New Years Weight Loss Program

[irregularjoe]

OK. So just like most people I've resolved to cull a few pounds this year.

Actually I committed to that project last Nov. 12. ..... 25 lbs to be exact. When I recently bought a new battery for the scale it dawned on me that November was probably NOT a good time to start a diet. I've now adjusted my goals to first get down to the Nov. 12th weight again.

So how are you all doing?

Joe

Edited January 5, 2010 by irregularjoe

[darcyhayden]

Technically speaking, losing weight is simple -- just cut your daily intake of calories and exercise more. When your organism finds it cannot extract the necessary energy from the food you consume, it will start burning the fat deposits in waist and other parts of your body. So, the most natural way to lose weight is to keep to a diet, which reduces the energy your consume and do regular exercises to burn energy.

OK. So just like most people I've resolved to cull a few pounds this year.

Actually I committed to that project last Nov. 12. ..... 25 lbs to be exact. When I recently bought a new battery for the scale it dawned on me that November was probably NOT a good time to start a diet. I've now adjusted my goals to first get down to the Nov. 12th weight again.

So how are you all doing?

Joe

[Pete_C]

Well, I never thought I was overweight; but a couple months ago My OL and I started a program of taking the dogs for a walk around the block every morning. I would take two and she would take one . But since we have five dogs we either had to alternate dogs, or I would take the other two for a walk after we returned.

Then for various reasons she decided she preferred not to take a dog , so I moved to taking three at a time., taking the youngest dog (the new husky) on both walks.

Eventually this evolved into I take the three youngest (the husky, ridgeback pitt, and the german shepherd) for a three mile run and then come back and take the OL and the two older dogs and the husky for a half mile walk (good cool down for me). I have lost ten pounds in six weeks.

Then we eat breakfast.

I remember back in Basic Training that they woke us up at Oh Dark Thirty and made us do PT and run before breakfast. I always thought this was just to be sadistic as my stomach was growling and I was feeling ravenously hungry long before we were done. Now I realize that there was sound science behind it all.

Have you ever been exercising / running and you are out of breath and think you cannot go on and then you get your "second wind" and feel you can go on forever?

Well this is because it takes more oxygen to burn sugar for energy than it takes to burn fat to create the same amount of energy. So when you are exercising and pushing it and you are burning sugar you are quickly pushing your ability to take in fresh oxygen to its limits. But eventually you burn out al lthe stored glucose and glycogen (strung together glucose molecules which split down into glucose to fuel muscles) in your muscles and they start burning fat. This changes your whole metabolism for hours to come, you continue to burn fats instead of sugar for fuel until your body restocks the sugar and the metabolism slows to the point where it no longer sustains burning fat. By exercising before you eat; you hit this transition sooner.

Okay so any other tip?

Well I have a treadmill, stationary bike, cardio glider, and weights in the exercise room along with a tv with dvd player and vcr so I can watch something while exercising when it is not good weather to exercise outside. I find that If I have a movie playing, the time passes and I find I have done a half hour on the bike or treadmill before I know it. I situated this exercise room in the room I have to pass through on the way to the kitchen, This way if I find myself heading to the kitchen for a "boredom snack" do a quick thirty reps on the cardio glider, or weights or ride the bike for a few minutes before I go into the kitchen. Often just doing the exercise is enough to make me no longer feel the urge to make a snack.

But if you do snack (and this applies to meals too) try to have more bulk and less calories. Find something you can live with like fat free yogurt or cottage cheese and fruit (canned , in a jar ....all are fine) , Salads ( but watch the dressing) are another good option.

Ever notice how starches get hard (firm) when chillled? IE leftover rice is hard when cold, same with the potatoes in potato salad, much harder cold than hot? There is actually a chemical transformation of the starch at low temps and it will take longer to digest than hot soft starches. But a real tip is that natural apple cider vinegar (the kind with live mother) will slow the digestive enzyme that breaks starch down into sugar in your gut. Hence a teaspoon of fresh live vinegar in a glass of tea , or on a salad before you eat a starchy meal will make it digest more slowly . This will prevent the surge and sag in blood sugar that makes you over produce insulin and store the excess sugar as fat and then get hungry again in an hour or two . You feel full longer and your blood sugar remains stable. And increase the amount of complex starches (dried beans) and soluble fiber (oatmeal for example, and apple pectin)

Soluble fiber absorbs bile acids (which are made from cholesterol and fats to absorb fats in your diet into your blood) and cause you to pass them out rather than re absorb them.

Much much more, but have to go get another bowl of chili with kidney beans.

[hitest]

I *was* doing quite well with losing weight, I was down about 33 pounds. However, my resolve slipped over the summer months:) I'm back on the right path again, slowly losing the poundage.

[Pete_C]

I *was* doing quite well with losing weight, I was down about 33 pounds. However, my resolve slipped over the summer months:) I'm back on the right path again, slowly losing the poundage.

Slow is the key; it often takes as long as if not longer to loose excess weight as it took to gain it.

The other day someone I had not seen in a while asked if I was putting on weight. I said no, I was loosing it. Since I knew I had lost weight since they last saw me I was a bit confused and mentioned it to the OL. She pointed out that all this walking has toned my legs and butt and caused my lungs to expand (and my arms and shoulders have grown because the husky likes to run in circles around us as we jog along so I have to keep raising my arm overhead and circling her lead and switching leads from left to right ). So I guess that I have lost more bad weight than I thought and put on a little muscle at the same time.

Start walking and walk as much as you can ( park further out when going to the store / mall; go on a morning and evening walk. Take stairs instead of elevators at least for a floor or two when you can). Eventually build it up to power walking or jogging. Add arm weights or soda bottles for extra workout.

