Advice for weight loss.

First off, my profile is 385lbs, 6'0" 34yr old Male.  I've got a large body build; tape around my wrist measures just under 9".  I wear my weight well.  I'm pretty strong and can get around without too much problem.  My lifestyle is very sedentary.  I have a desk job as a programmer and at night, I'm usually sitting around.

I've tried to make changes to my lifestyle several times, but neither me nor my wife can seem to commit to anything.  We've tried swimming, walking, batting cages, but it always seems that after a week, things start interjecting and motivation is totally lost.   At one point, I signed up for a gym and spent a solid hour there every work night on the treadmill, elliptical, and weight machines.  After a month, I hadn't lost a thing so I quit.

 

I've begun a diet though.  Low calorie, low fat.  It's somewhat of a Subway diet since they have food that's healthy, but I'm also interjecting my own foods as well, such as fat free yogurt, Special K with 1% milk for breakfast, fruits, diet bars, celery and carrots for snacks.  I've been on it almost a week.  My goal is ~1500-1800 calories a day and 15-20g fat a day. My average seems to be barely making 1500 and 21g fat/day. 

Everywhere I look, they got these sites rigged up for the "OMG I need to loose 20lbs!" crowd but nowhere have I found numbers for me that even make any sense!  Last night, my wife turned to me and said "How the hell are you 385lbs?!  I know what you eat!" Even this site says I should be eating over 3000 calories a day...   that's more than I eat when i'm NOT dieting!  I spent a week calorie counting myself without dieting, and I averaged about 2700/day,  days anywhere from 1900 to 4500.  

My question is, is my calorie count too aggressive?  Does anyone know of anywhere with numbers that make sense for a guy like me?  Anybody have advice for someone looking to shed about 135 lbs?  250lbs would probably be my "ideal" weight.  I really can't see myself going below that. 

To be quite honest, I think you should talk to your doctor who may refer you to a dietician. The numbers don't seem to be adding up correctly, and you may need to be tested for a metabolic disorder.

Also, if calorie count says you need to eat 3,000 calories a day, then that's what you should be eating. The amount of calories you're eating now may have your body in starvation mode, meaning it is holding on to every calorie you're eating because it thinks you're stranded on a desert island somewhere. It probably shocked your system when you went from eating 1900-4500 calories to 1500 calories, and your metabolism slowed down as a result.

The key to making this work, this healthy lifestyle... is doing things that you can MAINTAIN. I lost over 70 pounds by eating right and working out and not restricting anything. If you go from eating whatever you want to eating diet bars, celery, etc., you are destined to fall off the wagon. Instead, just switch to light or low calorie versions of the things you were eating for starters. That will get you that 3,000 calorie per day level, and you will see the pounds come off... slowly, but steadily, which will mean they will STAY off for good.

With exercise, again, I think you may be putting too much stress on yourself. You and your wife try to jump right in to some vigorous exercise, and it's a shock for your body which means it's hard to maintain, and you just quit. Instead, ease into exercise. Make a goal to do some form of exercise 4 days a week for 30 minutes. It could be walking the dog, walking around the mall quickly for 30 minutes, hike at a park, play frisbee, swim around (not laps) a pool, etc. That week where you went to the gym everyday doing vigorous workouts was way too much too fast. Ease into it, and find activities you both enjoy without pushing yourselves too much too early.

That's my $0.02. This CAN be done! I know you can do it, but it isn't easy, and you are to be APPLAUDED for deciding to switch over to a healthy lifestyle!

Lauren

I was tested for metabolic disorder and they turned up I have non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.  The cure?  Lose weight.  That was three years ago when I weighed 365.  I've been trying since.  Everything I buy is the diet-versions of food.  As I said, my intake averaged 2700 calories. 

I've tried easing into it.  Last month, we committed to walking around a park 3 times a week and swimming one night a week.  After three weeks, we dropped the parks because, once again, no results.  I felt no healthier, I lost no weight, I had no fun; it just ate up a precious hour a day.

I've tried a "watch your intake" diet back when I came up with my 2700 figure.  I figured "maybe my intake is fluctuating too much...  maybe between the 1900 and 4500, my body just does things wrong.  I'm going to hold 2700 daily.  Didn't care about fat intake, or carbs, or anything else, just 2700 calories daily.  No more, no less.  First two weeks, I lost 10 pounds.  Then, everything stopped.  I stayed on it another 2 weeks, nothing.  I cut back to 2500 calories, nothing. I gave up.  Slowly gained the 10lbs back after 3 months and a week-long vacation to San Francisco (mighty yummy food there!)

