Health, Good Practises, and Exercise

[TrevorR90]

Reading some of these replies kinda makes me wonder what I will be like when I'm 50. I'm 29 and ultra lean and exercise all the time! Former college athlete and still run a ton.

I've got a fitness related bachelors and do personal training/group fitness on the side.

 

[D.T.]

Reading some of these replies kinda makes me wonder what I will be like when I'm 50. I'm 29 and ultra lean and exercise all the time! Former college athlete and still run a ton.

I've got a fitness related bachelors and do personal training/group fitness on the side.

Sounds like you're someone who will enter their 30s, 40s, even 50s with good "health momentum" (and certainly, good subject matter expertise). That's really the problem, when we're younger, we tend to be more active, our metabolism is better, we're on the go, not spending hours behind desks, eating poorly, we get married, get lethargic, we wear out, just want to relax.

Those poor habits cause weight gain, loss of strength, ability, flexibility, as we move through our 40s, 50s, then suddenly we're trying to play catch up with less time, less physicality, and still dealing with the complexities of late adult life.

You really have to dig deep, and stay active, healthy, as you get older, in fact, it's even _more_ important.

 

[44267547]

Swimming...a lot. Sold my Cottage last year (The Lake was pictured many pages ago in this thread) and had this installed last summer, Finally finished for the little details, as the foundation was already in place. But with C/19 and canceled vacations, this is really nice to have.

[Huntn, I know you started a thread on ‘home improvement‘, but I couldn’t find it in the Community forum, so I just posted my exercise routine here.😁]

 

[Huntn]

Swimming...a lot. Sold my Cottage last year (The Lake was pictured many pages ago in this thread) and had this installed last summer, Finally finished for the little details, as the foundation was already in place. But with C/19 and canceled vacations, this is really nice to have.

[Huntn, I know you started a thread on ‘home improvement‘, but I couldn’t find it in the Community forum, so I just posted my exercise routine here.?]
View attachment 942695 View attachment 942696

Nice pool! How long is it? I assume you have a Kreepy Krauly or equivalent? I assume that is Astro turf? Do you manage your pool or hire that out?

Home Improvement thread: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/the-home-improvement-q-a-thread.1890307/

Pool tech talk:https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/swimming-pool-tech-talk.1990936/

I have both a bathroom and kitchen project threads floating around here somewhere.

 

[pshufd]

96 degrees outside and I'd have to wait until 5 AM for it to get down to the mid-70s so we have a heat wave. Just took a very long nap and will hydrate and go to the track to see if I can run a mile in this heat. I'm probably going to spend more time on the Spin Bike for cardio today.

 

[44267547]

Nice pool! How long is it? I assume you have a Kreepy Krauly or equivalent? I assume that is Astro turf? Do you manage your pool or hire that out?

Home Improvement thread: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/the-home-improvement-q-a-thread.1890307/

Pool tech talk:https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/swimming-pool-tech-talk.1990936/

I have both a bathroom and kitchen project threads floating around here somewhere.

I’ll merge over to the Pool thread, So we don’t detail here. Thanks for the links.

 

[pshufd]

Guys what you think about intermittent fasting? is it really worth a try?

I've been doing it for ten years. It becomes part of your life.

Get a Garmin fitness tracker - it can display your body stress score for a day. Watch your stress score on a day when you eat vs a day when you don't eat. Digestion places a significant load on your body.

 

[Huntn]

I’ve found that skipping breakfast always and on the days I exercise at the gym and drinking a 190 calorie protein drink for lunch (other days I’ll eat cereal or protein) that I’ve lost about 5 lbs. ?

As bad as skipping breakfast is regarded by some, I’m looking at it from a total calorie intake per day, and this seems to be working.

 

[44267547]

Skipping breakfast is somewhat counterproductive. Because what happens is, is if you skip breakfast If that’s what you starting your day of for-prolonged amount of time, then you’re essentially starving yourself until your next meal, [which would be lunch if you’re not including any type of snacking]. The goal is, is to keep the metabolism active, and by feeding it regularly with portioned, healthy options Without useless snacking. By skipping meals, Your body may try to store your caloric intake as additional body fat, depending what you’re eating and how much of it.

