While I was reading through everyone's New Years Resolutions, I saw one common theme cropping up - people wanting to get fitter, or lose weight, or tone up, or even gain weight. I'm one of the people in this boat, so I thought maybe it would be nice to have a thread where we can help each other out, encourage each other, offer advice with all our physical targets *prays for success of thread D:*

Anyone here in this situation? Or have some advice as to good exercises for toning up? Or even just want to rant about how much chocolate they've eaten over Christmas? xD

Including other health related subjects here too, if anyone is looking for motivation with getting clearer skin perhaps!

I'm looking to get down to a weight more suitable for my size. I'm 5'2" and at the top end of my weight to height ratio and need to get down to around eight and a half to nine stone.

I started last year but went of the rails around Christmas so I'm just going to get back into my old habits.

I did pretty well, just eating three meals a day (breakfast, then something like rice and fish at lunch and dinner). I didn't deny myself anything, but had it in moderation. And it worked.

I do have a gym membership to, but with the dark afternoons getting the desire up to go swimming or running is really hard, so I'm going to try and get back onto that when the Spring hits and I don't feel quite so lethargic!

I was doing pretty well just walking: I quit taking the tube and decided to walk to\ from work. Of course Christmas has put a spanner in things, but I'm sure I can loose those Christmas pounds once I'm back in the work routine.

I'm going to get into the habit of walking into town more rather than bussing it. Walking is really great. MP3 player on, I can let my thoughts wander ^_^

Also my partner and I are looking at doing weekly swimming sessions, just have to figure out costs and things. It's been years since I last went swimming. I think having a goal like Silver's is good. I don't want to lose too much weight, just enough so I look the right weight for my height.

I like the idea of sharing tips...sadly I have none to offer >.<

This! I also have a gym membership, and have been wanting to go all winter but... there's something about it being dark out, with nasty weather, that reeeally removes all desire to exercise D:

I'm not so worried about my weight itself, although again it's kinda at the top end of what it should be so I'd like to get it down.... more specifically I just want to eat better, get fitter, and try and lose the extra I've gained from a year of eating badly and doing hardly any exercise. Partly for cosplay purposes, as both my costumes for May expo include shorts, but also just for general health. I have trousers from last year that are uncomfortably tight, want to get back into them nicely!

I'm not in too bad a situation in that my weight is fine (I looked into Weight Watchers and Lighter Life and my BMI is too low for me to sign up to either of them), so I don't need to lose any as such. I just don't like how my weight is distributed (it's all around my stomach, damn my genetics and the fact that spot reduction is a myth!). So I take this to mean that I don't really need to change my diet, I just need more regular exercise.

I signed up to my university's badminton club at the beginning of the academic year and that's going well. Once the gyms open again I'm going to look into some studio classes - if I can have something to go to on Thursday evenings and over the weekend as well I think that'll sort me out.

This is one of my resolutions for the year ahead , But at the moment i am currently pregnant and shes due in April, but i plan on loosing as much baby weight as i can afterwards.
I did have quite a heavy fitness regime before i became pregnant , and this was a mix of martial arts and Pilates.
For toning different parts of the body Pilates i must say is GREAT, and for general fitness martial arts is great too and there is so many choices out there that you can take up a light martial art like Tai Chi or take a heavy martial art (meaning you do ALOT more) like Tae kwon do for example.

Definitely one of my resolutions and I know exactly what I have to do for it too...I gain and lose weight like mad and am determined to lose it again and keep it off now. It's pure laziness and compliance that is my issue at the moment. I eat less than most people until it comes to snackage...so now that I'm living alone, I'll just not buy any and replace it with extra fruit so I have no choice...LOL

well my news years related fitness goal is to finish my 3rd marathon in 4hours 45, instead of my usual awful back of the pack time! (slow and steady) That and put a little more effort in and get that flat stomach I've been after.

Just need to hit the gym/run 4 times a week instead of my current two and a climb...

