this post was submitted on 05 Feb 2010
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youaretherevolution 51 points52 points 5 months ago[-]

(female) I was 285 lbs about 7 years ago and have lost 100+ lbs just from exercise and diet changes. I was wearing a size 22. I had always been overweight to that point. Grossly overweight. I used to eat two pound bags of M&Ms without flinching and entire packages of cookies. I am now a size 8 and healthy.

It's 80% what you eat and 20% the exercise. Don't get really upset if you miss one day of a workout as long as you stay on track with your eating habits.

Exercise every day, even if it is just walking around a parking lot at lunch at work. Taking a 10 minute walk 3x a day is still half an hour total. Lifting weights is great and will help you lose more weight, but you need to just get in the habit of taking care of yourself in general. Lifting will make you look hoooot and burn more calories.

Going to the gym was depressing for me so I found other things to do. You have to find something you like. Yoga clears your mind of bad thoughts, running works your whole body, mountain biking is an adrenaline rush, etc.

There were a few books that I read that kind of scared me into a healthier lifestyle. When you know how dangerous it is to eat certain foods, it's a lot easier to skip them. Examples: Fast Food Nation, The Omnivore's Dilemma, Eat to Live. Read the ingredients on things you eat, if you don't know what something is, look it up. You'll mosy likely get pretty freaked out.

Drink lots of water. Start carrying a Nalgene with you everywhere you go. Nurse it all day. Often you're just thirsty when you think you're hungry.

Learn to cook, it's the only way you'll know what is in your food. "steamed" veggies at restaurants are often saturated in butter, etc. Shop the outer ring of the supermarket. Don't eat things out of a box. If you have to go out or to a party, eat beforehand so you're not tempted and starving all night.

Post something near your mirror at home, near your monitor at work that says "I deserve to be healthy." Read it out loud every morning to yourself.

When you lose weight, get new clothes and get rid of the fat clothes because it gives you something to fall back on. If you're committed to yourself, you won't need them. Being in a smaller size will also help you know if you gain a few lbs, before it becomes a problem.

Being thin is a lifestyle, not a diet.

SpankmasterS 6 points7 points 5 months ago[-]

Nice job on the loss and more importantly keeping it off.

Miss_mariss87 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

I read "In defense of food" by michael pollan. I no longer eat any fast food or soda, and I have definitely increased my consumption of veggies.

SSChicken 218 points219 points 5 months ago* [-]

My story: This is my before and current, I hate to say after because I'm not done yet. The left was my weight in August 2009, the right is myself this month (Feb. 2010). I went from 330+ lbs to my current 259lbs in just over 6 months and maintain a pretty regular 10lbs lost per month even currently.

  1. Don't go overboard on the exercise unless you KNOW you can maintain a healthy diet. After an intense workout it's extremely tempting to pig out, your body wants it and (to an extent) needs it. Drink a protein shake before hand, and some fruit. Afterwards cook yourself 6 eggs, but take out the yolks. 6 egg whites seems like a lot, but there's only just over 100 calories and 22 grams of protein.

  2. I'm not a fan of 0 carb, your body needs sugar, fat, and protein. Limit your caloric intake so that your at a daily deficit and the weight will come off. It helps a lot to split off into small meals, I probably eat 8 meals a day and a handful of snacks, yet I am currently only doing 1,400 calories. Diversify your foods, try for less than 100 grams of total carbs (mostly from fruit), less than 50 grams of fat, and around 100 grams of protein. Take multivitamins.

  3. COUNT CALORIES. Only for a few weeks. This is mostly to understand how much or how few calories different foods have. Once you do this for about two weeks you will get an idea of 'Hey, this food it bad for me!' and will just know whats better to eat. Also, It's a good guilt trip, you are less likely to eat something if you have to write it down.

  4. Don't do cardio exercises you dislike. Some people won't do cardio because they "hate running". There's eliptical, biking, swimming, stairs, HIIT, low resistance cardio, all sorts of things you can do. Find one or a few things you like and do that, switch them up every so often. I recommend biking, It's easy to bike 20 miles and there's a huge sense of accomplishment with it.

  5. Whatever you do, stick with it. 5 minutes on an elliptical, while better than nothing, isn't going to do nearly as much as 45 minutes or an hour. Extended periods of increased heart rate are what burn calories best.

EDIT Also a disclaimer: I'm not claiming any of this as hard fact, but it's what worked (is working) for me! I'm living proof that this method CAN work.

jimprosser 44 points45 points 5 months ago[-]

As to #3, there's a great tool on Livestrong.com called "The Daily Plate" that has a database of foods and brands, making it easy to plug stuff in and track your intake. Also a companion iPhone app if you've got one.

SSChicken 22 points23 points 5 months ago[-]

There's lots of free apps out there. I use one for my Droid called "Calorie Counter" from fat secret. It can scan the bar codes of foods you eat and pull the info from a database so you don't have to type in anything really.

Adwinistrator 6 points7 points 5 months ago[-]

I use a great website called FitDay.

It has tons of foods set up, great goal tracking, and lets you set up your own custom foods (incredibly useful).

MsMjolnir 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

What do you mean set up your own custom foods?

nonservitus 6 points7 points 5 months ago[-]

I double down on recommending Calorie Counter if you have an Android phone. It's a little time consuming to enter everything you eat at first, but it also enforces the whole "Jesus Christ my turkey sandwich, chips, and coke is that many calories" when you have to break it all down: 2 slices bread, cheese, turkey breast, tomatoes, mayo, lettuce etc.

cookedsushi 2 points3 points 5 months ago* [-]

I eat smart and incorporate lots of turkey sandwiches into my diet:

Turkey on toasted 9 grain bread w/ lettuce, tomato, red onion, a little thinly sliced green apple, fresh ground black pepper, and a little spicy honey mustard. And a $1 bag of baked chips ( I used to hate them, but if you stop eating normal chips you'll develop an appreciation for them.) And only drink water. It's good for you, as opposed to soda which is terrible for you.

Turkey sandwiches FTW!!

reconditecache 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

I can't do baked chips. I can't even do those veggie stick things. I used to work at a super market back when I was counting calories and I've found that all snack foods are terrible for you (and way overpriced). Now I've got this ideological mental block on eating healthier versions of things that should really just be cut out of your diet altogether.

StillAnAss 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

I use fatsecret.com and Calorie Counter too. I like that I force myself to weigh in every day and I like seeing the downward slope of the graph. I don't beat myself up if I gain 1-2 pounds one day as long as the overall trend is still going down.

CritterM72800 4 points5 points 5 months ago[-]

I'd recommend http://dailyburn.com for that. Really great community and nice interface.

andtheniansaid 5 points6 points 5 months ago[-]

Apparently there is an app for this, so I hear.

SaratogaCx 5 points6 points 5 months ago* [-]

There's a free program for android phones called Calorie counter which is really nice. You can scan bar codes which makes things easier than just manually putting everything in (although the option is still there). It links to [fatsecret.com[(http://fatsecret.com/).

Edit: fix url.

griminald 39 points40 points 5 months ago[-]

As someone who's lost 155lbs myself (I'm 6'4", went from 377 -> 222lbs), I have to second all of this advice, except #5, because he's looking for motivation, not "stick with it." ;)

My points to emphasize:

DO NOT "GO ON A DIET". Seriously. If you approach this from the perspective of going "on" a diet, then at some point you're planning on coming "off" of it, at which point you're just going to gain the weight back.

This is a lifestyle change. It's about slowly changing your eating habits to something you can sustain long-term.

Also, you're going to find a wide variance in approaches with everyone who's lost weight, but the trick is to find what works for YOU.

In my case, I get overwhelmed easily, so instead of changing my diet 100% around AND exercising tons more, I focused on eating less first and on my exercise. Then over time I modified my eating habits to foods that were better for me.

It took me much longer to lose my weight -- 3 years, about 1lb/week average -- but it was how I found I could stick with it.

None of us are going to be able to motivate you though. We can get you started, but YOU have to find YOUR reasons to keep it up. I have a huge history of diabetes on both sides of my family, and my mother lost a limb to complications from it -- fear is a terrific motivator, and avoiding it is how I found my motivation to lose weight.

goldbat 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Congrats! The 1lb. / week thing is actually the best formula to go for an adult. I have a relative who lost weight more quickly than that, and ended up in the ER not due to starvation or anything like that, but actually dehydration. She was on some other Rx medication, and was not hydrating, losing weight at approx. 2-3 lbs. a week (which also doesn't seem like a lot) and all that combined led to nasty stuff.

TL;DR - 1 lb. a week is better. And hydrate.

Miss_mariss87 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

You lost a whole me! That is awesome, congrats!

atxtech 36 points37 points 5 months ago* [-]

Diet:

1) EAT BREAKFAST!!!!!

Eat something high in protein for breakfast (egg white omelette or even just a protein shake with fruit). The protein will help you feel full longer than if you eat something high in carbs. Also, eating a carb heavy breakfast tends to cause a crash in blood sugar later in the day resulting in more carb cravings.

2) Try eating 5 small meals instead of 3 large ones (3 meals, 2 snacks)

This is supposed to help keep your metabolism going. From personal experience I find this helps to prevent overeating since you are never starving by the time for your next meal.

3) Try to replace simple sugars with complex carbs (brown rice, whole wheat, etc.)

Exercise:

1) SET A ROUTINE!!!

Just going to the gym "to work out" will end up with nothing getting done and you getting frustrated. What helped me a lot was signing up for www.gymamerica.com. They have a tool that will customize a workout based on your goals. After working out you log how many of the proposed reps you were able to complete. As you reach the goals that are set it will automatically change the routine so it doesn't get stale and you keep progressing.

2) Weigh yourself regularly & take photos.

It can be hard to notice changes since you see yourself everyday. However when you see a photo of you from a month ago it is much easier to see how much progress you've made. This is a great confidence booster and good motivation to keep going.

I wish you the best of luck!

bntly 21 points22 points 5 months ago[-]

I misread exercise #1 and got all excited for poutine :(

swordgeek 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Footnote to point #1. In recent years, they've also found that getting protein into your system ASAP in the morning helps 'wake up' your metabolism, and increases the calories you burn throughout the day.

It's a small thing, but a glass of milk as soon as you get up definitely helps a bit.

MrThomasJefferson 14 points15 points 5 months ago[-]

The difference in those pictures is amazing, congratulations!

verdammt 9 points10 points 5 months ago[-]

This is awesome advice. I think I'm going to start exercising again....

Insanire 8 points9 points 5 months ago[-]

You have a lot of good advice here. I'm going to add a few things:

Read nutrition labels! Just because something is marketed as healthy, doesn't mean it is. Take in to account not only calories, but fat, and TYPES of fat; fiber; sodium; protien; carbs(know your good from your bad); and vitamin/mineral content.

Remember that every body is different. Experiment. I know that a high protien diet works great for me, but it may not for you. Different exercise, too; for me weight lifting with soem cardio's best. For you it may be full cardio or something.

If you fuck up, suck it up and keep on track. A simple slip up doesn't ruin your diet, you dont re-gain the weight you worked months to lose in a single day.

sanalin 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

Read nutrition labels! Just because something is marketed as healthy, >doesn't mean it is.

Great advice. Don't just look at the nutrient breakdown either. That's very important, but so is the ingredient list. The fewer ingredients are in a package, the better. And if you have no idea what the hell an item is (complex chemical names) then you can probably find a better alternative.

