How realistic is it to get slim and nice looking (not big) in 2 months?

[amdhunter]

I have nothing to do with my life. Nothing. I haven't been going to the gym at all because of all the snow - and I have a really hard time running in the Winter + life dealt me a blow a few months ago which killed my motivation.

I have the incredible urge to get back into running and going to the gym. It's so bad I find myself running up stairs at work, just to see if I can still do it (about 6 flights up.) The last time I ran outside was about 2 weeks ago - I didn't time myself, but I took a harder route, and completed 2 miles with, what I felt, was the fastest I ever did it. I don't think I've lost my touch.

I have a LOT of frustration in me these days, and I want to start the following regimen starting March 1st. I wake up at 6AM daily - I live 5 minutes from work now, so I have literally 2 hours of nothing to do in the morning.

What's the chances I could get nice shape by performing the following?

Starting at 6:30am - Monday through Friday

• 1/2 mile walk downhill to my workplace, which would serve as a warmup.

• 2.5 mile run around my workplace campus - very hilly and hard on the body.

• 1/2 mile walk back uphill to cool down.

8AM - 4PM - actually working. I get some exercise at work, but not much. I may move 1/4 mile a day.


5PM - 6:30PM Monday - Friday.

• Doing 30 minutes on the Elliptical at Maximum Level (I did this daily) with heartrate hovering between 160-170.

• Spending time on the weight machines doing moderate lifting for about 30 minutes.

• Ending the day lifting light free weights. I don't have any friends at the gym - so I find it hard to do anything heavy.

I am on my own at home these days - what I eat daily is either 2 pork chops, a piece of steak or 2 chicken breasts - and a LOT of vegetables. A LOT.

I'm losing weight just from the way I've been eating. My ribs are showing for the first time in my life, and I've lost a lot of muscle these last few weeks. My stomach is still an issue, but I notice if I stand up straight, it doesn't hang. I am still overweight for my height 5'10".

That said - I am 194lbs right now. My lowest was 188. How realistic would it be to get ripped in 2 months time if I put all my effort into this kind of exercise 5 days a week?

I am extremely motivated. I feel like my life depends on it. I usually can lose 4 pounds a month if I try a little bit. I want to go for 20 by from March 1 to May 24. (My birthday.)

Any suggestions? I think I will need help with nutrition requirements. I am taking in NO more than 1200 calories a day. If I have to take in more - any suggestions on what I should go food shopping for?

 

[norseamd]

you do not want to lose muscle. this is why you are eating too little at 5 10 and 194. you should increase your protein amount and try to gradually lose weight. it is actually gain muscle at least in the beginning of training. you can lose weight but you have to do it at a gradual pace. you should get enough rest and do a moderate amount of excercise every day. excercising every day will not be the right choice for faining muscle but you are not trying to do that and it is the right choice for losing fat.

make sure you get enough fat including saturated fat but not too much. be carefual with the carbs and eat a moderate amount. and eat a good amount of protein. protein takes more energy to digest and will maintain your boday and make you feel full.

someone around here will likely have better advice than me on more expert advice.

 

[surfsatwerk]

Not very.

 

[amdhunter]

Not very.

So I'd just end up losing weight?

Offer me a suggestion. I'm extremely motivated. I am going to try and take daily pics of myself and see what kind of progress I make.

 

[amdhunter]

you do not want to lose muscle. this is why you are eating too little at 5 10 and 194. you should increase your protein amount and try to gradually lose weight. it is actually gain muscle at least in the beginning of training. you can lose weight but you have to do it at a gradual pace. you should get enough rest and do a moderate amount of excercise every day. excercising every day will not be the right choice for faining muscle but you are not trying to do that and it is the right choice for losing fat.

make sure you get enough fat including saturated fat but not too much. be carefual with the carbs and eat a moderate amount. and eat a good amount of protein. protein takes more energy to digest and will maintain your boday and make you feel full.

someone around here will likely have better advice than me on more expert advice.

