Help me lose weight please fitness guru types.

Stan_Lite · 13-03-2009, 06:18

I weighed myself a few weeks ago and, to my horror, I was 17st 2lbs - the heaviest I've ever been. I've been a fat chap for several years now but it hasn't really bothered me until now.

I started off at home by eating better food (and less of it) and doing a bit of walking and it seemed to be working fine. I lost a stone in 3 weeks. Then I went on holiday for a week with my brother and put 4lbs back on due to drinking beer and doing sod all. I wasn't bothered about that as I expected it. I got back and the following day I had to head off out to work (for those who don't know, I work 4 weeks on, 4 weeks off on an oil rig in Egypt). I got to the rig on Sunday and I had dropped 2 of the pounds I'd gained on holiday, so all was well.

I decided it was time to get serious about it so I started watching what I eat and decided to use the limited facilities in the gym on the rig. I started using the treadmill and got a bit of a buzz out of it.

Now we get to the bit where I need advice. I started off doing 1 hour sessions at approx 70-75% (145-150bpm) of my max heart rate (180bpm). I've done this for 3 nights now and when I stood on the scales this morning ... lo and behold, I'd GAINED 3lbs in 3 days

I've done a bit of looking around on teh interweb and read somewhere that if you start exercising hard after a long spell of no exercise (sounds about right) your muscles can sometimes store fluid to help repair themselves or it may just be natural water retention which will go away on it's own. If anybody has any ideas, I'd appreciate some advice.

I think I've probably started off too enthusiastically and have been thinking I'll have a break tonight and then cut down to 1/2 hour sessions to start with and build up a bit more slowly. What do you guys think?

A few details to help you:

Age - 43 years.
Height - 5'10" = 1.78m
Current weight - 229lbs = 16st 5lbs = 104kgs
Cigarettes - 20 a day

Typical day's eating on the rig
Breakfast (05:30) - bowl of bran flakes with milk (only full fat milk on the rig unfortunately), 1 glass of apple juice and 1 cup black coffee.
Tea break (09:00) - 1 small slice sponge cake and 1 cup black coffee.
Lunch (12:00) - 2 small (or one medium) chicken portion, 1 medium baked spud, salad and a piece of fruit.
Afternoon break (15:00) - 1 piece fruit.
Dinner (18:00) - 1 bowl soup, chunk of bread and more fruit.
After workout (21:00) - 2 pieces fruit.
I normally drink about 2-3 litres of water throughout the day.

If anybody can give me a few pointers, I'd be most grateful.

Also, can anyone recommend me a good heart rate monitor - I don't trust the one on the treadmill on the rig - it seems to jump around a lot. It seems to mainly stay around the level I want it to but occasionally drops down to 110bpm and then jumps up to 212bpm randomly. I'd like to have a monitor I can trust to read accurately.

Thanks in advance for any advice

lostkat · 13-03-2009, 07:10

First of all, STOP WEIGHING YOURSELF

You achieve absolutely nothing by weighing yourself every few days apart from upset if you happen to be slightly heavier that day. My weight goes up and down like a yoyo from day to day. I would stick to weighing yourself once every 2 weeks at the same time of day, but do it weekly if you don't feel you can wait that long. Also, I would recommend taking measurements of your waist/thigh/bicep etc. as I find this much more reliable than the scales.

Also, you're right on the muscles front. They will retain water initially to help the repair process, but that's not a bad thing and it'll drop off again, so don't worry. I can gain up to 1/2 stone due to water retention, but it falls off again. Just keep drinking your water as that will help. Also, remember that you'll be building muscle which everyone knows is more dense than fat, so even though you're losing fat, your weight loss will be slowed by your muscle mass increasing.

You've done brilliantly so far to lose such a large amount of weight in a very short time. You often lose a lot when you make a shock change to your diet and start exercising for the first time in a while. However, it then slows down to a much more steady level. Healthy weight loss is around 1lb per week and don't forget - the slower you lose it, the slower it goes back on again.

Pheebs · 13-03-2009, 08:20

Stan - What Kate said!!

Most of my problems stemmed from weighing myself everyday (and eventually every morning/evening). I would write down everything and it was shocking. One day I would be 3lbs lighter... the next day I would be 4lbs up (and I would always make sure it was at the same time of day, using the same scales and after having a wee! lol!)

