High Fives all around!

Yeah, my goal is not to be some sort of Adonis. My goal is just to not be morbidly obese. I'm on the way there. I think having kids was the big thing that pushed me over the edge. I found it profoundly depressing to be huffing and puffing, chasing after a 10-year-old in a few years. I want to be around when they have kids, and beyond that.

Most of my work has been simply eating like a normal person. Eating out a lot less, using far less fat in cooking, eating more fruits and vegetables for snacks, finding good sources of proteins and fats as necessary. And not completely denying myself stuff I enjoy (like pizza, barbecue, pie, etc.). Just have it with far less frequency and in far smaller quantities. I'm usually able to get out to exercise 2-3 times a week too.

I've done other "diets" before, like the South Beach diet. I lost a lot of weight that way, but I gained almost all of it back, because I couldn't eat like that in the real world. It's not a realistic way to live. The difference this time is that this is a lifestyle change really more than a temporary goal. This is just how I live now, not a quick fix.

Thanks for the encouragement, you guys.

My hat is off to you Nate! Whatever it is that you're doing-don't stop!

Weight is the biggest hurdle yours truly has yet to, permanently, jump.

I"ve quit smoking, since 1998, and never once had the urge to start up again, but food- especially carbs- oh man...

Congrats on the weight loss!

I do P90X earlier in the year and lost 40, going from 270 to 230. I was able to pull plenty of clothes from storage. I found that beer and huge servings of meat were the biggest contributor. Now I am adhering to weighing serving portions and such. I need to start a new round of P90X to knock off a few more pounds.

MattLoter wrote:
This doesn't make much sense?

It does if you understand how the metabolism works. It helps that my wife's a phys trainer, my brother is a health nut and former international model, and one of my good buds is a famous body builder. I learned a lot from the latter two and my wife knows quite a bit as well.

To be clear, I'm talking about a weight LOSS plateau as opposed to a muscle building plateau, which is different. Anyhow, I'll explain:

If you are on a strict dietary regimen based on calorie counting and exercise your body becomes accustomed to it. "The new normal", so to speak. That's what the plateau is: your body becoming accustomed to your normal routine. Even increasing exercise levels to "break the plateau" is not going to be effective because your body is managing its metabolism. It's called "GAS" or General Adaptation Syndrome.

Many people plateau and then stupidly lower their caloric intake and keep to their exercise and it invariably ends up with failure. Your body thinks its starving, so it reserves your energy stores. You don't lose fat nearly at the same rate, if at all. Others overtrain, which leads to injury, or worse, you don't lose the weight which leads to frustration.

To get around your body's natural aptitude for not losing weight easily, you simply fuck with that mechanism. Adjust your caloric intakes wildly (+/- 600 calories) and adjust your energy use (not as much, but adjust) and your body then goes back to not strictly managing your metabolic rate..call it "going with the flow"

As for science:
www.bodybuilding.com/fun/achieve-your-de...ficient-training.htm (Article about GAS)

Another example:
www.livestrong.com/article/53276-start-r...program-lose-weight/
(See Step 4, specifically)

Another example:
www.muscleandstrength.com/articles/avoid...s-and-see-gains.html
(more info on GAS and plateaus, more geeky sciency)

And weight watchers tips:
www.healthdiscovery.net/articles/15Plateau_tips.htm
(#12 in particular)

So, while you may look at it like "WTF?" it's simply because you probably are a lucky bastard who didn't ever have to deal with it or nobody ever told you about it.

I'm doing Lose It! as well. Just started this morning as a matter of fact so the timing is good. I've got to take some before/after pics so when I hit my goal I can compare. stormseeker75 at g mail dot com on Lose It!

I'm about to lose it right now...

Anyways...CONGRATULATIONS on progress...my idea of a weight loss program is walking a mile to a fast food joint.

Congratulations!

The best diet is the one that's sustainable. When people ask can they stop their diet and training when reaching the ideal weight, I always respond with "Do you stop working when you earn your monthly salary?"

I never have bodyweight problems but have helped many friends with random, practical tips:
1. Eat regularly, don't let yourself get hungry. When you're hungry, you tend to eat more.
2. Try not to have late night snack. Have big meal at least 3 hours before you get to sleep. When your stomach growls, eat fruit. I eat apple. I don't cut it to pieces, just eat it straight so I eat slowly and get filled properly.
3. Try to eat less carbs. I love my carbs. When you eat a whole lot of protein & fat, you'll feel sick. There's no such alarm with carbs. You can eat it again and again. So try to control it. The easiest way is to look at your plate. See which is larger: the (preferably lean) meat or the hump of mashed potato?
4. Have a big breakfast. If you want to eat big, do it at the morning, giving your body all day to use the calories. Less at lunch, and lesser at dinner. Eat snacks between meals. Don't let yourself get hungry (but don't overdo the snacks either!).
5. Exercise. My favorite exercise to recommend is the deep, back squat. 5 reps for 5 set. Half an hour at most. 2 or 3 times a week. Strengthen your core muscles, the muscles you actually need for everyday activities. Always increase the intensity. Work from zero. You'll be surprised on what you can do. I did!
6. Drink enough water. Most of us just don't drink enough water, and when you're thirsty, you often mistakenly think that you're hungry. I carry my bottle of water all day. Even when I sleep I put it beside my bed.

Finally, six pack is overrated!

Edit: Be careful with gym instructors. Usually the older big, strong looking guy is better than the younger guy with ripped abs. Body building instructor will try to make you look good, the weight lifting instructor will make you stronger and feel better all around. Finally, if an instructor orders a fat guy to do sit-ups, you should never put weight in any of his words.

Sevej wrote:
Finally, six pack is overrated!

Be careful what you say around Andy...

Andy's a poofter or maybe even a Morris dancer

awesome Nate, that takes a lot of willpower and commitment, good luck for the next 20. I could do with dropping a good 80 as well