# My Sister age 29, 5'3", 165-170lbs.



## Doublebase (Jun 6, 2007)

Please help me, help her, lose weight.  I printed out some of the stickies for her to read.  She is coming over tomorrow night to workout.  She wants to start losing.  She is serious.  She wants a change.  She is tired of being heavy and wants to get back to her 21 year old bw of 115-120lbs.  Can you link me some stickies you think she should read?  Also a basic diet she can follow and a basic training program.  She hasn't done anything physical in probably a decade.  We leave for vacation July 26.  I told her she could lose close to 20lbs by then if trains and follows a strict diet.  Wishful thinking but it is possible.


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## DOMS (Jun 6, 2007)

Start with something simple.  Have her say no to junk food 1 out of 3 times and eat in good portions.

I did this and dropped from ~235 to 198.


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## Doublebase (Jun 6, 2007)

DOMS said:


> Start with something simple.  Have her say no to junk food 1 out of 3 times and eat in good portions.
> 
> I did this and dropped from ~235 to 198.



When you say good portions.  Like 5 small meals a day spaced 3 hours apart?  What supplements should I have her take?  I was thinking a multi-vitamin and get her a protein powder so she can have that in the morning and after workouts.


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## Double D (Jun 6, 2007)

And you look mighty sexy DOMS!


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## DOMS (Jun 6, 2007)

Doublebase said:


> When you say good portions.  Like 5 small meals a day spaced 3 hours apart?  What supplements should I have her take?  I was thinking a multi-vitamin and get her a protein powder so she can have that in the morning and after workouts.



I said keep it simple.  

Don't try to change what, or how often, she eats.  She ask her to say no to crap food (chips, ice cream, candy, etc.) _one _out of three times.  

As for what constitutes a "portion", tell he to limit what ever she's eating to a cup (the measurement) or so.  Dinner might be a 6 oz of steak, a baked potato (whatever topping she wants), and a small salad.

Again, you're not trying to get her to eat _healthy _yet, you're just trying to get her to eat _responsibly_.

If you decided to take up running, would you start by trying to do a 10k marathon?  Of course not!  The problem is that, when people try to clean up their diet, they try to run a marathon of perfect foods, perfect portions, perfect meal timing, and supplements.  This is going to lead to failure.

If you help her to take it slowly, you'll help her to succeed.

Another thing that's easy to do, is to get her to switch to diet if she's a soda drinker.  That, along with the other two things, will significantly cut down on her caloric intake without making her feel like she's on a diet and triggering any negative feelings about changing her diet.


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## DOMS (Jun 6, 2007)

Double D said:


> And you look mighty sexy DOMS!



You're sure those jeans don't make my ass look too big?


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## Doublebase (Jun 6, 2007)

I know she eats late at night.  They probably eat dinner around 8-8:30 at night.  They both work late.  I don't think she eats junk food.  I know she takes medications.  I will ask her what she takes.


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## Bakerboy (Jun 6, 2007)

What are you planning to do with her exercise wise? Weights and cardio? Ask her what she likes doing, walking, riding, running, swimming etc. The main thing at the beginning is to get her to feel good about herself by choosing something that she likes to do so she will stick to it.


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## DOMS (Jun 6, 2007)

Walking.   It's the favorite thing to do for most women who start to get in shape.  You get another woman who'll walk (and talk) with her.  That way, it won't really feel like cardio.


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## Doublebase (Jun 6, 2007)

I was going to show her a bunch of exercises for each bodypart and have her choose some that she likes.  I was also going to show her some boxing moves and see if she enjoys hitting the bag.  My mom liked that.


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## Doublebase (Jun 20, 2007)

Update.  We've been working out for a couple weeks now.  I just have do different types of weight training.  Every type of exercise you can think of.  I have her do a full body circuit type of training.  My main goal is to help her to lose weight but not have her hate exercising.  I show her a bunch of exercises and have her choose the ones she enjoys doing.  I also taught her some basic boxing.  She is currently up to 4 rounds.  2min rounds with 30 sec intervals.  I just let her hit me while I cover up and move around.  She can barely keep her hands up at the end.  I followed what DOMS said about having her give up some of the sweets she is eating.  I told her to start eating a little more for breakfast and eat small healthy meals throughout the day.  She has started eating more fruits and whole foods.  I hope this lasts.  She is doing really well.


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## Plateau_Max (Jun 20, 2007)

First have her cut out all junk food and soda.  ALL OF IT.  The big thing with sugar is how addictive it is.  If you're not eating it you're not craving it.  Having a candybar once every couple days you're going to be thinking about it more.  Sodas are the #1 source of excess calories in the U.S. and they're really not so damn tasty that you have to have them, and diet soda is just an unnecessary tease.

Fruit is good, especially earlier in the day but remember she needs to be eating a lot more vegitibles.  Health wise not only is it great stuff but it will also bring down Homocysteine levels which is awesome for your overall health and how well you function.

