Let's lose some weight in 2021. Back to the grind... who else is in? (2 Viewers)

[AAABatteries]

OK, thanks, guys. A more daunting task than I had originally thought... such is life.

Does Noom not factor in CO (calories out)?  Meaning - if you burn 600 calories a day in exercise you can then eat 2000 calories and hit that 2 lbs. a week.

 

[Major]

https://www.prevention.com/food-nutrition/healthy-eating/a20501955/icelandic-skyr/

Skyr is really good too..  

Thanks to @Ministry of Pain for suggesting this stuff 

Yep. Icelandic yogurt is great.  I'll get Siggis when its on sale but prefer FAGE(greek) for the price point.  

 

[BeTheMatch]

Does Noom not factor in CO (calories out)?  Meaning - if you burn 600 calories a day in exercise you can then eat 2000 calories and hit that 2 lbs. a week.

I think it may. But the app builds up to different things, so since I just started, I might not have gotten there yet. Today is the first reference at all to exercise. So we'll see.

 

[jobarules]

If you don't drink alcohol, that's good because a lot of us burn our calories on at least a little of it. 

-What works for one person might not be the solution for others. You gotta find the right balance in your life. 

I technically do drink alcohol but I have zero issues giving it up. I can give up weed too but I have to admit have some amazing sex with it. My poison is really chocolate.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

I love food, and beer........I excercise so I don't become a fat ###.  That's really what it's about.....physical activity.  I find trying to count calories, steps, measurements, blah, blah, blah.....it's all mind numbing

I don't want to quote everyone or over post in here or act like a know-it-all because I'm very humble and understand I have so much more to learn but I do want to say that this post hit home. If you tracked what I did in the other thread, I did about 3,000 minutes cardio B2B months, totally changed my metabolism and they even had me briefly running laps around the neighborhood. It makes a huge difference. 

I would say I easily hit around 1,500-2,000 minutes a month of tennis and walk/bike. We have some hefty folks running around the tennis courts, I'm more the exception than the norm in my age range. I think any person can start a walking campaign but again, if it's 6 degrees outside with a steady breeze I doubt I would be going for a hike. I'm understanding that it's not easy everywhere to maneuver right now. 

 

[Major]

I technically do drink alcohol but I have zero issues giving it up. I can give up weed too but I have to admit have some amazing sex with it. My poison is really chocolate.

Same.  Rarely drink and smoke a few times a week.   Weed is a great calorie free substitute if you can manage the munchies.  Unfortunately, I'll often give in to my second favorite vice and let the sugar demons take over, ingesting far more calories than I would in a bevy of frosted beverages.  

 

[Alex P Keaton]

I love food, and beer........I excercise so I don't become a fat ###.  That's really what it's about.....physical activity.  I find trying to count calories, steps, measurements, blah, blah, blah.....it's all mind numbing

I completely relate to how mind-numbing it is to count calories, measure everything, etc

But my experience is 100% opposite from yours.  From the start of the pandemic through Thanksgiving, I averaged 9.5 miles per day of walking+running (about a 60/40 split).  Guess how much weight I lost?  None.  I actually gained weight.  Treaded water for 7 months and then gained 6 lbs in Oct/Nov.

Why?  Because it isn’t all about exercise.  That’s one of the biggest weight loss fallacies out there.  When I run 4 miles and burn about 450 calories, my brain tells me “it is now ok to go have a 600-calorie snack.”

Anyway, that’s just my experience.  This is the only thing that has ever worked for me to lose weight consistently.

 

[MAC_32]

I don't want to quote everyone or over post in here or act like a know-it-all because I'm very humble and understand I have so much more to learn but I do want to say that this post hit home. If you tracked what I did in the other thread, I did about 3,000 minutes cardio B2B months, totally changed my metabolism and they even had me briefly running laps around the neighborhood. It makes a huge difference. 

I would say I easily hit around 1,500-2,000 minutes a month of tennis and walk/bike. We have some hefty folks running around the tennis courts, I'm more the exception than the norm in my age range. I think any person can start a walking campaign but again, if it's 6 degrees outside with a steady breeze I doubt I would be going for a hike. I'm understanding that it's not easy everywhere to maneuver right now. 

