Hello. I'm 17. 5'8'' and 185 pounds. I went to the doctors today for a check up type thing and he said that I needed to lose some weight. I dont really like fruits or vegetables. Certain textures with foods make me want to gag. My mom and I went to the grocery store and bought some fruit for me to try. I tried grapes, watermelon, melon, pears and cantaloupe. I dont like any of them. I normally eat late a night so I'm going to try and not eat after 6. He also said that I need to cut down on caffeine and salts. So no more pop for me. I'm not going to have any more fast food. I'm really looking for some advice on what type of exercise I should do. I have a dog I could walk, but for how long? I also have a bike and a treadmill I could use. I just dont know how long I should do these activities for and how many times a week. I would love to lose atleast 30-40 pounds. Please help.

A good way to start is to:

1. Drink water, NOTHING but water. And you need to drink alot of it.

2. Eat often, about every 3 hours, but reasonable portions. 5-7 meals per day. Such as granola bar as snack, or fruit cup. It raises your metabolism and helps you burn calories

3. NEVER SKIP A MEAL!

4. Eat good fiber and protein. You can get these as supplements if you dont feel like you're getting enough in your daily diet

5. Weight training and cardio is a great way to lose fat. IF you have access to a gym, lifting weights is a good way to increase muscle mass and burn calories. Cardio is also a great way to condition yourself, however if you do not have access to a gym, dont worry, cardio is easy to build into your every day life. Park further away from stores to make yourself walk. Take your dog out for a 30min walk every day. Go running! run as far as you can and then gradually increase distance.

Run on the treadmill and ride the bike as often as you can without wearing yourself out. Dont run at a steady pace..you need to sprint, walk, speedwalk and jog to keep your heartrate going up and down. These are just a few ways to help you lose the fat. Remember, weightloss takes some time, dont expect results too soon or it'll discourage you, and you'll have a much greater chance to give up

1.- Do some light exercise, walk for at least half an hour every day. Then slowly increase the time. After a few weeks, try jogging, or maybe doing some bike or treadmill.
2.- Try to change the amount of food on every meal: Have a very satisfying breakfast, a reasonable meal, and a very light dinner. Plus, you need 2 extra meals, one at mid morning, and one at mid afternoon, you could try some fruit, even some low-carb bars. You should be eating every four hours, so you won't get cravings.
3.- Weigh yourself, divide that in half, and that is the amount in ounces of water that you should be drinking everyday.
4.- Don't weigh yourself everyday! you won't notice big changes from one day to another, that will only discourage you. Try weighing yourself every week. Try to do it always at the same time of day, try to wear the same clothes every time, that way you'll notice the change even if it's minimum.

Hope this helps.

First of all I think it's important for you to think about your health as your 1st priority. Think about what the fast foods, pre-packaged foods, preservatives, additives etc and what they ultimately do to your body. I think it's important to understand that un-natural or artificial foods are really not meant to for our bodies.
You are still young and this is the best time to establish a healthy life and good eating patterns.

It can be hard to adjust to a healthy eating pattern when your taste buds have adapted to sugary and salty tastes, but with with a little persistence and reserach you will find ways to make vegetables taste nice!....it's all a matter of experimentation. Keep trying new foods, try putting vegetables into a stir fry (use virgin olive oil SPRAY for cooking).

I'm sure you will find some fruits that you would like....if you like sweeter fruits try oranges, peaches, nectarines, mangoes, grapes and pineapple. Just persist until you find some that you like. (I'm Australian, so I'm not sure if all those fruits are named the same in USA - so you might want to double check them if you don't know what they are :-)

As for exercise, your dog will love the walks. Perhaps try with a 30minute walk to get you started. Do you have a local park that you can take your dog to? Or maybe you could change your route every day and alternate the type of workout you will get. For example, one day you could do a fast 30minute walk on flat ground, then Day 2 you could try to include some hills and so on.
The best thing for now, is to just GET STARTED...worry about increasing the intensity later.
If it's raining outside, make use of the indoor exercise equipment that you have and start with 20-30minutes.
Find exercise that you will enjoy beacuse you will be more likely to stick with it :-)

It would be good if you bought a 'Pedometer'....it's a little calculator that you attach to your belt, pants or skirt and it counts the number of steps that you make in a day. The general rule is to try to get 10,000 steps per day.
It's a great tool to figure out how much physical movement you really do make every day and it will make you more conscious of your inactivity.

You should try and view this as a lifestyle change, NOT a diet. The healthy foods and exercise will make you feel better, will help you lose weight and give you more energy. You will be much happier too.

I have been through the same process. I got caught up in calories and exercise and stupid diets. But at the end of the day it's about a healthy lifestyle, regular exercise, good food and enjoying life.....you need to make this a life goal, not just a short term goal because that won't work, focus on how you need to change your life....you don't need to give up the things you enjoy - just be sure to limit them! If you love chocolate cake, it doesn't mean that you have to give it up for good - allow yourself a small slice every month or every 2 weeks or so.....just be aware of what you put into your system and how it will affect you.

As for soft drinks (I think you may call this "pop") - there is nothing good in them - you are better off drinking 100% juices in small quantities! Water should be your new best friend :-)

I wish you all the best, feel free to respond or ask any questions, i'd be happy to offer you some support - we all need it :-)

Everyone has given some AMAZING advice, so there's plenty for you to think about already

You mentioned you don't like fruit. Have you tried frozen grapes? They taste just like sweets and are fantastic if you're looking for a "healthy" sugar-fix.

Good luck!

The exercise advice you have been given above is GREAT!

I want to re-iterate something that another poster said

"At the end of the day it's about a healthy lifestyle, regular exercise, good food and enjoying life.....you need to make this a life goal, not just a short term goal because that won't work, focus on how you need to change your life"

I also want to add that it's not just about losing weight. Much of what we put into our bodies have been linked to disease, fatigue, aches and pains etc... As you continue to experiment with new foods, think about this as an opportunity to live a more energized, fun and LONG life!

Your mind will be clearer and you will function at a higher level than many people around you as you reach for education, career and life goals.

I wish you all the best!