Getting healthy

[flatwins]

I think about this stuff daily. But thinking about it and actually doing something about it are two different things. A few years back when I was married I had someone to set goals with and work together on eating healthy, etc. Now I'm single so it's up to me to get the ball rolling and I'm not so great at it. I need to get serious about it. I'm a few pounds over 200 and the ideal weight for me (I think, at least) is 185. I've never smoked and so glad of that but as far as eating right, ummm, I'm not great at it.

 

[dennishoddy]

I've lost 15 lbs since last November.
Amazing new diet program. Pushups away from the dinner table, and less fat in the diet. I can't say I need more exercise, and the American heart association gave a presentation at the workplace a year or so ago. They had this huge glob on the table, that was actually 5 lbs of fat. It was huge.
The AHA said that one needs a minimum of 10,000 steps a day to keep heart healthy and gave us some pedometers to count our steps at work. I average 18000, so guess its good to go on that deal.
Had lots of friends comment lately about the weight loss. I can literally walk out of the jeans I wore 6 months ago.

 

[okiemaggie]

I can literally walk out of the jeans I wore 6 months ago.

^^^^
This is what I aspire to. My husband loved to eat. If it was deep fried or sweet (or both!) He was right there with a ladle. But the stinker never gained a pound I gained 25 over the course of our marriage, then sort of went off the deep end after he passed and ate for comfort. I was afraid you'd all be seeing me on the tv as they cut my house in half to get me out

So I made the committment at Lent to consciously count calories and keep it under 1200/day. Exercise is a challenge because I'm still rehabbing my knee. I cannot run or jump and I fear being unable to get back up if I get down on the floor. So I'm doing chairobics and anything I can do on a bench.

I've lost 23 of the first 25 so far and then I'll start on the next 25 which I gained in the '80s when I was travelling so much for my job. It is much easier to count calories and food diary now with all the aps and websites. And I've been surprised at how little I've missed all those sweet and greasy foods. Everybody keep checking in so we can stay motivated

 

[Shoot Summ]

Just checking in, any progress?

I'm still on track, hit it hard in April, did "two a days" where I did P90X in the morning and Insanity in the evening several days a week. Wife is also on board with the Insanity sessions, we both feel great, she is looking great.

I track all of my workouts, hit a milestone for April, burned almost 14000 calories working out.

I've been a little frustrated though as I seem to be stagnant from a weight perspective, lots of exercise, eating right, and I am stuck at a specific weight. Clothes fit better, and I can tell a difference when I look in the mirror so I get over the frustration...

 

[Danny Tanner]

I'm a thin dude, but thin doesn't always mean healthy. Last winter, the wife and I decided to start getting serious about exercising again, though we've been eating relatively healthy for a few years.

We picked up EA Sports Active 2 for PS3 to do during the winter months. Within 4 weeks, I lost 8 lbs (168-160), which I didn't notice much in terms of physical size, but my energy was back up. During the warmer months we'd walk and/or run. This past winter was mild enough that we were able to walk outside with no problem. Last September'ish I sprained my ankle pretty bad. I didn't see the doctor for it, all I did was wrap it up. I think that was a mistake. We started focusing on wanting to run 5ks a couple of months ago and decided to prepare for one this summer. One night I came home and once I cooled down, I could barely walk, it was my ankle. I didn't step funny at all, but apparently I've upset it. Because of that, I think walking and light jogging is it for me. I've also been on a hunt to find another road bike, as that's great and enjoyable (my favorite) form of exercise.

As far as eating healthy, we've replaced all ground beef recipes with ground chicken breast. It's $2.99/lb at Crest, so it's affordable and way leaner than most ground beef in the store. And cooked into recipes that'd normally contain beef, you really can't taste a difference. Though being a [bright] white meat, spaghetti and tacos look a little different.

We don't buy anything with "enriched flour" or high fructose corn syrup of any sort, though might be hard for some depending on how many condiments they consume. (I'm really the only one that does, and when I do it's mustard, but I don't eat it enough to give you a brand). Even if something has real sugar in it, if it's one of the first 5 ingredients, we try to stay away from it. I love sweet tea and there's usually a jug in the fridge, but instead of sugar, I use agave syrup or local honey. Tastes delicious. Our bread, our cereal, our pasta, and our flour is whole grain. I've been wanting to get into canning to make my own pasta sauces and broths/stocks.

Another thing we've done is picked up a quality blender. Usually this comes down to choosing between Blendtec or Vitamix. We chose Blendtec, but you can't go wrong with either. We all have at least 1 smoothie per day usually consisting of vanilla flavored almond milk for the liquid, a tablespoon of Greek yogurt, a banana, a fist full of organic baby spinach and/or kale or collard greens, freshly ground flax seeds, vegetable protein powder, and random frozen fruits (strawberries, blueberries, whatever). Comes out green if you don't use a vibrant-colored fruit like strawberries or blueberries, but despite that, you can't taste the greens at all. These smoothies are great for natural energy, fruit/veggie servings, and even meal/snack replacements.