Is there a shopping list of stuff I can find somewhere? I thought meat and vegetables was the way to go.

 

[surfsatwerk]

So I'd just end up losing weight?

Offer me a suggestion. I'm extremely motivated. I am going to try and take daily pics of myself and see what kind of progress I make.

Changing your physique is a process of months and years. Go paleo, carb cycle, or keto and start any beginner weight training program like Starting Strenght or Stonglits and the changes will come.

When I turned 32 or 33, I have an awful memory, I couldn't live with the body I had any more. So I made the goal that I wanted to start competing in powerlifting at a specific weight class. As a side-effect of this goal I have managed to increase my muscle mass and keep my body fat % at level I'm comfortable with. I turn 37 in a couple months and I haven't been more happy with myself both physically and mentally.

Personally I feel "looking good" is a difficult goal to stay motivated to achieve over the long term. Training for a goal like running a marathon or competing in a strength sport is a lot easier. You will constantly have incremental achievements to mentally reward yourself with.

Good luck.

 

[Sid59]

Is there a shopping list of stuff I can find somewhere? I thought meat and vegetables was the way to go.

Everyone's slightly different but my weekly shopping list:
2-3 lbs of bacon
2 dozen eggs
oatmeal
pork, chicken, fish
variety of veggies: kale, spinach, bell peppers, mushrooms - pretty much half my plate is veggies, i like seasonal ones
avocadoes
mixed raw nuts
Fruits: not many but bananas, citrus, berries
not for everyone but i love the taste of kerrygold irish butter and almond butter as a replacement for peanut butter.

I'd say i eat the following 1 or 2 times a month: bread, pasta, rice, carrots, potatoes. I don't eat too many root vegetables.

 

[Blackjack200]

Not very.

I think if he was to immediately begin a 3x/week routine of compound lifts with free weights, increase his protein intake and keep a clean diet, he could see good results in 2 months.

But he won't. Especially since he already talked about not lifting heavy.

OP, if you're serious, read the sticky, get a copy of Starting Strength, and do the program.

Edit: This sticky - http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=162171

And don't make excuses to not lift heavy, there are safe ways to do all the lifts without spotters. Get in the habit of persevering, because there will always be excuses not to lift: you'll get callouses and blisters on your hands, you'll get injured, sore, tired, and discouraged, you'll be busy with other things, the gym won't have the right equipment, and it will be crowded at the wrong times.

If you want to look good, you'll get a copy of SS, and find a way to do the program.

 

[blackdogdeek]

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2261360

 

[Zivic]

Just join a box and do crossfit. report back how it goes.

yeah crossfit!

 

[z1ggy]

Everytime a noob posts in here with out first reading the fat loss sticky, a kitten is murdered.

You just murdered kittens.

How do you feel?

Edit: Since I know you're too lazy to read it... Let me summarize:

To answer your question: No. There is almost no chance with your plan you will be rippe din 2 months. In fact, that will never lead you to being ripped.

You need to lift HEAVY weights. If you read the fat loss sticky though, you'd have known this.

Secondly, Diet is king. You barely mentioned diet. Again, read the f'ing fat loss sticky.

Don't come back until you've read the damn thing word for word.

If you'd like advice from the more knowledgable folks, that is fine. But have an understanding of what you need to do in the first place.

 

[sushiwarrior]

Losing 1-2 lbs per week is possible if you're very strict about your diet - count every calorie. Multiply that by 8 weeks, and at best you can lose 16 lbs in a somewhat healthy manner. Cutting harder than that will likely make you lose as much muscle as fat, which is really bad. That'd put you at ~175-180lbs, which will not make you ripped. You'd probably have to get down to 160 or so on a cut, and then do a clean bulk back up to ~175-180 to get a "ripped" look. That would probably take 6 months at least...

 

[prism]

Counting calories (lowering them below your maintenance level to be precise) isn't the answer for everyone. Look up metabolic damage by Layne Norton; I increased my calorie intake dramatically and have started losing weight again after being plateau'd for over a year.

