About myself (new here, need some advice; very long)

UPDATED INFO:  http://caloriecount.about.com/myself-new-need -advice-very-long-ft141062#8

Hello everyone. I'm new here. I'm 20 years old, 5'4" tall and I'm not entirely sure how much I weigh. Last time I checked it said I was about 175 but I may have gained a few pounds since. I want to be thin again, feel & look better. You can skip some stuff if it's not important; I wanted to provide as much detail as possible so feel free to skip). I just started my diet (not the best but it's the only thing it works). And I was wondering how long it will take to start seeing results? Everyday I work out and diet, it feels like I've done it forever. Days feel like weeks and I demand results. That's why I would like to have a better mind set and a realistic idea when I should start seeing some results.

I also plan on working out more than ever. Will doing this make me lose weight faster? For example, I'm going to jog every morning (3 laps during the first couple of weeks; then increase it to 6 laps) in the morning before breakfast since it's a great to burn body fat. Then I'll jog again later in the day for the same amount. I feel lazy in the house and I don't have much to do so jogging will keep me busy for a while.

On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays I do weight lifting. It's another great way to burn fat. I'm hoping to build muscle but not too much since I want to burn body fat and get slimmer. Oh and I also have a bicycle I can use. Would that make a good exercise? It's fun (I rode it today) and I would do it every day if it makes a good exercise.

This is my diet so far (I drink water during all meals):

3 or 4 Eggs. Scrambled (I use Pams cooking spray) - Breakfast

Medium or Large Salad (iceberg lettuce from a bag, some croutons, thin slices of ham and sometimes slices of chicken breast cooked on a george foreman grill; with some caesar dressing) - Lunch and Dinner

In between Lunch & Dinner I may eat a small apple or other fruit or a small bowl of cereal. 

I'm going to add some avocado and tomatoes to my salads and occasionally use lemon juice instead. I may also completely replace the iceberg lettuce (it contains chopped carrots and something else) with something healthier such as Romaine Hearts (a bit more expensive) next time I shop. I also have whole wheat bread that I can use - I like to keep my food choices very simple since it's easy and quick. Anyways, I really get paranoid at what I eat and how much I eat since I haven't lost weight in years. Sometimes I feel like I eat way too much or I eat something unhealthy. I don't want to get too paranoid.

Yeah that's pretty much what I eat. I just started 2 days ago. I'm slowly getting strict on it. It's a little bit hard at first but I have to get used to it (in a few days I will). Like today I had a small quesadilla (was showered in oil), a large Mango Mantra Jamba Juice (I didn't eat for 5 hours so I needed something plus it was after I jogged), about 4 large chicken strips and a lot of sliced strawberries (maybe 2 cups; so delicious; may eat it more often). I didn't eat all of this all at once though and before that I had only eaten 4 eggs for breakfast and a medium sized salad.

Any advice would be appreciated. I'm sorry if I posted too much information.

Are you tracking your calories? This will prevent you from overeating as it is possible to eat really healthily as it sounds like you are, yet still consume too many calories. You could also use the calorie target tool to see how many cals you should be eating in order to lose the weight you want in the time you want.

Cycling is good for toning you bum and thinghs and if you enjoy it then all the better because you'll be more likely to do it and for longer if you're not hating every moment!

Unfortunately some degree of patience is required as you may not immediately see results. But keep it up and you'll get there :) Good luck and well done for getting started.

First of all - good luck!!

Secondly, I don't see any carbs in your diet, and I do think they are important - you can eat light bread and full wheat pasta or something like that, about a cup at lunch. Also, you should check for cholesterol (I've been overweight soooo long, I know it's important) and matbe eat less eggs, since they are full with cholesterol, unless you take out the yolk.

Sports is awesome, but if you're doing lots of it you should track your measurements (thighs, chest, stomach) instead of weight since muscles weight more than fat and you might gain some weight .

And about the juice - u really shouldn't, since there is tons of sugar there, you should try diet drinks or water, which is best. Don't be too strict with your diet, because restrictive diets make you break. Do something that you feel you can do forever. Apples are very good, read the article about them (it was on CC) helping to lose weight. Btw, strawberries are somewhat low-calorie cus there is lots of water in them.

Good luck once more!

Only comment I would make is don't get diet drinks, artifical foods and sweetners are NOT good for you. Try to eat foods that are whole and natural, your body has an easier time processing them as they recognize it as food, aspartame is not a food.

Hey, I am 20 as well but I am 5'2. I was 185 pounds when I started dieting (after giving birth to my daughter). It took just about a year to get to my healthy weight of 120. It is a long and hard ride you are on right now. Do not work out too much, when you do that you have extra flappy skin that likes to stay. That is what I have now.

Salads are a good way to started off, but you cant eat them forever. You just need to follow the serving suggestions on the foods that you eat and make sure you log your food and activity on here everyday. Tyson and Predue Chicken is good, ground turkey is wonderful, whole wheat pasta and bread might taste bad at first but trust me you get use to it.

My husband ate that food since he was a Freshman in High School and once we started dating I had to get use to the food as well. Now I cannot even eat white bread or normal butter, or drink regular soda.

