[Other] Dave's Quest for Health. (aka Help a fat guy get thin.)

Dave

Dave

Staff member
So I'm not sure if you caught the fact in the Rant thread that I have purchased a bike with the intention of getting in shape and ultimately use it to ride to work. If you saw that then you also know that I found myself in terrible shape and even short rides was hellish. So I finally said "Fuck it!" and started taking even more steps to health.

  • I joined a gym - I looked around a lot at what I could afford and found a place that's only $30 a month, including classes (Zumba, step, endurance training, etc.) and a nutrition assessment which turned out to be a waste of time.
  • I'm dieting. Or at least I'm going to, once I settle on which one I want to do. Until I decide I'm going strict calories in < calories out. And it sucks. I assume it'll get better once I pick a diet and can actually plan meals.
  • I finally have support. This is a big one. In the past I got NO help at home if I wanted to try something like this. This time my wife is joining me in trying to get healthy. So we're doing it together. We went to the gym last night (her first night) and she did a Zumba class while I rode the stationary bike for 5 miles. Tonight we are both taking a "functional strength and balance" class...whatever the fuck that is.
Bottom line is I'm finally getting off my ass and doing something about myself. I'll be posting here occasionally with updates and the like so you can track my progress or egg me on - and yes, making fun of me is allowed and almost expected. I'm one of those people who when told I CAN'T do something will do my level best to accomplish it. Don't harsh on my wife, though. I'd have to go medieval on your ass.
What pointers ya got? What diets have worked for you? Do you recommend one over another? Why?
Help a Dave become a mini-me.[DOUBLEPOST=1342121410][/DOUBLEPOST]By the way, starting weight is 200 lbs, target is 160. This is the first time I'm been in a gym since 1987. Working cardio and that sort of thing first.
 
Tress

Tress

Don't do trick diets or gimmick diets. Things like Atkins or South Beach tend to not work, or they have huge downsides that negate the value of the weight loss. For example, the Atkins diet may help you lose some weight, but it destroys your cholesterol and blood pressure. And besides, the weight all comes crashing back if you go off the gimmick diets. So really, just make fruits and vegetables the main anchor of what you eat, and watch your calories. There's no better way to improve your diet in my opinion.

Good luck! I have confidence you will succeed at this.
 
Bubble181

Bubble181

200 pounds isn't exaclty whale territory; you can be perfectly healthy at that weight for your size and age...Though, obviously, 160 is porbably better for a lot of things (joints/cholestorol/back/...). Anyway, if you were having trouble with short rides and so on, your very first thign to do is obviously cardio and endurance training - so that if/when you do other things, you can do them for a good long while.
In that view, do'nt overdo the dieting. It seems to be an american thing that dieting is absolutely always necessary and whatever...It isn't. Minding your food is one thing, dieting is something else. Try to eat healthy, try to think of what you're eating is doing to your body (such as, eating a heavy meal right before bedtime means a large part of your body can't relax while you sleep 'cause it's still hard at work).

Anyway, that your wife is joinging you is a very good thing. it's hard to stay motivated alone; both when it comes to sport and when it comes to eating. If she and/or live-in children don't join in, it can be frustrating and self-defeating - like stopping smoking if your wife just continues smoking right next to you...It makes it a lot harder.
However, don't blindly just do everything together. Depending on your goals, it's possible one of you should be doing/eating very different things/amounts. Toning, losing weight, gaining muscles, endurance,.... It's not the point that her breasts melt away and you get finely chiseled calves and thighs to look great under a skirt :p

But, hey, beginning is one of the hardest steps, you go boy (and girl, to her)!
 
Gared

Gared

The best advice I can give is to make sure that your workout is, if not fun, then at least not the most boringly hellish slog imaginable. Just riding 5 miles on a stationary bike would bore me to tears and I'd be unlikely to go back to do it again, so what I did (and admittedly this was a program that my trainer put me on) was 15 - 20 minutes of cardio on a stationary bike as a warm up, followed by weight lifting with interspersed ab workouts and more cardio. The weight lifting was fun and gave me some quickly gratifying measurement of improvement, which kept me going back, and the cardio was great for my heart rate and for weight loss.
 
Dave

Dave

Staff member
I realize that 200 pounds may not be that much in the long run but let's look at what has motivated me to do this.