Everyone has their own unique strength and weaknesses as well as environmental opportunities and hurdles. There is no one size fits all path. It's the one that best fits each individual. Each person should figure out where they thrive. Where they suck. Where they're motivated. Where they're not. What sorta activities fit their environment. Which ones probably won't. What sorta components of your current routine you're willing to sacrifice. And what are deal breakers. Human beings you surround yourself with that will positively influence your staying the course. And which ones that are more likely to lead you astray.

Successfully do that while being mindful of rest, diet, stress, and exercise then that is the path to success. It isn't gonna be easy though. There will be speed bumps to navigate along the way, but enhancing one's awareness of all that then being proactive when those blockades appear is how you stay on the tracks rather than spiral back to where you are now. 

 

[BeTheMatch]

I completely relate to how mind-numbing it is to count calories, measure everything, etc

But my experience is 100% opposite from yours.  From the start of the pandemic through Thanksgiving, I averaged 9.5 miles per day of walking+running (about a 60/40 split).  Guess how much weight I lost?  None.  I actually gained weight.  Treaded water for 7 months and then gained 6 lbs in Oct/Nov.

Why?  Because it isn’t all about exercise.  That’s one of the biggest weight loss fallacies out there.  When I run 4 miles and burn about 450 calories, my brain tells me “it is now ok to go have a 600-calorie snack.”

Anyway, that’s just my experience.  This is the only thing that has ever worked for me to lose weight consistently.

Me too. For me, I have the same experience as the blogger that Otis linked earlier. I think he said 90 percent of weight loss is from what you eat and 10 percent from exercise. That seems to be the case for me too. I try to exercise to be healthy, but it basically accomplishes nothing in terms of weight loss.

 

[Corporation]

I completely relate to how mind-numbing it is to count calories, measure everything, etc

But my experience is 100% opposite from yours.  From the start of the pandemic through Thanksgiving, I averaged 9.5 miles per day of walking+running (about a 60/40 split).  Guess how much weight I lost?  None.  I actually gained weight.  Treaded water for 7 months and then gained 6 lbs in Oct/Nov.

Why?  Because it isn’t all about exercise.  That’s one of the biggest weight loss fallacies out there.  When I run 4 miles and burn about 450 calories, my brain tells me “it is now ok to go have a 600-calorie snack.”

Anyway, that’s just my experience.  This is the only thing that has ever worked for me to lose weight consistently.

Me too. For me, I have the same experience as the blogger that Otis linked earlier. I think he said 90 percent of weight loss is from what you eat and 10 percent from exercise. That seems to be the case for me too. I try to exercise to be healthy, but it basically accomplishes nothing in terms of weight loss.

For me as well.  Exercise is no doubt a critical piece to any successful healthy lifestyle change, but for me I can't out exercise a bad diet.  Getting my dietary habits under control has to be my base, with activity a strong second.

 

[Manster]

I don't want to quote everyone or over post in here or act like a know-it-all because I'm very humble and understand I have so much more to learn but I do want to say that this post hit home. If you tracked what I did in the other thread, I did about 3,000 minutes cardio B2B months, totally changed my metabolism and they even had me briefly running laps around the neighborhood. It makes a huge difference. 

I would say I easily hit around 1,500-2,000 minutes a month of tennis and walk/bike. We have some hefty folks running around the tennis courts, I'm more the exception than the norm in my age range. I think any person can start a walking campaign but again, if it's 6 degrees outside with a steady breeze I doubt I would be going for a hike. I'm understanding that it's not easy everywhere to maneuver right now. 

I've always been into hiking/backpacking, etc.....west coast guy who's always been around big mountains.....I told myself at an early age, I will always be able to hike up steep mountains, and do so comfortably......I see all these people around me getting into middle age and letting themselves go.....unless there are other underlying reasons, I have zero understanding as to why people wouldn't want to be at least fit enough to not almost die walking up a flight of stairs.

I guess it's priorities mostly.....being physically capable is more important to me than almost anything including career.

 

[AAABatteries]

I've always been into hiking/backpacking, etc.....west coast guy who's always been around big mountains.....I told myself at an early age, I will always be able to hike up steep mountains, and do so comfortably......I see all these people around me getting into middle age and letting themselves go.....unless there are other underlying reasons, I have zero understanding as to why people wouldn't want to be at least fit enough to not almost die walking up a flight of stairs.

