Reply With QuoteThat’s awesome Wiley!
I’m feeling a lot more energised compared to this last year, despite the weather trying it’s best to subdue me.
I might blow this week’s eating slightly, as I think we are now going out for a surprise Valentine’s dinner, doh!
After pulling my finger out on 16th Jan with my first indoor cycle I'm down 1.5kg in Jan and 0.5 so far in Feb.
Stats from 16th Jan attached and for cycling only. Annoyingly Strava doesn't split out walking but we also did the 100km walk challenge in Jan and finished with 105km.
I've still snacked and eaten silly a few times including take away pizza but I can't explain how much more energy I have day to day and how much better my mental health is as a result. I seem to just be more upbeat and positive.
Hopefully I can keep it up.
That’s awesome Wiley!
I’m feeling a lot more energised compared to this last year, despite the weather trying it’s best to subdue me.
I might blow this week’s eating slightly, as I think we are now going out for a surprise Valentine’s dinner, doh!
It's just a matter of time...
Thought that I would quickly report on progress. Since 01 January I have now lost exactly 6.5kg, in large part by following the excellent advice here from Omegamanic and Shane, amongst others. As advised, this was achieved by eating a bit more good and a bit less bad stuff and exercising daily. So, nothing extreme ! I have though spent quite a lot on salmon recently which has dented my watch fund (not seriously).
I never absolutely trust my scales but trousers do not lie. I tried on some trousers earlier which just about cut me in half before Christmas and they feel fine on now. Happy days !
I aim to lose about another 4kg then hope to keep active and eat reasonably healthily to avoid yo-yoing.
That said, amongst other things, Mrs gc52 got me an 18 pack of McVities Gold bars for Valentines. Only 95 calories each but one is never enough. Rationing those is going to test my resolve, big time !
Anyway, thanks again for all the encouagement on this thread. Off to do 12 press-ups , as per the +1 a day schdule advised below.....
That's excellent progress, Gary :) A reduction of 2-3lbs a week is the best way forward to keeping it off but as I said, the scales do not give a true picture of your progress and can be demotivating sometimes. Clothes and how they fit you will allow you to see where you've improved and what needs to be done. As those trousers you tried become looser and looser you'll feel even better and want to push yourself even harder.
12 press ups is a great improvement as well. Lots of other bodyweight exercises you can do....maybe try Australian pull ups? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZimxgwY-AQ
They're a great compound movement which you can superset with your press ups so with just two exercises you hit chest, delts, back, triceps, biceps, forearms and core.
Originally Posted by gc52
That’s love ;)
I’m sure our partners are secretly trying to sabotage us, with love!
6.5kg in 6 weeks is some going. Obviously well on your way to achieving your overall goal, and keeping it up after you’ve reached your weight target with your exercise should also help you achieve a better body composition.
I did blow my weekly calorie target this week, but I did also complete 5 weights sessions at the gym - so it’s possible it wasn’t a complete write off. In fact keeping up the sessions is helping towards making it a regular habit.
I really couldn’t help it though, and I don’t think it was too bad, just a little higher in overall calories than I had calculated for the evening meal, especially after adding the champagne and Gin & Tonics (slimline tonic though lol). We had finished the starters shortly after they arrived, so no pics, and I tried to be semi-sensible in my food choices, but I love desserts - I’ll work extra hard next week to make up for it.
Like I’ve said before it’s a complete change in overall lifestyle, but still be flexible enough to enjoy important events. Last night was unexpected, as we couldn’t get a table at any restaurants we wanted to eat at, but due to the weather and other people cancelling their reservations we were offered a table.
I would say to anyone that hadn’t kept to a plan, whether diet or exercise this week, don’t beat yourself up too much (I’m trying hard not to feel too guilty myself), a one off blow out isn’t going to make too much difference. It’s only when you consistently fail to keep on track that you’ll fail to achieve your goals. Being a bit healthier for the rest of your life shouldn’t be a sprint, and it really is all about the long term journey and making small improvements, or for others just offsetting the decline of age as much as possible.
It's just a matter of time...
6.5 KG loss is a fantastic achievement!
I’m assuming at losing 1.5 kg from 76. I exercise daily but have started to do some weights as I want to add a bit of muscle mass.
