Wednesday, January 11, 2006

Will this diet plan work? -

Hi. I m 5 3 I weight 170 lbs. I designed my own weight loss program and I want to know if you think it will work. My plan is to drop 34lbs. in 17 weeks. (2lbs. per week.) I will eat a Carnation Instant Breakfast every morning (130 calories), For a snack I can have a piece of fruit (no more than 100 calories), for lunch any Leancuisine under 300 calories, for dinner anything on my 300 calories and under list (pretty extensive list filled with vegs. and lean meats). After work i will stretch for 30 minutes, do some exercises for 30 minutes (I have a sheet listing different ones like crunches and push ups etc.), then I will go and run 1 mile and a 1/2 mile cool down walk. Then I will stretch for 10 minutes. Do you think doing this plan will work? My fiance will be gone for boot camp and I want to impress him with the weight loss when he comes home. So I have plenty of motivation. Thanks for any input you can offer!

i lov the reason why!!!well I think that yes you should do the cool down walk but an hour or so after that I think that you should grab a bud or a mp3 or an ipod and walk for at least 3 milesdude...with a bud it is so much fun!!!you will lov ur results nd ur reason why is awesome!

830 calories or less per day when you re also doing physical activity strikes me as very low, potentially even dangerous. An active woman in your height range should be getting closer to 1200-1400 if she s trying to lose weight. Allow yourself a little more flexibility; you ll be less prone to hunger pangs and cheating that way. Talk to a nutritionist if you need more specific guidance.

I do know that a friend of mine ,when having a vacation/cruise looming in the future, will go on the South Beach diet for two weeks.The pounds seem to melt off her.This is a diet restricting starches and carbs, so if you love breads, pastas, and the like, this is probaly not the best solution for you.

i would suggest running before you exercise... as far as the diet is concerned, just be sure to mix it up a bit... fruits n veggies... and yogurts... and shakes... they are all high in water content and fill you up quickerwhat types of exercises did you have planned?

It will work for about three days, that is until you get weak from hunger and exhausted from running without any energy.

I am very concerned about your diet. Ask yourself if this is realistic for you to be on for the REST OF YOUR LIFE. No? Then you plan on stopping your diet after you lose the weight...which means you ll gain weight back. People are so confused about diet and exercise. You don t whittle your eating down to nothing when you start exercising...you need to eat more. I lost 35lbs in 3 months by exercising 14-16 times a week and eating 2800-3100 calories a day to sustain this activity. You need to eat. Otherwise, your body thinks that it s in a starvation scenario, so everything you eat gets stored as your body s long-term energy source: FAT. You wouldn t try to drive your car across the country on just 1/4 tank of gas, would you? No? So why are you trying to deprive your body of its fuel and expecting it to perform?Over half of your calories are coming from pre-packaged, processed foods. Because you ll be exercising, you re asking your body to do better...and if you ask your body to do better, you need to feed it the proper foods. You need to not only eat more often (5-6 times a day, 2-3 hours apart), but you need to eat better. When you re making your dinner filled with veggies and lean meats, make more so you can have leftovers. This will be much healthier for you than a Lean Cuisine, which are loaded with preservatives and lots of sodium. Having a Carnation Instant Breakfast isn t nearly as good for you as, say, an egg white omelet with veggies wrapped up in a tortilla or served on whole grain bread. If this is hard for you because of time constraints, you can try eating at work (if possible) or make yourself a protein shake and have a couple fruits. Each of your meals, SNACKS INCLUDED, should be composed of lean protein and natural carbs. This is best for your body. Having a piece of fruit for a snack isn t as good as having a piece of fruit with natural peanut butter, or veggies with hummus. You can try coating popcorn in chocolate protein powder for a tasty, healthy snack as well. The combinations are really endless.I m interested also in your exercises for 30 minutes, but your exercise regimen sounds pretty good. Let me suggest that instead of stretching for 30 minutes before your workout, you stretch for 5 minutes after a 5 minute warm-up of a brisk walk or light jog. Stretching your muscles for a long time relaxes them, and that s not what you need right before a workout. Feel free to finish each workout with 30 minutes of yoga. This will be extremely beneficial.You have a plan, but these suggestions will make you much more successful. I ve been there and done that. Don t worry: your fiance will come back very thin because of how much activity they re doing and how relatively little they re eating, but once he gets back into a more normal life, he ll plump up a bit. It s not that he s doing much better than you did, he was simply malnourished. I know...I was a Marine.