In reply to bagger05

bagger05 said:

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Progress comes in many forms. Congrats on the work so far.

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Thanks! It's funny, when I started down this path, I wanted to see how lean I could get. I got to about 126 and decided that was enough.

Now, 3 years later, I'm more motivated by seeing how strong I can get. I know if I shred, I'll lose some muscle, and I don't want to do that (although, I would like to make my new muscle growth "pop").

In reply to BassCowboy33

BassCowboy33 said:

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BassCowboy33 said:

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BassCowboy33 said:

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BassCowboy33 said:

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BassCowboy33 said:

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BassCowboy33 said:

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12/15/23
Age: 36
Ht: 5'05"
Wt: 174
nFFMI: 25.02
BF%: ~17%

I weighed 174 in mid December when I started my goal to be down to about 160 by mid-March. I have floated between 170-180 since about 2014. I'm built like a tank with a mesomorph body, so BMI and Navy standards always have a problem with me (Was always sent to the "fat" line for weigh-ins).

My progress has been stunning, and I'm crashing through what I thought possible.

1/22/24
Wt: 163
nFFMI: 24.04
BF%: ~15%

80% of this is clean eating. I started ordering daily meals from Factor, which usually are chicken/pork and a vegetable, ranging from 400-900 Calories. For snacks, it's either a fruit (cherries/peaches/apple sauce), a slice of prosciutto, or a couple of tablespoons of peanut butter. The goal is to hit between 1600-2200 Calories six days per week. I do take creatine, using the HCl dosage. It's what we used to take playing football in college, and I got away from it after an emergency surgery in 2014 when my appendix staged a coup. Dinner is usually about 4 oz of steak or a few scrambled eggs with Tabasco, coupled with the aforementioned snacks.

I have a cheat meal each week, where I eat whatever I want, but I usually plan that. For example, Sunday was a Large Wing Combo from Wingstop with +5 wings on the side. A week ago, it was 2 Chipotle burritos plus chips and guac. I've found this keeps me on track and keeps cravings away.

The workouts have become essential as well. It's divided into three parts upper/lower/run, one per day with a rest day. I do each twice per week. I am also a walking fiend. I aim to hit 10,000 steps/day but routinely crush through 15,000/day. I was a walking dude before any of this weight loss started, so I'm on about a 70-day streak of breaking 10,000 steps. I've also lowered my mile time by about 1:15/mile, which is huge for a slow a guy like me. Resting heart rate has dropped from about 65bpm to 57 bpm.

Last week at the office, I had multiple people ask me if I'd lost weight and told me I looked younger. Midsection definition has returned, but abs are not fully formed yet. Upper chest definition has returned as well. Now, that I'm smashing through the original goal, I'm aiming for 150. I ran a marathon in 2012 at about 145.

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01/31/24
Wt: 160.4 lbs

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02/05/24
Wt: 158.8 lbs

Had a couple of superfluous days. I smashed a large popcorn and Coke Zero at the movies the other day and did a story at a sports bar, where I downed some delicious wings. Still dropped for the week, so we're good.

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2/11/24
Wt: 155.8 lbs

Checking in a day early, because Super Bowl Cheat Day. Had to order a new belt this week.

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2/18/24
Wt: 155.0 lbs

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2/25/24
Wt: 155.0 lbs
7Wt: 155.5 lbs
HWt: 157.4 lbs
LWt: 154.3 lbs
ChW: -1.3 lbs

Per our conversations, I'm going to start including my high, low, and seven-day average weights in this to give a more realistic look.

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3/03/24
Wt: 153.0 lbs
7Wt: 153.7 lbs
HWt: 155.1 lbs
LWt: 152.1 lbs
ChW: -1.8 lbs

I won't have an official weigh in next week, since I'll be on vacation. So, the next major weigh-in will be 3/17.

Bit of a weight spike. I think lots of carbs and salt on Sunday are to blame (even though I kept calories in check).

Overall still down but the pace has slowed a little. Definitely can do better on sleep and steps.

