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Hi all,

Would like to ask for some feedback on how you think it is best to use your time if its limited especially in terms of managing exercise and food when there are pressures. 

My scenario is this.  I work 40hrs a week from 830 - 430.  I do a study session course on Saturdays for the next 8 weeks from 830 - 1pm.  I am then expected to do a minimum of 30hrs a week study.  Now as you can see, this is tight. 

I have planned for 1/2hr a day for exercise but can you really lose weight doing this?  I don't think so but then trying to lose weight is difficult isn't it?  I also have a dress fitting in mid April and would like to lose some of my tummy (I know you can't spot reduce).

Yes, I am still struggling with food.  For the most part I will do well. 

Average day consists of:

• Breakfast is cereal with lite milk. 
• Snack - Vive Lite Mini Biscuit packet
• Either breadroll with vegemite, butter, cheese or Ham & Cheese Sandwich or a wrap & cup of tea
• Dinner - so anything from pasta, to chicken stir-fry/curry ....
• Lately - Ice-cream with chocolate topping and nuts  (i know)

If you have any suggestions on how to deal with the situation yet still lose some sort of weight, that would be fantastic.

Cheers

Jen

 

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SW: 96.1
CW: 81
GW: 61

Task this week: To get drink more water and try new healthy foods ... !!!

how many calories is that?  weigh a typical day, you may be suprised

 

Hey Jen, what are you planning on doing for that half an hour you have set aside?

It sucks, doesn't it? Making things fit can be really hard. 

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Caution: Sarcastic and Cynical!!!

I think you will find it very easy to lose weight because you won’t have time to eat.

 

How come we always seem to have plenty of time for eating and watching TV and little time for exercising or doing something worthwhile?

 

I must admit study that expects 35+ hours per week commitment seems ridiculously intense.

 

Hope the reward is worth it.

 

Try and find time for going to the toilet otherwise you will get very uncomfortable in 12 weeks

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I can see a LOT of problems right off with your diet. It's basically a recipe for GAINING weight!

Try this instead:
For breakfast -- scrambled eggs. Can be done in less than 3 minutes in the microwave. I know. I do that almost daily. For carbs -- a piece of fruit or ONE slice multi-grain toast.

Snacks -- Fruit. A piece of fruit has fewer caloris than the processed bikkies. It's also more filling and WAY better for you. (Have you *SEEN* what's actually IN those bikkies????? )

Lunch -- Salad with a piece of lean meat & maybe a little bit of cheese. If you don't have time to make a salad, then get a pre-made one from the supermarket. Red Rooster also has a garden salad available, as does Subway (you can get meat on it at Subway). Or fix extra at dinner time for leftovers if a microwave is available. Saves extra calories AND money by taking your own lunches.

Dinner -- Lots of options on this one. Just keep it all healthy. Meat, veggies, a SMALL bit of baked sweet potato....

Desserts -- PLAIN yoghurt sweetened with a teaspoon or 2 of honey & a few drops of vanilla essence over berries. YUMMMM.... Can be mixed & slightly frozen like ice cream. Your tummy & hips will thank you for it.

 
If there isn't time to grab anything, then you can always go the protein shake route. Not the pre-mixed sugar-filled ones, but make your own from scratch. I use 30 grams whey protein ISOLATE (un-denatured & cool-processed-- ask @ health food store), 1 frozen banana (sweetens and thickens), a handful of berries, and 200 ml milk or rice milk. Blend until all smooth & pour into a BIG glass. YUMMM. You can make several of these at a time and freeze for future use. (I use 600 ml water bottles after I finish the water & clean them).

Exercise-wise, looks like walking is pretty good. You could go at lunch &  then sip on a shake while you're out & about. Kill 2 birds with  one stone. LOL!  (Look how much John on BL  lost  just  by  walking!)

Good  luck  with  it!
 

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Sally

Hi Guys,

Thanks for your input...

