2019 Weight Loss Challenge Thread

[Sherman A. House DDS]

Just had my first day back in the gym after a bout with pneumonia. It was rough. Time to repopulate my gut bacteria and get myself right again.


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[txdpd]

Just had my first day back in the gym after a bout with pneumonia. It was rough. Time to repopulate my gut bacteria and get myself right again.


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At the beginning of the year I made some Kimchi on a whim, and got hooked on making and eating lacto fermented vegetables. Probably a third of what the vegetables I'm consuming are Kimchi and fermented radishes, daikon, carrots, peppers and broccoli. I've done some serious diet changes lately, but in the last two weeks my gut is doing great and I think it's largely due to the fermented foods.

[gtae07]

From August of last year till now I've dropped 40lb. 216 to 175 and I'm 6' even. I haven't weighed this little since I graduated high school. I credit Fitbit for a lot of this.

Picked up a Versa at first because I wanted a semi-smartwatch and it seemed the best value. Used it for a while, started exercising more as my wife recovered from her medical drama, but never really believed the calorie burn figures it gave me.

Then I checked out the food logging portion.

Changed what I was eating, and pretty soon I was seeing results. Even managed to lose 5lb from Thanksgiving to New Year's. I've now leveled off and been maintaining my weight since mid January. Working out a lot on my days off (two-a-days usually, mix of crossfit-style, HIIT, running, biking, and general gym cardio/weights) and trying to get ready for a run-and-gun in August.

I would not recommend that someone try to lose it as fast as I did, which I didn't even really intend to do--I didn't trust the numbers at first ("there's no way I can be burning that much!"), and by the time I realized they were pretty close I was plummeting. But it also made me an asshole for a few months because I get hangry easy. Wife finally told me to stop last month, so no I'm working to build strength/muscle without gaining significant weight. Definitely noticed major improvements in strength, endurance, and running speed.

Attachments are failing me right now, otherwise I'd post the graph...
(Edit: working now; ignore the target weight. Had to put something there so Fitbit would let me select a calorie deficit to correct for overestimation)

Also fasting. I know it's hard, but I (with a completely unqualified opinion) think that being able to fast (as in fairly easily go a day or two without eating at all) is not only handy but the sign of a healthy metabolism. But, then again, I'm the guy that thinks that doing what most people consider to be "exercise" -- higher intensity stuff that causes you to sweat like a pig and be tired -- is probably counterproductive when trying to drop weight as it, at least for me, increases hunger more than it increases calorie output and makes it easier to justify eating more. I think most of us that became overweight did so because we ate too much, not because we exercised too little -- and you can't fix your diet in the gym. I, personally, would never try to "lose weight" and "gain muscle" at the same time. But, like I said, I'm not qualified to say any of this and at this point I'm just rambling.

Anyway, everybody is different. Just because something worked for me doesn't mean it will work for anyone else. Find what works for you and stick to it

Yep. I've found for me that it works the opposite (though, I think I have age on my side here). I want to eat about the same amount, regardless of how much I do, unless I'm really at one extreme--like, sick and in bed all day, or busting ass all day long. It was easier for me to do more exercise than to eat less. And now that I've been doing it a bit, I now know I'm a much happier person when I'm moving and exercising more.


Regarding the food itself, I didn't really try to do "clean eating" too much. I just found that high protein and reduced carbs (not low, just lower than before) works better for me, and a big lunch/small dinner works better than trying to graze throughout the day. I reserve a little bit at the end of the day so I can have a small dessert and/or a glass of wine or a beer should I feel like it. Very few "cheat days" at all, and most of those are when we stayed with my parents. I just have no willpower when it comes to Mom's cooking.


Some specific foods that worked for me: Chicken wraps at lunch instead of rice and beans; "egg muffins" for breakfast (turkey sausage, bell peppers, a bit of cheese, and beaten eggs; bake in a muffin tray at 400 for about 18 min). I make batches ahead of time and take things to work.

[Guerrero]

Went up during the month, but ended without any net gain or loss, so, seeing that I'm still the lowest I've been in 25 years, I'll take that as a win.

[GyroF-16]

Great work, gtae07!

I’m posting my second monthly update.

Started on 1 Jan at 198.2.