Seven day average is down 1.3 lbs from last week.

Good progress but I can clean things up.

In reply to Pirate04 Congrats on the progress.

In reply to texag06ish College was a while ago man. Get a style consultation before you decide to wear them.

In reply to bagger05 HA! It's all gone (too big) with the exception of the maroon Nike windbreaker in the photo.

My body composition has changed a bunch. Even the pants I was wearing in college (probably around the same weight) are way too big.

In reply to STL_aTm Wow, that is some incredible progress!

In my most recent efforts, I've read a fair amount of stuff that supports the idea of high intensity interval training (HIIT), which you are already doing by alternating your run/walk. I've also seen some research that shows the body doesn't start burning fat as fuel until after about 20 minutes of exercise. Ultimately it's still the math of calories in vs. calories out, so do what you think is sustainable and what you think will benefit you the most.

Personally, I found that HIIT with cardio did a lot to improve my resting heart rate and I was less winded when I did things like climbing stairs. However, I still go out for walks just to stay active, even if it doesn't get me up into cardio zones 2 or 3.

In reply to STL_aTm Holy hell man that is a ton of weight! Congrats and excited to see you get to your pie in the sky number. Welcome to the thread.

In reply to STL_aTm

STL_aTm said:

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First time contributor to the H&F forum.
Im 34yrs old & In August of 2023 I was 398lbs. I've always had a pretty muscular frame so I held that weight decently well (i know what your thinking) for someone that size. I finally had enough of always struggling to play with the kids, being the biggest guy in every room and the countless other struggles that come with that size. So I started off with just some fat man yoga but more importantly I went carnivore. I know that's a touchy subject around here but for me its been the single greatest change in my entire health journey. For the first time ever I feel like I have turned the light switch off of constant food cravings.
After I lost ~30lbs I switch from yoga to more of a weightlifting/light cardio schedule and have continued that since. Now down ~130lbs I've started upping my lifting routine and adding in some light jogs (now up to a mile jog, half mile walk, 3/4 mile jog). I want to continue the jogging but I keep hearing about zone 2 cardio and wonder if I should focus more on high intensity walking or adding a weighted vest and walking?
Anyways, ive got about 40 more pounds to be at my "pie in the sky" weight and I've never been more hopeful for a future that has me living past my 50's.

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You sound a lot like my BF, except he's in the 50s, not 30s. He's 6'4 and got as high as 350. But I would have never described him as fat…he's a big guy all over. With that said, losing the weight is best, and I'm supporting him. I'm sure if I asked him, he'd say he wishes he'd done this in his 30s, since it doesn't get any easier.

He also likes keto/carnivore, but he does eat a lot of "free" vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, Brussel sprouts). He also likes to fast 1-2 days per week. He feels like this strategy keeps him from overeating/binge eating. He can eat A LOT of food - and too much of any food will make you gain weight.

He lost 50 lbs in the first half of last year, eating as described avice and abstaining from alcohol. He fell off the wagon in June and put all the weight back on. He's been back at it since Feb and is being successful again.

We've talked extensively about how I don't think the fasting/keto is sustainable in the long term. He gets away with it for now because he has a lot of weight to lose, so any calorie deficit will work. But as he loses weight, the number of calories his body needs will decrease, and his calorie deficit will not be as great if he doesn't monitor the quantity of food.

He has a preference for high fat meats, but I keep telling him he needs to make sure he gets his protein in. I typically eat 150 g of protein a day, so he should be getting at least 100 g easily. But when he chooses the high fat meats, it's basically diluting the amount of protein he consumes. To get more protein he has to eat more fat, and at some point it's too much fat (both calorically and relative to the amount of protein). I've been telling him to pay attention to the protein to fat ratio. For now, he wants to keep doing what he's doing, but he is at least thinking about a more long-term strategy.

My ass got up to 210 after back surgery last year. Started PT last summer and weight training again in the fall. Doing cardio every day, only cardio on certain days and just as a warmup on strength training days. Eating clean, but still only managed to drop 2 lbs. Goal is 190 or lower but damn its a struggle.

