I need to lose 20-30 pounds to be happy with my weight, I know that I alerady know basically what I need to do (cardio, weights, eat better) and I do it for about a week straight and then get off track and am right back where I started. Part of the problem is that I don't always have the necessary funds to eat healthy all of the time. Come on, we all know the dollar menu at fast food is way cheap, and some days I've only got a few bucks, especially when it's right after rent and bills. Eating healthy with lots of fresh veggies, low carbs, etc. seems to be very pricey.

I also lack motivation on a daily basis to work out, especially after a very tiring, busy day at work. I seriously just want to sit on the couch and relax.

How can I stay on track and still eat healthy within my budget? How do I continually motivate myself to work out consistently? I've put pics of hot chicks on my fridge to keep myself from pigging out. That doesn't seem to be working. My bf tells me he is happy with me the way I am and just wants me to be happy with myself, whether that is bigger or smaller. I want to do it for myself, but I want to look like the girls in Maxim dammit. I'm sure he wouldn't mind either!

I've got a few weddings to go to this year and I want to look smokin'. Help please!! Positive feedback and motivation is appreciated I've been overweight for 7 years now and I'm tired of it.

Well I lost twenty pounds during tennis season. I was eating less and working out more. I didn't have motivation, it just kinda happened. I'd say the best thing to do is remove all pig out food from your house, if possible, and just replace it with healthier food.

Fruits and veggies instead of pop tarts and chips. Low cal popsicles instead of ice cream. 1% milk instead of whole. Get a lot of dairy, thats good for losing inches around the waist.

Eat smaller portions too. Don't make extra food. Just make barely enough to feed you. That way you have to make more if you want more and thats just a pain in the ass.

Eating healthy is great but you can lose weight by just eating less. That's more important than anything else. It's also okay to indulge yourself every few days.

You don't have to work out every day, either. In fact, assuming you're pushing yourself, it's best not to. And if you're not, it doesn't really make that much of a difference if you are doing it or not.

You need to do lots of cardio and limit your eating. Do not become anoerexic or anything. I would have breakfast with sunny side eggs on top of toast, a piece of fruit, and milk or something that's not too sugary (like juice).

The rest of the day just make sure you don't eat fast food nor empty calories (empty calories are calories with no real nutrition like chocolate). If you are taking salads make sure to get a vinagrette dressing (like Italian) because they very low calories compared to ranch and bleu cheese.

What really helps me stay motivated is the fact that I really want to look good for college girls (entering next year) and I also love the way weightlifting and running makes me feel. I enter euphoria post-workout and exercise is scientifically proven to make you feel good. II read some articles where they showed that cardio actually makes you smarter as it produces more chemicals in the brain that are responsible for making connections. Your inspiration might be to look as good as you can for your boyfriend.

Also Maxim girls are too skinny and ugly I think...please don't aspire to look like them.

You don't have to eat those "prototypical" healthy foods all the time. If you go to McDonalds just know which ones are more fatty and less fatty to eat. Usually when I go there I get a drink, double cheeseburger/mchicken and a side salad. Everytime you eat, just think about what you are putting in your body. Then envision that inside your body. Sometimes all that matters is a general awareness of what you eat.

As far as working out. I also have that problem. One thing you can do is try and get someone to work out with you or run with you. Having become social gives both of you an added motivational boost. If you can't do that. You can also try doing something you like. Personally I like running just to stay in shape but I know it can get boring. It could help if you find something else that you find more fun. My cousin's gf is in to rock climbing and it helps her stay fit. It also isn't as mundane so you should try something like that.

Also, forget those magazines. Just focus on the little things like eating right and working out and then before you know it, you're going to see a huge change.

A double cheeseburger is nothing you'd want inside you. I don't even think it's real meat in there, it's some reprocessed frozen mess that melts when you thaw it, we used to cook it frozen when I worked there. And look at the nutritional facts:

http://app.mcdonalds.com/bagamcmeal?proces...mp;itemID=10009

1150 mg of sodium! That's from one double cheeseburger and I have to eat at least two to feel anywhere near satisfied.


