The Officialish FOFC Weight Loss Dynasty

[TargetPractice6]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

204.4 this morning . Thinking it's more of a natural bounce-up 0.6lbs though. It's got to be...

If you're anything like me, daily weight fluctuations can get pretty frustrating. Some mornings I'm up two pounds even though I stayed disciplined the day before and sometimes I eat all day and drop a pound. Doesn't make much sense sometime. It's usually a bit more satisfying for me to average out weigh-ins over the course of the week (like the graph I posted it), which indicates more of a downward trend than my roller-coaster daily chart.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by TargetPractice6

If you're anything like me, daily weight fluctuations can get pretty frustrating. Some mornings I'm up two pounds even though I stayed disciplined the day before and sometimes I eat all day and drop a pound. Doesn't make much sense sometime. It's usually a bit more satisfying for me to average out weigh-ins over the course of the week (like the graph I posted it), which indicates more of a downward trend than my roller-coaster daily chart.

Oh I definitely tend to fluctuate. I know when my "weight loss days" seem to be though, so I usually don't get too worried unless I'm up on those calendar days (it used to be Sun/Mon, but now it's moved slightly to Tues/Weds) for a couple weeks.

I've actually been really bad about keeping a long-term graph of my progress...I meant to but then I stopped. But I'm cognizent of it.

Up to 205 now on this fluctuation. Which is aggrivating, because yesterday I ate fruit essentially all day. Fruit for breakfast (lil cheese + crackers), fruit + 100 calorie pack of lite popcorn for midafternoon snack, strawberries + fat free whipped cream for dessert.

But I guess if I hadn't done that it would have been worse.

Might be snacking a bit too much when I'm not really hungry hungry (lil handful of cheerios here or there). Might have to get all draconian on that.

[TargetPractice6]

Hmm, the only thing I can think of there is that fruit could be high in sugar if you're eating a lot of it. I eat bananas and cheerios like it's my job, though, and it tends to work out pretty well.

Usually when I have one of those bewildering weight gain days I just tell myself it's more room to drop the next day.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by TargetPractice6

Hmm, the only thing I can think of there is that fruit could be high in sugar if you're eating a lot of it. I eat bananas and cheerios like it's my job, though, and it tends to work out pretty well.

Usually when I have one of those bewildering weight gain days I just tell myself it's more room to drop the next day.

It could be fruit sugar yeah. But overall I think it's just random fluctuation, like you said.

I'm not really all that worried. If I plateau for a couple weeks then I'll start to worry. A good day today could have me back down in the low 204's or even high 203's, so no worries.

[JediKooter]

Well, I think I'm down to 235. I say 'I think', because when I lean forward to read the scale (it's analog) it says 238. When I lean back and stand up straight and lower my head to look, it says 235. Not sure why it would matter how I stand on the scale would make any difference since the same parts of my body are touching it.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

Oh I definitely tend to fluctuate. I know when my "weight loss days" seem to be though, so I usually don't get too worried unless I'm up on those calendar days (it used to be Sun/Mon, but now it's moved slightly to Tues/Weds) for a couple weeks.

I've actually been really bad about keeping a long-term graph of my progress...I meant to but then I stopped. But I'm cognizent of it.

Up to 205 now on this fluctuation. Which is aggrivating, because yesterday I ate fruit essentially all day. Fruit for breakfast (lil cheese + crackers), fruit + 100 calorie pack of lite popcorn for midafternoon snack, strawberries + fat free whipped cream for dessert.

But I guess if I hadn't done that it would have been worse.

Might be snacking a bit too much when I'm not really hungry hungry (lil handful of cheerios here or there). Might have to get all draconian on that.

203.2 (-59.0). It's eerie that I'm able to say that and then it happens.

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

It could be fruit sugar yeah. But overall I think it's just random fluctuation, like you said.

I'm not really all that worried. If I plateau for a couple weeks then I'll start to worry. A good day today could have me back down in the low 204's or even high 203's, so no worries.

Low 203's!!!

