weight loss question

[JohnCU]

Originally posted by: dullard

Originally posted by: JohnCU
it's not always as simple as calories in - calories burned etc since some foods/drinks increase metabolism. way too many variables.

like alcohol, 69 cals per oz of scotch, vodka, etc but alcohol speeds up metabolism.

I venture to say that probably 99.9% of anything ever said about metabolism is false. Just don't listen to anything about it. Ignore metabolism, it is just a modern day snake oil.

For starters, fat people have a higher metabolism than skinny people. <- Demonstrable fact.

but fat people probably eat more than skinny people. and yet some people can eat all they want all day long and never gain weight.

 

[SirChadwick]

Originally posted by: 3cho
yeah, it's a sitdown job, and i am afraid like crazy! and i have a feeling that i will be eatting a lot because i will be so stressed out all the time. what am i to do?

I work a sitdown job right now about 40 hrs a week and I have to do small things around the office for exercise. I always take the stairs instead of the elevator. When I get calls from those having PC issues, I offer to go straight to their desk and resolve it instead of giving them support over the phone. Working 90-100 hrs a week is killer... I haven't done that since my construction days in college (which was workout in itself).

 

[dullard]

Originally posted by: JohnCU
but fat people probably eat more than skinny people.

In most cases, I bet that is true. And in those cases, eating more then would be the cause of them being fatter. Not some mystical metabolism level discussed by someone with no training or education in mass balance. Metabolism is a hit because fatty people can say "It's not my fault, I just have low metabolism". BS! Your weight is within your control. Thus, if you truely are overweight, it is your fault.

and yet some people can eat all they want all day long and never gain weight.

Yes, some people absorb a lot more of the food they eat than others. We do not all absorb 100% of what we eat. Our bodies are not perfect. A lot of food makes it out before being absorbed. Do the best you can to assist the food in making it out before it is absorbed. That is where fiber comes into play.

 

[JohnCU]

Originally posted by: SirChadwick

Originally posted by: 3cho
yeah, it's a sitdown job, and i am afraid like crazy! and i have a feeling that i will be eatting a lot because i will be so stressed out all the time. what am i to do?

I work a sitdown job right now about 40 hrs a week and I have to do small things around the office for exercise. I always take the stairs instead of the elevator. When I get calls from those having PC issues, I offer to go straight to their desk and resolve it instead of giving them support over the phone. Working 90-100 hrs a week is killer... I haven't done that since my construction days in college (which was workout in itself).

i have a sit down job too and by cutting out soft drinks and eating subway 6inch subs every day for lunch, 200 cal breakfast, then something light for dinner i lost about 20lbs.

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: JohnCU
yet some people can eat all they want all day long and never gain weight.

SHHHHH!!! Exposing this simple fact of genetics will have people claiming you are making excuses for fat people!!!

 

[SirChadwick]

Originally posted by: JohnCU

Originally posted by: SirChadwick

Originally posted by: 3cho
yeah, it's a sitdown job, and i am afraid like crazy! and i have a feeling that i will be eatting a lot because i will be so stressed out all the time. what am i to do?

I work a sitdown job right now about 40 hrs a week and I have to do small things around the office for exercise. I always take the stairs instead of the elevator. When I get calls from those having PC issues, I offer to go straight to their desk and resolve it instead of giving them support over the phone. Working 90-100 hrs a week is killer... I haven't done that since my construction days in college (which was workout in itself).

i have a sit down job too and by cutting out soft drinks and eating subway 6inch subs every day for lunch, 200 cal breakfast, then something light for dinner i lost about 20lbs.

Hitting up a 6 inch sub from Blimpie today with a nice large water. 😉

 

[JohnCU]

Originally posted by: dullard

Originally posted by: JohnCU
but fat people probably eat more than skinny people.

In most cases, I bet that is true. And in those cases, eating more then would be the cause of them being fatter. Not some mystical metabolism level discussed by someone with no training or education in mass balance. Metabolism is a hit because fatty people can say "It's not my fault, I just have low metabolism". BS! Your weight is within your control. Thus, if you truely are overweight, it is your fault.

and yet some people can eat all they want all day long and never gain weight.