Insanire 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Yes, this, too. I can't believe I forgot it. Thank you!

sherman901 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

I'm going to second the nutrition labels part and add:

Do not eat things with high fructose corn syrup!

fwork 5 points6 points 5 months ago[-]

shit, are you me? I started in august 2009 at that weight and I'm epsilon away from your current weight now. Weird. Eerie.

impotent_rage 4 points5 points 5 months ago[-]

have you got before/current pics to post? I love seeing these.

fwork 6 points7 points 5 months ago[-]

Nope. Part of why I started on this diet was realizing I hated getting my picture taken because I hated how I looked in them. So there are surprisingly few pictures of me pre-diet.

DiscoWolf 5 points6 points 5 months ago[-]

I can't stress #3 enough. If you find it too difficult to eat less and exercise more, then start by just eating less. You can lose weight without exercising. It's obviously better to exercise as well, but you don't want to get stuck thinking "I have to do both and doing both is too hard so I won't do either."

Related to #1, don't go overboard with a ridiculously restrictive diet right off the bat. Track what you eat (I used The Daily Plate, but there are a lot out there), and see where your calories are coming from. Look for substitutions or reduce portions to cut calories out. Do it gradually. I know you want to lose the weight as quickly as possible, but it's not a race. It's better to lose 1-2 pounds every week than to lose 20 pounds quickly and then gain back 40.

When you cut back, you will be hungry. And it will suck. But it gets easier. Your body adjusts, and after a couple of weeks, you don't even really notice it.

Don't cut out everything you like completely. Allow yourself to splurge every once in a while. It's okay to eat like crap for a meal sometimes, just try to make the rest of the day healthy, and don't do it all the time.

I lost 80 pounds, and have kept it off for 2 years so far. You can do it.

aarondunlap 5 points6 points 5 months ago[-]

similar story. I started at 245. Spent 8 months trying to eat around 1500-1700 calories in 5 separate eating times (bfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, snack).
Also drank a metric poop-ton of water (water aids in the delivery of vital nutrients to your body). Don't to the 8 glasses a day rule, drink as much as you comfortably can. No cokes or sugary drinks. (I still drank black coffee though... love me some coffee).
And lastly, I walked. Started slow, but I walked three times a day at work. 15mins in the morning, 20 at lunch (after eating my very light lunch) and 15 in the afternoon. After about 7 months I was down to 178.

madelinecn 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

You're cute now :)

userx9 6 points7 points 5 months ago* [-]

As a former certified personal trainer, I second all of this advice. I would say though, at the OP's current weight, there really isn't much to lose. It sounds like he's on the right track losing 5 lbs, I'd say keep doing what you're doing and when you plateau up your workouts and/or lower your caloric intake while increasing protein.

jdeisenberg 4 points5 points 5 months ago[-]

"...there really isn't much to lose" That sounds odd to me. I'm 5'5", 132 pounds, (165 cm, 60 kg) and my bodyfat percentage, according to electrical impedance on my scale, is 19.5%. I don't classify myself as obese, but from various charts I've seen, I'm at the high end of the "reasonable" category for both height/weight and bodyfat.

SpankmasterS 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

I am guessing you are a female based on your stats.

19.5% bf is actually pretty good for a woman. It is considered lean. For men this number is the high end of reasonable. You are about the same size as my wife with slightly higher bf%. You are in good shape.

userx9 4 points5 points 5 months ago[-]

The few pounds you could stand to lose, same with the OP, are hardly anything to worry about, especially since he/she seems to be having no problems losing weight already.

OhZone 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

BUT WAIT!! THATS NOT ALL!

Saisann 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Great advice, although I disagree on 1. You want to eat some form of high protein food 60-90 minutes before your workout and then save your protein shake for after the workout.

The reason you want to do it this way is because something like egg whites, especially if cooked in oil or butter, will digest significantly slower than a protein shake will, and after a workout you want to get as much protein in your system as possible.

kati8303 27 points28 points 5 months ago* [-]

I have been very active for several years (running, cycling, paddling, triathlons, adventure racing, etc.) It wasn't until I changed my way of eating that I lost any weight. I recently lost ~25 pounds. Once I made the decision about what I wanted it came easily. Here are a few things I did.

In regards to food:

  • I began eating breakfast. Nothing big, just ~150-200 calories to get my metabolism going.

  • I would eat a "snack" at around 10:30. For the first few months this snack consisted of plain tuna fish. Something around 100 calories to keep from getting too hungry and eating too much at lunch time.

  • I literally cut my portions almost in half from what I was eating before.

  • I would eat a larget lunch than dinner, and try to eat dinner no later than 6:30.

  • My biggest problem was allowing myself to get too hungry during the day and then, when I got home, would binge on bad foods, full of sugar and calories, so the small but healthy snacks helped calm these cravings.

  • At first I cut out literally all sugar (this was my biggest weakness).

  • Don't buy these bad foods, if they're not around you can't reach for them when you're feeling weak.

  • Eat more slowly and stop before you are stuffed full and can barely move (I would do this constantly).

  • Most importantly, DO NOT consider these changes a diet. Just change your entire way of eating. If it's not an entire lifestyle change it won't last.

  • Definitely cut out things like soft drinks and frozen coffee's, etc. Sugary drinks are a HUGE source of empty calories. If you don't like plain water try low cal drink mixes like crystal light.

  • Watch the ingredients in your food. Avoid things containing HFCS, or fructose in general.

For exercise:

  • find an event that you think would interest you, whether it is a local 10k or a charity bike tour and sign up. The impending goal will help you stay on an exercise program, and events like this are alot of fun.

  • Once you establish a program you like, be it running, cycling, or just going to the gym, join a group of people who have the same interests. Having others who do the same things make it easier to keep with it.

These are just a few things I learned along the way. I hope they help, and best of luck!

Edit: formatting Edit: added something

beta-Secretase 12 points13 points 5 months ago[-]

Most importantly, DO NOT consider these changes a diet.

This is perfect. So many people think that what they are doing can be temporary.

monument 113 points114 points 5 months ago* [-]

As a former fat guy, I'll keep my advice simple. I never used any gimmicks, never counted calories... it's all too confusing. Do these things and I guarantee you'll lose weight.

  1. Stop drinking soda, diet soda too, it's all bad for you, just stop. Learn to love water, drink lots of it.

  2. Stop eating at fast food restaurants, make your own meals.

  3. When you go shopping, stick to the outside isles. Buy fruit, vegetables, nuts, whole grain bread. Basically avoid anything that is pre-packaged or processed.

  4. Lay off the sugar. If you have a sweet tooth, try eating fruit instead. Frozen green grapes are an awesome substitute.

  5. Go for a walk for at least 30 minutes each day. Give yourself a destination, make it part of your day. Walk to a coffee shop, walk to a friends house, go walking with a friend and have a conversation. Exercise doesn't have to feel like punishment.

  6. Oh yeah, eat less food, don't snack so much. The first week will be tough, your stomach will be growling. But after a few days you'll find that your body has adjusted. It doesn't want so much food because it never needed so much to begin with.

Losing weight requires a lifestyle change that silly diets and gimmicks just can't offer. You can read all the books, go to all the websites, count your calories, eat pure protein, but it will never stick; we just aren't made to live that way. Enjoy life, get out more, eat less but eat healthy, you'll lose weight.

monument 33 points34 points 5 months ago[-]

I almost forgot to say this, it gets easier. You'll wake up one day, look in the mirror and lo and behold, you're a little thinner. Maybe no one else will notice right away, but you will and it will really help. There's a kind of inertia that happens, once you start to see results, your new way of living becomes a little bit easier one day at a time.

bombpop 8 points9 points 5 months ago[-]

nothing is more motivating than seeing the cheekbone shadow grow!

GoatseMcShitbungle 9 points10 points 5 months ago* [-]

Or to discover that you have a jawline! An actual jawline.

swllnvag 6 points7 points 5 months ago[-]

With a username like his, something something something!

macgodbrad 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Exactly! Gimmicks don't work long term. Its a lifestyle change. At my heaviest I was around 270. I'm currently 139 (BMI 22). Took about two years. Slowly making changes, finding what works for me.

  • Reduced soda intake
  • Increased water intake (bottled water gave me the satisfaction of grabbing something out of the fridge, even though I hate the idea of bottled water)
  • Walk! Its easy to do and can be fun. I'd make decide on a destination and take pictures along my walk. That made it a lot more fun.
  • I didn't stress about losing weight. Just start finding a new way of living that reduces your calorie intake and it will start falling off
  • I also measured my weight every day on Wii Fit. It kept a nice graph of nearly my entire weight loss (250lbs to 139)
  • Keep a pair of your old pants. I run across an old pair 46w pants and feel such pride that I now fit comfortably into a 30w.
  • Do it for yourself and take it easy. Good luck!

shanedoth 15 points16 points 5 months ago[-]

This is great. Liquid calories and overprocessed foods are responsible for most of America's obesity problem.

I'd add that all liquid calories are a bad idea - since they're calories that don't make you feel full. I still drink beer and wine, but with the full understanding that it's not helping me keep my body fat in check.

HungLikeJesus 5 points6 points 5 months ago[-]

A lot of people also think that orange juice is healthy, when it's actually really high in sugar and should count more as a 'dessert' than a serving of fruit. If you want the vitamins and minerals, it's much better for you to eat an actual orange (and will make you feel more full, despite having fewer calories), and if you're thirsty, drink some water.

Miss_mariss87 6 points7 points 5 months ago[-]

One thing that I do is mix pellegrino mineral water in with everything I drink. like 2/3's pellegrino, 1/3 cranberry juice, etc. It seriously cuts down the calories while still providing flavor. It's a great substitute for soda.

benihana 6 points7 points 5 months ago[-]

Oh yeah, eat less food, don't snack so much.

Great advice, but I respectfully disagree with this one. I think having a healthy snack between breakfast and lunch and again between lunch and dinner is important for two reasons:

  • It keeps your metabolism going
  • It makes you less likely to binge during lunch and dinner.

It's easy to get a good healthy snack like peanuts, almonds, bananas, granola bars, carrots, etc.

monument 4 points5 points 5 months ago[-]

Right, which is why I added the "so much" part. People who are overweight often snack for a variety of reasons, too often hunger is not one of those reasons. Snacking because of boredom, emotional dependence will cause weight gain.

Healthy snacks in too great a quantity can cause a person to gain weight. Overweight people tend to grab things by the handful and eat them without thinking about it. Nuts are a great snack but in excess they can be fattening.

So like I said, don't snack so much.

Beamandtrout 236 points237 points 5 months ago[-]

Go to the gym BEFORE work. It sucks getting up early but at the end of the work day you'll realize that you've already worked out so you don't have to worry about it. Plus it wake's you up and I feel ready for the day after. I can't stress exercising enough. Cardio. Cardio. Cardio. Work hard and you'll be rewarded.

frontalatrophy 62 points63 points 5 months ago[-]

Go to the gym BEFORE work.

I think the choice of when to go to the gym is more of a personal preference, than a hard and fast rule. I have friends that do exactly like you and feel they have to go before work, first thing in the morning. That's what works best for them. However, I am the exact opposite. I am more of a night person and go to the gym daily after work on weekdays. I personally find that if i go as soon as i get home from work, before eating dinner, that i have the most motivated workout. I am worthless in the mornings. Point being, find the time that works best for you, and stick to it.

myhouseisgod 12 points13 points 5 months ago[-]

agreed. i did the morning workout routine for a whole month before giving up on it. it was so god-awful, i was exhausted and wanted a nap. i was always amazed how ubiquitous the claim is that exercise in the morning gives you energy for the day. it always made senses to me, but i have never experienced it. morning workouts always made me nauseous, i tried every combination of how much to eat and when, but i alawys felt like puking when i worked out first thing in the morning.

