losing weight for CATS

[JulianHookbucks]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 2:01am

I'm in a production of CATS right now... and have been trying to lose the amount of weight I need to for the show. I'm 5' 11.5" and 173 pounds... I want to get down to 160, so I've restricted my caloric intake to 1800, been exercising for three hours at rehearsal every night, and have lost some weight, but am worried that I won't lose all that I want by the time the show opens in February... any tips? are there any vitamins that help you burn fat faster? or foods?

Updated On: 12/27/05 at 02:01 AM

[blaxx]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 2:18am

That is a reasonable amount of weight to try to lose.
Just think that to lose weight you need to burn more calories in a day than the ones you consume.
Rehearsals may not be actual work outs (although they may seem like it), so I recommend doing cardio regularly and limiting your calories. If you do this, there's no way you won't lose it.

Those costumes don't hide much .... good for you!

[WonderBoy]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 12:36pm

Honey, the traditional dancer's diet is best. Caffeine, nicotine and water. If you are really hungry allow yourself to indulge in a Tic-Tac. Quit laughing, I am being serious!

[Hanna from Hamburg]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 12:43pm

Limit the carbs (Adkins). When I started the "induction" phase of Adkins 1 year ago, I lost 1 pound per day for the first 10 days. I had to start adding carbs back in because I was losing too quickly. I was also working out 5x per week along with the diet.

Updated On: 12/27/05 at 12:43 PM

[theatreboi11]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 1:45pm

I agree with adkins! My father swears by it. The first 2 week period you will loose sooooo much weight. My step dad lost 25 pounds. After that you will lose about a pound a week. Plus, eventhough you cant eat a lot of foods, you do get to eat as much as you want! Good luck!

[inlovewithjerryherman]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 2:29pm

This thread only makes me hate Cats even more, which before, i did not think was possible.

losing weight sucks...

good luck, tho!

[Di2]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 2:54pm

Is this a professional production requiring you to do this? If not, they have no right to ask you to do such a thing.

[blaxx]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 3:02pm

He said that he wants to, not that they asked him to...
In any event, is a good idea to try to look your best in such an outfit.

[best12bars]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 3:17pm

I think IAMS offers a good, balanced dietary cat food.

Try that.

[WonderBoy]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 3:52pm

Bwahahahahaha!!!

[emo_geek]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 3:55pm

hehe IAMS funny.

[emo_geek]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 3:55pm

hehe IAMS funny.

[kelly0ann]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 4:07pm

Do NOT listen to wonderboy! You can't restrict yourself that much, it only ends in disaster...I would know. Try adding a morning jog to your day, drink lots of water, and get lots of sleep! It works.

[JulianHookbucks]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 4:18pm

I lost 2 pounds gradually over a week and a half... and we do do about 30 minutes of pure cardio stuff at each rehearsal. about 640 crunches, and 96 push ups is what we normally do. In regards to the professionalism, we're a professional theatre bordering on regionalism. This is the biggest production we've ever put on. We've got an 11 piece orchestra, and our choreographer, I think... was in the natl. tour. They have a suggested weight, which is a highlighted section of a BMI chart. I'm about 5 pounds over what they want me to be... but I'd like to be well into the green. Mainly because, the costumes are a cotton lycra blend, which is I think one step under what they used on Broadway... so it shows pretty much everything. I'm pretty thin, but still have some baby fat, so I'm opting for 160. Would you recomend I invest in Pilates tapes? or a treadmil? or an ab lounge? or... what? Cuase a majority of what I want to lose is around my hips. Thanks!

[kelly0ann]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 4:21pm

Running, or any cardio, is the best way to lose weight, in my opinion. You just have to be consistant

[sweetestsiren]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 5:00pm

best12bars, you made my day.

Anyway, no idea about the losing weight question. Listen to the other people.

[katygrace84]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 5:02pm

I seriously thought I was going to get some tips on helping my chubby calico shed a little ton-age.

[lamentingenvelope]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 5:35pm

If you have OnDemand, you can get a whole bunch of workouts free...

*shrug* Well, that's what I do to stay in shape in between dance classes.

Drink lots of water, LOTS of it (64 oz a day is what you should shoot for... yeah, its a lot, but...)

And don't COMPLETELY cut carbs, but it is a good idea to reduce them. When you do eat carbs, go for whole grains... and don't cut carbs in favor of fatty proteins like bacon and steak.


