My Quest - Losing 100 pounds

[p1zza_man]

Background

I'm 20 years old and way 299lbs. Two days ago I stepped on the scale for the first time in a year and saw my weight. I wasn't shocked but very disturbed. I sat down and talked to my mom and have done some research and asked questions and I'm ready to start my diet.

Job

My job is moving/lifting furniture which burns around 500+ calories a day. This will be most of my lifting as I don't have the money to go to the gym.

Current Status

As of now I way 299lbs and my body fat percentage is 46.8.

Goal

I don't know how long it usually takes but with Thanksgiving and Christmas coming that will set back most people, including myself. I want to get to 175lbs - 200lbs by the time I turn 21 (10/02/08).

Calorie Intake

I'm going to be eating a lot of turkey and some chicken now and then. I don't mind fruit and put a lot of veggies on a sandwhich. I will be drinking a lot of water and limiting myself to two glasses of Pepsi One per day (only 1 calorie per glass). I will be keeping my total of calories to 1500 or less.

Cardio

I will walk my dog first thing in the morning that way I can burn more body fat because my body would have used most of it's stored energy while sleeping (http://www.intense-workout.com/cardio.html). After a month or until my body has gotten used to it I'll bump it up to a slight jog and increase until I will be at a fast-paced run. With nearly 300lbs on my knees this may take awhile.

 

[p1zza_man]

November 15, 2007

Exercise/Cardio

I went to work and burned around 600 calories acording to fitday.com and walked the dog for 20 minutes.

Food Intake

Calories Eaten

Todays Food

 

[PokerKingJim]

Moving furniture most of your workday is in itself enough physical activity to lose weight if you eat right. Cut down on bread and sugar (especially refined), increase veggies and lean meat.

The first, and most important, step is really making the commitment and dedicating yourself to reaching your goals. Commit to the changes and the weight will melt off easier than you think. Congrats and good luck

 

[p1zza_man]

I hear a lot about cutting down on bread. The only bread I eat is Whole Wheat and I eat about 8 pieces a day. Is 8 to much?

 

[MrsCheater]

excellent focus! i am also on a quest such as yours. the biggest thing is staying with it...overweight people (raising hand) i really believe, are instant gratification type of people, which may be why we dont stick with it...cause its easier to feel better with bad for you food than exercise that doesnt show results on a minutely basis (ie: dont drop a pants size with every exercise we do). but thats just my observation. anyways, i would try to avoid soda as much as possible, even the low cal ones...stay away from the caffeine!!! that will reverse the effects of trying to keep hydrated (caffeine will dehydrate you, not what you are looking for when trying to lose weight). i went from 2-3 glasses of soda a day to 2 oz. just enough for a few sips at dinner time and i drink decaf now...

i love that you have been keeping track of meals...i ate pretty much the same thing for a few weeks and noticed i was getting bored. so dont be afraid to change it up. for example i used to have cereal for breakfast, now i mix in a combo of 1 fried egg white (fried with pam no cal no fat spray) and 1 fried egg (i have been told an egg with yolk is ok, i am guessing cause my cholesterol level is ok) and english muffin that is 100 cal with high fiber (multigrain) and protien in it, and some fat free cheddar cheese. oh ya, and i will put a slice of low fat low sodium bacon on it (try turkey bacon but i can stand the seperated meat put back to gether). so now i have a breakfast sandwich for about 250 cal, 8 gr fat--b/d of the yolk and slice of bacon, 22 gr protein (awesome!). im just trying to give an example of how you can have variety and still be ok. i have lost 28.5 lb in 2.5 mos (have added in a lot of exercise and lowered my cals).

i have learned to not be afraid of that piece of pizza at a party..have one but eat everything else good and controlled the rest of the day. i know that you can do it, just stay focused, and dont get discouraged!!!!!!!!!!!

P.S. i personally think that 8 slices a day os too manyfor bread...
Nutrition Facts


Bread, whole wheat (including toast)

Serving Size: 8 slice

Calories 1,024.8

Total Fat 19.8 g

Saturated Fat 2.9 g

Polyunsaturated Fat 10.9 g

Monounsaturated Fat 4.3 g

Cholesterol 0.0 mg

Sodium 1,280.2 mg

Potassium 1,159.2 mg

Total Carbohydrate 189.5 g

Dietary Fiber 22.5 g

Sugars 0.0 g

Protein 30.9 g


There are better ways to get protien, and look how many calories and CARBS in there. i dont know if this is your breads exact count, but look it over.

P.S.S: i do eat subway 1-2x/week. good way to eat out yet not that bad for you!