We've also gone to eating 4-5 meals a day, in much smaller portions, every 3-4 hours. Working graves, I wake up at 4 and start my day with a smoothie, dinner at 7, another smoothie to start my midnight shift, a snack or small portion of leftovers at 3, and a snack/cereal at 6. Usually my snacks are a random vegetable. Tomatoes and cucumbers being my favorite. Sliced and sprinkled with a natural sea salt brand called "Real Salt". Tastes WAY better than iodized salt. 95% of my drinks are water.

Making enough dinner to give us left overs saves us from eating fast food or from a vending machine. Sometimes I crave McDonald's fries, a Taco Bell taco, or the entire Carl's Jr menu, but we'll treat ourselves to something unhealthy once or twice a month, including something unhealthy at home (homemade sausage, bacon, egg, and cheese biscuits for breakfast, for example). Eating healthy isn't really more expensive for us, we feed a family of 3 for all meals/snacks throughout the day for the week at about $70/week spread across Crest, Uptown, and Sunflower Market. Sometimes it's as low as $50, some times it's as high as $90. Sometimes we splurge at farmer's markets and take home tons of grass/grain fed buffalo and chicken, as well as stocking up on honey.

 

[hard_r]

I started last monday. Counting calories and walking. It's actually really easy to get used to and once your stomach shrinks a bit, you will be surprised how little you eat. I suggest using myfitnesspal.com to track your calories and exercise. It's a great motivator to see your progress on a day to day basis instead of waiting for the pounds to drop. I haven't had to give up things I like either, for the most part. I have had ice cream, and even a couple beers. Good luck to you!

 

[VitruvianDoc]

Just checking in, any progress?

I'm still on track, hit it hard in April, did "two a days" where I did P90X in the morning and Insanity in the evening several days a week. Wife is also on board with the Insanity sessions, we both feel great, she is looking great.

I track all of my workouts, hit a milestone for April, burned almost 14000 calories working out.

I've been a little frustrated though as I seem to be stagnant from a weight perspective, lots of exercise, eating right, and I am stuck at a specific weight. Clothes fit better, and I can tell a difference when I look in the mirror so I get over the frustration...

Still chugging along. I am 1 lb away from my initial goal. I started at 218 lbs, currently 176 lbs (42 lb loss). My next goal is 160 lbs and so i bumped my ticker in my signature to reflect that.
I currently focus on cardio for weight loss. I know weight training is just as if not more efficacious for weight loss, but I am seeing good results with my routine so I am sticking to it.

I eat a 1600 calories diet with 50% carb, 30% protein, 20% fat. I stick to it hell or high water and even if I splurge on bad foods, I keep them in my caloric limit. I have switched to all white meat (chicken and fish) except for the occasional steak, pork chop, or baby back rib (for the smoker). Other than that, eat food conscious and all, no real big changes.

As far as exercise: I did circuit training for the most part, but started a couch to 5k training program in February. I completed it in 7.5 weeks out of the 9 weeks it requires. I ran my first 5k while training with a 36 minute time. In 2.5 more weeks, I kept training and pushing hard. I ran my first 5k about 2 weeks ago and completed it with a time of 27:23. It was a personal record by 3+ minutes.

I now run between 2-4 miles a day for 4-6 days a week. I plan on weight training once I hit my goal weight. I want to add muscle when I train and eating at such a calorie deficit right now would only have me losing and toning.

 

[HMFIC]

I haven't lost any weight, but I want to keep things positive and on that note, I DID start free-basin'.

Y'all have to look at the glass that's half full.

 

[inactive]

I forgot about this thread. I weighed in at 166 this AM. I had to buy all new shirts and pants last month (from a L down to M, from 34 down to 32/31). In October 2007, I was 212 and even my 36 inch pants were snug. Now some of 32s need a good belt.

I haven't exercised, just been way more active with my family. Portion size, portion size, portion size. Chicken and pork, not too much beef. Lots of vegetables. LOTS of vegetables. Nary a carb to be seen. Black coffee and water.

Just checking in, any progress?

Yesterday and today (checked twice to make sure it wasn't a fluke), I weighed in at 160. That is 52 pounds lighter than my heaviest weight, which was October 2007.

The last month I have really stepped up the water intake. 4 quarts/liters per days is my goal, though I try to hit 6. Amazing how that has helped my energy more than anything I have done to date. Even my medium shirts and 32 pants are getting somewhat loose now. The difference in my waist/belly these last 6 pounds has been the most noticeable so far. I'm not aiming for a specific weight goal, but probably here or 5 pounds lighter is good. I want to get to where I look and feel good, and I know I am close. Just need to get a little more roundness of that midsection

 

[cowzrul]

Christmas I was at my heaviest ever. So Jan 1st I started counting calories for the first time in my life. 1800 calories a day, 40 carb/40 pro/ 20 fat, and 2 gallons of water. I went from 268 to my current weight of 225. A few weeks ago before I had to take a 10 day trip I had broke past 220. I started out in the gym lifting weights and running 4 days a week and then two months ago transitioned to Crossfit. My ultimate goal doesn't really involve a certain weight as much as the way I feel and look.