One of the biggest motivators to being healthy is being well educated about it.  I read books about diet and nutrition all the time and I swear 10 minutes into reading I'm always REALLY motivated by everything I read.  Try to stay away from salads if you can simply because 2c of salad greens is only about 15 calories, so it's pretty unsatisfactory to eat it and an hour later your body is feeling like it needs more food real bad.


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## OddGirl (Jun 21, 2007)

After being in a similar situation as your sister I can tell you that if she wants it bad enough then it'll be easy.

Cutting out junk food, measuring out portions and working out were key for me.


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## squanto (Jun 21, 2007)

Plateau_Max said:


> Try to stay away from salads if you can simply because 2c of salad greens is only about 15 calories, so it's pretty unsatisfactory to eat it and an hour later your body is feeling like it needs more food real bad.



I'd like to correct that:

Stay away from salad as an _energy source_. Salads very healthy, but most of the veggies aren't giving you energy to function. So have a salad, but only in addition to proper sources of energy... lean protein, rice, yada yada yada you know the rest.


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## Plateau_Max (Jun 21, 2007)

I suppose I should have worded it better.  I meant stay away from having salads as an entire meal.  Unless of course it's a large salad mixed with proper portions of lean protein (like chicken breast for example) and maybe some healthy fat like nuts.


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## squanto (Jun 21, 2007)

yeah i knew what you were getting at i just didnt want anyone to get the wrong idea


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## DanK (Jun 22, 2007)

Hmmm, how do you say no to junk 1 in 3 times... when I get a craving for something I don't need but crave, I'm using thinking about it for a long time on a fairly regular basis... let's just say I say no probably 3 times in the first 10 minutes (if not the first minute)...

I will say cutting out all the junk is not too hard, and I'd count restaurant food as junk, even if it's relatively healthy... have her make a log of the food she eats, it doesn't have to be down to the calories etc but generally try to determine the portions and what she eats, I like to weight myself every morning and put that in the log, what I've seen is sometimes when I finally give into a sugar craving that I actually break a plateau the next day... it seems weird but there have been entirely too many entries in my food log where my weight plateaued and I eventually gave into a craving for a coke and then suddenly broke the plateau.... but sugar is addictive and it's hard to just get one.

Just avoiding the high salt high sugar foods will do wonders but I strongly recommend lots of fresh veggies and some fruits, even unsalted nuts (I like cashews and walnuts). Nuts are high calories but I think they were worth it for the protein and fats they provide. If she owns a PS2 or Xbox (or even a PC) she can get a dance dance revolution game and that can be a very fun way to get cardio, and tends to motivate people to go out and get more exercise.


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## Doublebase (Jun 25, 2007)

DanK said:


> If she owns a PS2 or Xbox (or even a PC) she can get a dance dance revolution game and that can be a very fun way to get cardio, and tends to motivate people to go out and get more exercise.



LOL.  mental picture.


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## Arnold (Jun 25, 2007)

Doublebase said:


> We leave for vacation July 26.  I told her she could lose close to 20lbs by then if trains and follows a strict diet.  Wishful thinking but it is possible.



That is a bad idea, you're talking about 5 weeks, I would say 10lbs max (2lbs per week). Losing more than that is not only difficult but very unhealthy, also if she starts weight training she will gain muscle mass.


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## DOMS (Jun 25, 2007)

Prince said:


> That is a bad idea, you're talking about 5 weeks, I would say 10lbs max (2lbs per week). Losing more than that is not only difficult but very unhealthy, also if she starts weight training she will gain muscle mass.



Yep.  When you start working out you should (at first) ignore the scale and instead focus on the tape-measure, the mirror, and how your clothes fit.


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## Doublebase (Jun 25, 2007)

DOMS said:


> Yep.  When you start working out you should (at first) ignore the scale and instead focus on the tape-measure, the mirror, and how your clothes fit.



I told her to stay off the scale.  She was getting compliments at my house-warming party this past weekend.  That might have just been the spray tan she got though.  She says she feels better.  She has cut out a lot in her diet.  She eats more frequently, instead of 2 meals a day.  

I have her work out with weights for about 20 mins then we do 4 rounds of boxing.  We end it with running outside.  Mostly sprinting.  She's completed 6 workouts so far and is coming over tonight.  The weight training consists of a lot of full body movements.  Also, arm exercises, shoulder work, back, chest, w/e.  Basic stuff.  Should I not have her train with weights?


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## DanK (Jun 25, 2007)

Woah, no one said weights were bad, if anything everyone is probably in shock that you didn't have to dedicate a paragraph of your first post in this thread to how you couldn't convince her that weights won't turn her into the incredible hulk.


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## Doublebase (Jun 25, 2007)

DanK said:


> Woah, no one said weights were bad, if anything everyone is probably in shock that you didn't have to dedicate a paragraph of your first post in this thread to how you couldn't convince her that weights won't turn her into the incredible hulk.



Lol.  I didn't want to put you all to sleep.  Yes she said the typical newbie statements.  "I don't want to get huge".  "I need to get rid of this" (pointing to stomach).  "I need to do arms".  The normal stuff.  

I explained how weights help strengthen the CNS and how she will get stronger and feel better.  She likes weight training.  She doesn't like boxing so much.  It really tires her out.  She can't keep her hands up.  I correct her to much.  Just habit.


