At 22 I was a lean and strong 275lbs. I competed AAU powerlifting, etc. Last Wed, after hitting what I hope is rock bottom, I bought a scale and weighed in at 413lbs.
I am 6’4" barefoot.
Several months ago we had our first child and it really hit home that I need to turn this ship around as my little boy needs me healthy. I hate that it took this to re-motivate me but I guess in the anonymity of the internet I can be honest.
So last Wednesday I joined the local gym, spent two days reading or rereading nutrition books and have re-stoked my obsession with lifting and diet. I have OCD tendancies and balance is something that I struggle with. When I train I tend to dive in head first. In the future I will work more on balance - for now I am going to use this energy to kick-start my training.
I would post a before pic but quite frankly I am too embarrassed. Maybe I will post one with my shirt on.
Anyways, here is how I would like to use this forum.
I will try to post what I eat and how I train everyday. Weigh-ins occur on Wed and Fri mornings.
My goals
-Eat healthy (I will define this later or along the way) throughout the week with two cheat meals/session. I LOVE beer but can reduce it to once/twice a week.
-Train at least 5X a week.
-Hit 275 by next January 13th, which is my son’s birthday.
biggest concern would be you going too low on calories. that is like Gwenyth Paltrow level. You will lose a lot fast but you can’t stick to that level. One of my training partners is doing very well dropping from 370ish to a goal of 300 aND he is haf way there just by doing the Palumbo diet, or a vriation there of
[quote]PeteS wrote:
biggest concern would be you going too low on calories. that is like Gwenyth Paltrow level. You will lose a lot fast but you can’t stick to that level. One of my training partners is doing very well dropping from 370ish to a goal of 300 aND he is haf way there just by doing the Palumbo diet, or a vriation there of[/quote]
I would also state that a 5 day a week workout regiment is really over shooting, if you have not lifted in over 10 years. Be patient aim for 3 days a week for a month then build up from there.
[quote]PeteS wrote:
biggest concern would be you going too low on calories. that is like Gwenyth Paltrow level. You will lose a lot fast but you can’t stick to that level. One of my training partners is doing very well dropping from 370ish to a goal of 300 aND he is haf way there just by doing the Palumbo diet, or a vriation there of[/quote]
I would also state that a 5 day a week workout regiment is really over shooting, if you have not lifted in over 10 years. Be patient aim for 3 days a week for a month then build up from there. [/quote]
This.
Maybe 3 lifting days; 2 cardio days of varied intensity; one active recovery day(walking, playign with the dog, football with friends etc. etc), and at least one absolute rest day.
How many guys Joe have we seen come here with great intentions and bust balls for a month or less. Then fade away.
OP you sound like a smart guy, this is NOT a sprint, its a marathon, you want to be doing this at 44, 54 and hell even 64. You go balls to the wall, hardly any kcal, you will get injured and you will be set back.
Just advice from an old guy, be smart, take your time and do it right.
Pete - you are right. The cals are low. I plan to increase them gradually. Plus, my cheat meals tend to be large. My bday was Sat and I ended up eating 5K cals.
Derek and Joe - I like to lift something everyday so I break my weight training sessions into small pieces. For example, today I plan on doing triceps and forearms. This will only take me about 30mins in/out, not including the treadmill. My daily work schedule is very busy and my gym is 2mins away. I like taking a break and getting out of the office midday and then going back on the way home from work for the treadmill.
Do you guys have any concerns about this approach?
Derek - I understand your comment and not seeing this through is a concern of mine. Time will tell if I can stick to it. I am going to tackle each meal and each day at a time.
I still think lifting that many days is a bad idea. But theres no reason not to go to the gym for the break. You could easily do this.
M-Lift
T-Cardio
W-Lift
Th-Cardio
F-Lift
Sat- Active Recovery
Sun- rest
I just think lifting every day will pound on joints and connective tissue that is used to being inactive and almost certainly has lost lots of its strength and flexibility.