I do a lot of exercise and have played pretty much every sport (a majority of which competitively too), so I'm a big ball of tips and advice if anyone wants any. I'm always happy to help!

feel free to drop me a pm if you want specific advice on anything!

One thing to remember is to set realistic goals. Aim for a new dress size, or measurement. Don't use weight as it's not the most helpful guide. If you exercise lots, you build up muscle which weighs more, so your weight will stay the same for a while, and in some cases increase, and tracking the scales can be really depressing.

And please please please ignore the BMI scale. it's a load of crap. I weigh a lot, but I'm tall and have an athletic build, even so my BMI is considered overweight.

The second most important thing: Eat properly there is no point hitting the gym three times a week if your diet isn't balanced and healthy. You can do all the workouts in the world, but if you calorie intake is higher than you burn off, or is made from 'bad' calories, then you may as well not bother.

The most important thing: try and have fun! try working out with friends, (even if you have different goals), a 20mile run is a lot more fun if you have someone to chat to while you do it... trust me!

p.s. don't take too much notice of my flabby stomach, it's much easier to give advice than take it, but this year I'm going to follow it too! (honest!)

Something I've got involved in on another forum others may want to try.

A flat out fast food ban for a month (minimum).

Its involving no fast food/takeaways, this inculdes drive thru & resteraunt eating, limit eating out in non-greasy fasfood places (2 times max), plan meals better, make healther choices in bought food (sandwich shops ect), actualy looking at what you are eating and how much you are spending.

I'm in it more for the financial and learing to plan meals better sides, I don't have that much fast food but get dragged out and end up having food quite alot, but hopefully wihtout the sugary puddings I normaly get there should be some heath benefit.


And if people want better skin, make sure you drink enough water; At my minimum of 1 pint a day my skin got infinitly more well behaved.

Yeah i know that feeling why does it always go to the belly and love handles! Im trying to get myself toned. I will go it this time! as it makes me unhappy i will be happy if i can toned and stay toned, And just generally feel more fit. So its gonna be gym with my friend and intensive boxing once a week too.

Do you think you have to go to the gym and that more than once a week? As i am quite badly underweight (through no fault of my own) i get really tired easily >__< I dont know if i could go gym more than twice a week. Well not at first. Gonna get that weight up with muscle mass ^_^

Idealy yes, you will do more for your stamina than only once a week.
Don't go two days in a row though, you need to give your body a 'rest' and alow yourself to properly recover.

BTW- IF you want to actualy get some muscle and help your stamina properly, weight exercisesidealy with free weights with heigh weight and low reps will do you alot of good (you won't get bulky, its a lie along with low weight high reps building long lean muscle).

Thanks infinity ^___^ thats really good advice. Yeah i dont want to be like mucho woman just nicely toned

don't push yourself, if you feel you can only survive once a week then start with that. A good workout and a change in diet will give you more energy (the less you exercise the more lethargic you get!)

If you want to add good weight and help build some nice muscle definition, switch to a high protein high carb diet, but good carbs though, nice unrefined complex ones, like rices, pastas and things like polenta and cous cous! a nice steamed chicken with rice and green vegis is the perfect workout meal, and with it being so healthy you can always add a little sauce (e.g. tomato based) to the dish if you want to perk it up a bit.

Make sure your getting a good calorie intake, if you want to add weight aim for 2500 calories a day (approx). Though don't stress too much about it. Try and have a much fun as you can while you work out. It will make the time pass really quickly!

You can always ask the trainers at the gym for tips, most gyms will always give free advice (the advice above about the weights is an excellent place to start!) and the trainers will be able to help you pick the right weights and movements to suit you!

any tips you can give louise
because basically my bmi atm says im obese , which is bollox, im chubby but i cant possibly be obese, ill openly admit before i was 15 and a half stone, and im 5.9 yes shocker, however before xmas i dropped down to 14 stone 6 pounds, so yeyy, however due to christmas, im back to just under 15 stone, GRRRR, admitadly id like to drop to 12 stone, id like to loose 2 stone by may, any tips hun?

