Want to slim down, tone up, or gain muscle? Ask me for advice on anything!

[Howard]

Hey EasyLivin, I'm 18 5'10 and I weigh about 230lbs. I have the build of an average guy I guess...I mean I dont look that fat just a bit chubby. I drink soda pretty often and have been trying to cut down. What kinda of excersize/diet would you recommend to lose some pound and gain some muscle? I have some free weight available to me to use If I need to...

Any advice would be great, as im stuck in a bit of a rut at this point.

[Mr Silver]

I've recently started jogging every morning to lose some weight and tone up, but can you suggest any other exercises to reduce the amount of fat in my chest..okay I might aswell be honest - best way to lose moobs?

[Stay_Classy]

Okay, Im 6-0, and naturally a very skinny person. I was getting into a good routine of liftng, and peaked out a little over 155 before I tore my labrum. Since that happened, Ive been unable to do alot of lifting. I cant do bench, incline, overhead press, pull downs, etc. without sharp pain.

Ive been rehabbing it with different stretches, and band work, and its finnally feeling decent, and Im slowly being able to return to certain lifts, but since ive been unable to lift consistantly for months ive lost over almost 10 pounds of muscle.


I want those 10 pounds back, and then some. But what do you recommend my routine should be, since I cant really bench anymore....?????

[EASYlivin]

Originally Posted by tea.mochi

I'm 5' 120lbs (last time I weighed was last week, I fluctuate between 118 and 125)
I'm a vegetarian (just for dietary info I guess).
I'm also riding my bike for at least a mile every day or so (the heat has made me not so dedicated, but I plan to bike more as it cools down.)

I started riding my bike two weeks ago and have noticed a huge change in my appetite (2 meals a day went to about 5) and my butt is already shrinking *YAY*. I'm wanting to go down to my old weight of 112 or even 90 (how much I weighed when in japan) but as long as I can tone up and maybe go down a size or something in pants I'm happy.

My question is this.
How can I make sure that my stomach and arms keep up? Theres a weighted hula hoop at work and I've considered using it but I don't know how much it would help since I can only spin it one direction and I don't know if it helps.
Also I can't do pushups because my left wrist can't bend back that far sometimes, so I'm not sure how to tone up my arms...

Any advice?

If youre worried about you stomach and your arms, you should maybe run 1 mile / bike 1 mile a day? or just run 2 miles. Cardio will help you lose weight evenly throughout the body. Eating the right foods will also lead to your success. Watch what you eat, check the nutritional facts on the back of food items. trans fat/saturated fat = terrible for you. carbs in candy such as skittles = bad bad bad.. cholesterol = watch how much you consume, eggs have alot of cholesterol, thats why i only eat the eggwhite NOT the yolk.
Low-fat meals like salad are great for you and will help alot. Also, after you run/bike, you want to have something with carbs, like pasta, bread, anything of that nature..

[EASYlivin]

Originally Posted by Purged1234

Okay.

I want to lose 35-40 lbs.


I'm 19 years old, 6 foot 1 and 205 lbs. I don't work out at all, I used to heavily during school (Weighed in at 175 with 225 bench max). i DO have a gym membership. Anytime fitness.

I drink a LOT of soda and eat ALOT of wendys. Or did. I haven't touched any of that in a week except sugar-free redbull to deal with caffeine deprivation headaches....

I don't know what to eat, when to do cardio, for how long, what type of cardio to do, if i should lift at all, etc.

I just want to lose 35 lbs and establish a new base fitness level.

Right now i've been eating a bowl of cereal every morning, then i pretty much just eat turkey sandwhiches and tuna. lol.

I also don't know how to deal with hunger, i fucking hate being hungry more than anything in the world, and being hungry causes me to binge eat really fast, and really bad foods. Just to get rid of the feeling.

I'm clueless. help!

Alright, I know the perfect solution for you. What you want to do is start out slow, so you arent aching in pain everyday. Start off by running 1 mile a day( or 5 days a week).

For working out.. I wouldnt go all out at the gym. because then muscle will build under the fat. You want to target one thing at a time. The best option is focus on weight loss, then gaining muscle later on, when you have reached your desired wieght.