I am much more motivated and energized about evening workouts. an hour or two after my late afternoon meal i can hit the gym really hard. then have a small dinner afterward.

point is, as frontal mentioned, find the time of day you can be most productive in the gym and makes you feel the best.

snuggleslut 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

I totally agree and I'm a late-afternoon exerciser myself. Some experts even think that exercising later is better for your body: http://www.cnn.com/2003/HEALTH/diet.fitness/05/27/exercise.time/index.html

HungLikeJesus 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

I find that it depends what time I have to be at work. If I can go to the gym at 8am and get to work by 10, I prefer to work out in the mornings. If it's more like 6 and 8, well, that's just not going to happen.

Yelly 6 points7 points 5 months ago[-]

Also, if you have an hour lunch break, it's possible to work out then. I worked in downtown San Francisco and there was a 24-Hour Fitness a block away from my work. I was able to squeeze in a 45-minute cardio workout when necessary. It's not ideal, but it works if you're already a busy person.

doomglobe 6 points7 points 5 months ago[-]

A friend of mine who is a personal trainer gave me the best advice I have heard on this. Make your gym schedule work for you, and find workouts that you can enjoy. If you don't like it, if it feels like a burden, you will find an excuse to stop. Once you start getting into shape, learn to enjoy your body, and the things that you can now do, like run, jump and climb. This will motivate you to work harder on it.

aoskilinn 4 points5 points 5 months ago[-]

There's a gym at my work, and I have always thought about going there to work out during lunch. But I worry about returning and stinking up the place if I didn't shower before I came back. Plus, not eating during lunch = bad. Plus the hassle of having to redo my hair and appearance if I showered. Those have all kept me from working out during lunch. :(

ducttape36 6 points7 points 5 months ago[-]

i bike to and from work. kills two birds with one stone. its about a 40 mile round trip so its a really good workout.

[deleted] 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

I have wondered about this. How do you shower once you get to work? How do you carry your office clothes without getting them crinkly? If you store them at work, do you transport them in a car periodically? Where do you store your bike stuff?

ducttape36 6 points7 points 5 months ago* [-]

im lucky, my office has full showers in the bathroom. but other methods include going into the handicap stall in the restroom and using a shower in a bag.

i also keep my suits at work. i have an office with a door, not a cubicle. so im lucky in that regard. every friday i will take them back home with me (except the jacket) and wash it, then bring it back monday. i have plenty of room in my rear rack panniers so they dont get too wrinkled. I keep my briefcase on one side and clothes on the other.

my office is big enough to keep my bike in, but even if it wasnt i could just park it by the coat rack in the hall, or even secure it on the bike rack outside and just take my panniers in with me.

Though i just started getting into it last year, biking really is great convenient exercise. i do all my grocery shopping on my bike as well. (i live alone so its usually just a few bags and a 12 pack of beer on the back rack). so you save money on gas (or gym fees), you get exercise, you save time on exercising, and you help the environment too. plus, its fun to bomb down those hills. :)

landofdown 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Wow that is quite some distance to cover on a bike. I have a 4 mile round trip, haha.

ducttape36 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

yeah i live in a rural area and work a few towns over. got sick of paying for the gas so i decided to try biking. if you have a semi decent road bike its not bad at all. i just bought my first road bike last summer on sale for 250 bucks. Before i've only ridden mountain bikes and it really makes a world of difference. at a comfortable pace i could bike to work in about hour and 15 minutes. so i get a nice two and a half hour workout everyday. keeps me a great shape.

EDIT: except in winters. then i drive and get fat and lazy. looking forward to spring though!

opineapple 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Do you live in a flat area? I would love to do this if my city wasn't located among foothills.

ducttape36 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

i live in the green mountain state if that helps answer your question, haha. there are plenty of hills, but the nice thing about a round trip is that there are just as many down hills as there are up hills. and with a halfway decent road/hybrid bike, id say it makes things pretty easy.

nunobo 29 points30 points 5 months ago[-]

Don't know why you're getting the downvotes, but this is pretty solid advice. Getting up early to go to the gym is probably the hardest thing in the world.

Yelly 14 points15 points 5 months ago[-]

Eventually, though, it becomes your "cup of coffee." You won't feel awake or energized UNTIL you do it!

nopantsftw 12 points13 points 5 months ago[-]

Also don't worry about instant results, you will lose weight and good things will happen. It just takes time.

conservativetroll 10 points11 points 5 months ago[-]

This couldn't be truer. I have a rule when I come home from work. No sitting until I exercise. No couch, no computer chair just walk in the door change clothes and put on running shoes. If I sit, it's over. It's too easy to say "It's too cold." and crack open a beer.

cookedsushi 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

I suggest switching from beer to weed. No calories or dependency. And I know it'll sound crazy, but going to the gym high and listening to music is great. You'll space out while exercising and not mind it so much.

l00pee 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Totally, no one believes me either. Only thing is I sometimes lose count...

[deleted] 27 points28 points 5 months ago[-]

Diet is more important.

Cryptic0677 8 points9 points 5 months ago[-]

If you want to lose weight, diet is more important because even running 3-4 miles at a reasonable pace burns under 1000 calories. If you're eating over 3000 a day which most americans do I think, this running will do little to help you lose weight.

On the other hand, exercising regularly is still important for other health reasons. I once read a study that suggested overweight (but not obese) people that did cardio regularly had less of a chance of heart attack than skinny people who did little exercise.

royrwood 11 points12 points 5 months ago[-]

Or bike to work. I know that's not practical for a lot of people, but if you can do it, then do it. You have to go anyway, so it's like getting exercise for free, and it's hard to rationalize your way out of doing it ("I'm too tired to go to the gym tonight....").

robearbobo 10 points11 points 5 months ago* [-]

One problem... Winter. Every Winter I gain weight and then lose it again come Spring.

Edit: goodbye extra o

Chris1218218 18 points19 points 5 months ago[-]

This is what I'm doing at this precise moment. Damn my mom and her fantastic cookies.

Just kidding mommy; I love you.

miloir 2 points3 points 5 months ago* [-]

I should call my mom.

dregan 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

I'm the opposite. You can still bike to work in the winter, you just need the right equipment. Also, I live 16 miles from a ski resort so I get a lot of skiing done in the winter.

hypermark 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

You're a lucky person if you can bike to work. I live 1.4 miles from work, but since I live in San Antonio, it's out of the question to bike most of the year. I tried it for a while, but I was always drenched with sweat by the time I got to work.

VDiym 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

don't wear your work clothes on the bike and bring a towel maybe?

catsrevil 7 points8 points 5 months ago[-]

I agree. Getting up and going to the gym at 4AM sucks. Hard. But by the time I get to work at 7 I'm already wide awake and actually more productive early. And then when I leave at 4 I can go straight home and be with my family. It just takes a week or so to train yourself to go to bed a little earlier. In addition to the gym... portion control. I've lost around 45 lbs. from mostly just limiting the size of meals.

Yelly 6 points7 points 5 months ago[-]

I know a woman who barely worked out at all, but lost like 20 pounds by portion control. She would serve herself up like usual, but then take about three or four spoonfuls or whatever and put it back. It cut back her caloric intake by about 300 calories a day but it totally worked.

[deleted] 8 points9 points 5 months ago[-]

Actually, I'd argue that you can stress exercise too much and people often do. Exercise is important and helps a lot in weight loss, but in terms of effectiveness, your diet will contribute a lot more to the weight loss than cardio cardio cardio.

Again, both are important, but I feel that this worth stressing as I've seen a lot of people fail at weight loss due to the fact that they say "oh well, I'll go to the gym 3 days a week, do 20 minutes of cardio and try to eat healthier." In many cases, there's no strict diet followed, just a loose idea and set of rules and constant rewards and exceptions made due to patting themselves on the back for working out.

It's important to do both, but it's honestly a lot more important to watch what you're putting in. Not eating 800 extra calories a day is a hell of a lot easier than running off 800 calories that you shouldn't have eaten every day (if you're about 250, that's an intense 5 mile run daily.)

Stick to your diet very strictly. These are the easy calories to get rid of (all that you have to do is not eat them.) The workout after that is important for enhancing the effectiveness of the diet, going beyond what your diet alone will in terms of calories, and for giving you a nice body to go with your weight loss, a reminder as to why you are dieting, and for good health in general.

Violating your diet invalidates the hard work that you just did toward weight loss. Don't do that to yourself.

Do not skip out on your diet for even one meal. You do not need to. Every meal that you do so and eat an extra 300 calories is roughly equivalent to skipping an entire day at the gym.

istara 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

Yes - exercise is important for overall health, but the primary way to reduce weight is to alter your food intake.

splidge 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Couldn't agree more.

It's easier to stick to a diet - just don't eat extra food - than it is to carve out enough time often enough to burn off significant calories through exercise.

I'm trying the Hacker's diet at the moment; the exercise he recommends is derived from 5BX and is just 10-15 minutes per day with no equipment. This is enough to keep metabolic rates up and remind your body that it needs to burn fat not muscle to make up for the calorie deficiency, and it doesn't take long enough to get boring.

niczar 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Or ride a bike to work.

Anyway exercise doesn't help that much in losing weight. Cutting sugar (and carbs in general, but sugar most of all) does.

IrritableGourmet 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

I lost 100lb in 3 months during college by doing this. Getting up at 5am sucked, but it worked.

[deleted] 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

I've lost something like 30, maybe 35 lbs in 3 months (also in college, summers), and that was going balls-out. So I find your claim hard to believe unless your metabolism is whack.

EDIT: This was also eating no carbs except for veggies and maybe the odd fruit.

Dirk_Gently 5 points6 points 5 months ago[-]

was also eating

There's your problem.

jamesmanning 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

100lb in 90 days? without meth/speed/heroin/crack?

Wow.

kingrooster 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

I agree with this. I always flaked going to the gym/running after work. It's to easy to do (flake) when you're mentally tired after work and you just want to sit down and zone out.

The hardest part about doing it in the morning is getting up on time. Once you're up, it's a piece of cake.

spamshield 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

This is very important advice. I just started doing this myself, and it really works. Go to bed a bit earlier and start the day with a workout. There is less people and if you start like this, the rest of the day is all yours, and you won't have to skip exercize later with a bad excuse.

Yelly 4 points5 points 5 months ago[-]

Do you ever notice an insatiable appetite? When I worked out in the morning, I was ravenous all day. I started working out at night just because of this.

[deleted] 2 points3 points 5 months ago* [-]

fewer people

exercise

But your advice is good because it really prioritizes exercising. Nothing is more important than your physical health, work just seems more important. So it only makes sense you should exercise first.

duplicitous 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Cardio, unless done to extreme levels and/or HIIT is not an effective method of weight loss. It is however important for cardiovascular health.

Weight training (Use free weights) will do more to help you lower your body fat and will give you substantial health benefits including more lean body mass to slow the effects of aging on your heath and mobility.

Weight loss however is ultimately done in the kitchen. Exercise will make you healthier and stronger, but eating correctly will make you leaner.

Do some real research on this topic, do not trust the generally bad advice you are being given here.

burjzyntski 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Try riding your bike to work instead of driving, it'll wake you up and save gas money! Five, ten, fifteen miles may sound like quite a ride but you'll find that if you manage your time properly you will be surprised at how quickly you can get around... and by timing yourself you can see how you progress. Trust me, you'll get into a rhythm/"runner's high" and zone out, paying full attention to your breathing and pace, and you'll be flying...

kewidogg 42 points43 points 5 months ago* [-]

Look into weight lifting. Going out on a limb (and without reading through all the comments) I am assuming you are female, based on your user name. Do not be intimidated by lifting weights. It is a common misconception that lifting weight builds muscle/bulk. This is true for males mostly.