Weight loss is such a tough variable, because essentially when you’re losing that initial XYZ pounds, it’s likely water weight v.s. body fat. But, The scale can be deceiving, look at the mirror, and be observant of things like ‘Is your waist line shrinking’ with how your pants/outfits fit, ect.

My suggestion is anybody wanting to Lose a small amount of weight, keep your meals sustained three times a day With copious amounts of water. The real enemy, is snacking like chips, unnecessary carbs/artificials.

One of my favorite meals for breakfast is steak and eggs, especially for bulking, that’s the perfect way to start your day off (Protein packed, red meat has loads of vitamins/iron). And it does happen sometimes where I just don’t have the time for breakfast, and let me tell you, I am absolutely famished by lunch where then I find myself overcompensating for the calories I lost for breakfast, and that’s a bad idea. If there was one meal I wouldn’t skip, it would definitely wouldn’t be breakfast.

 

[Huntn]

Skipping breakfast is somewhat counterproductive. Because what happens is, is if you skip breakfast If that’s what you starting your day of for-prolonged amount of time, then you’re essentially starving yourself until your next meal, [which would be lunch if you’re not including any type of snacking]. The goal is, is to keep the metabolism active, and by feeding it regularly with portioned, healthy options Without useless snacking. By skipping meals, Your body may try to store your caloric intake as additional body fat, depending what you’re eating and how much of it.

Weight loss is such a tough variable, because essentially when you’re losing that initial XYZ pounds, it’s likely water weight v.s. body fat. But, The scale can be deceiving, look at the mirror, and be observant of things like ‘Is your waist line shrinking’ with how your pants/outfits fit, ect.

My suggestion is anybody wanting to Lose a small amount of weight, keep your meals sustained three times a day With copious amounts of water. The real enemy, is snacking like chips, unnecessary carbs/artificials.

One of my favorite meals for breakfast is steak and eggs, especially for bulking, that’s the perfect way to start your day off (Protein packed, red meat has loads of vitamins/iron). And it does happen sometimes where I just don’t have the time for breakfast, and let me tell you, I am absolutely famished by lunch where then I find myself overcompensating for the calories I lost for breakfast, and that’s a bad idea. If there was one meal I wouldn’t skip, it would definitely wouldn’t be breakfast.

Eating at 11am vs 8am, is hardly starving myself. I suffer no hunger pains, less calorie intake, and a weight loss has occurred as a result. I’ll report back.
We’ll see.

 

[pshufd]

Eating at 11am vs 8am, is hardly starving myself. I suffer no hunger pains, less calorie intake, and a weight loss has occurred as a result. I’ll report back.
We’ll see.

What matters is total calories.

Skipping a meal saves you preparation, eating and cleanup time. I usually have a late breakfast, 10:30 to 11:00 if I have one at all. One benefit to skipping breakfast is getting in an early morning run - important when it's really hot outside.

 

[Huntn]

What matters is total calories.

Skipping a meal saves you preparation, eating and cleanup time. I usually have a late breakfast, 10:30 to 11:00 if I have one at all. One benefit to skipping breakfast is getting in an early morning run - important when it's really hot outside.

That’s the thing, when reducing calorie intake, exercise is required to force the body to do what you want, not hang onto them.

 

[44267547]

Eating at 11am vs 8am, is hardly starving myself. I suffer no hunger pains, less calorie intake, and a weight loss has occurred as a result. I’ll report back.
We’ll see.

I’ve found that skipping breakfast always

Ok?...That doesn’t make sense. Then you’re not really ‘skipping breakfast‘ if you’re eating at 11 AM v.s 8 AM, which is Still mid-morning.

Skipping breakfast to me, is someone doesn’t consume anything from say the time they wake up (6:30-ish) until the noon hour, Plus if you add exercise , you’re naturally getting hungrier by the noon hour, being your metabolism is spiked.

 

[pshufd]

That’s the thing, when reducing calorie intake, exercise is required to force the body to do what you want, not hang onto them.

You can lose all the weight that you want to without exercise. It's probably easier to lose weight without exercise than with as exercise will make you hungry. As I always say, it's easier to not eat for two days than it is to run a marathon.

 

[1042686]

I was really starting to get into this thread, then I realized that my real fixation was the fresh bag of sour cream & onion tater chips I just popped open & fizzy sodie pop in my hand.

