Can anybody help?

Hey guys,

I feel really stupid posting this thread on FerrariChat. I am just hoping for any insight or help you can provide. First let me say that im 15, and only a Freshman in High School. I have always been a "bigger" kid since I was little. My mom used to tell me I was just "big boned." As I have gotten older, my weight has always been an issue. I can remember being 10 or 11 and trying to diet and lose weight. I've gotten so self-consious that I havent gone swimming in 2 or 3 years. I think I am building some kind of depression because I hate my body so much. The activity portion has never been a problem. I play football and baseball. I recently purchased NO-Explode from GNC. Alot of my buddies use it before football season rolls around. Bad idea? I also run daily. I love to work out, and work out almost every night. I am 5'7" and 180 pounds. My family and freinds dont see how I weigh that much. I feel like a complete idiot when I have to say I weigh 180 pounds at 15.

My stomach is the thing I want to get rid of. I have no other problems then my stomach and chest. I bench-press and still my chest is not fully-toned. I hate how "wide" my body is. I have decided to cut pop out of my diet. I only drink Diet or Caffiene-Free to begin with though. I also decided to stop the fast-food. I think that was a major problem as I am always running between sports and school and need a meal on the go.

Is there any other advice you guys can give me? How do I get rid of my stomach. My parent tell me I'm only 15, and still growing. And that I shouldnt worry untill I'm done growing. My body just makes me depressed. I posted in this section before and got great help. I know you guys know your stuff. Once again, any help or advice is greatly appreciated.

Many thanks,
Chris

P.S. I'm embarassed to post pictures of myself on FChat, but I know some of you can only assess with photo's. Thanks again.
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Dude

2 months of weight lifting and eating healthy and you will be in top shape. You arent that far away.

There are a couple threads here already that have great dieting/weight lifting information. Look this them.

 

Thanks alot Jerry. I have been lifting this whole year pretty religiously. The diet is where I need to work. I(like many others)would love to be skinny. I dont understand how my body is so "wide" I guess you could say. Thanks for the insight on the threads, I will definatley check them out.

Thanks again,
Chris

 

First of all, when I read your post the pictures you posted were not what I expected. You really have no reason to be embarassed. If you want to lose some weight it sounds like your diet is really what you need to work on since you seem to exercise a whole bunch.

 

Dude - 100's of the guys I see at our local pool are bigger than you; even ones half your age (scary, yes!). Any ha-ha's in there, a sense of humor? You're sounding awfully depressed - any counsellor's you can talk to? Life's not that dark, and it's not all about 10-20lbs you want to get rid of. I'm guessing there's more going on.

Weight lifting is good - cardio will help burn more calories as well; running, biking, swimming )), whatever. Healthy lungs and heart will do more for your health than a big chest. Calories in < calories burned = weight loss. Slow and steady with a lifestyle change, not all-out eh?

Personally, I don't trust the GNC folks, they want to sell as much stuff as possible. and taking 'stuff' at 15, scares the heck out of me. That's when your brain's growing and your body's figuring out what it wants to do. A professional coach or doctor's advice is better than other teenager's habits, or even 99% of the Fchat'ers advice, imo.

 

Chris
When I was 15-16, I was about 225 @ 5'8", grew to 6'2" in about 14 months, and droped to 173 lbs. Running, and eating less is how I did it then. I'd avoid most supplements; they don't have to pass FDA in the same way real drugs do. I've heard nightmare stories how some/ many of the GNC products will kick your organs in the proverbial ass; with people ending up in the hospital.

I'm down about 40 down now (from 284) after my long 'inactivity' period. It's not as fast as when I was your age. Speed isn't the big concern for me, as much as just keeping it off, and constantly getting better.

One thing that has popped up in a recent thread was asking about gaining muscle vs. losing weight. Basically, its very tough to do both beyond a certain point of general fitness... luckily, you are hitting the off-season where you can hit your goals. Don't set your goals too high either, or you will always be disappointed. Make benchmarks to peg along the way.

You are still growing, and maintaining your weight may be more important than simply losing the weight... which is tough to gauge (unless your family are generally around your current height.)

I'd worry far less about your self image. Especially in a state like ours where so many are very morbidly obese. As far as I've read, there is no golden secret to targeting fatty areas short of liposuction LOL.

