[wild musings]

Everyone here seems so knowledgeable so please... HELP ME!

1) I have been drinking water, and only water, for almost 2 years. However, I haven't been drinking a lot (1 cup or less) but I am working on it. Right now, Diet drinks look pretty inviting , but my mom refuses to buy it for me saying it causes cancer. Hello mother, you and the whole family drink regular cola for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! Ok, so what are my other alternatives to diet cola? I have tried the lemon and water thing, doesn't cut it for me .

2)I've always heard that on the days you exercise, you're supposed to eat 'a little more', about 200 calories or so since you're burning so much already. So, on the days you don't exercise, do you eat less?

3) When I go on the machines (elliptical, treadmill, bike, etc.) at the gym, I usually put up the weight/pressure (?) pretty high. How high? Well, these really buff (and hot ) guys who are on the machines next to me are on 35 while I'm there doing 60-75. You'd expect that to hurt, but surprisingly it doesn't. AT ALL. This gets me so confused. Aren't I supposed to be aching all over? At least a little bit? I've heard that only muscle gets sore, does that mean I have no muscle ?

4) How much weight should I lose to get into a size 5/6 juniors? I was this size a couple of years ago (pre-puberty). Currently I am a size 11 or 13 depending on the style.


***I should also mention that I am almost 16 years old, 5'6" and weigh around 150 pounds (sad, I know). I'm hoping to lose 15-25 pounds in a reasonable amount of time like 4-8 months hopefully. I carry most of my weight around my middle, but I still do carry some weight around my hips/upper thighs .

If you answer any of thesequestions, I will send some virtual cookies your way!

[Swanky Mama Of Three]

wow, lots of questions, I'll try the best I can to give my personal opinions/advice!

Originally Posted by wild musings

1) I have been drinking water, and only water, for almost 2 years. However, I haven't been drinking a lot (1 cup or less) but I am working on it. Right now, Diet drinks look pretty inviting , but my mom refuses to buy it for me saying it causes cancer. Hello mother, you and the whole family drink regular cola for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! Ok, so what are my other alternatives to diet cola? I have tried the lemon and water thing, doesn't cut it for me .

Get some Crystal Light packets, they're in the store next to Kool-Aid.
You add one to a full bottle of water and it REALLY helps you get enough water down over the day.
Also, you could try Fresca or the new flavored Frescas. They're sodas but are sugar free and caffeine free.

2)I've always heard that on the days you exercise, you're supposed to eat 'a little more', about 200 calories or so since you're burning so much already. So, on the days you don't exercise, do you eat less?

I definitely try to eat slightly less when I do not exercise. But when I DO exercise I do not up my calories unless I work out VERY hard for a long period of time.
The only way to lose weight is to take in less calories than you burn in a day.
But it's a funny balance because a lot of people try to take in too few calories and wind up not losing weight because their bodies hold onto what few calories they get.
Best thing is to try and eat light and healthy all day everyday.

3) When I go on the machines (elliptical, treadmill, bike, etc.) at the gym, I usually put up the weight/pressure (?) pretty high. How high? Well, these really buff (and hot ) guys who are on the machines next to me are on 35 while I'm there doing 60-75. You'd expect that to hurt, but surprisingly it doesn't. AT ALL. This gets me so confused. Aren't I supposed to be aching all over? At least a little bit? I've heard that only muscle gets sore, does that mean I have no muscle?

No, that doesn't mean you have no muscle. You're probably at a 'plateau'. If you do nearly the same thing everytime you go to the gym you'r really doing a disservice to your time and efforts.
Your body HAS TO BE 'shocked' once in a while.
Meaning if you always do the elliptal for the same amount of time and the same level you need to change it.
Pedal backwards instead at a harder level or faster and for half the time you usually do, then go straight to the treadmill or bike to shock your muscles and make them work harder.
Also, if you're not doing any weight traning at all, it's likely you will not see a change.

