Getting Ready for Spring! 6-Week Weight Loss Challenge

[Summer3]

Yesterday's Calorie Breakdown:

 

Carbohydrate (43%)

Fat (32%)

Protein (25%)

 

Diet is about 80% of the fitness puzzle so I'm focusing on that now. Toda I'm going to the gym (PiYo) and will go back to my: Mon. Wed. Fri. schedule. Plus, it's gardening season and I put in plenty of hours manual labor as well as walking my dog 20 min. a day.

 

I am frustrated that progress isn't progressing as fast as I'd like. I really need to stop looking at the bikini competitors because it's messing with my head. I need to focus on what is realistic for my body type, age and lifestyle.

[amaysngrace]

I'm the same way. The weight isn't coming off as quickly as I'd like but muscle weighs more than fat.

 

And I'm okay with that.

[Summer3]

I'm the same way. The weight isn't coming off as quickly as I'd like but muscle weighs more than fat.

 

And I'm okay with that.

 

How much weight do you want to lose?

[MightyPen]

I'm the same way. The weight isn't coming off as quickly as I'd like but muscle weighs more than fat.

 

And I'm okay with that.

 

Yup I've seen tons of before/after photos (men and women) where the person's scale weight didn't change much, but tremendous amounts of fat were lost, replaced with lean, healthy muscle and WOW they look like different people.

 

There are also plenty of "fat skinny" people walking around who may not weigh much but who also have little to no muscle mass.

[amaysngrace]

How much weight do you want to lose?

 

I want to get to a healthy 125. I put on 20 lbs since last June from quitting smoking, feeding my mom well and stress due to watching her die.

 

When I say I fed her well I didn't really. I mostly fed her balanced meals that were high in fats and carbs to entice her to keep eating.

 

For example I'd make her a bacon, egg and cheese on a toasted English muffin with a side of fresh fruit salad and maybe half a cheese danish. I got in the habit of eating that way too which isn't too bad once in a while but it's really not ideal if you're trying to be healthy.

 

I remember one day after her chemo we stopped at the grocery store and she grabbed some Heinz beef gravy in a jar.

 

I told her how terrible that stuff is for her and she said, "what's it gonna do? give me cancer?" Touché.

 

Miss you Momma xo

[Summer3]

I want to get to a healthy 125. I put on 20 lbs since last June from quitting smoking, feeding my mom well and stress due to watching her die.

 

When I say I fed her well I didn't really. I mostly fed her balanced meals that were high in fats and carbs to entice her to keep eating.

 

For example I'd make her a bacon, egg and cheese on a toasted English muffin with a side of fresh fruit salad and maybe half a cheese danish. I got in the habit of eating that way too which isn't too bad once in a while but it's really not ideal if you're trying to be healthy.

 

I remember one day after her chemo we stopped at the grocery store and she grabbed some Heinz beef gravy in a jar.

 

I told her how terrible that stuff is for her and she said, "what's it gonna do? give me cancer?" Touché.

 

Miss you Momma xo

 

You were a good daughter.

[amaysngrace]

You were a good daughter.

 

Thank you for saying that. I miss her dearly.

[Summer3]

Thank you for saying that. I miss her dearly.

 

I understand. I'm very close with my mom.

[fitnessfan365]

Yup I've seen tons of before/after photos (men and women) where the person's scale weight didn't change much, but tremendous amounts of fat were lost, replaced with lean, healthy muscle and WOW they look like different people.

 

There are also plenty of "fat skinny" people walking around who may not weigh much but who also have little to no muscle mass.

 

Yep this is why BMI is bulls**t.

 

It's always better to go by measurements keeping track of inches gained and lost. It's funny because I weigh 220, but people always think I'm in the 190-200 range. Muscle weighs more than fat.

 

Also just to emphasize my point from earlier about sprinters vs marathon runners. Sprinters are lean/muscular. They have intense regiments of both high intensity anaerobic work and strength training. While long distance people tend to have higher body fat % and can be prone to injury. The average marathon runner will slack on strength training to log hours and hours and hours of road work. So they lose muscle and don't strengthen their bodies properly. I've seen tons of long distance competitors up close that participate in Iron Man's, Triathalons, etc and even though their endurance is awesome, their bodies often look like crap.