I'll tell you honestly, I'm angry at my body at this point.  I'm sure genetics has it's hand to play as well; my father is 365, my brother 420; we're all big guys.  I fluctuate about +/-4 lbs a week.  At least my weight seems stable.

I have two suggestions.

1) Ditch the "diet-versions of food" and get real food. Meat, veggies, whole grains.

2) Send a personal message to this guy: duke3522.

First, I second amethystgirl's suggestion to check out duke3522's profile.  He's done an awesome job with his weight and he is a true Calorie-Count success story.

Second, I understand that you have a medical condition that may not make this such a cut-and-dry thing for you, but I wanted to share my background with you.

I am a 5'3" female, 35 years old.  My highest weight was 265 pounds, which definitely put me in the "Obese" category.  I am now at 147-150.  What worked for me in getting the weight off was using the tools here at C-C.  I religiously logged my food and exercise, and always made sure that I burned more than I ate, keeping my deficits in the range of 500 - 1000 calories (meaning, I always ate 500-1000 less than I burned.)  The deficits were higher in the beginning, and then got less as I lost the weight and therefore burned and ate less.

What you have to consider is that the heavier you are, the more calories your body needs just to maintain its current weight.  Also, the larger you are, the more calories you burn.  So, if C-C says you should be eating 3000 calories to lose weight, then it is probably correct.  The secret is to eat less than you burn, so if you burn 4000 calories and eat 3000, that's a deficit of 1000 calories.  If you can maintain that deficit for a week, you'll lose +/- two pounds (3500 calories = roughly one pound of body weight.)

If you don't eat enough (and yes, for a person of your size, eating 2700 calories may not be enough,) your body will eventually stop losing weight.  This is because it's not getting the nutrients it needs from food, so it'll start holding onto the stores of fat in order to conserve.  Now, the occasional day (again, emphasis on the word "occasional") of eating low calories won't hurt you.  But doing it for an extended period of time can actually be detrimental to long-term weight loss.

Anyway, sorry to ramble.  Best of luck to you!  You have the right ideas - take control over what you eat and get as active as you can! 

Thanks for your words of wisdom.  I think I'm going to re-evaluate my diet and what I should be eating. 

Here's a question though, I noticed when I was eating higher calories, I ate more fatty foods.  I'm trying to keep this diet in the "low-fat" category.  If I were to go with around a 2700 to 3000 calorie diet, what amount of fat should I limit myself to?

I wouldn't worry too much about fat right now.  I would hate for you to become overwhelmed and quit entirely.  Eat foods you like, make substitutions to healthier, whole grain foods when you can and then move on to low fat (sodium, sugar, etc :) later.  Right now, weigh, measure and count your calories.  If you do that, you'll naturally eat less fat than you are now. 

I agree that it would REALLY be a good idea to make a visit to a dietician.  If you talk to your physician first, he/she could make a recommendation and insurance would most likely cover the cost.  If not, call your local hospital and ask to speak with the dietician.  Make an appointment!  It will be $$ well spent and they will give you information you will use for the rest of your life. 

You CAN do this.  It takes work keeping track of what you eat, planning meals (most important) and incorporating exercise but each day is a success whether the scale budges or not.  Good luck to you!! 

The main thing to remember when it comes to fat is that your body does need some fat, and that not all fat is necessarily bad for you.  What you want to focus on is limiting your intake of the "bad," saturated fats, and trying to get most of your fats in the form of unsaturated fats, which are found in nuts, plant-based oils such as olive oil or Canola, and fish.  Most foods contain at least a small amount of saturated fat, and a small amount generally isn't harmful to the average person.  But always try to make choices that are low on the bad stuff.

Trans-fats, as you have likely heard, should be avoided at all costs.  And be careful, because even if the label says the product has no trans fats, if the ingredients list "hydrogenated" or "partially hydrogenated" oils, then it has trans fats in it. 

As often as possible, choose lean meats such as white meat turkey, chicken breast, or fish, and eat fatty meats and red meats only occasionally.

If you run into the dilemma of not being able to physically eat enough food to meet your minimum calorie requirements, incorporate calorie-dense foods into your diet (meaning, a food that is nutritious and has a lot of calories in a small serving.)  The best examples here are nuts, beans, and whole-grain breads and cereals; they all have great nutritional benefits, and one serving of each is not too big but can be anywhere from 150 calories and up.