I don’t need to lose much just a little bit of excess love handles!
I’ve started to log food again and I’ve forgotten how much it keeps you on track if you are honest.
It’s surprising where you can end up taking “junk” calories instead of being a bit more considerate like you with the salmon.
I’ve also cut out alcohol to just the weekend and track that as well.
Cheers, Shaun
Thanks to all for the encouragement below.
A bit like Omegamanic, wife and I splurged out of a full English (not a euphamism) earlier as a Valentines Day brunch treat so will not bother to get weighed-in for a couple of days.
Thanks also to Shane for the additional exercise tips. At the moment I am revisiting my karate stretching so that I do not do myself a mischief over exerting in other forms of exercise. Might try some of the Aussie pull-ups though !
Very best wishes to all.
I bought some new protein powders for a try last week, so if anyone fancied a change, along with a little variety...
Applied Nutrition - Creme de la Egg, and another one as some take on the Kinder Bueno.
Supposedly limited editions, and can be bought at a discount to the headline price. Not sure if it’s cheaper elsewhere - so worth’s quick check just in case.
I bought from body building warehouse for around £28 each for 1kg.
Other flavours are available in the same range
Sweet protein powders are a little sweet for me, so I always use an unflavoured 97/98% whey isolate for most of the powder and then add a small amount of flavour. Maybe 40-50g of the unflavoured and then 15-20g of the flavoured whey, or to taste.
So far the cream egg is probably my favourite of the two, but I’ve only tried them once each.
It's just a matter of time...
It’s been six months since I decided to shift the lockdown weight, and buying cheap Bluetooth body composition scales is the most useful thing I’ve ever done. Seeing daily feedback on what your diet is doing to your weight and body composition gives you an increasingly intuitive grasp of how much of what foods you can eat. You can catch bad trends before it’s too late, and get back on track in a day or two. Mostly it’s confirmed all the things you read, but seeing it quantified makes it real, and it’s also good to know which foods work for you personally.
Cream egg sounds a great flavour!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Well done for keeping the weight off!It’s been six months since I decided to shift the lockdown weight, and buying cheap Bluetooth body composition scales is the most useful thing I’ve ever done. Seeing daily feedback on what your diet is doing to your weight and body composition gives you an increasingly intuitive grasp of how much of what foods you can eat. You can catch bad trends before it’s too late, and get back on track in a day or two. Mostly it’s confirmed all the things you read, but seeing it quantified makes it real, and it’s also good to know which foods work for you personally.
That is often the real challenge.
You can certainly see Christmas on that graph!
It's very easy to get too caught up in measuring and weighing, but I do find it very useful. While I am still not recording everything - as I am easing into my first month of a new training a eating regime - 16 weeks, easing in gently in the first 4 weeks, starting to record in the second 4 weeks, and then getting a lot more strict in the final 8 weeks, before switching to a more balanced and sustainable lifestyle diet.
When I start to record everything, I actually weigh myself twice a day, once in the morning after a pee (too much information), and again last thing at night before climbing into bed. It's surprising how much weight you lose over night in water vapour through breathing - somewhere between 1-1.5kg can easily be within normal range for me - especially on a warmer night, or if the heating has been left on too late!
It's just a matter of time...
Unfortunately, it looks like my great progress is about to stall once more. The local rumour mill is that the Isle of man is likely enter another 2 week lockdown from midnight tomorrow - I'm considering just taking tomorrow and spending the whole day in the gym to do the next two weeks' works outs - if only it worked like that lol.
It's just a matter of time...
Buy a kettlebell and a pull up bar for at home.
Id be happy with a pull up frame, incorporating a pull up bar, hanging legs raises, and dips, and will likely buy one soon - just deciding on where the best place to keep it is - I’d love a heavy duty outdoor all weather one, but the prices are a little crazy. I won’t be buying any kettle bells though. I really don’t like them personally, despite taking an instructors class on them many years ago. Nothing against anyone else using them, correctly (although most people in our gym don’t, and use far too much momentum), but I simply prefer other exercises/workouts.
