Variation of Routine?? Calorie is a Calorie???

Couple of questions.....

First one, is it better to change up your exercise routine?  For example, use the elliptical one night and a fitness video the next? Or is it better to stay on the elliptical and do variations of short bursts and then moderate pace, or longer time?

Second, I have heard different opinions on eating breakfast.  I am 5'4", 21, female, CW 150, GW 120.  I have heard to eat breakfast in the morning to get the metabolism burning early in the day.  Then I also have heard that "a calorie is a calorie".  I have changed my diet so it is healthier, but didn’t know which "rule" to use.

Any help or suggestions would be terrific!!!  

It might help you to read The Hierarchy of Fat Loss

Brief summary, in order of importance:

1. Diet
2. Diet
3. Weight training
4. Interval training (HIIT is good)
5. Steady state cardio, if you have time, and want to

Do mix it up, but if you've got weight training in there, which is by its nature, always getting harder (if you are challenging yourself, that is), that's going to keep mixing it up. Whatever intervals and cardio you want to do, if you feel like mixing it up, great - running, biking, rowing, dancing - whatever.

As for breakfast - yes, a calorie is a calorie. But there are lots of reasons to eat breakfast. For one thing, women especially, when they start a diet, tend to go too far to the extreme - they undereat. One of the ways they do this is by skipping breakfast. Undereating can set you up for as much failure as overeating, so getting smallish meals throughout the day, including breakfast, can really help keep you a) eating enough and b) not getting into a situation where you are so hungry that you make a bad decision.

Good luck!

A calorie is a calorie. With that in mind, breakfast is the only time of day where I'm hungry enough to eat a large enough portion to meet my calorie quota! Also, I feel a lot more energetic and happy throughout the day if I eat a large breakfast. I eat as much as I was for breakfast (normally around 400-500 calories) then snack when I'm hungry, have lunch and honestly never am hungry enough for dinner, but I try to eat something little . If I skip breakfast I'm hungry all day and more likely to binge. Every time I've done well with losing weight a very happy, large breakfast is always involved. =)

Hey, well i personally find variation is the key. Firstly so your body doesn't get used to doing the same thing day in and day out and secondly so that you dont get bored doing the samw thing day in and day out! I know i get bored very easily, i do a high impact cardio workout 3 times a week along with a toning section lunges, squats, crunches etc, then inbetween i walk my dogs at quite a pace for an hour each time and this seems to be quite effective! I dont weight train or anything as cant stand gyms!

And as for breakfast i see nothing wrong with it as long as it is healthy! I mostly eat a bowl of special k red berries along with a glass of homemade fruit smoothie! Fills me up no end and like questobefit, i then do not binge throughout the day. If i have no breakfast, i tend to order copious amounts of food at diner time at work, aka sauage rolls or anything with cheese on! Although havnt done this for many weeks now as i always eat my brek brek!yum yum

Yes.

Everything you said is right.  Mix up your workout, it doesn't matter how, mix up speed and intervals for one exercise or change what exercise it is.  Strength training is a great thing to kick in a few days a week, together with cardio this is the best way to lose fat and tone your existing muscle.

Eating throughout the day in smaller meals, starting at breakfast, will keep your metabolism and energy level high.  And eating a calorie is eating a calorie, but if this calorie is something healthy and nutritious then you will feel better, fuller and probably be less likely to overeat than if you were eating an empty calorie.

A calorie is a calorie, and your metabolism is what it is, too-but calories and metabolism are different things! The rate of your metabolism determines what your body will DO with each calorie. Eating breakfast keeps the metabolism firing at a higher rate all day long (for various reasons, as already mentioned by someone), so you burn more calories.

What I do to balance out the breakfast issue is have breakfast, but keep it fairly low in carbs. Then my blood sugar doesn't go way up and down and make me too hungry too early, but some calories are still coming in. It doesn't work for everyone but I've gotten good results from it.

As for exercise, if it's strictly cardio, it doesn't matter much - variance can help you stick to it but if that's not a problem then anything works. If you're toning or building muscle you're better off rotating muscle groups so you can work a group hard enough to benefit and then let it rest the next day.

A friend of mine does fitness advising as she has a degree in exercise science and nursing. The way she put it was to eat like a king for breakfast, like a queen for lunch and like a peasant for dinner. Basically, start big and calorie-strong (good calories) and gradually taper off. You shouldn't have to make up an 800 calories deficit at dinner time.

Any exercise is good! Change it up however you want to avoid mental blocks, just be active!

I think a calorie is a calorie in terms of weight loss, but not in terms of overall health. Like, if you eat one piece of pizza every day loaded with sausage, you might still be under your daily calorie allowance, but it probably wouldn't be good for your cholesterol levels and heart health along with your energy and overall well being. I'm no doctor, but it seems like eating should be more than just about weight--it is about vitamins/minerals and the overall effect it has on your body. I've heard people who used to eat a lot of fast food who now eat more fruits and veggies say they have more energy. 

A calorie is a calorie that is true but how you body reacts to the calories and used the calories is not the same for all food.

For example if you eat a bunch of fried foods, processed foods, fats foods, pop, simple sugary carbs, candy, artificial sweeteners and other junk your body will process that food differently than if you were to eat complex carbs, whole grains, lean meats and other proteins, low-fat dairy, fresh fruits and veggies. There is weight loss and then there is fat loss. You can be at an ideal weight and still have too much body fat and be unhealthy. The cleaner/more balanced your diet is the better your body will work toward actual fat loss. So think clean/balanced when it comes to eating.

Avoid the foods labeled fat free, sugar free, diet. Most of the time these foods are heavily processed, loaded with sodium and artificial sweeteners and there is nothing healthy about them. Feed your body right and it will work, feel and look good. Feed it crap and you will work, feel and look like crap.