Need some Diet and Exercise Advice Please!

[Bourne Identity]

I am 29 years old, 5'11" 258 pounds right now. I know that sounds like a whole lot (and it is), but most people think I am lying when I say how much I weigh. I carry my weight pretty evenly. Believe it or not I can still run a 50 yard dash in under 5 seconds. When I was younger I was a very fit 219 pounds and was an amateur boxer.

Anyway, I want to get back to my old weight so I can not only look better but feel better and be more effective at my job. Any advice for getting back on a routine where I can still eat decent amounts of food without starving myself for a diet? What sort of exercise should I start with? I just want to tone up and lose the midsection weight. Any advice is appreciated.

[quedog02]

4-5 times a week in the morning on an empty stomach either treadmill or exercise bike or whatever equipment that you want to do, since your 29 lets do the math here 220-29= 191 now take 191*.70 = 133 and 191*75= 143
191*.80= 152.....Ok so when you do the exercise your heart rate should be in bewteen 133-148, lets not try to go over 150 because your overdoing it. Alot of people think that the harder you are working the more the weight it will come off, when doing this your only burning up your carbs and not your fat enzymes. Lets try and do 25minfor the first week or you can do 30min but no more than that. Now to your diet try to limit your carb intake to about 200grams a day and lets increase your healthy fats ie..flaxseed oil....cashews....olive oil...and even some natty penut butter. You can snack on the nuts so you wont be starvin...Also try to get in you fruits and and jucies you drink in by 6pm at night. So for example you have a juicy steak infront of you for dinner just add some veggies with it and a salad and you will be alright. Limit your carb intake at night time metablism slows down at night. Protein intake you can increase that eating chicken breast....egg...whites...shakes in water.....All of your carbs need to be complex ie oats...potates.....brown rice..... Hit the weights 3 times a week high reps. 8-12 also the first month you might not loose any weight dont get discourage its just the muscle your gonna be puttin on. but you will trim the fat. Drink Water daily 1gallon and a half a day that will help you as well. Follow these rules and you will see results. any more questions i can assit with?

[navy80]

I'm a former wrestler so i know a thing or two about losing wieght. Here's my advice.
1. Lay off the soda, beer, and fast foods, basically you know whats bad for u
2. Workout as much as you can. You can even work out on your lunch break. For losing weight dont do weights, stick to cardio. Put on some sweats and make sure you sweat and keep sweating. After your done working out dont gulp down a bucket of water. Stay hydrated of course but alot of guys drink alot of water soon as there done. Hold off on it, it will be hard but it works.

Although my ways of losing weight are differ from quedogs, mine will work. your a former boxer so you know it takes alot of discipline to lose weight. I am in Kuwait right now. I came here weighing 182 and i weigh 158 right now. I did exactly what i just told you and it works. Bigger guys lose weight easier because they have more to lose. Even if your watching tv at night during commercials do some situps or pushups. Good Luck

[TireMan]

CARDIO!

Run 5 times a week. Eat a quasi atkins diet. No carbs, no SUGAR, drink milk and lots of water. lots of protien, meat, cheese, cottagte cheese, don't worry about the fat.

No sugar is the key!Your body won't need to make insulin to store the sugar as fat. You will be forced to burn fat all the time.
Eat 5+times a day. Eat as much as you want.
This works, and your not hungry or thirsty. The pounds will melt fast.
BUT, there are draw backs---> 1. you will become very irritable with the lack of sugar. 2. This is not a good sustainment diet. it burns fat fast but if you get off it, it might come back.
Like i said before eat all you want, or your body will go into survival mode.
Use this if you want to loose weight quick and not starve. But if you have a lot of time just take your time and eat sensibly and do lots of cardio.

Also you can eat vegetables, just not white potatos or fruit. fruit is packed with sugar. BY THE WAY I'M NOT A PRO, I'M NOT CLAIMING THIS IS HEALTHY.
One rule of thumb is eat nothing that is man made.
GOOD LUCK!