4) How much weight should I lose to get into a size 5/6 juniors? I was this size a couple of years ago (pre-puberty). Currently I am a size 11 or 13 depending on the style.
***I should also mention that I am almost 16 years old, 5'6" and weigh around 150 pounds (sad, I know). I'm hoping to lose 15-25 pounds in a reasonable amount of time like 4-8 months hopefully. I carry most of my weight around my middle, but I still do carry some weight around my hips/upper thighs .

at 5'6" I would assume you could be in a 5/6 at around 125-130 lbs{?}
If you were to be pretty serious about it and stop eating junk {candy, white bread, pasta, potatoes etc . . . } 4 months is TOTALLY reasonable.
I carry my weight in my middle too unfortunately and the bad news is that's the most unhealthy body type. We're more at risk than any other body type for cancers and stuff
Cardio is very important to burn off the tummy fat, but like I said, you can't get too routined about it or your body stops responding to it.

whew, I typed A LOT! LOL!

[ayla]

1) I don't really have a solution to this, I used to drink nothing but flavoured drinks but all I have now is water. Give it some time, have some Naya, you'll like it.

2) I eat consistently - so the same amount every day. But then I again, I work out every day. I've never heard that you should eat more on the days that you exercise.

3) Are you doing weight exercises as well ? That's where muscle gets built up. Plus you don't really have to kill yourself over the cardio machines, it's tempting. But really, the optimal range is like 150ish for weight loss, and above that is cardio training. And while on the machines, you should be at a pace where you're able to still hold a conversation - that's what a lot of trainers suggest as a guideline.

4) I'm not sure what weight that would be, keep in mind muscle weighs 4 times more than fat. So if you're toned enough to fit into a smaller size, you could still be "heavier" than expected.

[D & G rockstar]

^^^ I agree w/ swankymama on all of her answers

Just to add-on:

2) I have an eating schedule to regulate my metabolism. I give myself one day a week though to eat whatever I want. I don't measure it by calories, but by the types of food i eat. I don't eat any carbs after 7 pm (not even veggies or fruit... any of that) It's not that bad, i swear!!! I'm eating every two hours!!!

3) Your body has probably reached a plateau. This even happens when you work out w/ weights. I try to switch up my weight routine once a month. Bear in mind that cardio burns the calories you eat for the day... weight training has the affects of burning calories beyond... I switch up my exercise all the time... and I keep increasing the difficulty of my workout --- I don't make anything easy for me.


I basically said the same thing as swanky , but it works... it should be easier for you because you're younger and your metabolism is naturally faster!!!

If your gym offers boxing classes... try the workout.. it totally kicks butt and burns a lot of calories.. especially if you're doing bag work.

[wild musings]

Thank you for your answers! When I go to the gym tomorrow, I'll definitely try to change up the intensity of the workouts. Even though the weight training section looks intimidating to me, I'm going to try some weights. Also, I just bought a Pilates video off Amazon and I'll try to add that in to my current workout.

[Maggie1966]

Re your exercise, you are probably at a plateau and you're probably exercising outside of your target heart rate. Try doing interval training. For example, start exercising at what you would consider 50% effort for 5 minutes. Then, at 60% for the next 5 minutes, then 70 5, then 80%, then drop back down to 50%, etc. You also want to figure out your target heart rate, get a heart rate monitor and then work within that zone. If you're working out under the THR, you aren't burning anything, and if you're working out above the THR, you're getting a good cardiovascular workout, but you start to burn muscle. Working out in the THR zone burns FAT. There are several websites where you can plug in your height, weight, age and it will tell you your THR. Good luck!

[Bag Fetish]

You should eat 5 meals a day opposed to 3.
Eating 5 smaller meals keeps you from getting that *i need food* feeling and hunger pains.
It will keep your metabolism going at the same level and you could actually drop weight just by doing this. Because you always feel full.

[Coldplaylover]

Make sure you use a trainer to show you how to lift weights.