My Secrets?

Okay, so I've had a lot of people ask me "What did you do to lose so much weight?" I've given some tips and advice without laying out anything specific. So, for anyone who's interested here's a practical guide that I follow which has enabled me to lose 145lbs over the last 2.5 years and Teresa to drop almost 90lbs.

New daily habits:
In a word, water. Lots of water. Take the first 2 weeks, or more if you can take it, drink nothing but water. At least 2 gallons a day. Be prepared to spend a lot of time at the beginning peeing. Like every 15 to 20 minutes. Trust me, its worth it when your body fully hydrates and stabilizes. This habit alone will give you more energy and help you to sleep better.

Get moving, even if its just a little at a time. Start with taking daily walks if you've not had much exercise lately. Most of the people who read this though aren't THAT sedintary. So, crank up the cardio and get to 40 minutes a day at least 4 days a week. The earlier the better because getting to that target heart rate in the morning will keep the metabolism hot all day and you'll burn more calories with your regular daily activities.

Once you have the cardio going regularly, say after the first 2 weeks, start getting some resistance training in there. Yes, that means lifting weights or using those elastic bands to get your muscles working against each other. Afterall, what good is being thin if you look like a slender bag of oatmeal. right? Depending on what kind of results you're after you'll want to spend at least a half an hour a day resistance training all the way up to 3 hours a day 4 times a week. (I'll post my weight lifting routine at the end of the post)

Addressing food:
Sodium...this is probably the biggest issue for most people I know. Daily salt intake should be in the neighborhood of 1200mg a day. You'll need to do your homework on this one because sodium is hiddden in everything. Just a single bean and cheese burrito from Taco Bell contains 1200mg of sodium! So, start reading labels people! Watch the dairy products because they have massive amounts of sodium hidden in them!

Calories: I'm sure everyone knows the only way to lose weight is to create a calorie deficit in your daily diet. You have to burn an extra 3500 calories to lose a single pound. So, if you eat 200 calories less per day and burn and extra 300 calories than normal you will lose a pound a week.
Start here: http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm enter into your weight your goal weight not your current weight. You'll need to adjust your daily calorie intake to sustain your goal weight...eventually, not from the start (This will give you an idea of how you'll be eating when you reach your goal). I tried in the beginning to just eat the calories for my goal weight and got sick then eventually binged and blew it. So, you want to take this in stride. You didn't gain the extra pounds overnight, it's not going to come off overnight so be patient! Always be patient! A little each day will get you to your goal.
The calorie formula I use is to take my current weight and calculate the daily caloric intake to maintain 75% of my current weight. Once I reach that weight I recalculate to set a new goal. My best results have come in increments which I will discuss after the menu plan.
Regardless of what you've read in dieting books or on the web, counting calories is still the best way to go. Proteins should make the largest portion of your food with carbohydrates coming in second. You should plan to eat most of your carbs earlier in the day so you don't go to bed with a belly full of carbs. Carbs are our energy source and if you sleep with a carb load in your tummy it all turns to sugar and ends up as fat. Now, fat calories you need to be careful with because you absolutely need to have some in your diet without going overboard. 2% Cottage Cheese, raw almonds (about 15 per serving), do some searching online for the foods you like that'll have enough fat calories with less sodium to keep you going through the day.

Daily Menu:

Breakfast:
1) 1 piece of toast with 2 tablespoons of low sodium peanut butter, a half an apple a cup of coffee, water, tea or non-fat milk. (If you want juice then have it and skip the apple)
2) Half a bagel with 1 tablespoon of low-fat cream cheese or butter, half a banana and beverage (see breakfast 1 for beverage choices)
3) 1 piece of dry toast, a poached egg and a slice of cheddar cheese, half an apple, banana or grapefruit and beverage from the list.
4) 1/2 cup of oatmeal (not instant) flavored with 2 tablespoons of brown sugar and cinnamon to taste, half an apple or banana and beverage from list.

Lunch:
All lunches should start with a full cup of steamed broccoli before you eat anything else. Do not add any sauces, salts or butter to the broccoli. Broccoli is cheap and whats called a thermogenic food which means it contains less calories than it takes to digest it. Broccoli specifically contains 30 calories per cup but your body uses 120 calories just to digest it. This is a great catalyst to creating caloric deficit.

Lunch should optimally be your heaviest meal of the day as you'll have more time to burn it off before you go to bed. I don't usually have a set meal for lunch and dinner but I'll give you some examples.
The first thing I want to emphasize is that eating a meal is just that...a meal and not a feast. You shouldn't eat until you feel stuffed. When you're eating and you no longer feel hunger then you're done eating. now, keeping that in mind, allow yourself room to indulge once in a while. If you adhere to a strict no-nonsense diet without ever indulging then you'll innevitably lose patience and give up all together.

