So, I'm a hunman blimp. Can anyone help me?

Jaymac1 · 03-12-2011 07:00PM #1

Hi all,

I am a regular poster of Boards but i set up this account to remain anoymous.

I am 26 years of age and a male. I am 5ft 10 and 22 stone. I do have a big frame and a huge amount of muscle but its covered by a load of flab. I am not the typican doughball, where i just like a blob. As i said i have a big frame so instead of looking like a blob i look well but. But still fat.

My uncle just passed away at 54 and was very like me. Bad diet etc. At my age i want to live to see my grandkids and enjoy life. After seen him go so young it scared me and my mother also worries that i am going to follow in his foot steps.

So after 26 years of abusing my body and helping mc donalds become so rich i have decided i need to do something serious about it.

I have also decided i dont need to go on a diet but more i need to make a lifestyle change. i feel a diet is for someone who just wants to loose a few pounds for holidays, i need to do this from now on.

I have ate well or excercised in the past 8 years. I did lift a lot of weights and play lots of sports when i was younger but even when i was young i was always much bigger than the other kids.

This is what i have been doing for the past 10 days.

3-7 miles walk a day and a swim if i get the time.

Breakfast
bowl of corn flakes or porridge with water.

Lunch
Brown bread sandwich with either ham or tuna and water

Dinner
either a piece of steak grilled with onions or the same with a chicken breast.

Snacks
melon and cashew nuts.

If the above sounds good that great but i need some variety i cant eat this day in day out.

I need to find out am i better off walking or should i be swimming or doing both? i want to try stay away from weights until i drop a few stone because muscle is the last thing i need. Should i be taking protien shakes etc or are this just a con?

I dont have the money to see a dietican and boards has always been there to help me with other things, so i am appealing to anyone that could give me some advice on what i can eat or do.

Its weird it feels good to admit what i have just wrote and get it off my chest because i have always avoided my weight and if anyone ever mentioned it i would get quite narky.

I apologise for the length of this thread but if you have gotten this far thank you for taking the time to read it.

I need to do something or i know i am going to die young and i dont wan this.

Thanks for your time.

gsxr1 · 03-12-2011 07:38PM

I made this last night.

It was really really really nice. And very healthy. Filled us right up

http://youtu.be/W_5hq8IaiqI

The Sparrow · 03-12-2011 07:48PM

I shall tell you what I did and what worked for me but I am not trying to base it on any sort of scientific knowledge but it definitely worked for me.

I basically just started counting the calories of everything that I eat. I bought a notepad and wrote down everything I ate and worked out the calories. I also worked out amount of calories that I could eat per day and lose weight via a sticky at the top of this forum. I did not do any additional exercise and I took one day off a week to eat whatever I liked within reason such as a fry up for breakfast with maybe a roast dinner or curry for dinner.

But you have to count everything you eat and make sure you don't go over your daily allowance. It is a bit daunting at first but you quickly figure out how to figure out the calories from packets and you can use websites like fitday to figure out the calories of stuff like vegetables etc. But it allows you to eat stuff like white bread (which I do every day) once you count the calories.

So far I have been doing this since September 2010 and in the fifteen months since then I have lost just over 4 stone. Hope that helps.

Burkatron · 03-12-2011 08:29PM

I am 26 years of age and a male. I am 5ft 10 and 22 stone. I do have a big frame and a huge amount of muscle but its covered by a load of flab. I am not the typican doughball, where i just like a blob. As i said i have a big frame so instead of looking like a blob i look well but. But still fat.

My uncle just passed away at 54 and was very like me. Bad diet etc. At my age i want to live to see my grandkids and enjoy life. After seen him go so young it scared me and my mother also worries that i am going to follow in his foot steps.

So after 26 years of abusing my body and helping mc donalds become so rich i have decided i need to do something serious about it.

Sorry to hear about your uncle OP, it's very sad. It really puts things in perspective.

I have also decided i dont need to go on a diet but more i need to make a lifestyle change. i feel a diet is for someone who just wants to loose a few pounds for holidays, i need to do this from now on.

You've got the right frame of mind hear so thats part of the battle. You need to find a sustainable lifestyle (your current diet below is far from this)

I have ate well or excercised in the past 8 years. I did lift a lot of weights and play lots of sports when i was younger but even when i was young i was always much bigger than the other kids.

I'm guessing you meant you haven't??

This is what i have been doing for the past 10 days.

3-7 miles walk a day and a swim if i get the time

.

Good, you're moving more. Although swimming isn't the best for fatloss. The main reason is **** technique not allowing you to put the right intensity in. (there's also the conduction/convection theory & swimmers have more essential bodyfat then other athletes reasons)

Breakfast
bowl of corn flakes or porridge with water.

