iATOT Official "Get your skinny ass/fat ass in shape" contest!

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KeithTalent

Elite Member | Administrator | No Lifer
Administrator
Nov 30, 2005
50,231
117
116
Originally posted by: NissanGurl
Ok, I'm going to do my best to get application info together and actually take some pics. I'll be going for the losing weight category. I'll have to open an account on one of the pages a few others have to document all this. Is there one that is particularly intuitive (not that I can't figure them out if they aren't). I'll need to wait a couple of days until this sunburn fades a little...don't want to look like a lobster in the before pics :D

I've found the one Quasmo recommended and started a group in to be quite good and easy to use: http://www.sparkpeople.com/myspark/mysparkstart.asp

I actually have a few friends that are using it now just to track their calorie intake and exercise and they are loving it.

Cheers,
KT
 

Megatomic

Lifer
Nov 9, 2000
20,127
6
81
I hear what you guys are saying, but I still have two pockets of fat on my sides - think lovehandles only rotated towards the back rather than right on the side - that I'm trying to lose. Seeing the weight go up with those damned jelly rolls still hanging there galls me to no end. And that is why I am undecided as to which group I truly belong in. I guess it's down to a psychological battle now, I hope I don't become addicted to weight loss and the idea of being skinny. I don't want to be skinny, I want to be fit.
 

Megatomic

Lifer
Nov 9, 2000
20,127
6
81
I'll second the motion to use sparkpeople. I found them a long time ago and used the calorie counter every day. I already had the exercise routines I needed to use so I didn't need theirs, but some of their recipe ideas are quite good. Make sure to check them out.
 

NissanGurl

Golden Member
Sep 4, 2003
1,111
0
0
working on setting up a sparkpeople account now. Seems like it will be pretty useful. Thanks for the recommendations.
 

TallBill

Lifer
Apr 29, 2001
46,017
62
91
I'd probably go back to tracking my intake online but my internet has been super crappy as of late.
 

NissanGurl

Golden Member
Sep 4, 2003
1,111
0
0
Soooo, how many other women are participating in this contest? Just curious. I don't imagine too many guys would be interested in the "Before" pics, (well at least in mine) lol.
 

TallBill

Lifer
Apr 29, 2001
46,017
62
91
You are the first an only that has expressed interest. I'm really hoping that we get some more "weight losers". As of right now it looks like it might just be 1 or 2 competition groups. No sense in a 2-3 way competition.

Just remember that guys are just as unwilling to post their pictures online. I was nervous about it for a while myself, now I just dont give a fuck.
 

KeithTalent

Elite Member | Administrator | No Lifer
Administrator
Nov 30, 2005
50,231
117
116
Originally posted by: NissanGurl
Soooo, how many other women are participating in this contest? Just curious. I don't imagine too many guys would be interested in the "Before" pics, (well at least in mine) lol.

Trust me, it took a while to get the courage to post my pictures. I do not think I look good at all, but I figured what the hell, it is for the greater good so I'll just do it.

KT
 

HN

Diamond Member
Jan 19, 2001
8,186
4
0
i think weightlosers may be discouraged by the fact that the competition runs through the holidays. not so much a problem for the gainers, though :p
 

BigPoppa

Golden Member
Oct 9, 1999
1,930
0
0
Journal:
My weight loss blog

Pics:
Front
Side
They're not the greatest, but wanted to get pics up before the deadline.

Stats:
Male
22 years old
5'10"
323lbs (was the last time I weighed, was a while ago. Will weigh when I hit the gym)

Goal:
Lose fat. Create a sustainable, healthy lifestyle. I've taken large strides in the eating department, but more needs to be done.

Category:
Weight Loss.

EDIT: Added pics.
 

TallBill

Lifer
Apr 29, 2001
46,017
62
91
Originally posted by: HN
i think weightlosers may be discouraged by the fact that the competition runs through the holidays. not so much a problem for the gainers, though :p

Well, one holiday is no excuse to eat like a slob for 3 weeks. You can still eat moderatly and enjoy your food.
 

Megatomic

Lifer
Nov 9, 2000
20,127
6
81
Originally posted by: TallBill
Originally posted by: HN
i think weightlosers may be discouraged by the fact that the competition runs through the holidays. not so much a problem for the gainers, though :p

Well, one holiday is no excuse to eat like a slob for 3 weeks. You can still eat moderatly and enjoy your food.
Amen. I made it though last Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year with a -5 lb change! And I did enjoy eating well on all 3 holidays.
 