We were lucky in that the island didn’t go back into lockdown (hopefully they will contain the current spike). However, the gym was informed that a member that attended on Wednesday has tested positive, so they closed the gym this morning for a deep clean. Hopefully it will reopen tomorrow.
Last edited by Omegamanic; 19th February 2021 at 13:29.
It's just a matter of time...
I bought an over door frame pull up bar, TRX style bands to use with doors, stackable elastic resistance bands, a gym ball, barbell and dumbbells at different points between Spring and Autumn last year. I have far fewer weights than I was using at the gym but I try to make exercises a bit more difficult to compensate for that. Nothing beats proper gym equipment though so this is still a compromise.
Which exercise(s) are you thinking of that most people don't do correctly? I can believe that for swings - many people do them like they are meant for arms!
When the gym was open, I was using kettlebells for single Leg RDL to forward lunge, goblet squats and step ups. All of these worked very well for me. At home, I don't have any kettlebells and these exercises are still awkward with dumbbells after months of working out at home.
Decathlon used to sell their version of TRX suspension training straps for £15. Bargain!
Unfortunately kettlebells get a bad rep as people hurt themselves trying the swing, usually with poor form.
My local gym has one 12kg kettlebell, and I was told not to practice swings as I’ll hurt my back, by a staff member.
I blame social media as well, too many “experts” trying to invent new ways of using kettlebells, and people attempt to copy.
Essentially it’s just a weight, it’s what you do with it that counts.
Edit: for full disclosure, I did manage to hurt myself a few weeks back with a kettlebell. My own fault by adding extra reps on at the end of my workout. Top tip - do not try to catch a 28kg kettlebell with one hand, it will just bend backwards and hurt.
It's easy to see why people can get injuries swinging heavy KBs with poor form. The whole idea of lifting weights is to lift the weight under complete control, with minimum momentum as possible, contracting and stretching through the active and negative phases. When you go from this to more exposive movements - e.g. clean and jerk, proper technique becomes much much harder and important to reduce the risk of injury. KB hip thrusts are one of the most poorly executed exercises. I see the same with people doing deadlifts and bent over barbell rows wrong because they were never shown how to do it properly, i.e. do not round your back.
Yes, mostly swings with KBs, sometimes pressing at what are angles outside natural biomechanics. I see why goblet squats would be easier, but lunges with either a barbell or dumbbells is much easier for me than using KBs - I prefer a barbell either in a full front squat position, or tradition rear squat for any lunges.
I don’t have much against KBs, I just choose not to incorporate them within my workouts. it’s just a preference, and I generally have that much choice of exercises, with the machines, cables, bars, frames, dumbbells and barbells that I like to stick to what I know best, and what I was trained in.
I see so much bad form, but the kids don’t want to listen as they are making gains - of course they are, anyone will grow with food, stimulation through exercise, and a high youthful testosterone level.
Its a bit like Crosstraining. It can be great for a lot of people, but just hearing the weekly injury stories from my Ex that works as a physio manager in health care, it’s clear that when you mix trying to carry out a lift, multiple times, and then try to do it quickly, you are at a much higher risk of injury. Just watch some of the cross fitters doing pull ups (not all, as some are truly fantastic), I’m sure there are lots of bad examples on you tube - it’s not pretty, and whoever is training them should a) be ashamed to take their money, and b) have stopped them immediately in training and made them improve their technique.
Last edited by Omegamanic; 19th February 2021 at 18:18.
It's just a matter of time...
I find barbell hip thrusts far more effective. Just place shoulders/upper back on a box/high support, bar just above the top of front thighs/hinge points and lift the hips. Can't do much wrong with it (unless your movement is jerky) and it targets the glutes as long as you press on the heels rather than front foot. Progression is also quick - I started with something like 25kg and was up to 80kg (including the bar) when the gym closed.
About 4 years ago a staff member at my work gym gave up and told me not to attempt any more barbell rows. I just couldn't keep my back straight no matter how much I tried lol. I find it easier to maintain correct form with landmine but it targets different muscles.
It's the single leg RDL part before going straight into a forward lunge where I find it easier to maintain better form with KB compared to DB. Personal thing I'm sure - whatever works.
This conversation has now made me "gymsick", if that's a thing.