[quote]JoeGood wrote:
I still think lifting that many days is a bad idea. But theres no reason not to go to the gym for the break. You could easily do this.
M-Lift
T-Cardio
W-Lift
Th-Cardio
F-Lift
Sat- Active Recovery
Sun- rest
I just think lifting every day will pound on joints and connective tissue that is used to being inactive and almost certainly has lost lots of its strength and flexibility. [/quote]
[quote]JoeGood wrote:
I still think lifting that many days is a bad idea. But theres no reason not to go to the gym for the break. You could easily do this.
M-Lift
T-Cardio
W-Lift
Th-Cardio
F-Lift
Sat- Active Recovery
Sun- rest
I just think lifting every day will pound on joints and connective tissue that is used to being inactive and almost certainly has lost lots of its strength and flexibility. [/quote]
I was skinny and athletic as a kid; after I got out of the Marines I got fat, I mean fat. 300lbs at 5’10" and little of it muscle.
Got sick of it and decided to do something, that something was lifting 4-5 days a week and doing cardio after it while dropping my calories to damn near nothing. So I lost weight and I did it fast. A year later I weighed 155lbs but my friends thought I had cancer I looked so bad and my wife was to teh point of tears with worry.
So then I went about fixing what I had broken while fixing being fat. Thats taken years; and I could have avoided it by not being so extreme and focusing on all available outcomes not just dropping weight.
[quote]JoeGood wrote:
So here’s some anecdotal evidence.
I was skinny and athletic as a kid after I got out of the Marines I got fat, I mean fat. 300lbs at 5’10" and little of it muscle.
Got sick of it and decided to do something, that something was lifting 4-5 days a week and doing cardio after it while dropping my calories to damn near nothing. So I lost weight and I did it fast. A year later I weighed 155lbs but my friends thought I had cancer I looked so bad and my wife was to teh point of tears with worry.
So then I went about fixing what I had broken while fixing being fat. Thats taken years; and I could have avoided it by not being so extreme and focusing on all available outcomes not just dropping weight.[/quote]
Lift 3 days a week fully body. Pick 3-5 basic exercises 1 day heavy. 1 day light 70% of heavy . 1 day medium 85% of heavy. You will be surprised at how fast you get strong again…
For example using leg press:
Monday Leg press 3 sets of 8 with 200 pds. Take a couple of warm up sets to get to the working weight.
Wedensday 3x8 with 150 pds.
Friday 3x8 with 170 pds.
Next monday try moving up. Make sense?
Do some form of cardio everyday light easy cardio like walking, eliptical, easy swimming for 45 minutes.
As PeteS said watch your Cals a little low.
I program stuff like this all the time and it works wonders with my clients. Please be patient and enjoy the journey.
OP, everyone who has posted in here knows what’s what, so I won’t add anything, other than, good luck, I am pulling for you, and , in the words of Yoda, “there is no try, only do.”
I crushed my tris and forearms today. My routine is posted above but I wanted to thank the TNation for a new exercise. I cannot remember the name but reading one of Fischer’s posts turned me on to it. It’s a DB press where you roll the DBs down to your chest on a center line, focusing on the tris. It KILLED me. I love it.
I am also close to closing my Heavy Gripper 300, which I am excited about. I can get a one rep squeeze to about 3/4" to closing.
Riding my scooter home, although enjoyable in the 58F air was nice, was quite challenging given the state of my arms.
I have a weigh in tomorrow morning and will report back then.
One more question - please comment on the benefit/detraction to doing any inclined tricep work (e.g. close grip bench).
Quick question - my hunger is ravenous at night time and I have a hard time sleeping when I am hungry. I have consumed 4K cals today but I know that I am still in a deficit and right now my stomach is literally turning over and gurgling from hunger.
Are there any tricks to help with sleeping while having hunger? If the answer is to ‘eat something’, please go into detail about what helps with satiation but is not overly caloric.
