Do You Guys Stay in Shape? If So, How So?
- Thread starter Griffolion
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Best exercise to lose weight: Pushing yourself away from the table. The most important thing is to cut down portion sizes. You can also try to replace more meals with healthier stuff like fish and vegetables. A good diet to shoot for is to (1) find your base metabolic rate (there are calculators on the internet for it), (2) cut 300-500 calories a week from the calories it takes to sustain (depending on your exercise regiment). Keep a notebook with the info to make yourself disciplined.
This will make you start dropping a pound a week or so (assuming with a combination of exercise you cut 500 calories a day from your base metabolic rate).
This will make you start dropping a pound a week or so (assuming with a combination of exercise you cut 500 calories a day from your base metabolic rate).
I make up for all the sweets I eat by walking in my city. And sometimes swimming in my apartment's pool.
...
...I need to cut back on my sweets.
...
...I need to cut back on my sweets.
You cut down on breakfast?
YOU FOOL! Never, EVER cut down on your breakfast! It's the most important meal of the day, helping you get your day started and giving you the energy you need! Try to have some protein for breakfast, such as sausages, bacon (mmmm, bacon), eggs, or even milk.
The key to losing weight is actually eating properly, but eating properly doesn't mean cutting down on your food intake, it means having the right balance between eating too much and not eating enough.
All you need to do is working out and/or doing any sports you want (I recommend swimming), and having a correct breakfast in the morning.
A good jog/swim/workout on Sunday morning is usually a great idea
YOU FOOL! Never, EVER cut down on your breakfast! It's the most important meal of the day, helping you get your day started and giving you the energy you need! Try to have some protein for breakfast, such as sausages, bacon (mmmm, bacon), eggs, or even milk.
Cereal's great, too, and especially with milk.
The key to losing weight is actually eating properly, but eating properly doesn't mean cutting down on your food intake, it means having the right balance between eating too much and not eating enough.
All you need to do is working out and/or doing any sports you want (I recommend swimming), and having a correct breakfast in the morning.
A good jog/swim/workout on Sunday morning is usually a great idea
If you're looking for life-changing weight loss, down to a trim, cut Hollywood look... well, it's a lot of work. I was there once, but I was active duty military at the time. Now I'm fairly average with a little bit of a gut, but more muscle than your average American.
The best workout advice I have for anyone, though, is this: swim. Find a pool, a river, a lake, the ocean, whatever... and swim. Seven days a week, minimum an hour a day. Swim as hard as you are able, rest when you need to, and do it for an hour. You'll notice an improvement in endurance by the second week, and you'll notice fat disappearing by the second month.
The best workout advice I have for anyone, though, is this: swim. Find a pool, a river, a lake, the ocean, whatever... and swim. Seven days a week, minimum an hour a day. Swim as hard as you are able, rest when you need to, and do it for an hour. You'll notice an improvement in endurance by the second week, and you'll notice fat disappearing by the second month.
scrap the car, and ride your bike, EVERYWHERE. Thats what I do, I make sure i use it as another set of legs. After a while you'll be able to bike at lightspeed, and your friends will wonder how you got so fast. But seriously, you have to bike everywhere, it'll make you super tires, but it'll work, bike from your house to another persons, if you need to carry things use a backpack. I have a small gut, but thats because I'm a tenager, and for some reason i always need foodGriffolion said:
Well, I'll admit, I don't work out, but you don't really need to be an exercise buff to look good either. Heck if you simply walk an hour a day, and watch your calorie intake you should be fine. However, if you want to look good solely to get the attention of the ladies, you're going about it all wrong. It's the most common reason for people to exercise and lose weight, but ultimately you'll be unhappy in the process. You should love yourself before you look for love from someone else.
