Hi All,

Its not a new year resolution but Im wanting to shed about 2 stone (13stone at mo), but I have never really had to think about it before so not sure what really is a good method etc. dont want to join a gym so thats not an option. So what do you lot think? I also need to be aware of heart rate so cant just do loads of cardio (can if Im careful plus warm up and cool down)

I was riding my bike 3 times a week at about 7 miles a time, but that didn't seem to do anything. I also know that I have to cut out the "treats" and eat healthier but again dont know what way to go.

has anyone had good results with any particular method or is it a case of we are all different and to try different things and see what works.

I have not tried running yet as this is going to take a bit of getting used to due to a medical condition and some nifty electronics inside me. ( I have an ICD which I feel bouncing around whilst running, not a problem but takes some getting used to)

Never been on a diet so dont know whats involved in thast either.

Any help and advice appreciated as normal!!

Andy

Edited to say, I spend a lot of time driving and get no chance during the day to walk far or anything

[Edited on 27/12/11 by AndyW]

Eat less and move more, it is the only way.
Make the 7 miles into 15 or 20
Good luck
Mike

Its a known fact that diet has a much higher influence on weight loss than exercise. I,ve been doing a "paleo type diet" for the past 6 months and have gone from 18 % body fat to 13 %, and lost a 1 1/4 stone. The long and short of the diet is, no sugars, grains or potatoes everything else [more or less] you are free to eat without having to control calories. I,ve never felt so good, obviously there are days when i don't stick to it, but these are few and have no real effect.
I would reccomend a book called"why we get fat and what to do about it" by gary tubes, its a very big eye opener and goes against common convention.

Hth dan

as above really... but also:

you can have smaller portions but more often (but do not graze!). i used to have two rolls for lunch, bag of crisps, fruit and yoghurt for lunch. went down to one roll, no crisps, fruit and yoghurt. when i get home i have a snack e.g. sandwich, crumpet and then have tea at around 7pm. started to lose weight, then hit the gym and lost a bit more.

at break times, have fruit instead of crisps/chocs. i used to have one or two pieces a day but now have 5-6 by doing this. its healthy and good for digestion system.

do you eat your meals fast? i do and found i was feeling hungry after finishing it so would have something else. however, if i wait 20 mins and give time for my stomach to talk to my brain then i'm actually not hungry. by doing this i dont eat more than i should.

make sure you have breakfast in the morning as it kick starts the metabolism.

drink plenty of water

You won't lose weight cycling, unless it's 10k of calories a day


Running works for me, eat less and run 5 mile every other day.


That's the theory anyway, hard bit is doing it.


Good luck.

some stupid things that help are buy smaller plates, drink water whilst you eat, remove all treats and drink zero or low calorie drinks (stuff that has calories via sugar are wasted calories according to a friend). At the end of the day you if you consume more than you eat you put on weight. When you in shopping have a shopping list and only buy from that - pre plan meals to make the shopping list. As for the exercise - every little helps, park the car in the furthest space, always use the stairs. Having said all that - i put on about 1 kg a year. As you get older you lose muscle mass and therefore you put on weight unless you eat less, i don't eat less :-)

id say running is good to maintain a healthy heart, but it ruins your body if it becomes a hobby. My father in law was in a running club and would do 10-15miles a few times a week, plus smaller runs daily, and its buggered him. Dont get me wrong, he'd leave me eating dust many times over, but he has dodgy knees, ankles etc just from over using them.

My advice is cut out the obvious bad things (for me, thats chocolates and mac Ds), dont drink too much booze, plenty of water, enough weights to keep decent muscle mass (muscle burns calories constantly). Biking is good as its low impact so shouldnt knacker joints too fast, just make sure you do some bursts to raise heart rate rather than plodding along.

These are expert tips from a lazy fat tw4t The only excercise i get is heavy lifting at work.

I'd agree 100% with Dan, the paleo diet is a very good basis to lean yourself out while maintaining (and increasing) metabolism and energy levels. I've used it to drop weight from a fit 12.5st to a very lean 11st3lb. My wife also lost a couple of stones having tried pretty much every other type of diet and exercise regime.

The key is to shift emphasis from carbs to protein. Don't confuse this with the atkins diet, it is not at all the same. Just drop the main carb energy sources such as potatoes, rice, pasta and bread and substitute with other vegetable and fruit based substitutes. Cauliflower mashed up with some spices is much nicer than mashed spuds. In fact, get to know your spices and herbs and you can create some fantastic foods from scratch without a tin or packet in sight! Bear in mind that agriculture brought the world things like bread and potatoes as a cheap source of energy. The human body isn't "designed" to consume these foods having evolved as a hunter-gatherer for thousands of years beforehand.