Aye dios

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

Losing weight has to be a balance. If you are overweight, you have to over do the exercise, and under do the eating. Once you start getting results, you have to adjust the ratio.

My story was I was over weight. I was almost 270. Yikes. I didn't have a double chin, I had a triple chin! The bottom of my rib cage was popping out at a 45 degree angle! I couldn't run up two flights of stairs without feeling like I was going to pass out. I had no excuse. I had a BoxFlex, I had a Stairmaster, I had two bikes.

My problem was I had a company where I was on the road a lot. I LOVED Reeses Sticks. I bought three or more packs each time I ever went to a gas station. I got POINTS! Points for more Reeses Sticks! Then they came out with the larger bigger packages! MORE FOR THE SAME AMOUNT! SCORE!!!

I'd eat 4 or 5 packs, A DAY!

The BowFlex was great for storing stuff on. Another horizontal surface. The StairMaster was perfect for drying clothes on. My bike on a bike trainer was also. Perfect racks...

So, after literally almost passing out running up the stairs chasing my dog, and IT turned around with a concerned look, as I stood gasping for breath.

I started on the StairMaster. I threw in a DVD, and set it to level 10, out of 15 (I started enthusiastic). I almost died. I started at 2. I was able to do 2 minutes. I'm not kidding. I felt like I was going to die. I unburied the BowFlex, and started figuring out where I needed to start on that. 5 pounds. I could do 10 reps, one set of 5 pounds.

Throughout months, I got to the point I could do 90 minutes at level 14 on the StairMaster, and was 'full stack' on the BowFlex. 300 pounds, as the rods were labeled, which is sketchy as hell. Then I cleaned the junk off the treadmill we had for 5 years. I started running 5 minutes, and worked myself up. I got to the point I was running, not jogging, outright RUNNING for between an hour, and an hour and a half every night, with Saturday off.

I also quit the junk food. No more Resses Sticks, no more diet Pepsi, no more M&M's. I stopped drinking all alcohol for Lent, and then two weeks after to make sure I could. I ate less, not eating everything in front of me, and sent portions of restaurant meals that I didn't eat. I didn't need to eat it.

At my leanest, I had a BMI of 6. I weighed just under 160. I LOOKED amazing. Everyone commented on how I looked. Family were blown away. I FELT great! I was great. Then I blew a neuroma in my foot. Running was excruciating. I could run through the pain until the endorphines kicked in, and I felt no pain. It got so bad, it started hurting outside of running. Climbing stairs was excruciating. I finally went to a podiatrist. He said I had the largest neuroma he had ever seen. I could barely walk. ALL of my hard work went out of the window. I was depressed, and was looking at never being able to run again. Post surgery, I had a three month recovery, and then developed a knee problem because I was favoring the bad foot, and the other leg's knee gave up. I had a scope, and was out another 3 months.

So, now, I've had my medical issues. I'v;e seen the monster, and survived. I've experienced bonking HARD. I was eating fiber like a cow! I was downing protein powder to compensate for the nutrition I was missing. But I 'converted'. My body was burning fat like a MF! My sugar intake was minimal. My fat intake was up. I loved fish, I had olive oil with most that I ate. I consumed fiber like crazy. Coupled with the exercise I was doing, I muscled over the ;sugar monster' and converted my body to burn fat and lost it like it was falling off. I had energy like a hyperactive 3-year old. I could go all day, and all night if needed, but when I hit the bed, I was out. I LOVED that feeling.

So, what worked for me? Cut the junk. Eliminate the booze. Eat salads, fish, and tons of fiber. Exercize to exhaustion. Work out every day you can in the beginning. I started working out like a crazed lab rat, but I had a huge deep hole to dig out of. After I got out of it, I was able to take a day off each week, and actually take a week off for vacation a couple of times a year, and NOT blow it all. I could 'cheat' a little, but in moderation. I got to the point I could eat a small bowl of ice cream. I could eat pizza, I still had a beer or two a week. AFTER I did the base work to get there.

Was it hard? HELL YES! I worked out, like I said, like a crazed lab rat. I did that for months. Once I got past the sugar fix, I was in a whole different world. My body was a machine. Food was fuel. Fat was fuel. Sugar was poison in high levels.