 

[MrsCheater]

oops i just noticed your bread count, so maybe not so bad. 8 pieces a day sounds like a lot where you could be directing your calories elsewhere, thats all. ill check in! GLGL

 

[p1zza_man]

@ MrsCheater

Thanks for the support. I was out walking today and started to get winded and as a fat person (yes, i have admitted i'm fat lol) the known instinct is to just quit and go home, like you said. Instead I just tried to picture a skinny me and pushed forward. Legs started to hurt a little but after 30 mins had gone by the pain went away and I felt great walking the final 15 minutes.

Also, here are the nutritional facts of the bread I'm eating per slice.

 

[p1zza_man]

Apparently at my weight, making a drastic change to 1500 calories is known as a crash diet. I looked up the health risks of a crash diet and they are really bad. At the moment I'm trying to get help on how many calories I should intake?

 

[GreenDoberman]

Best of luck Pizza Man.

Thought I'd share some info my mom gave me. It was from Weight Watchers. According to their points target, you should allot around 49 points a day which translated into around 2400 to 2500 calories a day. That would be a good starting point.

I'm trying (and struggling) with weight loss as well. The important thing is to not give up. You will screw up at times, but that doesn't mean you need to continue to make mistakes. I've lost around 5 pounds in two months, but am making lifestyle changes that will help in the long run.

Progress will be slow if you are serious and that is better than losing a lot quickly and just putting it back on.

Seems you have a very active lifestyle with your job, so I think you can do it if you are determined.

Good luck.

 

[BROMOx]

I am often frustrated by the mis-information that exists for people that actually seek it out and WANT to change. That being said, I doubt very much the validity of fasted cardio. That isn't important right now, however.

I commend you on your decision to make a change. That is a good portion of the battle. Committment. I think there are some great things you are doing and some things that merely get you by, but do very little to help you succeed if your goals are to lose 100+ pounds.

I wish I had the time right now to go into length about it all. Let me start with this.

You will lose weight with your plan. It won't be the most efficient program, nor the most effective, but it will work - for a while. There are two irrefutable rules about fitness.

1. Everything works.
2. Nothing works for long.

My brief comments would be that you are eating too few calories, too many carbs, especially bread, and not focusing on the right things in your workouts.

The most important step is resistance training. I understand that lifting is a big part of your job. It isn't enough. It doesn't hit the sustained intensity level that you need it to. I do know. I worked for a moving company for years - and at 300+ pounds as well. It is some great exercise, but not focused enough for what you need.

Second, walking your dog may be ok for about a week or two. After that you need to get into interval training. Steady state cardio, where you just hop on a treadmill or the street and go, is ineffective and largely a waste of your time. You need focused time doing cardio. Allow yourself 25 minutes tops 3-5 days a week. I'd even suggest starting with as low as 19 minutes only (3 intervals).

Do not let not belonging to the gym be an excuse. There are plenty of bodyweight programs that would fit you just fine. I could point you to many if you needed.

My last point is that it isn't easy. It will take sacrifice, pain, sweat, and lots of persistance. You'll have up days and down days. Just string enough good days together, and you can make it. Support is KEY. I would be very willing to walk you through it all and keep in contact as WE continue this daily struggle. I am in the 250's right now, down from about 350, and struggling daily. I have the top certification in the field (IMHO), and have quit my job as an attorney to become a personal trainer. I focus on people just like me because I know where they are coming from. It is a daily struggle.

The accountability you have started with posting your food and such is great. I also have a blog where I have posted almost daily, begining at 308 pounds back on March 1st. You can see where I started and where I am. I won't post the link here but you can get my email and I'll pass it along.

I would love to see you succeed.

Best of luck.

 

[BROMOx]

Apparently at my weight, making a drastic change to 1500 calories is known as a crash diet. I looked up the health risks of a crash diet and they are really bad. At the moment I'm trying to get help on how many calories I should intake?

Do a google search for "Harris Benedict" and run the numbers. You should be somewhere in the 2500-3000 range. I would not suggest going below 2000 or you risk starvation mode. (not good). Some later research has shown that 1800 is a closer number for guys, but at your size, you would have no problem losing weight if you kept it under 2500 and began a healthy workout program.

 

[MrsCheater]

i went to a website and input all my stats and the amt of exercise i do, they came up with a target range of all areas (cal, fat, protein, carbs, etc) this is how i know what to eat, i put all the food i eat daily in there to tally and let me know where i am, what i need to add for the day, or cut back.i highly recommend it and will help you if u want. it truely works, as i have been eating in the ranges and exercising like i documented and have dropped 2-2.5lb per week (which is the healthy realistic goal). my ranges are 1650-1900 cal per day, for starters.

 

[DennyCrane+]

I didnt see any chicken on your diet!!! Very healthy, high in prot, low in calories. At your size you can probably drop down to 1800-1900 calories a day and still lose lbs. Eventually you will have to go 1500, its a healthy number. Where did you get that chart???