Be prepared to feel a bit out of sorts for a week or two as your body re-learns how to consume fat stores but once it does you will feel great! What happens is that your body slowly burns fat rather than rapidly burning sugar. This produces fewer byproducts and is more sustainable. It also prevents the large spikes and troughs in blood sugar levels which is what tends to make you binge-eat and feel really hungry. I now find that I can happily go for hours on end without "needing" to eat and when I do eat I put more effort into the preparation, using raw materials rather than processed or partially prepared foods and the end result is much more pleasant. Even simply stuff like beef burgers made from raw ingredients are sooo much nicer and you know it's not full of preservatives and other crud. I've discovered fruits and vegetables that I never knew existed and generally have a much better diet.

If you switch to a diet like this then you can avoid calorie counting and quantities take care of themselves. Protein intake boosts metabolism so you get a double benefit. Fish and meat based snacks in the fridge are just as good as any sugary snack too if you prepare them properly.

Plenty of books on the subject, particularly by Loren Cordain (spelling?)

Good luck.
Craig.

quote:

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Originally posted by wylliezx9r
Its a known fact that diet has a much higher influence on weight loss than exercise. I,ve been doing a "paleo type diet" for the past 6 months and have gone from 18 % body fat to 13 %, and lost a 1 1/4 stone. The long and short of the diet is, no sugars, grains or potatoes everything else [more or less] you are free to eat without having to control calories. I,ve never felt so good, obviously there are days when i don't stick to it, but these are few and have no real effect.
I would reccomend a book called"why we get fat and what to do about it" by gary tubes, its a very big eye opener and goes against common convention.

Hth dan

---

I found that 2 things helped me to lose weight over a long period... cut out the alcohol and stop the nibbling. If I cut my alcohol input to the very bare minimum (occasional pint or glass of wine) then I lose 1 or 2 pounds a week. Same goes for nibbling.

Trouble is - I like a few beers, or a good-sized share of a bottle of wine, so this is "do as I say, not do as I do!".

Not sure of the heart rate problem but circuit training is awesome. By far thebest training I've ever done and I've been a footballer and rugby player for 20 years.boxing style circuits.
There is a DVD box set called Insanity which is fantastic. It's circuit training with time limits, so you work as hard as you possibly can.in the time limit and as you get fitter your performance increases but it's still just as hard eg if you can do 20 reps of an exercise on week one you might be doing 40 by week 4 so you keep improving fitness but it still remains difficult

quote:

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Originally posted by T66
You won't lose weight cycling, unless it's 10k of calories a day


Running works for me, eat less and run 5 mile every other day.


That's the theory anyway, hard bit is doing it.


Good luck.

---

I'm no scientist on all of these things.

I used to be 19 stone and a 40 inch waist.

I'm now 13 1/2 stone and a 34 inch waist.


I was a bit lighter,but have settledhere for some time now, a good couple of years.
Ate less.

slimmimg wrld has worked for me over the past two years, shed 3 1/2 stone in 6 months and kept it off since by attending at no cost as now a target member .
No exercise required ( although would speed it up ),
Rich

Circuit training is the best exercise you can do - it was the staple method used when I was with the marines (along with running long distances carrying heavy loads, but that isn't recommended for the health of your knees/hips/back/shoulders/ankles)

If you want to lose fat, you need to build up the muscle. More muscle burns more calories, so do weights along with good cardio work to get the best effect.

Check out crossfit.com and also look it up on YouTube. Also do some research on tabata protocol as well.

Food wise, look at what you drink as much as what you eat. A can of coke is 33% sugar for instance, but a lot of fruit juices are even worse. Watering the other hand actually promotes fat loss and helps the muscles work more effectively (think of the body as a hydraulic system).

Also, good old porridge (made with proper oats, not pre packed added sugar stuff) is a great fat burner. If you need to sweeten it up, use a bit of maple syrup (plus it tastes good).

Read the Abs Diet - we use it quite a lot in our house and have learned to apply the diet principles across most of what we eat to make everything that bit heālthier.

Mist important thing is to have just one me a week where you eat hat you want. If you don't, you're more likely to succumb to temptation and fall off the wagon.