[JSD73]

Not trying to criticize BUT if you do as the above poster mentions then yes, you will lose weight but you stand a bigger chance of gaining most of it back if not more than you had before. The problem lies with the Atkins or CKD diets is that carbohydrates are a necessary source of fuel for the brain and the body. There seems to be a misconception that if you eat all you want and it's only protein then you won't get fat.......wrong! You must consume less calories than you are expending in order to lose weight...9 calories per gram of fat, and 4 calories per gram of protein and carbs....if you are eating more than you expend you will gain weight no matter what.

If you choose an Atkins type diet, don't cut out all your carbs..eat fibrous carbs, that is, asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower, celery and so forth...the body cannot break it down and they make you feel fuller. Leave yourself a cheat day, it's necessary..once a week treat yourself , reward yourself....oh and another nice rule of thumb is, don't eat carbs after 6 pm...but don't be afraid of them.

The downfall with the no carb diets is that once people reach their desired level of weight loss they jump right up on the carbs and the body has been depleted of these for so long you get what's called supercompensation in which it will suck up every last bit of them, refuel your glycogen stores and if there's anywhere else, store it away as fat. The key is to reintroduce carbohydrates slowly and moderately...not all at once...shocking the body and yourself into a nice new fatter you.

It's not about running five days a week, and personally I don't believe running is an effective fat burner...how many out of shape flabby people do you see running every day or even in the marathons? A HIIT type program, first thing in the morning on an empty stomach is probably the most effective...but following a long term, sensible non kamikaze approach is the most effective way to permanent weight loss....just remember, you don't lose the fat cells, they are always there...they merely shrink and just like muscle has memory, so do your little chubby cells.

Oh and I notice you said, you "just want to lose the midsection weight". Hate to break it to you but fat on the body doesn't come off in the same order in which it was put on, meaning, you may have developed fat around your abs first, followed by arm fat and chest deposits....when losing weight, it's a cumulative effect...all over and not in the order in which you might want.

If you want an easy way to learn how to lose weight I'd suggest buying Body For Life....good lifestyle and meal guidelines.

[navy80]

I think you lose your breast first when you lose weight.

[sorral]

At 5'7" I used to be 245 lbs. now I am about 195. What I did was to first change from regular to diet soda. That saves me a few hundred empty calories a day. Then, I started to eat a power bar instead of regular candy bars when I wanted a chocolate fix. I also try to eat a big salad before dinner, it fills me up a bit, with veggies, then I have a smaller portion of what ever I want for dinner.

As far as diet goes, don't starve yourself, just find ways that you can still make your mouth happy, but isn't killing your waist line.

Don't pay attention to a scale. When I first started out, I gained 5 lbs, but my pants were looser, you can loose fat and gain muscle. Muscle is more dense than fat.

Good luck and don't get discouraged!!

[PPatience]

I took a diploma in fitness and nutrition...

first, u have to know the percent of ur body fat.. i havent seen u, but maybe you have big muscles and this adds to ur weight a lot..

Second, we all know what contains high calories like soda, donuts, fast food, ...etc i know it is hardly not to use this while u r on duty, but making some healthy sanwiches ( contains whole wheat, vegetables, low or non fat products... ) will help u through out the day..

Third Cardio, u loose weight by making ur physical activity more than the calories u are taking so the body would turn to its fat to use it for energy.. so do cardio 3-5 times a day according to ur fitness...

if u r active and fit but u r gaining weight then ur calories intake are more than ur body needs...

Weightlifting and kickboxing burns a lot of calories too... going to the qym just for running on a treadmill wont be as effective as a workout that includes weights...

the best way to do ur aerobics workout, instead of ur the treadmill is kickboxing or any martial art esp that you are a cop and need this much....

Finally, we all know what makes our bodies gain weight and what will help reducing it, the problem usually lies in the program and the time organisation, so write down everything about this issue, ur feelings about ur weight now and how do u think u will look like in 5 years if u didnt do anything about it, then what will be ur feelings if u lost that way and how u will look like in 5 years if u started ur workout from now... then put a program and promise to apply it on ur daily routine...

Best Wishes...

[Bourne Identity]

Thanks for the great advice guys! I'm officially starting this week so wish me luck Thanks again.