If you lift weights in low amount of sets, high reps (for example, do squats but with low or no weight, and 12 - 14 repititions), you will actually burn more calories in less time than doing cardio. Check it out

Most women have the misconception that if they lift they will get bulky or become a she-woman. This is not the case, as women do not naturally produce enough testosterone to build that kind of muscle without adding it to their diets (re: supplements). By lifting weight in a high-rep low-set (or even high-set) environment, with a lower weight, you will build muscle endurance, which leads to toning and weight loss.

Weight lifting can be intimidating but check out this website for GREAT videos on exercises, tips and tricks, proper form. There are a lot of other sites out there so look around as well. BodyBuilding.com

jerstud56 6 points7 points 5 months ago* [-]

I was also going to give bodybuilding.com as some advice here. I recently started working out again because the winter months for me seem to keep me stuck inside and going nowhere fast.

I found this page the other day: Training articles

And also this page: Exercises

Both are great to give you an idea of what you can do in the gym. DO NOT try to make up your own exercises. You'll end up hurting yourself or wasting your time.

Also here's some motivation articles. Anything on the left-hand side of that site is a good place to start, just start reading and get moving. Eat healthier and exercise more. Just remember if you start doing long and hard work outs, give your body a day or 2 of rest so your muscles can recover.

Edit: I was also going to add this considering you're a woman. Do not just go for the 3-5 pound weights. If you feel no resistance and in your head are going "Hmm, I could do this for 20 minutes" - move on to some slightly bigger weights. Working out is done in reps, not in long strides until your bored. If you can, find someone else to work out with. It's a huge motivational boost.

scottbruin 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

What you're saying about high-rep low-weight sets is not really true. It doesn't "lead to toning." Lifting heavy will have a better effect and tire out the muscles more which encourages fat loss and will make her stronger.

Chyndonax 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

I can't stress this advice enough. Women always ignore it even when it's been explained but don't ignore this. Lifting weights will not bulk you up, it will burn a ton of fat and leave you fit and energetic.

deadwisdom 16 points17 points 5 months ago* [-]

Alton Brown had a very interesting episode of Good Eats lately, Live and Let Diet. He explained how in 9 months he went from (quite overweight)[http://i574.photobucket.com/albums/ss187/livinlowcarbman/2448149929_b98e3b3cd9.jpg?t=1262804109] to (down right skinny)[http://i574.photobucket.com/albums/ss187/livinlowcarbman/AB_demo03.jpg?t=1262804412] by eating what he calls "nutritionally dense" foods.

He divides foods into two groups, calorie dense (like white bread, potatoes, sugary drinks), and nutritionally dense (like whole grain foods, nuts, vegetables). And then he gives a break down of kinds of foods and how often to eat them (added below).

He also gives a few recipes, one in particular is a smoothie to drink every day for breakfast; it's tasty, healthy and includes about 1lb of fruit.

The idea is to not starve yourself, but just stick to the good foods. I started following his guidelines, mostly, three weeks ago and have lost about 5 lbs. I hope to get better at cooking for myself and going to the gym to increase the rate of loss.

His diet:

Daily

  • Fruits
  • Whole Grains
  • Leafy Greens
  • Nuts
  • Carrots
  • Green Tea

3 times a week

  • Oily Fish
  • Yogurt
  • Broccoli
  • Sweet Potato
  • Avocado

Once a week

  • Red meat
  • Pasta
  • Dessert
  • Alcohol

NEVER!

  • Fast Food
  • Soda
  • Processed meals/frozen dinners
  • Canned soup (too much sodium)
  • "Diet" anything

And finally: Eat breakfast every day, no exceptions.

regulan 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

I think he was spot on with the advice. As far as I can tell the Alton Brown thing is a variant of Pritikin. Pritikin is very focused on eating health and food that isn't calorie dense.

5 lbs is a great start, but keep on it. I started following pritikin about 4 months ago and I'm down 40 lbs.

[deleted] 10 points11 points 5 months ago[-]

I started working out in September. I was 6'0" and 182. Today I'm still 6'0" but I weigh 165. It's been five months and I am well on my way to being rock solid. My body fat is way down, my stamina is way up, I look a thousand times better. My muscles are pretty well defined, my stomach is flat, and my abs are just now starting to show.

I lift weights five days a week before work. Chest/arms Monday and Thursday. Shoulders/neck/back Tuesday and Friday. Lower body on Wednesday. Abs on Mon, Tue, Thur, Fri. I run every day after lifting weights. It's much easier for me to go before work. I get to the gym around 5:20 and leave about 7:30. I also run on the weekends.

I always keep a mental image of what I'm going to look like next September (after one year). This is my main motivation. Last August I went to the beach and was embarrassed to take my shirt off. Not this year!

I set a special goal for myself each month. For February I'm not drinking any beer and I'm running 100 miles. So far we are five days in and I have 19 miles (9 min/mile pace).

Another thing is you need to vary your workout. My workout has changed three times since I started. Your body will get used to whatever you are doing. That's when you need to switch it up. Keep your body guessing.

Other than that, just like the Nike slogan, just do it. Seriously. Get your lazy ass out of bed and do it. That's what I tell myself when my legs hurt, when I'm too tired, when my shoulders ache. And when you get there, don't fake it. If you body isn't stressed you aren't working. If you can carry on a conversation with the person next to you, you aren't working.

We have all these fat people at the gym that do the same thing every day for months on end. Walk forever on the treadmill at 2.5 mph with no incline. Hell, they barely even break a sweat. Then they complain to the staff that they aren't losing any weight. No pain, no gain. Cliche but true.

bookist 8 points9 points 5 months ago[-]

If you have a dog, start taking walks. If not, get one and start walking. Just start small. It's easier to walk with a reason, plus it's good for both of you! Sometimes that's all the motivation you need. Or maybe you could just find a neighbor who needs a dog walker and do that. Benefit - puppy love!

simonphoenix 5 points6 points 5 months ago[-]

I'll second this suggestion. I just got a dog a couple of weeks ago. We walk everyday. You'd be surprised the distance you can cover in a 30 min-1 hr without breaking much of a sweat. We usually go about 2 miles each day but sometimes we've hit 4-5.

I feel obligated to take him out and he also expects it (great for motivation). If you already have a dog than he'll definitely appreciate the outdoor time. If you don't have one, I wouldn't get a dog for just this purpose but if you have been thinking about getting a dog, do it.

Also, get a dog that can keep up. I have a lab/greyhound mix that's about 60-70 pounds. He could probably outlast me on our walks but I don't push myself too hard.

If you can walk this much (15-20 miles a week) and eat right, I don't see how you can't lose weight. Good luck!

ShawnaNana 5 points6 points 5 months ago[-]

Put a towel on your pillow case. Change every day... Oh wait....

dubyabinlyin 12 points13 points 5 months ago[-]

Pedometer. 10,000 steps a day. Walk in the morning, walk at lunch, walk at night. Cut out sugar, high fructose corn syrup, trans fats/hydrogenated oils and artificial sweeteners. Shop around the perimeter of the grocery store and try to avoid processed foods as much as possible. Use spices and make sure your food has some flavor. Don't eat after 6 pm..water only. Eat breakfast, lunch and dinner, and try to keep dinner your lightest meal.

patook 5 points6 points 5 months ago[-]

Here's what you do:

Quit your job, and drive to South America. Bring only a Bowie knife and some Tevas. Hop on some lorries, then some boats, then hitch with some guerrillas until you're good and lost in the jungle: fighting jaguars for monkey carcasses, eating a variety of leaves - you don't know anything about leaves, it's okay, you'll probably live, building a tolerance to the native's blow-darts and snake poison, building a living tree fort all Robinson-Curose-style, and learning which mushrooms to avoid. Once the dysentery lets up, the malaria goes down, you learn to feed the tapeworms, the hallucinations subside, and the local jaguars have either given up, or started worshipping you as their king, then the pure zen of the jungle will imbue you with martial arts skills. Spend what time you are not killing wild boar with your bare hands (your bowie knife is at this point embedded in the neck vertebrae of a giant meat-eating bird/dinosaur thing unknown to science) with punching through trees, tossing around boulders, doing that kung-fu flying thing, and training the piranhas to give you a good shave. By this time your physique has reached godly perfection, your senses are near-supernatural, and you may have developed superpowers. Even if you haven't, people will think you have because they've never seen a man so full of physical deliberation and presence of consciousness.

That sir is how you lose weight.

busybeth105 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

You should write a weight loss book. This is one of the most entertaining and awesome posts I've ever read. =)

NinjaCow 11 points12 points 5 months ago* [-]

May be this will help: Hackers Diet

Also, 5'5" and 156lbs is not fat. May be SLIGHTLY overweight but not fat. Normal BMI is 18.5 to 24.9. Your's is 26.0

krutonz 7 points8 points 5 months ago[-]

Well I'm not sure if this helps but here is my story. Last year at this time I was 218 lb (I'm 5'8) and am currently around 180. Last year in June I started carefully monitoring my diet. I would eat several meals a day and eat healthier. While I did not do this every single day I did do it for most of the time. I lost about 5 lb within 2 weeks and decided to complement my progress with some running.

After losing 5 lb the first two weeks I decided to complement my diet with running, so I consistently started running every few days. First I started with .7 miles and every week I would add about .7 miles until I was up to 3.5 miles. I started eating more but with moderation at this time. Within three weeks I lost another 8 lb, but then my weight stabilized and I stopped losing weight. After taking a break for a week (bachelor party) I decided to change my game plan a bit.

Having seen a lot of progress through my diet and running, I had new found vigor and conviction to do a hardcore workout like p90x. So I picked up some weights and a pull up bar and started.

Worst part of the deal was starting. At first, I could not even do more than a few real pushups and these people did pushups for half an hour! So it was humiliating but I had to start with my knees, and even my stomach. Is doing a pushup off your stomach even a workout? Barely, but when you can literally do no more pushups off your knees yes it is. Of course, being in the private confines of my room, it wasn't like there was anyone watching.

After 7 weeks, I had lost another 27 pounds. That was 6 months ago. I am currently 180-182 lb and I injured my shoulder a while ago so have not been able to work out. Instead, I keep in shape by training in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu 2-6 times a week. Its fun and its challenging, in a body-chess like way. I also eat whatever I like, just moderate it a bit. The good news is that while I lost almost 40 lb, I actually lost even more fat than that. As my muscle mass grew and my weight shrank, something had to give, and that was a whole lot of fat.

Hope this helps!

TL;DR: Ate more meals and watched what I ate, rn, did p90x, now do Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, lost a total of 38 lb and put on quite a bit of muscle.

Droffats 5 points6 points 5 months ago[-]

Put a clean towel on your pillow before you go to sleep each night.

