Posts by anderds1

I came across this site in Dec 07 trying to recuperate from a knee injury and weighing in at close to 250 at 6'2.  I needed to do something because I was in the worst shape of my life.  I would try everything but wouldn't stick to it long enough to get results.  I thought this was just another gimmick.  After dropping a few on my own, I started counting calories in Feb 08.  My knee was doing better by the end of April 08, so I started incorporating some exercise which also helped in expediting the loss.  As of weighing myself this morning, I weighed in at 199.6 lbs, cracking 200 for the first time in 15 years, and feeling confident I can get to my desired 180, while only needing to lose 5 to be considered in the normal weight range (woo hoo, no longer the "husky" kid - what an awful name for clothes for overweight boys).  I also learned why those other attempts didn't work for me:  You only get out of it what you put into it!  I never devoted myself to any diet until I came across CC.  Being a numbers guy, it's been easier for me to understand and follow.

From my understand, plateaus are from monotony.  Hence some people choose to zig-zag calories for a while.  Heavy exercisers/Weight Lifters will stop, significantly increase, or revamp their exercising routine.  I would not expect much change while your zig-zagging calories.  You may see a gain one day, and a loss the next but the weight should hopefully stay pretty stagnant (depending on how much your increasing your calories on the uptick or increasing sodium intake).  I, fortunately, lost 50 lbs with my own modified zig-zagging technique.  I watched everything I ate until it got to Friday nights, when I would indulge on wings and beer which would be about a 2000 cal or more hit at one sitting (Lotta wings, lotta beer, lotta sodium).  If your unlike me and not willing to indulge 1 meal a week, I would only zig-zag your calories for 1 week, then go back to your routine.  

Are you exercising along with counting calories?  If so, also try to increase or change your exercising routine if you have the time.  if your walking, try swimming.  If your using the elliptical machine, try the bike.  By using different muscles than normal your body will notice the change and then make it's own changes to your metabolism, just another way of giving yourself a kickstart.

kathy, i see you're a fellow floridian.  I live on the east coast near cocoa beach and we have not seen that much rain but have just recently started getting the afternoon storms.  We do get a little more breeze with the ocean so close, but it's still coming in at 92 - 94.  Although now that I think of it, I could sweat in 70 degree weather by scratching an itch, especially if it was in a hard to reach place!!

Original Post by pgm012197:

what if biking is all I can do? I don't have access to a pool and I have plates & screws in my feet which make running painful. Should I save up for a treadmill? Please don't get me wrong - I appreciate your advice. I have 4 kids and my dad to look after now that mom is gone and between work and home-work, I'm lucky I have time to breathe.

That's the problem - my clothes are the same - the only thing smaller is my chest. I am now a small C. I was a middle C.

I'm just so discouraged :-(

Try switching up your biking.  One day go at the same speed for the full length of time.  Next day, go as fast as you can for 5 min, then easy for 2, then back to fast as possible for 5 and alternate until you complete your workout.  I wouldn't worry about a treadmill if you can't jog.  Just go for a walk and try to increase you distance and speed everytime out.  Along with walking try 20 minutes of sets of calisthenics - crunches, knee lifts, waist bends, etc - on alternating days with biking.  Here's one last thing to remember:  If your not sweating your not working. 

Unfortunately, our bodies decide where we lose weight first and last.  For me my gut has been last to go, while my butt was first.  As I said before, don't get discouraged.  When it starts to come off, it will make you want to work harder to get it all off.  An stick to the calorie suggestion from before for 2-3 weeks along with the exercise and I bet you will lose at least 5 pounds!!

For what it's worth here's my suggestion from someone who's been in a similar situation.  Try mixing things up as far as your cardio goes.  Mix in some swimming, light jogging (just to get both feet off the ground between strides), jump rope, etc. to work different muscle groups.  Even though your not drinking much diet coke, I would cut it to no more than once per week (that was one of my big downfalls).  Even Crystal Light has some sugar in it.  Do you load your coffee?  I try to keep any sugar intake (fruits, drinks, etc) to the am so I have all day to burn it off.  Not too mention I went from doing nothing to cardio/exercising at least 5 days a week and didn't see anything for the first month and a half, and then boom, it finally started coming off.  So don't get discouraged continue on and you will soon see results.  Is your clothing looser at the waist, you may also be losing fat but gaining muscle more easily at your early stages which does not show up on the scales much.  As mentioned above, I would also consider lowering your intake to about 1500 - 1600 cals, but for only 5 days a week and then 2 days a week at 2200 cals to keep your metabolism guessing. 

I was in the same exact situation as you are now.  I don't have time.  It's my thyroid.  I have too much stress.  I have bad genes.  It hurts too bad to exercise.  My weight is fine for my frame.  No matter how hard I try, I can't lose weight.  At 6'2 252 (my MD said I should be around 185), I got a trainer, was watching what I was eating (or so I thought) based on the trainer's recommendations, and 3 months with no results.  My pants were a little looser, but nothing really remarkable.  I joined here, started doing a little research and reading on the web, and threw out everything the trainer told me about eating.  Here's what I learned about myself:  You have to find what works for you and your body, and something that is comfortable for a weekly, not daily, routine.  I learned what eating clean was.  I learned how 1 "cheat day" a week can trick your metabolism (My cheat day consists of wings and beer with wife and friends at the local sports bar.  Boy, do I love wings and beer!!).  And I learned how to count calories.  After I ditched the trainer, and learned these things, I learned I could be more effective on my own.  I don't do the 5 or 6 meal a day thing.  For me, 4 times a day was sufficient, about every 3 hours.   I do still alternate work outs with weight training and cardio Mon - Sat, but not nearly as strenuous as the trainer had me doing.  I only eat fruit before 11am, to give myself the rest of the day to burn off the sugar.  I'm now down 40 pounds, but get this, I weighed that in June 2006.  So, 40 pound in 2 years (with a knee injury in between).  Not great by most people's standards, but great by mine.  And the last 20 came off a lot quicker than the first 20, which coincided with my learning how and what to eat to compensate with exercising.  And I still have 25 to go, which for the first time in my life I'm not concerned about how I will lose it.   I guess what I'm saying is DON'T GET FRUSTRATED.  If your serious about this read, learn, and utilize.  It didn't come on in one day, it won't come off in one day.  As you progress, each pound lost not only looks good in the mirror, but lifts your spirits, gives you more energy, gets you excited about the future, makes you want to continue, and, as it continues, gives you the opportunity to buy all new clothes!

I'm definitely not a professional trainer, nutritionist, or the like but it seems like your asking a foolish question.  Your doing high intensity exercising 7 days a week.  The average exercise needed by the normal person with a 2000 calorie diet is roughly 30 minutes a day of a sustained elevated heart rate (but does vary on each person's individual metabolism).  Your definitely highly active.  If your looking to increase mass, cut the cardio on days you lift weights, and lift weight to "failure" while looking to increase the amount you lift with each set while lowering the reps per set.  Increase your calories, especially calories from protein.  At your current levels of cardio exercise, I would bet you could eat 5000 calories a day and stay at a healthy weight based on your height and how much cardio your doing.