[TargetPractice6]

Originally Posted by JediKooter

Well, I think I'm down to 235. I say 'I think', because when I lean forward to read the scale (it's analog) it says 238. When I lean back and stand up straight and lower my head to look, it says 235. Not sure why it would matter how I stand on the scale would make any difference since the same parts of my body are touching it.

You probably get some extra torque from gravity when you lean forward, like how it's easier to drive in a nail by swinging a hammer regularly than pounding it vertically. (At least this is my crude understanding of physics)

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

Low 203's!!!

Awesome, you're going to be breaking that 200 barrier in a week or so. Keep it up!

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by TargetPractice6

You probably get some extra torque from gravity when you lean forward, like how it's easier to drive in a nail by swinging a hammer regularly than pounding it vertically. (At least this is my crude understanding of physics)


Awesome, you're going to be breaking that 200 barrier in a week or so. Keep it up!

That's the hope!!

[JediKooter]

Originally Posted by TargetPractice6

You probably get some extra torque from gravity when you lean forward, like how it's easier to drive in a nail by swinging a hammer regularly than pounding it vertically. (At least this is my crude understanding of physics)

That could be it. All I know is, I'll be happy when I finally break the 220s torque or no torque.

[DaddyTorgo]

204.2 after dinner, so with any luck i'll be down 1.6-2lbs tonight into the 202's.

[hoopsguy]

Eh, might as well put some thoughts in here since I'm working on this on my own.

Hit 39 in early March, and decided that I wanted to pursue some weight loss goals over the next year.
3/2/2011 - 187.9 pounds
3/2/2012 - goal is 165 pounds, a weight I haven't seen since my freshman or sophomore year of college.

I'm 5'9", and felt like 170-175 was a good weight for me in my early post-college years when I was working out fairly regularly. But at this point, I'm not looking at having any significant muscle mass. I just want to reduce the fat that has collected on my waist, chin, and more or less everywhere else in larger portions than I would like. 189 is the most I've ever weighed, and I haven't seen 170 since my daughter arrived (she turns 4 in May).

March plans to lose weight - hit the treadmill we have at home, shed caffeine addiction.

March results - weighted in at 184.1 on April 1st, so lost 3.8 pounds on the month. Kicked caffeine addiction (Cokes, 3-6 per day) and associated headaches. Ran 30 miles on treadmill, including 5K for one session and 8 minute mile for another.

April goals - ramping up for start of outdoor soccer in May so will be mixing in some soccer practices. Starting to turn attention to diet a little bit, trying to eat regular breakfast (Raisin Bran is meal of choice) instead of getting food on way to morning appointment or hitting vending machines at some point during the day.

Challenge - first soccer practice I suffered a bruised heel right at the end of practice on Sunday. I can't put a ton of weight on it right now, will slow down my exercise for at least a week based on what I've seen over the last two days.

I'll likely update this every couple of weeks. I'm trying not to obsess over the scale, but instead focus on gradually improving my habits while keeping my eye on the long term goal (23 pounds in a year). I've got a few ideas on additional steps to take in coming months, but I don't have all 12 months charted out ... trying to make sure I'm hitting monthly goals before moving onto new challenges.

[DaddyTorgo]

202.6!

[DaddyTorgo]

203 this morning (random fluctuation up). And my dude at the gym where I go wouldn't let me do my cardio-only today, he strong-armed me into going back to my weight-lifting routine...so i don't know that I'll go down today (and yes I know that over time weight-lifting is better for weight loss than just straight cardio, but you also don't see the effects as consistently in the beginning...and for me so much of it is about momentum and positive vibes).

[TargetPractice6]

Down to 168.4 today. 25 pounds lost since the start of the new year!

After losing so much weight just to get down to the 190 range I started to think of myself as fit already and got complacent. I'm starting to see now, though, that the job was only half way done.

[DaddyTorgo]

*cough*

201.6

That is all.

[JediKooter]

Definitely at 235 now no matter how I look at the scale. I'd really really like to be in the 220s by the end of the month, if not sooner.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by JediKooter

Definitely at 235 now no matter how I look at the scale. I'd really really like to be in the 220s by the end of the month, if not sooner.

Awesome - way to go Kooter!!!

[Dodgerchick]

192.4

[Dodgerchick]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

*cough*

201.6

That is all.