Ivebeenstimulated 6 points7 points 5 months ago[-]

I would recommend the paleolithic diet along with exercise.

jeff303 5 points6 points 5 months ago[-]

Worked for me moreso than anything I'd tried before.

areyouforscuba 11 points12 points 5 months ago[-]

you may want to restructure your thinking first. 5'5" and 155lbs, while not super lean, is really not that bad. there are people in far worse shape than you that managed to get their weight and life under control. so you should use that for some good motivation!

as to diet/exercise it really depends on yr goals. i was in similar shape as you, at 21 when i graduated i was 5'7" @ 150 lbs... after 3 years of office jobs + wow combo, i was 5'7" @ 190lbs... then much like you i decided that my life was turning into something i didnt want it to be so i took some action. i found some sports that i really enjoy playing (cycling, skiing, volleyball, tennis) so that it's more of a fun thing to do with friends than a chore that i dread doing. btw if you have trouble getting friends to do it with you, meetup is a great site that i use to find tennis and cycling groups all the time! also going to the gym regularly helps, but also with a buddy. i couldnt bear going alone it's pretty repetitive and boring.

diet wise - i believe it's the quality not the quantity that counts. get a healthy diet together , lots of greens, fish (omega3s are yr friend), antibiotic-free meats, multivitamins. i think if you eat better quality food, you start actually enjoying every bite and you don't eat just for the sake of getting full. it becomes an experience. don't go for those silly radical hollywood diets, while they may work short term who has the willpower to keep them up longterm?

my_boobs_say [S] 4 points5 points 5 months ago[-]

Thank you for the great advice! I'm not really going for some major weight loss - definately not striving for anything like size 0. I guess my goal is to lose, say, 20lb - 25lb.

jkaska 8 points9 points 5 months ago[-]

Not eat less, but eat right... eat as many fresh fruit & veg dishes - cut the crap...

I lost all my excess weight (about 12kg) when I went vegan -- I am now super healthy (not "skinny" and under-fed looking), have no deficiencies, awesome energy levels, sex drive etc. And why? cos i eat mostly plants... check out numerous vegan blogs and vegan reciple websites to get really yummy, really healthy food.

CokeOps 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

I agree entirely. This is the best diet decision you can make. The great thing is once you go vegan and start eating primarily natural and organic foods, you really don't have to stress yourself out of over pithy things like counting calories. Simple exercise combined with vitamins will get you in great shape. Just make sure you research vegan foods a bit and do it properly, and take a vegetarian supplement to supply you with B12. It really isn't bad, there are great alternatives to meat and dairy that taste just as great. In fact, I think many vegan/organic foods taste so much better, especially desserts.

professionalstudent 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

Crossfit and the Paleo diet.

LBayA 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Eat the Paleo Diet. Pounds will come off easily. 80% of body composition is diet but also get into some sort of muscle resistance exercise (boosts your metabolism) and get into walking. This website is all about living Paleo/Primal http://www.marksdailyapple.com/about-2/marks-daily-apple/

bowling4meth 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Read this. It will change your life. I lost over 40 kilos (almost 90 pounds, roughly) using this and became fitter than I had been for years. People like Beamandtrout have good ideas but you don't need to do two hours in the Gym before work, the Hacker Diet routines take about 15-20 minutes and can be done in a hotel room.

drc500free 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

Try to keep your blood sugar pretty constant throughout the day. If you're aiming for a 1500 calorie diet, see if five 300 calorie meals works for you. I found it much easier to lose weight once I started eating more often, but only until I wasn't hungry. Something like a turkey burger on toasted sandwich bread with a sprinkle of mozzarella and bbq sauce is a comfortable 300 calorie meal.

cdwillis 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

  • Eat healthier (more fruits and veggies, cut back on bread and pasta)
  • Eat several small meals throughout the day rather than a couple big meals
  • Drink lots of water
  • Get a few minutes of exercise everyday, something to keep your heart rate up for around 20 minutes

[deleted] 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Upvoted. This is pretty much what I did to lose 12kg in 2008. Cut out the heavy carbs, eat more greens, and do exercise you enjoy, or at least don't completely hate, at least 5 days a week. Also what helps me is imagining the girl's body I want to attain (for me it's Miranda Kerr's) while I'm exercising; this helps me go just a little bit harder than I otherwise would. Haha obviously I'll never get her body, but it works for me to imagine I can. Good luck, and well done for taking the first step.

AtticusFynch 16 points17 points 5 months ago* [-]

1) Cut ALL refined sugar, corn syrup, trans fats, and white flour from your diet.

2) Eat NOTHING that comes out of a package.

3) Eat less, exercise more.

4) If still fat, repeat #3 until you aren't

That's it.

gte910h 12 points13 points 5 months ago[-]

Let me redo your recommendations with reasons and moderation:

1) Cut ALL refined sugar, corn syrup, trans fats, and white flour from your diet.

Up to a point. If you're never going to stop eating Ben and Jerry's, I suggest making a 4oz serving every 3 weeks an acceptable amount of desert. Or if you must drink (for alcohol is pure calories, we burn the stuff for gas if you think about it), do it in a highly structured way with a fixed amount per time. If you overboard this too much, when you stop dieting you'll go back to gaining weight. Use this time to learn moderation.

2) Eat NOTHING that comes out of a package.

Bah, plenty of perfectly healthy foods which are packaged are KEY to not running out of time while you diet. Pre-prepped onions from trader joes (already all sliced up) are great, as are several meat substitutes (which are stupidly low cal compared to their meat equivalents). However, you should stop eating highly processed foods, especially ones with long shelf lives. This is because fat, sugar, salt, are used as preservatives, making the food much higher cal then a fresh equivalent would be.

Additionally, favor frozen (non meal) foods over canned. Canning uses many preservatives (including fat, salt, oil) which frozen does not use.

Avoid frozen ready made meals.

3) Eat less, exercise more.

On this: Key is making what you do eat really good, and eating it slowly. Learn to cook. Buy spices. Buy peppers. etc. Make 4 servings and eat them over the next week, etc. But don't waste all your time doing this, or you'll never keep it up.

As to exercise. You don't actually need exercise, but activity will not hurt the process of losing weight. Clean house excessively, volunteer planting trees, etc, if you find the gym distasteful. Remember though, you can lose weight without exercise, but if you screw up the diet you won't lose weight no matter how much time you gym it up.

4) If still fat, repeat #3 until you aren't

And weigh yourself daily and look at your average weight per week. Weight bounces all over the place every day due to water variance (and since you're female, with your menstrual cycle). You should plot it in excel if you can or find a website with a graph.

niczar 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

3) Eat less, exercise more.

Don't eat less. Eat more greens. Fill yourself up with fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, fruits. Eat them till you're completely full. Burst your belly on them. It's harder than it sounds. But it works.

And don't drink diet sodas, they keep you used to sweets, and as far as I'm concerned they make me hungry.

Retromingent 26 points27 points 5 months ago[-]

Calories burned > calories in

lordthadeus 14 points15 points 5 months ago[-]

Far too oversimplified. The metabolic processes involved with adipose tissue development certainly do not rest on the simplified notion of "a calories is a calorie". A fat calorie is not the same as a sugar calorie! They get treated completely different by the body.

xTravis_Bicklex 28 points29 points 5 months ago[-]

It doesn't matter if it's oversimplified. The fact remains, if you eat nothing but sugared lard everyday but stay below your caloric maintenance level, you lose weight.

lordthadeus 10 points11 points 5 months ago[-]

Losing weight is different from losing FAT TISSUE. Sure you will lose weight, but you will be skinny-fat. Not attractive.

statuskuo 5 points6 points 5 months ago* [-]

Biochemist here- True, but its really, really hard to eat that little. If you eat lard, a larger percentage goes to building fat. If you eat healthy sugars like glucose and maltose, it goes to your liver, where it is stored for energy. Fructose is terrible and much of it goes on to become fat tissue, rather than be used for energy immediately.

This talk is very informative on the issue

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM

Its a bit long, and a little technical, but explains why fructose is bad really well.

tl;dr eating bad foods leads to fat buildup, eating good foods lead to increased energy stores

EDIT: oops, lordthadeus already posted this.

cnk 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

If that's too simple, here you can find a more detailed explanation

johnboyholmes 8 points9 points 5 months ago[-]

You are wrong. A calorie is a calorie is a calorie is a....

If you eat too many carb or protein calories they will get stored just as easily as if you eat to many fat calories.

Where I think you are getting confused is the fact that one gram of fat contains 9 calories vs carbs where one gram of carbs contains four calories. Btw a gram of protein also contains four calories.

The parent statement that energy intake needs to be less than energy burnt is 100% correct.

lordthadeus 9 points10 points 5 months ago[-]

Nope, but that is still incorrect. Watch this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM

Carbs don't get "stored" in the same way that fats and proteins do because they get broken down by the liver in different fashions. Carbs break down to glucose, which raise your blood sugar levels, causing insulin to rise, which directly moved triglycerides into your fat cells, generating fat tissue. This is what makes you fat and this is where the whole concept of a glycemic index comes from.

slykens 4 points5 points 5 months ago[-]

I wish I could find this article I read about this. It said exactly what you guys are saying about caloric intake needs to be less than calories burned, but it also said that certain types of food your body has to work harder to burn (complex carbs and such as opposed to processed sugars). So you're actually burning more calories just by eating "better" calories.

Maybe this is what lordthadeus meant?

muad_dib 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Calories are a unit of energy. It does not take more work to burn different types because there is no such thing as different types.

On the other hand, some things do require energy to digest, such as cellulose. Is this what you're trying to say?

slykens 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

Yea, just that certain types of food are harder for your body to metabolize so you burn more energy just by eating them. So you would burn more energy metabolizing 100 calories of fiber vs. 100 calories of sugar. You would have a greater net loss by eating "better" foods.

Disclaimer: I'm by no means an expert, and barely know what I'm talking about.

thephotoman 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

So you would burn more energy metabolizing 100 calories of fiber vs. 100 calories of sugar.

Two things:

  1. Your body doesn't metabolize fiber. Fiber is the stuff that comes with living matter that your body cannot digest. That's the definition of dietary fiber. Fiber gets passed.

  2. Most fibers are sugars, or rather carbohydrates. There are fibers that aren't carbohydrates, and obviously sugars aren't all fiber.

That said, you do have a valid point: some foods are harder to digest. These foods will be higher in fiber and protein, typically, but gorging on protein will not save you. A Calorie is still a Calorie.

JimmyDThing 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Sort of. Yes, if you take in less calories than you burn off you WILL lose weight. If you don't get ENOUGH of the RIGHT calories, your body will go into starvation mode and when you do start eating again (you will, everyone does), you will just gain it all back.

Eating more healthy calories (ie good fats like in avocados, good sugars like in fruits) is better than eating less unhealthy calories... you will have more energy to exercise more and you will feel better, making it sort of a domino effect in the right direction.

skipdog172 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

Actually that is not entirely correct. Insulin fuels fat storage and your body has a very hard time storing fat when you have no blood sugar spikes.

You must keep in mind though that it is rather difficult to avoid blood sugar spikes and not be on a caloric deficit. To do this requires a diet with probably over 50% protein and eaten in many small meals to minimize blood sugar impact.

Yeah you are right for anybody really big though, but when somebody who isn't all that fat already, getting to single digit body fat percents will require some macro nutrient tweaks to your diet.

willis77 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

This makes sense from an evolutionary point of view as well. There was/is a massive selection pressure against a digestive system that put calories to waste. Though the percentages vary somewhat, we are extremely adept at absorbing calories, even if the metabolic/insulin/psychological response is different.

SpankmasterS 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

No. Macronutrient ratios are largely irrelevant above 20%bf for men and 25%bf for women. The ratios are practically irrelevant till we get to about 14% for men (cant recall womens numbers).

So in short, calories in-v-out is all that matters.

xTravis_Bicklex 7 points8 points 5 months ago[-]

This a thousand times over. You don't need to exercise to lose weight. Just eat at a calorie deficit.

