(I apologize in advance for the long post.)

Hi everyone, this is a great site and a great forum as well. I am 21 years old and a junior in college. I live on my own, on a very tight budget. I am almost in the exact condition John was in when he started his program. Right now I am 5'8" and 200 lbs. I used to work out in high school, but after I graduated, I stopped. My diet got worse, and all the previous muscle I gained turned to fat. I have a horrible diet that consists of cereal, nachos, fast food, cokes and beer (rarely). I take strattera, which is a medicine to help with concentration, and it requires that I eat a good amount of food any time I take the pill. I am tired of living like this, but I just do not know where to start.

Motivation is a big problem for me. I have tried to lose weight in the past, and have quit after a few weeks because I got so frusterated. My roommate is very fit, and I seem to slow him down when we try to work out. I just get winded running up the stairs to get to class in the morning, and I hate it. We have a free weight bench with plenty of weight at our place, as well as some dumbells. We do have access to a gym at school, but the hours are really limited. I really do not like running because it kills my ankles and knees, which have always been a pain. Any recommendations about diet would be greatly appreciated. I believe this is my greatest challenge because I do not have much money, and my cooking skills are quite limited. Anyone who has tried to lose weight while living the college life, please give me some advice. And again, sorry for the long post! :)

Thanks In Advance,
Kenny

I tried and am doing this Fit For Life diet
Morning : Nothing but fruit as much as you want
Lunch : Salad, olive oil dressing, '
Dinner : pasta with veg ,

I dont mix carbs with protein.

Its working for me, and I can eat as often as I like,

that fit for life diet doesnt look very good too me, looks like it need more calories and a better macronutriant breakdown

i wouldnt eat pasta a night, it very calorie dence and since you dont use the energy the carb's give you at night it will probly go on your gut
and it really doesnt look like you have much protein there

as for not mixing protein and carbs, i assure you its completly fine! infact protein actually lowers the GI on carbs making them much better for you!

I am tired of living like this, but I just do not know where to start.
Motivation is where to start. Once you're motivated, you can start to cut back on the unhealthy foods and start to exercise more.

You'd be surprised at how easy it is to eat healthy on a college budget (which is basically nothing!). All it takes is planning. Think about it, a can of tuna costs under a dollar. A dozen eggs is just over a dollar. A gallon of milk is about $2.25. A box of oatmeal (and not the sugary instant types) is under $5.00. Fresh vegetables can be expensive and hard to store but frozen and canned vegetables are pretty inexpensive. Of course these prices are all relative to your location but should be pretty close. If you can, try and find a wholesale club like Sams or Costco. They have membership fees but save money in the long run. You may even find that cutting back on the junk food and trying to eat healthier will end up saving you money. Good luck and keep us posted!

Kenny -

I was there!!!! My junior year in college I weighed 260lbs! One day I said screw this, seriously and just quit cold turkey - ate healthy played basketball and baseball and lifted minimally. In no time I was down to 180!!! Look at it this way - weight loss is not hard...infact it is SO simple its sickening. What makes it hard is people's minds and thought process. All you have to do is keep in mind two things - when going to reach for unhealthy food "NO!" and when you don't feel like working out - "JUST DO IT!". I know it sounds kind of over the top but thats my mentality. To be successful all you really have to do is "do it". You'll be thankful you did. By the time I graduated college I was at 170lbs and felt so good about myself and my acheivment - and what fueled that were peoples compliments - "oh you look so good", etc...that was enough for me.

(I apologize in advance for the long post.)
Kenny

Kenny, first of all you have to sya for yourself: "I want to do it, and I will do it no matter what!" Tha is the moset important thing. As it was said here by othe people losing weight is simple and fun. All it takes is commitment - you have to commit yourself to fitness, say "NO" to junk food and you are on your way. Somewhere in "cutting carbs section" I wrote a large post about how to start. Look through, and if you don't find it, e-mail me at d_samuylin@hotmail.com and I will try to put you in the right direction.

Since we've switched to wholesome food we are actually saving money even with buying supplements and my wife's shakes (she will only drink EAS Myoplex Fudge pre-mixed shakes). You can get a Sam's/Costco membership and save even more.

Thanks for all of the support guys! I plan starting all of this pretty soon. I turn 21 tomorrow, so there will be some obligatory drinking, but no beer. I will keep you guys posted.

one of the things i noticed straight away about john is he's definatly not poor :D i really can't justify some of the things he regularly eats no matter howe healthy they are.

