The Biggest LOOSER -- running weight loss thread

I've always done well with Under Armour socks and Asics shoes.

 

In the last year, I gained probably 20 pounds, putting me above two bills for the first time in my life. I joined the gym at work, but it's been hit and miss (more miss than hit) going for the last couple months. So a month ago I went to my doctor and had him prescribe a weight-loss drug. I got phentermine, which is a controlled substance. It has worked OK at suppressing my appetite, but not enough to suit me. I've lost five to six pounds, and when my prescription is up in a couple of days, I'm going to have him put me on the higher dose that he said he would if I didn't make enough progress with what I'm on.

My goal fighting weight is 170 or a little less, which is what I weighed when I was in the best shape of my life six years ago.

 

First personal training session tonight. Will see how sore I am over the next two days. Went through about 20 exercises in an hour. Warm up on a foam roller, then a variety of stretches, then stability exercises. So far, so good. Weight is at 250; an 8 pound improvement.

 

Started my pre-cycling season bootcamp on Monday, featuring some exercises I haven't attempted since ACL replacement in 2009. My body feels like it's barely survived a trainwreck, but my spirit is soaring.

There's just something about going into the pain cave with other people that makes is easier to endure.

 

Dear Biggest Looser board,
I never thought it could happen to me, but...

40 years old. 6-foot-3, nearly 6-4. Went to the doc and was 234. What? I don't look overweight, I don't think. In pictures I look pretty much the same as always. Was 175 back in high school. 200 in 2000. And for last six seven years, always around 220. I like to think I'm only 230 because I was weighed with heavy sweatshirt, jeans, keys, cell phone, wallet...but wife doesn't believe that'd be four pounds.

Either way, would really love to lose 10-15 pounds. Like I don't really feel the weight now, but what's next? In five years it's 240? 250? Just keep getting bigger?

I feel like I have a simple solution: Cut soda. I drink 4 sodas per day, sometimes 5. Regular soda. Coke, Dr Pepper, etc. My bachelor solution back in the day if confronted would be to switch to Diet. But wife says that's terrible for me too and she says first try cutting it down to like 2. One for lunch, dinner (right now I have one in the morning, which is sometimes a Big Gulp if I go into the office, one for lunch, a snack one at 4, then dinner).

Exercise is the other thing. I play basketball from October through May, once a week for 3 hours. It's a good workout, good level of play, good cardio. I wish I played more, but since I don't I guess I'd need another exercise outlet. Problem is, I HATE running just for running (I'm with MN Gremlin with the boredom issue). On a treadmill, or stationary bike or anything. Can't do it. So boring. But maybe I have to put on my (bigger) big boy pants and suck it up. Or maybe getting one at home would help. Have gym membership to Planet fitness like 8 blocks away but even that walk drives me crazy, knowing what's waiting. But it's 10 bucks a month so we've had it for 10 years without hardly ever going.

There's also a Vitamin D deficiency on last physical that I'm taking pills for for 12 weeks so not sure if losing weight would help with that. And bad cholesterol was pretty good, good cholesterol was bit high. But doctor didn't really say I needed to lose weight or anything. Right now it's more a personal thing but want to get it before it becomes a true health/medical thing.

I still think cutting soda is the way to go. Anyone have similar cutbacks that led to weight loss? Regular diet is pretty good, nothing outrageous.

 

I'm a male on Jenny Craig, and I've got to tell ya it works! my wife does it and I started eating the food. thanks Jenny Craig

 

Dropped 35 pounds once. The major diet changes were cutting out red meat, cheese and soda. Cutting out red meat, honestly, probably didn't do much. The other two I'm sure helped though. Was amazed how many calories I wasted on soda when I calculated it all out once.

If you don't like running just to run, there's always lifting. If that also bores you, there's "boot-camp" type gyms, if that's financially doable. My friend runs one that's too far away for me to go to - but the pictures he posts always look like a lot of fun. Much more social than most gym routines.


(I should add: Cutting red meat doesn't do much since 93/7 ground beef and 93/7 ground turkey are probably equivalently healthy from a weight standpoint. If you replace high-fat meat with low-fat meat - red or otherwise - that's a good thing).

 

Well, January 1 is here. I'm horrified to say I've put on nearly 30 pounds in the last 3 1/2 years - and I work out! Carbs and alcohol.

 

Like every diet, it works as long as you do it.

Which you won't, forever.

I was on that once, and I lost weight. But after a while, I've got to tell you, I literally couldn't stand it every time I saw Jenny Craig commercials. I got to loathe them. And, of course, as soon as I stopped it, the weight came back.

Now, I wouldn't go back and spend money on all that food...if you paid me.

 

Bill Barnwell wrote about his 2015 weight loss.

 

Bravo, Bill.

Although I never really thought too much about health until I got healthy, and I don't think many overeaters do think about that stuff as much as is often stated or portrayed (or as much as Barnwell did), I and many others could and should certainly relate to the everyday victories that come in the course of a long-term weight-loss process.

The normalcy is what everyone's really after, and it's so fun/shocking/crazy when it happens. As when Barnwell was in the dressing room, trying on a medium-sized shirt -- that is so relatable. It is those times that really are reflective of progress, and it is such things that teach you that the measure of success is not, ultimately, only in the number of pounds lost.

The notches you can pull in to on a belt, the stretch-band watch that is suddenly loose around your wrist, the space between your stomach and the car steering wheel; the fact that you can climb stairs easily when you never could before; that you can bend to tie your shoes instead of having to sit down to do it; the ease with which you step out of bed now, instead of rolling out of bed, or even just clean yourself after, um, using the restroom; as well as how you can now laugh at how many clothes you can find and buy; how fun shopping can actually be when you can fit into pretty much whatever you might want to wear; and the way you marvel -- actually marvel -- that you are driving past an up-close parking place and taking a far-away spot because that's what you actually want are all some of really neat indications that you and your life are changing for the better.

Again, way to go, Bill.

 

That's a crazy amount of weight to lose in such a short period but good for him. It's all about routine and it's amazing what you don't miss.

I've definitely slipped in terms of the diet in the past few months. I started a new job with a great subsidized cafeteria and have indulged in bad choices. Even though I am still doing a lot of cardio, the weight has crept up about 13-15 pounds.

Going to go back to the South Beach diet, but not hardcore until after Super Bowl (I have an annual guys weekend). Then after that weekend, I am going to do their phase 1 for a couple of weeks. I'm also cutting out alcohol for the month. I drank way too often and too much over the holidays and decided during the Jets debacle to have my last glass of wine until I get to Vegas for Super Bowl weekend.