EATING HEALTHY
And don't skimp out on your meals either. You shouldn't diet, you should eat healthy. This means eating three square meals a day and at least two snacks in between. Think of your metabolism as the engine for your body. You put fuel in your car to make your engine run, but if you want to make your car run faster or more efficiently, you give it a different type of fuel (fruits and vegetables to be exact as well as a few carbohydrates here and there).
BREAKFAST
I would suggest you eat a bowl of whole grain cereal, drink a glass of orange, grape, apple, cranberry, or pomegranate juice, and two slices of bread in the morning for breakfast. Not only will this refuel your body from the night before, but you'll have more energy to start the day with. And unlike white bread, whole wheat is more filling and won't be quickly digested. For variety's sake you can switch up your breakfast ingredients however you like, just make sure to eat until you feel comfortably full, not bloated full.
SNACKS AND LUNCH
As far as snacks go, a piece of fruit, a vegetable or even a multigrain bar will keep your energy up and your metabolism running. For lunch, try either a light salad with a vinaigrette or oil dressing, or a sandwich on whole wheat or multi-grain bread.
DINNER
And for dinner try to include these three things in your meal: a meat or main course, a starch, and a vegetable. You can look up different kinds of recipes online or on a cooking channel (if your television connection carries such a channel) in order to experiment on a budget. Try to cut out dessert if you can, but it can't hurt to indulge every so often as a reward for your progress with your weight.
EXERCISE
As for exercise, every body is different, so try to find what best fits your style, fitness level and schedule. I find however that 15 minute periods of exercise whether it be lifting weights, jogging, playing a recreational activity or walking for at least an hour or two total over the course of your day will help you more in the long run than spending two consecutive hours working out in a gym.
Like I said before though, you should probably want to lose weight to make you feel better about yourself. Women will come and go, but you'll find one that's right for you. After all looks can fade, what you really want is someone who loves you for who you are, not what you look like. I hope this helped, and best of luck to you.
EATING HEALTHY
And don't skimp out on your meals either. You shouldn't diet, you should eat healthy. This means eating three square meals a day and at least two snacks in between. Think of your metabolism as the engine for your body. You put fuel in your car to make your engine run, but if you want to make your car run faster or more efficiently, you give it a different type of fuel (fruits and vegetables to be exact as well as a few carbohydrates here and there).
BREAKFAST
I would suggest you eat a bowl of whole grain cereal, drink a glass of orange, grape, apple, cranberry, or pomegranate juice, and two slices of bread in the morning for breakfast. Not only will this refuel your body from the night before, but you'll have more energy to start the day with. And unlike white bread, whole wheat is more filling and won't be quickly digested. For variety's sake you can switch up your breakfast ingredients however you like, just make sure to eat until you feel comfortably full, not bloated full.
SNACKS AND LUNCH
As far as snacks go, a piece of fruit, a vegetable or even a multigrain bar will keep your energy up and your metabolism running. For lunch, try either a light salad with a vinaigrette or oil dressing, or a sandwich on whole wheat or multi-grain bread.
DINNER
And for dinner try to include these three things in your meal: a meat or main course, a starch, and a vegetable. You can look up different kinds of recipes online or on a cooking channel (if your television connection carries such a channel) in order to experiment on a budget. Try to cut out dessert if you can, but it can't hurt to indulge every so often as a reward for your progress with your weight.
EXERCISE
As for exercise, every body is different, so try to find what best fits your style, fitness level and schedule. I find however that 15 minute periods of exercise whether it be lifting weights, jogging, playing a recreational activity or walking for at least an hour or two total over the course of your day will help you more in the long run than spending two consecutive hours working out in a gym.
Like I said before though, you should probably want to lose weight to make you feel better about yourself. Women will come and go, but you'll find one that's right for you. After all looks can fade, what you really want is someone who loves you for who you are, not what you look like. I hope this helped, and best of luck to you.
* You need more than an apple for breakfast. Work in some wholegrains in there somewhere - oatmeal or wholegrain toast with some low-fat/low-sugar spread (or low-fat cheese).