After the 3rd week increase it to 2. If 2 is difficult, then dont forse yourself any more.
After your run, go for a high carb meal, (pasta).

Maybe you should try having 5 small meals a day that way your metabolism keeps going. And that way, you wont feel as hungry.

Replace 1 meal with a large salad. ( try to use lowfat dressing) And remember , it takes your body some time to realize youre full, so eat slow.. enjoy the meals.

* what gets people the most is snacking in between meals and late at night. This isnt good for you! You need to learn to eat, digest for at least 2-3 before eating again.

If you are NEEDING a snack, go for an apple/bananna/peach/plum/pear whatever!, Fruit FILLS YOU UP! And its quite good.

And try and quit the soda habit, that shit will just slow your progress down! stick to water, and ALOT OF IT. Sometimes our body thinks we are hungry, when really a glass of water will satisfy that urge.

Hey and a little secret.. when im craving foods sometimes ill just chew some gum. ( i also heard minty gum postpones food craving.)

[EASYlivin]

Originally Posted by jiggawhat99

Hey EASYlivin, I need some advice.

I am 26 5'3" and about 150 lbs. I want to lose 15-20 pounds and gain muscle. I just started to workout with cardio for 30 minutes and then move to lifting weights 5 days a week. I usually wake up in the morning and about an hour later start my workout.

After reading the previous post, i realized i need to work out before my cardio workout. I take casein protein before workout and whey after. Then have a small carb snack. Because i workout in the morning, I skip breakfast and consider my protein shacks as lunch and weight till dinner to eat (slowly).

I want to lose 15-20 lbs to get rid of my belly, actually i dont care how much i lose , just want to get rid of the belly.

How should i alter my diet and workout plan?

Thanks in advance for your help.

For you, I would target cardio specifically. If you would like, workout , but you dont want to overdue it. I would suggest working out for 30-45 min focusing on less weight more reps. you would want to run for 1-2 miles. Also, you should follow the diet plan that I discussed in the post above^^

[EASYlivin]

Originally Posted by Royal™

5'8 137 pounds. I can bench my body weight(135) but I want to look more cut, also, I have a very hard stomach and if I lay in the right position you can see my abs but if i just stand up it looks like I have a little fat, how should I get rid of this.

Basically I want to tone my stomach\chest and bulk up my arms.

For a guy like you, I would suggest doing high weight low reps. And abs are like any other muscle, the more weight..the more muscle. At a local gym there should be ab machines where you can adjust the weight. You want to start out easy, ( 15-20 reps) and gradually move up to where you can only do 10 reps or a higher weight.

Also, you want to get out and run. After your workout you should run about 1 mile. Running helps burn fat, but your looking to gain muscle mostly. So, dont run too much, but still get out there after your workout.

YOu should be taking a protein supplement within an hour or two after your workout. This is why it is important to run right after your workout, because you DONT want to run after taking a protein shake. .

This is what I use for my after workout shake. ( you can buy this at walmart in the vitamin isle)

[p0gmoth0in]

Hi easylivin, thanks for your contribution to the community!

I'm 5'8" and 115 lbs. I'm a skinny little shit in other words.

I'd like to gain muscle but more importantly become more healthy. I have a gym membership but I don't go often enough because I don't have a schedule. Do you have any reccomendations as to what days of the week I should go (maybe 3-4 times per week)? I'm also willing to go for runs, but what's a reasonable length of time or whatever if I'm doing HIIT?

Also, what's a good breakfast to have on a daily basis? I can't do much about my lunch/dinner but I rarely eat breakfast anymore (I know I should though). Any supplements you would reccomend?

Any and all suggestions will be greatly appreciated, THANKS!

[StoneColdChilla]

Ive lost over 40 pounds, but I don't seem to gain any muscle and I lift quite often. I don't want to take protein supps because I dont wanna gain any weight.

What should I do?

[EASYlivin]

Originally Posted by Howard

Hey EasyLivin, I'm 18 5'10 and I weigh about 230lbs. I have the build of an average guy I guess...I mean I dont look that fat just a bit chubby. I drink soda pretty often and have been trying to cut down. What kinda of excersize/diet would you recommend to lose some pound and gain some muscle? I have some free weight available to me to use If I need to...