• Well I guess I haven't been counting calories in a day as I am kinda over counting the calories / fat etc ....
• My exercise that I've decided to do for 30 mins or more includes
• Exercise DVD's
• Cardio for 30 mins
• Cardio for 15 mins with 20 mins weights varying for upper & lower body
• On the weekends I plan for the session to be at least 1hr long by doing classes - body combat & body attack or pump.
• Walking in local area with a backpack of weights
• Yes, the timing for studies is very extreme but its only for the next 2 months so I can get my brokers licence.

Now as for diet, I guess I know like many others this is where I struggle.  I guess my question is how can you have eggs everyday?  I thought it wasn't good to have it everyday or am I completely wrong.  Do you just have 1 egg with 1 slice of toast?  Hmmm, confused.  I love my eggs and this would not be difficult at all to achieve but my mum use to tell me that I couldn't have eggs everyday cuz it wasn't good for me. 

Snacks - I know I should eat fruit but I don't.  I have this psychological problem basically which stems from when I was younger and I use to eat so much fruit that my mum had to stop me from eating so much that I did.  From that over time, it seems that I stopped completely and now I am trying my hardest to deal with this but its difficult.  I bought some apples over the weekend to try and curb this so stupid problem!  I tried some frozen strawberries and boy was that disgusting.  It was so sour, yuk.  But at least I am trying even if it is baby steps.  I guess its something that I have to deal with....

PS:  I am curious at to what is in the bikkies.  I have no idea hence ... so please tell if you can.

Lunch:  I basically work in a small office (3 people) and where we work there is only junk food galore.  We have a full kitchen which is great.  I use to bring lunch to work and re-heat but slowly the portions at home have gotten smaller hence why I haven't taken anything to work.  

Dessert:  I have had yoghurts and I add cinnamon to it. 

I guess what I think is good for me actually isn't and its all a learning curve to try and overcome this.   

Thanks again everyone.

Jen

 

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SW: 96.1
CW: 81
GW: 61

Task this week: To get drink more water and try new healthy foods ... !!!

Eggs have had the finger pointed at them for cholesterol issues.

 

What your cholesterol is well unless you have it tested you can’t tell.

 

Personally I think you need to look after yourself and this will be very challenging if you don’t get enough time to sleep.

 

Your chances of being successful at this study are slim if you give yourself a nervous breakdown.

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Hey JenJen,

How's this: for the next 8 weeks with this study, work towards lots of incidental exercise.
Take the stairs at work/where you're studying, in the shops.
Park the furthest end of the carpark from the door at the shops/school/work...
Set a timer for 15 minutes when you study. When that timer goes off, have a stretch, do 10 situps/pushups whatever & have a glass of water, get back to the study. It's only a couple of minutes at most and will also help you clear your head to study effectively.

If you're working from 8.30, set your alarm for 45 minutes earlier than you usually would. If that means 6am, so be it. Go even for a 15-20 minute brisk walk around the block, once or twice. Just kick off the day with it...

And better yet, after you've finished work for the day, and before dinner (or after dinner) but before settling into your study, again go for a 15-20 minute brisk walk. Your mind will be fresh and alert, rather than stodgy, dull & tired from the day you've had. With just those 2 walks you already have a 30-40 minute bout of exercise daily under your belt. And 15-20 minutes is not that hard to find. In fact, it's not even about finding the time, just making it and sticking to it.