Good luck!

few years ago I lost 4 stone in 4 months. I found it easy, success really helps.
I was REALLY strict on diet, never more than 1000 calories a day (hard at first, but the rewards soon make up for it) and exercise 4 times a week for about 90mins, fairly hard cardio stuff. Felt brilliant, and full of life. Have settled now at a healthy 11st, and maintaining the exercise regime, mainly running now. But it needs to be for a fair amount of time, and the heart rate needs to be elevated to over 100BPM, 120-140 at my age is ideal.

Why no gym? they are usually a safe place to start......

Not sure i would agree with that, i really leaned up, and got loads fitter by cycling last year, although you do have to put the miles in.
Typically 30 miles twice a week, and between 30 and 50 on a sunday morning. Great fun and very sociable. We also did a couple of charity rides 75 and 103 miles which gave an incentive to train.
At the start of summer 10 miles was a killer, so it was nice to see the improvement in fitness. I also dropped a waist size which was nice, although weight loss was not my initial goal. Bottom line is it was enjoyable, so i guess you have to find something that suits you.

Al



Originally posted by T66
You won't lose weight cycling, unless it's 10k of calories a day

diet plan also included in the insanity programme, and you can do it in your lounge in 40 minutes. highly recommended. and dont limit yourself to 1000 calories a day as stated above. you need a good balanced nutritional diet with 2000 + csalories a day if doing a programme like this. its a total body conditioning programme and i can guarentee amazing results if you stick to it.
your body will transform, you will build loads of muscle,you will be very very fit by the end and you will feel good about it. its an exceptional programme and all you need is your bodyweight and a dvd player

The CSIRO diet worked for me.

HTH

Neil

I lost two stone over a period of about 9 months by just reducing my calorie intake to 2000 a day.

I cut out Chocolate, Biscuits, Cake and reduced booze to very few.

I ate cereal for Breakfast, had 300 calories for lunch and a normal meal on an evening, only had Yoghurt for puddings.

I continued with this on holiday and through last Christmas too, worked very well.

Firstly you see nothing happening then after about 2-3 weeks the weight starts dropping off, its amazing how much all that sweet stuff and treats does to you!!

Dropped a couple of waist band sizes most of my trousers will fall down now without a belt!!

A aeromedical, doctor friend of mine put it quite succinctly, "It's like this Bob, No bu##er in Belsen ever got fat."

I have a question; I need to lose weight generally but specifically I am fed up with my legs (especially calves) looking like Popeye's after a spinach overdose. They have always been large and quite muscular ever since I can remember, and I always have trouble getting trousers that will fit me, I usually have to go a waist size up just to get my legs to fit in.

Unfortunately, extra exercise seems to makes them get larger still, so I'm not sure what (if anything) I can do about this?

quote:

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Originally posted by MikeRJ
I have a question; I need to lose weight generally but specifically I am fed up with my legs (especially calves) looking like Popeye's after a spinach overdose. They have always been large and quite muscular ever since I can remember, and I always have trouble getting trousers that will fit me, I usually have to go a waist size up just to get my legs to fit in.

Unfortunately, extra exercise seems to makes them get larger still, so I'm not sure what (if anything) I can do about this?

---

Lol... I have ridiculously sturdy calves too!

Used to be an absolute PITA trying to find a set of 'off-the-peg' biking leathers to fit. I always had to buy a much larger waist size and then rely on the zip to the jacket stopping them sliding off my arse!

Here's my take:
To maintain a given body weight and level of activity you need to consume a certain number of calories.
If you eat 4000 kCal more, whether thats in a day or a year you gain a pound, if you eat 4000 kCal less you loose a pound. If your weight is increasing by 5lb a year, you need to cut out 20,000 kCals a year to be stable at your current weight and level of activity. That sounds a lot, but its only 1/3 of a bag of crisps or 1/4 of a vending machine chocolate bar a day!
If you have a busy lifestyle, its unlikely you willl actually manage a regular exercise regime that will burn enough calories to make a difference, especially if you have a family to consider too.
So cutting out the food the easy way. I was gaining about 4lbs a year over a number of years. I stopped that by taking my machine coffee at work without the milk powder - this only saved about 10 kCal/cup (but 6 to 8 a day!). If you buy shop coffees at starbucks etc, this table may make you change what you drink!
http://www.diet-blog.com/08/how_many_calories_in_coffee.php

If you cut dwn on food, remmeber to try to maintain protein and vitamans at the expense of carbohydrates and fat, but don't go too far. Alcohol is basically calories without any other benefits (except tasting good and making you feel happy). One pint of beer is about 180kCals - drink one per day more than you need and you would gain 15lbs/year. A small glass of wine a day is about 7lbs/year.