I meant KB swings (my bad). You can use a lot of weight for barbell hip thrusts (I've seen Gareth Bale do about 4 plates each side) and they're good for building explosive power and strength. I actually prefer the single leg version - no weight - just concentrate on one leg at a time. It's much harder than it sounds and you can isolate the glutes much better (physically and mentally)
Most people lift too heavy when doing bent over rows, which results in using momentum from the bottom position and then coming up with the back too much to sort of shrug the weight up. You can do these more upright like Dorian Yates but I prefer Arnold's 90 degree version.
I also do walking lunges, Bulgarian split squats and reverse lunges with a barbell on my traps - I find it easier than using DBs. Yep - missing the gym of course....just as much for the atmosphere and environment as the equipment.
Last edited by Shane; 19th February 2021 at 23:24.
Old age bites again - annoyingly I managed to pick up a thigh (outer quad) strain yesterday, only 4 reps in to my second warm up set of 12 reps while squatting. I’m pretty annoyed about it, and looks like at least 2 weeks rest of the quad.
Thankfully I can train most other body parts, and the pain when walking up stairs has eased off a little today.
Hopefully just a minor set back, and diet is still going reasonably well.
I hope everyone else is fairing well so far this week :)
It's just a matter of time...
Ouch! Hope you heal fast.
Hope you recovery soon :-)
I've found it quite hard the last 10 days or so to keep motivated and disciplined. I've definitely let it slip a bit, but I've kept to walking 15,000 steps everyday even in the awful weather we've had. Tentatively got on the scales this morning and I'm down 0.5lb since my last weigh in two weeks a go, which I'll take as a win, even if its small.
I hope your injury heals up soon too. I had something similar about 3 years ago. I was walking back out of the squat rack with quite a heavy weight and must have twisted my body but I felt a bad twinge on the outside of my thigh (tensor fasciae latae). It took a long time (if I tell you how long it will depress you) for the muscle fibres to align and heal. So it wasn't even during the movement and shows you can injure yourself in many different ways.
If you want to lose weight instantly and without exercise feel free to start your morning with a double shot latte and four large satsumas.
You'll be considerably lighter by 11am but might feel a bit vulnerable for a few hours.
Lol
I believe prunes, and some other various foods may have a similar effect ;)
It's just a matter of time...
Any runners? I've started cutting back a little and done a bit of running (3 mile) but my calf muscles now are recking. Trying to just walk now is very painful. Not sure what I'm doing to cause the pain when running. Trainers are decent gel soul Reebok's.
https://forum.tz-uk.com/showthread.p...K-Running-Club
I've lost 2.4kg in 16 days just by calorie counting, I'm on 1,750 calories a day and not doing any exercise to mention tbh.
I'm not much of a runner so my idea is just to keep losing weight by controlling my diet until gyms are back open and then I can get back to doing weights and swimming for cardio.
Losing weight by diet alone will result in both a loss of body fat and muscle. Your body will fight to regain your lost muscle, and as we don’t eat the perfect diet, when it does you will likely put on more fat and be in a worse position than when you started.
Unless you have simply been overeating, and you are returning to a weight which is natural and steady for you, then this is highly likely to lead to yo-up dieting.
Obviously I don’t have your stats, but 1750 seems far too low. In any case, if I was you, and you were determined to continue on 1750 cals, then I would be eating an absolute minimum of 600 calories of those as good quality protein, in an attempt to try and retain as much fat free mass as possible, a minimum of 450 cals per day from good fats, and the rest from the best carb sources you enjoy.
It's just a matter of time...
Would the muscle loss apply if the exercise was something like running, or does the exercise need to be specific 'muscle building' exercise as well, eg weights or similar?
I am calorie counting and running 3 times per week.
I have wondered that too but never really tried finding out because regardless of what the answer is, I have to do strength training to support my running. It would still be good to know.
Due to missing the gym too much, last Friday I got myself a bench with a preacher, foam leg support thingies and barbell rack. The set also came with a straight barbell (I only had the curly one), dumbbells and more weights to add to my existing plates. Haven't had the time to set it up yet though and been training with my current equipment.
What strength training do you do to support your running out of interest?