Looking at the cheep but good things i consume, some definate good suggestions are milk, tinned tuna, frozen mixed vegetables, bread (freeze half the loaf).
if you can handle natural yogart (it is the spawn of all evil, i can't force myself to eat it) you can buy it cheep in huge tubs and just take some out as you want it.

Chicken can usually be bought fairly cheep also, certainly in the UK, most supermarkets offer budget chicken breasts, usually smaller than the more expensive ones but still the same stuff, and diced chicken, cheeper becuase they can use non breast parts.

Get a Costco membership. Some of the prices are:
Light Tuna Pack of 12 Cans $5.99 (2 servings per can)
Chunky's Steak 'n' Potatoe Soup Pack of 10 $9.99 (2 servings per can)
Cottage Cheese 6 pack $4.99 (4 servings per container)
Sweet Potatoes $no idea, pretty cheap I assume
Carrots, Brocolli, other Vegetables $dirt cheap
Rye Bread $2.49 (lasts like 2 weeks)
Turkey Ham 2 pack $4.99 (36 slices)
2 gal Water $2.49 (you should drink a lot of water)

Well I don't remember more, but I pay around $30 a week for food.

Sounds a bit like me. College senior with one more year to go. Determination is the key, I believe. The others can be overcome.
Fink: Your story sounds just like mine. Currently 250, want to get to 180 and look good for my graduation, and sooner if possible. Any pointers? When did you hear about Stone and did that influence your decisions?

Sounds a bit like me. College senior with one more year to go. Determination is the key, I believe. The others can be overcome.
Fink: Your story sounds just like mine. Currently 250, want to get to 180 and look good for my graduation, and sooner if possible. Any pointers? When did you hear about Stone and did that influence your decisions?

Dave - I just heard about John last week - and he's inspired me for a whole new run on fitness - you can view my story in the thread called your story.

As for advice - the toughest part for me was saying no to my friends - no to drinking, no to going out and eating. This DOES NOT mean you cant have fun. I would go to parties and just drink water, I would go out to eat and just be careful and choosy on the menu - substitute fried foods and buttered side dishes for white rice, cut portions in half etc. Most importantly, stay motivated. When I walked across that graduation stage and my picture was taken which now sits next to my highschool grad. one it's an eye opener - it makes me want to get even better! Shoot - gotta go do some work, if you want more advice, please drop me a message or I'll write on the boards, good luck and I know you can do it!

You have to eat less calories than you take in, which should be about 500 less.
I take about 1800-2000 a day. Food isn't that hard, improvise, Rice isn't dear, and Tuna isn't dear, Rice and Tuna = a meal. :) Frozen veg is just as good as fresh, and meat can be bought cheap enough. Go with what you can afford. Drink lots of water, workout and you'll be dropping pounds.

Hey Kenny!

based on what you wrote, I think that food isn't something that you plan for, it's something that happens...

My advice: Quit drinking soda. Really. I was a sugaraholic, and a can of coke was my fix - AND that little blast of sugar actually enhanced my appetite - i had to keep my blood sugar HIGH, and that contributed to overeating. I found that I couldn't function without at least a can a day. Drink coffee, tea, water, but no sodas. Seltzer water helps!

My other advice: Go semi-vegetarian. No meat with breakfast, no meat with lunch, no junk food. Eat cereal in the morning with skim milk, eat a garden burger for lunch, snack on bagels and fruit. This isn't the best weightlifting advice, but it should help you get a handle on what you eat. Once you do that - moving on to a lifters diet will be MUCH EASIER. Eat as much vegetables and fruit as you want - if you're hungry, eat clean.

Plus, it's cheap to eat like that - you just have to go to the store a little more often - stick to the produce aisle, and don't browse the rest of the store.

Also, I'd say take a good multivitamin everyday. You can do it! Take charge of the situation! :eat:

This is by far the best supplement site I've ever found: http://www.bulknutrition.com/

I ordered 5lb of Optimum Nutrition's Whey for $45, and their multivitamin for $15. After S&H, it came to about $70 or so.

Now, two weeks before, I paid $45 for 3lb of whey from GNC and the bottle was HALF FULL! The ON stuff comes nearly topped off. Definately a good site. And ON's chocolate tastes a hell load better than GNC's. I do still buy one thing from them.. Omega 3, 6, 9 for $10 :rolleyes: Not a bad deal and pretty easy to get, so ehh..