You need more food hear. Cornflakes are a poor choice, get rid of them. Milk up that porridge for some protein & good fat! More protein & fat in general here will set you up for the day. Meat, eggs, fish whatever the source you.

You should add in another snack between breakfast & lunch to keep yourself ticking over.

Lunch
Brown bread sandwich with either ham or tuna and water

Eat more here, double up the meat/fish. Add some salad or a handful of veg!

Dinner
either a piece of steak grilled with onions or the same with a chicken breast.

Same as lunch, more

Snacks
melon and cashew nuts.

How many snacks a day?? Switch it up for other fruit,veg & nuts!

If the above sounds good that great but i need some variety i cant eat this day in day out.

There's plenty of variety out there. Whole grain Rice, whole wheat pasta, (if you must) Quinoa, varietie's of Veg,fruit,meat ,fish,eggs, Dairy etc.

A quick diet template would be something eat every 2-3 hours:

Breakfast
Snack
Lunch
Snack
Dinner
Snack

Log your diet on a tracker site like fitday.com

You're 5'10 & 22 stone so your maintenance calories is roughly 4312 calories.
If you want to lose weight you need to eat less which in fairness you are.
The problem is it's too drastic a drop.
from my guesstimations you're optamistically taking in 1000 cals a day incluing 2 snacks. This goes against your sustainable lifestyle!

For 1 lb of weightloss a week you want -500 calories. 2lb = 1000 calories
IMO an 1000 calorie defecit would be as high as you'd want to go & as you lose more weight you can recalculate your calorie intake.

I need to find out am i better off walking or should i be swimming or doing both?

Cycling or Xtrainer would be a better choice for you then swimming (depending on your level) or running. You'll be able to put in more intensity for longer with less technique worries. Also as mentioned before weights, compound movements are your friend

i want to try stay away from weights until i drop a few stone because muscle is the last thing i need.

Why don't you need more muscle?
That's a load of bollox, muscle has a higher Basal metabolic rate, the more you have the more calories you will burn at rest/play. (just re reading, this isn't suppose to be harsh)

Use your clothes & mirror as a guideline for your weightloss. Maybe get a tape measure. Don't worry about using scales. Get yourself a good cardio & weights programme. I'd look at dropping bread, pasta,rice, potatoes & eating more meat, veg, fruit & nuts but that's me!

Hope this helps OP & good luck.

Jaymac1 · 04-12-2011 04:20PM

The Sparrow wrote: »

I shall tell you what I did and what worked for me but I am not trying to base it on any sort of scientific knowledge but it definitely worked for me.

I basically just started counting the calories of everything that I eat. I bought a notepad and wrote down everything I ate and worked out the calories. I also worked out amount of calories that I could eat per day and lose weight via a sticky at the top of this forum. I did not do any additional exercise and I took one day off a week to eat whatever I liked within reason such as a fry up for breakfast with maybe a roast dinner or curry for dinner.

But you have to count everything you eat and make sure you don't go over your daily allowance. It is a bit daunting at first but you quickly figure out how to figure out the calories from packets and you can use websites like fitday to figure out the calories of stuff like vegetables etc. But it allows you to eat stuff like white bread (which I do every day) once you count the calories.

So far I have been doing this since September 2010 and in the fifteen months since then I have lost just over 4 stone. Hope that helps.

Hi Sparrowm thanks for the great advice and well done on dropping 4 stone you must feel great about yourself.

Burkatron wrote: »

Sorry to hear about your uncle OP, it's very sad. It really puts things in perspective.

You've got the right frame of mind hear so thats part of the battle. You need to find a sustainable lifestyle (your current diet below is far from this)

I'm guessing you meant you haven't?? Correct, i meant to say that

.

Good, you're moving more. Although swimming isn't the best for fatloss. The main reason is **** technique not allowing you to put the right intensity in. (there's also the conduction/convection theory & swimmers have more essential bodyfat then other athletes reasons) The reason i asked about swimming is i forgot to mention in my firdt post that my knee's are in bad shape from an accident so i thought ny not having weight on them all the time it might be better. But i am going to join my local gym and get on the Xtrainer cause i know ill be good for that.

You need more food hear. Cornflakes are a poor choice, get rid of them. Milk up that porridge for some protein & good fat! More protein & fat in general here will set you up for the day. Meat, eggs, fish whatever the source you.