Most 'runners' I see seem to be built like racing snakes, (which I am certainly not!) and I have always assumed that strength training would add bulk, which would be a bad thing for running(?).
Probably a far too simplistic view I guess.
When I increased my running frequency from twice a week to thrice (only 5k runs), even before I began upping the distance, I got a terrible knee injury. Probably not a problem many people would face at such little distance and small number of runs but I "achieved" it so quickly due to decades of bad form/posture while walking and going up/down the stairs. Poor biomechanics combined with weakness in glutes and hamstrings resulted in a running style that was overloading my knees. This is what the physio told me. I was prescribed several lower body strength exercises that target glutes and hamstrings a lot but also quads and core. In terms of my running pace and distance, I have come a long way from where I was due to my lower body strength building regime and I have no doubt in my mind that to run longer distances and faster, while trying to avoid injury as much as possible, hip and leg strength is they key. I only run 3-4 times a week and do strength training on all other days. Alternate between a day dedicated to lower body and a day with mostly upper body plus a few lower body exercises.
PS: I only do the upper body stuff because I don't want to look like a snake :)
Oddly, I had a similar problem when I first did the C25k about 7 years ago. I had to give up three or four times due to the pain in my knees, but got there in the end with rest periods, ibuprofen and determination. I didn't even think about seeing a physio/GP, as I assumed they would just tell me to stop running.
I am a 'farmer build', big arms and shoulders with a well-invested beer belly so can only dream of a 'racing snake' physique ;)
I have been away from running for ages, but have just started again. My 5k times are very slow, but it keeps me active and gets my heart going. Currently working on reducing my 5k times by 30 seconds per week until I get back to where I was 7 years ago. Hopefully...
Let's not talk about running too much in this thread. Lots of experienced runners on this forum that frequent this one instead: https://forum.tz-uk.com/showthread.p...K-Running-Club and can probably give tips/advice. I am still learning.
Yes, however for a fairly serious (or regular amateur) runner you probably aren't too worried about your weight (at least not as much as someone starting to diet and exercise), or maintaining as much muscle as possible. Everyone touts the 3500 calories to lose a pound weight, but that's working out a pound of pure fats, which none of our fat actually is, and a pound of muscle is only going to be around 800 calories, so you could in theory burn muscle quite quickly (of course you'd need to be deleted of every other energy source as its really the body's source of last resort for energy). What would happen is that you would slow down any additional muscle growth/gain, and only if you remained in negative energy/calories for an extended period then you would start to lose some lean mass too. I should point out that it's not only possible, but highly likely that if you remained very active, and had inadequate protein intake, but excess overall calories, you'd gain fat and lose muscle at the same time. You cannot build, repair or maintain muscle without adequate protein, full stop.
I've also noticed in some people taking up running (and cycling/swimming for that matter) that their legs have developed/adapted quite well, but they have lost size in their arms, chest and shoulders. This is especially true for a few people I know from my early years when I was a lot more serious about my training, and they have now, or in more recent years, taken up running or triathlons - but their aim is to be lighter and faster, so...
When I was training for a triathlon years ago the Ironmen were a reasonably muscular build (not 'big' by any means, as it's still an overall endurance event, but these days they are all much closer to a marathon runner than the physiques of 30-40 years ago - and they are much faster for it.
One other thing which might not be readily known outside of the fitness/training world - the glycogen stored in your individual muscle cells cannot be used by other muscles, even surrounding muscles. This is why some people (me included) like to split training different body parts on different days. Trying to recover and replenish all muscles on a daily/regular basis can take it's toll - especially when we are talking about heavier loads at lower reps, rather than lighter (only by reference to the continued reps rather than the amount of effort required) endurance training like running/swimming etc. Even then you should really ensure you are recovered before you exercise again - things like the C25K training plans generally cover that though and build up slowly over a given period to ensure you are generally well adapted and recovered before you go again.