* Don't have more than two medium pieces of fruit per day, and have at least two-cups worth of vegetables. Don't swap fruit for vegetables.
* Eat lots of protein to keep you full. Protein shakes are a good snack, but be sure to get ones that are low in sugar and fat - if it tastes exactly like a milkshake its probably high in both. Keep your meat extremely lean.
* Dairy is not the devil, but stick to low-fat milk. Low-fat, low-sugar yoghurt is fine. Ice cream is right out.
* Cut out full-sugar soda... but be sure that if you're going to swap to the diet stuff you never have it on its own. Screws with your insulin response.
* Bread and rice are fine, but try to have wholegrain and brown respectively.
* Don't do the same thing every time you work out. Your body adapts quickly and won't work as hard. Since you have a treadmill do random intervals of jogging or work in hill-climbs. Aim for at least three half-hour sessions a week, but feel free to do more.
Basically you want to keep yourself around 1500 calories, but you want 90% of that to come from protein and complex carbohydrates. It will be a long, hard slog by the way. Its taken me 14 months to lose 18kg - I probably could've lost it faster but that would've involved starving myself and never, ever having a treat.
* Don't have more than two medium pieces of fruit per day, and have at least two-cups worth of vegetables. Don't swap fruit for vegetables.
* Eat lots of protein to keep you full. Protein shakes are a good snack, but be sure to get ones that are low in sugar and fat - if it tastes exactly like a milkshake its probably high in both. Keep your meat extremely lean.
* Dairy is not the devil, but stick to low-fat milk. Low-fat, low-sugar yoghurt is fine. Ice cream is right out.
* Cut out full-sugar soda... but be sure that if you're going to swap to the diet stuff you never have it on its own. Screws with your insulin response.
* Bread and rice are fine, but try to have wholegrain and brown respectively.
* Don't do the same thing every time you work out. Your body adapts quickly and won't work as hard. Since you have a treadmill do random intervals of jogging or work in hill-climbs. Aim for at least three half-hour sessions a week, but feel free to do more.
Basically you want to keep yourself around 1500 calories, but you want 90% of that to come from protein and complex carbohydrates. It will be a long, hard slog by the way. Its taken me 14 months to lose 18kg - I probably could've lost it faster but that would've involved starving myself and never, ever having a treat.
1. Don't do it for the women. That's the most important thing I can tell you. You're promising yourself a reward you can't guarantee you'll get. Do it for yourself and only for yourself. If women come easier after, it will be a bonus.
2. Start small. Don't crash into a heavy program. It will be too radical a change. Work to build better habits. One brick on top of another.
3. Walking, running, swimming, weightlifting are all great exercise. It's a matter of preference.
4. Don't cheat. Don't skip a day on your program unless you're sick. Same with your diet.
5. For any exercise program to work, you need fuel. Don't be afraid to eat, just eat healthy. Lots of vegetables, fruit, and lean meat. If you do any weightlifting you will probably have to double your protein intake (maybe more) to see good results.
Here are the two beginner programs I use:
http://stronglifts.com/stronglifts-5x5-beginner-strength-training-program/
http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml
You will want a digital watch with a timer function for Couch to 5k.
For Stronglifts, all you need is a bar and 100lbs to start. You will want to buy a squat rack before you pass 100lbs as it becomes very hard to get the weight onto your shoulders without one.
2. Start small. Don't crash into a heavy program. It will be too radical a change. Work to build better habits. One brick on top of another.
3. Walking, running, swimming, weightlifting are all great exercise. It's a matter of preference.
4. Don't cheat. Don't skip a day on your program unless you're sick. Same with your diet.
5. For any exercise program to work, you need fuel. Don't be afraid to eat, just eat healthy. Lots of vegetables, fruit, and lean meat. If you do any weightlifting you will probably have to double your protein intake (maybe more) to see good results.
