anyway to lose inches fairly quickly?

im going shopping for back to school clothes in about two or three weeks. i want to be a few inches thinner by then.. i want to learn a few ways i can accomplish this.can you help? im in a pickle lol i cant seem to stick with anything good.

Public Comments

1. Walking and doing housework is the best exercise for losing fat and ensure that your diet does not include any high calorie foods. Formulate your own weight loss plan and you will lose weight faster. More details available at http://myweight.info
2. lower your calorie intake. (but keep it at a healthy range) and exercise.
3. if u think ur beautiful the way u r why would u want to lose weight
4. If you drink only water & one glass of fat free milk a day for the next two weeks you will see an improvement. eat 6 times a day (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner & 3 small snacks.) Stay away from bread, candy & junk food as much as possible. However, dont disclude them. if you do it will cause you to crave them and binge and thats bad. the best way to lose weight is to exercise. dont think of this as a diet think of it as a change of routine. now listen very carefully... DO NOT start taking diet pills just to lose a couple inches. once you stop taking them the weight will pile back on and quickly. Good Luck to you..
5. Do Cardio. No matter how muscular your abs are that six pack isn't going to show if you cover it up with a layer of fat. Running, biking, swimming, stair climbing, jumping rope, tennis, volleyball, dancing, squash or any other activity that gets you moving and keeps you moving is a great way to burn fat. However, a cardio workout should be performed for at least 20 MINUTES to burn fat. Prior to this your body will simply run on its stored energy, which results in minimal fat loss. Cardio should always be done after your weight lifting workout. While lifting weights, you use stored, (carb) energy, thus, by doing cardio after weight training your body will have less stored energy to use and go straight into the fat storage for its energy use. The overall best way to shed fat fast is to do cardio(30 min minimum) right when you wake up. Your body will search for energy to use, when it finds nothing in your stomach, it will go directly to your fat storage for energy and the fat will burn up so fast! Lift Weights. The more muscle your body has, the more calories your body burns, even at rest. Many people are afraid of getting huge due to weight lifting. This is meaningless. You will NOT gain a lot of mass if you're not taking in a lot of calories as well. Also keep in mind that most of the huge people you see on TV or in print achieve that state by going on high protein and high carb diets. They increase their calorie intake specifically to bulk up. So the fear of bulking up should NOT be a reason to not lift weights. As a rule of thumb, the larger the muscle the more energy it will burn to sustain itself. Therefore the most effective muscle groups to work for fat loss are large muscle groups: thighs and hamstrings, the back, and the chest. You can also lift your body weight without going to a gym, through push ups, sit ups, chin ups, etc. Do Crunches. Lie on the floor (with or without a mat). Cross your arms in front of your chest. (Donot place both hands behind your head. Placing both hands behind your head can cause lower back problems in the long run as it places unnecessary stress on that part of your body from pulling on your head and neck.) Another alternative to crossing your arms in front of your chest is to lightly place your finger tips behind your ears, without pulling on your neck or ears to help raise you off the floor. Draw in your abdomen towards your spine while inhaling through your nose. Now raise your shoulders (upper torso) towards your knees, using strictly your abdominal muscles. It is very important not to lift your entire back off the floor, as this can cause back strain, and the extended movement does not help you develop six pack abs any faster. The most important part of the crunch is the initial flexing of your abs as you lift your shoulders off of the floor. As soon as you begin lifting off the floor exhale through your mouth, ending with a gasp once your shoulders are off the floor. Then pause for a second once you are at the top of the crunch and exhale the last bit of air from your diaphragm while flexing your abs. The proper breathing and flexing make all the difference. Now lower back down slowly and controlled while inhaling through your nose, just until your shoulder blades touch the ground. Do not let your head touch the ground and repeat. Do Sit Ups. Lie on the floor, feet on the floor, knees up and hands behind your head or crossed on your chest. Sit all the way up, lifting your lower back off the floor