Healthy things I recommend eating are:
Pomegranates, Spinach, Skinless Chicken, Steel Cut Oatmeal, Apples, Strawberries, Blackberries, Low-calorie snacks such as peta chips, Veggie chips, Triscuits, Wheat Thins (Though they're sometimes high in carbs, watch it!), Beef Jerky, Inca Corn/Corn Nuts, Quinoa, Low-calorie, low sodium soups, Trail mixes (look at the NF on these though some of them are packed with unnecessary sugar and carbs), Nuts (limit these though, cuz too many nuts get carb-y) etc. --- Oh, man, that was a lot more than I thought, next, onto actual exercise. Let's start with Cardio. Cardio is often what most people default to for exercise when wanting to lose weight. Running, hiking, swimming, elliptical and stair machines. These are all fine machines that usually work for average people at average builds with an average height to above average. However, if you find that after months of working out that very little has happened, or that you used to lose fat and now you no longer do and still wish to (they call this a plateau) you may want to look into weight lifting and strength training. Now, girls, I'm not telling you to get so big you could whollop your boyfriend/brother/father etc. But what works really well to lose body fat is muscle! The more you have of it, the harder your body has to work to keep it. Just existing day to day with more muscle than normal causes you to lose more calories! You don't have to be Hulk Hogan or the Rock (Or Barbados) to lose more weight, but a bit of tone in your legs, arms and abs may be just what you need to kick your ass back in gear and begin losing weight again! Similarly, don't be afraid to stop weight or strength training! If you lose muscle it will NOT TURN INTO FAT. IT WILL NOT. They are two different types of tissue and grow and die separately of one another. Similarly just because your arms as full of 'fat' doesn't mean you'll grow big muscles there, when you gain muscle you use energy from ALL of your body and it is possible to have BOTH muscle AND fat on your arms, legs, middle, back and neck! (I DO)
Something I feel I should add - When you gain muscle, you'll gain physical weight. Muscle is heavier than fat, so you may notice when weighing yourself that not only have you not lost weight, but you've gained a bit! This is normal! Remember, that your numbers don't mean anything and that BMI isn't relevant to anyone weight-lifting because it doesn't take into consideration one's muscle mass. Don't be put off by any gain n weight, you're not gaining body fat, you're gaining muscle! Your workout is WORKING. So, say you want to start training, where do you start? Gyms are sometimes crowded and full of people who already know what they're doing. It may be intimidating and uncomfortable at first, but everyone begins somewhere! Try not to be too ashamed to ask what a machine does or where to find free-standing dumbbells or to ask someone to spot you! Most gym folks I know, both staff and members are typically friendly and willing to impart their knowledge onto you (See this entire post). So what kinds of muscles should we train? The quickest answer is EVERYTHING. Your body not only pulls energy from all of your body it also SENDS energy to all of your body, and you'd be surprised sometimes where you feel the burn! Here's a list of commonly worked muscles and where they are: Deltoids - Tops of your shoulder, they're the round bit connecting your upper arms to your chest. Biceps - Muscle on the inside of your upper arms, usually the easiest to work out. Triceps - Muscles on the outside of your upper arm, near your elbow, these guys are a pain Forearm - Pretty self explanatory, these guys stay tiny for a while, they'll catch up tho Pecs - Chest muscles, girls have these too, you know Abs - the muscles over your stomach Obliques - your sides, where your 'muffin top' forms, they're so pinchable Glutes - your butt, essentially. Hamstring - The muscle on the back of your upper legs Thighs - Muscles on the insides of your upper legs. Calves - The muscles below your knees. (There are also back muscles, sometimes referred to as dorsal muscles) (There are also muscles above your obliques, under your arm pits, but I forget what they are and they're crazy hard, imma not even go there) Good Arm Exercises: Anything where you lift over your head or pull from above you down to your chest will primarily work your biceps and some may also help your triceps a little. A pull-down machine will also help your back muscles and deltoids! A good tricep workout is to lye on your back with free weights and lift above your stomach, then you lean the weights all the way behind your head, but don't let them touch the ground! then pull them back up to where they were and down again. You'll feel that.