And with breakfast, if you can add in some variety, say a boiled or scrambled or poached egg, or eggwhite omelette a couple of times a week, you'll increase your protein and head off the binge-falls that crop up. If you can make some meal plans up, and then cook things up in multiple batches to freeze, you'll save yourself some stress & time right there. In the time it takes to make one meal, you could easily make 4 of the same, and freeze the other 3... ;)

Oooh and try not to have more than 2 slices multigrain bread a day (or a bread roll) just for this 8 week period, and see how you go. Nope, not getting low-carby on you. I'm just trying this little experiment myself and you would be a fun co-conspirator ;)

xxxxx

Me -- when I have eggs, I have THREE x-large ones. And yeah, I do so around 5 times a week. Eggs don't have the cholesterol impact that they were once thought to have. I just crack 3 into a bowl, whisk well with a fork, add a couple tsp. butter & nuke for 2-1/2 minutes. I add 2 rice thins (gluten intolerant, so bread is out) & have water to drink. Yeah, sound boring, but eggs are versatile. You could make a brekkie wrap out of them if you need to eat on the go. Just add chopped spring onions when you cook your eggs, then pile the eggs on the tortilla & add some diced fresh tomato & lettuce. Yum!

And yeah, the shakes come in handy for brekkies on the go as well.

As far as the bikkies, they're CHOKKERS with processed flours, sugars and  ADDITIVES. If ya just HAVE to have bikkies, them home-made are the way to go. Yeah, it all takes time, but -- you can do a lot of cooking of healthy foods in advance & freeze them. Then just grab what you need & go.

There's all kinds of info on how to cook in bulk. My hubby does this for his lunches. He cooks what he wants for his lunches on the weekend, we eat from that on the night & he pcks the rest for his lunches & possibly another meal or so for us. Into the freezer it all goes. He does other things while the food is cooking. And yeah, you might have to go & buy your own food for this.

I agree that the frozen strawberries are yuck. If there's a grower in your area that lets you pick your own, give them a call & see if they have any that are frozen. They're much nicer than the ones in the box at the supermarket. The supermarket ones are sour because they were picked before they were completely ripe. And if you have trouble with fruits, then try VEGGIES! LOL! Lots of veggies are portable when fresh.

Be careful with the flavoured yoghurts. They are PACKED with sugar (especially if they say low-fat!)

Something you might consider -- reading in your post, it seems that maybe you might be feeling that if you eat eggs & fruit, you'd be rebelling against your mother. That might be an issue that needs to be addressed in order to be successful at getting & keeping the weight off. (Not trying to pry or be a counselor, but just noticing a pattern here).

Get the others in your office to help you by bringing in HEALTHY alternatives instead of the junk food. Maybe you could have your own "Biggest Loser" type challenge. I'm sure if your work mates knew of your goals, thenthey would be glad to help.

 

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Sally

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hey Jen

Just reading your post, If you are doing mental work (sitting at a desk researching) then I think with the amount of hours you work and study will contribute to your wieght loss. I think try keeping water with you all the time at work and while study- a jug and glass on your desk or a water bottle. This helps considerably when working to encourage yourself to drink water which is important to wieght loss. I know this might sound odd but I have in the past eaten because I was thirsty and not realised. Silly I know. But do try it water helps a lot with weight loss.

Goodluck

Julia

I noticed you haven't added any salads to your menu. Instead of pasta which would only add more calories. Try substituting pasta with a green salad. Green veggies are high in nutrition and lowest in calories. About your exercise. I think half an hour a day if done consistently can help you lose weight significantly. The secret is in the consistency. Irregularity in an exercise program is ineffective.

If you'd like a natural way to burn calories try adding green tea to your diet. Green tea is a natural thermogenic. It helps you lose calories more quickly. You'd need to drink at least 6-8 cups of green tea a day. If that's not possible, try supplements like Green Tea Plus. Just a few drops are equal to 6 cups.

How about you cook on the weekend and pack yer food in containers either in the fridge or in the freezer. I usually cook a big batch if I know I'm going to have a hectic week with work and studies. I am a teacher and a student doing my masters degree at the same time and I also volunteer 6 hours a week. But I still manage my 1 hour of workouts every day. Try taking some multivitamins to help you boost some energy. Working is tiring but maybe you can also try working out before work? It's a nice feeling. You just go to bed a bit earlier and get up earlier

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The F word (fat) is not nice at all....I prefer being called Fluffy because fluffy things are huggable!