Gym - Healthy Heart and Mind

Going to start a gym regiment today followed by a complete change in diet as well. Wish me luck, need to lose at least 100lbs.

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blargoe

Good luck!

chrisone

One word of advice, break up your large goal with smaller ones. 100 lbs is a lot, so try like 5 or 10 lbs each month or every 2 o 3 weeks. If you want to burn calories, just focus on cardio, dont bother with weights at the moment. Try you best to perform routines with little rest periods.

Always be safe and consult a doctor for your overall health status. You might have to take it easy at first if your heart is in bad shape. Good Luck!

RobertKaucher

chrisone wrote: »

One word of advice, break up your large goal with smaller ones. 100 lbs is a lot, so try like 5 or 10 lbs each month or every 2 o 3 weeks. If you want to burn calories, just focus on cardio, dont bother with weights at the moment. Try you best to perform routines with little rest periods.

Always be safe and consult a doctor for your overall health status. You might have to take it easy at first if your heart is in bad shape. Good Luck!

Especially if you are looking at dropping 100 lbs or more you really need to see a Dr. But I disagree with the statement about the wights. Resistance training raises your resting metabolic rate and will help break up the tedium of doing cardio. Especially since a person who is 100 lbs over weight will have neither the strength nor ability to do more than walk fast. Your joints just will not be able to handle it. Doing both creates a positive feedback loop that enhances your mental drive and physical ability.

My only word of caution is this: no amount of working out or cardio will be enough. Diet is far more important than any time spent in the gym. I suggest you look at the book the Paleo Solution, but the most important thing is just cutting out the processed food and empty carbs (soda).

In 2008 I was over 300 lbs. I'm now 185 and 12% BF. My last blood screen was amazing with my good colesterol at 120. You are not alone on TE! There are a bunch of us who have been working on transforming our bodies.

chrisone

Wow congrats on your achievements! I believe you have a better insight and a much closer experience as to what Ryuksapple84 is geared to. You are right Diet is key and number one top priority when losing weight.

Heero

One piece of advice. Plan for the longhaul. Losing 100lbs is a year or longer process (if done in a healthy way). Additionally, it is much easier to burn out when trying go be extreme with weight loss.

Put yourself in the mindset of getting healthy rather than losing weight.

RobertKaucher

Heero wrote: »

One piece of advice. Plan for the longhaul. Losing 100lbs is a year or longer process (if done in a healthy way). Additionally, it is much easier to burn out when trying go be extreme with weight loss.

Put yourself in the mindset of getting healthy rather than losing weight.

I agree 100% with this. This is a 2 to 3 year job just to get where you want to be.

za3bour

Good for you, I'm going to the gym now on regular basis 4 times a week and I couldn't be happier. It is health for mind and heart and for me this is how I overcome stress.

RobertKaucher

za3bour wrote: »

Good for you, I'm going to the gym now on regular basis 4 times a week and I couldn't be happier. It is health for mind and heart and for me this is how I overcome stress.

I joke that that's why it's called a "work-out" it gets all the crap from work out of your system.

blargoe

I have totally let myself go too. I have personally started to take the approach of simply replacing one bad habit with a good one. One at a time. The calories will take care of themselves. I have had pretty good success with this approach in the past, but at some point I stopped caring... depression will so that to you sometimes... Back on the wagon now.

No more regular soda - water instead (or "light" soft drinks like Crystal Lite or Diet Soda if the water is wearing thin). This one is actually pretty easy for me.

Staying hydrated through the day. I tend to neglect drinking enough, but I find that, if I happen to have a bottle of water next to me during the work day, I tend to consume plenty of water. Helps keep me feeling fuller longer too.

Rather than the convenience options for lunch - fast food in particular - making it a priority to take the time to eat a proper lunch. When this is impossible, at the very least, avoid the fried stuff. I have been making an effort recently to bring my lunch from home, and to only bring an appropriate portion size. An hour or so later, I'm not hungry... it takes some getting used to eating the right portions.

Actually eating enough times during the day and not skipping meals.

Replacing the extra helping of whatever the meat or bread of the meal is with a vegetable.

brad-

Ryuksapple84 wrote: »

Going to start a gym regiment today followed by a complete change in diet as well. Wish me luck, need to lose at least 100lbs.