Unless you need to loose weight fast, a small cut down in intake is all you need - 2 stone in a year, assuming your weight is stable, only needs 300 kCal a day reduction- Thats a starbucks cafe mocca without the whipped cream, or 1/2 pint a of beer, and a packet of crisps, or ...

Anyway, best of luck
Hugh

On a serious note re' weightloss, the ONE main thing to realise if you're to keep the weight off is that it involves a change of lifestyle.
Over the last 42 years I've had a weight 'battle' which I've nearly always won. I reckon I've shed over 20 stones (10lbs here 20lbs there). However, I've lost the 'war' because I always put the weight back on again. Getting it off is easy. Keeping it off is impossible without the lifestyle change I mentioned.

I had to go for an annual medical (aircrew), so weight was always a factor. When I was 21, (42 years ago), I was 168lbs. (5' 11" A year later, a fit 186lbs. I'm now 220 lbs (easy Spanish lifestyle) and far too heavy. I can't change now, (old dogs and new tricks and all that) so I settle for a fortnight off ale every so often and eat veggie.

Better to keep it off though, without a doubt. If the dreaded 'gout' gets you in your forties, you'll know about it, (and it's weight-related).


Just read Hugh's post. Excellent! It screams new lifestyle and throw out the old habits. (Easier said than done!)

[Edited on 28/12/11 by bobinspain]

I'm just approaching 19st... my fighting weight before I was diagnosed with a jelly-spine was 13st with hardly a pick of fat on me

Like Bob, since then I've yoyo'd... starved myself to lose 4 stone in 6 months, then gorged and put 5 stone back on a short time later! This year I WILL win the war!

Is there a 'safe' limit to how many calories you can burn ABOVE what you consume (assuming you have a lot of fat to burn)???

I've heard that a safe limit is 1lb (or 2lb) per week, as anything after that is water and you put it straight back on. Then again if you have 10 stone to lose you could probably drop 7lb in the first week...

I've also heard there's a limit for calorie drop (I think it's 20%) after which your body thinks there's a food shortage and goes into conservation mode

Your body can only burn so many calories above the maintenance level per day - If you go too hard you can cause different sorts of damage- have a read of Ranuluf Feinnes book 'mad, bad and dangereous to know' - in the artic expeditions they can burn up to 6500 calories per day, but at very high levels your body burns the protein from you muscles rather than the fat and you can get kidney/liver problems as a result. I think if you look for 4-500 kCal/day (about 1 lb/week) thats no problem, more than that, I don't know.
Swimmers burn large amounts of calories, but, in that case they are eating to maintain their weight.
I know someone who went on a 900 calorie/day crash diet (medical reasons and supervised) and she said she was too dizzy to drive/poor concentration/tired etc the whole time.
Regards
Hugh

I certainly get lightheaded and shakey if I go on one of my crash diets.

I get light-headed and shaky when I drink too much Macallan Scott.

Slangevar

If you ever watch the America / UK / Austrailia's biggest loser programmes then they lose between 1 and 5% of their body weight per week. These are obese to extremely obese people doing very intense diet and excerise under supervision.

First run this morning since November - 3.5 miles all in, wind blowing in my face offset by blowing out my arse in 40 minutes.



Make a good start on clearing the deep seated chest infection Ive had since November too.


Q- "Would Sir enjoy a pull through"?


A- "Why certainly, opens up the alveoli, clears the bronchial passages"

When I got a slowly heavier (and older) I ended up at 97kg last year and bought the '10 minute trainer' of the TV (plenty on ebay) and really liked it. It's quick and effective. I didn't do the diet bit but just cut back on the stuff we all know we should cut back on. I lost 10kg and feel a lot better - ready to take it up again after the break. A couple of 10 minute sessions a day and you'll get there.

Do quite a lot of cycling (mtb) as much offroad as poss as quite a lot of footpaths/bridleways/byways and farmland etc around here. I put weight on when I quit smoking and have managed to lose bugger all, but then my diet is absolute crap.

Anyway, this thread had a familiar ring to it - http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=104313 - in fact since then I've put on a stone and lost it. Trouble is need to lose another 5 stone.

Have resolved to change diet and do loads more exercise swimming/cycling. Will try running again when I've recovered from the plantar faciitus in my left heel (had cortezone jab in it before Xmas, fairly unpleasant!!)

Good luck to you

ATB

Simon

Circuits are simply the best. If you don't believe me then try 3x 3 minute circuits with 30 seconds between them
1:jumping jacks
2;power squats
3;high knees
4;burpees
5;floor sprints
6;vertical jumps

30 secs each with 30 secs rest between. Try to do 3 circuits