SUPERLIKE!!

[Dodgerchick]

Originally Posted by JediKooter

Definitely at 235 now no matter how I look at the scale. I'd really really like to be in the 220s by the end of the month, if not sooner.

VERY COOL!

[sabotai]

Went through about a month long ordeal with almost daily migraines from Feb to March, which meant I could not work out and kept saying "Fuck it, I'm in pain" right before eating comfort food. Stayed in the 233 range during the whole period.

They finally calmed down in the middle of March and I've been dropping about a pound a week. This past week's average was 229.7, finally averaging under 230 pounds. My lowest day is 228.2 a few days ago.

[DaddyTorgo]

204 this morning.

I know that this whole "build muscle to eventually burn fat and loose weight faster" thing is scientifically-speaking the best way to go about it, but i don't like seeing that number climb at all, even in the short-term. Especially when I seemed to be on a good, consistent regime of losing using just cardio.

It's on a very very short leash - not sure how long I will stick with it.

Does anybody else have any experience in roughly how long it takes to start kicking in and driving weight loss if i'm working out each muscle group 2x a week?

edit: Okay so I spent a little time this morning with the Google and my conclusion is that I need to go back to my cardio (45mins/day), and if I do anything at all weight-wise at least keep 30mins of cardio and supplement with a little weights. It's just hard to find a weight-lifting circuit for my different muscle groups that can be done in say 20 minutes...I need to work on that I guess. Because the circuits I have for my different muscle groups are like full...45min+ cycles in and of themselves, and I can't take that much time out of the office each day.

[JediKooter]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

Awesome - way to go Kooter!!!

Thank you DT. I had two beers this weekend to celebrate.

Originally Posted by Dodgerchick

VERY COOL!

Yes indeed. I'm getting closer and closer to that bikini body.

[Dodgerchick]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

204 this morning.

I know that this whole "build muscle to eventually burn fat and loose weight faster" thing is scientifically-speaking the best way to go about it, but i don't like seeing that number climb at all, even in the short-term. Especially when I seemed to be on a good, consistent regime of losing using just cardio.

It's on a very very short leash - not sure how long I will stick with it.

Does anybody else have any experience in roughly how long it takes to start kicking in and driving weight loss if i'm working out each muscle group 2x a week?

edit: Okay so I spent a little time this morning with the Google and my conclusion is that I need to go back to my cardio (45mins/day), and if I do anything at all weight-wise at least keep 30mins of cardio and supplement with a little weights. It's just hard to find a weight-lifting circuit for my different muscle groups that can be done in say 20 minutes...I need to work on that I guess. Because the circuits I have for my different muscle groups are like full...45min+ cycles in and of themselves, and I can't take that much time out of the office each day.

Have you seen Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred? It's great and designed for people who don't have a lot of time. Check it out, HIGHLY recommeded - Amazon.com: Jillian Michaels - 30 Day Shred: Jillian Michaels, Andrea Ambandos: Movies & TV If I remember correctly, there are 3 different levels. I got addicted to Zumba and BodyCombat and haven't had a chance to try levels 2 and 3 but I heard they're brutal.

[Dodgerchick]

dola,

I didn't do squat excercise-wise last week, for shame. I'm planning on going to BodyCombat tonight though.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by Dodgerchick

Have you seen Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred? It's great and designed for people who don't have a lot of time. Check it out, HIGHLY recommeded - Amazon.com: Jillian Michaels - 30 Day Shred: Jillian Michaels, Andrea Ambandos: Movies & TV If I remember correctly, there are 3 different levels. I got addicted to Zumba and BodyCombat and haven't had a chance to try levels 2 and 3 but I heard they're brutal.

Cool. Will check it out - thanks DC.

New plan today: 5 minutes of intense cardio on the elliptical followed by 30mins of weightlifting (alternating days between chest+back/arms/legs), followed by 28 minutes of cardio on the elliptical.

Did legs today, and let me tell you, the cardio at the end was intense.

I'm going to lose this last 20 fucking pounds.

[DaddyTorgo]

So I ate my full lunch (and I've eaten totally 100% normal for the day) and I'm still like starving. That tells me that workout was really really good.