Post neuroma and knee surgery?

It all fell down. Staying at that level is hard. If you are young, you can 'convert' sooner, and *should* be able to stay there. I was NOT on a 'keto diet'. Be very careful of the 'keto diet' scam. There are pills you can take to get to ketosis. Diabetics that go into ketosis can have long standing issues for slipping into ketosis. It's not what the body is designed to do. Ketosis is the body burning MUSCLE! Muscle is NOT fat. If you go into ketosis hard enough, long enough, it changes your blood Ph, and can cause a whole host of problems, including strokes and heart attacks, among others.


Adjust intake. "Food is fuel" Do NOT over fuel your car, don;t over fuel yourself.

Sugar is poison, and you will find it almost everywhere. Avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup. It's sugar on steroids.

Exercise equipment is NOT for hanging clothes on. It's for hanging sweat drenched towels on.

Exercise is what we are supposed to do. It's an archetypal need. 'Fight or flight' IS how we lived centuries ago. Fat humans were easy prey for wild animals and other threats.

Fiber is GREAT! It keeps you regular, keeps your digestive system clean, and it just makes life so much easier.

Don't buy into junk people believe. I never gave up bread. I actually quit all red meat, but did not go vegan, or even full vegitarian. I ate salads. I put some cheese on them and used oil and vinegar, or Paul Newman's dressing.

DON'T kick yourself for cheating. In moderation. Realize that if you cheat, you put something on the table. You have to work out a little more to get it off the table. It's not a bonus, it's a negative, but it's all good. Earn that cheating.

I gave up eggs too. I hated the incredibly smelly gas. OMG!!!

But if you look at everything that goes in your mouth as fuel, you will do yourself so much good. That beer, it's fuel. That 'energy bar' (which is a glorified candy bar) needs to be worked off.

CROSS TRAIN!!! DO not just run. I spent too much time just running. I added the BoxFlex, and thought that was enough. It wasn't. I needed to add biking earlier, and swimming too.


Currently? I have reoccuring issues from my knee surgery. I ride a bike on a trainer, shooting for 7,500 miles this year. My weight is around 195. My BMI is up. Funny that I found running far more slimming than riding. Strange, huh.

I want to convert again, but am getting to old to pull it off I fear. It was hard work, but SO MUCH WORTH IT!!!

You can do this, without supplements, and pills and potions. Don't fall into that whole mess. Some of that crap is really toxic. The entire market for that crap is not regulated at all! No one makes sure the stuff they say is in it, is, and nothing harmful.

Good luck! You are worth it! IF you can convert your body, you will feel INCREDIBLE!!! (Oh, I kept that going for over 2 years. That was a hell of a lot of punishment on that foot. I ran for over a year with foot pain (STUPID!!!) until it got way way too bad. If something hurts, STOP! Get it looked at. Ask for therapy, physical therapy. Ask for a place with a sports trainer, or an outfit that works with sport injuries!) It was bad enough, the surgeon said I would be lucky to be able to run again, or even walk. I spent those two months recovering in a wheel chair just trying to insure I would have a good recovery. I recovered very well, but the knee gave it after that. I learned from my mistake. I try to cross train as much as I can now. I can't run because of the knee, but I walk a lot. I swim like a stone.

Good luck. Cheers!!!

 

[pshufd]

Losing weight has to be a balance. If you are overweight, you have to over do the exercise, and under do the eating. Once you start getting results, you have to adjust the ratio.

My story was I was over weight. I was almost 270. Yikes. I didn't have a double chin, I had a triple chin! The botom of my rib cage was popping out at a 45 degree angle! I couldn't run up two flights of stairs without feeling like I was going to pass out. I had no excuse. I had a BoxFlex, I had a Stairmaster, I had two bikes.

My problem was I had a company where I was on the road a lot. I LOVED Reeses Sticks. I bought three or more packs each time I ever went to a gas station. I got POINTS! Points for more Reeses Sticks! Then they came out with the larger bigger packages! MORE FOR THE SAME AMOUNT! SCORE!!!

I'd eat 4 or 5 packs, A DAY!