Here are the two beginner programs I use:
http://stronglifts.com/stronglifts-5x5-beginner-strength-training-program/
http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml
You will want a digital watch with a timer function for Couch to 5k.
For Stronglifts, all you need is a bar and 100lbs to start. You will want to buy a squat rack before you pass 100lbs as it becomes very hard to get the weight onto your shoulders without one.
I jog pretty much every day to work. The distance is about 2 miles so normally I try to beat my record of 14 mins. At the moment I am, again, at the 15 minute mark (I had/have a injury that is, at the moment being staved off by using two knee supports on the joint).
I typically attempt beating my 14 minute record Monday-Thursday and on Friday I do intervals - I jog relatively slowly until I get to one of my interval points (of which there are 5) and run at half pace for a very slow count of 20 seconds - which ends up being about 100 metres or so)).
I've also started jogging home from work again. My record for jogging home up hill is 17 mins. Looking forward to breaking that one.
I also go to the gym and for everything I pretty much do 4 sets of 12 reps for everything, so I don't use the heaviest weights because of the amount of reps.
I'm out of shape in all honestly, at least with strength training but I'm trying to condition myself by going to the gym and working out at home after work.
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OT: My old gym trainer said that losing fat is simple; you just burn more calories than you eat. It doesn't have to be jogging/running and walking. Doing strength training will make your metabolism very fast and you will burn a lot of calories in no time at all.
Typically the fat that is located where your abdomen is won't be affected too much my ab exercises. What gets rid of this fat frmo my own personal experience is cardio-vascular exercise.
If you want to get fitter/lose weight then don't push yourself too hard and start slowly. Doing a few press ups, sit ups and maybe a slow jog round the block a day and try to get the routine to stick. When you feel that your body can do more you can increase the repetitions of those exercises and the distance you jog or you jogging pace. The routine is the most troublesome part. When you are in it you will be fine but when you are out of it it's difficult to get back into :S
Oh and also in terms of equipment - my friend who had never been to a gym and had used his own bodyweight and a few dumbells is extremely fit. He'd often go to his local woods and do things like chin ups from tree branches and the like.
For what you want right now the equipment you have is enough. Exercises like sit ups, press ups need no equipment - though advanced ones and dips can be done with a chair or something similar.
The dumbells can be used for things like tricep extensions, bicep curls/hammer curls/alternating bicep curls/concentration curls, squats, lunges and much more.
In short you're pretty much set! I would give one piece of advice though: and that is to perhaps go to a local gym for a few times and talk to a personal trainer about the proper use of equipment. Too many people use equipment improperly which can cause injuries. I learned this when I asked my old gym trainer about "ass to grass" squats. It turned out they weren't doing me any good and that I was going to damage my legs/knees!
I typically attempt beating my 14 minute record Monday-Thursday and on Friday I do intervals - I jog relatively slowly until I get to one of my interval points (of which there are 5) and run at half pace for a very slow count of 20 seconds - which ends up being about 100 metres or so)).
I've also started jogging home from work again. My record for jogging home up hill is 17 mins. Looking forward to breaking that one.
I also go to the gym and for everything I pretty much do 4 sets of 12 reps for everything, so I don't use the heaviest weights because of the amount of reps.
I'm out of shape in all honestly, at least with strength training but I'm trying to condition myself by going to the gym and working out at home after work.
--------------------------------------------
OT: My old gym trainer said that losing fat is simple; you just burn more calories than you eat. It doesn't have to be jogging/running and walking. Doing strength training will make your metabolism very fast and you will burn a lot of calories in no time at all.
Typically the fat that is located where your abdomen is won't be affected too much my ab exercises. What gets rid of this fat frmo my own personal experience is cardio-vascular exercise.