I was in your shoes last January. I dedicated myself to it, still going strong. I went from 300 to 230 in 11 months.

I did cardio only for about 8 weeks, 5x a week. Make the most of your time in the gym. Work as hard as you can, as long as you can. When you cant do any more, move to a different machine. Dont work for less than an hour, just walk if you have to.

For cardio with a heavy person like i was, find yourself an elliptical machine. They are the most efficient for calories burned vs time. Once you get your feet under you, start doing "sprints" with it - go hard for 1 minute, rest, repeat. When you get exhausted, do the stair climber, bike, or treadmill.

After I had lost about 40 lbs, i started weights. I lost weight at a lower rate, but my body was still transforming. When you start weights, i cannot stress this enough, do compound lifts. Google it. Bench, military press, squats, deadlifts. If you dont do anything else, do squats. Works your whole body and releases the most metabolic hormones which lead to increased size everywhere else including legs.

Count your calories. You have to do the math to be successful. Study nutrition, understanding what you're doing helps motivate you. For me, i found about a half dozen foods to live on, and limited myself to those to just keep me from having ot make food decisions.

Find yourself a good water bottle. Stay hydrated. Get you a good playlist going to workout to...or find some good podcasts.

Prepare. If you dont prepare, you will fail. Pack your lunches. Grocery shop. Get your gym back ready every night. Do your laundry - keep your favorite workout clothes clean.

The key though, is your mindset. Make the decision, committ to it. There is no try, do or do not.

Hope some of that helps.

UnixGuy

Lot of great advice in here ! Thank you guys!

I'll add some points from my experience:

it's almost 90% food and 10% exercise. Don't eat at night, and get used to being hungry. Eat healthy, and eat lots of viggies. Exercise will make you hungry, but with time you'll get used to that.

Stay away from fast food, if you eat fast food you'll never get the desired results. Make your own meals, and if you have to eat out just stick to salads.

Get enough sleep. When you don't get enough sleep, your body tends to store fat!

Don't make losing the 100lb your ultimate goal, it's a journey. You need to get fit and stay fit. It's a life style, and it'll definitely pay off

Tuna (without mayo/oil), egg whites, grilled chicken breasts, grilled fish, lean meat (grilled),.. are examples of what you should be eating. But best way is to go to a doctor or a Nutritionist to get the best results

za3bour

UnixGuy wrote: »

Lot of great advice in here ! Thank you guys!

I'll add some points from my experience:

it's almost 90% food and 10% exercise. Don't eat at night, and get used to being hungry. Eat healthy, and eat lots of viggies. Exercise will make you hungry, but with time you'll get used to that.

Stay away from fast food, if you eat fast food you'll never get the desired results. Make your own meals, and if you have to eat out just stick to salads.

Get enough sleep. When you don't get enough sleep, your body tends to store fat!

Don't make losing the 100lb your ultimate goal, it's a journey. You need to get fit and stay fit. It's a life style, and it'll definitely pay off

Tuna (without mayo/oil), egg whites, grilled chicken breasts, grilled fish, lean meat (grilled),.. are examples of what you should be eating. But best way is to go to a doctor or a Nutritionist to get the best results

Well I disagree, I think it's a 50-50 thing, food is as important as exercise, yes you can lose weight without going to gym at all but going to the gym cut many stages and it does help in shaping your body the way you want it.

if you care 90% about what you eat then you will be thin maybe but you will not be healthy in my opinion. Sport is a very effective way to achieve peace of mind, to cut off stress, have a clear mind ...etc especially if you work in IT it's a direct way for health problems if you don't act.

I agree about everything else, good sleep, no fast food, a lot of veggies, ...etc and the most important thing is to have it as a lifestyle.

Every time I go out with friends they ask me and my wife after we ordered are you on a diet and our answer is always NO this is our way of living this is our lifestyle. Yes we can eat chicken parmesan but at this moment we prefer to have grilled one with a lot of veggies. Yes we love French fries but a baked potato is also a good choice ..etc

Ryuksapple84

I have cut out soda and am in the process of cutting out processed foods 100% as well. Portion control combined with eathing fresh foods and excerise really is helping. I went for a walk yesterday with my wife and afterwards, I was very energized.