The BowFlex was great for storing stuff on. Another horizontal surface. The StairMaster was perfect for drying clothes on. My bike on a bike trainer was also. Perfect racks...

So, after literally almost passing out running up the stairs chasing my dog, and IT turned around with a concerned look, as I stood gasping for breath.

I started on the StairMaster. I threw in a DVD, and set it to level 10, out of 15 (I started enthusiastic). I almost died. I started at 2. I was able to do 2 minutes. I'm not kidding. I felt like I was going to die. I unburied the BowFlex, and started figuring out where I needed to start on that. 5 pounds. I could do 10 reps, one set of 5 pounds.

Throughout months, I got to the point I could do 90 minutes at level 14 on the StairMaster, and was 'full stack' on the BowFlex. 300 pounds, as the rods were labeled, which is sketchy as hell. Then I cleaned the junk off the treadmill we had for 5 years. I started running 5 minutes, and worked myself up. I got to the point I was running, not jogging, outright RUNNING for between an hour, and an hour and a half every night, with Saturday off.

I also quit the junk food. No more Resses Sticks, no more diet Pepsi, no more M&M's. I stopped drinking all alcohol for Lent, and then two weeks after to make sure I could. I ate less, not eating everything in front of me, and sent portions of restaurant meals that I didn't eat. I didn't need to eat it.

At my leanest, I had a BMI of 6. I weighed just under 160. I LOOKED amazing. Everyone commented on how I looked. Family were blown away. I FELT great! I was great. Then I blew a neuroma in my foot. Running was excruciating. I could run through the pain until the endorphines kicked in, and I felt no pain. It got so bad, it started hurting outside of running. Climbing stairs was excruciating. I finally went to a podiatrist. He said I had the largest neuroma he had ever seen. I could barely walk. ALL of my hard work went out of the window. I was depressed, and was looking at never being able to run again. Post surgery, I had a three month recovery, and then developed a knee problem because I was favoring the bad foot, and the other leg's knee gave up. I had a scope, and was out another 3 months.

So, now, I've had my medical issues. I'v;e seen the monster, and survived. I've experienced bonking HARD. I was eating fiber like a cow! I was downing protein powder to compensate for the nutrition I was missing. But I 'converted'. My body was burning fat like a MF! My sugar intake was minimal. My fat intake was up. I loved fish, I had olive oil with most that I ate. I consumed fiber like crazy. Coupled with the exercise I was doing, I muscled over the ;sugar monster' and converted my body to burn fat and lost it like it was falling off. I had energy like a hyperactive 3-year old. I could go all day, and all night if needed, but when I hit the bed, I was out. I LOVED that feeling.

So, what worked for me? Cut the junk. Eliminate the booze. Eat salads, fish, and tons of fiber. Exercize to exhaustion. Work out every day you can in the beginning. I started working out like a crazed lab rat, but I had a huge deep hole to dig out of. After I got out of it, I was able to take a day off each week, and actually take a week off for vacation a couple of times a year, and NOT blow it all. I could 'cheat' a little, but in moderation. I got to the point I could eat a small bowl of ice cream. I could eat pizza, I still had a beer or two a week. AFTER I did the base work to get there.

Was it hard? HELL YES! I worked out, like I said, like a crazed lab rat. I did that for months. Once I got past the sugar fix, I was in a whole different world. My body was a machine. Food was fuel. Fat was fuel. Sugar was poison in high levels.

Post neuroma and knee surgery?

It all fell down. Staying at that level is hard. If you are young, you can 'convert' sooner, and *should* be able to stay there. I was NOT on a 'keto diet'. Be very careful of the 'keto diet' scam. There are pills you can take to get to ketosis. Diabetics that go into ketosis can have long standing issues for slipping into ketosis. It's not what the body is designed to do. Ketosis is the body burning MUSCLE! Muscle is NOT fat. If you go into ketosis hard enough, long enough, it changes your blood Ph, and can cause a whole host of problems, including strokes and heart attacks, among others.


Adjust intake. "Food is fuel" Do NOT over fuel your car, don;t over fuel yourself.

Sugar is poison, and you will find it almost everywhere. Avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup. It's sugar on steroids.

Exercise equipment is NOT for hanging clothes on. It's for hanging sweat drenched towels on.