[kat2008]

Hi

 

Havent posted for a while on this thread due to ex choosing ow

 

The only good thing is, partly due to this fact I have been able to continue with my exercising and weight loss (2lbs lost in last couple of weeks - 19 left to go!!

 

So there was a silver lining after all - I have struggled for years trying to lose weight, and all I needed to do was get dumped again!! Gained some independence back as well - didn't realise I had missed it quite so much!

 

Have a good weekend all

[Pillow]

Effing hell.

 

Woke up today and thought I looked fatter than usual. Went and got on the scale and to my surprise I am now 137!! 7 pounds loss since 144 in late-January.

 

Sadly, I went back to the scale and it's back to 138 lol. I was so excited.

 

This is not a 6-week program for me, but a lifestyle change. I will never stop going to the gym and eating a little better.

 

I don't push myself though. I go whenever I want and do whatever I feel like. If something feels too hard today, I stop. Somedays I can run 5 miles, someday I can't run a whole mile.

 

It will be nice to one day stop counting all my calories.

[Summer3]

Effing hell.

 

Woke up today and thought I looked fatter than usual. Went and got on the scale and to my surprise I am now 137!! 7 pounds loss since 144 in late-January.

 

Sadly, I went back to the scale and it's back to 138 lol. I was so excited.

 

This is not a 6-week program for me, but a lifestyle change. I will never stop going to the gym and eating a little better.

 

I don't push myself though. I go whenever I want and do whatever I feel like. If something feels too hard today, I stop. Somedays I can run 5 miles, someday I can't run a whole mile.

 

It will be nice to one day stop counting all my calories.

 

My breakfast which seemed to be heathy is actually filled with fat.

 

If I'm ever going to lose fat and gain muscle I have to overhaul my eating habits and that is not easy. I've been eating like this forever.

 

[fitnessfan365]

For Thurs - Got in a really good hike in the 40lb vest. Made an effort to run most of the steep hills and then drop down for 12 push-ups after each one. Also managed to maintain a 4.0mph walking pace when I wasn't running. Happy with how quickly and easily I moved with all that added weight.

 

Today - 120 yard round trip Prowler pushes (BRUTAL), 50 battle rope slams, and pull-ups. Went through this rotation five times and was dead..LOL Also did some hanging full leg lifts as well.

[Summer3]

For Thurs - Got in a really good hike in the 40lb vest. Made an effort to run most of the steep hills and then drop down for 12 push-ups after each one. Also managed to maintain a 4.0mph walking pace when I wasn't running. Happy with how quickly and easily I moved with all that added weight.

 

Today - 120 yard round trip Prowler pushes (BRUTAL), 50 battle rope slams, and pull-ups. Went through this rotation five times and was dead..LOL Also did some hanging full leg lifts as well.

 

I need to get more aggressive with my workouts. Starting Monday I'm going to do my own workout (about an hour) and lift heavy.

 

Fitness Fan, I've read this article. Is the below info. valid?

 

TRAIN WITH HEAVY WEIGHTS

Considering yourself training heavy if you are doing 8-12 reps? Well, scale down to 4-6 and you're good to go. The kind of muscle fibers that yield the greatest power are also those that grow the most. The only way to stimulate growth is working within the power zone which is 3-6 reps per set.

[fitnessfan365]

For the average person, lifting like a power-lifter is overkill unless you have specific goals to increase max strength.

 

What matters most IMO is using a weight that legitimately taxes you. So if you're doing 8-10 reps that's fine. Just make sure that by the time you hit that 8th rep or 10th rep, you're completely spent with the set. The main problem is that people will use weights that they could actually do 12-15 times. So when you do sets of 8-10, it's not truly your 8-10 rep max if that makes any sense.

 

Since you have spine issues Summer, I'd recommend choosing a weight you can legitimately only do 8-10 times max and work on proper form. Trying to lift extremely heavy without building a base will most likely lead to form break down and/or injury. But trust me, if you use a weight you can legitimately only do 8-10x it will still feel plenty heavy to you.

[Summer3]

For the average person, lifting like a power-lifter is overkill unless you have specific goals to increase max strength.

 

What matters most IMO is using a weight that legitimately taxes you. So if you're doing 8-10 reps that's fine. Just make sure that by the time you hit that 8th rep or 10th rep, you're completely spent with the set. The main problem is that people will use weights that they could actually do 12-15 times. So when you do sets of 8-10, it's not truly your 8-10 rep max if that makes any sense.