[deleted] 24 points25 points 5 months ago[-]

There comes a point of diminished returns if you cut your calories too much. Your body quickly adapts to diet changes, so eventually your body will think it's in "starvation mode" and will switch gears on you. I call people who follow this method "skinny fat."

griminald 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

A lot of people don't understand this -- just because you could mathematically cut 1000 calories a day doesn't mean you should.

xTravis_Bicklex 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

I should have specified that I didn't mean an extreme deficit. 300 to 500 is more than enough depending on how fast you wish to lose. I was skinny fat years ago when I didn't understand how diet or exercise worked. It kills motivation to lose a bunch of weight but still be fat and nowhere close to where you could have been if you had just done things the correct way.

bitspace 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

if you had just done things the correct way.

Which includes exercise.

Jozer99 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Cannot upvote enough! Exercise is great for your body, but it really won't help you lose weight. You gain more calories from a few bites of bread than you can run off in half an hour.

Monitor your food intake carefully and count calories. I GUARANTEE you that you will be surprised. I spent years thinking I was eating under 2,000 calorie a day, and that I was a freak who couldn't lose weight. Then I started counting calories, and found that I was actually doing about 2200 to 2500 a day! When I ACTUALLY lowered my calorie count, weight started coming off like it should.

holyeffingcrap 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Cannot Agree with you enough. Whenever I actually count (I am too lazy to do it all the time) I am surprised at the perception gap between what I think I am doing and what I am actually doing. Even if it's just for a few days to shock you back into reality, keep track of your diet and be honest about it, and you will find that "being careful with my diet" and "working out all the time" are more like "occasionally watching my diet" and "working out a little bit".

Sahas 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

While "not eating like a pig" will certainly help with the "cal in < cal out" formula, it's not the best strategy for losing weight and getting into a better shape.

As you exercise you naturally develop more muscle and more capillary infrastructure within said muscles. This increase in blood flow potential to the main energy burning sites in your body will allow for a greater processing power of ingested food nutrients.

So while it may be enough to just "not eat as much" in order to lose weight, it's by far a much more efficient strategy to team up a good diet regimen with a good exercise regimen.

gtlogic 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Not all calories are considered equal. Carbs increase insulin, which is used to store fat. Without carbs, you can't make fat. Period, there is no big secret behind this.

Read 'Good Calories, Bad Calories' by Gary Taubes. Cut out the carbs in your diet and you'll lose weight with very little effort. Most people just need to cut out the bad carbs, but whatever.

I did p90x and lost about 15 lbs, although I probably gained about 10 lbs of muscle in doing as well (so probably 25lbs of fat). Stick to something like a routine, otherwise you'll cheat yourself. Do it with someone and it's easy to stick to it. Make a goal for yourself -- at the end of the 90 days, go to the beach. Or plan a trip at the end of the 90 days with friends, so that'll motivate you even more. Basically, if you don't have internal motivation, find external motivation to drive you until you get enough internal motivation yourself.

dufus 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

1) The Shangri-La Diet. I found out about it on Reddit, it was cheap and safe so I tried it. Lost 40 pounds since last summer, about two pounds a week. (Went off the diet when I was recovering from an auto accident.) I never let myself be hungry; if I'm hungry I eat.

2) There's a difference between "hungry" and "munchy". Sometimes I eat just because I want to be crunching something, not because I'm really hungry. My solution to that is corn cakes: if I'm munchy, I let myself have one.

3) I have a hard time leaving the apartment to go to the gym. But once I get out the door with my bag of stuff, the rest is easy. The hardest part is getting out the door without making an excuse. Once I figured that out, it became a lot easier to control my innate laziness.

PressPlayOnTape 2 points3 points 5 months ago* [-]

I'm 36, so my metabolism is slowing a bit, but I went from 280 to 235 in about 5 months (6 foot 4). My rules:

1) Stop eating sugar in any of its forms. Sugar spikes your insulin which then converts food to fat very rapidly. No chocolate bars, no orange juice (8 times the sugar in one glass as 1 orange). This is seriously the number one piece of advice I can give you. Be very cautious with any packaged foods - high fructose corn syrup is poured into everything.

2) Stop eating fried foods. While fat in and of itself is not the problem it's the shitload of calories that come in the form of fried foods that cause the problem.

3) Eat salads. Lots of them. Every day have a salad.

4) Stop drinking booze. Not forever, and I had probably a few drinks over the 5 months here and there, but again the problem was the raw amount of empty calories in booze.

5) Make sure to have fiber and protein with every meal. This helps slow the conversion of food to sugar, insulin response, etc.

6) Cut back on carbohydrates and make sure they are complex. Refined simple carbs (white bread, white pasta, etc.) are converted very fast, spike your insulin, get converted to fat. I still ate carbs, in fact a fair amount of carbs, but they were in the form of heavy multigrain bread, whole wheat pasta, etc. Carbohydrates are important to eat, just make sure they are the right type.

7) Exercise every day. Not too much, because that will make you hungry... I bought a stationary bike attachment for my bicycle and put in an hour a day on it while playing on my ps3. Made the exercise easier to swallow. :)

8) Do some weights. Building muscle is much harder when you're in a calorie deprivation scenario, but it is very important to make sure you are not atrophying entirely. Do very easy weights, just enough to keep them in use and not getting cannibalized for calories.

Fundamentally losing weight is easy. Make sure you burn more calories than you take in. Period. That is all it comes down to. That's why the sugar part of rule 1 is so important. Sugar does nothing other than damage your pancreas and make you fat. It is vile crap that people shove into processed food to trigger your animal brain. All the rest of it, the protein shakes, the fiber supplements, salads, exercise... all that does is help assist the number one thing which is to stop filling your body with calories, and sugar (along with simple carbohydrates) is the number one issue.

It's no wonder the US (and Canada) has such a problem with obesity and diabetes. They are the same problem: We are being force fed sugar.

tl;dr: Don't eat sugar, burn more calories than you eat.

feeman_4_life 2 points3 points 5 months ago* [-]

Not sure if you are a guy or a girl, but I too, am 5'5" and fluctuate anywhere from 145lbs to 160 depending on what I eat. I'm a guy and right now I am hovering at 150. In fact, I've always been around that weight, but I basically shed body fat and replaced that with muscle. I was pudgy and now I have more or less an outline of a 4 pack.

All I did was bought The Abs Diet (I highly recommend this book), learnt about the importance of good foods, nutrition, what to eat, what to avoid, and ate regularly about 6 meals a day.

I joined Crossfit end August 2009, exercised 3 days a week and just ate healthy. That's all it really takes. And that's what I recommend. I went from being chubby, lazy, non athletic... to my friends saying that I look great... and even to the point where they say I am hardcore. Keep in mind I ONLY crossfit 3-4 times a week. One average workout is about 15-20 minutes long. That's it.

I should add I was in the situation of working in an office job as well. I sat all day long. But I made sure I kept with my eating routine at least 6 days of the week, and made sure I went to Crossfit 3 days a week.

I cannot stress the importance of high intensity training and building muscle, and most importantly... what you eat. Bodies are built in the kitchen.

You absolutely must have discipline in the foods you eat, go to the gym and exercise!

You also say you lack motivation... again, I know I am extremely biased, but... Crossfit worked for me because

a) I paid 100 dollars per month for only 3 classes per week. Every single class I missed was money down the drain. So it forced me to continue going.

b) the community aspect of it is so strong, you end up making many friends and everytime you go - there's the working out and the social aspect. It became a lifestyle and you always have about 5-10 gym buddies going to the gym with you everytime you go.

c) you surround yourself with very like minded invididuals and are eager to offer up advice. You see people older than you, more worse shape than you etc... and you just realize that you really don't have it all that bad. You see extremely fit people and cannot help but be inspired - they started somewhere too.

d) It's impossible to crossfit eating crappy food. It naturally curbs you to more nutritious meals and eating habits. You simply cannot sustain the intensity on beer, burgers and pizza.

... Crossfit really truly provided me all the motivation I needed.

Not sure if you are a guy or girl, either or... take the plunge. I know it worked for me.

TJ700 2 points3 points 5 months ago* [-]

Here is a cutting-edge, scientifically based strategy for bodyfat reduction posted br Dr. Stephan Guyenet. These are “snips” from a 4 part series on the subject. The full post and details are at the link.

http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/

The Bodyfat Setpoint, Part IV Changing the Setpoint

Fat Loss: a New Approach

If there's one thing that's consistent in the medical literature, it's that telling people to eat fewer calories does not help them lose weight in the long term. Gary Taubes has written about this at length in his book Good Calories, Bad Calories, and in his upcoming book on body fat. Many people who use this strategy see transient fat loss, followed by fat regain and a feeling of defeat. There's a simple reason for it: the body doesn't want to lose weight.

SNIP

Therefore, what we need for sustainable fat loss is not starvation; we need a treatment that lowers the fat mass setpoint. There are several criteria that this treatment will have to meet to qualify:

  1. It must cause fat loss
  2. It must not involve deliberate calorie restriction
  3. It must maintain fat loss over a long period of time
  4. It must not be harmful to overall health

I also prefer strategies that make sense from the perspective of human evolution.

SNIP

Strategies: Diet Pattern

The most obvious treatment that fits all of my criteria is low-carbohydrate dieting. Overweight people eating low-carbohydrate diets generally lose fat and spontaneously reduce their calorie intake. In fact, in several diet studies, investigators compared an all-you-can-eat low-carbohydrate diet with a calorie-restricted low-fat diet.

SNIP

Another strategy that appears effective is the "paleolithic" diet. In Dr. Staffan Lindeberg's 2007 diet study, overweight volunteers with heart disease lost fat and reduced their calorie intake to a remarkable degree while eating a diet consistent with our hunter-gatherer heritage

SNIP

Strategies: Gastrointestinal Health

Since the gastrointestinal (GI) tract is so intimately involved in body fat metabolism and overall health (see the former post), the next strategy is to improve GI health. There are a number of ways to do this, but they all center around four things:

  1. Don't eat food that encourages the growth of harmful bacteria
  2. Eat food that encourages the growth of good bacteria
  3. Don't eat food that impairs gut barrier function
  4. Eat food that promotes gut barrier health

SNIP

Strategies: Micronutrients

As I discussed in the last post, micronutrient deficiency probably plays a role in obesity, both in ways that we understand and ways that we (or I) don't. Eating a diet that has a high nutrient density and ensuring a good vitamin D status will help any sustainable fat loss strategy.

SNIP

Strategies: Miscellaneous

In general, exercise isn't necessarily helpful for fat loss. However, there is one type of exercise that clearly is: high-intensity intermittent training (HIIT).

SNIP

Insufficient sleep has been strongly and repeatedly linked to obesity. Whether it's a cause or consequence of obesity I can't say for sure, but in any case it's important for health to sleep until you feel rested. If your sleep quality is poor due to psychological stress, meditating before bedtime may help.

END SNIPS

Don’t forget to read the comments, they’re useful to, and Dr. Guyenet participates.

Let me add that "weight loss" and fat reduction are 2 different things - you want the latter. Don't just weigh yourself to check results, but measure waist, bodyfat as well etc. You should probably check your temperature on a regular basis too. If it drops, you know your metabolism is in trouble. Ideally on a health program of the right exercise and unprocessed foods, you should see it rise.

vonralls 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Eat frequent meals. (Every 2-3 hours). Try to have whole foods, Meat/Vegetables/Fruit at every meal, Drink only water/unsweet tea/plain coffee.

Find a crossfit affiliate in your area, and join.

That's what I am doing, and so far I'm down 20 lbs in 3.5 months.