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## Bakerboy (Jun 25, 2007)

She doesn't like boxing so much. It really tires her out. She can't keep her hands up.

If a person is not used to pushing themselves physically, it's going to be hard.  It should be hard. If you are not tired after hitting the bag, you didn't work hard enough. lol It sounds like you are mixing it up for her and keeping it fun. I think it is smart to only have her train for 20 min with weights to begin with- you can get a lot done in 20 min if you stick to basic compound movements and keep moving. It sound like she is doing awesome.


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## Doublebase (Jun 26, 2007)

Bakerboy said:


> *It sounds like you are mixing it up for her and keeping it fun*. I think it is smart to only have her train for 20 min with weights to begin with- you can get a lot done in 20 min if you stick to basic compound movements and keep moving. It sound like she is doing awesome.



Exactly right.  I don't want her to dread her workouts.  I want her to look forward to them.  Although she isn't.  She doesn't hate them though.  I have her do 2 sets of around 10-12 reps for everything she does with weights.  She takes about 45sec breaks in between sets.  I keep her moving for about 45-60 mins all together.  Only 2x a week.  She is doing 3x this week.  We are going to try to keep it there.


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## Doublebase (Jun 29, 2007)

I'm taking her to the track tomorrow to see how long it takes her to run a mile.  Should be interesting.  I doubt she'll be able to run the whole thing.


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## Plateau_Max (Jun 29, 2007)

Man... I remember when it wasn't possible to run a full mile.  Tell your sister when she's done with her mile that if she stays with it she'll get better so fast even she'll be amazed.  Over the course of 2 years I went from hardly being able to jog for 3 minutes to being able to run several miles without stopping or slowing down.


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## Doublebase (Jul 1, 2007)

She ran/walked the mile in 13:20min.  Not to bad.  I need some other fun exercises to have her do.  Some stuff we can do outside.  I have her do crunches, girl push-ups, free squats, some other stuff here and there.


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## DanK (Jul 2, 2007)

Never forget that actual sports can be fun, for the average person who is training for health/looks etc it can seem pointless to spend all that time building an athletic body and not use it... I find myself doing utterly unnecessary manual labor... just for the sake of lifting something besides a weight (used a shovel to 'till' a 17' radious area this weekend). Find a tennis court or something, preferably something she'd enjoy, when I'm having fun 3 hours of exercise, no biggy... it won't even feel like exercise until the next day...


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## Doublebase (Jul 2, 2007)

DanK said:


> Never forget that actual sports can be fun, for the average person who is training for health/looks etc it can seem pointless to spend all that time building an athletic body and not use it... I find myself doing utterly unnecessary manual labor... just for the sake of lifting something besides a weight (used a shovel to 'till' a 17' radious area this weekend). Find a tennis court or something, preferably something she'd enjoy, when I'm having fun 3 hours of exercise, no biggy... it won't even feel like exercise until the next day...



My sister is one the most unathletic people I know.  Her favorite sport to play is babmitten.


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## MCx2 (Jul 2, 2007)

Doublebase said:


> My sister is one the most unathletic people I know.  Her favorite sport to play is babmitten.



Good. Put a racquet and a shuttlecock in her hands and get to work.


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## DanK (Jul 2, 2007)

I think a lot of the time when people don't like sports it's because they aren't fit enough to play them or have some other difficulty with the sport, something like badmitten can be good exercise, especially if the people playing are bad at it (chasing the birdy is exhausting). Tennis would be a step up from badmitten of course but whatever works beats the heck out of spending time on a treadmill stairing at a wall and you grind out your workout.


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## Doublebase (Jul 3, 2007)

DanK said:


> I think a lot of the time when people don't like sports it's because they aren't fit enough to play them or have some other difficulty with the sport, something like badmitten can be good exercise, especially if the people playing are bad at it (chasing the birdy is exhausting). Tennis would be a step up from badmitten of course but whatever works beats the heck out of spending time on a treadmill stairing at a wall and you grind out your workout.



We usually run the track at our old high school.  I am looking for more BW exercises she can do after we are done running.


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## tucker01 (Jul 3, 2007)

Doublebase said:


> My sister is one the most unathletic people I know.  Her favorite sport to play is *babmitten*.



WTF is that


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## Plateau_Max (Jul 3, 2007)

BEST TYPO OF THE MONTH AWARD!


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## Doublebase (Jul 3, 2007)

I spelled it like it sounds.


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## tucker01 (Jul 3, 2007)

Funny.  Must be some kind of slang.


Sounds like Bad-min-ton.  I dunno I am Canadian though, so I am kinda slow eh!


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## Doublebase (Jul 3, 2007)

IainDaniel said:


> Funny.  Must be some kind of slang.
> 
> 
> Sounds like Bad-min-ton.  I dunno I am Canadian though, so I am kinda slow eh!



Yeah, we say it bab-mit-ten.  Its ok, I'm sure I would pronounce some of your Canadian words wrong also Ian.  I mean Iain.