From the sounds of things you're doing spot on. Eating healthily, exercising where you can and have the determination to do it

As Kate said too - initially you tend to shed pounds very quickly and then you slow up once your metabolism catches up and it comes off slower!

Keep going as you are, weigh yourself weekly... if not fortnightly... and if you feel like you've had a bad week don't weigh yourself at all... and you'll be fine

Good luck Stan Stan the Whiskey Man

*wubs* xxxx

Stan_Lite · 13-03-2009, 08:28

Thanks Girls.

I normally weigh myself once a week, I was just curious to see if the three nights working out had made any difference - I won't be doing it again

I've made a few half-hearted attempts at losing weight over the past few years but this time I feel much more motivated for some reason - maybe it's the realisation that I'm now a middle-aged man and if I don't do something about it soon, I'll really struggle if I leave it much longer.

Should I be doing my work out 7 days a week or should I be having the odd rest day now and then? I'm not very clued up on this fitness malarkey due to being a couch potato for the last 2 decades

I think I'll cut down to 30 minutes and build up slowly to 45 minutes over the 3 weeks I have left on the rig as I think I've been a bit ambitious to start with.

Piggymon · 13-03-2009, 08:29

Haven't got time to post a proper reply but will do this evening

lostkat · 13-03-2009, 08:42

It's important to have rest days and let your muscles repair themselves. I'd start off having 2 days rest per week and see how you go from there.

Kell_ee001 · 13-03-2009, 08:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by lostkat

It's important to have rest days and let your muscles repair themselves. I'd start off having 2 days rest per week and see how you go from there.

I agree. You can always pick it up when you're home again and not working 12 hour days!

Stan_Lite · 13-03-2009, 09:03

Okay. Plan is to have a rest tonight to give my poor old body a chance to fix itself then go on to 30 minute workouts for a week or so and then build up slowly over the following couple of weeks to 45 minutes. I'll stick to my previous Monday morning weighing in sessions and try to resist the temptation to weigh in between.
I'll try to get some measurements later today and check them regularly too.

Thanks for the help so far. Looking forward to your input Piggy

Matblack · 13-03-2009, 09:18

This is going to sound odd coming from me but;

If you want to lose weight at a good pace but keep it off for a while then you need to build muscle as well as burn fat. I would recomend 3 sessions of weights a week alternating lower and upper body.

Cardio is boring and time consuming, if you want to maximise its effects then you can make a lot of difference by altering intensity during your workout, have a google for HIT (High Intensity Interval Training) 20 minutes will do you a power of good and if you mix that in with your weights you'll be burning fat with newly developed muuscle. I've seen girls in the gym do cardio for an hour a day for a year and not get rid of the fat they were targeting, when coupled with some extra muscle mass the change was fast and visible.

http://bodyforlife.com/exercise/index.asp

Eating wise then cut back on simple carbs and sugars, swap white for brown (rice, bread, pasta) and little little and often.

http://bodyforlife.com/nutrition/index.asp

These are the premises behind a system called Body For Life which is an American system, the book is VERY American and rather ra ra ra but the system works, its not expensive, you don't have to use suplements (although they are advocated in the book and can make for quick meal replacements).

When I was motivated I lost a hell of a lot of weight doing this, I will do it again

MB

Matblack · 13-03-2009, 09:44

With regard to resting between sessions, if you are doing light cardio my experience is that this isn't essential, where it is essential is with weights work as muscles need time to repair before you hit them again. I would suspect your body has taken on water as it has experienced dehydration and it shocked by the new exercise you are throwing at it, it maybe that you'll keep the extra water in reserve but you'll lose fat weight in greater quantities very quickly so don't worry about it.

I need to get back into shape this year and kick start myself, once I get going like you I get very self critical and weigh a little too often, if you are eating right you can ignore fluctuations of up to a few pounds, what you are looking for is a downward trend, its hard not to kick oneself when the scale creeps up but it will happen especially if you start lifting weights so get used to watching the trend over a week not over a few days