Izminko 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Spend a whole day going through these pictures of transformations. If this doesn't motivate you. I don't know what to say.

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=108359701

vafnord 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

I read and was impressed with The Hacker's Diet. There's no new information in there, because of course, everybody already knows how to lose weight--eat fewer calories than you burn. The book provides an interesting perspective, however, and it reveals a fact that is very counter-intuitive: the human body is a water pump.

Yangoose 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Don't be too strict with your diet. If you force yourself to eat nothing but broccoli for 2 weeks you'll go insane.

There are good things to eat that are really easy to prepare. A Foster Farm skinless chicken breast is quite filling at a tiny 120 calories and it's very easy to prepare.

Find things you actually like to eat that work on your diet instead of forcing yourself to eat things you hate.

Treats can be OK. A McDonalds soft server ice cream cone is 150 calories. One of those as a reward for being good all week can be a great motivator that is a very small impact on your weight. I bought some thin pretzel sticks of amazon. A serving is 88 sticks for 102 calories. Eating them one at a time they can last you quite some time for a low caloric impact.

Create-A-New-Account 2 points3 points 5 months ago* [-]

my_boobs_say to AskReddit

You have very wise boobs indeed.

steamynachos 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

I know this is just an anecdote, but I once dated a girl who was 5'3" and 150 lbs. She could still run 3 miles non-stop at a decent clip, yet her BMI was higher than yours. She didn't even look fat. Unless you have absolutely zero muscle, you're probably not as bad off as you think.

JoshSN 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

Do not eat until you feel hunger and the hunger gets distracting.

The human ability to feel thirsty is broken. You might feel hungry when you are actually thirsty. Each time you feel hungry, have a glass of water. If you are still hungry 15-30 minutes later, then consider eating.

The trick is that food tastes good, eating is fun, feeling full is a drug. To get thin you need to pull yourself off the fun roller-coaster.

FYI, exercise is good for you, and a good cardio regime will help you avoid any 100,000$+ operations when you are 60+, but a non-stop, heavy sweat workout for 1 hour burns about 3 slices of pizza, and you will always find "not eating pizza" is going to be easier than heavy duty workouts.

illusio 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

My wife lost 50 pounds in about a year doing weight watchers and exercise. WW was the big key. What it taught her was to be aware of what she's putting into her body and portion control. She used to go to McDonalds and get a Big Mac. Now if she goes, she gets a hamburger happy meal. If you really want to loose weight, it's going to take a lifestyle change, not a diet.

silvrswt 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

I was 317 last year at this time, now I am down 70 pounds; all I did was replace simple carbohydrates (white flour, polished rice, pasta) with complex carbohydrate foods, eliminated high fructose corn syrup, completely stopped drinking soda, and generally limited my (only complex) carbohydrates to 150 grams a day (600 calories; 30% of my total caloric intake).

I get the rest of my calories from lean protein and some fat. 75g of fat covers 30% of my daily caloric needs. The other 40% comes from 200 grams of protein.

An easy way to lose weight without thinking about it is just go on a diabetic diet. Get a bit more exercise too, but don't go hit the gym for two hours a day all of a sudden.

youcanteatbullets 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

www.nutritiondata.com. I found it useful.

bubbal 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

Sure. Right before my senior year of high school, about a decade ago, I weighed in at 290lbs (as a 5'11" male). Enough was enough - for the next 5 months, I ate completely cleanly 3 small meals, about 1500cal/day. For the 5 months after that, I did the same, and added weight training and cardio to my routine. By graduation, I was 180lbs.

A couple times in college, I put on a bit of weight, but losing any extra 10lbs or so was easy. Recently, I realized that I felt too small for my frame, and decided to gain some muscle - I've gone from 180lbs to about 195lbs in the past 4 months, of which maybe 3lbs or so of that was fat. I also went from bench pressing 155lb to 235lb, and squatting 185lb to 265lb.

Any fitness goals you have are within your reach if you:

  1. Do plenty of research to understand exactly how best to accomplish them.

  2. Put your mind to it, trust the plan, and execute it.

JimmyDThing 5 points6 points 5 months ago[-]

I weighed 300 pounds and got down to 150.... which was actually too far and I've stabilized around 180/190. I'm not bragging, I just am trying to explain that I've gone through what you're going through.

My best advice. Don't start a diet, change your diet. You have to look at it is a lifestyle change. Decide what kinds of things you can do for your diet that you can stay with for the foreseeable future. Small goals are good, but short term diets don't.

Exercise more and eat less. To tell you the truth, one good way to get on track is to fast for a day and do NOT binge the next day. It helps your stomach shrink down so you won't be so hungry. It's not fun and it's not easy, but once you get your body used to eating less it won't feel like a chore, it'll feel normal.

[deleted] 5 months ago[-]

[deleted]

philosarapter 3 points4 points 5 months ago[-]

My friend lost like 15lbs doing ecstasy every week. Make sure you drink water and do plenty of push-ups. Also, cocaine seems to work for many women around here.

atara_x_ia 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

When I was on Ritalin in high school I could see all of my ribs. I'm still thin now, but before it was ridiculous.

Everyone I've known who's used methylphenidate regularly for any reason has had a similar reaction. It makes you a goddamn skeleton. They don't prescribe it as a diet pill anymore, though.

theylive 1 point2 points 5 months ago* [-]

There's already been lots of good advice here, so i'm just going to add this:

You should definitively try the Shangri-La Diet. I am trying it right now. All you have to do is drink a few tablespoons of tasteless oil per day. This is supposed to decrease your body's set-point (the weight it tries to keep at), which decreases you're appetite. I've been on it about 2 weeks, so I can't say anything about how much if any weight I've lost yet, but it has definitively reduced my appetite. I'm eating less than half of what used to eat, and it seems to work a lot of people.

And it doesn't matter if it doesn't work for you! It's extremely easy to try and completely harmless, so there is absolutely no reason to try it!

Check out the link and read about it. There's a book, but there's really no need to buy it, it's very simple. Check out the wikipedia article too.

Edit: formatting

drmickhead 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

I lost close to 50 pounds using the Shangri-La diet. Of course you have to keep your calories in check but this helps you do so immensely. If you do it, I recommend using walnut oil, not just for the appetite suppressent effect, but also for the Omega-3s.

not_a_temp_account 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

  1. Good night sleep. Why? Two reasons: (1) When you are tired the next day, it will feel like you need energy and your body will crave chili dogs to get energy. (2) When you are not rested, you will not exercise as much. Both of those are from personal experience - was completely stunned when I discovered that.

  2. Lots of water.

  3. Cut all portions in half except for salad where you should double what you normally eat.

  4. Don't eat Low Fat salad dressing. Eat something that tastes good instead. If you are miserable, you won't stay on the diet. Work an extra 5 minutes at the gym so that you can afford the luxury of the good salad dressing.

Personal experience - not just making this stuff up. Lost 50 lbs in the last 4 months.

Nefarious- 7 points8 points 5 months ago* [-]

I am assuming you are a woman. I am a powerlifter. I am a self-proclaimed genius when it comes to exercising and weight control :). To give you an example, December of 2008, I decided it was time to bulk. I put on a fairly clean 60 pounds through 2009. I am now 6'1 260, with a BF% of about 14%. Which is minimal for someone weighing 260. I am in no way an Abercrombie model. I have a lean stomach, but do not have individual abs, it is not what I am shooting for.

Now, that being said, back to your diet. First thing you need to do is only drink water. Right off the bat, that will be 5lbs, gone.

A while ago, my ma asked me to put her on a diet (she is 5'4, and was 125, she wanted to lose 10lbs and that is what we did). I put her on a modification of the anabolic diet. Do not let the name fool you, or scare you into thinking it is only for body builders, it is not. It is a low carb diet on crack, but the one I put my mom on was tweaked for a woman that does not lift.

Basically, all you need to do is create a "carb ceiling." Carbs are important when dealing with weight. They are your body's number one source of energy. When there are no carbs for your body to take energy from, it moves to your fat deposits. This is how you lose weight on low/no carb. Your body feeds off fat for energy. Now, you're probably asking, "WTF, this is complicated." It is not. Here is what you need to do. Create a carb ceiling. Choose a number of carbs you want to take in per day. Let's go with 30 carbs per day. Once you reach 30 carbs for the day, that is it. No more carbs for the day. I suggest taking in complex carbs such as fruit and grains/oats and staying away from starches like chips as you will get more out of the complex carbs.

To take this a step further, eat these carbs before 3pm. By eating all of your carbs for the day before 3pm, you burn them off as you go through the day, meaning you force your body to eat off its fat storage.

Now, what can you eat? Well, anything without carbs once you have used them for the day. Any meats, vegetables, cheese, etc.

As for working in an office, that is no excuse. I work in business too, it is not an excuse. It sucks you have to exercise after a full work day when you are tired; that is why there are B-12 and B-6 vitamins you can buy.

Losing weight is 90% diet and 10% exercise. If you are looking to exercise do some cardio, or light weight lifting for tone.

edit: I forgot to add, once a week, pick a day to have double your normal carbs and also a cheat meal

edit 2: Do not skip meals. Breakfast is EXTREMELY important

Ozwaldo 5 points6 points 5 months ago* [-]

yes. notice that the guy who works out like a maniac (excuse me, massive sir, i'm just generalizing) is giving you all sorts of diet advice. Think about this; your body will use ~2000 calories a day just to keep your major organs functioning and whatnot. Exercising for calorie-burning is a minimal effort compared to this natural, every day process. Plus, you'll most likely compensate for excessive working out by excessive eating. You really just want to exercise for muscle gain, and eat right for fat loss. Eat 1400-1600 calories a day of quality food (lean protein, vegetables, minimal carbs and whole-grains when you do). You will see results if you stick this out long enough. Don't eat too little or you will sabotage yourself.

Nefarious- 6 points7 points 5 months ago[-]

Yes. Also, do not get discouraged, this takes time, it will not happen overnight!

Mesca 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

You don't need a diet.

You need something that involves movement, that you enjoy. Then the motivation ceases to be an issue. If you like to take pictures, go on nature hikes and take photos. If you like the snow, take up skiing. If you like to cycle, get a bike and find some trails. If you like to run, do that. Tennis, racqetball, Basketball. (Even golf can contribute to fitness, but you have to play a lot of golf.) Swim. Triathlons. Steeplechase.

If there is something you really like to do, you will find ways to do it, regardless of the obstacles. Motivation is no longer a hurdle. People run or ride bikes at night, in the winter, in the rain - because they enjoy it.

Find something you like to do, that involves major body movements.

skipdog172 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

I am going to have to strongly disagree. You certainly do need a diet and it is far more important than exercise.

The amount of calories you burn in any of the activities you listed are very minimal. You can't overcome a caloric deficit and this person CANNOT lose weight unless they make MAJOR nutritional changes.

They certainly won't lose it "getting active" alone. That is a myth. Nutritional changes must be made.

vampiricrogu3 2 points3 points 5 months ago[-]

The biggest thing is portion control. Take what you currently think is a portion and cut it almost in half.

lapiak 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Also want to add the frequency of portions. Six smaller meals spread throughout the day is more efficient than three larger meals. It's great for your metabolism, keeps you feeling satisfied and less hungry, and it's harder to put on excess fat in a single sitting.

deadowl 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

You're slightly overweight, as in lose 6 lbs and you're not. That isn't a far off goal. I bet you're gorgeous even without losing the weight.

dl_man_71 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Over the past year I've lost about 50lbs following a few simple rules.