 

Don't feel ashamed. You could be so much worse off.

A good friend of mine was exactly the same body type as you growing up. He was always the short, pudgy kid. End of junior year of high school he started running and he would come to my house to lift weights. By the time we graduated he had lost 20 some-odd pounds and had a new outlook on life. He worked very hard at it though. Very hard.

Cutting out the soft drinks is the best thing you could do to start with. You don't need them, and after a few weeks you'll find you don't miss them at all. Drink water, lots of it. And Orange Juice to get your Vitamin C.

Ask your parents to buy boneless/skinless chicken breasts for you to eat at lunch. And see if your mom or whomever cooks will cook healthier meals and salads. At your age though, I would worry more about just watching your intake more than anything. But you do need Calories and carbs since you play sports. I would personally lay off the supplements at your age. Just cuz you football buddies take it doesn't mean you do. Lean meats and fish are where you need to be getting your protein from.

Here's a perspective from the other side; being too skinny. I've always had a insanely high metabolism. When I graduated high school I was 5'10" and my weight fluctuated between 110-120lbs. It always bothered me. Plus I am a small frame. When I graduated college I had only gained around 15lbs.

I finally got myself to change my diet and get my ass in the gym about a year and a half outta college. I'm roughly around 160lbs. All from eating right and hitting the gym at least 3 days a week. I still have a little fat in my belly to get rid of, but I'm happy with my results thus far.

You have the want so get focused and do it. Read around here and check out bodybuilding.com. They have an area dedicated to teens with a lot of good reading. Read and decifer what's fact and what's myth. And if your buddies give you hell, ignore them and keep doing what have your mind set on.

 

Wow. I cant thank you enough for the replies(Especially my fellow MI FChatter Issac ) I really appreciate you guys taking the time out of your busy lives to help. I agree that intake is what I really need to watch. I watch some of my buddies who used to be overweight and once they hit they're growth spurt's, they are skinny as rails. I just wish that would happen with me. My weight would not be this big of a problem if I didnt play sports. I have played fullback for the last 6 years, that is why I love football. Im always worried that I may get moved to "the line." I hate the line. Haha But honestly, thanks for all the replies. Im always open to more advice and feedback.

Thanks agian,
Chris

 

If you're excersing as much as you say you are, it's going to be all about your diet. 100%. Clean it up and watch the pounds go away.

 

Try and lighten up that attitude a bit, from the pics you're nowhere near what your perceiving yourself as. Throw in some cardio with the lifting. Just 2-3 miles of running 3-4 times a week and see how that works for ya. If you're not seeing some results, work on adjusting the diet a bit. Don't cut the calories too low since that's just as bad as eating too many calories, and since you're only 15 your mom is right you're still growing and need the energy. Nothing is going to happen over night, give the new routine/diet a few months and try not to lose the weight too quickly. Who knows how your body will change over the next thee years while you're still in high school, I was 220 lbs when I started senior year, right now I'm hovering between 160-165 so don't be too hard on yourself.

 

Oh gods.....

Ok first off...

CLEAN UP THAT DAMN ROOM!!! Sheeze!!!

Secound. Dont sweat it. I looked like that at 15. just start eating right and I would say start jogging till you can do 3 miles a day. At 15 you do not want to do heavy weight training or any of that stuff as you are still growing and your muscles are still developing. If say you did steroids right now, you would freeze your height and that would suck.

Just start running and maybe some sit ups and you will be fine.

 

Agree 100%; also, you are 15 freaking years old. Your hormones have yet to really start production, so you might look a little soft for awhile. Keep up the hard work and physical exercise and you will be positioned very well to live a healthy lifestyle in the years to come. (like 18-21)

And like everyone else said, dude, you look good - you are not obese or "fat", just young. Keep your head up and stay positive. I am 6'4"; from 15 years old until I was about 20-21, I was skinny. I swam in high school and I weighed 185 lbs, 4% body fat. Almost no muscle mass, just a big, gangly frame. I was not happy with myself! Don't sweat it, your body will change. (I just turned 24)

 

Yep!

And at 15... try to not jack off so much. Every time you "feel the urge," go run a mile or so and it will go away.

That will do wonders for reducing your stomach. Seriously!