MB

13-03-2009, 06:18	#1
Stan_Lite Stan, Stan the FLASHER MAN! Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: In bed with your sister Posts: 5,483	Help me lose weight please fitness guru types. I weighed myself a few weeks ago and, to my horror, I was 17st 2lbs - the heaviest I've ever been. I've been a fat chap for several years now but it hasn't really bothered me until now. I started off at home by eating better food (and less of it) and doing a bit of walking and it seemed to be working fine. I lost a stone in 3 weeks. Then I went on holiday for a week with my brother and put 4lbs back on due to drinking beer and doing sod all. I wasn't bothered about that as I expected it. I got back and the following day I had to head off out to work (for those who don't know, I work 4 weeks on, 4 weeks off on an oil rig in Egypt). I got to the rig on Sunday and I had dropped 2 of the pounds I'd gained on holiday, so all was well. I decided it was time to get serious about it so I started watching what I eat and decided to use the limited facilities in the gym on the rig. I started using the treadmill and got a bit of a buzz out of it. Now we get to the bit where I need advice. I started off doing 1 hour sessions at approx 70-75% (145-150bpm) of my max heart rate (180bpm). I've done this for 3 nights now and when I stood on the scales this morning ... lo and behold, I'd GAINED 3lbs in 3 days I've done a bit of looking around on teh interweb and read somewhere that if you start exercising hard after a long spell of no exercise (sounds about right) your muscles can sometimes store fluid to help repair themselves or it may just be natural water retention which will go away on it's own. If anybody has any ideas, I'd appreciate some advice. I think I've probably started off too enthusiastically and have been thinking I'll have a break tonight and then cut down to 1/2 hour sessions to start with and build up a bit more slowly. What do you guys think? A few details to help you: Age - 43 years. Height - 5'10" = 1.78m Current weight - 229lbs = 16st 5lbs = 104kgs Cigarettes - 20 a day Typical day's eating on the rig Breakfast (05:30) - bowl of bran flakes with milk (only full fat milk on the rig unfortunately), 1 glass of apple juice and 1 cup black coffee. Tea break (09:00) - 1 small slice sponge cake and 1 cup black coffee. Lunch (12:00) - 2 small (or one medium) chicken portion, 1 medium baked spud, salad and a piece of fruit. Afternoon break (15:00) - 1 piece fruit. Dinner (18:00) - 1 bowl soup, chunk of bread and more fruit. After workout (21:00) - 2 pieces fruit. I normally drink about 2-3 litres of water throughout the day. If anybody can give me a few pointers, I'd be most grateful. Also, can anyone recommend me a good heart rate monitor - I don't trust the one on the treadmill on the rig - it seems to jump around a lot. It seems to mainly stay around the level I want it to but occasionally drops down to 110bpm and then jumps up to 212bpm randomly. I'd like to have a monitor I can trust to read accurately. Thanks in advance for any advice __________________ Just because I have a short attention span doesn't mean I...

13-03-2009, 07:10	#2
lostkat Good Cat Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 5,550	First of all, STOP WEIGHING YOURSELF You achieve absolutely nothing by weighing yourself every few days apart from upset if you happen to be slightly heavier that day. My weight goes up and down like a yoyo from day to day. I would stick to weighing yourself once every 2 weeks at the same time of day, but do it weekly if you don't feel you can wait that long. Also, I would recommend taking measurements of your waist/thigh/bicep etc. as I find this much more reliable than the scales. Also, you're right on the muscles front. They will retain water initially to help the repair process, but that's not a bad thing and it'll drop off again, so don't worry. I can gain up to 1/2 stone due to water retention, but it falls off again. Just keep drinking your water as that will help. Also, remember that you'll be building muscle which everyone knows is more dense than fat, so even though you're losing fat, your weight loss will be slowed by your muscle mass increasing. You've done brilliantly so far to lose such a large amount of weight in a very short time. You often lose a lot when you make a shock change to your diet and start exercising for the first time in a while. However, it then slows down to a much more steady level. Healthy weight loss is around 1lb per week and don't forget - the slower you lose it, the slower it goes back on again. __________________ Oooooh Cecil, what have you done?