 

[rga]

What does not having any friends at the gym have to do with not being able to pick up something heavy? The only the thing you need a spotter for is bench press. Set the safety pins in the power rack when you squat, and for pretty much every other worthwhile exercise you can just drop the weight if you can't finish the rep. Seriously, stop being such pussy. Here's how the conversation will go when you ask for a spot.

You: "Can you please spot me?"
Him/her: "OK."
You: "I'm going for six reps. Please don't touch the bar until the last rep, and only if I call out for it."
Him/her: "OK."

Make sure to say thanks when you are finished the set.

I also want to add that I haven't forgotten about your thread from about two years ago, in which you complained about looking deformed while doing light bicep curls and eating a bowl of cheerios with each meal. You received a lot of good advice in that thread that you completely ignored. That advice is still good and relevant today. Please don't make the same mistake again. Please don't keep wasting the time of those that are trying to help you.

 

[Pantlegz]

depends on where you're starting, if you're fairly healthy/active and just need to lose some fat 6-12 weeks is more than enough to make it happen. If you're more overweight, a couple months can still make a big difference but probably not where you want to be. The most important thing is to get a plan and stick to it. Don't change if you feel like it's not working, at least not right away.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Is SC still around?

You probably burn 400-500 cals or so each time you run. Figure it out here:
http://www.runnersworld.com/tools/calories-burned-calculator

Ignoring that, you are probably burning 2000 cals a day doing no exercise. So with exercise, let's just say 2500.

You should have a caloric intake of about 1500 cals a day. (100 less than what your body needs for break even). And try to make atleast 100 grams of those cals protein.

Someone mentioned starting strength or strong lifts. I agree somewhat. I'm confused because your subject says "not big" but then you say ripped in your first post. If you want muscles to show, that simply means that you want low body fat. If you want bigger muscles to show, you need to do a program like starting strength.

 

[norseamd]

sorry about not answering earlier

no need to worry about lifting heavy weights if you do not want to. just get some running and calisthetics and any lifting you are willing to do and keep at it. make sure you do not injure yourself. also make sure you do not eat too little food. a nutritionist would know the right amount of food you should eat. make sure to adjust your carb intake with how much work your body does. make sure to eat plenty of protein. and get enough fat including saturated fat and cholestral but not too much. eat some greens and fruit since they make your body work more effecient. eat spinach if you can. it does not taste bad. and if you can eat fish and mushrooms those are good also

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Is SC still around?

You probably burn 400-500 cals or so each time you run. Figure it out here:
http://www.runnersworld.com/tools/calories-burned-calculator

Ignoring that, you are probably burning 2000 cals a day doing no exercise. So with exercise, let's just say 2500.

You should have a caloric intake of about 1500 cals a day. (100 less than what your body needs for break even). And try to make atleast 100 grams of those cals protein.

Someone mentioned starting strength or strong lifts. I agree somewhat. I'm confused because your subject says "not big" but then you say ripped in your first post. If you want muscles to show, that simply means that you want low body fat. If you want bigger muscles to show, you need to do a program like starting strength.

Yes, still around. To be honest, this question is one that has been essentially answered in a lot of other posts. Will he get healthier with the program lined out? Yes, absolutely. Will he lose weight, "get slim and nice looking" though? It's doubtful. Resistance exercise will be essential to maintain/increase lean body mass, which is what will make him both slim and nice looking. Most people here are saying that it's not and I didn't exactly feel like arguing with all of them If he wants the advice, he can check the weight loss sticky. I don't do time crunches with weight loss. If you want it gone, you need to learn that it's a process that shouldn't be restricted by the amount of time you're willing to allocate to it.

 

[funmatters]

I think the number one key thing when slimming is not actually exercise! It's what you put inside your mouth, due to illness I recently completely changed my diet. I lost so much weight without even wanting to purely due to healthy eating (I wasn't exercising one bit!).

My best advice is avoid sugary treats as much as possible, sugar is your enemy!