If you want to get fitter/lose weight then don't push yourself too hard and start slowly. Doing a few press ups, sit ups and maybe a slow jog round the block a day and try to get the routine to stick. When you feel that your body can do more you can increase the repetitions of those exercises and the distance you jog or you jogging pace. The routine is the most troublesome part. When you are in it you will be fine but when you are out of it it's difficult to get back into :S
Oh and also in terms of equipment - my friend who had never been to a gym and had used his own bodyweight and a few dumbells is extremely fit. He'd often go to his local woods and do things like chin ups from tree branches and the like.
For what you want right now the equipment you have is enough. Exercises like sit ups, press ups need no equipment - though advanced ones and dips can be done with a chair or something similar.
The dumbells can be used for things like tricep extensions, bicep curls/hammer curls/alternating bicep curls/concentration curls, squats, lunges and much more.
In short you're pretty much set! I would give one piece of advice though: and that is to perhaps go to a local gym for a few times and talk to a personal trainer about the proper use of equipment. Too many people use equipment improperly which can cause injuries. I learned this when I asked my old gym trainer about "ass to grass" squats. It turned out they weren't doing me any good and that I was going to damage my legs/knees!
Sorry if this is a bit long-winded, but for the last year or so, going from sad sack of crap to healthy warhorse has been my biggest priority, and consequently, one of my biggest sources of pride. Anyway, I'll try to keep this coherent by splitting my answer up into three key categories, which are as follows:
Exercise
I do a full suite of exercises. Most often I'll run or get some form of exhausting cardio (the only kind that really counts), as it greatly facilitates weight loss and a provides a massive improvement in well-being. I also lift occasionally; the feeling I get after doing a full set of full-ROM deadlifts is easily comparable to a roaring orgasm, and that's not a comparison I make lightly. I used to lift on a strict schedule, but I've been on an EC stack for the last couple of weeks so I'm eating way, way less (at most: 1,500 kcal per day with exercise, any more than that makes me sick) so I'm actually sorta weak and in no state to be building muscle. The decrease in strength has been offset by a remarkable increase of stamina, however, which has led to me quickly (for a fat guy) covering distances that would've killed me back when I first started out.
Diet
On top of my workout regimen, I've been dieting something fierce. As I said, the recent addition of an EC stack (constant dosage of a set ratio of ephedrine and caffeine, for the uninitiated) has caused my appetite to drop sharply, to the point where I've gone from eating out of boredom, to eating when my body pulls me aside and says "listen ************, you are about to DIE". In the long term, I've been going health-Nazi on the food I do eat for the last six months or so; I don't drink soda (I should probably change my name to TEAssault huehuehue), I don't eat dessert, I eat much smaller portions than I used to, I keep my diet as beneficial as possible, and junk food is a distant, shameful memory. My dieting has been so diligent that I've acclimated to eating more healthily, to the point that even the most benign junk food will give me raging indigestion... and I wouldn't have it any other way.
Results
I've still got about 1/3 year's worth of hard work between me and my ideal physique, but even if I'm not rocking a god-like body, I've got plenty of immediate results to report on firsthand. This may sound like gloating or self-aggrandizing, but I include these as an incentive to anybody reading this that may be undecided as to whether or not fitness is a commitment that's really worth all the pain and effort. Anywho, here's a handful:
-I'm down ninety pounds from where I started, which is to say, about the same weight I was for my freshman year of highschool (still overweight, but fuck yeah just the same).
-The combination of diet and exercise has made me healthier than I've ever been before, which means being in a much better mood at all times. No, seriously, it's actually improved my overall outlook on life, and makes everything all the more enjoyable. Being healthy is just a great feeling.
-Like I said, I'm still a good ways from where I want to be, but looking in the mirror every day and thinking "I really like where this is going", as opposed to "god, you look awful... again", is an indescribably awesome paradigm shift. Knowing I have such control over my once-abhorred appearance has done wonders for my confidence and self-esteem, which has increased my capacity for socialization tenfold. The steadily-increasing interest from the opposite sex is always a sweet bonus, as well.