Fruits are a wonderful snack and if you go out to breakfast order a bowl of fruit and a slice of whole wheat bread. It taste pretty good.

90 calorie bars are alright but do not use them as your meals, they are more of a snack food.

I take typically the weekends off from working out, I have killed my back over the past year of working out and being 20 and feeling like 40 is not good. On the days you do not work out do not eat as much.

I hope everything that I told you helps you out.

The only suggestion I have is to leave the croutons off your salad (basically just empty calories), change the caesar dressing to a light or low-fat caesar (or olive oil & vinegar), and add more veggies.  I agree with some of the previous posters that you should be tracking your calories and making sure you're eating well-balanced meals.  Good luck!

It probably took you a while to get where you are, so it is going to take you some time to take it off. While it is entirely possible to see your scale sink even more than five pounds a week, the truth is, your body can't even process a fat loss of more than 4lbs in that time. Don't diet or exercise too excessively otherwise the 'weight' you'll see sliding of the scale will be water and precious muscle mass. If you let your calorie deficit sink too low and lose muscle, you'll be doing yourself a huge disservice. Your metabolism will slow and its going to be extra hard for you to lose that last 20-30lbs, and near impossible to maintain whatever weightloss you've achieved. Healthy weight loss is 1-3lbs a week (Calorie Counter actually advises a max of 2lbs per week) so try and stick within that range.

Also, I advise you to figure out the following:

a) What your measurements are around your waist, hips, thighs, arms, bust using a tape-measure. Write that down somewhere for later reference. That should be your determining factor for progress, not the scale. Especially if you're going to be weight training. It'll save you the discouragement and frustration of 'not seeing any progress' on the scale when, in fact, there has been a lot.

b) How much you burn in a day.

c) How much protein you need per day,

d) How many carbs you need per day.

e) Use site that will allow you to count your calories, like this one, and stick to your regime.

Calorie Counter is great because it shows you where you're getting your nutritional balance from.  Knowing and following the right balance of protein, carbs and good fats can do wonders by turning your body into a fat burning machine.  Generally, if you want to lose about 1 lbs a week, you should eat 500 calories less than what you are burning (but you should never sink below 1,200 calories per day). Add about forty minutes of moderate cardio five-six times a week, and weight-training three times per week, and you'll be well on your way to more permenant weight-loss, and a firmer, slender body.

You don't have to eliminate your carbs completely, just moderate them. The only real culprits you should be watching are sugar, fats, and your sodium intake. Stay away from aspertame too. It can do some horrible things to your digestive system, and you want to keep that running well if you want to see you dropping the pounds with super efficiency.

And lastly, stay motivated! Monitor your progress every week and post your achievements. :)

Good luck!

I think instead of focusing on a diet, with meals based around iceberg lettuce salads, you need to focus on fueling your body with the nutrients it needs. I suggest going to the library and checking out a book about nutrition, or superfoods. It sounds like you don't really know what you're doing right now. 

Try to make most of your food intake based around fresh fruits and vegetables. Use whole grains, or even better, sprouted grain breads. Experiment with cutting out dairy (this has changed my body for the better so much). Instead, try unsweetened almond or rice milk. Really try cutting out the processed crap and focus on whole foods. You will open your diet to so many new options! There are so many choices of healthy, natural foods that will satisfy you so much more than any "diety" products. 

Load up on the veggies and fruits and meal times, and have one serving of whole grain bread or oatmeal etc. Fuel your body with nutrient rich foods! To really succeed at weight loss, you need to change your whole outlook on food.

So, again, I suggest you go to your local library and pick up a book about superfoods, or the china diet, which is a study about the benefits of eating whole foods. 

Thanks for the replies everyone. I've been kind of busy lately.

Anyways, I changed my diet a bit. This is how it looks now. I still want to change it some more. Particularly with breakfast. I think I'd enjoy healthy oatmeal. But not sure what kind it is. I only have access to Safeway.

So this is my current diet (keep in mind that I will change a few small things):

Breakfast: Sandwich - 2 slices of whole wheat bread, 1/4 of avocado spread on the bread, 1 fried egg (cooked on george foreman grill; no salt or cooking oil added), and 1 slice of ham.

Lunch - Salad - Sometimes a large or medium bowl of iceburg salad with some ceazar dressing, some croutons (will no longer eat them as soon they're gone), diced ham, chopped baby carrots and that's about it. 

Snack - Fruit - Strawberries (half of the 16 oz container) and Apples (1 or 2 per day).

Dinner - 2 fried Eggs and some more fruit.  (I need a proper breakfast to completely remove this)

So yeah, maybe I'll add outmeal for my breakfast starting next week. Thinking about adding more veggies to my diet. Maybe for my salad since it's very plain. I don't like most veggies though. So I might add some diced tomatoes (techinically a fruit). Don't know what else to add. Perhaps some nuts (think they're too expensive though and not sure how much to add). Oh and I drink a bottle of water for every meal.

That's what I have so far. I usually wake up late. As soon as I wake up, I go for a jog. 

Any more suggestions would be appreciated. I'm also thinking about adding cottage cheese. But I never tried it before and not sure how I can eat it or in what. I heard eating it before going to bed is excellent. I'd like to add some mozzarella cheese but i think it had too much fat.