Getting Into Shape!

[Brooke_]

It is hard to get in shape. I have been talking about it for how long now? Who knows! It seems I like to sit and read about exercise than actually exercising..counter productive. So all it took was getting a few friends along for the ride and I'm actually starting to get this fitness ball rolling. It seems once you actually get into a gym and do a little bit of something that you tend to want to do more, more often! It relieves your stress, it actually GIVES you energy, and it helps you save money because you can't buy shoes while in a gym!
I feel anxious now when I don't get some sort of exercise in each day. Sunday night I was being awful to my boyfriend because I had so much built up tension because I didn't make it to the gym that day. On the one hand that isn't good, but it is good because I am less likely to skip the gym/more likely to make time for the gym knowing how I felt Sunday.
I was exhausted from working three jobs until I finally started working out. It actually gives you energy to go to the gym. So instead of going home for a short nap between jobs I go to the gym and it makes me feel refreshed and awake...opposed to a nap which makes me feel more tired and groggy!
My wallet may take a hit due to the expensive gym package I purchased (24 personal training sessions). However, in the long run it saves me money because the payment is taken from my entertainment fund and my time is spent at the gym.

I guess I just want to let everyone know how amazing if feels to finally be on the road to a nice, hard body (hahah), and no matter how hard it may seem to get into a fitness routine, how can you afford not to? There isn't a single negative affect that it has on any aspect of anyone's life.
It is awesome to set a goal for yourself and to achieve it. Especially when you're like me and usually don't set goals or end up achieving goals you set! LOL.

Let's hear your fitness AND health tips and tricks, what are the little (or big) things that you do to stay in shape and to stay healthy? I look forward to reading the responses and learning a few new things to try!

I'll start with this: NO ALCOHOL! I cut it out over a month ago and have no desire to have any anymore. It is a waste of calories and basically it is poison to our systems.

[Chantel]

Pepsi is my alcohol, it's no good for me but I love it. I am currently at 133 lbs, 19 y/o and 5'2.

I follow fitblrs on tumblr, and a before and after blog. Seeing other people JUST LIKE ME transforming their bodies quickly or a little over time doing a little bit is inspirational. I also use myfitnesspal to track what I eat.

I have no desire for a hard body or really to be in great shape right now, I just want to feel good in my clothes.

This is the photo that really made me feel that I could change. Before is post-pregnancy. I have a body I would describe as wide-shaped, thinner than her before, but I haven't had kids. If you have had kids though, you know your hips spread out and kinda stay that way, but look at what she managed to get back to. This picture basically says to me that nothing is impossible, or even improbable. You can do what you want with your body. You don't have to give up just because your shape isn't already ideal.



EDIT: Oh gosh, so huge sorry!

[AmandaPantz]

I liek that the before and after is actually the same person, however I do not like when after photos include things like obscenely fake tans and breast implants. I am sure this girl would have looked just as good without those things.

[Qtpi]

Not to burst your bubble, but a talent agency told me (when I was pregnant) that most before shots are taken during pregnancy. This ensures that you a) look huge, and b) can look great in a matter of months. Just an FYI

[sweet sparrow]

While I think you really can achieve anything you want, I think it's important to be realistic as well. I don't think I'll ever have the body of Victoria Beckham, even after her four kids! Everyone has a different body shape and there's no reason yours can't be considered beautiful.

Several years ago, I did try to exercise because I was trying to learn how to swim. I wanted to build up my endurance so I would have the energy to make it across the pool without drowning mid-way. I practiced twice a week, in addition to the swimming lesson once a week. One day a week was for high intensity aerobics and weight training. Two days a week, I would run 10 K, and Fridays, I went out with friends. I was also eating a fruits and vegetable-based diet.

After about a year of that, I asked my chiropractor what I could do to improve my back. He poked me in the stomach and told me to exercise. At the time, I was four pounds away from being underweight, and I really couldn't see myself exercising any more with my full-time job (9 hours/day) and four hour commute. Boy was I annoyed!

My food intake has gotten worse after marriage, with DH insisting on meats with every meal, increased sodium and fats, etc. Plus, he *loves* movies and will watch them every chance he gets. I usually watch them with him. I also get the least amount of exercise I can as I no longer live close to a pool and the insane exercise class I used to go to.

My issue is and will always will be my eating habits, specifically how much I eat. When people introduce me, they introduce my appetite before anything else. I eat twice as much as DH who weighs twice as much and I get hungry every few hours, no matter how much I eat. That's the one thing I haven't been able to change so far.

Next month, I plan to blow up my fitness ball and sit on it while I watch TV to improve my balance. I know it's not a real plan, but it's a teensy step forward. Maybe I'll bring up my weights from the basement. Maybe.

I just know I can't exercise as much as I did when I was single and still enjoy the quality of relationship I have now. Time is the other issue.

Since this is in the rant thread, mine is that no matter how hard I work at it, I never seem to see any visible difference, so I lose motivation. I'm not sure I feel any different either.

[Brooke_]

Sweet Sparrow, I'm sorry to hear you're struggling with those issues. Is your husband into fitness? Maybe you and him could take a class together -- you'd be getting exercise and spending time together.
As for your chiropractor, what a jerk! Most of them are pretty stupid from my experience anyways so his opinion matters none.
Little steps are all it takes. You sit on that fitness ball! Maybe do a few crunches on it

[Chantel]

lol if that picture is fake/fudged, I don't even care. I can see some of the shape that she has (the hip fat, the thighs) in myself, and if she physically can get from that to what she now is, I see it as inspirational. I don't particularly want that body, but just knowing it IS attainable if you work hard enough, is fine with me.