In reply to STL_aTm

STL_aTm said:

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First time contributor to the H&F forum.
Im 34yrs old & In August of 2023 I was 398lbs. I've always had a pretty muscular frame so I held that weight decently well (i know what your thinking) for someone that size. I finally had enough of always struggling to play with the kids, being the biggest guy in every room and the countless other struggles that come with that size. So I started off with just some fat man yoga but more importantly I went carnivore. I know that's a touchy subject around here but for me its been the single greatest change in my entire health journey. For the first time ever I feel like I have turned the light switch off of constant food cravings.
After I lost ~30lbs I switch from yoga to more of a weightlifting/light cardio schedule and have continued that since. Now down ~130lbs I've started upping my lifting routine and adding in some light jogs (now up to a mile jog, half mile walk, 3/4 mile jog). I want to continue the jogging but I keep hearing about zone 2 cardio and wonder if I should focus more on high intensity walking or adding a weighted vest and walking?
Anyways, ive got about 40 more pounds to be at my "pie in the sky" weight and I've never been more hopeful for a future that has me living past my 50's.

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Awesome, man. I'll say this as a runner and a guy who has shaved 8 minutes off his 5k over the past 3.5 months: take it slow, especially early. The end result of being patient is a lot better than knee issues or a stress fracture.

With the diet, whatever works and keeps the levels good. I limit processed sugar and carbs, but I don't go out of my way to completely avoid them. I just dumped fast food, most sugar, and non-water drinks. That pretty much took care of the problem itself.

In reply to TXTransplant

TXTransplant said:

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We've talked extensively about how I don't think the fasting/keto is sustainable in the long term. He gets away with it for now because he has a lot of weight to lose, so any calorie deficit will work. But as he loses weight, the number of calories his body needs will decrease, and his calorie deficit will not be as great if he doesn't monitor the quantity of food.

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I recommend carb cycling. I've lost almost 25 pounds in 11 weeks or so, when I was almost 270 (was wearing 38 pants, now wearing snug 34/loose 36.... arms are same size or slightly bigger now, so I'm preserving muscle). I eat about 1500 cals and 50-70g carbs on M/T/TH, 2000 cals and 125 carbs on W, 3000 and 200+g carbs on Saturday, and try to keep Friday/Sunday to about 1800-2000 cals and 100-120g carbs. I do a full-body, fast paced lift on Wednesdays and Saturdays (heavy on Saturdays before consuming my most carbs for the week). I keep protein around 150-175g, though I need to up it to 200-225g.

I also do at least 5-6 HIIT sessions weekly (elliptical, stairmaster, high incline on treadmill mostly) and a couple 30-35 minute sessions of steady 130-140 heart rate.

I agree keto is not sustainable and unnecessarily depriving. I've been doing IF for 15+ years, but I'm not a fan of 24-hour fasts. I'll usually stop eating around 8pm & start eating around 1pm the next day; I'll try to make it to 3pm on M/TH. As an endomorph that puts on muscle and fat easily, I think this is the best way for me. When I get to the neighborhood of 230 and 15% bf in a couple months, I will reduce my ultra low cal/carb days from 3/week to 2/week, and allow myself more flexibility to enjoy more cals/carbs a couple more days weekly when I feel like it.

In reply to proudaggie02

Quote:

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I agree keto is not sustainable and unnecessarily depriving.

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Mark me down for the same opinion.

I lost about 60 pounds doing keto - the weight just flew right off effortlessly, even when I wasn't exercising. However, after about six months I just couldn't stand it anymore - There were so few things I could eat and I wasn't able to really enjoy food anymore. Eating out with friends became a chore, especially when there was almost nothing on the menu I could eat. No drinks at the bar, etc.

In reply to proudaggie02 This is a good suggestion that I will keep in mind for down the road. I did something similar when I was shredding, where I had a "double carb day". Most days were 80-100 g of carbs, but I got one day a week where I ate double that.