[marsh_0x]

Hi Joe

As a practicing diabetic for 20 years now, shooting some heavy dosages of insulin up to 5 times a day.

Simply put is a calorie in and a calorie out, my case I lose at 2,200 and gain at 2,700.

Learned quickly, what goes in my mouth. to balance this Teeter Totter with calories consumed and burned.

Exercise is the key factor that changes the center point.

Thankfully we will see the sugar soda removed from the schools, such a waste when a can is equal to 2oz of cow (beef).

Drink a diet soda and later might have that steak.

Ovoid the butter and go with Smart Balance spread, you'll never notice a difference.

Drop the salt and use potassium (Morton Nu salt).

2% milk is a fallacy, skim milk is more important.

My 2 month coma lost 52#, 180 to 128#, to gain the weight back was struggle that took 9 months of high protein foods.

Wasn't allowed salads or vegetables being too filling, they wanted the high protein foods like hard boiled eggs snacks 2x a day, 3 meals, a snack cart to choose more.

[Pete_C]

Yep, I would rather have a steak than a soda any day. Other than morning coffee all I drink is filtered water for the most part (iced tea when I want to drink vinegar).

Speaking of which, Marsh have you discovered the benefits of live mother apple cider vinegar? There is a compound or enzyme released by the mother which slows the digestive enzyme which converts starches into sugar. A teaspoon in a glass of tea (instead of lemon) and a plate of pasta takes several hours to digest. Not quite as slow to digest as beans, but avoids the spike in sugar levels otherwise associated with starch consumption (the OL is a diabetic, but only two 40mg shots a day) . It works with breads too (although I prefer just baking my own whole grain rye).

Also , there is a little known property of most dietary starches. Ever noticed how rice and boiled potatoes get hard when refrigerated overnight? The starch actually changes when it cools down and has to get back up over about 140 to revert back. So cold pasta salad or cold potato salad actually digests much more slowly than hot pasta and hot taters. Not only that but they lend themselves well to a vinegrette with some fresh vinegar (I actually make my own , I have a two gallon jug brewing in the pantry now and several quarts which have finished the Orleans process and are bottled for consumption) and olive oil (or grapeseed if you prefer a flavorless oil).

Oh well, dogs are trying to tell me that Holiday or not they want their exercise. So I am off for my morning 3 mile run with the three youngest, then the cool down half mile walk with the oldest two.

Had to buy a new pair of running shoes on Tuesday. The youngest dog had taken chunks out of two older pair, including the most comfortable ones so I had started using an older pair which I did not recognize. I figured out later that someone had given them to me, and they were a half size too small. God but my feet hurt after wearing them all day.

[marsh_0x]

Yep, I would rather have a steak than a soda any day. Other than morning coffee all I drink is filtered water for the most part (iced tea when I want to drink vinegar).

Speaking of which, Marsh have you discovered the benefits of live mother apple cider vinegar?

Not only that but they lend themselves well to a vinegrette with some fresh vinegar (I actually make my own , I have a two gallon jug brewing in the pantry now and several quarts which have finished the Orleans process and are bottled for consumption) and olive oil (or grapeseed if you prefer a flavorless oil).

Hi Pete, yes have been using Apple vinegar for years, never thought about fermenting my own.

Yep alive is always better.

I need two quarts of diet koolaide a day to prevent dehydration, large bowels are bypassed with the bag, colon/large bowel is a drying agent for more solid stools as you know. Some vodka for pain control.

Ouch the L-Carnitine put me into severe foot pain after 3 days, confirmed after quitting it and back to normal pain using the hydro becomes bearable.

I will ask for stronger than Oxy next time.

Jogging will never happen for me, so out with the futon and in with a stationary bike in the living room, guests can use a bar stool or sit on the floor haha

Oh, a decent bag of cukes from the garden and will use apple vinegar, for refrig pickles, darn sugar needed, no way of getting around it.

Superb year of white potato's for all winter.

Is your wife getting the hbac-1 tests for the Glaciated Hemoglobin ? Unbelievable my last one was 6.1

But yesterday waking from a nap 22 blood sugar likely a record low for me without crawling to the refrigerator for sugar.

Mental confusion in a big way.

Lucky OL you have with your cooking skills, you make me hungry with OT posting what's for dinner, But I shall never return to G4...

Marsh

[Pete_C]

Have you considered one of these? THey sell them at Target, Walgrens, Aldi, Walmart....

You can set it on the floor in front of your chair and pedal away while you are at the desk, computer; or lay it on your bed and pedal while lying down watching TV (a bit more difficult but it can be done) and you can set it on a table or in your lap and use it for upper body (arm) exercise.

Go from $25 and up.

http://www.target.com/Pedal-Exerciser-%E2%80%93-%E2%80%93802-2008-0099/dp/B000BH9VCU/ref=sc_pd_gwvub_3_title

http://www.target.com/15-0125-Stamina-InStride-Folding-Cycle/dp/B0027ZNH2O/ref=sc_pd_gwvub_2_title

Even fold up and out of the way when not needed.

http://www.google.com/search?q=Stamina+cycle&hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&prmd=ivs&source=univ&tbs=shop:1&tbo=u&ei=_TW-TPDnI4S0lQeT652dCg&sa=X&oi=product_result_group&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CEUQrQQwAA#q=Stamina+cycle&hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&prmd=ivs&source=univ&tbs=shop:1,p_ord:p&ei=_TW-TPDnI4S0lQeT652dCg&sa=X&oi=product_result_group&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CEUQrQQwAA&fp=f11dbcf84774216c