along with your shoulder blades. Lower yourself down. Repeat. Once this becomes relatively easy for you (i.e. you can do a quite a bit with ease) start adding more challenges. Find an incline bench or do these on an exercise ball. Once you "graduate" from that, do weighted sit ups. Hold a weight on your chest while you do these. As these become easier, hold heavier and heavier weights. You might also try lifting your feet off the ground while doing the sit ups or alternating the leg in the air, like pretending to pedal while sitting up. If your hands are behind your head, bring your left knee up to touch your right elbow and then your right knee to the left elbow. Do Leg Lifts. Lie on the floor, legs straight out, hands at your sides. Lift your legs straight up (not bending your knees at all) until they're at a ninety degree angle (or close). Lower your legs and repeat without letting your legs touch the floor. For more challenge there is equipment at most gyms that will allow you to raise yourself up using your arms as support and dangle your legs. You can perform leg lifts there too. If you're using this piece of equipment, you can make it easier by just raising your knees to your chest. It's more difficult to raise your legs to a horizontal position with your legs straight. This helps firm up the lower abdomen. If you're truly a monster, try doing leg lifts with a medicine ball hanging from your feet. Or hang from a pull up bar and raise your legs in front of you all the way up to the bar. Still too easy?... Do Jackknife Sit Ups. Lie down flat on the floor. Place your hands on the ground to your sides for balance; you can pick them up as you get used to the movement. Simultaneously raise your knees and torso so that your knees and face meet on an imaginary line extending from your pelvis to the ceiling. You should be able to kiss your knees at the top of the motion. Your legs will naturally fold bringing your feet towards your hips, much like a jackknife. Lie back down (i.e. "spread out") and repeat. Place a weight between your feet when you think you can handle it. What's that? More? Do V-ups. Lie on the floor, legs straight out, hands on the floor but this time extended out over your head. Simultaneously raise legs and torso. Don't bend your knees! What kind of V would it be if you bend your knees? Reach with your hands toward the raised feet. Touch your feet if possible (might require some flexibility). Relax, return to starting position and repeat. Add weight between feet to match your taste. Static Hold and Side Statics. Put your body into the push-up position but with your elbows on the floor, and you whole body flat. This position is known as the static hold position and it trains your core (including your abs) to hold the body in place which is the real purpose of your abs. Hold this position for as long as possible, but you should be aiming to start off with at least 45 seconds, while seasoned ab workers known to achieve over 20 minute static holds. To perform the side static hold roll onto one side of your body and lift into the same position as before, but this time only one arm will be on the ground with the other arm pointed straight up the air and your non-weight bearing leg resting on your bottom leg. Once again, hold this for as long as possible Train Your Oblique Muscles. It's not as important to work on your oblique muscles at first, but eventually you'll want to start working these too. These are the muscles to either side of your stomach. There are multiple ways to do this and anything that includes twisting your torso against a resistance counts. There are twisting machines at gyms, you can twist while you do sit-ups, you can do side bends, you can twist side to side with a medicine ball in hand, etc. Be aware though, that many beginners tend to have weak obliques compared to their abs (it simply isn't used as much in daily life) so go easy on the sides at first. Other stuff Since it is, literally, the center of your body there are many other tricks you can use to train your abs, and some of the other movements will more or less involve your abs. Including every abdominal exercise in existence would make this article painfully long and new methods are being developed constantly. Now that you've made up your mind about a washboard mid-section, get creative! Find new ways to crunch, bend and twist in your daily life. Some possibilities include: Use a stability ball. Do your crunches on the ball to introduce instability to your workout, which will improve your balance too. There are also lots of core exercises that can be done with a stability ball.You can also use a small bubble use for physical therapy. Duck and twist during your daily routine. Reach with your left hand to things on your right and vice versa. If you feel like turning around to