Aww thank you! This has really helped me to think in the right way. Its a good thing i LOVE pasta and rice I dont eat toooo bad, but i need to make sure i mix more i think. Just dont get enough fresh fruit and veg which i actually quite like, i will have to write myself a nice healthy varied diet plan i can stick too. I liek really bland food which means no sauce for me hehe. Im so boring when it comes to food.
Yey all this talk is making me feel more motivated already

Im on my feet all day from friday to sunday at work so hopefully this adds a bit of exercise. But once im used to it im sure ill be able to do more

I second this!

Any tips on the best exercise for toning leg muscles? As you mentioned, I know you do a lot of running and so I wondered if you recommended that? I try jogging but I get quite out of breath after about 400 metres so I can never seem to keep going continously. Is there a method for developing stamina to keep going or are other exercise methods a better way to tone leg muscles?
Any help would be appreciated from anyone- especially if you've tried methods for toning leg muscles ^_^

Giant Lenin, ryaoki,

Cardio is you best friend! ryaoki I'd suggest taking up running too, as cardio is he best way to loose fat. Since Starting running (again) properly, I lost a stone and a dress size (now 11.5 and a size 10/12) which at 5'10" suits me perfectly!

to start running I'd first suggest get some comfy trainers. You don't have to spend a fortune, standard high street running shoes are fine.

Start with the run/walk method, which is honestly a genuine training method!! start by running 400m, then walk 400m (or until you feel you heart rate return to almost normal) then repeat 3 or four time. Then go home and have a bath.

A few days later (always give your body time to recover) do the same again.

Next increase to 500m, then 600m until you hit about a kilometer (1000 meters) then once you feel comfy running for 10-15 minutes at a time, decrease the walking breaks, say run 1km walk 200m repeat. Before you know if you will be running 5k straight without breaking a sweat!

And I will go out on a limb here and say I guarantee 100% that if you follow that you will start to loose fat (not necessarily weight to start with as you will be building muscle mass)

want to know why 100%?? Because I helped a overwieght friend of mine get fit. His blood pressure and weight were so high his doctors were getting worried. So I took him running with me. Last February he completed a half marathon with me, and this year we are running a marathon together and his is aiming to finish it 45 minutes before me. (b*stard is running circles round me!!!)

I'd suggest maybe taking a look at some races during the summer, the so called 'fun' runs! there are loads of great 5k and 10k races about. Having a goal like a race to aim for gives you the extra determination, especially when you have a bunch of mates watching!

Check runnersworld.co.uk, I get a lot of training and kit advice from there, they also have on of the best race directorys around.

This is all really good advice everyone, thanks

Originally I was going to the gym after college today. But now I'm going to Nandos instead. (Is that fail or win? xD ) I want to go tomorrow but it's the last day I'll be able to see my boyfriend for a few weeks, so he's naturally trying to guilt trip me into not going. Wednesday I'm going to the cinema. The world doesn't want me to get fit D:

How many times a week would you say it's worthwhile to go to the gym? Like many people I expect, I'm fairly impatient to see results xD I'm working on my diet (which is ABSOLUTELY terrible. Seriously. I'm mildly allergic to something in most fruit which gives me little lumps in my lip when I eat them, which feels icky so I tend to just not bother a lot of the time. I drink a lot of fruit juice, and take a vitamin supplement thing though, so it's not AS bad as it could be... working on drinking more water too.)

But yeah, from a vague, average perspective, does anyone know how long it might take to start seeing physical results from exercise? A few weeks would be my guess, if you go a couple of times a week? (I'm going to aim for 3 times a week)

Sorry for being a newbie about this. Lazy people are not acquainted with the world of exercise.