Exercise is what we are supposed to do. It's an archetypal need. 'Fight or flight' IS how we lived centuries ago. Fat humans were easy prey for wild animals and other threats.

Fiber is GREAT! It keeps you regular, keeps your digestive system clean, and it just makes life so much easier.

Don't buy into junk people believe. I never gave up bread. I actually quit all red meat, but did not go vegan, or even full vegitarian. I ate salads. I put some cheese on them and used oil and vinegar, or Paul Newman's dressing.

DON'T kick yourself for cheating. In moderation. Realize that if you cheat, you put something on the table. You have to work out a little more to get it off the table. It's not a bonus, it's a negative, but it's all good. Earn that cheating.

I gave up eggs too. I hated the incredibly smelly gas. OMG!!!

But if you look at everything that goes in your mouth as fuel, you will do yourself so much good. That beer, it's fuel. That 'energy bar' (which is a glorified candy bar) needs to be worked off.

CROSS TRAIN!!! DO not just run. I spent too much time just running. I added the BoxFlex, and thought that was enough. It wasn't. I needed to add biking earlier, and swimming too.


Currently? I have reoccuring issues from my knee surgery. I ride a bike on a trainer, shooting for 7,500 miles this year. My weight is around 195. My BMI is up. Funny that I found running far more slimming than riding. Strange, huh.

I want to convert again, but am getting to old to pull it off I fear. It was hard work, but SO MUCH WORTH IT!!!

You can do this, without supplements, and pills and potions. Don't fall into that whole mess. Some of that crap is really toxic. The entire market for that crap is not regulated at all! No one makes sure the stuff they say is in it, is, and nothing harmful.

Good luck! You are worth it! IF you can convert your body, you will feel INCREDIBLE!!! (Oh, I kept that going for over 2 years. That was a hell of a lot of punishment on that foot. I ran for over a year with foot pain (STUPID!!!) until it got way way too bad. If something hurts, STOP! Get it looked at. Ask for therapy, physical therapy. Ask for a place with a sports trainer, or an outfit that works with sport injuries!) It was bad enough, the surgeon said I would be lucky to be able to run again, or even walk. I spent those two months recovering in a wheel chair just trying to insure I would have a good recovery. I recovered very well, but the knee gave it after that. I learned from my mistake. I try to cross train as much as I can now. I can't run because of the knee, but I walk a lot. I swim like a stone.

Good luck. Cheers!!!

I believe in tracking too so you can see how you're doing for the day and spot trends that may need to be fixed.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

I believe in tracking too so you can see how you're doing for the day and spot trends that may need to be fixed.

View attachment 949203

Sure, I weighed myself every morning. I did that to see how it was hanging, looking for trends, not kicking myself for 'bad days'. There were no bad days, there were no bad weeks. The hardest time was seeing plateaus. I hit one and dammit I was stuck on that sucker for months! I tried everything! I couldn't budge. Same weight, which wasn't bad, but I couldn't break that!

So, what broke it?

Don't laugh, or scream.

There was a Jewish deli in that university town. You could get bagels bigger than your hand! They were HUGE! And their sandwiches were AMAZING!!! So, some friends and I were looking for a place to grab a bite, and I figured why not there. It was in a strip mall with a laundromat on one side, and a video store on the other. Seemed perfect. I got the pastrami on wheat. It was HUGE! I could barely open my mouth enough to get the corner of the bagel in my face. I knew that was going to take some exercising to counter, and was prepared for it. It was a DELICIOUS sandwich! (That was before I gave up on red meat)

Well, that damn sandwich was like a bazooka to that damned plateau! *BOOM* I started losing weight again. It was early in my weight loss, but I lost, from memory, probably 6 pounds after that. And it stayed off. Until the next plateau. It was funny. Some lasted for days, some lasted for months. Eventually I bet them, and won.

One thing I thought of. I was NOT starving myself during this. I was CHOOSING what I shoved in my mouth as fuel. I was watching the oil (weighing) and not kicking myself. You can't run a car without fuel, same with YOU!

