Need some advice about losing weight

[Bulldog1967]

Wouldn't increasing muscle mass speed up the metabolism? You must do a combination of weights and cardio

Yes it does, which is why you will get better results by adding weight training to a cardio program.

[BushmasterFanBoy]

Capital B.S.

Eat sensibly and exercise.

I'm only speaking from my experience. Everyone is different, but the vast majority of my weight loss occurred during periods with very little exercise and much more focus on a healthy, low calorie diet. The OP didn't ask about fitness, he asked about how to lose weight. If long term fitness is the goal, then obviously exercise is going to play a much bigger role (arguably even more than diet when you talk about lifestyle changes) but AFAIK, he just wants to drop the pounds ASAP.

OP, if you're after a true lifestyle change (and if you want to keep the weight off permanently, you are) then yes, exercise is key. It won't help dramatically with losing weight but it does build the mental commitment to change your habits as a whole. Once you meet weight loss milestones, it improves your ability to do the work, and pretty soon it turns into a cycle where you push yourself to get a new performance goal. This is part of the overall change in your attitude, and it goes beyond shedding pounds.

[bundoc]

I have trained both personally and athletically as far as I can remember. I am lucky to have a mesomorphic body type which is a lot easier to manage. Great job on wanting to better yourself, I wish I could get my parents to do the same. From experience, I have learned that diet is probably more important than exercise alone.

The equation to loose weight is really simple if you break it down. If calorie-intake exceeds calorie-expenditure, we gain weight. If calorie-intake is less than calorie-expenditure we lose weight. If calorie-intake equals calorie-expenditure, our weight remains static. Google Search This is the same equation I have learned throughout my life which has not changed.

I agree with Ski, if you can afford a certified dietician I suggest that you hire one. On that same note, there are tons of information on the web. I try to stick to a low-glycemic diet throughout the day except for breakfast and post workout. My best gains have come from this diet.

I also believe that your goal should not necessarily be to loose weight, but to loose over all body fat. Weight fluctuates easily especially when you considered how much water you should drink a day. You should drink at least a gallon of water a day; however, this does not necessarily mean strictly water. Remember that soda and other sweet drinks count towards your daily caloric intake. Just cutting unnecessary drinks can help you obtain your goals.

Once again Ski has a great point. You should do both cardio and weight training. The more muscle you have the higher your resting metabolic rate will be. Combined with cardio, your metabolism with increase dramatically. I definitely recommend that you lift to build muscle, not necessarily to be a bodybuilder. Build the muscle and let your diet do the shredding. The key to bodybuilding and cardio will be intensity; fortunately, you do not need to spend hours in the gym. I believe 30-45 minutes of either cardio or weight lifting will do wonders, once again the key here will be intensity. If you train with intensity you don't need to spend hours in the gym which is usually just chit-chatting. Get in and get out.

There is just so much information for me to explain at the moment; unfortunately, I have a lot of work to finish before midterms. You are free to email or PM me with questions. I do not consider myself a certified expert by any means. Just going off experience of what has worked for me. I consider good nutrition and exercise as a hobby so make sure you are enjoying it. If you can get a workout partner that would be even better. Keep up the great work and break that plateau!

[Mr. W]

My experience with weight loss actually coincides with what was said by Fanboy. I agree exercise is the key to changing your life, but weight loss for me was a calorie issue.

[Boothj]

Paleo diet. Trust me it works.

[sparrow]

I went from 230 back in 2005 and prior to 170 now, I have kept it off for years now ... eat clean and work out HARD! I mean biggest loser/300 style hard, not go to the gym to check out girls and stare at the hockey game on tv hard ... it will come.

[MikeCLeonard]

Weight training, cardio training, and diet = Most important things.

It sounds like you have a fairly good handle on these factors but even so, hitting a wall is common. The reason is that our bodies adapt constantly to anything we do with regularity. The body learns how to do these motions more efficiently, and can therefor use less energy (calories/fat) to do them. To get past this plateau, you need to change things up constantly.

My Tips are as follows:

1) Alternate the number of sets x reps you do while lifitng. (4x5, 3x8, 3x10, 3x12) - I do a different mix every day I lift (3-days a week)

2) Add variety to your cardio. Treadmill, Jump-Rope, Stairs, Elliptical, Bike, Interval Sprints etc. By the way, interval training is FANTASTIC! Doing cardio at a set pace for 30 minutes is good...but intervals of low to high pace are much better for burning calories/fat because it keeps your body guessing...The whole theme here.

3) Make sure to incorporate heavy weight and low reps. Just doing low weight and high reps won't help as much or get you as toned as heavy weight and low reps...Heres why: Heavier weight lifted = more muscle growth. The more muscle you have = the more calories/fat you will burn doing anything. More calories you burn = more fat loss. More fat loss = YOU CAN SEE YOUR MUSCLES...which equals muscle tone!

4) Eat good & Eat often! Doing all this exercise will make you more hungry...this is GOOD because it means your metabolism is running fast. If you eat 5-6 moderate sized meals a day (not crap food), then you will keep your metabolism elevated while it breaks down the fuel you need to work out...which is key. DO NOT starve yourself! If you do, you'll tank your metabolism and won't have energy to work out. Then when you do eat junk food, or pound down too much beer, your bottomed out metabolism won't be running fast enough to burn up that crap and it will turn straight to fat. Unless you are a small dude, you should likely be eating more than 2,000 calories a day over several meals. If you build enough lean muscle mass, you can eat 3,000 + calories a day and still lose weight.

5) Cardio and Strength training are almost equally important. If I were you, I would strength train 3 days a week, and do cardio 4-5 days a week for at least 20-30 minutes.

6) REMEMBER: Change things up & Eat often. If you don't change your workouts, your body will just figure out how to use less energy to do the same amount of work. If you don't eat enough, your body will say "I'm STARVING! I GOTTA HOLD ONTO EVERY CALORIE I GET".....Both of which will cause your weight loss to STOP.

[NinjaTactics]

I started working out after about a 10 year lapse. I started at 255, and lost about 20 pounds. I have hit a wall that has lasted over 2 months. I am getting quite frustrated.

I have cut out all fast food with the exception of subway, eating high protein, low carbs, veggies and some fruit. I try to stay under 2000 calories a day, but dam, I am getting pissed off that I am not losing anymore. I only have about an hour each day to work out, 30 minutes of cardio, like a treadmill or skiing type machine (cant remember what they are called) and 30 minutes of light weights.

Any suggestions?

Hitting a plateau is common for a lot of people, but the key is to not give up.

Other things you can do to potentially advance from the plateau:
1) Cut out refined sugars, and if you can try to have the only sugar you're ingesting be from fresh fruit. This makes a huge difference for a lot people.
2) Cut out soda, energy drinks, coffee, and beer. If you just drink water and non-cafeinated (herbal) tea you'll probably notice a difference.
3) Mix in pushups, situps/crunches, resistance training, and other activities using your own bodyweight. Cardio and weights are a good start, but by mixing in other stuff you'll get a more well rounded workout.

[Eddiesketti]

A lot of good advice on here. I would say low carbs high protein low fat. This will probably eat some of your muscle as well, but you will lose fat too. Try eating 5 times a day. No white bread. I would lift weights only for now using correct form. Use explosive sets (fast reps) and negatives going up in weight each set. Do sets to failure. Do legs (goblet squat, machines...etc) Make yourself sweat, move fast in the gym. Use rest periods to load and unload machines, get a drink of water.

[JHC]

Paleo diet. Trust me it works.

That is one of the best approaches available.

No "white death" at all (refined sugars and starches).

And workout to build as much muscle as you can with moderate cardio.