face something, see if you can do it with keeping your hips in place and twisting at the waist (warning: awkward when talking to other people, use only against inanimate objects). While walking or standing, pretend that something is coming toward you and you have to duck to get out of the way. Do this as often as you are comfortable or at times when it won't look weird. You can bend forward from the hips or, if you're really into it, bend at the knees too and really "sink" out of the way. Lose Fat Lift Weights. The more muscle your body has, the more calories your body burns, even at rest. Many people are afraid of getting huge due to weight lifting. This is meaningless. You will NOT gain a lot of mass if you're not taking in a lot of calories as well. Also keep in mind that most of the huge people you see on TV or in print achieve that state by going on high protein and high carb diets. They increase their calorie intake specifically to bulk up. So the fear of bulking up should NOT be a reason to not lift weights. As a rule of thumb, the larger the muscle the more energy it will burn to sustain itself. Therefore the most effective muscle groups to work for fat loss are large muscle groups: thighs and hamstrings, the back, and the chest. You can also lift your body weight without going to a gym, through push ups, sit ups, chin ups, etc. Do Cardio. No matter how muscular your abs are that six pack isn't going to show if you cover it up with a layer of fat. Running, biking, swimming, stair climbing, jumping rope, tennis, volleyball, dancing, squash or any other activity that gets you moving and keeps you moving is a great way to burn fat. However, a cardio workout should be performed for at least 20 MINUTES to burn fat. Prior to this your body will simply run on its stored energy, which results in minimal fat loss. Cardio should always be done after your weight lifting workout. While lifting weights, you use stored, (carb) energy, thus, by doing cardio after weight training your body will have less stored energy to use and go straight into the fat storage for its energy use. The overall best way to shed fat fast is to do cardio(30 min minimum) right when you wake up. Your body will search for energy to use, when it finds nothing in your stomach, it will go directly to your fat storage for energy and the fat will burn up so fast! Diet TipsKeep Metabolism Steady. Eating one small meal (such as a potato, a salad, etc.) every three hours that you are awake will not speed up your metabolism, rather, it will keep it going. Your metabolism goes and slows with your food intake and eating something small every three hours will keep that metabolism burning calories and will help you lose weight. Eat Smaller Dinners. Cut down on the size of your dinner. If you're hungry, snack on fruits or other healthy, low calorie snacks. Large dinners tend to hurt a fat loss process because most people aren't very active after dinner. This is the basis for advice along the lines of "don't eat anything within X hours before going to bed". The claim that your entire dinner is stored as fat isn't entirely true (the process is more complicated than that) but the fact you don't move after dinner is enough to hurt your cause. You can offset this by eating a larger lunch or snacking healthily before dinner. Fresh fruits or vegetables are excellent choices for curbing appetite not to mention other health benefits. A handful of nuts might do the same. Drink a large glass of water before sitting at the table. Eat More Fiber. Most people don't get enough fiber. The recommended amount is actually not that much if you eat a healthy diet. "Fiber foods" include whole grains, fruits and vegetables, and nuts and seeds. Other options are fiber supplements. Eat Breakfast. Many people skip breakfast because they don't have time for it. Keep this in mind: You don't have time to skip breakfast, it's simply too valuable to skip. The fact that skipping breakfast messes up your concentration and other mental functions is beyond the scope of this article. The harm of skipping breakfast from a weight loss perspective is it makes you eat a huge lunch since your body hasn't had anything in the past 12 (or more) hours. When you eat a huge lunch you get that after meal drowsiness so now you're both unproductive and inactive. Cereals don't take much time to prepare and consume, and most of them are very healthy nowadays. If you are extremely pressed for time, consider grabbing a box of breakfast bars or a smoothie and throwing one in your bag when you leave for work or school. Some breakfast bars out there are also excellent sources of fiber. Eat Smaller Meals More Frequently. This helps raise your metabolism too. It's not easy to do though since it's a relatively big change to most people's routines. But it doesn't have