His biggest issue is he doesn't want to track calories. Like I said this works for now. But as he loses weight, he's going to get diminishing returns. And if he doesn't start tracking to some degree, he will put the weight back on.

In reply to Ryan the Temp Preaching to the choir. Everyone should know their BMR in calories, and everyone should know what a days worth of food looks like to meet that BMR.

So many people have a huge mental resistance to it as being too hard or too much work. But I don't think you can maintain for the long term without it. Even if you don't track every single day, you have to know what your calorie goal looks like on your plate. Otherwise it's WAY too easy to overeat.

In reply to TXTransplant I stopped counting/tracking my calories and macros, but this is after years of doing it, weighing food/meals on a scale, etc. so I feel confident enough to have a decent idea of what I'm eating on a day to day basis and the scale usually reflects that.

Maybe it would be helpful to find 5-10 things he eats/snacks on regularly, and take a picture weighing it on a food scale to show him what it actually looks like? Or give him a reference point like "the size of your palm in ground beef = X amount of calories"? (Obviously everyone's hands are different and he sounds like a big guy so you'd have to do it specific to him)

If he doesn't want to measure/track, which I can't say I blame him, it may be helpful just to give those visual aids to him so that subconsciously he can at least kind of eye ball what a 500 calorie serving of meat looks like.

In reply to CC09LawAg Right…that's where I am. I weighed and counted long enough that I know what I'm supposed to eat.

I go over when I go off script or eat out. But I can keep it in check most of the time (and am on-target when I'm disciplined about it).

He's actually not really a snacker, at least since I've known him. He's a binge eater, even more so when he drinks. Portion control is his biggest challenge.

When I cook for us, I cook a finite amount of food (focused on lean protein), so when it's gone, it's gone. If we are in a setting where there are copious amounts of food, he tends to have a compulsion to eat it all.

It's an odd thing to witness. I can overeat, but I've always had a trigger that tells me to stop (eventually). I've never eaten an entire bag of chips or gallon of ice cream in one sitting, or eaten excessively large amounts of food simply because I can or because it's available.

In reply to TXTransplant

Quote:

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It's an odd thing to witness. I can overeat, but I've always had a trigger that tells me to stop (eventually). I've never eaten an entire bag of chips or gallon of ice cream in one sitting, or eaten excessively large amounts of food simply because I can or because it's available.

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Man oh man can I relate to people who will scarf like it's their job. Maybe it's because I grew up with two brothers and we always fought over how to equitably divide eight slices of pizza or twenty chicken mcnuggets between three people. It was a battleground. Might be where it comes from.

In reply to bagger05

bagger05 said:

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Quote:

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It's an odd thing to witness. I can overeat, but I've always had a trigger that tells me to stop (eventually). I've never eaten an entire bag of chips or gallon of ice cream in one sitting, or eaten excessively large amounts of food simply because I can or because it's available.

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Man oh man can I relate to people who will scarf like it's their job. Maybe it's because I grew up with two brothers and we always fought over how to equitably divide eight slices of pizza or twenty chicken mcnuggets between three people. It was a battleground. Might be where it comes from.

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Ditto. But I also loved eating past the point of feeling full and wanting to feel STUFFED. Truly a powerful addiction.

In reply to True Anomaly

True Anomaly said:

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bagger05 said:

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Quote:

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It's an odd thing to witness. I can overeat, but I've always had a trigger that tells me to stop (eventually). I've never eaten an entire bag of chips or gallon of ice cream in one sitting, or eaten excessively large amounts of food simply because I can or because it's available.

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Man oh man can I relate to people who will scarf like it's their job. Maybe it's because I grew up with two brothers and we always fought over how to equitably divide eight slices of pizza or twenty chicken mcnuggets between three people. It was a battleground. Might be where it comes from.

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Ditto. But I also loved eating past the point of feeling full and wanting to feel STUFFED. Truly a powerful addiction.

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Sometimes I would eat until I was full and just keep shoveling it in way beyond that point - just eat anything I could get my hands on. I'm glad I've started to better understand the psychological aspects of that to keep myself from doing it, or at least stop myself when I realize that's what I'm doing.