First, when I got married I was wearing size 28 pants. Now, I realize that that was actually unhealthily thin, but I was in pretty decent shape. Now I'm wearing size 36 and they are getting so tight I should probably move to 38. I don't want to go to a 38. I'm over 200 for the first time in my life and I just feel lethargic. Part of it is age and part is weight. I can't reverse my age but by God I can work on my weight!

The pants was a big thing but the other was when I attended an event at work and started really looking at my co-workers. As a guy who works closely with IT I noticed that they were all basically clones of myself - old fat white guys with goatees. Then I looked at management. Trim, shaved, in shape. The difference was night & day. If I don't do something to change, I'll be relegated to cubical hell for the rest of my life. I know it sucks, but looks DO matter in a workplace, whether they want to acknowledge it or not. Look at your own places of business. How many obese people are running the joint? I'd be willing to bet that the ratio is skewed in favor of thin/in shape managers.

So I decided to get off my ass & shut my pie hole. It's going to be a bumpy ride.
 
Dave

Dave

Staff member
Shakey said:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ is a pretty good way to track your calories and progress.
Click to expand...
I'm already on that, which is why I said the nutritional assessment was bullshit. Basically the assessment was to show me (and pay $10 a month access to) their own web site which is nearly identical to MyFitnessPal. MFP has better nutrition information, but damn it I paid for the other one!
 
HowDroll

HowDroll

Couch to 5k: http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml !!

Since I started this program, I went from being able to run for about a block before getting completely winded, to hopping on the treadmill and/or trail and running for 2-3 miles at a time. It's FANTASTIC and it really eases you into distance running.

I've always had a really hard time with losing weight with the calories in < calories out formula, even when I carefully measure portion sizes and over-estimate the calories I'm consuming, but I love carbs and tend to eat a lot of bread/pasta/potatoes/etc. My best results have always come when I at least loosely follow a paleo/primal diet -- more information here: http://www.livestrong.com/article/222538-primal-diet/. It's something I'm going to pick back up when I start working from home in August; there's a lot of really interesting evidence in favor of a diet like that, but I feel awesome when I manage to stick to it, so if you're not getting the results you want with the way you're eating now it might be something to look into.
 
Bubble181

Bubble181

Dave said:
How many obese people are running the joint? I'd be willing to bet that the ratio is skewed in favor of thin/in shape managers.
Click to expand...
Not only has to do with looks. Heavier people need more energy for the same amount of movement and so on and so forth; it's "obvious" when you're looking at really heavy people but the same affects you and you can notive a difference after just a few pounds. More weight -> more energy needed to move about and heat your body and all of that -> less energy left for other things. Less energetic, less decisive, less willing to take initiative.
It's one of many ways your body, unfortunately, has an impact on your mind. Pfeh.
 
drifter

drifter

Take it slow and listen to your body. No need to rush things, and you'll hurt yourself if you do. Whenver I'm exercising and start seeing good progress, I'll think to myself "fuck yeah, time to crank it up" and end up breaking down from overexertion. Don't be afraid to take rest days; you'll need them.
 
Adam

Adam

How tall are you? 200lbs is my ideal weight :(

Start walking. Fuck the gym, fuck zumba. Get a pedometer and commit to 10,000 steps per day. Do that for 3 or 4 weeks and then start ramping up to the gym and zumba. If you go too hard at the beginning, it's so easy to fall off.
 
Terrik

Terrik

I've taken to waking up, taking a bus a couple miles down the road, getting off and walking back home and getting ready for work. Just make a part of the daily routine.
 
Silent Bob

Silent Bob

Hey Dave.

I'm a fitness trainer. I'll hook you up, brah.[DOUBLEPOST=1342142165][/DOUBLEPOST]
Dave said:
So I'm not sure if you caught the fact in the Rant thread that I have purchased a bike with the intention of getting in shape and ultimately use it to ride to work. If you saw that then you also know that I found myself in terrible shape and even short rides was hellish. So I finally said "Fuck it!" and started taking even more steps to health.

  • I joined a gym - I looked around a lot at what I could afford and found a place that's only $30 a month, including classes (Zumba, step, endurance training, etc.) and a nutrition assessment which turned out to be a waste of time
Click to expand...
YES! Make sure you do things that you find fun and not tedious or boring, especially in the beginning when you're building your routine. Zumba is great! I recommend joining a Spin class since you're getting into cycling. It's always great to sign up for group activity sessions. On top of that you'll meet people to be work out buddies (I'll cover that point later). I focus mostly on endurance training and strength training. Send me a PM and I can hook you up with a great stretching routine and lifting schedule.