 

[p1zza_man]

@BROMOx

Thank you very much for your intrest in helping me succeed. I would love to get in touch with you, I will e-mail wil and tell him to send my e-mail addy to you.

I see you talking about these body weight excersizes and would love to know them. I have upped my walking the dog to 45 minutes right when I wake up in the morning. My neighborhood has a lot of hills so it does a nice workout and when my dog stops to do her business I continue to pump my legs in a walking motion.

Thanks again and hopefully I will be hearing from you soon.

PS: Harris Benedict = You have a BMR of 2643.67


@MrsCheater

Could you point me in the direction of this website. Thanks.


@DennyCrane

I didn't eat chicken that day but I do have chicken and I do love to eat it. Also the charts comes from www.fitday.com

 

[p1zza_man]

November 16, 2007

Excercise/Cardio

I didn't have work today, but I did walk my dog this morning for 46 minutes resulting into 211 calories burned.

Calories Eaten

Todays Food

I went to a football game last night and I was trying to drink water but at below 30 outside I had to get some hot chocolate.

 

[BROMOx]

Again I apologize for not having the time to run with this how I would like...

As for nutrition, I would look at moving in one of two directions: low(er) carb or macronutrient tracking.

Lower carb diets are great for fat loss. I am not talking about Atkins where you eat under 20 grams a day or anything close. In fact, the whole idea is not low carb, but rather low glycemic index. You want to stay away from food that will spike your insulin levels. This is more in line with South Beach, which I have modeled but not specifically done. The idea behind the lower carb is that it is self-regulating. You do not have to count calories. The extra protein and fat will fill you up to where if you are strict, the number of calories will be where you need without always running to fitday.

You will still eat fruit, vegetables, nuts, eggs, and even some bread. I would HIGHLY recommend checking out the TNT diet if you want to go this route. It is a great low carb plan and easy to follow. If you don't want to buy the book, check out the forums here for some good advice for the TNT nutrition plan.

http://forums.menshealth.com/eve


By the way, I LOVE fitday. I have used it a ton in the past. That brings me to choice number 2.

You figure out your reccommended basal rate and subtract 500-1000 to lose weight. I'd be surprised if you weighed 299 and had a Harris Benedict rate of 2600. Is that AFTER you subtracted the calories to lose weight?

Anyway, your goal on this plan would be to hit clean eating levels of 40-30-30. That corresponds to the percentage of protein, carbs, and fat you want daily. Some people say 40% carbs, but I have found keeping your intake at 30% works better. Either way at first is probably ok. Keep your saturated fat under 10% and you fiber over 20-30 grams per day. Fitday is a great help here. The upside is that you can eat more normally, but you will have to track everything, at least until you feel very comfortable with where your daily levels are.

This plan would include lots of cottage cheese, chicken, oatmeal, fruit, vegetables, lean meats, etc.

Start here:

http://forums.menshealth.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/295109121/m/474106321


This is a great crash course on how to begin.

As for what is required for losing weight, I LOVE this post at T-Nation. It is by a leader in teh field, is current and backed by research, and shows the proper balance of cardio and lifting. A must read.

http://www.t-nation.com/readArticle.do?id=1526539

Alwyn has defined a hierarchy
of fat loss which includes (IN ORDER OF IMPORTANCE)

1. Nutrition
2. Resistance Training
3. HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training)
4. Steady State Cardio
5. Basic Activity

Depending on how hard you hit that walking the dog stuff, it falls somewhere in the 4 or 5 category. So whle that helps, you need to be spending more of your time and focus in the higher categories.

As for workouts, I strongly suggest a gym with proper equipment and atmosphere, but it isn't a necessary thing.

Check out this link for a list of programs. I am currently doing Book of Muscle. It is a 6 month program. It has been amazing so far, but does likley require a gym membership.

XXXX

I need to find that link. I'll keep looking...

 

[BROMOx]

By the way, I should note that I thought your November 16th fitday results were dead on. 40-30-30 (40% carbs), good satuated fat (9%), nice fiber (30 grams), and in a decent calories range. Great job. Now get moving on that workout!

 

[BROMOx]

Want to be inspired?

If you haven't seen this, the transformation shows what is possible. This guy took daily pictures from a while back as he completely changed his body. Amazing.

There are also some great forums there.

http://www.johnstonefitness.com/

 

[Paid2play]

I haven't read this whole thread so excuse me if this has already been discussed. By doing a few things differently you could burn extra calories: Try incorporating light leg weights will walk your dog, When at a party or get together try standing and talking instead of sitting around. Also everytime you park your car at a store, park at the farthest possible spot and walk alittle. Just some thoughts. Good Luck.

 

[BROMOx]

OK, I found the thread.

http://forums.jpfitness.com/fitness-faq/21176-training-routines.html

Many wonderful programs in here. In your case, look up Death by BodyWeight.