  1. If you can walk or ride a bike everywhere you go. Its easy exercise and saves you gas money. I ride my bike all the time unless its physically impossible to do so. (I live in a college town though, so its not hard)

  2. Don't buy junk food. Simply put, don't put anything into your body that doesn't have any value other than taste. Find things that you like that have real nutritional value. I personally don't keep junk food around for the simple reason that its too tempting to eat it.

Really its all about keeping an active lifestyle. I've never once stepped foot into a gym or spent a dime on exercise equipment. Take the stairs, take the long way home, walk/play with a dog, get on a team of some kind. No reason being active has to be a chore...

bumblingmumbling 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Even if you lose weight stay sweet.

bananaspl1t 1 point2 points 5 months ago* [-]

Here are a few things that really help me:

  • Add low-calorie veggies to everything! Broccoli and zucchini are my two favorites. When you're cooking pasta, just add in a handful of chopped veggies to the water towards the end (not starchy ones like potatoes, nothing calorie dense, high in water content). It'll bulk up whatever you are eating without adding calories while adding nutritional value. I even steam and add broccoli to canned veggie soups. Oh, and when you go out to eat, split the meal in half immediately and package it up. It'll be dinner tomorrow. If you think that won't be enough food for you, drink plenty of water and order a salad with VERY LITTLE salad dressing and no meat/nuts/calorie-dense add-ons. I sometimes pre-game dinner out with an apple or something.
  • Calorie count for a few weeks until you get an idea of what a good 'portion' is and exactly how much you've been eating. I'd say whatever calories you calculate the first day will be lower by ~20% than whatever you actually ate. When you know you're going to write it down in a little notebook, you think more about whether or not you actually want to eat it. Also, look at WHAT you ate. This is really important - are most of your calories from desserts? From coffee drinks? From cheese? When you know exactly what your weak points are, they are easier to fix. Also note if there are certain times of the day when you are more likely to eat - late night, ~4pm are my two worst ones. You are more likely to eat when food is close by and at times when you are tired. If you have the munchies at 4pm everyday, it could be that you're dehydrated or need a nap more than you're hungry.
  • Just walking for thirty minutes a day is good enough, but no matter what exercise you do, eat some fruit and drink lots of water afterward. This will keep your blood sugar in check so you won't feel ravenous later.
  • Eat out of slightly smaller bowls and plates. If you have 12" plates, go for 10" ones. You won't notice the difference in size but you will eat less.
  • Stay hydrated! Pure water and unsweetened herbal and low-caffeine teas are best. Then green and black tea. Coffee if you must (I frickin' love coffee...). Stay away from any drinks with calories, unless you really like some milk with your cereal for some reason. Juice is glorified sugar water, just go for the fruit itself.Even artificially flavored and sweetened water I would stay away from, because it's far less hydrating. After awhile, those sorts of drinks will taste unbelievably artificial and too sweet - give them up for a month and you won't want them anymore.
  • How often do you drink? One shot of vodka has 60-80 calories. Just one shot, without mixers. Cheap beer has ~100 a can, good beer can have up to 200 calories. Mixed drinks, combined with drunken munchies, are possibly the easiest and fastest way to gain weight.
  • This is mostly my opinion BUT: go for low-fat items, but not non-fat items. Usually, low-fat, fat-free and sugar-free mean 'chemical shit-show', but low-fat is probably the best of the three because it just means skim milk instead of whole half the time. A little bit of fat, like a drizzle of live oil on salad or a little fat in your yogurt or whatever, will actually help keep you feeling full and satisfied.
  • The less processed the food is, the better it is for you. This is probably the best advice I could give anyone. Apply it to everything you eat and it's hard to go wrong. Remember, any diet change you make is a lifestyle change. You need to stick with it. Even if it sucks a little in the beginning, you end up embracing it and wondering how you ever ate differently. I love studying nutrition and have sooo many more tips and ideas, but I think these are some of the best.

duxup 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Honestly I think all I can offer you is time travel. In the past I was thin. I am sure of that.

odd-socks 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

ok ctrl+f told me that no one has mentioned before, either way definitely deserves a(nother) mention. www.reddit.com/r/healthproject

I've started whilst using the support on healthproject because i find my long term determination suffers quite a bit. I find it's helping me because i feel commited to lose weight with the other people on their. collectively in the first month we've lost about 78lbs I believe.

dont diet. as soon as you come off the diet you'll go back to before. you ahve to realise that the only way to do it properly is to change your lifestyle. eat sensibly. I find tracking what I eat is good as I eat when Im bored and dont realise how much I eat. try www.livestrong.com/myplate to track foods. try to eat equal amounts of carbs and proteins (myplate has a little pie chart at the botttom right to show your daily values of each) and little amounts of fatty foods.

im 21, and very fat (like 250lbs ish). i cant give you success story (yet!!!! I aim to be about 200lbs by december) but if you wana talk more about things feel free to pm, even if its just for support or nagging to get to the gym :p on heathproject they've put people into groups/partners for support.

oo erm if you want to loose the weight long term, look to loose about 2lbs per week (immediately after changing lifestyle will be more but will settle to 2lbs per week which is safe and sustainable).

all in all, good luck!! (p.s. im female too)

mlerin 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

run.

away from your dinner.

summernot 1 point2 points 5 months ago* [-]

Some books:

Eat To Live- Joel Fuhrman

Eat for Health- Joel Fuhrman

Engine2 Diet- Rip Esselstyn

These books all talk about eating nutrient-dense foods. I heard Rip speak at work last night (I work at the Whole Foods corporate HQ). One thing I didn't know that he mentioned is that animal protein leaches calcium from our bodies. Because of that, along with the fact that it is high in fats and cholesterol, he recommends avoiding animal proteins. In fact, most plant-based food has more protein than meat and fish anyway.

If you live near a Whole Foods Market, call them up and ask them if they have any special programs or experts who work with customers as part of their Healthy Eating Initiative. The Austin flagship store, for example, has a Healthy Eating expert on site every day who will give tours of the store pointing out the healthiest options available and how to shop for them. The flagship store also has a nutritionist on site who offers complimentary consultation customized just for you. She is seen by appointment. Other stores have been getting nutritionists and healthy eating experts, as well. You can see them as often as you'd like for advice and inspiration.

Before starting the change in your eating and activity habits, you might want to consider having your blood drawn to have a baseline on where your cholesterol, glucose, iron, etc levels are. You may also want to check your blood pressure.

Rip encourages people to make the switch to plant-based foods for 4 weeks and then check their numbers a second time to see how they've changed.

Here are some of the most nutrient-dense foods:

Kale

Spinach

Collard Greens

Chard

Bok Choy

Those are the superstars. But some of the more appealing foods that are great are:

Strawberries (if you get anything organic, this would be it... conventional strawberries are sprayed like crazy)

Blueberries

Romaine

Carrots

Pomegranate Juice

Orange

Cantaloupe

Lentils

Kidney Beans

Here are some quick meal options to get the ideas going:

Breakfast

  • Oatmeal with all kinds of yummy fruit and dried cranberries and/or raisins

  • Whole grain cereal with all kinds of cut up fruit and rice milk (kiwis, bananas, strawberries, raisins, apple, peach, etc)

  • Smoothie: apple juice, banana, frozen strawberries and blueberries yummy!

Lunch

  • Salad with romaine, kale and spinach, chickpeas, tomatoes, carrots, sunflower seeds, walnuts, edamame, etc. Oil-free dressing (I'll usually just drizzle on a ton of balsamic vinegar)

  • Ezekiel whole grain tortillas loaded with sliced bell pepper, hummus, sundried tomato, lentils or beans, brown rice, and maybe some romaine, all drizzled with lemon juice.

  • Lentil Soup: throw in carrots, kale, onions, tomato, whatever. Eat with a slice of whole grain bread spread with almond butter and honey.

Dinner

  • Black Bean and Oats Burger on a whole grain bun spread with hummus and dressed as desired. Baked sweet potato wedges and green beans on the side

  • Tofu/Vegetable stir fry served on brown rice

  • Portabello fajitas served on corn tortillas. Served with avocado, bell pepper slices, fresh salsa, brown rice, etc.

  • Butternut Squash soup served in a whole grain bread bowl and salad or maybe steamed kale sprinkled with sesame seeds and a little tamari

Three cheers for setting out to get healthier! That's awesome! All the best to you!

smokeythebandit 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Don't eat less! Eat better, eat smaller portions throughout the day. I eat breakfast at 8 get to work at 9 have some nuts at 11 eat a sandwich at 1.30 eat again at 4 and workout in the evenings. Eat small portions, tell yourself you'll be eating again in 3 hours.

Sasquatch6860 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Stop eating deep-fried foods. In one year I lost 45 pounds. Period.

piankeshaw 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

I went from being 60 pounds overweight and in poor shape to a 3x Ironman triathlon finisher. As far as diet, I gave up sugar, white flour, potatoes, and anything that would spike the insulin. I started running two telephone poles and adding two telephone poles every week. Once I got my runs up to 2 miles, it seemed that the weight came off quickly. I added biking and swimming after about a year and decided it would be fun to do a triathlon. That was 8 years ago and I have kept the weight off because I really enjoy the triathlon lifestyle. Very best wishes in your success. (and, oh, I exercise in the mornings and sometimes in the evenings....doesn't matter which.)

sikumiku 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

The best motivation you could have is to pick a role model - a body type that you would like to have. It can be a celebrity whose body you admire. Acknowledge that you can achieve that level with healthy eating habits and active exercise. Get a big poster of that role model. Put it on your wall where you would see it every day. It might seem foolish at first but in time you will see that if you have a goal in front of you, it's much easier to achieve it.

moscowramada 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Er, well. Your title begins I'M FAT. So, I read you description and thought, wait a minute. Just how fat, exactly, is 5'5'', 156 pounds? So I looked it up, and this is what I got.

Overweight, sure (although the mother in the second link, at the bottom, doesn't even look that). But fat? No. Because of that, I think most of the advice in this thread is misdirected; you are probably already doing most of those things, and you are trying to drop a few pounds more, not totally transform your life and eating habits.

tl;dr I'm not trying to flatter you, just pointing out that 'fat' is a misnomer in this case

phrekus 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Started dieting in Feb 09 at 252 pounds and I hit my goal of 180 in December the same year. I did my best to lower my calorie intake to around 1200 a day while I discovered a love for road biking. My advice is to join a site like fatsecret.com to keep track of your goals to stay motivated. Find something you enjoy or always have wanted to do that is a form of exercise and DO IT. If you really need to have soda make sure it is diet and try to eat dinner as early as possible to make sure you have time to get some exercise in before you go to sleep. I followed these rules and replaced everything I ate with a lower calorie version. Using this I just kept the pace and enjoyed watching the weight drop off.

Pete3 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

always eat clean, no exceptions

dc4m3a 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Lay off the sugars, processed breads and pastas and vinegar for a month. Then eat a diet of whole foods you prepare mostly for yourself. No more processed foods or junk/fast food. Look at ingredients if you can't understand what they are or there's more than 10 listed put it back. Eat balanced meals of green vegtables, proteins, and carbs (yes you need these). But you want to have a ratio of like 55% vegies/greens 20% whole wheat carbs 5-10% Fruits 15% of meats/proteins. Vegtables are good and with a little creativity can be transformed into gangsta meals. I'm not saying its going to be easy, but being fat ain't a walk in the park.

tl;dr-eat real food, mostly vegtables, not too much, treat meat like a condiment

dasamps 1 point2 points 5 months ago[-]

Healthy eating habits. Daily exercise.