2019 Weight Loss Challenge Thread

[Sherman A. House DDS]

Here's a fun challenge for the day.

My wife and I are going to Five Guys for dinner tonight. The question is how to do it and not eat like a kitten.

A quick consultation of the menu shows that my normal burger order from last year logs in at a whopping 1100 calories - The bacon cheeseburger with two patties, two strips of bacon, two slices of cheese, and ketchup on a sesame seed bun. Splitting a "regular" order of fries with my wife at a 2:1 ratio adds another 635 calories for a meal total of close to 1,750 calories.

Normally, I just wouldn't go and eat something at home, but this is a unique trip.

Five Guys offers a PDF that helps break down the calories:

• Beef patty(ea): 302 cals / 604 total
• Bacon (2 pcs): 80 cals
• Cheese (each): 70 cals / 140 total
• Bun: 240 cals
• Ketchup: 30 cals
• Regular Fries (2/3 order): 635 cals

Ok, that bun is crazy. I'm used to a good slice of Sourdough coming in a 140, so the first option is to ditch the bun and have them put it in a bowl. The cheese is just Kraft processed american cheese, nothing to write home about so I'll ditch that too and save another 140 calories. Then, we switch out the fries to a "little" order at 528 calories but split evenly I come in 265 calories in fries plus any ketchup if any. I'll keep up my hydration before hand so no beverage is needed.

The modified meal, if I still go with two patties for the extra protein, comes in at 1000 calories:

• Beef patty(ea): 302 cals / 604 total
• Bacon (2 pcs): 80 cals
• Ketchup: 30 cals
• Little fries(half): 280 cals

Now, I compare that to MyFitnessPal and see that I've eaten 452 calories out of my allotted 2,000 and will likely not eat again until dinner. Based on my exercise this morning and regular tracking, I expect to end the day having burned 3,500 calories. I don't typically "eat back" my calories which means if I eat the full 1,000 calories I still have 500 calories in the "budget" and be at a 1500 to 2000 calories deficit on the day depending on those last 500 calories. I typically run at a 1000-1500 calorie deficit per day and I know I will burn extra tomorrow with 12"-20" of snow coming in.

Is it "clean eating"? Not really. Can I do it and not feel terrible? Yes. Now, how do I spend those additional 500 calories...

If I have to eat at 5 Guys, I get a lettuce wrapped burger, in lieu of a bun. I generally abstain from fries, as they give me palpitations.


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[RJ]

Damn you all. Now I’m going to have to go to Five Guys tonight.


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[Palmguy]

Late to see this thread but better late than never.

244.2 this morning, goal is 180. 5'11".

Successfully accomplished nearly this exact scenario in 2015 (247 -> 185), took approximately a year with moderate intermittent fasting and about a hundred miles a week on a bike. I maintained 185 plus or minus 5 for over a year until a job change and geographic move led to me allowing myself to break my routine and establish bad habits again. Haven't broken the cycle since but I have to; can't live like this anymore. The bike isn't an option now for a few reasons, I do have a stationary bike which I hate riding compared to the real thing, but I need to suck it up. Diet is equally problematic and needs to be addressed in a sustainable manner.

[RJ]

Damn you all. Now I’m going to have to go to Five Guys tonight.


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...aaaand it was excellent.

Opted to have a regular double hamburger, no cheese or bacon. And split a Small fries.

I think I got away with less than 900 calories. So, not great but it was pretty yummy, and we enjoyed it.


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[GMSweet]

Damn you all. Now I’m going to have to go to Five Guys tonight.

Who? Me? [emoji41]

Yes indeed, it was mighty fine. I opted for the cheese after all.

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[GMSweet]

Now both of you don't weigh in until Monday morning.

Fixed it for you.

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[RJ]

I’ve been having a few of these flax muffins from time to time this month, it seems to help:

https://www.doctoroz.com/article/jor...osting-recipes

I can’t stand Coconut oil, and I like chocolate, so my recipe is this:

In a standard porcelain coffee cup, mix:

1/4 c ground flax
1/4 t Stevia
1 t Reduced Sodium Baking Powder
2 t Hershey’s 100% cocoa

Add 1 egg and a t of toasted sesame seed oil. Mix with a fork.

Microwave for 60s. Dump onto a plate.

At this point it’s like a round muffin, hot from the oven. I slice it and top it with either Kerrygold Irish butter, or (yes) peanut butter.

Yummy.

[txdpd]

Yes, it certainly worked for me. Check out this series (fast forward to what interests you): https://idmprogram.com/fasting-a-history-part-i/


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I'd give my right arm to be ambidextrous.

I've played around with a 4 hour feeding zone, 9a-1p, and a 20 hour fasting period. The last meal of the day is a big one right before I go to work. That's kind of tough eating and then going to work. If eating at work is just off the table, so is stress eating. Getting stressed out from missing a meal or meal break is also off the table. I don’t think in and of itself it does much for me, but the side benefits are tremendous.

[Cookie Monster]

Since mid December been averaging 1/2 lb per week and I kept that trend last week despite taking the last three days off from the 15,000 steps a day goal and the sit-ups and push-ups. I think the sit-ups where affecting my hip flexer and making my limp worse. I body is feeling better today, it had been about a month with no rest day and I am thinking in the future that might not be the best tactic.

Going good fasting between meals but my full day Monday fast has not happened with the shutdown. It is much easier to be grumpy and light headed at work when I don’t have any food with me then when I am making three meals a day for the family. I made a pot of Kettle Corn yesterday and ate the whole thing basically in an hour like an asshole. It was good though and another reminder how addictive sugar is, I was like I had no choice I had to eat it.

Got a Fit Bit scale for my birthday and now I don’t have the huge pain of manually entering my weight into the app, the humanity of it all. Also gives me my body fat at 22%, whether it is right or not it is a zero number to work off of.

Back to on the path today with the step count goal and the body weight exercises. I got from a friend a 26lb Kettle Bell and I got a three movement simple workout to do, overhead press, row, and hinge. He said with my ankle flexibility (really bad) squats weren’t the place to start. Putting my toe in the water but I think Kettle Bells, I have no idea why I keep capitalizing them, could be a go to. With this weight and strength goals a big reason is to make myself more resilient carrying around wiggling 35lb three year olds and to be able to better manipulate the 25lb chainsaw they occasionally hand me on Wildland Fires.

Keep the path gentleman, just this month of effort has paid off well. I feel better in a lot of ways.

Hold the line and don’t eat like an asshole.

[Tensaw]

Just to reiterate what Tom said, multi-day fasting has been a game changer for me. Did my first fast in Jan. 2018 and did four last year. Currently four days in to a ~five day fast. (Weekends are rougher cause I have the time and ability to just pick something up and shove it in my mouth - like an a-hole...) The biggest thing for me is it changed how I view my need to eat. Traveling and all that is available is crap? I’m fasting... I know now I can skip a meal and not actually die. My little hunger thing is mostly mental and if I can hang on for a minute, it will go away. Also, it enables me to push a little when I have been slacking.
If you try a multi-day fast, it helps to eat low carb/no sugar for several days beforehand. The first two days are the toughest, but generally speaking, I am not *hungry* during a fast. It is a bit of a mental game because a lot of our eating habits are based on habit and social conditioning. Heavy physical exertion can be a little tricky. I split a few large wheelbarrows full of firewood yesterday no problem. Wheeling those up to the house got a little - challenging.
Anyway, multi-day fasting is something worth trying. If doing it for pure weight loss purposes, know that you will gain back about half of your “loss” per the scale fairly quickly. But it can jump-start you, or help break through stalls.