 

+1, and don't be taking any of those supplements and other crap your body doesn't need. Drink lots of water, cut out the fast food and stay active and watch it melt off of you. You're too young to be lifting weights or anything like that, keep playing sport or invest in a bike and start riding - thats the best way to get rid of any midsection IMO.

BTW, you have nothing at all to be ashamed of. As it is you are in better shape than most kids out there. Nobody is fully developed at 15, and you shouldn't expect to be.

Goodluck!

 

Thanks for all the replies so far. I think the running will be my best bet, along with watching the intake. I think I'll return the NO-Explode. My parents are both 6'0", I would sure hope I'll be somewhere in that range. I just don't understand how some of the kids in my grade look fully developed. I have friends with full-blown 6-packs. My buddy Anthony is 15 and bench-presses 320. The kid is a monster. I don't understand how some of these kids are so ripped at 15. Anyways, I really appreciate the kind words and help(and your never-ending wit DrStrangLove )

Thanks,
Chris

 

Don't base your development on others. You never know what they may be using, and at your age, nobody is anywhere near the same arena of development. The kind of muscle training that is "ok" are the aerobic kind. EG push ups, sit ups... and pretty much the entire range of calisthenics. Keeping your heart elevated for 30-50 minutes a day 5 days a week, and that not only works while younger, but any time in your life

 

Be realistic Dr. S. Running will not make your chub go away. You move wrong and your spring in to action. lmao! Hell, that still happens now.

Definitely give up the supps.

I wouldn't say he shouldn't be lifting weights. Besides he can't not, it's part of football or any other sports in high school. He can't get stronger just by practicing and playing.

Keep lifting and do cardio you'll be fine. With your diet in check and those 2-a-days (if you have them) you should see results fairly quickly. You have the benefit of being a guy. We can lose weight far faster than women.

 

What you put in your body (food/drink) makes a lot more difference than what you do with your body (exercise).

Return the supplements.

Don't measure yourself by using others as the yard stick. Everyone's body is different and at your age bodies are in various stages of development. Even once you reach maturity, you shouldn't measure your results by looking at others. Focus on developing your healthy body.

Enjoy being 15 for a while. Creating all of this stress is putting you down a dangerous path that will haunt you for life. Relax a bit.

 

15 is too early to worry about tone and weight and such, your body is changing so much that trying to be lean and "not as wide" (as you stated) is probably going to be impossible or like hitting a moving target.

You're definitely not fat... and as others said, forget the supplements and such - not worth it, not helpful, probably not healthy.

One thing you said was you hated how wide you are. I am not sure if you mean in the belly or in general, but dude, you do not want to be one of those slim guys. I worked out with a group of friends pretty heavily from about 16yo until maybe 24. I am naturally pretty muscular and with some coaxing from weight lifting, I got huge pretty quickly.... the one feature I had in abundance was back muscles. My deltoids and traps are just big... which means I have a very wide frame. I'm 6'3" ~230lbs and I wear 2XLT shirts. I used to barely work out my back because it was already pretty developed and didn't really need it or else would look unproportional to the rest.

So, if you are wide - that is something to be proud of! I used to feel uncomfortable about it but guys at the gym used to get frankly jealous/po'ed about how they worked so hard to be half my size.

The # on the scale means nothing... if you are 5'7" @ 180lbs, if means you've got a pretty solid amount of muscle. NOTHING to be ashamed about at ALL.

Once you mature and develop, if you keep working out, you will be a monster

 

Thanks for all the replies guys. Really appreciate the time and advice.

Mike, you got exactley what I was trying to say. I feel as if the rest of my body is pretty muscular aside from my stomach and chest. I was working out 3 times a week after school with ex Detroit Lion Cory Schlesinger who is now a teacher at my school. I have never experienced that kind of work-out in my life. He makes workouts both tough and fun. He shows us workouts that he used to do at the NFL Combine, etc. Since I made my school's baseball team, I havent been to workouts in months. I was going pretty heavily from November to March. And now I cant since the workouts are right after school, and so are my baseball practice's. I work out in my basement every night though(Bench, squats, free-weights) My goal is to go into 2-A-Days in August and to be down a few pounds and with more muscle. My stomach just doesnt seem to want to go away!