I will be lifting as well in lieu to cardio. Am also taking vitamins as well. Thanks for the encouragement guys.

Ryuksapple84

blargoe wrote: »

I have totally let myself go too. I have personally started to take the approach of simply replacing one bad habit with a good one. One at a time. The calories will take care of themselves. I have had pretty good success with this approach in the past, but at some point I stopped caring... depression will so that to you sometimes... Back on the wagon now.

No more regular soda - water instead (or "light" soft drinks like Crystal Lite or Diet Soda if the water is wearing thin). This one is actually pretty easy for me.

Staying hydrated through the day. I tend to neglect drinking enough, but I find that, if I happen to have a bottle of water next to me during the work day, I tend to consume plenty of water. Helps keep me feeling fuller longer too.

Rather than the convenience options for lunch - fast food in particular - making it a priority to take the time to eat a proper lunch. When this is impossible, at the very least, avoid the fried stuff. I have been making an effort recently to bring my lunch from home, and to only bring an appropriate portion size. An hour or so later, I'm not hungry... it takes some getting used to eating the right portions.

Actually eating enough times during the day and not skipping meals.

Replacing the extra helping of whatever the meat or bread of the meal is with a vegetable.

Keep at it. I can understand the whole depression thing. In my case, it was stress of having a low paying job and studying for my certs along with some family issues. Slowly things started to sort out and now I am in a place where I can make some positive changes.

Just taking it one day at a time and I feel this needs to be a change in the life style, not just a diet fad.

UnixGuy

yes but if you already have a very high percentage of body fat, then you need to do more than just exercising. You need to burn calories, more than what you eat. The ratio should be high because you need to burn what you eat + the fat stored in your body. Exercise will boost your metabolism, especially cardio.

Anyway, a nutritionist will do a better job here

za3bour wrote: »

Well I disagree, I think it's a 50-50 thing, food is as important as exercise, yes you can lose weight without going to gym at all but going to the gym cut many stages and it does help in shaping your body the way you want it.

if you care 90% about what you eat then you will be thin maybe but you will not be healthy in my opinion. Sport is a very effective way to achieve peace of mind, to cut off stress, have a clear mind ...etc especially if you work in IT it's a direct way for health problems if you don't act.

I agree about everything else, good sleep, no fast food, a lot of veggies, ...etc and the most important thing is to have it as a lifestyle.

Every time I go out with friends they ask me and my wife after we ordered are you on a diet and our answer is always NO this is our way of living this is our lifestyle. Yes we can eat chicken parmesan but at this moment we prefer to have grilled one with a lot of veggies. Yes we love French fries but a baked potato is also a good choice ..etc

za3bour

UnixGuy wrote: »

Anyway, a nutritionist will do a better job here

of course, I'm only talking from an experience point of view not science one.

RobertKaucher

brad- wrote: »

Count your calories. You have to do the math to be successful. Study nutrition, understanding what you're doing helps motivate you. For me, i found about a half dozen foods to live on, and limited myself to those to just keep me from having ot make food decisions.

I did not start doing this until I hit a big wall in my weight loss just this year. Before that, so long as my portions were ok and I was not cheating a lot on weekends the weight kept coming off at a steady pace.

I wish I had done this at least a little bit from the beginning to get a better idea of calories in my common foods. It would have saved me 6 to 9 months of spinning my wheels with little progress.

The issue? I was eating too FEW calories. Eating Paleo allowed me to consume a good volume of food and cut the hunger but it kind of skewed my idea of calories. I was eating only 1600 to 1800 calories a day and I needed to consume closer to 2700 to keep my weight stable. Meaning I was at times eating nearly 1000 - 300 too few calories and my body was just starving. As an experiment I bumped my calories up to 1800-2000 and I started getting leaner (although my weight jumped nearly 10 lbs I dropped a pants size). Now the only time I eat less than 2000 is on days when I am not working out.

But to the OP I think that especially in the first year measuring every calorie/portion will be overkill. Weight loss is pretty "easy" when you are starting out because your body is eager to get rid of the excess as your hormonal environment is stablizing and your insulin resistance comes down.

pitviper

Good for you man! Slow and steady wins the race!