I tried a new breakfast today it was this yougart http://www.google.ie/imgres?imgurl=http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RMUBDnro8JA/Tm3I8uxd6wI/AAAAAAAABGE/kT4bEAuC7AI/s1600/Onken%2Bvanilla.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.dietsandcalories.com/2011/09/onken-fat-free-vanilla-yogurt.html&usg=__d3t8X0jOZhXvH32XfmMQGmf0sLo=&h=440&w=328&sz=24&hl=en&start=9&zoom=1&tbnid=vn36jdgsOTik5M:&tbnh=127&tbnw=95&ei=-5rbTsuDNNOYhQfr6JXVBg&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dmuller%2Blight%2Bfat%2Bfree%2Bvanilla%2Byogurt%26hl%3Den%26gbv%3D2%26tbm%3Disch&itbs=1 i put some museli and chopped banana in a bowl and poured this yougart over it. A mate told me this yougart is very good and i can eat as much as i want, now i dont mean im going to eat 20 tubs of it. But is it good for snacking or should i stay away from it? Muller also do a version and it tastes great but anything that tastes good tends to be bad?

You should add in another snack between breakfast & lunch to keep yourself ticking over.

How about some chopped melon?

Eat more here, double up the meat/fish. Add some salad or a handful of veg!
Deal

Same as lunch, more

How many snacks a day?? Switch it up for other fruit,veg & nuts!
Snacks really only happen after dinner at 6pm so at about 9 and 11.30 pm i get a bit peckish, again would yougart do? and if yes, how much is a tub too much?

There's plenty of variety out there. Whole grain Rice, whole wheat pasta, (if you must) Quinoa, varietie's of Veg,fruit,meat ,fish,eggs, Dairy etc.

Pasta, great i always thought this was bad for losing weight

A quick diet template would be something eat every 2-3 hours:

Breakfast
Snack
Lunch
Snack
Dinner
Snack

Log your diet on a tracker site like fitday.com

cool ill check this site out now

You're 5'10 & 22 stone so your maintenance calories is roughly 4312 calories.
If you want to lose weight you need to eat less which in fairness you are.
The problem is it's too drastic a drop.
from my guesstimations you're optamistically taking in 1000 cals a day incluing 2 snacks. This goes against your sustainable lifestyle!

For 1 lb of weightloss a week you want -500 calories. 2lb = 1000 calories
IMO an 1000 calorie defecit would be as high as you'd want to go & as you lose more weight you can recalculate your calorie intake.

Cycling or Xtrainer would be a better choice for you then swimming (depending on your level) or running. You'll be able to put in more intensity for longer with less technique worries. Also as mentioned before weights, compound movements are your friend

Why don't you need more muscle?
That's a load of bollox, muscle has a higher Basal metabolic rate, the more you have the more calories you will burn at rest/play. (just re reading, this isn't suppose to be harsh) For a fat guy, i do have serious amount of muscle, a year ago when i was with my doctor he asked me to tense my legs to see what muscle i had and he said in his 30 years he had never seen so much muscle on a leg and he said i had a muscle on the front of my calf that he didnt know it was possible to get so big so he said calm down on any type of weights so i took his advice, but if its good to lift weights im more than happy to go at that too

Use your clothes & mirror as a guideline for your weightloss. Maybe get a tape measure. Don't worry about using scales. Get yourself a good cardio & weights programme. I'd look at dropping bread, pasta,rice, potatoes & eating more meat, veg, fruit & nuts but that's me!

Hope this helps OP & good luck.

Sorry i relied under eahc of your question and set the font for blue to make it clearer but it never happened

boogeyman · 04-12-2011 08:42PM

Sorry to hear your situation OP but glad to see you have your mind set to tackle this and make some positive changes for yourself. There's no reason whatsoever you can't get to where you wanna be and be fit and healthy going forward.

First thing I'd advice is to speed up your metabolism i.e the rate at which your body burns through nutrients. If some has a slow metabolism then there body doesn't use nutrients as good as it can and results in unused carbs/sugars being stored as fat. This is very easily reversed by eating more smaller meals per day. It really is true that you can lose weight by eating more food:D

You seem to being lashing into the exercise but one thing I would say is don't over do it. Sometimes if you do too much too soon you can get a bit tired of it and lose focus. Also change it up a bit to add some variety to your exercise routine. Ideally you could do some moderate weight lifting to complement all the cardio your doing - but nothing mental. Short, intense resistant training really fires up the body and puts it in a fat burning zone for days after.

So if you know about your metabolism and have a handle on you exercise routine the third piece of the jigsaw would be the diet. I hated the thought of not being able to eat what I wanted to but I did a fair bit of research and bought a couple healthy diet books and to this conclusion.

You don't need to deprive yourself of anything! - just make healthier choices and limit some of the bad stuff:rolleyes: You need to control your carb intake and try and avoid eating carbs from evening time on cos these unused energy sources would just be deposited as fat.

