<p>if you're looking to drop fat... the whole equation is rather simple...</p>
<p>energy output must be greater than energy input...</p>
<p>the general rule is that your metabolism burns off about 50% of the calories you take in (when you reach 30 years old this number decreases by 1-2% every year)... leaving the other 50% up to you to burn off through exercise and activity...</p>
<p>so let's just say you're on a 1,600 calorie diet...</p>
<p>that means your metabolism will burn off 800, leaving around 600-700 calories per day that you must burn off...</p>
<p>remember... you're constantly burning calories... while you sleep, study, sitting doing nothing, etc...so try not to go too crazy...a good 45 mins of physical activity per day should be more than sufficient to get you where you want to be...</p>
<p>try to burn between .5lb and 2 lbs of fat per week... but don't go past that...</p>
<p>yoyo diets are usually a temporary fix... so stay the course...and lose it gradually</p>
<p>and just some extra general info... theres about 3,000 calories per pound of fat... so you can do the math and figure out exactly what you need to do</p>
<p>Yeah, in the Men's Health Abs diet (the diet I am using as a guideline) it is recommended to splurge once a week to "reward" yourself, and keep yourself balanced.... other than that, one should try to avoid daily trips to McDonald's and the nearest doughnut shop.</p>
<p>Best thing to do is to eat healthy and constantly snack on things that will make you full, but aren't bad for you. Vegetables high in water content will make you initially full and keep you satiated for a short while (like celery). Protein makes you full. Make sure to wait about 20 minutes after your first serving before taking another one. It takes around 20 minutes for you to feel fullness, so if you feel full and you're still eating, it means you were actually physically full 20 minutes ago.</p>
<p>I do about 2 miles a day on the treadmill. I run at 5.5 miles/hr for 15 minutes of that, so I feel too tired at the end to run any more (I'm kinda out of shape, though not overweight. Just weak, I guess.) Would it be more beneficial to walk briskly for 4 miles and run for less time? Also, what's a good upper body workout for a girl to see results? What I do is making me stronger, but there is not an obvious visible difference in muscle tone.</p>
<p>ahhh i have a great lower ab workout but it's so hard to explain without a visual aid..</p>
<p>lie flat on your back with your legs straight out in front of you. in eight counts, raise your legs to a little more than a 45-degree angle while scissor-kicking your feet back and forth horizontally on your way up. do the same thing as you lower your legs in 8 more counts. next, do the exercise while leaning on your elbows. the third time, do it leaning on your hands (you'll basically be sitting up).</p>
<p>start out with 3 reps of this exercise (one rep = flat, elbows, & hands) and work your way up to 5. it's best to do it with music, and the slower the tempo, the more it'll hurt :)</p>
<p>we do this one in winterguard and my abs hurt just listening to the song we normally use for it lol</p>
<p>I seriously think that this is a sign that I should get in shape.
First I read this thing in a magazine, then I watch the diet episode of true life, then it is on Oprah, and now this!!</p>
<p>Well first of all, I am not fat, but I am not toned either. I am around 5'7" and weigh about 135 pounds. I want to lose around ten...but I am more concerned with dropping sizes than pounds. </p>
<p>Does this sound like a good plan to lose the weight?
1. Join cross-country. Practice 5 days a week. Lots of running.
2. Go to a kickboxing class on Wednesday nights.
3. Go to the gym once a week to lift weights.</p>
<p>I am going to tryyyyyy and diet, but it is so hard to do it as a teenager. Eating out is more of a social thing than a "feeding my hunger" thing. </p>
<p>BTW...thanks for all of the great tips so far everyone. I am going to try and do some of these things.</p>
<p>my brother's (and his wife's) philosophy is/are that you exercise on a consistent basis (they swim/bike/run ALOT), and they eat WHATEVER they want (bacon, cake, pizza, fries, pretty much live life to the fullest), and include fruit and veggies throughout the day.</p>
<p>i think this has got to be unhealthy (would NOT reccomend it), but they are very active, and very fit. I think the most important think in life is to stay active in some way or another...</p>
<p>^^ Yes, from recent research I've done about this, it is ok to eat not so good foods if you are very active.... however, if it's all you eat, you will eventually not have enough energy to be very active. You Have to mix your pizzas, doughnuts and what have you's with fruits and vegetables.... Also, drink a lot of water and stay away from soda pop and other sugar filled drinks.</p>
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Another one I do is to lie down on the floor, with your knees bent at 90 degrees and put a light medicine ball between your knees. Then you raise your head, shoulders and feet and with your knees you make a wide figure 8 do 3 reps in 1 direction and 3 in the other
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</p>
<p>I tried this today.... works the entire abdomen and really hurts--in a good way!</p>
<p>If you guys are trying to get a 6 pack you have to do running or jump roping to lose fat in your abdominal area. You can have the strongest abs but have them not show.</p>