DEMENT3D1

chrisone wrote: »

One word of advice, break up your large goal with smaller ones. 100 lbs is a lot, so try like 5 or 10 lbs each month or every 2 o 3 weeks. If you want to burn calories, just focus on cardio, dont bother with weights at the moment. Try you best to perform routines with little rest periods.

Always be safe and consult a doctor for your overall health status. You might have to take it easy at first if your heart is in bad shape. Good Luck!

I would agree with the first part, about setting small goals.

The part where you said, just to stay with cardio I would have to disagree. As a person who holds ACE and ISSA personal trainer certification and has 5 years experience in fitness.

Cardio is great for burning calories and increasing the well being of a person. Cardio is a must for everyone but for weight loss lifting weight is just as good if not better.

You see cardio just burns calories while you are doing it, but weight lifting burns long after because your body just went though something where your muscles tore, where they will need the energy to recover, this will burn calories hours after the workout.

I suggest a good diet, because you cannot lose weight without a proper diet and then comes exercise routine which should involve weight lifting and cardio.

Good luck. Think small goals, as you achive one by one you will feel better about yourself. Start with 2-5 pounds a week, then another 4-6 next week and so on.

Excellent1

RobertKaucher wrote: »

I did not start doing this until I hit a big wall in my weight loss just this year. Before that, so long as my portions were ok and I was not cheating a lot on weekends the weight kept coming off at a steady pace.

I wish I had done this at least a little bit from the beginning to get a better idea of calories in my common foods. It would have saved me 6 to 9 months of spinning my wheels with little progress.

The issue? I was eating too FEW calories. Eating Paleo allowed me to consume a good volume of food and cut the hunger but it kind of skewed my idea of calories. I was eating only 1600 to 1800 calories a day and I needed to consume closer to 2700 to keep my weight stable. Meaning I was at times eating nearly 1000 - 300 too few calories and my body was just starving. As an experiment I bumped my calories up to 1800-2000 and I started getting leaner (although my weight jumped nearly 10 lbs I dropped a pants size). Now the only time I eat less than 2000 is on days when I am not working out.

But to the OP I think that especially in the first year measuring every calorie/portion will be overkill. Weight loss is pretty "easy" when you are starting out because your body is eager to get rid of the excess as your hormonal environment is stablizing and your insulin resistance comes down.

I've counted calories from the beginning of my journey, and I've found it extremely helpful, both in terms of decision making and in terms of motivation (i.e., not eating fast food because of how much actual exercise effort goes into getting rid of it). As of last Friday I've lost 158 pounds (down to 189 from 347 21 months ago) and I have recently had to increase my calories as well.

I don't have a fancy diet (not sure what Paleo is, but I'll look it up later), my approach was to make a list of the foods that I like to eat, then research those foods to see which are healthy. From there, I looked for lists of healthy foods for meats, veggies, etc, and made food choices from them that I thought I could tolerate. Afterwards, I just began eating from those food groups in quantities (calories) that made sense for me at whatever weight I was at the time.

As for exercise, I've lost all my weight with a beat up exercise bike (that I was too fat for by 50 pounds when I started), and a set of 15 and 25 pound dumbells. It doesn't take much in the way of equipment. You can do some brutal workouts using your own body weight and some simple weights. You don't need fancy machines or P90X or whatever fad is going on at the moment, all you need is the discipline in the kitchen and in your exercising. Once you commit to the lifestyle change, you'll see steady results.

However, once you reach a certain point, like Robert mentioned, you will then have to start fine tuning things to get the results you want. I'm at that stage now, and I'm trying to learn more about how to get to where I want to be. I don't care about looking like a model, but I would like to lose some more body fat and figure out how to maintain a certain amount of muscle mass without continuing to lose weight.

To anyone else out there that's struggling with their weight and you feel like there's no way you can lose it, I can identify. 2 years ago I had a discussion with my doctor about preparing me psychologically to have my legs amputated due to the complications I had from my diabetes. I was so fat I couldn't have a normal stress test because I was too heavy for the exercise bikes and the treadmills. I had a 50 inch waist and wore 3x shirts that were not exactly roomy. Now, I wear 32/30 jeans and large t-shirts that are not real tight. I can do 100 pushups / 100 situps and then do 10 miles on a bike in 31 minutes. Trust me when I say that if I can do this, anyone can, because my health was just about as bad as you can get without actually dying. So I would encourage anyone that's been putting off making a lifestyle change to do it and start today. The weight didn't get there overnight, and it won't go away overnight, but in a year or so you will see such huge changes that you won't regret any of the sacrifice it takes to get there.