I guess it's priorities mostly.....being physically capable is more important to me than almost anything including career.

Focusing solely on exercise or activity there's lot of reasons for folks to not to want to do it.  Let's imagine a scenario where diet and exercise didn't matter - we are all healthy no matter what we do.  There's going to be people who enjoy activity and there's people that won't.  Some people enjoy reading, drawing, watching TV, posting on a message board, whatever.  And there's people who HATE physical activity - even if they know it's good for them.  Then there's people who love walking, hiking, running, swimming.  Which of these people are more likely to stick to an exercise plan?

I don't disagree it's about priorities but imagine you have a magic quadrant where the top half is people who love physical activity and the bottom is people who hate it.  And then the left half is people who don't mind eating healthy and the right is people who enjoy it.  We have a lot of people in the hate activity/hate eating healthy quadrant.  Losing and maintaining a healthy weight is a real struggle for those people no matter how much they know it's good for them.

 

[MAC_32]

I've always been into hiking/backpacking, etc.....west coast guy who's always been around big mountains.....I told myself at an early age, I will always be able to hike up steep mountains, and do so comfortably......I see all these people around me getting into middle age and letting themselves go.....unless there are other underlying reasons, I have zero understanding as to why people wouldn't want to be at least fit enough to not almost die walking up a flight of stairs.

I guess it's priorities mostly.....being physically capable is more important to me than almost anything including career.

For the vast majority it's priorities, only. No more complicated than that. It's up to each individual whether they prioritize health - or not.

 

[Manster]

Focusing solely on exercise or activity there's lot of reasons for folks to not to want to do it.  Let's imagine a scenario where diet and exercise didn't matter - we are all healthy no matter what we do.  There's going to be people who enjoy activity and there's people that won't.  Some people enjoy reading, drawing, watching TV, posting on a message board, whatever.  And there's people who HATE physical activity - even if they know it's good for them.  Then there's people who love walking, hiking, running, swimming.  Which of these people are more likely to stick to an exercise plan?

I don't disagree it's about priorities but imagine you have a magic quadrant where the top half is people who love physical activity and the bottom is people who hate it.  And then the left half is people who don't mind eating healthy and the right is people who enjoy it.  We have a lot of people in the hate activity/hate eating healthy quadrant.  Losing and maintaining a healthy weight is a real struggle for those people no matter how much they know it's good for them.

I hear ya....

A lot of all this is a symptom of our American lifestyle.....work, work, work..... eat crap fast food on the fly, wash, rinse, repeat..

Our priorities are out of whack..

Where I live, fast food joints pop up everywhere.....a new In and Out Burger creates exponentially more buzz than it should.....it's amazing 

 

[BassNBrew]

I hear ya....

A lot of all this is a symptom of our American lifestyle.....work, work, work..... eat crap fast food on the fly, wash, rinse, repeat..

Our priorities are out of whack..

Where I live, fast food joints pop up everywhere.....a new In and Out Burger creates exponentially more buzz than it should.....it's amazing 

Did someone say burger....mmmmmmmmmmmm!

 

[bostonfred]

There's nothing worse than trying to do hard exercise after eating like crap. Exercise kind of keeps you honest once you realize that. 

If you use exercise to justify eating like a teenager whose parents went away and left him a credit card, you'd better be running at least an hour and probably more or you'll get fat.

You can lose weight without doing exercise but you'll necessarily lose muscle mass and not replace it. 

Dieting and exercising won't build muscle unless you are a newb like me. You can add a little mass while you're going from the 25 lb dumbells to the 30s, but you're not going to get shredded unless you have enough cslories and enough protein and enough rest. 

What I've read suggests that dieting is a good time to improve cardio, which burns more calories than lifting, and a good time to maintain or slightly improve strength and flexibility, and then when you're ready to take a break on the diet you can focus on bulking up, adding some muscle and a little fat. There seems to be ssome growing consensus that taking a break helps to reset the metabolism but I'm not sure if the science fully supports that yet.