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## ninjagun (Jul 4, 2007)

Doublebase said:


> Please help me, help her, lose weight.  I printed out some of the stickies for her to read.  She is coming over tomorrow night to workout.  She wants to start losing.  She is serious.  She wants a change.  She is tired of being heavy and wants to get back to her 21 year old bw of 115-120lbs.  Can you link me some stickies you think she should read?  Also a basic diet she can follow and a basic training program.  She hasn't done anything physical in probably a decade.  We leave for vacation July 26.  I told her she could lose close to 20lbs by then if trains and follows a strict diet.  Wishful thinking but it is possible.


My sister followed the weightwatchers program, it really helped, she looooooooost a lot and in a short time.

The key is to reduce your food intake at a go, but can eat even up to 4 times a day small portions... they all have points, but not too sure how to calculate it.

I know that eating smaller portions, and consistently will make you lose weight. 

But she will need to excercise so she firms up her body if not it will just sag

Good luck


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## Bakerboy (Jul 4, 2007)

Doublebase said:


> We usually run the track at our old high school.  I am looking for more BW exercises she can do after we are done running.



What is she doing now? What do you have to use? Do you have DB's that she could use?


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## P-funk (Jul 4, 2007)

I am big on Med. Balls.....lots of variety to them, you can use them for many things when dealing with conditioning.


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## tucker01 (Jul 4, 2007)

ninjagun said:


> My sister followed the weightwatchers program, it really helped, she looooooooost a lot and in a short time.
> 
> The key is to reduce your food intake at a go, but can eat even up to 4 times a day small portions... they all have points, but not too sure how to calculate it.
> 
> ...



weight watchers is a joke.


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## Doublebase (Jul 4, 2007)

We lift workout 3 times a week.  2 of the days are weight training + cardio.
Her weight training consists of full body workouts.  I have her squat, dl, shoulder press, bp, curl and tricep extentions.  2 sets x 12 reps for every exercise.  30-45 sec rest intervals.  The weight training lasts for a little over 20 mins.  Then I have her box for 4 rounds, 2mins a piece with 30 sec intevals.  She either spars with me, hits the heavy bag or focus pads.  Then we run sprints outside for about 10 mins.  The other day during the week we go to the highschool and run around the track.  We just do a mile.  We have done that twice so far.  I am looking for some more things to do outside.  I'm going to show her tennis this Friday.

Workouts are about 50mins.  I try to keep them fast paced.


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## Bakerboy (Jul 4, 2007)

Doublebase said:


> We lift workout 3 times a week.  2 of the days are weight training + cardio.
> Her weight training consists of full body workouts.  I have her squat, dl, shoulder press, bp, curl and tricep extentions.  2 sets x 12 reps for every exercise.  30-45 sec rest intervals.  The weight training lasts for a little over 20 mins.  Then I have her box for 4 rounds, 2mins a piece with 30 sec intevals.  She either spars with me, hits the heavy bag or focus pads.  Then we run sprints outside for about 10 mins.  The other day during the week we go to the highschool and run around the track.  We just do a mile.  We have done that twice so far.  I am looking for some more things to do outside.  I'm going to show her tennis this Friday.
> 
> Workouts are about 50mins.  I try to keep them fast paced.



That's not bad but she needs some horizontal and vertical pulling to balance things out. Have you thought about doing an A and a B total body setup. 
Superset exercises and you will get more bang for your buck. Start with RI's of 90 seconds, then lower them to 60 seconds, 45 seconds. Then either increase the weight, and another sets or start changing the tempo to make this more difficult. 

*A *
1) a) Squats 2 x 10-12
    b) Assisted pull ups or db pullovers 2 x 10-12

2) a) Single leg RDL's  2 x 10-12
    b) Overhead press 2 x 10-12
    c) Tricep extensions or bench dips 2 x 10-12

3) Planks/ crunches 2 sets


*B*
1) a) Deadlifts 2 x 10-12
    b) Push ups 2 x 10-12

2) a) DB lunges or step ups 2 x 10-12
    B) DB rows 2 x 10 - 12

3) Twisting crunches/ bird dogs  2 sets


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## The Monkey Man (Jul 4, 2007)

She can follow my daily 2-step program, that lost me 17lbs so far...


Step 1 -- Run to the top of South mountain
Step 2 -- Run back down


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## ninjagun (Jul 4, 2007)

IainDaniel said:


> weight watchers is a joke.


hmmm... not going to defend them as I'm not really a diet person, but I've seen it work... you may have your reasons for saying so though but I've seen it in action


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## tucker01 (Jul 5, 2007)

ninjagun said:


> hmmm... not going to defend them as I'm not really a diet person, but I've seen it work... you may have your reasons for saying so though but I've seen it in action



It is not meant to offend you.

WW does nothing to build a proper eating lifestyle.  Or proper eating habits.

Most women are in and out of WW fighting the rebound that occurs after they reach a "goal" weight.


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## Blooming Lotus (Jul 5, 2007)

Doublebase said:


> We usually run the track at our old high school.  I am looking for more BW exercises she can do after we are done running.




