Mother wanting to get in shape, help please!!

first of all, greetings from mexico!!! im new here and this is my first post, im glad from being part of this great forum

well back to the point, im also new in all this stuff of bodybuilding and fitness and with me my mother decided to start getting in shape too

I had a couple of doubts but by reading scooby's web page and some topics in this forum i solved all of them but the problem is my mom..
her goal is to lose weight, she's about 163 cm heigh and weights 151 pounds, so she needs to do lots of cardio and to maintain a good nutrition eating 6 well-balanced meals per day right?
she works and after the work she's usually very tired so she cannot do cardio everyday, maybe two or three days per week

My question is.. is there any advice you could give my mom for reaching her goal of losing 1 or perhaps 2 pounds each week? taking into account the small amount of cardio she does, is there any "best" exercise she could do to get the maximum benefit in her cardio? currently she (actually me too) does 10-15 min in the stationary bike


any, aaaaany help would be appreciated  thx in advance!!

TO quote Evilcyber's excellent post...

"When asking about your workout routine and need help in achieving your goals, please include the following:

    * Your age, height and weight
    * How long you have worked out
    * Your current weekly workout routine: What exercises on what days with how many sets and reps and how much weight you use in each
    * An example of your typical daily nutrition


Your questions can be answered much better, if you include this information."

That sums up what I was going to say.  We will need this info for both of you to give good advice.

mmm ive covered age height and weight..

How long has my mom worked out? well she's just starting, around 3 weeks i think

she's following scooby's begginers plan, with very little weights, 3 kg or 6.6 pounds, 1 super set including all exercises resting 1 minute between set, mmm I dont know how many reps she does sorry

And an example of a tipical daily nutrition... in each of her six meals she aims to have around 287 kcal, 25 g of protein, 32 g carbs and 6 g of fat, she eats tuna fish prepared with peas, potatoes and carrots, white rice cooked with wheat germ, soy milk, soy meat and lentils ...

yep, that's what we usually eat

BTW, my situation:

17 years
123 pounds
171 cm heigh

I started 3 weeks ago
I do 30 minutes of stationary bicycle per day, everday
I also do scooby's teen workout alternating 1 day yes and one day no, using 8kg dumbbells and a barbell of 14 kg
6 meals per day, 400kcal, 30 g of protein, 50-55 g of carbs amd 6-9g of fat per meal
if there's any advice you could give me too, i'd really apreciate it 

AWEBO! ME-XI-CO! ME-XI-CO!
Jajajjajajaja que onda? Yo soy Ulises de Guadalajara (aunque ahora vivo en gringolandia). pues que tanto trabaja tu madre? mira lo que puedes hacer para el ejercicio es que la convenzas para que use una bicicleta en vez de tomar el camion o manejar carro.
BTW: mis estadisticas son iguales a las tuyas nomas que yo peso 220 libras! (y eso que en el inico pesaba 212 y baje asta 181, luego el rebote vino, pero ya lo estoy combatiendo otra vez!)
Saludos compa!

No Im just happy to find one of my countrymen in this forum. (that is MY age). It really makes me mad when people write exactly those types of comments, but im not mad in this specific case.
Why cant people just accept the fact that when others speak in a language they dont understand, that oh idunno it might not be about them or concerning them or in any way trying to offend them? just stating my point.

Oh yes, by all means please do so. I have no authority on the issue I am just pointing it out. I do like your attitude towards the respectful way I brought it up though. 

I hate a case of 'too many cooks' syndrome, but to add my input:

For you and your mother

 - Small changes can make a big difference. If you are currently on 3 meals a day, jumping to 6/day is ridiculous and will be very demoralising. The 6 is only an 'ideal' if you are a truly devout bodybuilder, you can remain perfectly fit and healthy (and still grow muscular) on 3 a day. Go one step at a time, up to 4 if need be. I rarely exceed 5 meals a day, more often hitting 4 than not.

 - Similarly, going through a calorie calculator and getting a relatively low number that you try to stick to (and feeling you are starving yourself) won't help anyone. Replace half of the sweeter/fattier snacks in your life with fruit. Actively have a slightly larger portion of vegetables with your evening meal, whilst a slightly smaller portion of carbohydrates. Cut down on carbonated/sugary drinks - actively try and drink more water.


For your mother[/u]

 - The 10-15min on the exercise bike is great. Each week she ought to try and increase the amount of exercise she is doing. Get a journal or a little book, note down the average speed or total distance and time cycled each session. This allows you to track progress and set goals. Set goals to begin with. Right now. e.g. Cycle every other day (3-4x/week) for 15minutes each session.

 - Track weight from week to week, not day to day. In the same journal as above, note weight first thing after waking up on a Monday (before doing anything - inluding eating, drinking, urinating or whatever!), and track from week to week.


For you[/u]
 - I am not a fan of the teen workout. Not one bit - in fact out of every workout scooby has posted I believe it is the worst and most unbalanced. However, it's your choice - I suggest you add 3 sets of lunges (10-12 each leg, bodyweight) and 3 sets of bodyweight squats (to failure each time) to the workout.

 - That cardio is excellent, however for your height and small frame i'd consider lessening it. Either doing it every other day instead of every day, or halving the time to 10-15min/session and attempting HIIT/tabata ([20sec flat out, hard as you can go; 10sec gentle cycle, resting] - continous for whole workout), to specifically aim at cardiovascular health rather than calorie burning. You might also want to take up running or swimming, both of which engage far more muscles and are more likely to promote your growth.

 - Set yourself realistic longterm goals. Don't use weight. Use size or performance. E.g. 'be able to do 100 good form pushups'. Don't set dates to these, just use them to make medium-term goals, which you DO set dates to aim for. e.g. if you can do 20 pushups now, 'be able to do 40 pushups by August'. Get a journal yourself, note down said goals, and refer to them every now and again for inspiration.

That is indeed a form of HIIT. I'm surprised you can keep it going full pace for 2minutes, but it will be very good cardio if you can keep that up!