Starving yourself, or not hydrating enough is just as bad as sugar. It'll mess you up faster than almost anything else. I usually drank between 1 and a half to 2 litres of water running. Just water. No additives. I usually showered, and ate after that. If you are on the verge of bonking, don't dismiss that. But don't over treat it. It's not the time to down Gatorade, etc, or snarf 'energy bars'. Eat lean protein, yogurt worked for me, and some granola and bran buds. I ate bran buds and yogurt for desert! It works! But don't concentrate on the scale. Don't listen to the popsci junt people say. Be true to yourself!

Cheers!

 

[pshufd]

Sure, I weighed myself every morning. I did that to see how it was hanging, looking for trends, not kicking myself for 'bad days'. There were no bad days, there were no bad weeks. The hardest time was seeing plateaus. I hit one and dammit I was stuck on that sucker for months! I tried everything! I couldn't budge. Same weight, which wasn't bad, but I couldn't break that!

So, what broke it?

Don't laugh, or scream.

There was a Jewish deli in that university town. You could get bagels bigger than your hand! They were HUGE! And their sandwiches were AMAZING!!! So, some friends and I were looking for a place to grab a bite, and I figured why not there. It was in a strip mall with a laundromat on one side, and a video store on the other. Seemed perfect. I got the pastrami on wheat. It was HUGE! I could barely open my mouth enough to get the corner of the bagel in my face. I knew that was going to take some exercising to counter, and was prepared for it. It was a DELICIOUS sandwich! (That was before I gave up on red meat)

Well, that damn sandwich was like a bazooka to that damned plateau! *BOOM* I started losing weight again. It was early in my weight loss, but I lost, from memory, probably 6 pounds after that. And it stayed off. Until the next plateau. It was funny. Some lasted for days, some lasted for months. Eventually I bet them, and won.

One thing I thought of. I was NOT starving myself during this. I was CHOOSING what I shoved in my mouth as fuel. I was watching the oil (weighing) and not kicking myself. You can't run a car without fuel, same with YOU!

Starving yourself, or not hydrating enough is just as bad as sugar. It'll mess you up faster than almost anything else. I usually drank between 1 and a half to 2 litres of water running. Just water. No additives. I usually showered, and ate after that. If you are on the verge of bonking, don't dismiss that. But don't over treat it. It's not the time to down Gatorade, etc, or snarf 'energy bars'. Eat lean protein, yogurt worked for me, and some granola and bran buds. I ate bran buds and yogurt for desert! It works! But don't concentrate on the scale. Don't listen to the popsci junt people say. Be true to yourself!

Cheers!

There are web apps and mobile apps that track what you eat along with hydration so that you can get reports of your calories consumed vs base metabolic burn. It's a constant reminder as to what your daily budget is. I use LiveStrong MyPlate for calorie tracking and my watch and Garmin Connect have hydration tracking.

So with the tracking, you could go on a pizza binge but the numbers would be on your screen when you go to do your recording or planning. It's also nice in that it gives you nutritional data. You can get longer-term reports as well to see how you are doing over time. The digital reminders are nice at keeping you honest.

 

[gigatoaster]

Hello there

I’m also trying to lose a little bit of weight and would like some advice. I started 1st of January at 100 kg and I wanted to lose 3 kg per month. I almost did it but now I’m flat.

I’m 178 cm and according to BMI Index I should be 79 kg.

I use my Apple Watch and it really motivates me. It’s also something I’m very obsessed. I don’t do high intensive stuff, just walking 2 hours a day. I don’t like running but I want to try this month.

I’m not traveling so no more food in the plane or restaurant. I limited fast food & sodas & alcohol but from time to time I go to the restaurant. I weight myself every.single.day so that might be an obsession. But once a week someone says “wow you lost a lot of weight”, last time it was the neighbour.

I have the following questions:

1. Am I losing weight properly? Shall I do more or less?
2. Now that I’m flat, any recommendations?
3. Is 79 kg a reachable objective?

 

[pshufd]

Hello there

I’m also trying to lose a little bit of weight and would like some advice. I started 1st of January at 100 kg and I wanted to lose 3 kg per month. I almost did it but now I’m flat.

I’m 178 cm and according to BMI Index I should be 79 kg.

I use my Apple Watch and it really motivates me. It’s also something I’m very obsessed. I don’t do high intensive stuff, just walking 2 hours a day. I don’t like running but I want to try this month.