It depends on several factors. What you look like now, what areas you will be focusing on, what results you want to see etc. IF you exercise 3 times a week then you will notice an increase in stamina after a few weeks, other than that I wouldn't like to guess. It can take months of hard work to loose a few dress sizes. Impatience and fitness don't go well together I'm afraid. But everyones bodies are unique, just remember to set yourself realistic little goals, that way you an check them off quickly.

E.g. by the end of the month you want to run 5km non stop. then the next month be able to lift xxxkg for 15x3 reps etc. Keep ticking that type of goal off and you'll see results. Things like, I want a flat stomach, or a kylie-bum and long haul goals. Believe me, i;ve been working on my stomach for months!

Unless of course you're an A-list celeb and can afford a personal trainer and work out 6 times a week, then it will only take a few months.....

What scares me the most is after celebrities have babies, with the mandatory I LOST MY BABY WEIGHT IN 3 WEEKS!!!!! articles in magazines. Have they even SEEN their baby during the time they've been doing all this exercise?

Thanks for the advice anyway! I think a definite goal I'll set for the time being is to fit into the shorts I'm making for a costume for May. I'm making them from an oldish pattern I used last year, which surprise surprise no longer seems to fit. So I'd say fitting what's probably a trouser size smaller by May should be a good target

That sounds like a great target! Swimming, running and hitting the cross trainer are great workouts for that!

Thanks so much for the advice! Really appreciate it

As queer as this is gonna sound...whatever haha!

The only exercise I get is my 10 min walk to work and back and my wii fit funtimes I do when I get home on a night. Just control my eating to only be healthy with lots of fruit and veggies and treat yourself once or twice a week! Try not to go mad though! I do occasionally haha!

xxxx

I started working out when I started university again, and it went really well, sadly though because of wanting to fit in with friends, I didn't have a very healthy diet(My diet at university is normally very bland but a healthy bland that I like and others hate XD), so this only maintained my weight at a steady 136lbs. I'm in the low end of my weight range, being 5'7 and having a BMI of 21.5. However, like a few other people, I dislike how my weight is distributed. I have an hour glass figure, so my weight tends to settle on my hips, stomach and bum. So my main plan in New Year is to really tone up and hopefully shift some weight as well, and possibly build some muscle mass eventually.
I've set a goal of May expo to see at least SOME difference, i'm not expecting to be amazingly toned or anything, but a general increase in stamina and over all body shape would be nice.

I think my main motivation is that i'm cosplaying a lot of female characters this year, and non of them (except possibly Bayonetta) have an hour glass shape to them, so i'd at least like to tone up before I cosplay them.
I'm also determined to fit into one bloody size of clothing! I'm stuck between an eight and a ten due to the sheer size of my hips and waist. (My waist is 25inches, my hips 40inches)While neither of those sizes are bad, i'd just like to fit into one or the other, preferably the eight (if my hips will allow it, as their is only so much you can loose and tone) so that it makes clothing shopping easier and cheaper and gives me a bit of variety. (I find that when you go into sales, particularly Next's end of year slaes, the size eights and lower are always cheapest and have more left on the racks)

So yeah, its gym time again! XD I actually really enjoy the gym when its not crowded. I think thats the best advice I can offer really, if you want to start at the gym, but are nervous about going, try and find out what times are less busy. For me its early morning and then 1 o'clock till 3 as thats when other students come in. I was so nervous about going to the gym, thinking everyone would look, but no one even raises an eyebrow when you go. :3

I'm also trying to get better health wise, as over the past year and a half, i've suffered with anemia, which, coupled with a very stressful year at university has made my hair fall out and its now very thin and brittle. So one of my goals is to try and increase my intake of vitamins and minerals (I buy them, then ignore them >_> to encourage my hair to get thicker again and also to control my anemia. 8D

Anyways, good luck everyone! I'm sure we can all do it and be pleased with ourselves at the end of it all! <3