Why don't you suggest to her that she get herself a half hour Aerobics dvd and wake up 45 mins earlier of a morning to do that?..  Aerobics Oz Style has pretty good ones that I like to use daily myself. As far as actual body weight exercises, something like pilates .. which they co-incidently allso do on a take home dvd would give her huuge results in a relatively shorter period than probably quite alot of stuff ..particularly on the back of the runs and getting stuck into a bag and so on that you've already got her doing..
Callesthenics like pilates is good for a full body bw work out for ppl in her situation because not only is it easier on joints with modified levels of intensity in most cases but it also helps teach breathing techniques which trains people to incorporate more isometric contractions in their day and also to train better posture.. which not only makes ppl loook slimer and healthier but it also gets a person more reasonabley familiar with how much of whats hanging where and if one might also be training that then becomes really good motivation for those private times doing that ..like first thing am for exmaple when they might be alone and able to spend some personal time with oneself  getting stuck into those areas without distraction and to whatever intensity they desire meaning they're also likely more relaxed and have a better chance to enjoy themself... doing exercise.. alone.. 
Private personal acheivements when no one else is looking does really good things for people.
I think it's also important to encourage her to do little bits here and there totally on her on and as creatively as you can out a list of things together .. like taking the stairs.. walking blocks ..a quick jog between blocks or upstairs and so on and let enertia do it's thing from there.


If it really is for your sister then it's sweet you care. 

Blooming tianshi lotus.


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## CowPimp (Jul 5, 2007)

Bakerboy said:


> That's not bad but she needs some horizontal and vertical pulling to balance things out. Have you thought about doing an A and a B total body setup.
> Superset exercises and you will get more bang for your buck. Start with RI's of 90 seconds, then lower them to 60 seconds, 45 seconds. Then either increase the weight, and another sets or start changing the tempo to make this more difficult.
> 
> *A *
> ...



I'm willing to bet she can't do 1-leg RDLs.  A lot of people have trouble with those.

Also, (This is for DoubleBase) you should get her doing some back work too!


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## Doublebase (Jul 5, 2007)

CowPimp said:


> I'm willing to bet she can't do 1-leg RDLs.  A lot of people have trouble with those.
> 
> Also, (This is for DoubleBase) you should get her doing some back work too!



I did not list everything I have her do.  I did not mention, BB rows, 1 arm DB rows, Hanging from pull-up bar, lunges, girl push-ups with push up bars, flys, some shoulder exercises.  I incorporate everything into 2 workouts so she hits her whole body.  Remember this is a 29 year old girl, that hasn't done any physical activity in close to 10 years.  I have to go slow with her and anything will help.


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## Blooming Lotus (Jul 5, 2007)

Look, to be perfectly honest, I'm sure that patience is somewhat a key factor here . .. and it was rude of you not to disclose and keep asking for the advice.
I struggled for half a moment not to get the shits myself.
Annyway, I personally have helped ppl in the past to loose over 50 kgs from yrs of latency. I am wondering what you are doing with this girls diet and what exactly her exercise regime looks like over a week.
If youre going to ask and sincerely want help and want to help her, to save us all mucking about trying to get to the bottom of it and trying to figure out wtf you're doing and trying to, it would probbably be best if you just laid it out in full  in black and white as it is and we can all go from there.


If not then speaking for myself, I will assume you weren't really asking.


Blooming tianshi lotus.


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## ninjagun (Jul 5, 2007)

IainDaniel said:


> It is not meant to offend you.
> 
> WW does nothing to build a proper eating lifestyle.  Or proper eating habits.
> 
> Most women are in and out of WW fighting the rebound that occurs after they reach a "goal" weight.



NP I understand, youre right there though about the rebound, it's an ongoing struggle even after you reach your goal, my sister is like a food doctor right now measuring stuff all the time but I'm happy she is happy with herself now, just have to get her to keep up the workouts so she can tone that body.


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## Doublebase (Jul 5, 2007)

Blooming Lotus said:


> Look, to be perfectly honest, I'm sure that patience is somewhat a key factor here . .. and it was rude of you not to disclose and keep asking for the advice.
> I struggled for half a moment not to get the shits myself.
> Annyway, I personally have helped ppl in the past to loose over 50 kgs from yrs of latency. I am wondering what you are doing with this girls diet and what exactly her exercise regime looks like over a week.
> If youre going to ask and sincerely want help and want to help her, to save us all mucking about trying to get to the bottom of it and trying to figure out wtf you're doing and trying to, it would probbably be best if you just laid it out in full  in black and white as it is and we can all go from there.
> ...



I just wanted to know some BW exercise to do outside.  Please don't respond to my threads anymore.  You're rude btw.


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## Doublebase (Jul 6, 2007)

We've been working out now for about 3 weeks.  She has not lost any weight.  Is that normal?


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## tucker01 (Jul 6, 2007)

What is she eating?


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## MCx2 (Jul 6, 2007)

She's not eating right then. She should drop weight like crazy at first.