I’m not traveling so no more food in the plane or restaurant. I limited fast food & sodas & alcohol but from time to time I go to the restaurant. I weight myself every.single.day so that might be an obsession. But once a week someone says “wow you lost a lot of weight”, last time it was the neighbour.

I have the following questions:

1. Am I losing weight properly? Shall I do more or less?
2. Now that I’m flat, any recommendations?
3. Is 79 kg a reachable objective?

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A really good site explaining the efficiencies of various weight loss approaches.

T Nation Content

Discover a more intelligent approach for getting bigger, stronger, and leaner.

www.t-nation.com

 

[Gutwrench]

Whenever cutting I just simply make sure I’m calorically deficient. Nothing more complicated than that...other than self discipline.

When competing I cut by starvation to hit weight then bounced back up. Hard as heck on the body and mind. Rule changes ended that.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

There are web apps and mobile apps that track what you eat along with hydration so that you can get reports of your calories consumed vs base metabolic burn. It's a constant reminder as to what your daily budget is. I use LiveStrong MyPlate for calorie tracking and my watch and Garmin Connect have hydration tracking.

So with the tracking, you could go on a pizza binge but the numbers would be on your screen when you go to do your recording or planning. It's also nice in that it gives you nutritional data. You can get longer-term reports as well to see how you are doing over time. The digital reminders are nice at keeping you honest.

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I know those apps exist. I actually tried one, but got bogged down in the minutia of what I ate. It, for me, took the fun out of it all. It became a burden. Especially when some of the stuff I ate wasn't listed, and I had to research what it was, and come up with estimates, and blah... blah... blah...

I stopped logging altogether. Rubbish. Took the fun out of it.

I looked at things in generalities. It made it easier, for me.

And the whole BMI thing is sketchy as heck. Even at my best weight, I was still just a smidge over the line for being, I forget the actual term, but 'overweight'. My doctor looked at me, and said 'They're full of it! You look amazing!'. So, don't put too much into the BMI scale once you get started, or well on your way to losing weight. I tried to stay positive throughout the whole thing. I also did the little things too, like taking the stairs, parking across the parking lot at stores, on 'bad days', I did *something* at least to get it done (Walked in treadmill, did yoga, meditation). Don't push pain. Pain is a warning. If your joints hurt, take care of them. Knee replacements and hip replacements are never as good as the original equipment. (I wish I had given up skiing decades ago)

But don't do just one form of exercise, crosstrain. I think the key for me was doing weight, AND cario at the same time. (Well, not 'leg day'. If I pushed on the weights, legs in particular, I did not run that day) You can push your muscles too hard, and 'Rhabdo' (Rhabdomyolysis) is not what you want. I friend of a friend had that. He lost over 60% of the muscle mass in one leg. I think like 40% in the other. He was on a statin blood drug, and training as a semipro weight lifter. He spent two months in hospital, and was septic something like three or four times, and coded several times too. He was a mess when he got out. Don't do that. (Also on blood thinners, you can develop 'compartment syndrome' from bruising of large muscles, and that alone can cause a serious medical crisis) (Another point is, if you are on big drugs for strokes, or heart things, ASK YOUR DOCTOR! That stuff can explode on you and kill you (or make you wish you had died) if you push too hard! Seriously! Even asthma meds can cause arrhythmias! Not a good thing)

Be good to yourself.

Cheers!

 

[44267547]

I was listening to a podcast from a retired power lifter the other day, and he said something really interesting. From a male perspective, he said you either are comfortable very being very lean with a smaller waist size or you’d rather be bulk having a muscular build. There’s no real in between was his mindset.

That got me thinking, I’ve Always had a stocky, muscular build. I could stop lifting weights for an entire year and I would still probably hold a fairly large amount of muscle just giving my diet and based on my genetic traits. I wouldn’t want it any other way.

I guess my point is, When it comes to physical fitness, you’re either attempting to keep your waist line down to keep yourself ‘thin’ based on diet/other health considerations or you’re trying to put muscle/bulk on for a comp. or in general. I prefer the pack on muscle with a prima-bulk diet.

 

[pshufd]

I prefer lean but my sports are tennis and running and lean makes sense for those sports. Lean also has an advantage in less stress on leg joints which you appreciate as you get older.