Yay!

[Dodgerchick]

DT, you've been doing such a good job, I know you can do it!

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by Dodgerchick

DT, you've been doing such a good job, I know you can do it!

Oh I totally will do it. I'm not even letting myself like...celebrate now. I tell my mother how much I've lost and she's like "that's so great...i'm so proud of you" and I'm like "proud of me? I'm only 75% of the way there. Be proud of me when I'm done." Failure is not an option.

Vigilence - that's the key. And healthy self-disgust. I still look at myself in the mirror and go "eh...how's it goin there fatty?"

That being said, am I happy that my belly is not as disgusting as it once was and I don't get winded walking up the stairs in the parking garage to my car...well of course yeah.

But if I start to think about slipping...I slap myself back with a firm hand.

[DaddyTorgo]

Started to feel really crappy...headache and stuff. Not sure if it was dehydration or eye-strain or lack of food, but I just addressed all of it and now I feel much better.

Just hope I didn't overeat...had an extra handful of goldfish while my dinner was heating up.

Silly yes, but that's how controlled I am, that I'm worried about that.

[DaddyTorgo]

204.8 this morning. Keeping a close eye on this - I'm all for the long-term, but I'm only like 2 months or so away from my end-goal in terms of a final number and I don't want to stretch that out because of the long-term at this point (I can always transition to weights+cardio as a maintenance thing once i get to my end goal)

[TargetPractice6]

DT, I think you're doing the right thing by continuing to get some strength training and listening to your body by eating when you're hungry. If you just do 100% cardio and starve yourself into calorie deficit all the time you'll continue to see "the number" go down but the weight you're losing could be up to 60% muscle.

I have a scale that gives me a body fat figure, and while I'm sure it's not too accurate, it does help a bit psychologically on days I'm up weight. Today for instance I'm up 3 pounds or so, but my body fat percentage didn't really change. I lifted yesterday and really ate about twice what I'd normally eat because I was just so hungry all day. Sometimes it also just feels nice to be full and makes the diet easier in the subsequent days.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by TargetPractice6

DT, I think you're doing the right thing by continuing to get some strength training and listening to your body by eating when you're hungry. If you just do 100% cardio and starve yourself into calorie deficit all the time you'll continue to see "the number" go down but the weight you're losing could be up to 60% muscle.

I have a scale that gives me a body fat figure, and while I'm sure it's not too accurate, it does help a bit psychologically on days I'm up weight. Today for instance I'm up 3 pounds or so, but my body fat percentage didn't really change. I lifted yesterday and really ate about twice what I'd normally eat because I was just so hungry all day. Sometimes it also just feels nice to be full and makes the diet easier in the subsequent days.

Yeah - I've got a fancy scale that does body fat and everything too. I was tracking all the numbers on a daily basis, but over time I got lazy and just look at the weight every morning.

You're right though that as long as I'm doing the strength training I should start looking at all that stuff again (including like my resting metabolism...be nice to watch that number go up as confirmation that I'm building the muscle too).

[DaddyTorgo]

204.8 this morning. So at least that's staying consistent the past couple days and not creeping up anymore.

Wonder how long it'll take to see actual weight lost and get back heading down with this new program...

[Mustang]

Lost enough weight where I had to go down 2 pants sizes so.. I'm happy.

DT, you mention goldfish, are you much of a rice cake person? The smallish flavored rice cakes (not the big coaster size ones) aren't half bad.. About 18 of them are the same serving size as around 24-25 goldfish. I was getting burned out on some of my usuals so, had to find something different.

[DaddyTorgo]

204 this morning. Might this be the start of a new downward trend? Or just a 0.8lb fluctuation?

Guess we'll see over the coming days.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by Mustang

Lost enough weight where I had to go down 2 pants sizes so.. I'm happy.

DT, you mention goldfish, are you much of a rice cake person? The smallish flavored rice cakes (not the big coaster size ones) aren't half bad.. About 18 of them are the same serving size as around 24-25 goldfish. I was getting burned out on some of my usuals so, had to find something different.

Interesting. I've never really given rice cakes much of a try - perhaps I should pick up a pack when I'm at the store the next time. Certainly can't hurt.