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## Plateau_Max (Jul 6, 2007)

I'm willing to bet all this exercising is making her think she can get away with eating more.  I used to do that back when I was 16 and first started exercising to lose weight.  I lost very little weight and kept increasing my exercise more and more and more and I was getting very frustrated.  When I finally changed my diet and started calling bullshit on rewarding myself with larger meals after a workout I dropped the weight like I was just holding it with my hands or something.

50lbs gone in 2-3 months because I finally changed my stubborn need for crap food.

Honestly someone with poor eating habits can lose significant weight without even EXERCISING! if they get their diet refined.  That should show you just how important it is.


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## Doublebase (Jul 6, 2007)

IainDaniel said:


> What is she eating?



Her diet isn't perfect.  She has cut out a lot of sweets that she used to eat.  She stopped eating processed crap and cooked healthier meals.  I had her write everything down that she has been eating.  I will get back to yuh on that.


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## Doublebase (Jul 6, 2007)

I e-mailed her and told her she should have lost something and that her diet maybe poor.  This is what she wrote back.

well, according to you it's poor, but I think I've been eating better. i guess i will need to be stricter with it. i don't know where to start. Maybe weight watchers? If I do that along w/ the exercise program, then I should lose.

Her biggest issue is finding things to eat.  I think weight watchers, although it is sort of unhealthy, may help her find things to eat.


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## tucker01 (Jul 6, 2007)

Personally I am not a big fan of Weight Watchers.  It does nothing about teaching long term eating habits.

Work with what she likes to eat.  Preperation and organization of the meals is the key.  If she does the prep work, it is that much harder to cheat.


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## Bakerboy (Jul 6, 2007)

Work with what she likes to eat. Preperation and organization of the meals is the key.

True story. And besides that, many people eat out too often or buy too much processed food which makes eating healthy and clean much harder. 
Most people are in denial of what they are eating. The first thing you have to know is what you are eating to find out what needs to be changed. I think P said something before about making small changes first and then build from that. Sticking to whole foods is a good place to start. It may be helpful for her to make a list of foods that she thinks are healthy and then show her what she should be eating (Jodi made a good list). Then it's just finding what she likes on that list and helping her divide that into 5-6 small balanced meals.
Educate her to the point she doesn't need your help.


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## Doublebase (Jul 17, 2007)

Ok so still no weight loss.  She started her weight watchers diet today.  Here is the program she is currently doing.  
*Routine 1*
Squats with Olympic bar:  2 sets x 12 reps

Plate lifts (plate is on ground she bends picks it up and holds it out until she reaches the top of her head, then back down): 22lb weight 2 sets 10-12 reps

Girl Push-ups:  2 sets x 10 reps

BB rows with E-Z curl bar:  2 sets x 12-15 reps

DB curls: 10lbs  2 sets of 15 each arm

Triceps extention:  15lb DB  2 sets 12-15 reps

*Routine 2*
Lunges:  10lb DB's 2 sets 

Dead lifts: 65lbs 2 sets of 10-12reps

DB Flys:  5-10lb DB's  2 sets of 12

DB rows:  10lb  2 sets of 10-12

BB curl:  E-Z curl bar  2 sets of 25 reps

Tricep Extensions:  E-Z curl bar  2 sets of 15 reps

*Cardio*
Boxing:  4 rounds at 2 min a piece with 30sec intervals
Sprints:  300ft 4x
I do the boxing and sprints after every weight training day.  That is 2 days a week.

2 other days of the week we go to the track.  Started doing just a mile.  She can't run the whole thing yet.  She is getting close.  We stepped it up to a mile and a half and tomorrow will be doing 2 miles.  

The program might not be perfect.  The fact is that she hasn't done any physical activity in years.  You would think anything would help her lose.  She is dead after these workouts.  I don't get it.  She doesn't eat bon bons and donuts all day.  She should be losing something.  Should I stop the weight training and just have her run all the time?


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## Doublebase (Jul 18, 2007)

My gf's mom seems to think she isn't doing enough cardio.  She needs to atleast run/walk 3 miles.


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## OddGirl (Jul 18, 2007)

i can't imagine how frustrating it must be to do all of that activity and not see a loss. hopefully when she changes her diet she will see a change... i think she will.


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## Doublebase (Jul 18, 2007)

OddGirl said:


> i can't imagine how frustrating it must be to do all of that activity and not see a loss. hopefully when she changes her diet she will see a change... i think she will.



Tell me about it.  I think I'm more frustrated then her.


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## Bakerboy (Jul 18, 2007)

How many weeks has she been working out? It's got to be her diet. Once that is in order she should be on her way.


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## Doublebase (Jul 18, 2007)

Bakerboy said:


> How many weeks has she been working out? It's got to be her diet. Once that is in order she should be on her way.



This is the 6th week.


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## Blooming Lotus (Jul 18, 2007)

Doublebase said:


> I just wanted to know some BW exercise to do outside.  Please don't respond to my threads anymore.  You're rude btw.



I was actually trying to help you help your sister. Bwe and kick off dietary rehabiting are a fortay passion of mine. it's a shame you feel like that because it probably means we're both missing out.