[tacmedic141]

I guess I don't have much more to contribute than has already been said. So this is my 2 cents
I apply the principles of trying to eat 4 or 5 small meals a day if possible, while trying to keep my fat intake low through eating lean chicken or fish, fat free cottage cheese, protein meal replacement bars(make sure you check the nutrional content), various vegies, and to get my share of carbs I stick with 100% whole wheat or or whole grains, no enriched or bleached flour allowed. If you need a pop, stick with diet, but water with those iced tea packets work well and keep the sugar content down easy to take on the road and meant for use with bottles.
The hardest part for me is to avoid beer(very bad) but if you need a drink bacardi diet is not overly bad. 60 cals and no carbs I believe.
For physical activity I would suggest lots of cardio, preferably right after you wake up. You will have less carbs to burn through before you start burning fat. I prefer running, but I have been a lifelong avid runner. Nothing better than strapping on an mp3 player with your favorite tunes and going for a nice run. But do whatever will keep you into working out, change it up if you find yourself getting bored. Don't forget a good fast paced lifting routine will also burn calories, if you stick with higher reps you may avoid gaining muscle weight.

[aftermath]

4-5 times a week in the morning on an empty stomach either treadmill or exercise bike or whatever equipment that you want to do, since your 29 lets do the math here 220-29= 191 now take 191*.70 = 133 and 191*75= 143
191*.80= 152.....Ok so when you do the exercise your heart rate should be in bewteen 133-148, lets not try to go over 150 because your overdoing it. Alot of people think that the harder you are working the more the weight it will come off, when doing this your only burning up your carbs and not your fat enzymes. Lets try and do 25minfor the first week or you can do 30min but no more than that. Now to your diet try to limit your carb intake to about 200grams a day and lets increase your healthy fats ie..flaxseed oil....cashews....olive oil...and even some natty penut butter. You can snack on the nuts so you wont be starvin...Also try to get in you fruits and and jucies you drink in by 6pm at night. So for example you have a juicy steak infront of you for dinner just add some veggies with it and a salad and you will be alright. Limit your carb intake at night time metablism slows down at night. Protein intake you can increase that eating chicken breast....egg...whites...shakes in water.....All of your carbs need to be complex ie oats...potates.....brown rice..... Hit the weights 3 times a week high reps. 8-12 also the first month you might not loose any weight dont get discourage its just the muscle your gonna be puttin on. but you will trim the fat. Drink Water daily 1gallon and a half a day that will help you as well. Follow these rules and you will see results. any more questions i can assit with?

Speaking as a former Trainer, this would be the best program listed while incorporating the HIIT cardio as mentioned in another post. Losing weight like a wrestler is just asking to screw your metabolism and put on more weight. I know, I was one. I put on 30 lbs after I stopped wrestling. The atkins diet? Forces your body into ketosis. Not a bad thing, but if you don't incorporate carbs back into it properly, turns into a clusterf---. Eat smart, increase protein, lower carbs, increase good fats. HIIT and weight training and you'll be good to go. I'd suggest adding protein shakes if you haven't to get the recommended 1-1.5g protein per lb. of body weight. Questions, pm me.

[signal1]

I think you lose your breast first when you lose weight.

I hope so!! It was either hit the gym again or buy a training bra. The bra would be cheaper but not so "manly"!!

[Adp1984]

I am 29 years old, 5'11" 258 pounds right now. I know that sounds like a whole lot (and it is), but most people think I am lying when I say how much I weigh. I carry my weight pretty evenly. Believe it or not I can still run a 50 yard dash in under 5 seconds. When I was younger I was a very fit 219 pounds and was an amateur boxer.

Anyway, I want to get back to my old weight so I can not only look better but feel better and be more effective at my job. Any advice for getting back on a routine where I can still eat decent amounts of food without starving myself for a diet? What sort of exercise should I start with? I just want to tone up and lose the midsection weight. Any advice is appreciated.

I wieght 298 and im 5'9 and still physically fit.

[JSD73]

I wieght 298 and im 5'9 and still physically fit.

Ronnie? Is that you??




Just a little BBer humor...ahem

[GPOC]

Believe it or not I can still run a 50 yard dash in under 5 seconds.

I actually don't believe it, due to that being world class speed