first 2 hrs after I wake up but it doesn't like to be interfered with. So sometime midday is really the best.

[Rahne]

I drink a ton of water, a thing I picked up at weight watchers a few years back.  I did that when my middle daughter was 3 and lost abut 45 pounds in 3 months.  kept it off for a while then like a crazy woman decided I wanted just 1 more.  Gained it all back plus more.  Tried to go again last September for about 6 months, but it is so expensive and didn't seem to be working as well the second go round.  I lost the weight the first time with very little exercise or effort, and even with exercise the second time I only lost 20 pounds in 6 months.  Getting older sucks.  The metabolism slow down is terrible.  Oh well.  She is cute most of the time.  I usually drink propel during and after my work out and water the rest of the day.  Even if we go out to eat it is usually water with lemon. 

I probably did not get enough sleep that night didn't make it to bed until around 11pm, usually shoot for around 9, no later than 10. I like about 6 hours of sleep.  My husband works a screwy rotating schedule so my work outs have to happen when he is home.  don't want to drag the kids to the gym if I don't have to.  They do have a room with a TV and VCR and some books and toys there, but they would have to entertain themselves and not fight for a whole hour.  I think that only happens when they are sleeping.

I picked up some of the Kashi go lean cereal last night by suggestion of a coworker.  It has a decent amount of protein in it, and is high in fiber, so maybe it will stick better. 

I did lose 3.5 pounds this week though so it was all worth it.  So far I am in the lead for the biggest looser.  another $70 toward that sword would sure be nice.

Thanks for all the suggestions and information.  It's nice to have somewhere to go for support and encouragement.