 

Since you have spine issues Summer, I'd recommend choosing a weight you can legitimately only do 8-10 times max and work on proper form. Trying to lift extremely heavy without building a base will most likely lead to form break down and/or injury. But trust me, if you use a weight you can legitimately only do 8-10x it will still feel plenty heavy to you.

 

Thanks! I've been doing about 12 reps per set. I'll go heavier but not overkill. I still can only do limited lifting due to my back. But I've been researching and there's lots I can do.

 

Friday, I used the assisted pull-up machine for the first time. I was only able to do about four pull ups. LOL but it felt amazing.

[Summer3]

Happy Spring Everyone!

[MightyPen]

Happy Spring back at you, Summer!

 

I had a good week last week - updated my stats on my sig. Time to make the final push for the last 10 days and crank up the intensity.

 

Fitnessfan, a question if I may...I'm trying to lose fat while also building, or at least maintaining, muscle...and I've read articles that say the following:

 

1) you MUST have a calorie deficit if you want to lose fat...end of story

 

2) while you're in a calorie deficit to lose fat, it's still possible but very hard to gain muscle at the same time,

 

3) your best chance of doing so is to lift heavy, really taxing your muscle, while doing HIIT sessions 3-4 times a week (max of 1.5 - 2.0 hours of cardio per week), having a high-protein meal before bed, and getting plenty of rest

 

4) if this doesn't work, you'll have to rely on the whole cutting/bulking rotation

 

What's been your experience with this? Are you cutting fat, gaining muscle, or both?

[Summer3]

Happy Spring back at you, Summer!

 

I had a good week last week - updated my stats on my sig. Time to make the final push for the last 10 days and crank up the intensity.

 

Fitnessfan, a question if I may...I'm trying to lose fat while also building, or at least maintaining, muscle...and I've read articles that say the following:

 

1) you MUST have a calorie deficit if you want to lose fat...end of story

 

2) while you're in a calorie deficit to lose fat, it's still possible but very hard to gain muscle at the same time,

 

3) your best chance of doing so is to lift heavy, really taxing your muscle, while doing HIIT sessions 3-4 times a week (max of 1.5 - 2.0 hours of cardio per week), having a high-protein meal before bed, and getting plenty of rest

 

4) if this doesn't work, you'll have to rely on the whole cutting/bulking rotation

 

What's been your experience with this? Are you cutting fat, gaining muscle, or both?

 

I think taxing your muscles four times a week wouldn't allow time for them to recoup and grow.

[amaysngrace]

I ate like crap this past week since my son was home for spring break and I cooked and baked for him and have no will power if it's in the house.

 

I'm not weighing in until next week because why.

[Emilia]

I ate like crap this past week since my son was home for spring break and I cooked and baked for him and have no will power if it's in the house.

 

I'm not weighing in until next week because why.

 

I try to prepare in advance. Went to friends' house over the weekend. They LOVE food and booze. So I stuffed my face until I felt sick but had been very good for a few days before that.

[loveweary11]

All health gains have been erased in one week thanks to day/night partying and drinking, low calorie consumption and general insanity that was Miami Music Week.

 

Time to rejoin this thread and get my health back..

[fitnessfan365]

Fitnessfan, a question if I may...I'm trying to lose fat while also building, or at least maintaining, muscle...and I've read articles that say the following:

 

1) you MUST have a calorie deficit if you want to lose fat...end of story

 

2) while you're in a calorie deficit to lose fat, it's still possible but very hard to gain muscle at the same time,

 

3) your best chance of doing so is to lift heavy, really taxing your muscle, while doing HIIT sessions 3-4 times a week (max of 1.5 - 2.0 hours of cardio per week), having a high-protein meal before bed, and getting plenty of rest

 

4) if this doesn't work, you'll have to rely on the whole cutting/bulking rotation

 

What's been your experience with this? Are you cutting fat, gaining muscle, or both?

 

Unfortunately being able to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time naturally is a MYTH. The only people who do so are genetic freaks and those that use "assistance". You're better off choosing either fat loss, or muscle gain as your primary goal because both require different calorie needs. To drop fat, you need a deficit. To gain muscle, you need a surplus. Unfortunately though, this also means you'll gain fat in the process because you're taking in more than you burn.