Hypntick

Exercise I can do, my eating sucks however. It's not something that will change though, I can not eat green veggies in any form. Not sure if it's just a mental block i've got going on or if it's an actual physical reason. I can do tomato sauce and corn etc, but anything green makes my digestive system react quite violently in a very unpleasant manner. Luckily i'm not to far overweight I only need to drop about 30 pounds or so and i'll be fine, just need to get off my lazy butt and do it.

RobertKaucher

Excellent1 wrote: »

I don't have a fancy diet (not sure what Paleo is, but I'll look it up later), my approach was to make a list of the foods that I like to eat, then research those foods to see which are healthy.

Eat mostly plants, some lean meats, fruit and seeds/nuts. Nothing processed, no milk products, and no grains. The idea is to mimic the macronutrient levels eaten by Paleolithic hunter-gatherers, i.e. the foods we evolved to eat. I consume about 12 servings of veg every day, not counting fruits. 1 cup of spinach has as much calcium as a cup of milk, a gram more fiber than a cup of brown rice, and about a quarter the calories of the rice.

The only dairy and really the only highly processed food I consume regularly is my whey protein. For me, it is the optimal way to eat. But I'm not religious about it. I will never go back, though. Back a few months ago I tried taking a 4 day break when visiting my wife's family. It was not good. After the thrid day I had reoccurance of one of the things I have not had since going Paleo - a migraine. My wife said it was like someone flipped my ADD switch to high gear (I did not notice this, though) and I had - um - "digestive issuess". And this was not like I was eating McDonald's or anything. All the issues I had forgotten about came back in just a few days. Really sucked.

Excellent1

Interesting diet. I've looked at it a little bit, but I don't think it's for me. I think, as you pointed out, that diet is one of those things that folks have to figure out what works for them. For me, I definitely eat a lot of veggies now (far, far more than I used to), but I still eat meat. Being a carnivore by preference, countless chickens have fallen in my wake over the last 2 years

I do have a **** meal every week where I eat something I enjoy that's not particularly "healthy". This is one meal, not a whole **** day, and I typically don't exceed 2200 calories for this day. My normal day is closer to 1700 calories. One of the things I decided immediately when I began my diet and exercise changes was that I would drink nothing but water. I made this decision because by limiting my calorie intake, the first thing I realized is that I wanted each and every calorie I consume to come from actually eating and getting some feeling of satisfaction from. I can't stand soda anyway, but I grew up drinking sweet tea and high sugar juices, so eliminating those things was a big help for me.

For now, I'm still trying to come to grips with how much I've changed. I've always been the fat guy (was almost 240 pounds when I was 13), so I've had to completely change how I view myself. I still get surprised when I see my reflection, because my internal self-image has been a little slow to adjust. The main thing is that I'm healthier now. Obviously one cannot carry an extra human being's worth of body fat around for 20+ years as I did and have no repurcussions, but it is amazing how much the body can recover if you treat it correctly.

As a final comment, and I don't want to come across as all mystical or metaphysical, but I would never have been successful in this endeavor without my faith and the support of my church. Speaking for myself, I believe that if one's life is out of balance, be it physically, spiritually, or mentally, the result is ultimately a downward spiral. For me, I found the strength and discipline necessary to change an entire lifetime of poor lifestyle choices through my faith, and even though it's awkward sometimes to say that, I have to give credit where it's due. I accept that some people can make these kinds of changes through sheer willpower, but for me, I needed help and I got it. For that and many other things, I'm very thankful.

howiehandles

chrisone wrote: »

One word of advice, break up your large goal with smaller ones. 100 lbs is a lot, so try like 5 or 10 lbs each month or every 2 o 3 weeks. If you want to burn calories, just focus on cardio, dont bother with weights at the moment. Try you best to perform routines with little rest periods.

Always be safe and consult a doctor for your overall health status. You might have to take it easy at first if your heart is in bad shape. Good Luck!

Agree with the smaller goals, and give yourself a reward.