At my last update, on 31 Jan, I was 186.8

My target was 176 by Memorial Day. That weight would drive my BMI to below 24 (I’m 6 ft).

This morning I’m down to 177.2

I really surprised myself with how quickly the weight came off. 21 pounds in 2 months seems dramatic, but it hasn’t really been that dramatic in daily life.

I use the MyFitnessPal app on my iPhone. For a desired loss of 1 lb per week, it recommended about 1,700 cal a day (before exercise), which is essentially my BMR.
I managed the calories by swapping to Bulletproof Coffee (or just coffee w/ a little cream and sugar) for breakfast most days. Then a light, high-protein lunch (eggs and ham or eggs and smoked salmon), and a fairly normal dinner.
I’ve supplemented my calorie burn with 45-60 min of exercise 5 days a week. I trust my Apple Watch on calories burned (during workouts ONLY, not daily movement), and enter that into the app, which gives me a little more room for a nicer dinner or a beer at the end of the day.

Given my experience, I’d highly recommend a significant caloric reduction (to BMR) combined with regular, vigorous exercise (I target 600 cal a day burned) to begin and continue weight loss. I found it to be very effective.

And logging calorie intake is much easier that I’d expected using the app. There’s a huge database, and most common items are already there. I wound up entering a few myself just to make repeated entry easier.
I’ve found it has made me much more aware of where the calories come from each day. So I’m hoping it’ll be easier to make good choices once I go into “sustain” mode.

My next goal is to get to 174, then shift to a daily intake that will sustain 175+/- 1 indefinitely. The MyFitnessPal app will help with that part, as well. After a month or so of “sustain” mode, I should be able to put the app aside and just continue the practiced behavior.

[RJ]

192.2.


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And on March 1st, I am...192.2

Which is pretty weird. I have not really gained or lost the last four weeks. My diet is (generally) still very low cal, skipping lunch and/or breakfast and eating semi-low carb with plenty of water. I don't track eating because it doesn't help me to log virtually the exact same thing day after day after day.

The past week I tried another experiment; I got off all pills except for my two hypertension drugs. I did measure my BP (125/80) and am going to continue to monitor that. At age 60, that is something I need to keep an eye on.

So, looking ahead to March, generally my plan is to continue the things that "should" work (i.e. increased water/hydration, physical activity, limiting overall calories, working to increase good fats, proteins and limit processed food and sugar in most forms).

I am also going to try and increase fiber to move things along. I have been making these Skinny Muffins but I cant' stand (literally) the taste of coconut oil with the flax. I discovered I could simply down a teaspoon of ground flax seed with a bottle of water, so I'm going to try and do that daily for this week to see how it works.

I also am going to make a point of getting to the gym more regularly. We are selling the condo and there just have been so many little touch ups that I need to tend to that in combination with the OT at work due to us being busy with new orders it is hard to make the time to go in the morning. We move into our new place after mid-April so either way things should calm down by then. The commute is shorter and there is a gym just around the corner as well there too.

[Joe in PNG]

Pretty much plateaued out at 218, but that's under what the doctor ordered, so no big deal.

And we're going down again. 215 today.

[UNM1136]

Signed on, then caught bronchitis and pneumonia. Just got cleared to hit the gym again. Good news was, during the 8 weeks I was off, while I got as high as 233, and as low as 227.4, the average seems to be about 228.8. So I am where I was 1-1-19, and starting again.

pat

[Cookie Monster]

Catching up from last week, weekly average weight was 149.5 with body fat in the 19% range. Down 8% since December 15th. It’s been 15 years since I have been this weight.

Goal weight of 145 seems reasonable now and I’ll head that way. Probably 10 weeks out, end of May. Hopefully better weather will make more opportunities to be active.

All the things I have been doing slowed down the last week or two with travel with family and getting a minor cold. Trying to pick things back up but have been crazy hungry and seemingly needing more rest. The proper rest component in all of this is something I need to figure out better. I really think it is more complex and subtle then me just being weak in the moment. I am also sure that a lot of times I am just plain fucking weak.

Kept at it gentlemen and don’t eat like an asshole.

[FPS]

Started at around 192 on Jan 1., chubbed my way up to 196 and started dieting again - now down to 181.8 today. Not sure what I am going for, maybe 175 - I don't feel like buying new clothes.