Last 2 c worth on it is if she hasn't started to loose noticable weight yet and is doing all that activity, just get her trade flours and grains - bar 20 - 30 gm / day with extra fruits and veg ( also good for bowel / liver and spleen cleanse to boost metabolism)and juices and get her doing half -3/4 to full serves of protein shakes for 6 - 8 serves a day at ideal. Good luck with her, I'm sure some results will nice for both of you.

Blooming tianshi lotus.


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## Doublebase (Jul 18, 2007)

Blooming Lotus said:


> I was actually trying to help you help your sister. Bwe and kick off dietary rehabiting are a fortay passion of mine. it's a shame you feel like that because it probably means we're both missing out.
> 
> Last 2 c worth on it is if she hasn't started to loose noticable weight yet and is doing all that activity, just get her trade flours and grains - bar 20 - 30 gm / day with extra fruits and veg ( also good for bowel / liver and spleen cleanse to boost metabolism)and juices and get her doing half -3/4 to full serves of protein shakes for 6 - 8 serves a day at ideal. Good luck with her, I'm sure some results will nice for both of you.
> 
> Blooming tianshi lotus.



Its cool.  I just didn't like that one post.  I thought it was rude.  She is doing the weight watchers point system now.  She likes it and will stick with it.  I mean she is still working out consistantly without losing any weight so I'm sure she will give this a good try.  She did 2 miles tonight on the track.


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## Blooming Lotus (Jul 18, 2007)

Weightwatchers are effective for alott of ppl and that's why they're so successful in that industry.. butt they cost alot and there are waaay more effective tricks that they just don't tell ppl because they'd require more dietary discipline than they give alot of their clients credit for..
Wee here could probably do her better, but if she sticks to what they say.. then I guess she'll probably get results. 
I'd like to see her do a 14 lb drop in two weeeks with a cleanse and keto kick off - but ..( shrug) whatever. I wish you both the best of luck.

Blooming tianshi lotus.


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## souljam (Jul 24, 2007)

Just wondering... you said your sister isn't losing any weight....but are her clothes fitting differently?? It was said in the beginning of these posts that she shouldn't look at the scale but use the mirror and the tape measure.  I think that's a good idea and one no one metioned again. 

I know from experience when i first start to lose weight it's never a visual number that lets me know that all my miles around the track are doing their job. It's the fact that my pants start sliding down or that I now need a belt for pants that used to cut into my gut..

It's worth considering...


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## Mista (Jul 24, 2007)

souljam said:


> Just wondering... you said your sister isn't losing any weight....but are her clothes fitting differently?? It was said in the beginning of these posts that she shouldn't look at the scale but use the mirror and the tape measure.  I think that's a good idea and one no one metioned again.
> 
> I know from experience when i first start to lose weight it's never a visual number that lets me know that all my miles around the track are doing their job. It's the fact that my pants start sliding down or that I now need a belt for pants that used to cut into my gut..
> 
> It's worth considering...



Very true, I love weighing myself being the same weight but my belt looser.


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## OddGirl (Jul 30, 2007)

How is she doing?!?


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## Doublebase (Jul 30, 2007)

Her clothes do fit looser.  We just got back from vacation and she is currently sick.  Soar throat and achy.  We'll get back into once she is better.


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## Plateau_Max (Jul 31, 2007)

> Boxing: 4 rounds at 2 min a piece with 30sec intervals
> Sprints: 300ft 4x
> I do the boxing and sprints after every weight training day. That is 2 days a week.



Dude.  I'm going to be honest that's not cardio.  I wouldn't even break a sweat doing that.  The best way to form your cardio for weight loss is a balance of high intensity short workouts AND lower intensity extended cardio in the same training week.

Give her a 30 minute minimum run/jog once a week.  If she can't run the whole 30 minutes that's understandable, however, she needs to only stop just long enough to catch her breath then start back up again and keep going until the entire 30 minutes has been satisfied.  On the high intensity days it still needs to last a decent amount of time.  Let's say 10 minutes bare minimum of high intensity cardio, which is best when broken into intervals.  Ge a whistle.  Bring her to the track.  Have her run as fast as she can for 30 seconds then blow the whistle.  Walk for 30 seconds then blow the whistle.  Run for 45 seconds, then walk for 45, run for 60 then walk for 90 and start over.

The best thing about HIIT is it caters to your abilities.  For instance, my fastest will be a heck of a lot faster than hers, but as long as she's putting HER 100% into it that's what counts.  The rest times between sprints she'll find is just enough for her to make it through all the intervals.  You can get an exact 20 minutes by doing this 4 times in a row, it's perfect.  Not to mention she'll see progress every time she does it, by the fact that she'll be able to run farther in her intervals as she continues.

Never forget there are Type I and Type II muscles and when it comes to getting in shape and losing weight no one is more important than the other.  Training your body and getting stronger the more weight you lose and the more weight you'll be able to lose simply because your abilities increase.  The improvements are exponential.  It's another example of having to attack it from all angles to make it work.


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## Doublebase (Nov 19, 2008)

Ok getting back to this again.  Its been 4 months now since she last worked out.  She worked out hard for a solid 3 months and hardly lost anything.  I will have to try something different this time.  I'm going to try a more cardio based workout.  Any suggestions?