Sample Lunch: Again, start with 1 cup of steamed broccoli...
1) roasted turkey sandwich with 1tablespoon of mayonaise, a slice of cheddar cheese, a handful of plain potato chips and 2 16oz. glasses of water.
2) 1/2 can of dry tuna, 1 tablespoon of mustard, pepper, granulated garlic on a piece of dry toast, 1/2 cup cottage cheese. 2 16oz. glasses of water.
3) Wendy's 99 cent double stack, value fries and 2 16oz. glasses of water

Sample dinner: Yes, more broccoli, steamed...
1) Broiled or grilled sirloin steak (3-6 oz.) or boneless, skinless chicken breast seasoned with granulated garlic, pepper and a dash of salt. Green salad (no iceburg as it has no nutritional value, try romaine!) with low fat dressing.
2) Tilapia fish fillet marinated in white wine with granulated garlic, pepper, paprika and lemon juice baked in oven. Steamed veggies, 1 cup wild rice pilaf. Green salad with low fat dressing.
3) Grilled or baked pork tenderloin seasoned with pepper or low sodium marinade (A serving is about the size of a deck of playing cards), steamed veggies. Green salad with low fat dressing.

Desert: A scoop of ice cream or sherbet or a small brownie or 2 regular sized cookies.

Last advice on eating: Try to make sure you're done eating by 7pm. or at the least 2 hours before you go to bed. Drink water with every meal. After 2-3 weeks you can have a can of diet soda once a day but you should plan on abandoning regular soda all together. If you pay attention you'll be amazed at how many empty calories a day you are drinking in soda, milk, juice, and other beverages. Not to mention the amount of sodium you're drinking.

Exercise:

My routine:
Monday: Cardio, 1 hour in the morning, 2 hours of Kung Fu in the evening.
Tuesday: Weight training, chest, triceps, abs. Cardio: 1 hour Kung Fu.
Wednesday: Weight training, back, biceps. Cardio: 1 hour Kung Fu.
Thursday: Weight training, shoulders, traps, abs. Cardio: 1 hour Kung Fu & 1 hour Tai Chi.
Friday: Weight training, legs, glutes, calves.
Saturday: Cardio 1 1/2 hours Kung Fu.
Sunday: Rest.

Weight Lifting Routines:

Chest:
Flat bench press (4 sets of 10 repetitions), Incline bench (4 sets of 10 repetitions), Decline bench (4 sets of 10 repetitions).

Triceps:
Tricep extentions lying on back(4 sets of 10 reps), standing tricep extentions (4 sets of 10 reps), Dips (2 sets of 25 reps)

Abs:
Decline crunches (set bench to decline position and have partner hold legs so when you lie back your head is below your feet.) crunch upright straight for 25 reps), Decline twist crunches (25 reps on each side: Sit up and twist elbow to opposite knee for a single rep on one side), Leg raises lying flat on back (15 reps on each leg), Side crunches (2 sets of 10 reps on each side).

Back:
Reverse back extentions (2 sets of 20 reps straight + 2 sets of 20 reps with lateral twists)
Kneeling Saws, kneel on one knee with dumbell in one hand and lower then raise like you were sawing a board (4 sets of 15 reps on each side)
Lateral pulls, lie on bench with weight in both hands and elbows bent at 90 degree angle then lower hands back behind head and pull the weight back over you towards chest without straightening arms (4 sets of 15 reps)

Biceps:
Standing curls (2 sets of 10 reps, pause holding bar with arms locked at 90 degree angle for 10 seconds then 5 more reps)
Preacher curls (4 sets of 10 reps)
Standing extended curls (same as standing curls but with hands further apart so at top of curl elbows are close to body than hands to help create bicep "peaks")

Shoulders:
Military press (4 sets of 10 reps)
Dumbell presses (4 sets of 10 reps, change hand position with each set so palms face towards you for a set then towards the front for a set and repeat)
Plate lifts (Sit upright holding weight plate with both hands, raise overhead without bending elbows and back down = 1 rep: 4 sets of 10 reps)
Standing butterflys (4 sets of 15 reps)

Traps:
Shoulder shrugs (4 sets holding dumbells: 1 set straight up, 1 set backwards shoulder roll, 1 set forward shoulder roll, last set straight again)

Legs/Glutes:
Squats (4 sets of 10 reps)
Lunges (4 sets of 10 reps holding dumbells)
Reverse leg curls (2 sets of 10 reps)
Leg extentions (4 sets of 10 reps)

Calves:
Standing calf raises (4 sets of 50 reps with weights)
Sitting calf raises (4 sets of 50 reps)

Okay so that's everything. Find your reasons for getting into better shape, write them down and read them everyday. Keep your motivations at the front of your mind. Remember, the meals I wrote down are just a sample. Make sure to measure out your portions to meet your daily caloric goals and adjust when you reach goals. If I can offer any more advice, answer questions or whatnot just hit me up on facebook!