Please help me with diet and exercise plan.

[Jesaya]

I'm wanting to do a complete overhall of my diet. Before having DD I was always a 12 (bottom and top), I am now generally a 14 bottom and 12 top but my jeans have started to feel a bit snug. I want to nip this in the bud now. I have a holiday in September and realistically would like to drop at least 1.5 stone before then although would prefer 2 stone.

I'm a serial snacker, and my downfall is definitely savoury items (the evil that are crisps). I've only just start eating fish (a lifelong phobia which I am slowly trying to overcome) but cannot bring myself to eat fishy fish (salmon etc is out). I will eat prawns, cod and tuna and that's about it. Other than that I am open to trying anything.

I am a single Mum so preferably child friendly food (not too spicy) so I can cook the same for DD. Can anyone help with meal plans (portion sizes) and an exercise plan of sorts, I do actually own a cross trainer but it is currently acting as coat hook . I am quite unfit at the moment also. Laziness coupled with a damaged back (nothing too serious) has seen my exercising time decrease to pretty much zero. I do walk a fair bit as I don't drive though.

I am determined to lose this weight. I am only 25 and it's really starting to get me down. Any help at all in appreciated.

[honeybeeridiculous]

Can't offer much advice but am interested in what anyone says as I'm becoming fatter by the day
I once lost 3 stone with weight watchers but put it all back on and more.
Iv got no willpower atall but it's getting uncomfortable now,

[Purplehonesty]

Hi. I've started a no carb diet and so far in the first week I've lost 5lb.

Basically you replace carbs with protein and veg so instead of having curry with rice, you have it with veg.
Lunch is salad and meat/cheese/tuna and breakfast is scrambled eggs or yoghurt with berries. You feel hungry at first after such a meal but give it half and hour and it passes.
Your body then burns its own fat stores rather than the sugars from the carbs you normally eat. Or something like that...!

It's quite restrictive which means you stick to it because you can't have the odd biscuit or cake or chips but you can really eat as much as you like of the good stuff like meat, veg and fish.

I thought it would be really hard but its really not. If you are cooking for dc too I do a version of what they are having for me minus the carbs
So tonight they had spag bol and I had the meat and sauce with some cheese and salad - just no spaghetti.
If you are interested have a look on the low carb threads as it really is worthwhile.

I also have a couple of squares of 80% choc after dinner to take away cravings for pudding.

I have never stuck to a diet ever before or managed to lose anything so this is great. I don't have a lot to lose, only half a stone so I am well on my way.

[nilbyname]

Cross trainer, dust the fucker and do this-

1 minute on level 12, 1 minute one level 1. Do this for 12 minutes. It will be hell, but it WILL shred fat, and kick you into shape quick smart. Basically you do a minute full pelt and will feel like dying, then you have a minute to recover. gradually build up to 20 minutes.

[Jesaya]

Eeeeek nilbyname - I'll start tonight! I think I'll draw up some kind of chart so I can keep track of what I'm doing.

Thanks Purple, something like that may work to kickstart my diet but I'm not sure if I could do it longterm. Will have a look at the other threads. I did the 5:2 diet last year for about 6 months and got on really well with it but fell off the wagon when a family member was in ICU and ended up slipping into the hospital cafe food and just never got the motivation to go back on it. Do you think a month or two of a kick start diet and then something like this would work? Obviously I would keep an eye that the weight didn't start to creep back on.

I'm pretty useless with diets as I never really had to before. I was always a comfortable 12 and I was happy with that, that's my target (so not so much weight but more size/shape)

[Purplehonesty]

Oh yeah I don't think I could do it long term either but as you say it's a great way to kick start the weight loss. I plan to do it strictly for a month to get to my goal then just eat healthily and cut back on carbs rather than ban them altogether.

[nilbyname]

Have you been on the cross trainer??!

[Jesaya]

Oh my god yes, I think my legs died! I admit I gave up after 10 minutes.

[nilbyname]

10minutes?! That's brilliant! Well done, because it is an absolute bugger of an exercise.

Try and do 10 again, and then go for 11minutes.

Do it everyday, and male sure you do lots of stretching before and after.

[ShellyW40]

You could do HIIT on your cross trainer.

30 seconds at a very easy pace, 30 seconds as fast as you can - repeat 10 times for a quick 10 minute workout.

You will burn twice the calories in the same amount of time - you will also have twice the struggle to walk afterwards ;)