  • I'm dieting. Or at least I'm going to, once I settle on which one I want to do. Until I decide I'm going strict calories in < calories out. And it sucks. I assume it'll get better once I pick a diet and can actually plan meals.
Click to expand...
Very important. Although, don't go gung-ho like you are. You're going to end up craving stuff and eventually crash your diet. Start small. Instead of drinking like three sodas a day, cut down to one etc... Start getting used to shopping for fruit and vegetables. Again start small. Make a meal out of vegetables once a week. Cut down your meat intake to small 8 ounce cuts etc... I recommend the book "Eat this; not that". It's a really good way to gauge what's good and what's crap.

      • I finally have support. This is a big one. In the past I got NO help at home if I wanted to try something like this. This time my wife is joining me in trying to get healthy. So we're doing it together. We went to the gym last night (her first night) and she did a Zumba class while I rode the stationary bike for 5 miles. Tonight we are both taking a "functional strength and balance" class...whatever the fuck that is.
Click to expand...

People get great results with personal trainers because they have that constant motivation. Your wife is now your personal trainer. And you're hers! Always remember to push each other into going to the gym and not half-assing your routines.

Bottom line is I'm finally getting off my ass and doing something about myself. I'll be posting here occasionally with updates and the like so you can track my progress or egg me on - and yes, making fun of me is allowed and almost expected. I'm one of those people who when told I CAN'T do something will do my level best to accomplish it. Don't harsh on my wife, though. I'd have to go medieval on your ass.
What pointers ya got? What diets have worked for you? Do you recommend one over another? Why?
Help a Dave become a mini-me.[DOUBLEPOST=1342121410][/DOUBLEPOST]By the way, starting weight is 200 lbs, target is 160. This is the first time I'm been in a gym since 1987. Working cardio and that sort of thing first.
Click to expand...
 
Dave

Dave

Staff member
Silent Bob said:
Hey Dave.

I'm a fitness trainer. I'll hook you up, brah.
Click to expand...
Sweet! I'm 5'9". I started this week at 203 and am down to 201.4 as of about an hour ago. Here's what I've been doing so far:

portion control - not eating as much and eating a lot of little "snacks" - mostly apples, grapes, carrots, celery, that sort of thing.
Counting calories - Using the gym's site and MyFitnessPal. Making sure I don't eat things like the cookies we have here (70 cals per cookie!) or anything like that.
Cardio - I started with fairly decent cardio by riding my bike. I also mostly do treadmill and stationary bikes right now. Tonight I took a class with a trainer and we did bands for upper body and balance.

I've decided we're doing any low/no carb diet things as planning meals is too much of a step for us right now. It was a bit overwhelming.

One of my biggest problems is that I don't know how most of the machines work right yet. I float from machine to machine and check them out, but I feel that since I'm not paying for a personal trainer it's not fair of me to ask them how every machine works. I find one I like and then ask if I'm doing it right. But they'd probably help if I asked. They are really cool people.
 
B

BErt

Dave said:
Making sure I don't eat things like the cookies we have here (70 cals per cookie!)
Click to expand...
If your family is used to having cookies or sweets in the house, I've found it helpful to keep fudgesicles around. 40 cal per and low sugar/fat in the Popscicle brand ones.
 
Silent Bob

Silent Bob

Dave said:
Sweet! I'm 5'9". I started this week at 203 and am down to 201.4 as of about an hour ago. Here's what I've been doing so far:

portion control - not eating as much and eating a lot of little "snacks" - mostly apples, grapes, carrots, celery, that sort of thing.
Counting calories - Using the gym's site and MyFitnessPal. Making sure I don't eat things like the cookies we have here (70 cals per cookie!) or anything like that.
Cardio - I started with fairly decent cardio by riding my bike. I also mostly do treadmill and stationary bikes right now. Tonight I took a class with a trainer and we did bands for upper body and balance.

I've decided we're doing any low/no carb diet things as planning meals is too much of a step for us right now. It was a bit overwhelming.

One of my biggest problems is that I don't know how most of the machines work right yet. I float from machine to machine and check them out, but I feel that since I'm not paying for a personal trainer it's not fair of me to ask them how every machine works. I find one I like and then ask if I'm doing it right. But they'd probably help if I asked. They are really cool people.
Click to expand...
I recommend not looking at your weight as a guide. Your weight can literally change depending on phase of the moon.

measure your waist with a tape measure, and measure your hips. divide those numbers and measure the ratio from month to month. If you really want to you can use your weight as a guide; you should lose about a solid pound or two a week. Weigh yourself in the morning ONLY.