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## P-funk (Nov 19, 2008)

how was her diet and how many times a week was she training?


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## Doublebase (Nov 19, 2008)

P-funk said:


> how was her diet and how many times a week was she training?



I don't know exactly what she was eating.  She was being more aware of not eating sweets and foods with empty calories.  I don't how structured her diet was.  I believe that was her major issue.  We trained 3 days a week.  If you look above you can see the workouts she was doing.  Its not like she is eating like a pig.  She should be able to drop a little weight by just working out.  Or maybe I'm wrong.


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## P-funk (Nov 19, 2008)

Diet is everything.

How were you charting progress?  Don't tell me by scale weight alone.  Were you using measurements or caliper readings?  

How were you charting progress in her workouts?

What were her interval session and cardio sessions like?  How did you progress them?


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## danzik17 (Nov 19, 2008)

IainDaniel said:


> Personally I am not a big fan of Weight Watchers.  It does nothing about teaching long term eating habits.
> 
> Work with what she likes to eat.  Preperation and organization of the meals is the key.  If she does the prep work, it is that much harder to cheat.



+1

It drives me insane when people ask about my diet, but then say "oh I'm not eating because I'm saving my points for a piece of pie later".

I want to punch them in the face for not listening to basic logic.  Repeatedly.


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## danzik17 (Nov 19, 2008)

Doublebase said:


> I don't know exactly what she was eating.  She was being more aware of not eating sweets and foods with empty calories.  I don't how structured her diet was.  I believe that was her major issue.  We trained 3 days a week.  If you look above you can see the workouts she was doing.  Its not like she is eating like a pig.  She should be able to drop a little weight by just working out.  Or maybe I'm wrong.



She doesn't need to eat like a pig to not lose weight.  Start out slow, but you need to get her in the habit of at least doing some basic tracking or set up a basic diet.  Eyeballing stuff just doesn't work unless you have years of experience.  I still can't eyeball shit after a couple of years of dieting - when I do, I gain weight.  Tracking calories is everything.


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## Built (Nov 19, 2008)

Doublebase said:


> Ok getting back to this again.  Its been 4 months now since she last worked out.  She worked out hard for a solid 3 months and hardly lost anything.  I will have to try something different this time.  I'm going to try a more cardio based workout.  Any suggestions?



Yes. 

Tell her to assume exercise burns exactly nothing. 

Please don't tell her to do more cardio. She hasn't lost weight so far, and that means it's her diet, flat out. Cardio will just make her hungrier, and she needs to eat LESS food, not more. 

FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal - have her enter her food, we need to see what she's eating now.


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## Merkaba (Nov 19, 2008)

Built said:


> Yes.
> 
> Tell her to assume exercise burns exactly nothing.
> 
> ...


Took the words right out of my mouth.  

Someone, you or her, is going to have to start counting calories.  Otherwise you have to starve yourself or do hourse of cardio to ensure a negative balance which we all know is nonsense.  

Tell her that they counted calories on biggest loser too.  

Cardio and working out is not needed to lose weight.  They're essential to good health, but not to lose weight.  

Of course this is all barring some kind of metabolic malfunction so I take it she has been checked for any abnormalities???


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## Doublebase (Nov 20, 2008)

I'm taking Builts advice.  Hopefully I can get her and Built communicating a little bit.  Thanks all.  I will keep you updated.  

P-Funk I was basically just showing her how to do some exercises.  I just wanted her to start using her muscles and learn how to do a work out.  What you are asking would take a little more time then I have.  I'm not a personal trainer just a brother who cares about his sister.


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## P-funk (Nov 20, 2008)

Doublebase said:


> I'm taking Builts advice.  Hopefully I can get her and Built communicating a little bit.  Thanks all.  I will keep you updated.
> 
> P-Funk I was basically just showing her how to do some exercises.  I just wanted her to start using her muscles and learn how to do a work out.  What you are asking would take a little more time then I have.  I'm not a personal trainer just a brother who cares about his sister.



Oh.  I thought you were working out with her or something like that.

It sounds like she needs accountability.  No wonder that she didn't see any progress.  Who knows if she was doing thisn properly and with the proper intensity.


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## Doublebase (Nov 20, 2008)

P-funk said:


> Oh.  I thought you were working out with her or something like that.
> 
> It sounds like she needs accountability.  No wonder that she didn't see any progress.  Who knows if she was doing thisn properly and with the proper intensity.



I just thought someone that who hasn't done any exercise would drop some weight by just doing basic exercises.


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## Built (Nov 20, 2008)

Doublebase said:


> I just thought someone that who hasn't done any exercise would drop some weight by just doing basic exercises.


This does work for the odd individual. You have to watch out for "compensatory eating" though - either deliberate "I worked out today so I get to eat a big greasy cheeseburger", or the automatic kind that comes about by increased appetite - some of us really DO work up an appetite when we exercise. 

Doublebase, let's see what happens when we get her tracking her diet. You got her thinking about making better choices; she may be quite ready to take this part to the next level.


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## Merkaba (Nov 20, 2008)

Tell her to come to the forum!


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