 

My advice for what it's worth would be to keep a small calorie deficit of 500 per day under your maintenance. This will allow for 1lb of fat loss per week. Also, you'll be close enough to maintenance where you'll increase strength and maintain/improve the muscle you already have.

 

I'm personally a fan of full body workouts and compound exercises. Squats, lunges, deadlifts, step-ups, push-ups, dips, bench press, standing military press, pull-ups, lat pulldowns, one arm DB rows, barbel rows, renegade rows, etc.. You'll get better fat loss and overall strength development by focusing more on full body training and getting away from isolation movements and split routines IMO.

 

You can actually get "HIIT" by doing a lot of super-sets and circuit training with HEAVY weights switching off between upper/lower body. For example, let's say you do ten full deep squats with a weight you can only do ten times. Then you rest 30-60 seconds and you do a heavy pushing exercise for ten reps and rest 30-60 seconds. By the time you get back to you second squat of squats, your legs are rested. But the short rest period/constant movement from lower to upper will tax your heart/lungs the same way HIIT would. But you can also do things like burpees, hill runs, etc to get the same type of conditioning of effect as well. In general, keeping three of these "high intensity" days per week is a good idea. Example - Mon/Wed/Fri. Then on Tues/Thurs low intensity cardio, stretching, mobility work, etc.. Then weekends off.

[Summer3]

In general, keeping three of these "high intensity" days per week is a good idea. Example - Mon/Wed/Fri. Then on Tues/Thurs low intensity cardio, stretching, mobility work, etc.. Then weekends off.

 

If I work out this many days won't I ruin any chance of building up muscle? Unless you mean "low intensity cardio" as simple walking and slow flexibility work.

 

(Lucky to have Fitnessfan on this tread!!!!)

[MightyPen]

Unfortunately being able to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time naturally is a MYTH. The only people who do so are genetic freaks and those that use "assistance". You're better off choosing either fat loss, or muscle gain as your primary goal because both require different calorie needs. To drop fat, you need a deficit. To gain muscle, you need a surplus. Unfortunately though, this also means you'll gain fat in the process because you're taking in more than you burn.

 

My advice for what it's worth would be to keep a small calorie deficit of 500 per day under your maintenance. This will allow for 1lb of fat loss per week. Also, you'll be close enough to maintenance where you'll increase strength and maintain/improve the muscle you already have.

 

I'm personally a fan of full body workouts and compound exercises. Squats, lunges, deadlifts, step-ups, push-ups, dips, bench press, standing military press, pull-ups, lat pulldowns, one arm DB rows, barbel rows, renegade rows, etc.. You'll get better fat loss and overall strength development by focusing more on full body training and getting away from isolation movements and split routines IMO.

 

You can actually get "HIIT" by doing a lot of super-sets and circuit training with HEAVY weights switching off between upper/lower body. For example, let's say you do ten full deep squats with a weight you can only do ten times. Then you rest 30-60 seconds and you do a heavy pushing exercise for ten reps and rest 30-60 seconds. By the time you get back to you second squat of squats, your legs are rested. But the short rest period/constant movement from lower to upper will tax your heart/lungs the same way HIIT would. But you can also do things like burpees, hill runs, etc to get the same type of conditioning of effect as well. In general, keeping three of these "high intensity" days per week is a good idea. Example - Mon/Wed/Fri. Then on Tues/Thurs low intensity cardio, stretching, mobility work, etc.. Then weekends off.

 

First, of all I echo Summer's comment - we are very lucky to have you here!

 

So since I'm focusing on losing fat, I will keep myself in a calorie deficit (still in the 2,000 to 2,200 calorie range) for the next couple of months. I'll see where I am at the end of April, but I'm guessing I'll need all of May as well to cut my bodyfat down to where I want it to be.

 

I don't want to get into the "bulking" phase until my bodyfat is really low (around 10%). I read an article that suggested for the "bulking" phase that you should increase your calories by 250 a day over your maintenance amount (so I'm guessing for me that bulking would look more like 2750-3000 calories per day), measure your results weekly, and then tweak accordingly.

 

The article said healthy gains would be about 2 lbs per month for men, and that the slower you go with the gains, the more of it will be muscle. It said that the body can only create so much new muscle in a given time, so the risk of going too high on calories is that a higher percentage of those calories will become fat. Does this should about right?