to be a full blown meal, simply eat often but less. A jar of nuts in the office will do just fine, grab a handful when you feel like it. Most fruits can last for a couple days without refrigeration, and if you have a refrigerator at the office, make use of it. Drink More Water Everyday. Many places suggest 8 cups (2 L) of water a day. It sounds like an absurd amount of water, but actually, you can drink tea without sugar to make up some of the quota. In fact tea, especially green tea, rev up your "metabolism" (actually cause a temporary increase in calories burned). For fat loss purposes, it is important to remind yourself that thirst is a much weaker stimuli than hunger. If you consistantly feel hungry after meals, don't immediately think that you need to eat more. You may simply be thirsty! Needless to say there are many benefits of water. 69% of your body is made of it! Source(s): Lift Weights. The more muscle your body has, the more calories your body burns, even at rest. Many people are afraid of getting huge due to weight lifting. This is meaningless. You will NOT gain a lot of mass if you're not taking in a lot of calories as well. Also keep in mind that most of the huge people you see on TV or in print achieve that state by going on high protein and high carb diets. They increase their calorie intake specifically to bulk up. So the fear of bulking up should NOT be a reason to not lift weights. As a rule of thumb, the larger the muscle the more energy it will burn to sustain itself. Therefore the most effective muscle groups to work for fat loss are large muscle groups: thighs and hamstrings, the back, and the chest. You can also lift your body weight without going to a gym, through push ups, sit ups, chin ups, etc. So, basically eat a lot of carbs or protien. This will also help you to loose weight if you need it. Don't lift big weights and do squats etc they will stunt your growth as they effect the epidermis(?) in your lower back that regulates your growth. Dumbells are fine though. Chest Dumbell Exercises Flat Dumbell Press Works the pectorals, triceps and the anterior deltoid (front of shoulder). 1. Lying flat on a bench, hold the weights directly above your chest, arms extended and palms facing towards your feet. 2. Lower the weights to your chest under control. 3. Press the dumbells back up to the starting position and repeat. 4. Avoid locking your elbows. This keeps the tension in your pectoral muscles and prevents joint damage. Incline Dumbell Press A variation of the flat press, this exercise works the upper pectorals, triceps and the anterior deltoid. 1. Adjust the bench to an incline of 30 to 45 degrees. 2. Perform a dumbell press as described above. Flat Flies 1. Lying flat on a bench, hold the weights directly above your chest. Palms facing towards each other. 2. Bend your elbows slightly and maintain this flexion for the rest of the exercise. 3. Open your arms in an arc lowering the weights. Your elbows should remain 'locked' in a slightly bent position. Imagine opening your arms to give someone a hug and you won't go far wrong! 4. When your upper arms are parallel to the floor, use the same movement to return the weights to the starting position and repeat. Incline Flies 1. Adjust the bench to an incline of 30 to 45 degrees. 2. Perform the exercise described above. Shoulder Dumbell Exercises Seated Shoulder Press Works all 3 heads of the deltoid (shoulder) muscle. 1. Sit upright on the end of the bench with the dumbells extended directly above your head. Make sure your back is not rounded. Adjust the bench so it forms an upright chair to support your back if necessary. 2. Lower the weights slowly and under control to your shoulders. 3. When your arms are bent to 90 degrees, press the dumbells back up without locking your elbows and repeat. Lateral Raises Most dumbell exercises are superior to the machine equivelent. This one is no exception. Out of all the dumbell exercises described this is also the one that is invariably performed badly. If you keep good form you cannot lift a heavy weight. 1. Stand upright, knees slightly bent and shoulder width apart, holding the dumbells at your sides. 2. Bend you elbows slightly and raise the dumbells out to the side. Keep you elbows slightly bent as you do this. 3. When your arms are parallel to the floor, slowly lower the weights back down and repeat. 4. If you catch yourself arching your back, dipping your knees or bringing your shoulders back use a lighter weight. Reverse Flies Works the posterior (rear) deltoid. The exercise is performed as its name suggests. It's simply a chest fly in reverse. 1. Sit on the edge of a bench, feet flat on the floor and knees bent at right angles. Bend right over so your chest is almost resting on your thighs. 