 

[Major]

There's nothing worse than trying to do hard exercise after eating like crap. Exercise kind of keeps you honest once you realize that. 

If you use exercise to justify eating like a teenager whose parents went away and left him a credit card, you'd better be running at least an hour and probably more or you'll get fat.

You can lose weight without doing exercise but you'll necessarily lose muscle mass and not replace it. 

Dieting and exercising won't build muscle unless you are a newb like me. You can add a little mass while you're going from the 25 lb dumbells to the 30s, but you're not going to get shredded unless you have enough cslories and enough protein and enough rest. 

What I've read suggests that dieting is a good time to improve cardio, which burns more calories than lifting, and a good time to maintain or slightly improve strength and flexibility, and then when you're ready to take a break on the diet you can focus on bulking up, adding some muscle and a little fat. There seems to be ssome growing consensus that taking a break helps to reset the metabolism but I'm not sure if the science fully supports that yet.

Weightlifting is what helps me stay lean.  Muscle keeps your metabolism going strong even while at rest.  I still do cardio but focus more on sprinting, intense uphill walks and stairs (3x/wk).  I avoid long runs because I like keeping muscle (i.e. marathon build v. sprinter physique) but everyone is different.  

 

[BassNBrew]

Well yesterday kicked off the actual diet.  Looks like 1414 calories so 14 calories over goal but I'll call it a success.  Since I don't measure food it's +/- 100 cal anyway.

Breakfast was an omelet for 160 cal

Lunch was jerky for 160

Went big on dinner.  Two small potatoes and deer cubed steak wrapped in bacon with cream cheese and peppers jalapena in the middle.  1095 cal.

Went to the gym and muddled 2.4 miles in 30 minutes.  Pathetic.  Jogged the first mile, walked the second, and then jogged to 30 minutes.  Had to envision racing 100 miles in 8 months.  The good thing is that it will only get easier as I drop weight.  Lifted (chest/tris) after that.

 

[BassNBrew]

Weightlifting is what helps me stay lean.  Muscle keeps your metabolism going strong even while at rest.  I still do cardio but focus more on sprinting, intense uphill walks and stairs (3x/wk).  I avoid long runs because I like keeping muscle (i.e. marathon build v. sprinter physique) but everyone is different.  

I've seen plenty of jacked marathon guys.  @MAC_32 is one of those guys that can steal your lunch money with one dum-dum in his month and then toy with you as you chase him for 13 miles.  Dude looks like he could be starting for the Browns.

 

[fatguyinalittlecoat]

 Weed is a great calorie free substitute if you can manage the munchies. 

STONER RECOMMENDS: My munchie snacks are usually nuts or fruit and they taste super awesome because I’m high.  Eating a good piece of fruit while high can be amazing.  It seems like it would be easy to account for these if you’re tracking calories.

I definitely think switching from booze to weed can be a great move for your health.  I never drink booze at home.

 

[The Iguana]

There's nothing worse than trying to do hard exercise after eating like crap. Exercise kind of keeps you honest once you realize that. 

If you use exercise to justify eating like a teenager whose parents went away and left him a credit card, you'd better be running at least an hour and probably more or you'll get fat.

Weight loss is far more about intake than it is exercise, IMO, especially as you age. I'm a walking billboard for it on a regular basis. I have been trying to get back 'on the wagon' of running and know that I also have to get back to monitoring intake better. First 1/2 of December I was doing better with the eating and just getting restarted with running. Ran about 25 miles, lost about a pound or so. Last half of the month I was doing better with the running but ate everything in site, especially cookies, fudge, etc. Over about 2.5 weeks, I ran 50 miles or so and still gained about 6 pounds to get to my heaviest point in 2 years.

Back fully on the wagon to avoid junk and do the exercise now. Hoping to get back going the right direction again. 

 

[Manster]

I forgot where I saw this, but basically paraphrased...."food is the most potent drug you can put in your body."

Just let that sink in for a minute. 

And then try to think about food as fuel for your physical activity.

I think one of the best solutions for someone who's out of shape and not sure how to change, is to find a personal trainer.....one that will push you, and hold you accountable.....I realize this is not a solution for everyone, but it's a great way to be held accountable, and learn a healthier life style from someone who knows things of that nature.