Special K

Diamond Member
Jun 18, 2000
7,098
0
76
Just an FYI to the recomp people - pulling off a true recomposition (i.e., gaining muscle and losing fat at the same time) is incredibly difficult to do unless you fall into one of the following categories:

1. genetic freak (I hate you ;) )
2. drug user
3. complete n00b who is somewhat overweight to begin with

If you already have some experience lifting, you might be better off focusing on either cutting or bulking for the duration of the contest.
 

stinger25

Senior member
Jan 8, 2003
358
0
0
Alright. So it took me awhile to get the nerve to post my pics, so please be cool. I'm doing this in part to motivate myself to lose weight. I decided to go with the www.fitday.com website to use as a jornal link, as well as to document my diet. For my workout, I am commuting from home to work and back on my bike, about twice a week (a 45 mile total).Thanks again, Tallbill, for getting this set up.

1. doh #1
doh #2
2. Height: 5'8"
Weight: 228 lb
3. Me Journal
4. Category: Weight Loss (of course :p)
5. My goal is to lose at least 40 lbs (hopefully more) by December.

My main problem is setting up a proper diet. Fitday.com helps me count my calories, but I'm not sure what to do besides that.
 

Special K

Diamond Member
Jun 18, 2000
7,098
0
76
Originally posted by: stinger25
Alright. So it took me awhile to get the nerve to post my pics, so please be cool. I'm doing this in part to motivate myself to lose weight. I decided to go with the www.fitday.com website to use as a jornal link, as well as to document my diet. For my workout, I am commuting from home to work and back on my bike, about twice a week (a 45 mile total).Thanks again, Tallbill, for getting this set up.

1. doh #1
doh #2
2. Height: 5'8"
Weight: 228 lb
3. Me Journal
4. Category: Weight Loss (of course :p)
5. My goal is to lose at least 40 lbs (hopefully more) by December.

My main problem is setting up a proper diet. Fitday.com helps me count my calories, but I'm not sure what to do besides that.

Are you doing a weightlifting program, or just the diet? Here is my saved reply to these types of questions:

Here is the problem with most of the advice you are going to get: it is too vague. "cut out sweets", "don't drink pop", "don't eat after X PM", it's all too vague to be very useful. For maximal results, you need to take a more methodical approach.

First of all, you cannot spot reduce, so doing crunches will not burn any of the fat off your stomach.

Second, losing fat is ultimately a matter of burning slightly more calories than you consume over an extended period of time.

What you need to do is start tracking exactly what you eat each day. Fitday makes it easy. You will also need a starting point for your BMR - this is the number of calories you would need to eat in a day to exactly maintain your current weight. You can find an estimate here - make sure to click on the link labeled "Daily Calorie Needs" to find an estimate based on activity level.

Now, eat that number of calories each day for a week, and track your weight first thing each morning. If at the end of the week, you have not lost a pound, then cut 300 calories from your daily total and eat that amount for each day of the next week. Continue to track your weight, and keep making reductions until you are losing about 1 lb./week. I recommend getting 40% of your calories from protein, 40% from carbs, and 20% from healthy fats. Need help on what to eat? Check out this link

If you want to preserve muscle, I would recommend a weightlifting program focused on basic compound movements, low reps, and heavy weight. This will help persuade your body to burn fat instead of muscle while you are in a caloric deficit.

If you want to do some cardio on top of this then go for it, but it is not required for losing fat. If you want to do cardio, I would recommend shorter, high intensity sessions instead of longer, lower intensity.

Finally, you could have just done a search. This question, or something similar to it, gets posted at least once a week.

Also, check out the link in my sig if you really want to get in depth with this. There are lots of knowledgable people on that board who would be more than happy to help beginners.

 

irishScott

Lifer
Oct 10, 2006
21,562
3
0
Originally posted by: Special K
Just an FYI to the recomp people - pulling off a true recomposition (i.e., gaining muscle and losing fat at the same time) is incredibly difficult to do unless you fall into one of the following categories:

1. genetic freak (I hate you ;) )
2. drug user
3. complete n00b who is somewhat overweight to begin with

If you already have some experience lifting, you might be better off focusing on either cutting or bulking for the duration of the contest.