If you want to eat healthy, just drink milk, and make stuff with eggs and chicken. You can find some cheap recipes that taste good with chicken if you look around. I make General Tso's chicken all the time, all you need is sesame oil, cornstarch, and the sauce which is like 4 bucks and will last you about 4 servings. 3 chicken breasts are like $6-7. Add some rice and you'll have a fairly healthy/tasty dinner for less than $4.
Eggs cost almost nothing and all you'd need is a tomato and some dill/parsley/cilantro/whatever you like for an awesome omelet.

That and just look for fruits/vegetables on sale, and you'll be set.

McDonald's is of course still cheaper and more filling for the money you spend, but all that money will end up going straight to your ass anyway so think about that next time you want to eat there.

I mean, maybe this is over simplified but here's what i always thought was the best route to losing weight (I watched my brother slim down like 30 pounds really quickly)

It starts with most of what these guys said, just watch what you eat. Fast food as great as it is (I eat out atleast once a day....so I'm kind of a hypocrite) isn't good for you. It's not even that filling if you ask me.

And just run, running is the best. It'll gradually eliminate weight from your entire body. It doesn't focus on your stomach fat like doing ab workouts do, or like your legs like biking does...it's a good shake down of the whole body. `

In truth there are no exercises that focus on eliminating fat from one part of your body. The reason you might think that with crunches or biking or something is because the muscle will be growing at the same time, so it will be more toned than it would be if the fat just disappeared. The same is true of running and your calves.

HIIT is the best exercise for losing weight.

If you want to lose weight, though, all you actually need to do is expend more calories than you're taking in. If you don't do resistance training and get lots of protein, though, you'll lose muscle along with the fat. Cardio is a good way to burn calories, but it's not really necessary. Makes it a lot easier, though. And make sure you're still getting enough nutients.

putting hot girls on your fridge sounds fucking retarded. They don't even look like that in real life so stop feeding into stupid societal ideals of the right body and start worrying about whether or not you are HEALTHY. You should be eating right because you want to feel good, not because you want to look a certain way.

That being said it can be really cheap to eat healthy you just have to cook. Eat a lot of rice and fish. It's super cheap. Eat soup, it usually is low in gfat content (besides cream based stuff) and isn't expensive. Eat fruits for snacks, they're delicious and not pricey. Start eating yogurt, it will be awesome for your digestive system, but dont get the disgusting sugary individual serving ones,just get a big carton of plain or vanilla and add what you want to it ( vanilla is fine by me though).

Seriously try to eat smaller amounts of things more frequently through the day. The smaller meals really does help your body digest better and work off calories in numbers it can handle. You should cut out soda all together if you can, just because its so bad for you and your teeth- or at least cut down. Drink lots of milk if you're not lactose intolerant.

And for workout I reccomend pilates, they really do fucking work and pretty quickly and won't bulk you up. Just get a dvd or something and do it in your home. Cardio is pretty simple, just go running, but I can't fucking stand doing that so I ride my bike.

And quit worrying about your body image so much, when you feel good about yourself you'll look good and start losing weight because you're in a better mental place and not sabotaging yourself with binge eating or disgusting fast food. Seriously cut out fast food altogether and see how your body feels after a month of it. Then try eating it again, and see how your body reacts. You probably won't want to go back.

Also, depending on your eating habits, it may not be good for you to eat less- you may actually need to eat more if you've been starving yourself(or unwillingly doing so because of money issues) you need to get your metabolism up by eating more. Little amounts throughout the day. And don't get fat free things they are usually full of sugar to compensate, get light versions instead. Skim milk or one percent is an easy way to cut fat out. And as always drink more water. Stay away from anything fried, except for once in a while it is ok to treat yourself(as long as it isn't fastfood). Eat spaghetti, thats pretty fucking cheap.

also don't listen to that shit about knowing what to eat at mcdonalds, its all horrible for you even the salads, those parfaits have whats closer to cake frosting than it is to yogurt. There is nothing healthy to eat at mcdonalds. Its putting fucking garbage into your body and doesn't even give you any nutrients orener.