Confused by all the different diets and excersices

patiencepie

New member
It seems like each and every individual has something different that works for them specifically. Does anyone get to a certain point where nothing is working? I have worked out over the past three years, going to classes, dance, yoga etc and still coundnt fit in my pants. Over this summer I quit. I ate what ever and just gave up. I didnt gain any weight! I stayed the same. 6 weeks ago got back into excersices, and thought if I stepped it up, I would actually get results, but no! I started to blow flex, bike ride, hula hoop, yoga and eat better and less ,and again not a budge. It's like my body will not get fitter no matter if I work hard or eat cookies. I'm 42 so by now I should know what works. I can usually stick with a routine for a whole school year, beginning in Sept and I always think by spring I can get in a bathing suit but i am always the same as when I started! I eat healthy too so I am not sure what to give up. Living on just nuts and green leafy veg alone sounds awful...
What I really should be asking here is, how do you cook for your family if your basically on nuts and veg? And how do you fit in MORE exercise if what your doing isn't good enough, and you still have to maintain a job, house and kids? Sorry about the negative rant. I read the other post about weight and it just seems like what works for some doesn't work for others and so forth and it is so hard to get results, it's discouraging.
 

Yame

New member
That's because yoga and belly dance aren't very cardio-intensive workouts, therefore you won't lose any serious weight with those activities. They are both very good for you and your health, just not in that way.

If you really want to lose weight, what you need to do is decrease your caloric intake and increase the amount of calories you burn. You do this by dieting AND exercising, not just one or the other (although one or the other can work too, it just won't give you as good results).

If you already eat healthy, I wouldn't recommend eating "just nuts," I think that's insane. Unless you are eating too much, in which case you should cut back on your portions, eating healthy is where you should be, and you shouldn't deprive yourself of any necessities in order to lose weight.

Your problem may be that you aren't exercising enough, or not doing the right kinds of exercises. What you need is a lot of cardio, so lots of running, or an aerobics class, or biking. Yoga is definitely not going to help, and dance may help somewhat but you will need to do it for a long time and at a high intensity.

Most importantly, try to ask yourself why you are trying to lose weight. Is your current weight unhealthy? If you eat healthy, and you exercise, then perhaps your current weight is where you should be. Always be careful about doing things merely for the sake of looking good. If it's just a matter of exercising more and eating healthier, that's great! But don't sacrifice your health for looks.
 

Shiro

New member
Yame, I use belly dance to lose weight, and have been quite successful in the past (foot injury made me gain 60 pounds). I had lost about 20 ish pounds in about 3 months, just learning the moves and doing typical practicing. This was without changing my diet in the first place.


Patiencepie, I know it seems frustrating that you can't seem to lose weight, but doing fad diets will never get you anywhere (other than more stressed out!)The best thing you can do for yourself is to change your daily diet around. Do you drink a lot of soda? Cut out a couple cans a day or week. Do you eat a lot of junk food? Try replacing the bag of chips (or whatever you choose to eat) with a healthy snack that is also delicious. For me, I replaced my constant snacking with green beans. Whenever I feel the need to eat, I grab a couple green beans and just chew on them. It also helps to know how many calories you're taking in. It helps you to figure out how much exercise you should do to help burn them, but it also helps you keep from eating over your limit (if you're really active 2800 would be a nice number to start with, maybe). My doctor said 1800 for me, since I have back injuries (preventing much working out for now) and a very slow metabolism. I hope this helps at least a little bit!


One more thing! Be comfortable with who you are and what you look like. Stop thinking "I have to be this weight in order to get in this bathing suit" Just do it. The more you love yourself, the happier you'll be.
 

Sirène

New member
Talk to your general practitioner. The doctor can do some simple fine tuning to your calorie/workout regimen to help get you off the dreaded plateau and on the way to your goal. Or if he or she determines what you're doing is sufficient, the GP can test to see if underlying issues (for example, food allergies) are the culprit.

Whatever you do, don't lose heart and keep dancing. ;)
 

LaVanessa

New member
I mostly agree with Yame, except I'd say that ashtanga yoga is approaching cardio territory. What styles of yoga have you tried? Ashtanga is a very intense practice and if you were to do the entire first series five days a week, you'd most likely lose weight. But that sort of committment isn't for everyone (I certainly don't do that!).

As Yame says - if you're getting lots of exercise and eating right (may I take this opportunity to recommend a 100% plant-based diet), maybe you're where you need to be.
 
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