[TargetPractice6]

Good idea with the rice cakes. I used to munch on those back in the day but kind of forgot about them.

I've been digging on those mini bags of popcorn when I want a salty snack lately. They're only 100 calories per bag and it at least seems like I'm getting to eat a lot, though I know it's mostly air. Sometimes I throw it some almonds and dried cranberries when it tastes a bit too plain.

[DaddyTorgo]

Yes - 100 calorie bags of popcorn are a good snack - the popcorn is very airy so I agree TP - it always seems to fill me up really well too.

203.2 this morning. Back-to-back 0.8lb days. Maybe the start of a new downward trend? I can only hope!

[hoopsguy]

Mid-month update:

The bruised heel has kept me from getting any exercise for a couple of weeks now. I'll be getting on the treadmill tomorrow, but it will have been 16 days without that burn.

So to counter that, I've gotten considerably more aware of portion control (did some last month, more this month) and making better choices for food. My family sent me to pick up food at Portillo's on Sunday night, and I got a caesar salad (only used half the dressing) instead of an italian beef sandwich + a piece of cake. I had heard the salads were good there, but the beef is awesome and I've never deviated from that as my order there over the past 10 years.

Down to 181.8 this morning, which is down 2.3 pounds. I would be thrilled to get down under 180 by the end of this month, but even if I keep it here it would be a pretty good month considering the loss of exercise time earlier in the month. I don't think I'm out of the woods with this injury just yet (feels pretty good without shoes, not so good with shoes) but I need to get back to exercising so will push it a bit tomorrow.

[DaddyTorgo]

Pretty discouraged about the whole "lift weights to lose weight" thing at the moment. Let me clarify that - I know that medically speaking it is the right way to go about things, and it's proven to work and everything, but it didn't have anything to do with my dropping 60lbs, and it hasn't worked for me yet, whereas consistent cardio still seems to work.

It's been ~ 3 weeks now and I haven't seen any consistent weight loss from it (I did go down a couple pounds, but then went right back up), and haven't seen any change in my metabolism or body fat %, or skeletal muscle % over the past week-plus.

Traveled on Wednesday all day so I couldn't work out. Worked from home yesterday. Hopped on the elliptical in the apartment building's workout-room for my old 45-minute stretch...down 2.2lbs this morning.

Small sample size and all that, but I'm really thinking I should just go back to straight-cardio to lose the last 20lbs (literally I have 20 more lbs to lose), and then transition over to weight-lifting for the maintenance. 20lbs is not that much. Maybe like 2.5 months. Means I could be basically done with my diet by the time my sister and nieces come to town this summer (and yes...my niece saying I looked like I was pregnant was pretty much the largest single motivator of my losing all this weight - I didn't want to be "the fat jolly uncle").

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by hoopsguy

Mid-month update:

The bruised heel has kept me from getting any exercise for a couple of weeks now. I'll be getting on the treadmill tomorrow, but it will have been 16 days without that burn.

So to counter that, I've gotten considerably more aware of portion control (did some last month, more this month) and making better choices for food. My family sent me to pick up food at Portillo's on Sunday night, and I got a caesar salad (only used half the dressing) instead of an italian beef sandwich + a piece of cake. I had heard the salads were good there, but the beef is awesome and I've never deviated from that as my order there over the past 10 years.

Down to 181.8 this morning, which is down 2.3 pounds. I would be thrilled to get down under 180 by the end of this month, but even if I keep it here it would be a pretty good month considering the loss of exercise time earlier in the month. I don't think I'm out of the woods with this injury just yet (feels pretty good without shoes, not so good with shoes) but I need to get back to exercising so will push it a bit tomorrow.

way to go hoops!!

Yeah - portion control is the #1 thing.

[TargetPractice6]

DT, depending on how tall you are, you might be surprised to find when you get to 180, especially on diet and cardio alone, that that 20lbs isn't all you can lose. Having such a hard and fast goal tends to have the effect that once you reach it there is a strong temptation to consider your weight loss journey as complete and relax on the good habits that got you there in the first place.