However, weights are a great way to burn calories, as anaerobic tends to burn calories longer than aerobic exercise does. With that being said, if/when you do lift, don't worry about how much you're lifting, but good form, and try to keep it between 8-15 reps. Vary the reps and weight to keep your muscles from getting complacent.

UnixGuy

Excellent1 wrote: »

...

However, once you reach a certain point, like Robert mentioned, you will then have to start fine tuning things to get the results you want. I'm at that stage now, and I'm trying to learn more about how to get to where I want to be. I don't care about looking like a model, but I would like to lose some more body fat and figure out how to maintain a certain amount of muscle mass without continuing to lose weight.
..

.. Now, I wear 32/30 jeans and large t-shirts that are not real tight. I can do 100 pushups / 100 situps and then do 10 miles on a bike in 31 minutes..

Kudos to you !!!

Now I'm at that point...still struggling with the waist area ...what did you do to overcome at that point of time ???

UnixGuy

RobertKaucher wrote: »

...

The only dairy and really the only highly processed food I consume regularly is my whey protein. For me, it is the optimal way to eat. ....

Interesting diet there Robert. I know everybody's different, but how many scoops of Whey protein do you take per day and when do you take them ? do you mix it with Milk ? Do you take Whey protein or Whey isolates (zero fat) ?

somehow, I noticed an increase in size in my waist area after I started consuming Whey..not sure if it's directly related to Whey consumption anyway.

RobertKaucher

UnixGuy wrote: »

Interesting diet there Robert. I know everybody's different, but how many scoops of Whey protein do you take per day and when do you take them ? do you mix it with Milk ? Do you take Whey protein or Whey isolates (zero fat) ?

somehow, I noticed an increase in size in my waist area after I started consuming Whey..not sure if it's directly related to Whey consumption anyway.

It depends on the day. I cycle my calories based on the type and intensity of workout I am doing. 4.5 scoops is my usual. I stay between 1.5 and 2 grams of protein per lbs of lean mass and my LBM is estimated at about 162 pounds. So no less than 243 grams of protein daily. On a high calorie day I will have one in the morning when I wake up, one around 11:30 before my pre-lunch workout and one around 2:30. Then I will have one before my nightly workout and one after it. During my nightly workout I have a concoction of some sort of high GI carb and half a scoop of whey.

I only use water to mix with the whey and it is isolate.

As far as the increase in size in your waist, the only thing I could imagine that might cause that is a mild lactose sensitivity – but whey is lactose free unless you are mixing it with milk, of course. But, depending on how much of an increase, it could also be just an increase in core muscle size (obliques primarily).

At this point someone is bound to complain that my protein intake is too high because they have read and are repeating something they did not fully understand. Based on my caloric needs and the amount of resistance training that I am doing, my protein intake is fine. I have never had a urine screen comeback with even protein levels on the high range of normal. My kidneys are fine, thank you for the concern.

RobertKaucher

Excellent1 wrote: »

Interesting diet. I've looked at it a little bit, but I don't think it's for me. I think, as you pointed out, that diet is one of those things that folks have to figure out what works for them. For me, I definitely eat a lot of veggies now (far, far more than I used to), but I still eat meat. Being a carnivore by preference, countless chickens have fallen in my wake over the last 2 years

I do have a **** meal every week where I eat something I enjoy that's not particularly "healthy". This is one meal, not a whole **** day, and I typically don't exceed 2200 calories for this day. My normal day is closer to 1700 calories. One of the things I decided immediately when I began my diet and exercise changes was that I would drink nothing but water. I made this decision because by limiting my calorie intake, the first thing I realized is that I wanted each and every calorie I consume to come from actually eating and getting some feeling of satisfaction from. I can't stand soda anyway, but I grew up drinking sweet tea and high sugar juices, so eliminating those things was a big help for me.

Juice is nothing more than a high-calorie drink marketed as "healthy." A glass of juice might contain the calories from 3 or more fruits. We were not built to consime that much sugar all at once.

Cutting out grains was not that hard for me. What people don't realize is that most Americans do not actually eat grains. They eat grain-based edible food-like products that are usually so highly processed they have to be re-enriched with vitamins by the manufacturer (mandated by Federal law in the US because people once died of malnutrition from eating the crap).