2. Hold 2 dumbells next to your feet and bend your arms slightly. Open your arms out in an arc keeping your elbows bent. 3. When your arms are parallel to the floor slowly lower the weights back to the ground with the same motion. 4. You can and should only use a light weight for this exercise. If you find it places too much strain on your lower back try this variation... Adjust the bench as though you are about to perform an incline dumbell press. Lie face down and let your arms hang down so your knuckles brush the floor. From here perform the movement described above. Front Raises Isolates the anterior (front) deltoids. 1. Stand upright, knees slightly bent and shoulder width apart. Hold the dumbells at against your thighs. Your palms should be towards your body. 2. Starting with your weaker side and keeping your arm straight, raise the weight directly in front of you. 3. When your arm is parallel to the ground lower the weight slowly back to the starting position. Repeat with the other arm. 4. Avoid the tendency to arch your lower back on the last few repetitions. You will be able to handle more weight on the concentric phase (lifting the weight up) of this exercise. Make sure you can lower (eccentric phase) the dumbell under control before you progress to a higher weight ------------------------------... Back Dumbell Exercises Dead Lifts Works the lower back and hamstrings. Be very careful with this exercise. If you have a history of back pain leave this one alone. 1. Stand upright, feet shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent. Hold 2 dumbells against your thighs. 2. Use your lower back to lower the weights down your leg. Your back must remain flat, the lower back arched inwards slightly. Do not round it. Keep your head up, right throughout the movement. 3. Only lower the weights as far as is comfortable even if that's only as far as your knees. 4. Stand upright using your lower back, maintaining a flat back and bent knees and keeping your head up. Single Arm Row 1. Stand upright with the bench next to your left leg. Bend your left leg and rest it on the bench. Bend from your lower back and support yourself by placing your left hand on the bench. Your upper body should be parallel to the ground. 2. Hold the weight in your right hand and let it hang down so it's just off the floor. Your palm should be facing towards the bench. 3. Keeping your elbow tucked into your side raise the weight up to your midsection. 4. Slowly lower the weight to the start position and repeat. After the desired number of repetitions repeat for the other arm. Lying Bent Over Row This is the same movement as the single arm row except you can work both arms at once whilst supporting your back. 1. Set the bench to a 30-45 degree incline. 2. Lie face down. Holding 2 dumbells let your arms hang down so your knuckles brush the floor. Your palms should be facing towards your feet. 3. Pull the dumbells up towards your chest and to the sides of the bench. 4. Slowly lower the weights back down and repeat. ------------------------------... Trapezius Dumbell Exercises Upright Row 1. Stand upright, feet shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent. Hold 2 dumbells against your thighs. 2. Keeping the weights close to your body, raise the dumbells up to your chin. 3. Hold for a count of 2 and slowly lower to the start position and repeat. Shrugs 1. Stand upright, feet shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent. Hold 2 dumbells against your thighs. 2. Keeping your arms straight 'shrug' your shoulders as high as they will go and hold for a count of 2. 3. Relax and repeat. 4. Do not roll your shoulders backwards as you shrug up. This can cause damage to your rotator cuff muscles over time. ------------------------------... Biceps Dumbell Exercises Decline Seated Bicep Curls 1. Adjust the bench to a 45 degree incline. 2. In this 'declined' seated position hold a dumbell in either hand at your sides. Your arms should be fully extended. 3. Keep your elbows close to your body and curl the weight up. 4. Slowly lower the weight and repeat. Hammer curls 1. Stand upright with a dumbell in either hand at your sides. 2. Turn your palms inward so they are facing your body. Your palms should be facingeach other right throughout the exercise. 3. Curl the weights up slowly keeping your elbows locked at your sides. There should be no movement from shoulder. 4. You can perform this exercise one or two arms at a time. Preacher Curls 1. Set the bench so the back rest is at approximately 45 degrees. 2. Stand behind the bench. Holding a dumbell rest the back of your upper arm on the back rest, your arm fully extended. 