I still recommend finding a healthy routine (that includes some resistance training) that you can sustain indefinitely then let your weight end up wherever it may. That may be 180lbs, but unless you are 6'3"+ or have some significant musculature you'll probably still have some body fat you could lose. I'm about 6 foot and 180 was my original goal starting at 250, but even being below 170 currently I still feel I have 10lbs of body fat I could reasonably drop.

[TargetPractice6]

Dola,

I just want to clarify that I don't mean do a ton of resistance work if you hate it. The real trick is to do what you like and can sustain in the long run. However, say one 30 minute strength training session a week focusing on the muscle groups your cardio doesn't hit will help you perform better and reduce the risk of injury in your aerobic sessions.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by TargetPractice6

DT, depending on how tall you are, you might be surprised to find when you get to 180, especially on diet and cardio alone, that that 20lbs isn't all you can lose. Having such a hard and fast goal tends to have the effect that once you reach it there is a strong temptation to consider your weight loss journey as complete and relax on the good habits that got you there in the first place.

I still recommend finding a healthy routine (that includes some resistance training) that you can sustain indefinitely then let your weight end up wherever it may. That may be 180lbs, but unless you are 6'3"+ or have some significant musculature you'll probably still have some body fat you could lose. I'm about 6 foot and 180 was my original goal starting at 250, but even being below 170 currently I still feel I have 10lbs of body fat I could reasonably drop.

Well yes - I certainly hope that this is the case! But I figured 180 was a good like...MINIMUM goal.

I know...I know...I probably should find a routine that includes some resistance training...but I kind of want to wait until I get down around that 180 mark to do that, because then I'll feel like I've really accomplished something. Right now I just feel like I'm less disgustingly fat.

I had switched it up and was doing (everyday) 5 mins of cardio, then 30 mins of lifting (alternating between chest+back/arms/legs every 3 days), then 28 more minutes of cardio after the lifting, but I just wasn't seeing it having any effect...which, having come down from 260 and still having a ways to go, was not something that I'm willing to accept in the short term. Especially because it seems like with that level of resistance + cardio I ought to have been seeing SOMETHING happening.

Not that I'm addicted to losing the weight or whatever, but for psychological purposes I need to see the number going down consistently at least until I get around that 180 mark where then I can build in more weight training and "ease myself down" to my final end weight.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by TargetPractice6

Dola,

I just want to clarify that I don't mean do a ton of resistance work if you hate it. The real trick is to do what you like and can sustain in the long run. However, say one 30 minute strength training session a week focusing on the muscle groups your cardio doesn't hit will help you perform better and reduce the risk of injury in your aerobic sessions.

I don't mind the weights at all. I actually like them - I used to work out more back in my college days, and I always liked the weights more than the cardio actually.

[DaddyTorgo]

201.8 this morning.

Yay! New low!

[TargetPractice6]

Nice job!

I think I misunderstood just how much resistance training you're doing. In that case I totally agree that skewing more towards cardio would be better for weight loss. Giving your muscles a couple days to adapt after lifting would also help you get the full benefit from each workout. You'd probably be fine doing that 5+30+28 routine 2-3 times a week and 30-60 minutes of cardio 3-5 times a week.

Just for reference, my breakdown this year is about 87% cardio (mostly running and swimming) and 13% strength.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by TargetPractice6

Nice job!

I think I misunderstood just how much resistance training you're doing. In that case I totally agree that skewing more towards cardio would be better for weight loss. Giving your muscles a couple days to adapt after lifting would also help you get the full benefit from each workout. You'd probably be fine doing that 5+30+28 routine 2-3 times a week and 30-60 minutes of cardio 3-5 times a week.

Just for reference, my breakdown this year is about 87% cardio (mostly running and swimming) and 13% strength.

Aaah...cool. I guess I need to craft a strength-package that I can do 2-3 times a week and hit all the muscle groups then. Right now I have 3 different ones, so that's why I was doing them each 2x a week.

Goodstuff!

[TargetPractice6]

You could try doing each of them just once a week instead. I was doing P90X for couple months and it has pretty much that exact schedule: chest+back/arms/legs once a week, with the rest being cardio, yoga and shit.