I don’t think grains are really bad for you (although I think I might have a gluten sensitivity). But we don’t eat healthy grains as a staple in the US anymore. It’s sugar bound granola bars with white icing drizzled on top marketed as a cereal bar with milk. Or oatmeal flavored with sugar. I think a big part of really eating healthy is figuring out what is food and what is junk food – and when the marketing is just lying to you.

Excellent1 wrote: »

For now, I'm still trying to come to grips with how much I've changed. I've always been the fat guy (was almost 240 pounds when I was 13), so I've had to completely change how I view myself. I still get surprised when I see my reflection, because my internal self-image has been a little slow to adjust. The main thing is that I'm healthier now. Obviously one cannot carry an extra human being's worth of body fat around for 20+ years as I did and have no repurcussions, but it is amazing how much the body can recover if you treat it correctly.

I know what you mean. I still think of myself as fat... That could be a good thing, though...

Excellent1

RobertKaucher wrote: »

Juice is nothing more than a high-calorie drink marketed as "healthy." A glass of juice might contain the calories from 3 or more fruits. We were not built to consime that much sugar all at once.

Cutting out grains was not that hard for me. What people don't realize is that most Americans do not actually eat grains. They eat grain-based edible food-like products that are usually so highly processed they have to be re-enriched with vitamins by the manufacturer (mandated by Federal law in the US because people once died of malnutrition from eating the crap).

...

I know what you mean. I still think of myself as fat... That could be a good thing, though...

Yeah, I agree about the juice, which is why I cut it out. I was sort of floored by just how many calories I was taking in every day by what I was drinking back then. There were days I was taking in over 1000 calories alone just by drinks. Having only had water now for almost 2 years, I can tell you that I enjoy water, and I don't miss the other stuff. I just have no desire to drink anything else. Water tastes fine to me, satisfies my thirst, and allows me to eat more real food. Works out well.

With regards to the amount of sugar most of us consume, I couldn't agree more. The leading cause of type 2 diabetes is lifestyle (read: diet). My last A1C was 4.7, which isn't bad for someone who used to be on 3 different blood sugar medications. As I said before, it's amazing how much the body can recover if treated correctly. A friend of mine asked me recently why I always eat a salad at break time at work. I asked what he meant, and he said "do you enjoy it?". My response to him was that at first I didn't particularly care for it, but that I do enjoy it now. I told him the point wasn't whether I enjoyed it, but rather whether it was good for me. I don't put milk or sand in the gas tank of my car and expect it to run well, and the same goes for a person's body. You have to fuel it correctly for it to run well. That being said, I've found that eating healthy doesn't have to be all tasteless and bland. There are a lot of things I enjoy now that my palate isn't accustomed to huge quantities of salt and sugar.

As for the body image stuff, it can be a motivator for sure. I do think it can be taken too far, though. I've gone from one extreme (morbid obesity), and I have no intention of going to the other extreme. At this point, my only concern is to be a provider for my family and to take care of the body that God has given me.

UnixGuy--Thanks for the kind words. As for what I did to get rid of my huge gut, I just used several online calorie counters to calculate how many calories I should be taking in (these vary by formula and are almost always far too high when you're significantly overweight, just a heads up). Once I had a caloric baseline, I put together an eating plan that met a balanced macronutrient breakdown (carbs/protein/fat), and put together an exercise plan of working out 6 days per week with alternating days of cardio and strength training. I put that into place not quite 2 years ago and the results have all stemmed from keeping that going. I haven't done anything specific for my waist alone, and while I'm still carrying plenty of excess body fat in that area, it's gone down enough to (comfortably) wear 32 jeans. If your waist is the one area you're struggling with, I'm not sure what advice to give, but like Robert mentioned, you might check out specific health conditions if you have other symptoms. My son has celiac disease and it's a lot more prevalent than a lot of people realize. Good luck.

brad-

Hypntick wrote: »

Exercise I can do, my eating sucks however.

Postive thinking. Free your mind.

Hypntick wrote: »

I can not eat green veggies in any form.

Spicy V8. Regular if you dont like the kick.

Hypntick wrote: »

I can do tomato sauce and corn etc

Just fyi corn is empty calories. Zero nutrition, just roughage and carbs.

Whatever you decide to try, take a vitamin to make up for what you'll miss with vegetables.

Best of luck.