Yes, some people absorb a lot more of the food they eat than others. We do not all absorb 100% of what we eat. Our bodies are not perfect. A lot of food makes it out before being absorbed. Do the best you can to assist the food in making it out before it is absorbed. That is where fiber comes into play.

well i don't know, it's all very complicated and i haven't studied more than wikipedia articles. all i can do is find what works for me.

 

[SirChadwick]

Another personal tip I can give you about eating healthy is that it plays a large roll in whether or not I work out or not. If I eat fried foods with a Coke it plays a psychological role which tells me that I shouldn't work out because I ate junk.... also my body feels weak 2-3 hours later and I get very lazy. But if I eat a turkey sandwich with a salad and a water, I feel more energized and can't wait to run or hit the gym.

Also listen to music when you do cardio - you'll lose track of time and run further without even realizing it.

 

[Nerva]

Originally posted by: SirChadwick
Another personal tip I can give you about eating healthy is that it plays a large roll in whether or not I work out or not. If I eat fried foods with a Coke it plays a psychological role which tells me that I shouldn't work out because I ate junk.... also my body feels weak 2-3 hours later and I get very lazy. But if I eat a turkey sandwich with a salad and a water, I feel more energized and can't wait to run or hit the gym.

Also listen to music when you do cardio - you'll lose track of time and run further without even realizing it.

i do listen to music that keeps me going, in fact it's the only thing that keeps me going. but i might not be running correctly because my calves tire after 5 minutes and my left foot becomes numb near the end.

 

[SirChadwick]

Originally posted by: 3cho

Originally posted by: SirChadwick
Another personal tip I can give you about eating healthy is that it plays a large roll in whether or not I work out or not. If I eat fried foods with a Coke it plays a psychological role which tells me that I shouldn't work out because I ate junk.... also my body feels weak 2-3 hours later and I get very lazy. But if I eat a turkey sandwich with a salad and a water, I feel more energized and can't wait to run or hit the gym.

Also listen to music when you do cardio - you'll lose track of time and run further without even realizing it.

i do listen to music that keeps me going, in fact it's the only thing that keeps me going. but i might not be running correctly because my calves tire after 5 minutes and my left foot becomes numb near the end.

Try getting on an eliptical and make sure you stay back on your heels to help your bloodflow. My feet go numb after about 20 minutes of running and sometimes my shins will start burning.... eliptical makes it much easier.

 

[Descartes]

IMO, I think the problem most dieters encounter is that they never really know their true BMR. If you don't really know how many calories you need you don't know how much to add, reduce, etc.

There's a simple metric that I follow. 500 calories more than you need will usually result in about a pound a week added to your frame; conversely, 500 less than you need usually results in about a pound of week reduced from your frame. These are generalities of course, but it's a basic metric that you can use.

Point is, most people don't even know if they're gaining/losing weight because they don't know how many calories they should have. If your weight is sustained then it's really a simple issue: Calculate your calories (use something like FitDay if you want to help track it) over the course of a week and find an average, and from that you can determine how to proceed.

I'm a believer in that you should start with checking your diet first using the above suggestions. Once you know where you stand then you can augment with exercise, and from that you'll know how much effort you need. I know far too many people that think they can just exercise 2 hours a day (which has its own negative effects) but continue to eat the same foods.

In short: Find out how many calories you need to sustain your weight and then add/subtract from there through diet and exercise augmentation. For the exercise you can look to things like HIIT, weight lifting, etc. depending on how much you need to lose.

 

[CellarDoor]

The most important thing to do IMO, when dealing with health, is find an excercise you enjoy doing. Also, drink a ton of water.

The rest of the tips in this thread are quite good, and I concur with the poster who talked about losing weight in the arms and chest first. The same thing happens with me. My arms and legs get noticeably thinner and the abs are the last to go.

Just find an activity you love to do (for me it's pick-up basketball games) and have fun with it. Make sure you stick to a healthy diet of course. No fried foods, no soda, no margarine, and add more fruits and vegetables. As with the exercise, do research on the types of foods that you enjoy that are also reasonably healthy (i love greek salads and healthy sandwiches) and then this won't all seem like such a hardship. To keep the weight off in the long term, I can't stress how important it is to choose activities and food that you enjoy doing/eating.

Oh, and HIIT will kick your ass. I tried 5 minutes a day of jogging/fast jogging/sprinting in 20 second intervals and I almost died. I felt amazing afterwards though.