fitness

Emily Starton

Forum Lieutenant
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Is it possible to be fit in 2 weeks at home? weighing 196 lbs and 155 cm tall. Feeling tired all day and awake at night. What should I do?
 

DrParasite

The fire extinguisher is not just for show
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in 2 weeks? not likely, however, you can definitely start in two weeks.


The biggest thing to remember is getting fit is a marathon, not a sprint. eating well, getting enough sleep, exercising, these are all important, however, 2 weeks is like a crash diet; you might lose some lbs, but if you don't keep it up, you will gain it all back.

do you own a smartphone? get a free pedometer app. they are FREE. set a goal for yourself (mine is 6000 steps). I also try to go for walks every day (I usually take my son, we go about 2 miles sunlight permitting) on the trail, or if it's getting dark, I stay on the streets in my neighborhood.

getting fit requires a combination of resistance training, cardiac exercise, and dietary input. and remember, it's not a sprint, it's a marathon.
 

Carlos Danger

Forum Deputy Chief
Premium Member
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Is it possible to be fit in 2 weeks at home? weighing 196 lbs and 155 cm tall. Feeling tired all day and awake at night. What should I do?

I think any young, healthy person can lose a few pounds of fat (and maybe 8-10 pounds total; most of it being water) and increase their metabolic and cardiorespiratory efficiency in just 8 or 10 workouts and a couple weeks of strict dieting. It's not going to be a dramatic difference in performance or appearance but yes, you will be a little fitter and you will feel better and you'll probably sleep better. Increases in muscle density and strength are important to pursue rather than just "losing weight", but take more time because there is no way to rush recovery from a training stimulus that is sufficiently stressful to cause structural changes in your skeletal muscle tissue and lean connective tissue. Well there are ways, but we probably aren't allowed to discuss them here, and they still wouldn't do much for you in just two weeks.

Rather than trying to "get fit in two weeks", it's much better to make permanent changes to your lifestyle that will result in gradual but permanent changes to your fitness level. Sounds like tired, old advice but it's true. Any balls-to-the-wall approach that results in dramatic improvements in just a few weeks is likely to be unsustainable over the long term, meaning you'll eventually slip back into your normal habits and the improvements won't last. It took a lot longer than a few weeks to get overweight and out of shape; it's going to take time to reverse it, too. But you can start moving in the right direction, the better.

There's so much noise and conflicting advice and outright misinformation surrounding diet and exercise that it's overwhelming. The upside is that along with all the confusion comes a lot of good options. It takes time to educate yourself and figure out what you are interested in and what works for you.

A good start is just walking and making some dietary changes. Anyone can walk for 30-60 minutes 3-5 times a week, and it'll make a bigger difference than you think. And there are very few of us who wouldn't benefit from reducing our calorie intake and increasing our lean protein and water consumption. Replace some of what you currently eat with fruits and veggies and drink more water and you'll probably feel better in a few days. Skipping meals a few times a week is a good exercise in self-discipline and can help trim some calories and can be very good for your health and weight loss if you have insulin sensitivity (pre-diabetes) issues.

Another thing to think about if you always feel tired during the day and have a BMI well over 30 (yours is 37, based on the numbers you gave) is getting tested for obstructive sleep apnea. It's an under-appreciated and under-diagnosed condition that is very bad for your health in the long-term and can usually be treated very successfully. Many people will tell you that getting a CPAP (after being diagnosed with OSA) was one of the best things that ever happened to them. Something to talk to your doctor about.
 
Last edited:

pregnancywhine

Forum Crew Member
42
4
8
for only 2 weeks? not sure if you can but if you extend it or making it your regular daily routine, you will gonna be fit as you wish!
 
OP
OP
E

Emily Starton

Forum Lieutenant
141
10
18
in 2 weeks? not likely, however, you can definitely start in two weeks.


The biggest thing to remember is getting fit is a marathon, not a sprint. eating well, getting enough sleep, exercising, these are all important, however, 2 weeks is like a crash diet; you might lose some lbs, but if you don't keep it up, you will gain it all back.

do you own a smartphone? get a free pedometer app. they are FREE. set a goal for yourself (mine is 6000 steps). I also try to go for walks every day (I usually take my son, we go about 2 miles sunlight permitting) on the trail, or if it's getting dark, I stay on the streets in my neighborhood.

getting fit requires a combination of resistance training, cardiac exercise, and dietary input. and remember, it's not a sprint, it's a marathon.

Thanks for answering my question DrParasite, Your advice is very helpful. Thank you for thinking of me.
 
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