You can have a cookie. ONE. If you're dying for a chocolate fix. Mix up a glass of Hershey's syrup with skim milk.

Your gym should have staff on hand that will show you how to do each exercise on each specific machine. Don't be afraid to ask, it's what they're there for. Warning: don't listen to gym rats about lifting technique. Half the time they tell you the wrong thing.
 
Dei

Dei

My weight has literally a 4 pound shift throughout the month... but that is because of female things. Don't look at miniscule weight changes as meaning anything until they consistently stay that way or continue decreasing.
 
Enresshou

Enresshou

Also, since you're an RPG/gamer nerd like a lot of us: www.fitocracy.com

While I'd love to see them expand the program, it's pretty awesome. You get XP for workouts, can level up, have certain quests that will net you bonus XP and achievements (i.e. when I went rock climbing for an hour one day, I unlocked the "Cliffhanger" achievement). And I'll echo Silent Bob...doing something you enjoy is really important. I got into good shape during the height of the DDR craze, I've stayed in decent shape doing parkour and rock climbing...it's immensely helpful finding something you have fun doing that burns calories.

Speaking as a foodie, I find the hardest part of dieting would be the food; specifically, the foods you have a weakness for (I have a fondness for Coke that I can't shake) and life intruding on you being able to make a good meal (i.e. "I'm tired...screw it, let's go to *insert fast food chain*.") Something that's helped my fiance and I has been crock pot cooking and finding recipes centered around a healthy ingredient we like (such as lentils). This website in particular has been a big help for recipe ideas: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/content/healthy/

Best of luck to you and your wife, though!
 
Dave

Dave

Staff member
Enresshou said:
Also, since you're an RPG/gamer nerd like a lot of us: www.fitocracy.com

While I'd love to see them expand the program, it's pretty awesome. You get XP for workouts, can level up, have certain quests that will net you bonus XP and achievements (i.e. when I went rock climbing for an hour one day, I unlocked the "Cliffhanger" achievement). And I'll echo Silent Bob...doing something you enjoy is really important. I got into good shape during the height of the DDR craze, I've stayed in decent shape doing parkour and rock climbing...it's immensely helpful finding something you have fun doing that burns calories.

Speaking as a foodie, I find the hardest part of dieting would be the food; specifically, the foods you have a weakness for (I have a fondness for Coke that I can't shake) and life intruding on you being able to make a good meal (i.e. "I'm tired...screw it, let's go to *insert fast food chain*.") Something that's helped my fiance and I has been crock pot cooking and finding recipes centered around a healthy ingredient we like (such as lentils). This website in particular has been a big help for recipe ideas: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/content/healthy/

Best of luck to you and your wife, though!
Click to expand...
Fuckin' love it! Turning my health into a game? Awesome!
 
Enresshou

Enresshou

Hell yes. It's surprisingly effective...after one brutal lifting workout, I actually found myself doing a few extra exercises to get an achievement...
 
Silent Bob

Silent Bob

I have a poster on my office wall that I make all my clients read about Bruce Lee's friend:

Bruce had me up to three miles a day, really at a good pace. We'd run the three miles in twenty-one or twenty-two minutes. Just under eight minutes a mile [Note: when running on his own in 1968, Lee would get his time down to six-and-a half minutes per mile]. So this morning he said to me "We're going to go five." I said, "Bruce, I can't go five. I'm a helluva lot older than you are, and I can't do five." He said, "When we get to three, we'll shift gears and it's only two more and you'll do it." I said "Okay, hell, I'll go for it." So we get to three, we go into the fourth mile and I'm okay for three or four minutes, and then I really begin to give out. I'm tired, my heart's pounding, I can't go any more and so I say to him, "Bruce if I run any more," --and we're still running-"if I run any more I'm liable to have a heart attack and die." He said, "Then die." It made me so mad that I went the full five miles. Afterward I went to the shower and then I wanted to talk to him about it. I said, you know, "Why did you say that?" He said, "Because you might as well be dead. Seriously, if you always put limits on what you can do, physical or anything else, it'll spread over into the rest of your life. It'll spread into your work, into your morality, into your entire being. There are no limits. There are plateaus, but you must not stay there, you must go beyond them. If it kills you, it kills you. A man must constantly exceed his level."