13-03-2009, 08:20	#3
Pheebs Deep Throat Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 6,512	Stan - What Kate said!! Most of my problems stemmed from weighing myself everyday (and eventually every morning/evening). I would write down everything and it was shocking. One day I would be 3lbs lighter... the next day I would be 4lbs up (and I would always make sure it was at the same time of day, using the same scales and after having a wee! lol!) From the sounds of things you're doing spot on. Eating healthily, exercising where you can and have the determination to do it As Kate said too - initially you tend to shed pounds very quickly and then you slow up once your metabolism catches up and it comes off slower! Keep going as you are, weigh yourself weekly... if not fortnightly... and if you feel like you've had a bad week don't weigh yourself at all... and you'll be fine Good luck Stan Stan the Whiskey Man wubs xxxx __________________ http://www.spiffingdesigns.co.uk

13-03-2009, 08:28	#4
Stan_Lite Stan, Stan the FLASHER MAN! Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: In bed with your sister Posts: 5,483	Thanks Girls. I normally weigh myself once a week, I was just curious to see if the three nights working out had made any difference - I won't be doing it again I've made a few half-hearted attempts at losing weight over the past few years but this time I feel much more motivated for some reason - maybe it's the realisation that I'm now a middle-aged man and if I don't do something about it soon, I'll really struggle if I leave it much longer. Should I be doing my work out 7 days a week or should I be having the odd rest day now and then? I'm not very clued up on this fitness malarkey due to being a couch potato for the last 2 decades I think I'll cut down to 30 minutes and build up slowly to 45 minutes over the 3 weeks I have left on the rig as I think I've been a bit ambitious to start with. __________________ Just because I have a short attention span doesn't mean I...

13-03-2009, 08:29	#5
Piggymon Lara Croft Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: PigmoPad - Braintree Essex Posts: 8,604	Haven't got time to post a proper reply but will do this evening __________________ BF% 28/08/08 - 21%

13-03-2009, 08:42	#6
lostkat Good Cat Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 5,550	It's important to have rest days and let your muscles repair themselves. I'd start off having 2 days rest per week and see how you go from there. __________________ Oooooh Cecil, what have you done?

13-03-2009, 09:03	#8
Stan_Lite Stan, Stan the FLASHER MAN! Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: In bed with your sister Posts: 5,483	Okay. Plan is to have a rest tonight to give my poor old body a chance to fix itself then go on to 30 minute workouts for a week or so and then build up slowly over the following couple of weeks to 45 minutes. I'll stick to my previous Monday morning weighing in sessions and try to resist the temptation to weigh in between. I'll try to get some measurements later today and check them regularly too. Thanks for the help so far. Looking forward to your input Piggy __________________ Just because I have a short attention span doesn't mean I...

13-03-2009, 09:18	#9
Matblack Baby Bore Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Svalbard Posts: 9,770	This is going to sound odd coming from me but; If you want to lose weight at a good pace but keep it off for a while then you need to build muscle as well as burn fat. I would recomend 3 sessions of weights a week alternating lower and upper body. Cardio is boring and time consuming, if you want to maximise its effects then you can make a lot of difference by altering intensity during your workout, have a google for HIT (High Intensity Interval Training) 20 minutes will do you a power of good and if you mix that in with your weights you'll be burning fat with newly developed muuscle. I've seen girls in the gym do cardio for an hour a day for a year and not get rid of the fat they were targeting, when coupled with some extra muscle mass the change was fast and visible. http://bodyforlife.com/exercise/index.asp Eating wise then cut back on simple carbs and sugars, swap white for brown (rice, bread, pasta) and little little and often. http://bodyforlife.com/nutrition/index.asp These are the premises behind a system called Body For Life which is an American system, the book is VERY American and rather ra ra ra but the system works, its not expensive, you don't have to use suplements (although they are advocated in the book and can make for quick meal replacements). When I was motivated I lost a hell of a lot of weight doing this, I will do it again MB __________________ "we had roots that grew towards each other underground, and when all the pretty blossom had fallen from our branches we found that we were one tree and not two"

13-03-2009, 09:44	#10
Matblack Baby Bore Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Svalbard Posts: 9,770	With regard to resting between sessions, if you are doing light cardio my experience is that this isn't essential, where it is essential is with weights work as muscles need time to repair before you hit them again. I would suspect your body has taken on water as it has experienced dehydration and it shocked by the new exercise you are throwing at it, it maybe that you'll keep the extra water in reserve but you'll lose fat weight in greater quantities very quickly so don't worry about it. I need to get back into shape this year and kick start myself, once I get going like you I get very self critical and weigh a little too often, if you are eating right you can ignore fluctuations of up to a few pounds, what you are looking for is a downward trend, its hard not to kick oneself when the scale creeps up but it will happen especially if you start lifting weights so get used to watching the trend over a week not over a few days MB __________________ "we had roots that grew towards each other underground, and when all the pretty blossom had fallen from our branches we found that we were one tree and not two"