I know that's a long post and it just very briefly touches on some of things you must get a handle on. But at least it puts some idea's out there for ya!! I've recently started a fitness blog - feel free to pop over and have a look if you want. There are a few healthy eating recipes up and workout tips (and there will be more added all the time) Here's the link http://www.bodybuilding-fitness-nutrition.com

Anyway your on the right track man, and don't be afraid to ask any questions you might have. We're here to help:)

alexsmith · 05-12-2011 03:54PM

^^^ you dont speed up the metabolism by eating more smaller meals in a day.its complete bull****.its all about the thermic effect of food.protein has the highest thermic effect,then carbohydrates,then protein.its calories in vs calories out.but an exception for people who are overweight (they have insulin resistance),thats why if you limit carb intake your insulin sensitivity will get better = dropping more weight.

boogeyman · 05-12-2011 05:30PM

Wouldn't agree at all with you Alexsmith with regard to eating more smaller meals. Don't know how you came to that conclusion.

Jaymac1 · 05-12-2011 07:54PM

Hi Guys,

Many thanks for your advice and support it means a lot.

Ok so ill start eating more smaller meals during the day.

Another question should i be taking any protein shakes or anything like that?

alexsmith · 05-12-2011 11:29PM

boogeyman wrote: »

Wouldn't agree at all with you Alexsmith with regard to eating more smaller meals. Don't know how you came to that conclusion.

eating smaller meals instead of "the old 3 big meals,breakfast,lunch & dinner" has no effect on metabolism

eg.if i eat 6 small meals in a day and they all total to 2500kcal

or

if i eat 3 big meals in a day and it totals to 2500kcal

there is no difference in total calories burned,its bull**** when people say smaller meals speed up your BMR,its about THERMICS.look it up

honestly OP,cut out the majority of starchy carbs and youl be fine,eat way more protein and fat and you will drop weight fast

Bottle_of_Smoke · 06-12-2011 02:09AM

how did the first 10 days on that diet go.

Don't cut the weights - that + your walking is pretty perfect exercise for what you're looking for.

High fat low carb or paleo has worked best for me whenever trying to get in shape

rock27 · 06-12-2011 08:06AM

Cut out as much starchy carbs as you can, especially if you are not weight training. Get most of you'r carb requirements from fruit and veg(veg mostly). Increase amount of protein, and amount of healthy fats. IMO you should start with diet and make sure you get that sorted before moving onto supplements. When you're happy with diet add in protein powder, etc.

As said above write down exactly what you eat and you might be surprised at no. calories you are actually taking in. Calculate what you need roughly in terms of kcal for you're BW(just google maintenance calories and you'll find a calculator) and reduce this by 500 kcal per day.
I'd say once you have stuck to you're diet for a month, you could begin looking at weight training and supplements, etc.
Hope this helps and best of luck.

Jaymac1 · 06-12-2011 02:47PM

Bottle_of_Smoke wrote: »

how did the first 10 days on that diet go.

Don't cut the weights - that + your walking is pretty perfect exercise for what you're looking for.

High fat low carb or paleo has worked best for me whenever trying to get in shape

Started at 22.2 Stone and stood on the scales this morning and was 21.12 stone, So its going ok and it an already seen the belt buckles coming down which is nice. When you say high fat what does that mean? Dont know what food to eat that is high fat apart from the really bad stuff lol

rock27 wrote: »

Cut out as much starchy carbs as you can, especially if you are not weight training. Get most of you'r carb requirements from fruit and veg(veg mostly). Increase amount of protein, and amount of healthy fats. IMO you should start with diet and make sure you get that sorted before moving onto supplements. When you're happy with diet add in protein powder, etc.

As said above write down exactly what you eat and you might be surprised at no. calories you are actually taking in. Calculate what you need roughly in terms of kcal for you're BW(just google maintenance calories and you'll find a calculator) and reduce this by 500 kcal per day.
I'd say once you have stuck to you're diet for a month, you could begin looking at weight training and supplements, etc.
Hope this helps and best of luck.

Thanks for the advice it was driving me mad about shakes etc so ill stick at my diet and when i get down a few stone i will look at them then.

Serafijn · 06-12-2011 04:14PM

When you're just starting out you're best to keep it simple, and the key thing to focus on is calories. After a couple of weeks when you're getting your calorie levels right you can start focusing on the overall nutrition balance and start tweaking your diet.

I use www.myfitnesspal.com which is great, as it has a huge database of foods and tracks your calories as well as other nutrients like carbs, fat etc. It automatically works out your calorie needs from your weight/height and you can set your daily allowance according to how much you want to lose per week. You can then keep an eye on all the columns (protein, fat, carbs - you can add others in as well so I also track sugar and sat fat). Over time you'll start trying to avoid those red numbers and will automatically start balancing out your diet

Whether you use the site or not, be diligent and track every single thing you put in your mouth. For me it's the only thing that works, as I find it too easy to cheat otherwise!

Finally, just want to say that's absolutely fantastic progress! Congratulations and keep up the good work

boogeyman · 06-12-2011 09:48PM

You well on your way already OP - fair play! Keep up the good work:)

So, I'm a hunman blimp. Can anyone help me?

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