Boob job or not, I could never tell she had a child with that body.

Sparrow, your doctor is a jerk. I remember being 8 and my doctor giving this disapproving sigh and saying "She's a bit overweight". I was not even fat. That's when a lot of my body image issues started.

Do your best, even if it's just a little at a time. Bring one of those fitness balls to work if you sit at a desk.

[Darth Penguin]

The loss of the moles on the tummy/breast area is a dead give-away that at least one of the piccies is either faked or a different person.

eta...and no stretch marks on the first body picture either...

[sweet sparrow]

Brooke_ & Chantel, thanks. I was mostly just proud of the fact that I was able to swim to the other side of the pool and I wasn't as petrified of the deep end as I used to be. When the CP poked me in the stomach though, I thought about that shirt with the Pillsbury Dough Boy that says "Poke me and die!". I'd been trying really hard to get to where I was!

DH and I have switched commutes and he works more than I do, so it's very rare that we can get any exercise before sunset. He has zero time for a class, but we're going to try to get out this weekend. Someone he knows just had a heart attack, so it's just more emphasis that we have to get out and do *something*. Maybe we should start an exercise encouragement thread in the fitness section? Anyways, with the encouragement of you guys, I'll aim to get outside with DH at least once this weekend. In the morning, I'll tell him what we've decided. We'll see how that goes.

Darth, I agree that picture looks slightly odd. The before picture seems to have natural lighting, while the picture on the right has a very strong greenish tinge. I almost didn't think it was her either until I saw the diagonal pattern of moles across her belly button. In the after picture, I think the photo is of the mirror image, which is why her picture seems reversed. The dark green hue may give her the appearance of a strong tan or minimize the stretch marks.

Chantel, are you sure she lost the weight naturally? If she had liposuction, could that be why she doesn't seem to have any loose skin?

[Chantel]

People have been debating that on the facebook page. The moles are still there, they're reversed because pic 1 was taken by somebody else, and pic 2 by her in a mirror. The lighting is far worse in the after, and her tan would help blend the moles in. Her tan is probably also fake, a spray tan maybe, so that would also contribute to the covering-up of the moles. I honestly can't see stretch marks on either picture, at all.

EDIT: She says: "I used P90X, ChaLean Extreme and other cardio to burn off the fat. I have lost 85 lbs. since delivering my son. I have added so much lean muscle mass that I never had before I was pregnant. I am currently doing Insanity and I LOVE it. "

So I think she did do it naturally. She has a blogspot under Kenna Shell that has lots more pictures.

I believe it mostly because of a tumblr blog called http://before-and-after-pictures.tumblr.com/ .
I see other people doing those workouts and they don't have loose skin. I don't know why, but I assume it's because they lose weight at a normal rate rather than biggest-loser style and aren't really, really big to begin with. It seems to take a lot to have enough loose skin to not be able to just work it off.

I'm not any sort of expert though.

[neelkamalll1979]

Didn't think of breast argumentation when I looked at the after pic I just thought all her fat went to her breast lol. This thread makes me want to exercise.
OP great for getting a Personal Trainer. I have had 3 and my first one was great the second one was always late and the third was ok but liked to check girls out. If you find one that doesn't work for you, you have the ability to change them. I also suggest doing a whole year if you can afford it. The more PT classes you sign up for the bigger the discount you get. And eat clean! Good Luck

[Sunshyne1]

I just joined a gym not 2 days ago!

right now im 5'2 about 155...used to be 130.

I never had to use a gym before. I played baseball on 2 teams all summer and in the winter did indoor volleyball. Those activities plus walking the dog an hour everyday kept me thin.
And then I got injured during a baseball game 2 years ago. Tore the tendons in my right hand and it's never healed properly.
So baseball was out, volleyball was out. Once I hit 40...then came the weight gain.
I wasn't gaining weight because of my eating habits. Although im not the healthiest eater, i try. And I hardly ever eat out.
It was purely because of my inactivity. And walking the dog definately wasn't cutting it anymore.

So I start next week....got 6 training sessions with a Personal Trainer because i've never used any type of gym equipment in my life. Im excited!!! Im not looking to be a hard body...but I definately want all my Jiggly bits to not jiggle anymore!

[Sunshyne1]

didn't read thread, someone already pointed out what I was trying to say

[kparker1786]

Now that I've started walking, I'm trying to figure out how to work out. I'll be the first to admit, I'm lazy. I don't like to sweat, add in I have acne on the top of my forehead and the sweat stings like a b****! (Weird, I know) But I also know I'm fat. I always have been. The kids in school made sure I knew of it every. single. day. Since I'm only on-call for work, I don't get paid very often, plus on disability. So I don't think a gym is financially possible. Trying to think of other ways, one thing I DO know... I cannot work out in this house. I love my family and all, but they would distract me to no end! I think once I'm walking completely on my own (I walk with a cane right now) I'll go for walks with hubby and the dogs. But right now I'm struggling. With PCOS, it's about 10 times harder to lose the weight. My doctor put me on some meds to help but I do need to figure something out.
Sigh. Hopefully something will pop into my head.

[nainai0585]

The loss of the moles on the tummy/breast area is a dead give-away that at least one of the piccies is either faked or a different person.

eta...and no stretch marks on the first body picture either...

Holy cow I didn't even notice that. But when I took a closer look, in the after pic, she has a mole on her left lower arm, and in the before she doesn't.