And katygrace, for your chubby calico, cut out dry food - it's pretty much all carbs. Fancy Feast has a list of low carb cat foods they offer, which should be available on their website - if not, contact your vet. Time for Kitty to go on Catkins!

[greeneyed_one]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 6:38pm

I would also do some weight-training. Stronger muscles need more energy to function, there for you would burn more calories even if you aren't doing anything. I would do a mix of both cardio and weight training :)

[Jazzysuite82]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 6:44pm

IT's also important to remember what the Greeks said "Everything in moderation". Stay away from diets that are extreme, like Atkins which tells you to cut all carbs. Low fat, low carb is the best. You're doing an awful lot of excersising just make sure you are replenishing your body. THere are lots of suppliments that you can use to help loose weight. Omega 3's are great to help burn fat. Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) is another one that not only helps burn fat but it also helps keep the lean muscle that you're working hard to get. Chromium will help with glucose tolerance. Sugar turns to fat in your body so you want to use your surgar properly and get the correct insulin levels in your body. It also helps with metabolism of the proteins and fats in your body. Evening Primrose oil is rich in Omega3s so that's good to get. Glutamine can also help maintain muscle while losing fat. Lastly Green Tea is WONDERFUL. You can either drink it like regular tea (they're sold in supermarkets everywhere), take Green Tea extract capsules, or both. It's great for losing weight. I second the water thing. Especailly as a dancer. Water helps your muscles stretch and keeps your body well oiled. 64 oz is the recommended intake. 8-8 oz glasses of water isn't as much as it seems. Think of it as 2-32 oz Aquafina bottles. It's VERY easy to do when your in rehearsals and during the day. Just be aware that you'll pee all the time.

Lastly you're gonna need to change your eating if ANY of this will work. Lots of Vegies like Broccli, Asparagus,. Meats like Lean chicken, SALMON!!! Stay away from red meat generally. Fish is the way to go. Eat lots of fruits for your sugary sweet tooth and if you MUST be naughty which should be as seldon as possible, you can eat dark chocolate ONLY. ANything with more than a 60% cocoa rating. Milk chocolate has crap in it, but cocoa is great for the heart. If loosing weight I say limit it to once or twice a week.

I recently discovered this toning system called Yogilattes. It's WONDERFUL. It has given me more energy, more flexibility and has toned up hard to reach areas like my abs, lateral obliques and butt. Look for Louise Solomon's tapes because they've worked wonders.


This is long but I hope this is helpful to you. It's helped me a ton!!

EDIT: I forgot go here to find deals and discounts on Suppliments. Puritan's Pride are among the cheapest I've found. www.puritan.com Updated On: 12/27/05 at 06:44 PM

[matiboi]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 10:36pm

I was in the same boat for Cabaret . . . just do LOTS and LOTS of abs. This sounds really weird . . . but do crunches to the entire up-tempo section of "Crunchy Granola Suite" to the end on the Fosse CD at least twice as day . . . I did that plus two reps on the Ab Scissor that I have at home and was fine. Good luck! I'm auditioning for CATS next month, so we may be "toning" buddies before ya know it!

[guitargeek0624]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 10:44pm

3 words: Dance Dance Revolution. No, I'm not kidding.

My brother is trying to lose weight, and in addition to dieting, he is playing DDR for about an hour each day, burning up to 1000 calories during his workout, since it is an intense cardio workout. I've been doing it, too, to lose the fat I've gained from holiday food, and I've been able to average about 25 calories burned per 1 1/2 minute song. If you have a Playstation 2, you can buy one of the games and a cheap dance pad for $20. If not, hit your local arcade.

[Tap16]

Posted: 12/27/05 at 10:52pm

Wonderboy...i hope your first post is a joke, cause thats absolutley disgusting...some dancers have done stuff like that and seriously damaged themselves...i don't think that you'll have any problems loosing the weight, especially if rehersals are 3 hours, and i'm sure you dance like crazy, which is one of the best workouts there is.

[JulianHookbucks]

Posted: 12/28/05 at 1:18am

Wow. Thank you guys all so much. I'll definitely go lookign for some of those things tomorrow. It's so wonderful to have a resource like this.

[jimmirae]

Posted: 12/28/05 at 1:58am

As Patsy Stone once said to her late sister Jax: "Cats on Crack!"
(Seriously though, Good luck on losing the weight and break a leg!)