Anyway, I realize this is a lot to read and most of you simply can't be arsed to spend ten minutes straining your eyes on what might turn out to be a load of crap, and that's totally understandable. However, if you made it to the end and want to know more, throw me a PM. I'm more than happy to give advice or help a noobie get started with the basics. Don't be shy, if any of this sounds like a change that you want/need to make for yourself, hit me up, and I'll do what I can for you.
Exercise
I do a full suite of exercises. Most often I'll run or get some form of exhausting cardio (the only kind that really counts), as it greatly facilitates weight loss and a provides a massive improvement in well-being. I also lift occasionally; the feeling I get after doing a full set of full-ROM deadlifts is easily comparable to a roaring orgasm, and that's not a comparison I make lightly. I used to lift on a strict schedule, but I've been on an EC stack for the last couple of weeks so I'm eating way, way less (at most: 1,500 kcal per day with exercise, any more than that makes me sick) so I'm actually sorta weak and in no state to be building muscle. The decrease in strength has been offset by a remarkable increase of stamina, however, which has led to me quickly (for a fat guy) covering distances that would've killed me back when I first started out.
Diet
On top of my workout regimen, I've been dieting something fierce. As I said, the recent addition of an EC stack (constant dosage of a set ratio of ephedrine and caffeine, for the uninitiated) has caused my appetite to drop sharply, to the point where I've gone from eating out of boredom, to eating when my body pulls me aside and says "listen ************, you are about to DIE". In the long term, I've been going health-Nazi on the food I do eat for the last six months or so; I don't drink soda (I should probably change my name to TEAssault huehuehue), I don't eat dessert, I eat much smaller portions than I used to, I keep my diet as beneficial as possible, and junk food is a distant, shameful memory. My dieting has been so diligent that I've acclimated to eating more healthily, to the point that even the most benign junk food will give me raging indigestion... and I wouldn't have it any other way.
Results
I've still got about 1/3 year's worth of hard work between me and my ideal physique, but even if I'm not rocking a god-like body, I've got plenty of immediate results to report on firsthand. This may sound like gloating or self-aggrandizing, but I include these as an incentive to anybody reading this that may be undecided as to whether or not fitness is a commitment that's really worth all the pain and effort. Anywho, here's a handful:
-I'm down ninety pounds from where I started, which is to say, about the same weight I was for my freshman year of highschool (still overweight, but fuck yeah just the same).
-The combination of diet and exercise has made me healthier than I've ever been before, which means being in a much better mood at all times. No, seriously, it's actually improved my overall outlook on life, and makes everything all the more enjoyable. Being healthy is just a great feeling.
-Like I said, I'm still a good ways from where I want to be, but looking in the mirror every day and thinking "I really like where this is going", as opposed to "god, you look awful... again", is an indescribably awesome paradigm shift. Knowing I have such control over my once-abhorred appearance has done wonders for my confidence and self-esteem, which has increased my capacity for socialization tenfold. The steadily-increasing interest from the opposite sex is always a sweet bonus, as well.
...it's honestly hard to nail down a specific catalyst for each of the effects I've just listed (i.e. I'm better with the ladies because of increased testosterone production/higher self-esteem/higher sex drive/aestheticblahblahblah) since it's all a nebulous, complex cocktail of interconnected goodness and self-improvement, but it's definitely all a direct result of the topic at hand.
Anyway, I realize this is a lot to read and most of you simply can't be arsed to spend ten minutes straining your eyes on what might turn out to be a load of crap, and that's totally understandable. However, if you made it to the end and want to know more, throw me a PM. I'm more than happy to give advice or help a noobie get started with the basics. Don't be shy, if any of this sounds like a change that you want/need to make for yourself, hit me up, and I'll do what I can for you.
I stay slim by using a pedometer and walk around the neighborhood in the early morning (5:00AM) until I hit 15000 steps. My BMI is twenty afterwards. Then I eat Pop-Tarts and corn chips for breakfast and then play video games.