 

[BassNBrew]

Jan 1           274.4                  0                       Too many

Jan 2           xxx.x                    0                      Jog/walk 30 min

Jan 3           xxx.x                    0                      

Jan 4           272.2                -2.2                    1414  Jog/walk 30 min, lift

Jan 5           267.6                -6.8

I going to say 5 lbs for water/bloat so if I hit 260.4 this month, I'll move up to 2200 cals per day until Feb.

 

[MAC_32]

I forgot where I saw this, but basically paraphrased...."food is the most potent drug you can put in your body."

Just let that sink in for a minute. 

And then try to think about food as fuel for your physical activity.

I think one of the best solutions for someone who's out of shape and not sure how to change, is to find a personal trainer.....one that will push you, and hold you accountable.....I realize this is not a solution for everyone, but it's a great way to be held accountable, and learn a healthier life style from someone who knows things of that nature.

With your dietary choices you're either feeding disease - or fighting it. 

 

[NutterButter]

I technically do drink alcohol but I have zero issues giving it up. I can give up weed too but I have to admit have some amazing sex with it. My poison is really chocolate.

Weed sex is the best.  Only problem is I don't remember it the next day.   

 

[Zow]

Truth. Sugar, especially Mt Dew, is my devil. I don't know how or why I started drinking it, but damn it is good. If I can stay away from it I am golden. Constant battle in my head.

I used to love Mountain Dew then I went super low-card/paleo in my mid-20s and didn't drink it for several years. Now it tastes like crab juice to me.*

*5 points to whoever gets the reference.

 

[Zow]

I forgot where I saw this, but basically paraphrased...."food is the most potent drug you can put in your body."

Just let that sink in for a minute. 

And then try to think about food as fuel for your physical activity.

I think one of the best solutions for someone who's out of shape and not sure how to change, is to find a personal trainer.....one that will push you, and hold you accountable.....I realize this is not a solution for everyone, but it's a great way to be held accountable, and learn a healthier life style from someone who knows things of that nature.

As somebody who professionally deals with people who suffer from addictions to meth, heroin, alcohol, and opiates, the bold is pretty ####### stupid. A bad diet isn't going to cause one to swindle his friends or rob a store. 

But, yes, it's super important to understand that bad food is bad for your body. 

 

[The Flying Turtle]

Only 30 minutes of bike today, but was on my feet all day for work moving 70 lb motors, so I think that can count as 30 more minutes. 

1300 calories (grilled chicken wings for dinner were most of that). 

The second day in a row I wasn’t hungry for lunch so just worked right on through.  

 

[JShare87]

I've seen plenty of jacked marathon guys.  @MAC_32 is one of those guys that can steal your lunch money with one dum-dum in his month and then toy with you as you chase him for 13 miles.  Dude looks like he could be starting for the Browns.

Cody Parkey does need to be replaced.

 

[Otis]

Absolutely. 

And this is why I've been evangelizing myfitnesspal so much. Look at how you're talking. I'm pleased to get back 100 calories. A 10k can get me 1000 calories. 

Compare that with the negative way of thinking of other diets. I'm going to try not to snack. I just need to stay away from alcohol. I won't eat any carbs.  I won't eat anything but potatoes. 

You have a goal today. It's totally achievable. Just fill in your calories and stay under your goal. Want more calories?  Exercise more.  Don't want to exercise?  Take a rest day and just cut back a little.  You can do this for one day, because there is constant positive feedback. I earned 100 calories! I'm going to earn some more on the rower! I saved 50 calories at breakfast! I've saved up enough calories for dinner that I can have something I really enjoy!  And at the end of the day you click complete diary and it says good job if you did this every day for 5 weeks look where you'd be. 

Positive reinforcement works so much better than negative. Earning things is much more motivating than having to avoid things. 

And if you want to get on your concept2 and bust your ### for an hour-plus so you can have 20 mcnuggets and a two cheeseburger meal then guess what  - all that food is only 1920 calories. Minus 1000 for your rowing, that's 920. You can have a little breakfast and lunch even. 

