- Jan 3, 2001
- 4,194
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Backstory:
I was a drug addict for many years, smoking crack and then getting away from the crack by picking up a heroin habit. I would eat once a day if I happened to get near some food. When I quit I weighed 145 lbs and looked like I had just been liberated from Auschwitz. I told myself I had to eat a lot to pack on some pounds. Somewhere along the line I forgot to stop overcompensating and 8 years later I was at 262lbs and would have kept on growing had I not decided to do something about it. The extra weight is almost all in my gut.
I finally decided I was ready to tackle the problem. I appropriated the 3rd bedroom in our home, and through craigslist, freecycle, and an auto accident settlement I now have a nice carpeted exercise room with a treadmill, home gym, and HDTV on the wall.
I'm 40 years old, my knees are shot, and I'm not looking to become obsessed about working out. However for the next few months, I am going to push it as hard as I can. My previous drug history precludes me from taking any supplements or stimulants. My goal is to drop 70 lbs or so, find a comfortable weight for my 5'11" frame, and slowly evolve my eating habits into a healthier diet.
As far as the eating, if I was to just start eating rice cakes every day in 3 days I'd be inhaling a large pizza while thinking about what I was going to eat for the next meal. So instead, I've decided to slowly start weeding out the really bad stuff and work on portion control. Instead of pizza and chilly cheese dogs, I've been eating tuna sandwiches and an orange or banana for lunch, chicken or fish, potatoes, and a veggie for dinner, and instead of hitting 7-11 every morning for a sticky bun and sausage and egg sandwich, I bring a PBJ with me. Still not great, but a far cry from burritoes and cans of chili. On top of this I have replaced about half my soda intake (3 cans) with water.
I have been going at it for 2 weeks so far, and have lost 6 lbs. I get on the treadmill nearly every night and have increased from 1 mile to 2 at a brisk walk. With my weight I get winded just walking to the car so it will take some time. I do all the arms and chest exercises on the home gym but do not use the leg curls as this screws my knees up.
So given all that, if there is anything any of you think I should consider I am open to suggestions. Thanks for reading
I was a drug addict for many years, smoking crack and then getting away from the crack by picking up a heroin habit. I would eat once a day if I happened to get near some food. When I quit I weighed 145 lbs and looked like I had just been liberated from Auschwitz. I told myself I had to eat a lot to pack on some pounds. Somewhere along the line I forgot to stop overcompensating and 8 years later I was at 262lbs and would have kept on growing had I not decided to do something about it. The extra weight is almost all in my gut.
I finally decided I was ready to tackle the problem. I appropriated the 3rd bedroom in our home, and through craigslist, freecycle, and an auto accident settlement I now have a nice carpeted exercise room with a treadmill, home gym, and HDTV on the wall.
I'm 40 years old, my knees are shot, and I'm not looking to become obsessed about working out. However for the next few months, I am going to push it as hard as I can. My previous drug history precludes me from taking any supplements or stimulants. My goal is to drop 70 lbs or so, find a comfortable weight for my 5'11" frame, and slowly evolve my eating habits into a healthier diet.
As far as the eating, if I was to just start eating rice cakes every day in 3 days I'd be inhaling a large pizza while thinking about what I was going to eat for the next meal. So instead, I've decided to slowly start weeding out the really bad stuff and work on portion control. Instead of pizza and chilly cheese dogs, I've been eating tuna sandwiches and an orange or banana for lunch, chicken or fish, potatoes, and a veggie for dinner, and instead of hitting 7-11 every morning for a sticky bun and sausage and egg sandwich, I bring a PBJ with me. Still not great, but a far cry from burritoes and cans of chili. On top of this I have replaced about half my soda intake (3 cans) with water.
I have been going at it for 2 weeks so far, and have lost 6 lbs. I get on the treadmill nearly every night and have increased from 1 mile to 2 at a brisk walk. With my weight I get winded just walking to the car so it will take some time. I do all the arms and chest exercises on the home gym but do not use the leg curls as this screws my knees up.
So given all that, if there is anything any of you think I should consider I am open to suggestions. Thanks for reading
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