Help keep me on track!!

Soldato
Joined
15 Feb 2003
Posts
8,327
Location
NJ/NY, USA
Having previously battled with my weight on and off and coming close to making some decent progress a couple of years ago when I first bought my Concept 2 rowing machine I've decided to make a a concerted effort again to shed some of my excess weight.

This will probably turn into a but of a ramble but I plan on posting back periodically and having somewhere to post for inspiration (or for congratulations when it all goes to plan!) will probably help!

I'm 27, 6'1 and currently weigh 232lbs giving me a BMI of just over 30.

I bought my Concept 2 in 2009 knowing that I'd most likely find having something I could do at home more sustainable than visiting the gym. Coupled with an effort to eat more healthily I had a fairly successful 6 months during which I managed to reduce my weight from 257 to 224 lbs.

My 2009 progress:

weight2009.png


(the straight diagonal lines were my targets of between 1-2lbs per week)

I was really happy with this but after going on holiday and then moving house failed to get back into the swing of things. I've made a couple of half-hearted attempts to get going again over the following 2 years but as you can see haven't really managed and find myself after another holiday weighing in at 8lbs more than my lowest point from before.

My initial plan over the next month is to undo that, and then I aim to shed somewhere in the region of a further 28 lbs. I don't have an exact target weight in mind, I just want to be generally fitter and healthier, and losing a few inches off of my waist will be an added bonus.

I'd say most of my success before was down to watching what I was eating, as the 3 x 30 mins rowing sessions I was doing per week were never going to make a huge difference, but no doubt helped with my general fitness.

I intend to row a little more this time and have put together a 22 week plan which starts with a few weeks of longer steady pieces before mixing in some HIIT sessions. I started on Sunday with a 2 x 25' UT2 session , did a 5.6km charity run with some colleagues on Wednesday, and rowed for 50 minutes of UT2 today. I wasn't sure I'd manage today as I was suffering with a little delayed onset muscle soreness, but actually, having got on with it I felt better afterwards. I'll be doing a similar session tomorrow. The run isn't something I plan on repeating often - quite happy with the rowing (must have a high boredom tolerance :)) and will be planning on doing 3 sessions a week.

In terms of diet, to start with I'm targeting 2000 kcals per day. I've chosen a pretty arbitrary set of nutrient splits just to give me something to aim for, although don't necessarily intend on hitting these exactly - I proved to myself last time that regardless of the macronutrient split, as long as I consume less than I use, I'll make progress. Perhaps in the future I'll look to be a little more strict, but for now, I want something sustainable and which I know works for me.

I tend to cook most things from scratch myself rather than buying pre-prepared food. I also find it easier to cook up a big portion of something like Bolognese and then split it into portions to use again later rather than cook from scratch every time, but am being mindful of the ingredients, calculating portion sizes etc the first time so that I have some fairly accurate numbers to work with.

A typical day this week looks like this. I'm actually finding I really need to eat a tiny bit more to meet my consumption target. I assume it would be best to add more to my breakfast - I've always struggled to make time to eat in the mornings and skipped breakfast for many years but am making an effort now to eat something every day. Maybe I should eat a little more cereal and add a banana...

food.png


Some would probably say I'm maybe too heavy on the carbs from the bread and pasta, but this seems to have worked for me previously so for the time being I'll stick with it. The sandwiches for lunch aren't ideal but I generally eat at my desk and they're quick and easy.

Luckily I don't drink too frequently so avoiding alcohol although not always easy (occasional work events etc) isn't too much of a challenge. Coffee is my biggest vice (and I've always loved it with lots of milk!)

I'd love eventually to feel a bit more confident about myself, use a gym, swimming pool, be out and about more on a bike etc and hopefully making these first few steps (again) and sticking with it (for longer) will give me the push I need to embrace a more healthy longer term lifestyle.

I plan on posting back periodically with progress updates... please feel free to comment and offer advice!
 
Diet seems spot on, carb wise I keep it to a what I feel I need, sometimes I will go and exercise run/cycle and get back and have some carbs (brown rice, wholemeal pasta with some protien) but tbh its all being used by the body in 24 hours so I dont really care if I have it before or after.

You need to push yourself more, I have noticed this with my fitness level now, doing my usual cycle route is not challenging any more, same with running, need to further and faster. Basically its a Plateaus, your body has got use to the routine and is coasting.

Dont be a girl, get down to the gym, use it, dont be scared because you are not fit, if I had that attitude I would never of joined and would never look like I do now, 3 months in the gym can work wonders, using all the cardio stuff, weights, swimming pool, jacuzzi, its hobby going to the gym, talking to people, maybe you might bump into a friend or two.

But I am not preaching, just try what you can, see how it works after 3/4 weeks, if its working keep at it, if its not change it, its that simple. Only you can be the judge of how fit you are getting and if your body is changing.
 
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There are other reasons for not going to the gym (e.g., I spend 2.5 hours a day commuting and there isn't anywhere conveniently on route). When I find I'm not getting what I need from indoor rowing then I'll have to bite the bullet and deal with it, but at least initially I know the rowing works for me.

My exercise since starting afresh last weekend:

Sunday 3rd: 2 x 25' UT2 row (9956m)
Wednesday 6th: 5.6km run (39:20)
Saturday 9th: 50' UT2 row (8921m)
Sunday 10th: 60' UT2 row (11417m)
 
My advice: Get a second hand barbell and a little bit of weight (you really wont need much to start with as complexes are brutal ~20kg will do) and mix up your rowing with some complexes.

Very quick to do, absolutely knackering and one of/the best ways of losing fat. Link

And all you need is a few metres space to do it.
 
Good news and bad... at 2 weeks in I had lost 5 lbs. Expect this will slow a little as based on past experience the first couple of weeks always seem to produce a slightly larger loss than the following ones even with the same intake and exercise.

Bad news... my knees are not quite feeling right. I've never had an issue with rowing when I've stuck at it for 6 months on a few previous attempts. A bit frustrating - I need to pay better attention to warming up and stretching as suspect this is where I'm at fault.

My knees aren't sore as such, they just feel "uncomfy" at the front. I'm actually comfier walking and moving, the worst is when I'm stood still for a long time or when my legs are fully straight. Will rest for a couple of days then hopefully be back to it.
 
Knee still not right so going easy on the rowing, but having reasonable success through change in diet:

Code:
Date	     Weight	Weekly loss
04/07/2011	232	2.0
11/07/2011	230	3.0
18/07/2011	227	1.5
25/07/2011	225.5	2.0
01/08/2011	223.5	2.0
08/08/2011	221.5	1.5
15/08/2011	220	-

Cumulative loss: 12lbs in 6 weeks
 
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