I'm the first to admit my noobishness in this area, but don't exercises that involve both aerobic and anaerobic training (rowing, cycling, etc) accomplish this? Obviously they can only go so far concerning muscle gain, but still

:confused:
 

crt1530

Diamond Member
Apr 15, 2001
3,194
0
0
Originally posted by: irishScott
Originally posted by: Special K
Just an FYI to the recomp people - pulling off a true recomposition (i.e., gaining muscle and losing fat at the same time) is incredibly difficult to do unless you fall into one of the following categories:

1. genetic freak (I hate you ;) )
2. drug user
3. complete n00b who is somewhat overweight to begin with

If you already have some experience lifting, you might be better off focusing on either cutting or bulking for the duration of the contest.

I'm the first to admit my noobishness in this area, but don't exercises that involve both aerobic and anaerobic training (rowing, cycling, etc) accomplish this? Obviously they can only go so far concerning muscle gain, but still

:confused:
When you first start working out, it is easy for you to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time because your body is so far from its genetic potential and your muscles are largely undeveloped. Once you have gotten past the novice stage, it starts getting more difficult to do both at the same time. Each additional pound of muscle mass is more difficult to add than the one before. It's the same for losing bodyfat. Optimal fat loss occurs when your body experiences a caloric deficit. Optimal muscle gain occurs when your body experiences a caloric surplus. Thus far, I haven't seen any pictures of people in this thread who really need to be concerned about this. Everyone should focus on getting stronger. Your goal should determine whether you are on a caloric surplus or deficit and how much cardio work you do.
 

dullard

Elite Member
May 21, 2001
25,476
3,976
126
I'm just here to say that I'm still in. I've been exercising every other day along with my GF.

Last night, the GF took pictures of me, took measurements of every major muscle, I got the workout journal started up in Excel, etc. I even was kind to all of you and censored out the whitey tighties. But then, I didn't have any media (USB drive, CD, floppy disk, etc) to move that work to a computer with internet access. So, you'll have to wait a few more days.

TallBill, would you accept an ATOT thread of my progress instead of a blog?
 

Megatomic

Lifer
Nov 9, 2000
20,127
6
81
That's a good idea dullard if the AT mods will allow us a thread like that. I don't have time to create and maintain a blog along with all the other things that occupy my time in life.
 

Special K

Diamond Member
Jun 18, 2000
7,098
0
76
Originally posted by: crt1530
Originally posted by: irishScott
Originally posted by: Special K
Just an FYI to the recomp people - pulling off a true recomposition (i.e., gaining muscle and losing fat at the same time) is incredibly difficult to do unless you fall into one of the following categories:

1. genetic freak (I hate you ;) )
2. drug user
3. complete n00b who is somewhat overweight to begin with

If you already have some experience lifting, you might be better off focusing on either cutting or bulking for the duration of the contest.

I'm the first to admit my noobishness in this area, but don't exercises that involve both aerobic and anaerobic training (rowing, cycling, etc) accomplish this? Obviously they can only go so far concerning muscle gain, but still

:confused:
When you first start working out, it is easy for you to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time because your body is so far from its genetic potential and your muscles are largely undeveloped. Once you have gotten past the novice stage, it starts getting more difficult to do both at the same time. Each additional pound of muscle mass is more difficult to add than the one before. It's the same for losing bodyfat. Optimal fat loss occurs when your body experiences a caloric deficit. Optimal muscle gain occurs when your body experiences a caloric surplus. Thus far, I haven't seen any pictures of people in this thread who really need to be concerned about this. Everyone should focus on getting stronger. Your goal should determine whether you are on a caloric surplus or deficit and how much cardio work you do.

What crt1530 said is pretty much correct. Fat loss and muscle gain have more to do with your diet than anything else. In general, building muscle requires a surplus of calories, while losing fat requires a deficit of calories. You can see how these goals are at odds with each other for most people.
 

KeithTalent

Elite Member | Administrator | No Lifer
Administrator
Nov 30, 2005
50,231
117
116
Originally posted by: Megatomic
That's a good idea dullard if the AT mods will allow us a thread like that. I don't have time to create and maintain a blog along with all the other things that occupy my time in life.

I agree with this. Would make things a lot easier and that way all of us would be able track everyone else without having to click on 20 different blogs.

Should help to keep everyone on their toes as well.

TallBill's call though.

KT