Any advice would be great, as im stuck in a bit of a rut at this point.

Well you should start by healthy eating. The best way to lose fat is to mix exercising with healthy eating. You should try and get up to 30 minutes of heavy exercise a day. This combined with good foods will drop pounds off you. Try and eat more greens and fruits. You dont have to lift, but if you do.. do high reps less weight. your trying to lose weight so you dont want to be maxing out at the gym. (read my other posts for a diet guide)

[EASYlivin]

Originally Posted by Mr Silver

I've recently started jogging every morning to lose some weight and tone up, but can you suggest any other exercises to reduce the amount of fat in my chest..okay I might aswell be honest - best way to lose moobs?

Running IS the best way to lose "moobs"! you can also do "flys" with weights. this will target the chest area along with the bench press. start weight low and gradually increase.

[EASYlivin]

Originally Posted by Stay_Classy

Okay, Im 6-0, and naturally a very skinny person. I was getting into a good routine of liftng, and peaked out a little over 155 before I tore my labrum. Since that happened, Ive been unable to do alot of lifting. I cant do bench, incline, overhead press, pull downs, etc. without sharp pain.

Ive been rehabbing it with different stretches, and band work, and its finnally feeling decent, and Im slowly being able to return to certain lifts, but since ive been unable to lift consistantly for months ive lost over almost 10 pounds of muscle.


I want those 10 pounds back, and then some. But what do you recommend my routine should be, since I cant really bench anymore....?????

My roommate last year broke his collarbone and couldnt lift for about a month. you want to slowly start getting back into your routine. Use lesser weights. you dont want to feel pain while your lifting. And make sure you are stretching your arms multiple times during your workout.

I would also suggest getting into running to keep yourself fit while your healing.

[EASYlivin]

Originally Posted by p0gmoth0in

Hi easylivin, thanks for your contribution to the community!

I'm 5'8" and 115 lbs. I'm a skinny little shit in other words.

I'd like to gain muscle but more importantly become more healthy. I have a gym membership but I don't go often enough because I don't have a schedule. Do you have any reccomendations as to what days of the week I should go (maybe 3-4 times per week)? I'm also willing to go for runs, but what's a reasonable length of time or whatever if I'm doing HIIT?

Also, what's a good breakfast to have on a daily basis? I can't do much about my lunch/dinner but I rarely eat breakfast anymore (I know I should though). Any supplements you would reccomend?

Any and all suggestions will be greatly appreciated, THANKS!

You might want to purchase a protein supplement for after your gym workout. I would suggest going to the gym every other day jsut to get used to it, then eventually switch over to 6-7 days a week (alternating muscles). If you are looking to gain muscle I would suggest running 1 mile , 3-4 times a week. Running keeps you fit, but wont build much muscle. Its more of a fat burner.

For the past few months ive been having the same breakfast. I crack two eggs on the stovetop, scoop out the yolk ( has too much cholesterol) then throw that on a sandwich with cheese. Then I will get my blender, pour some OJ in there and ice and 1 bananna and make a smoothie.

[EASYlivin]

Originally Posted by StoneColdChilla

Ive lost over 40 pounds, but I don't seem to gain any muscle and I lift quite often. I don't want to take protein supps because I dont wanna gain any weight.

What should I do?

If you are working out "quite often" you should be taking a protein supplement. Many athletic trainers will tell you that if you dont have a protein filled meal/shake within 1-2 hours of your workout, its almost pointless.

Your body needs to rebuild muscle. It needs protein. You wont get fat from taking a protein supplement, unless youre not working out.

[buckstop]

hey easylivin,

i used to be chubby but lost all the baby fat not long ago, i'm 5'9 and 130lbs. i was 5'2 and 135lbs, had a growth spurt, ate less(a lot less) and here i am.

problem is i have a bit of fat on my stomach that i really want to lose. is there any way to lose it without exercise? if i eat right and do my usual exercise(hockey season, on the ice ~3 times per week) will it go away eventually?