Is that healthy? #### no. You'll #### your brains out, you'll feel like crap on the rower tomorrow, all the fat and sodium will wreak havoc on your body, and you'll be pissed at yourself for working out so hard just to have ####### McDonald's.  But knowing that you can do it is so empowering because it means you are in charge and if you ####### want to go ham on the dollar menu, you can. 

Yes it would be better to have fruits and vegetables than burgers and fries but learning these skills is really valuable too and it will pay dividends as you make lifetime habits. 

The only thing I'm asking from you right now is that you hit the pause button on alcohol while you learn the good habits. Because it's where you always #### up. It's where I #### up too and most people here would probably say the same. Until this becomes normal for you, and the idea of getting on the concept2 Saturday morning to earn your margaritas and tacos with the family for brunch is something that you can also stick to after that second margarita when you're thinking those chips sure look good, it's best to focus on building the habit. But eventually that stuff will be back on the table too.  

I'm really excited that you're finally giving this a shot.  Not sure if you can tell. 

Good stuff and thanks GB.  Good points on all.  Especially on margaritas and chips for lunch being back on the table eventually — after doing a 10k row on a Saturday morning, in which case I could totally earn the calories to do it.  

But yeah, I hear you, a break from alcohol for a bit is a good idea, because it’s a slippery slope.

Another successful day in the books.  Came closer to my calorie limit (within 100), was just so hungry today.  But still under limit.

 

[Manster]

As somebody who professionally deals with people who suffer from addictions to meth, heroin, alcohol, and opiates, the bold is pretty ####### stupid. A bad diet isn't going to cause one to swindle his friends or rob a store. 

But, yes, it's super important to understand that bad food is bad for your body. 

Maybe I said it wrong.....I was paraphrasing..

The point is, you eat food every day.....if you eat #### food, sugar, etc......you may get temporary satisfaction, but you are sacrificing your long term health......and there is #### food everywhere......added sugar......childhood diabetes wasn't even a thing until the 80's(I think)

And people get addicted to #### food.

 

[Zow]

Maybe I said it wrong.....I was paraphrasing..

The point is, you eat food every day.....if you eat #### food, sugar, etc......you may get temporary satisfaction, but you are sacrificing your long term health......and there is #### food everywhere......added sugar......childhood diabetes wasn't even a thing until the 80's(I think)

And people get addicted to #### food.

No doubt. But those people who make these bad choices oftentimes lead otherwise productive and normal lives - which is not at all what one would expect from the "most potent drug you can put in your body." 

Also, sorry if I come across as if I'm on edge. It's because I am. I haven't had a sugar in like 48 hours!

 

[Major]

I've seen plenty of jacked marathon guys.  @MAC_32 is one of those guys that can steal your lunch money with one dum-dum in his month and then toy with you as you chase him for 13 miles.  Dude looks like he could be starting for the Browns.

Absolutely.  I'm not saying it's not possible but definitely not the norm.  Those long runs burn so much fat and muscle.   

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Mon-90 Minutes 

Tue/Tonight-Was scheduled to play Doubles but my partner didn't show so I decided to play 1 vs 2, they had to keep it inside the Singles lines and I got the Doubles lines...I won 6-3, 7-5. 

120 Minutes tonight, 

2 Days-210 Minutes, had 2 slices of pizza today and 4 beers.   

 

[Judge Smails]

Motivated.  Started at 214 before New Years.  208 now.  Pretty simple so far.  Egg beaters and salsa for breakfast, turkey lettuce wraps with low fat mayo for lunch. Dinner varies.  Tried Otis potato hack last night.  Just baked potato and salsa.  Was great.  Tonight had poke salad.  Cut out all red wine until I get to my goal.  Already feel less need for sugar but finally found Healthy Choice fudge bars in stock if I need something.  90 calories.  Going to limit myself to drinks on Fri and Sat only.  2 vodka sodas max.  Will just walk a ton including golf plus upping Peleton workouts.  First goal is to crack 200.  6"1 - haven't done that since college probably.  Will likely shoot for 190.