Once again, thanks for all the help and advice guys. You have been a tremendous help.
Chris

 

Hey Chris glad your getting some good advise here. Unfortunately you are still so young that your body metabolism will probably change in a few years to come and you will find your body will build muscle allot faster and you will tonne quicker. Unfortunately there is no easy way to loose the stomach bulge, but I can tell you changing your eating habits will help tremendously. Once your body has developed fat cells it is rather hard to loose them unlike muscle which is easier to loose. So if you are eating lots of carbs change your diet a bit not extreme, what works for me is eating berries(strawberries,raspberry,blueberry, blackberry etc.) at night time if I am hungry which is usually always lol. To burn off fat faster try and exercise your larger muscles i.e legs, back, chest this definitely will burn off more fat then say arms but a full routine should always be maintained. Cardio my man is the other, you must do cardio of any type, except walking this does nothing for anyone except the elderly lol.

When you weight lift to see faster results do strength training meaning minimum sets of 4 by 8 reps of what ever muscle and always increase your weight ending at your heaviest weight that you barely get 4 or 5 reps out of. But make sure someone that knows what the hell he is talking about trains you. There are tonnes of misinformed people out there so use your judgment sometimes you might know more than the Joker trying to teach you.

Good luck my man.

 

Pickup a copy of Arnold Schwarzenegger's book "The Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding". I started bodybuilding at the age of 23 to get into shape. I had let myself go and gone from my normal weight of about 125 clear up to 170 (all fat). I started working out seriously and dropped back down to 130, then over the next four years, I added about 10 lbs a year until I got up to 170 - all totally naturally, zero steroids, zero growth hormone, etc. Just eating right, working out and taking amino acids. Lots of chicken, lots of fish. Cut out the junk food.

In 4 years of hitting the gym and working out 4 days a week, about an hour or so per day - following basically what was in Arnold's book - I went from being about as in shape as you are now to having people come up and ask me if I was training for the Olympics, etc. People in the gym would stop and say "you have my dream body". I never got huge, but at 170 and 5'8, I was one of the strongest guys in the gym, even among the guys who were 200 lbs+. I could do 30 pull ups and 50+ dips, etc. Do the entire weight stack, bench nearly 250 lbs, etc, etc. Got my body fat down to less than 10% for a while. I was never huge, because I refused to take any sort of drugs, but the quality of the muscle I did have on my body was very good and very solid.

Focus and a little hard work will do amazing things. I just wish I had gotten into it at your age, instead of when I was in my early 20's. Nonetheless, it's been one of the best things I ever did in my life and even now, at the age of almost 44, I still am in great shape. Pickup that book and use free weights. In a few years, you'll be amazed. If you stick with it until you are 20, you won't be complaining about how your body looks.

Ray

 

It's so true.

As I mentioned, I'm a small frame and so my waist is pretty small. I always wished I was more broad. But as the time went on I became more accepting of the fact that things could be worse and I could have a serious weight problem instead of being skinny.

Get that diet in check and drop the sodas and chug the water and you'll reach your goals in no time. I can tell a more positive tone in your postings since the original.

 

Hey guys,

Sorry to bring this thread back to life, but I thought I would give you all an update. My diet lasted a total of two short weeks. Summer has been off to horrible start, with more stress than I would like. Instead of dealing with the stress by not eating, I ate. There's so much that's gone on, I could not possibly balance I diet. My father lost his job, my grandmother passed away, and mother they think has thyroid cancer. Completely my fault for not adhering to my diet. I have however, increased my activity. I'm doing a lot of baseball, almost every day. Football 2-A-Day's start in early August. Those are hell, but they whip me into shape. My diet lately has been terrible. I never want to see fast-food again. Honestly, I decided to kick off the new diet tomarrow. I'm not letting anything get in the way this time. I've already cleared the cupboards of junk-food and soda. I'm kind of excited to get this started. Thanks for all the support before guys, I can't tell you how much I appreciated it.

Thanks again,
Chris

 

I'm sorry to hear about all that's going on. Best to you on that.

Sometimes stuff like that happens. The fact that your activity level increased though probably helped with the lack of disciplined diet.

Don't put yourself under more stress being pissed you let your diet go. You'll fix it when your life gets back closer to normal. Work on enjoying yourself for now and making sure you're able to smile each day inspite of all that's happening in your life.