Another good tricep workout is bench pressing (lifting a barbell over your torso whilst laying down) Forearms get a workout from most arm exercises you do and will grow little by little as you get bigger. Good allover arm workouts are pushups, lunges and squat-thrusts Good Abs Exercises: Traditional and cross-legged crunches are very good, but also try the above mentioned tricep lift, that will also concentrate a good portion on your middle! Lye on your back with your hands behind your head, legs in the air and slowly lower your legs almost, but not fully down, you'll need your abs to keep your legs up! do this until your legs and abs get tired. Then when you feel you can, try again! Also try ab machines that 'curl' your body Also toe touches! Good Oblique Exercise: Get a heavy weight you can support and hold it in one hand. Without bending your knees, lean lightly to one side for a moment, then lean back. repeat this action a few times, not too fast, then switch hands and sides. Good Thigh Exercise: Any action where you're sitting and pushing your legs inward toward each other or outward apart are good for thighs! Mostly, machines do the best, but you can do them manually without weight too! Good Hamstring Exercise: Your hamstrings are your pushing muscles, so any action in which you push weight away from you is good! Good allover leg exercises are running, swimming, hiking, bicycling, elliptical, stair machines, and treadmills! If you're ever unsure what a machine does, try looking around it, many machines nowadays have pictures and instructions for use on them! Now that we know what machines to use or what techniques to do, how much weight do we use? if you're new to weight lifting, you might find it hard to lift even at the lowest setting, though generally, most people can lift this, it is usually set at 10 lbs or the KG equivalent. Many machines also have an optional 5lb weight that you may have to use as a primary weight until you feel ready to move up. Essentially my rule of thumb is if you can do between 7 and 10 reps in a set then you're at the right level. Less than that and it's too heavy, go down a notch, any more and it's too light, make it heavier. A rep is short for repetition and it's basically one lift or one push or one curl of what you're doing. A set is made up of however many reps you feel comfortable. I can do 7 reps in one set, and 3 sets in one sitting at 80lbs when lifting over my head. Is an example. And is also true. When training we are going for resistance. When you lift you want to feel the strain on your arms and push past it, when you push you want to feel the weight pushing back against you. To do this effectively you must not go to fast. Going fast is not only a sign you're not working at the heaviest setting you can work at, but it also cuts down on the resistance and you'll not be getting the maximum results from your workout. Unfortunately the resistance is the tiring part and may make you sore, especially when you're kicking your workout up a notch. Between sets you should take a small 3 minute break to let your body relax before doing the next set. Remember to only go up in weight when you feel ready. Trying to force your body to do more than it can may lead to injury! At the very least you will be hella sore! Don't work on a single machine or technique too long! I usually do 5 minutes for arms, then switch to legs for 5, then switch to abs for 5, then cycle between them until my workout is over. Don't work out too long! An hour is best for a single day. Working too long will make you really sore. Don't forget to take break days! Don't work out every day! Muscles work by tearing then repairing themselves. When you work out, your muscles tear and when you rest they repair themselves. Your muscles only grow when they're repairing themselves, so if you're tearing your muscles every day, you'll never get bigger! What works best for me is interchanging between Cardio (Hiking, walking and swimming mostly) and repeat visits to the gym to tone muscle. If I go to the Gym to Lift and Swim on Monday, i'll rest Tuesday, then go Hiking on Wednesday, Gym again on Thursday, rest Friday, and then maybe hike a bit over the weekend! Now let's just talk about some miscellaneous things, some tips, and some misconceptions. A good way to keep from being sore is to stretch before a workout. Sit on the floor or mat and touch your toes, stretch your arms and your core. This will limber your body up and relieve some tension later. It's also a good idea, if you or your gym has any of the following, to sit in a Sauna, a Spa, or a Hot Tub after working out. The warm air or water will relax your tense muscles and sooth you after a hard day, Just don't close your eyes, you might fall asleep! Haha! Let's talk diet pills. Do they work? Yes and no. The thing is, everyone is different. Our metabolisms grow and change and work at different levels. What may be excellent for me, might not work for others, and pills are always this way. Just because a 'leading study shows' a result, doesn't mean it'll work for you, it just means it worked for a selected group of individuals who met the testing demands of the product, and often, companies will use the best results and not tell us any of the others. Diet pills often come with side effects that scare or harm others, such as jitters or abnormal and urgent bowel movements, even leakages, ewwwww. What diet pills do is speed up your metabolism and attempt to maximize your workout, and, to some extent, they will do this. However they're almost never terribly effective, and often people find they gain the weight back over time anyways. If you feel you need a little boost, consult a physician beforehand. especially if you're a woman and wish to take testosterone supplements, your doctor may have some warnings for you. It's not impossible or too unhealthy to do, if you're a fit person. However the side effects can be... less than pleasing. Growth in body hair where there previously was none or little...some female-related problems, those sorts of things. Always check with doc before doing anything or you put yourself at risk. It's also a good idea to ask your doctor if any of your per-existing conditions may cause you to retain weight, such as PCOS. They may be able to give you advice on how to work around these things and work out safely. Working out can be great stress relief. Get out all your aggression on those machines, you let them have it! Hwah! Drink lots of water! 4-5 glasses a day! Not too much that your urine turns clear, because then you're just pissing nutrients out of your body that you actually need, but enough to keep you hydrated, full, focused, and without pain. Often times people complain of a headache after working out because they weren't hydrated enough. Drink some sports drinks! Not too many because most do have sugar in, but Vitamin Water, Poweraid, and Gatorade have vitamins and minerals to support you through and after your workouts!
Popcorn (and most things) is at it's healthiest when you don't butter it, btw. Mix up your schedule! Don't do the same thing day in and day out! It'll get boring! And when stuff gets boring we lose motivation, and the more we want to quit doing it. Mix up your meals, change up your workouts, do something new! Work out with a friend! Everything is easier with a little friendly competition with someone with similar goals! Please take care of your feet! This is something not many people tell you, but your feet do so much work in a day, they do even more when you're working out! Clean socks and regular scrubbing will make them happy. When you have boils or blisters on your feet you can't do a lot of things and it may make it painful to work out. The more painful a workout is, the less we want to do it and we run the risk of giving up. Remember that getting fit isn't a temporary thing, it is a total lifestyle switch! In order to truly benefit from your work you need to devote years to the process, Nothing is going to happen overnight! be calm and patient and work hard, you'll get there! On that note, the last thing I wanna say is it's okay to give up for a while! Take a break, get your second wind, and go back for more when you're ready! But don't ever give up fully, if you do you'll never see the results you want! Everyone can do it, you simply need to find the one path that works for you! Experiment and keep going! Good Luck!