In reply to bagger05

bagger05 said:

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Quote:

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It's an odd thing to witness. I can overeat, but I've always had a trigger that tells me to stop (eventually). I've never eaten an entire bag of chips or gallon of ice cream in one sitting, or eaten excessively large amounts of food simply because I can or because it's available.

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Man oh man can I relate to people who will scarf like it's their job. Maybe it's because I grew up with two brothers and we always fought over how to equitably divide eight slices of pizza or twenty chicken mcnuggets between three people. It was a battleground. Might be where it comes from.

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I definitely believe our habits around food are often formed in childhood. His seems to be more related to not "wasting" food. This is especially noticeable when we eat out. It's like the bites equate to dollars, and you can't leave any on the table. Have to get your money's worth. And I think this is something he learned as a kid.

It's almost like another version of hoarding.

For me, I've always been a fast eater. So, I would overeat, but the sensation of feeling full would be delayed. By the time it hit, I'd be miserable. I've gotten to where I hate that feeling, though, so I'm more conscientious. And I know what appropriate portion sizes are to hit my goals, so that keeps me from overeating, too.

This is one of the reasons I don't fast (other than when I'm sleeping - but that's usually only about 12 hours without food). If I let myself get too hungry, it's pretty much a certainty that 1) I will overeat and 2) I will grab whatever food is closest/most convenient (and that's almost never a good choice. Being excessively hungry also makes me crave carbs and processed foods.

In reply to proudaggie02 Not to change the subject, but do you still own the condo in Breckenridge? If so, do you still rent it out?

Weight loss has been flatlining lately. I know these things happen but still very frustrating.

Was way more fun when I was losing 3+ lbs per week.

There are definitely some things I can do to improve. Steps have fallen off lately. And for the first time since I started tracking my food I have missed a couple days in the last week. Not the end of the world but I need to not let that happen.

And my shoulders have been messed up so I haven't been lifting like I was before. Doing a lot of cardio workouts at Orange Theory but I think lifting is better.

All that said, in the past this would've been me getting derailed and starting to put some weight back on. This time it's just weight loss slowing down a lot (but I'm still losing).

Gotta stick with it.

In reply to rrose

rrose said:

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Not to change the subject, but do you still own the condo in Breckenridge? If so, do you still rent it out?

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Yes, I still own it. I just saw you emailed, and I'll respond to it now.

In reply to TXTransplant

TXTransplant said:

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bagger05 said:

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Quote:

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It's an odd thing to witness. I can overeat, but I've always had a trigger that tells me to stop (eventually). I've never eaten an entire bag of chips or gallon of ice cream in one sitting, or eaten excessively large amounts of food simply because I can or because it's available.

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Man oh man can I relate to people who will scarf like it's their job. Maybe it's because I grew up with two brothers and we always fought over how to equitably divide eight slices of pizza or twenty chicken mcnuggets between three people. It was a battleground. Might be where it comes from.

---

I definitely believe our habits around food are often formed in childhood. His seems to be more related to not "wasting" food. This is especially noticeable when we eat out. It's like the bites equate to dollars, and you can't leave any on the table. Have to get your money's worth. And I think this is something he learned as a kid.

It's almost like another version of hoarding.

For me, I've always been a fast eater. So, I would overeat, but the sensation of feeling full would be delayed. By the time it hit, I'd be miserable. I've gotten to where I hate that feeling, though, so I'm more conscientious. And I know what appropriate portion sizes are to hit my goals, so that keeps me from overeating, too.

This is one of the reasons I don't fast (other than when I'm sleeping - but that's usually only about 12 hours without food). If I let myself get too hungry, it's pretty much a certainty that 1) I will overeat and 2) I will grab whatever food is closest/most convenient (and that's almost never a good choice. Being excessively hungry also makes me crave carbs and processed foods.

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I'm a distractingly fast eater. Comes from my days at the USMMA. Eat quick or don't eat.

