I hate to disagree with you verbatim, but 60 mins of cardio split up into two 30 minute blocks is not excessive at all for someone who is trying to lose weight. I applaude you SickOfIt for having the discipline to start such a routine and stick to it, which is the hardest part when you are just starting out.

Moving forward, putting together a diet can be tricky at first. I understand you are going through a big change now....obviously you didn't care about your health as much in the past and in the future u wish that to change. Don't go overboard by trying to do it ALL at once....thats how you discourage yourself when every goal can not be reached. Let the experiance of weight loss come to you and as it comes and becomes a lifestyle, you will see that you are learning more on your own.

Firsty, here is an important tidbit you should know. 3500 calories is equal to 1 pound of fat. If you deprive your body's metabolism of 3500 calories over the course of a week, you can determine how many calories you can cut to lose 1 pound of fat per week. It is possible to lose 2 pounds of fat a week healthily, if you are extremely overweight and your metabolic needs are very high. That means over the course of 1 week you deprive your metabolism of 7000 calories. In order to do this, you must calculate your metabolic rates.

Sometimes, thumbing through these forums and sticky posts can be difficult. I have a wealth of information in my head I would be willing to discuss with you one on one if you want to discuss it over AIM, MSN or even in private messages. (AIM = phreaknite, MSN = phreaknite@hotmail.com)

I would also have some resources available for you to read.

Its important that you KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING. Many people say things like "cut your carbs" and the recipient takes that the wrong way and stops eating all carbs including fruits and vegetables...

An example of this is the hot sauce claim that hot sauce speeds up your metabolism or that PB&J is a healthy snack. Both are untrue (no offense intended, tjlaplant)


I would be happy to educate you further.