3. Keeping the back of your upper arm firmly against the back rest curl the weight up towards your face. 4. As you complete the curl you will notice the movement becomes easier. Slowly lower the weight until your arm is not quite fully extended and repeat for the desired number of reps before switching arms. Concentration Curls Some dumbell exercises are difficult to describe on paper but eay when you see it. This is one of them (images for all dumbell exercises are on their way). For now let's give it a shot... 1. Sit on the very edge of the bench with your feet flat on the floor and about 2 feet apart. 2. Holding a dumbell in your right hand place your right elbow on the inside of your right thigh, just above your knee. Support your back by placing your left hand on your left knee. Your right palm should be facing towards your left ankle. 3. From here use only your biceps to curl the weight up towards your face. Do not swing back as you lift the weight. 4. Slowly lower the weight and repeat for the desired number of reps before switching to your left arm. ------------------------------... Triceps Dumbell Exercises Overhead Triceps Extension 1. Stand upright, feet shoulder width apart with a dumbell in your right hand. 2. Hold the weight directly above your head with your right arm fully extended. Clasp your right elbow with your left hand. Your left forearm should be infront of your face. 3. Slowly let your right elbow fold so that the weight is lowered behind your head. From this position extend your arm back to the starting position. Repeat for the desired number of reps and then switch arms. French Press 1. Lie flat on a bench with a dumbell in either hand. Hold the weights directly above your chest with palms facing each other. The weights should be just about touching each other. 2. Keeping your shoulders locked, let your elbows fold so the weights are lowered down to either side of your head. 3. Extend both your arms back to the start position and repeat. 4. Make sure there is no shoulder movement on this exercise. The movement should come purely from your elbows. Kickbacks 1. Stand upright with the bench next to your left leg. Bend your left leg and rest it on the bench. Bend from your lower back and support yourself by placing your left hand on the bench. Your upper body should be parallel to the ground. 2. Hold the weight in your right hand and raise your elbow so your upper arm is parallel to the ground. Your elbow should also be bent at right angles. Think of holding a pool cue ready to make a shot. In fact the movement is exactly the same... 3. Extend your elbow so now your entire arm is parallel to the ground. 4. Slowly return the weight to the start position and repeat for the desired number of reps before switching arms. ------------------------------... Leg Dumbell Exercises Half Squats One of the best dumbell exercises for working the entire lower body. Works the quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes and lower back. 1. Holding a dumbell in either hand at your sides, stand upright with your feet shoulder width apart. 2. Bend from the knees until your thighs are almost parallel to the ground. 3. It is essential that you keep your back flat (not rounded), lower back slightly arched inwards and your head up. 4. Return to an upright position and repeat. Lunges 1. Holding a dumbell in either hand at your sides, stand upright with your feet slightly less than shoulder width apart. 2. Step forward about 2 feet with your right foot. As you plant your right foot bend your right knee to about 90 degrees. Your left knee will bend automatically and should just touch the floor. 3. Push off with your right foot to return to the starting position. 4. You can alternate legs or perform all the reps on one leg at a time. ------------------------------... Calf Dumbell Exercises Single Leg Calf Raise 1. Set the back rest if the bench to an upright position. Holding a dumbell in your right hand at your side, stand upright and place your left hand on the top of the bench for support. 2. Stand on just your right leg. Rest your left foot on your right calf muscle. 3. Stand up on the tip of right toe using the bench to balance yourself. Be sure not to push yourself up with your hand, that defeats the object! 4. Slowly lower your self to the ground and repeat. Seated Calf Press 1. Sit on the edge of the bench, feet flat on the floor about 12 inches apart. 2. Rest a dumbell on either thigh while you keep hold of them. 3. While staying seated raise heels by just using your toes... in effect you are standing on your tip toes while staying seated. 4. Lower your heels to the ground and repeat. ------------------------------... Dumbell exercises are fantastic for improving strength and power, reducing body fat and forging a lean and healthy physique You will have to work out what is best for you, based on your fitness level and motivation. Try some of these exercises combined with cardio and a good diet for the best results goodluck
6. Read my other answer! It's a good one!