 

[Alex P Keaton]

Date         |  Weight   |   Chg From Start  |   Actual Calories

Nov 29        159.8             START DATE

Dec 31        152.9                -6.9                     1635

           RESET TO NEW BASE WEIGHT FOR 2021

Jan 1           153.1                +0.2                   1820

Jan 2           153.3                +0.4                   2350 

Jan 3           153.0                +0.1                   1950

Jan 4           152.8                -0.1                    1550

Jan 5           153.0                +0.1                   1550

I've hit a plateau due to three days in a row of poor choices --- even though I exercised a fair amount on Jan 2 & 3.  Hopeful that two days in a row of good choices will point me in the right direction; just need to continue executing the gameplan.  Today was a good day; small breakfast, small lunch, healthy snack after an afternoon 6-mile run, modest dinner, scoop of ice cream with kids at 8pm.   End of eating for the day.  

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Motivated.  Started at 214 before New Years.  208 now.  Pretty simple so far.  Egg beaters and salsa for breakfast, turkey lettuce wraps with low fat mayo for lunch. Dinner varies.  Tried Otis potato hack last night.  Just baked potato and salsa.  Was great.  Tonight had poke salad.  Cut out all red wine until I get to my goal.  Already feel less need for sugar but finally found Healthy Choice fudge bars in stock if I need something.  90 calories.  Going to limit myself to drinks on Fri and Sat only.  2 vodka sodas max.  Will just walk a ton including golf plus upping Peleton workouts.  First goal is to crack 200.  6"1 - haven't done that since college probably.  Will likely shoot for 190.

The baked potato is a very underrated meal, I eat them a lot when I want something a little more filling.  I like to cut them up into steak fries but bake them and dip em in ketchup, yummy. 

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Focusing solely on exercise or activity there's lot of reasons for folks to not to want to do it.  Let's imagine a scenario where diet and exercise didn't matter - we are all healthy no matter what we do.  There's going to be people who enjoy activity and there's people that won't.  Some people enjoy reading, drawing, watching TV, posting on a message board, whatever.  And there's people who HATE physical activity - even if they know it's good for them.  Then there's people who love walking, hiking, running, swimming.  Which of these people are more likely to stick to an exercise plan?

I don't disagree it's about priorities but imagine you have a magic quadrant where the top half is people who love physical activity and the bottom is people who hate it.  And then the left half is people who don't mind eating healthy and the right is people who enjoy it.  We have a lot of people in the hate activity/hate eating healthy quadrant.  Losing and maintaining a healthy weight is a real struggle for those people no matter how much they know it's good for them.

I hated to exercise in my 20s and 30s, just felt like because I was working and making a good living that I was above working out or even just exercise to relieve stress, I was rocking close to 300 lbs in California back in '04-'05 area. 

Exercise however once you commit to it or start participating, your attitude quickly changes. I find it relaxing to do the activities I enjoy like biking/hiking/walking and then I play a lot of tennis especially in the winter when everyone from up North is down here. 

 

[Ministry of Pain]

STONER RECOMMENDS: My munchie snacks are usually nuts or fruit and they taste super awesome because I’m high.  Eating a good piece of fruit while high can be amazing.  It seems like it would be easy to account for these if you’re tracking calories.

I definitely think switching from booze to weed can be a great move for your health.  I never drink booze at home.

I don't track fruits and vegetables, I used to never drink alcohol at home until the pandemic and now I admit it can go beyond a couple cold cans of beer if I let it. 

I like an English crumpet toasted with warm maple syrup and butter, lazyman's pancake. 

 

[Otis]

Got up early and towed a 5k this morning before getting an early start on work.  Enough calories to more than account for breakfast and coffee. So, still a normal day’s calories ahead. 


related: Mrs. O is also on a fitness and healthy kick, isn’t drinking, and bought that Mirror workout thing we keep seeing on Facebook. It’s pretty cool and she’s also getting back in shape, yoga and Pilates and all that stuff. We’re both hoping to be proud on the beach this summer. 
 

 

[belljr]

• 12/28 221.6
  
• 12/29 220.4
  
• 12/30 219.8
  
• 1/1 218.6
  
• 1/4 220.2
  
• 1/5 219.6
  
• 1/6 218.4
  

My intermediate goals are the "9's"  so 209 (205 is valentines day) then 199, 189.   Once I hit 189 I'll have to decide how hard I want 179 lol.  185 is a weight I'm comfortable in.

