Starting at the Gym Tomorrow

[longhorns38]

Hey yall I'm Starting at Planet Fitness Tomorrow I've been a Member but have been just walking and now I'm getting bored and will be moving to strengthing and doing cardio to help with my weight loss goals.  My goals are to get down to 200 and than I would ultimately like to get down to 155-160 by this time next year, I know I can do it just need to stay focused and watch what I eat.  Please feel free to add me as a friend as I could use all the help as I work towards this new adventure.

Moderator edit: Format. 

[betpchem]

Good luck to you. I like going to the gym myself. It keeps me accountable.

[JohnRi]

80% of weight loss for until you get to within 30 lbs of your goal, is mainly determined by what you eat.

IE you need to be a calorie deficit to lose weight.  The alternative is you must do 4-6 hours of exercise everyday.  I frankly don't have the body to do that much exercise.

Guessing you should be able to do a 1000 calorie deficit until you get to 190 lbs or so. 

Exercise enhances weightloss at the beginning, but diet drives it at first.  Doing strength training is also good, adding muscle burns more calories. And it takes a very long time for women to add muscle.  So starting early, isn't a bad thing.

But some form of cardio is what you need most.  At least 45 minutes at first, and then up to 90 minutes when you can get there.  You can walk, run, ride a bike, so a cardio class whatever.  The trick is finding the cardio that you enjoy and want to do.  I love to power walk.  Always have.  I have always hated running.   So for me walking is boring, a chore or something I hate.  If you do an exercise that you hate, chances are you will quit.

As you get closer to your goal, diet only enhances weight loss, now exercise drives it.  You reach a point where you can't eat less, and therefore, you have to exercise to lose weight.  At the beginning, controling your diet, and making permenant diet changes, that drives your weight loss.  So at the end it's the exact opposite.

As you get closer to goal, your deficit also decreases.  40 and over, 1000 calories.  20-39, 750 calories. 10-19, 500 calorie, and under 10 is 250 calorie deficit.

Remember women should always eat at least 1200-1300 calories a day mininum.   If you are burning 2000 calories a day, then you will have to eat a 800 calorie deficit.  Or you will have to burn 200 more calories.

Take a look at this website and calculate your TDEE.  Choose your activity level and you will get your BMR, TDEE to stay the same weight, and options for eating less.  Choose the Extreme.  These numbers change as you lose weight. 

I've dropped over 76 lbs so far. If I can do it, almost anyone else can too. 

[USAF-Larry]

Best of luck, @longhorns38!  Work with the staff at PF to make sure you use the equipment correctly, and don't overdo it at the beginning. Slow and steady in both exercise and diet changes will see you through to your goals.

[Knight92]

Keep positive through the valleys, look and stride toward your end result with your incremental goals in mind and you will make it!

All the best of luck to you and congrats so far!

[emili]

Good luck to you. Just remember weight loss starts in the kitchen. Its not so much watching what you eat but developing a plan and strategy for being in a caloric deficit and getting all your nutrients in. You can't expect your machine to work properly if you don't fuel it properly. I go to PF as well and I really like that everyone does their own thing and doesn't care what the person next to them is doing. Have fun!