In reply to bagger05 You got this! Taking your motivation to heart as well. I've plateaued on my weight loss journey because of some extra stress of school. But optimistic about a very active summer!

In reply to BassCowboy33

BassCowboy33 said:

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BassCowboy33 said:

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BassCowboy33 said:

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BassCowboy33 said:

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BassCowboy33 said:

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BassCowboy33 said:

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BassCowboy33 said:

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12/15/23
Age: 36
Ht: 5'05"
Wt: 174
nFFMI: 25.02
BF%: ~17%

I weighed 174 in mid December when I started my goal to be down to about 160 by mid-March. I have floated between 170-180 since about 2014. I'm built like a tank with a mesomorph body, so BMI and Navy standards always have a problem with me (Was always sent to the "fat" line for weigh-ins).

My progress has been stunning, and I'm crashing through what I thought possible.

1/22/24
Wt: 163
nFFMI: 24.04
BF%: ~15%

80% of this is clean eating. I started ordering daily meals from Factor, which usually are chicken/pork and a vegetable, ranging from 400-900 Calories. For snacks, it's either a fruit (cherries/peaches/apple sauce), a slice of prosciutto, or a couple of tablespoons of peanut butter. The goal is to hit between 1600-2200 Calories six days per week. I do take creatine, using the HCl dosage. It's what we used to take playing football in college, and I got away from it after an emergency surgery in 2014 when my appendix staged a coup. Dinner is usually about 4 oz of steak or a few scrambled eggs with Tabasco, coupled with the aforementioned snacks.

I have a cheat meal each week, where I eat whatever I want, but I usually plan that. For example, Sunday was a Large Wing Combo from Wingstop with +5 wings on the side. A week ago, it was 2 Chipotle burritos plus chips and guac. I've found this keeps me on track and keeps cravings away.

The workouts have become essential as well. It's divided into three parts upper/lower/run, one per day with a rest day. I do each twice per week. I am also a walking fiend. I aim to hit 10,000 steps/day but routinely crush through 15,000/day. I was a walking dude before any of this weight loss started, so I'm on about a 70-day streak of breaking 10,000 steps. I've also lowered my mile time by about 1:15/mile, which is huge for a slow a guy like me. Resting heart rate has dropped from about 65bpm to 57 bpm.

Last week at the office, I had multiple people ask me if I'd lost weight and told me I looked younger. Midsection definition has returned, but abs are not fully formed yet. Upper chest definition has returned as well. Now, that I'm smashing through the original goal, I'm aiming for 150. I ran a marathon in 2012 at about 145.

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01/31/24
Wt: 160.4 lbs

---

02/05/24
Wt: 158.8 lbs

Had a couple of superfluous days. I smashed a large popcorn and Coke Zero at the movies the other day and did a story at a sports bar, where I downed some delicious wings. Still dropped for the week, so we're good.

---

2/11/24
Wt: 155.8 lbs

Checking in a day early, because Super Bowl Cheat Day. Had to order a new belt this week.

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2/18/24
Wt: 155.0 lbs

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2/25/24
Wt: 155.0 lbs
7Wt: 155.5 lbs
HWt: 157.4 lbs
LWt: 154.3 lbs
ChW: -1.3 lbs

Per our conversations, I'm going to start including my high, low, and seven-day average weights in this to give a more realistic look.

---

3/03/24
Wt: 153.0 lbs
7Wt: 153.7 lbs
HWt: 155.1 lbs
LWt: 152.1 lbs
ChW: -1.8 lbs

I won't have an official weigh in next week, since I'll be on vacation. So, the next major weigh-in will be 3/17.

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3/17/24
Wt: 153.3 lbs
7Wt: 156.2 lbs
HWt: 160.7 lbs
LWt: 153.3 lbs
ChW: +2.1 lbs

A bit of a misnomer, as the water weight coming off my vacation started me off at up over 160 lbs. Took me the whole week to return to normal weight levels. Next week should be a solid drop.

I feel like this is the week I'm going to push down through this plateau.