 

[Manster]

No doubt. But those people who make these bad choices oftentimes lead otherwise productive and normal lives - which is not at all what one would expect from the "most potent drug you can put in your body." 

Also, sorry if I come across as if I'm on edge. It's because I am. I haven't had a sugar in like 48 hours!

How about most potent substance?  Since we eat food all the time to fuel our bodies, if we give it bad fuel, bad things will eventually happen.

 

[belljr]

Definitely fighting the cravings today.  I did grab a diet soda to fight the urge. But that would be 1 in 2 days instead of 1 every day.

Small steps

 

[belljr]

How about most potent substance?  Since we eat food all the time to fuel our bodies, if we give it bad fuel, bad things will eventually happen.

Sugar is the most potent legal substance for sure

 

[Manster]

Sugar is the most potent legal substance for sure

The food industry uses our tendencies against us......get the masses hooked on sugar make massive profit

 

[bostonfred]

Definitely fighting the cravings today.  I did grab a diet soda to fight the urge. But that would be 1 in 2 days instead of 1 every day.

Small steps

Try brushing your teeth or using mouthwash. 

Also if you're thinking about a specific food, look up the calories and plan out your remaining meals/exercise for the day. Sometimes knowing that you will get to have it satisfies the craving almost as much as actually having it. 

 

[Zow]

How most potent substance?  Since we eat food all the time to fuel our bodies, if we give it bad fuel, bad things will eventually happen.

Seems like something having a "great power or influence" would have an inherant level of immediacy to it. 

Regardless of the above definitional dispute, I agree completely that weight loss requires a change in mindset and a fundamental understanding that bad food truly is bad for you (even if bad food tastes so good). This is further complicated by the fact that bad food isn't all that potent because the harm is merely gradual. I can attest to this personally because the first time I had a sizable weight gain - the first year or two into my marriage and after a knee injury caused me to workout way less - it genuinely came as a complete shock to me when I stepped on the scale and it said 242. Honestly when I looked in the mirror I still saw the same 185 lbs guy plus maybe a few pounds of marriage weight. It wasn't until I saw a picture of me playing football a couple years prior that I realized the stark difference. I further realized the difference when I had a random physical a few months later and the numbers were not nearly as good as my previous physical in terms of heartbeats per minute, cholesterol, etc. 

The above, though, provides a nice segway into a confession I need to make. When I started this a couple of days ago I didn't weigh myself because I was afraid to. The last few months I have worked unsustainable hours (billed 275+ hours in December), barely made it to the gym, and did not watch my diet much. I was seriously afraid I'd be over 250 lbs. Nonetheless, I weighed myself yesterday (after one day of a healthy/low-calorie and carb diet) and I was 246.7 This morning I had dropped a pound. So, with a sigh of relief that I am only a few pounds over my prior high, and with the assurance that my currently raging headache means my body is going through a minor withdrawal from sugar, here we go...

 

[Major]

Definitely fighting the cravings today.  I did grab a diet soda to fight the urge. But that would be 1 in 2 days instead of 1 every day.

Small steps

Yeah, I've dealt with this but found the carbonation is also something I crave.  Instead of buying soda, I have Topo Chico on hand and some flavored La Croix.  I normally squeeze a lime in them for flavor.  If I'm really craving soda, will add those flavored beverage enhancers like Mio or Crystal Light to the mix.  

 

[The Iguana]

Definitely fighting the cravings today.  I did grab a diet soda to fight the urge. But that would be 1 in 2 days instead of 1 every day.

Small steps

2 tricks that I use when trying to eat better. Best one is to drink a lot of water. Good for you in general to be better hydrated but also does a good job of fighting cravings for junk, imo. The other is that I keep a bag of trail mix available. The only thing is you have to make sure you measure it out and don't go back for more. 

 

[Zow]

Yeah, I've dealt with this but found the carbonation is also something I crave.  Instead of buying soda, I have Topo Chico on hand and some flavored La Croix.  I normally squeeze a lime in them for flavor.  If I'm really craving soda, will add those flavored beverage enhancers like Mio or Crystal Light to the mix.  

Yep - I do the exact same. Have done so for years. It's gotten to the point where I crave the sparkling water + crystal light instead of actual soda.