If you just wanna lose weight, I'd think the Whey is optional. Grab a multivitamin though. Remember, diet is key. Exercise is easy. It's only for 30 to 45 min a day. Diet lasts throughout the day :)

As for exercise, try fast walking or swimming. I walked the first two weeks because my cardio system was utter crap for 10+ years, and I worked up to light, short jogs, and that becomes the building point for serious jogging. If you're concerned, always go see a doctor, especially about the ankle and knee pains. Those sound like joint issues more than just fatigue pains.

Kenny

Don't worry so much the first few weeks about trying to eat perfectly. I think the biggest obstacle for some to get started is they want to make it an exact science. For the first few weeks, focus on changing your food intake to a nutrition intake. Think about what you are eating now and what could be substituted in its place that has more nutrition value. If you can afford a breaded fried chicken sandwich at a fast food place, you can afford a grilled chicken sandwich with no mayo at the same place. Same goes for burgers containing large amounts of fat and fries.

Even though I had read about nutrition and "diets" for over a month it was hard for me to make the change and get started. I couldn't figure out exactly where to begin and I over complicated things. Once I decided to keep things simple it was easy. I started by no longer drinking soda's, (substituted more water with lemon and an occasional glass of tea with little sugar) no longer eating fried foods, no longer snacking on chips and candy bars (substituted soy chips (Gen Soy taste better than most of the chips I was eating) and air popped popcorn) and making a vow to have at least 1 salad a day and vegetables at least 2-3 times a day. I started eating 6 small meals a day and have been making adjustments ever since. Once you start to make small changes it will steadily increase into more and more changes over the first few weeks. The only thing I would tell you to do right away is keep a good calorie count and count your servings as you eat. It's amazing how writing down your food intake makes you really focus on how much and of what you are eating.

For exercise, don't worry about slowing your friend down. If he is not complaining you should consider that he understands your situation and is willing to help. If he is complaining, let him know you will catch up to him later. I'm not sure if you are trying to do the exact routine as him or not, if so, work out your own routine that might get you finished about the same time.

You can't let excuses stand in your way. Lack of money can be a great excuse but in reality it is not a big obstacle. You don't have to go out and buy protein shakes and supplements right away. Like I said above, if you are eating out and can afford a burger and fries it will cost you about the same for grilled chicken sandwich and salad. Canned fish is cheap and very easy to eat. It is all about perception, don't put yourself on a diet, focus in changing your perception of food and your lifestyle. It has to be forever so don't start out miserable.

**edited to add** If you can scrape up ~$30.00 in the near future a small George Foreman grill is a great way to get grilled fish, chicken and turekey if you are not great at cooking.

Hello. This is my first post on here. I've gotta give props to John. He's managed a pretty spectacular transformation...

Kenny I have a similar problem,although I think I have always been overweight. Even when I was a kid I was podgy compared to everyone else. Although in fairness I was the tallest until I got to secondary school. I think I was probably teased for being big in general rather then being round !
I'm a uni student, i weight about 98 kilo's and I spend very little time at my house. I'm a music tech student, I work part time as well, not to mention dj-ing and going out with my mates. So it's kinda hard to find time to look after myself, let alone to and make improvements.
Luckily though, I have a fitness club at the bottom of my road. It's not cheap (£30 a month basic!), but I figured I will be using it enough to justify the cost.
I joined about 2 weeks ago, and there have only been 2 days in that period I haven't gone. I normally only go over for an hour. Just to use the cardio equipment. I'm still trying to decide what to do about the weights, as I have an old arm injury that bugs me. I'll post about this later (I want some advice)
I walk to and from uni, and it's a 30 min walk each way. This means I do a lot more exercise then I used to.
I've pretty much managed to cut out all the soda and fizzy drinks, and tend to drink fruit juice, water or very weak barley squash. I haven't cut it out completely, but it's well within reasonable amounts. I used to drink my workplace dry of Pepsi....
I hate the likes of McDonalds & Burker King anyway, and avoid these places at all possible costs. But I did used to grab Kebabs and pizzas on the way home after a messy night out. I didn't go out last week at all, and have resolved to drinking no more then 2/3 drinks when i'm out, and drink something like vodka with orange, because there is very little to it. I also used to get crisps and chocolate bars with any sandwhiches I bought. I've cut these out as well.....
As for knee and ankle pains, I used to get these. But since I've cut the rubbish out and started exercising they seem to have dissapeared.
I've also found that since i've started working out my concentration has improved as well !

I'm a lonnnnnnnnggg way from being happy, but I feel 100 times beter hen I did 2 weeks ago :D