For the average person losing weight (generally they want to lose fat, and I would recommend that is all they want to lose, for the most benefits and least potential of yo-yoing etc.), maintaining as much muscle as possible during the process should be the number one priority. For example, if I weighed 232lbs, I would have been consuming around 3950 calories a day with my regime. I estimate that by the time I have lost the additional fat that I have planned, along with a little bit of muscle (I'd rather not lose any, but I am being realistic), then my intake would be somewhere between 2750 and 3150 (at a weight of around 200-205lbs) - that's a huge 800-1200 calories a day less that I can eat per day after I have finished my 16 week training and diet plan. So... If I went back to my old habits, which is all too often for the average dieter (something like an estimated 80-90% of them within a given time frame), then I would put on fat at a significantly accelerated rate than before I started the plan! As at worst every three days I could be piling on 1lb of fat due to my decreased calorie requirements! That's pretty shocking, and based on me being very sensible during the diet and exercise phase - if I lost a lot more muscle my calorie requirements would be significantly less and I would put on fat even quicker, if I returned to my previous eating habits.
To offset the potential of the above, I have already planned my new lifestyle food intake (which I'll look to start at the end of the 16 week experiment) at something around 2750 cals week days, and 3150 cals at weekends (rather than just going back to 3950 cals, after I've hopefully hit my targets!).
It's just a matter of time...
Weighed in this morning:
7kg lost since the 4th Jan, so I am VERY happy with that. Only 1kg to go and I have hit target weight.
Well done!
Question for you and anyone else, how did you decide on your target weight?
Do people use the NHS BMI guide lines or something else?
For me it is the weight where I know I look and feel about right based on historic weight fluctuations. Much less than that I look too skinny and I know it wont be maintainable, as I do like a beer (or two).
I went for decades where I could never get my weight above 75kg and then I started to 'grow into myself', by filling out a bit - in a good way.
The NHS website healthy BMI figures suggest my weight should be between 63.3 - 85.6kg. There is absolutely no way that I could get to 63.3kg unless I removed a limb (or two). I would also look very unwell if I dropped that amount of weight, as I am a quite broad build. My beanpole days are long behind me and never to return.
The BMI data may be a useful guide, but are only ever a guide. Your target weight also needs to be realistic and achievable of course too, so just set a figure to aspire too, but dont be daft about it else you will just become demotivated and give up.
Seconded on the well done; that’s a great loss so far and as you say almost at your goal weight, which is even better.
Weight used to be important to me when trying to put on as much muscle as humanly possible in my youth. But these days I wouldn’t care if I was anywhere between 190lbs (86kg) to 242lbs (110kg), which is a fairly large range. I’d just prefer to be a lot leaner, and that’s going to be a lot easier for me at somewhere around 90-100kg. While I’ve enjoyed being a lot stronger weighing between 240-250lbs, it goes hand in hand with carrying a fair amount more fat, and even eating a lot more, which isn’t always the pleasure it could be, and even buying clothes can be more of a hassle lol
It's just a matter of time...
2 months in and 20 lbs lost. My BMI just dipped to 29.9 which I think means I’m no longer classed as obese. Happy days!
The Fitbit is my motivator (shame for my lovely watches). Lots of walking and a 600 calorie limit twice a week is working for me and hopefully something I can continue long term.
Sent from my iPhone using TZ-UK mobile app
Thank you for the replies. I’m at the upper end of the NHS band for my height. I’m happy where I am. I know I put on a few pounds over Christmas, and I’m being more thoughtful about what I eat right now. See where it goes. I don’t wish to set a weight goal, I prefer to set a performance or fitness goal to aim for and concentrate on that.
There's an interesting article in New Scientist this week about metabolism myths.
https://www.newscientist.com/article...#ixzz6nljb2VkY
Last edited by Mr Curta; 2nd March 2021 at 09:27.
Don't just do something, sit there. - TNH
I'm not overweight and I run 5 miles every other day but I have noticed a muffin top developing since lockdown so last week I started calorie counting and my word it was an eye opener. It's no wonder I was putting on weight. Bread and olive oil plus biscuits were absolutely blowing my daily intake. Last Wednesday I limited myself to 2000 calls per day. By Monday I'd lost 1kg.
I weighed myself today, 7 days later, and I have lost another 1.5kg.
It is absolutely terrifying when you see your calorie intake laid out in front of you like that!
Bread and pasta were my main eye openers. I still find it tough eating my breakfast porridge while my wife is making hot buttered toast with the homemade bread in the mornings...
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