This is what your buddy should be like.
 
Dave

Dave

Staff member
Well, my buddy won't be like that. My buddy needs more support than I do so I'll be that guy. But when she's doing things like Zumba I'll be hitting the other exercises and my own thing.
 
Frank

Frank

Counting calories is not always needed unless you're in truly dire straight.

Keep your meals to 4 ounces of lean meats (lean beef, chicken, fish, etc.), a quarter of the plate starch and half a plate of vegetables (with some fruit, don't overdo the fruit. No one lost weight eating tons of fruit.) you'll never be hungry and will be eating more than well enough to drop weight at a healthy, gradual rate. It's an easy way to keep your meals reasonable without counting calories.
 
SpecialKO

SpecialKO

I actually advise against counting calories. Unless you're massively overweight in the first place, your caloric intake is more or less what your body should be eating to stay healthy. Counting cals can help you lose weight, but reducing your intake can also make you massively hungry. Then you fall off the wagon and you're back where you started with, plus the guilt.

What you should focus on doing (and it sounds like you're already doing it), is eat better and exercise more.

Exercise makes up for the excess calories once your metabolism slows down with age (blah blah Dave age joke here blah blah), and eating better will help your body with proper digestion cycles and energy storage. That's really what portion control is for, not calorie counting.

Also, Fitocracy is the shit. Super recommended. I stopped using it for a while when I started my new job and had to change my schedule, but I'm finally into the rhythm of things and will probably go back to using it.
 
Silent Bob

Silent Bob

Here's my recommendation:

I consider the Atkins like diets to be crash diets. Yes, they work to an extent, but they only do because you're putting your body through ketosis, overall it's not a lifestyle choice you want to make, and it's easy to get bored and yo-yo back to even heavier to when you started.

IF you're going to be working out at least four to five times a week:
First off, check with your doctor. Get a physical first. Make sure you won't kill yourself.
Second this is a big one: don't follow this if you're half-assing your workouts.

Eat six small meals a day.

Breakfast is your biggest meal. Eat eggs and other high protein/carb foods for breakfast only.
Mid morning snack (a granola bar, raisins, nuts etc...).
For lunch go nuts have a single sandwich or pizza slice with grapes or celery
Mid Day snack : vegetable (i usually eat raw veggies with a little bit of ranch dip)
After work: have a nutragrain bar. something really small.

Do your workout (I'm guess you do a 9-5 job routine).

Dinner: keep it light; keep it small. DO NOT eat after 8 pm or before bed.

Now you don't have to follow this to a tea. Be flexible to your schedule and current lifestyle. That's really the key, Dave. You can't expect change overnight. If you have to alter things around be sure to stick to my breakfast rule and dinner rules. Those are really the most important. Your metabolism is like a furnace. You want to stoke it at breakfast time, and then just add logs to the fire through the day. This diet plan coupled with a good workout scheme is guaranteed to get you fit. Not skinny. Fit. You'll have more energy and be overall healthier.

Another note: Good food (good quality) is better for you. Go organic with your shopping. It's a little more expensive, but I'm a firm believer of "garbage in- garbage out". I don't know if you have local markets where you live, but that's where I get ALL of my shopping done. Processed food is TERRIBLE for you. Gradually ween yourself off processed foods and soft drinks. Again. Don't jump into this all at once. It's a slow process. Like I said earlier, slowly replace processed stuff with good stuff. Instead of three sodas, take one out and drink a water instead. The next week go down to one soda a day, etc...

Slow and steady. You want this to be a lifestyle change.
 
DarkAudit

DarkAudit

When I went to DC last month, it was three days of walking until my feet were ready to fall off, take a nice soak in the hotel tub in the evening, then get up and do it all over again come morning. I didn't gorge myself, nor did I starve. Came back home about 20 pounds down from what I thought I was.

I need to figure out how to fit that into a routine of overnight front desk shifts.
 
drifter

drifter

Dude, there is no way you lost 20 lbs of real weight in three days from walking. You were either retaining hella water, or you were not nearly as heavy as you previously thought.
 
DarkAudit

DarkAudit

drifter said:
Dude, there is no way you lost 20 lbs of real weight in three days from walking. You were either retaining hella water, or you were not nearly as heavy as you previously thought.
Click to expand...
I'm guessing the latter, as I hadn't gone near a scale in months and my clothes weren't getting noticeably looser or tighter.

But still, it showed me I've still got it in me to get back under 200 myself.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top