NEW YEARS RESOLUTION WEIGHT LOSS THREAD 2012

[CFD]

Here ya go guys AND gals. For those starting out, or those who have been weight lifting but are not sure of what to do this may help. A lot of times, especially when it comes to fitness and fat loss there is so much info and so many different views(a lot of which are total crap) people REALLY want to get started but have no clue what to do or do not go about it properly this is a good starting point. Don't go to a gym and grab some dumbells and start performing hapahazard exercises or copy what the guy/gal next to you is doing because they may be completely off base as well.

This is a full body workout(there are many) which is excellent for those who don't have a lot of time or need a good starting point. I personally have been working out for a while and when I am really pressed for time because of my work schedule or just need a break from my regular routines I will resort to this


You can print this out and use it to track your progress just as you SHOULD be doing with your eating plan. Structured, deliberate and balanced workouts and diet will get you results.

Start out with light weights to get yourself familiar with the lifts and proper form, once you are confident with that increase the weight untill you can perform 6-8 reps. If you can do more tha 6-8 reps increase the weight untill 6-8 is about it. Do 3 sets of each exercise then move on to the next one. If on the 2nd or 3rd set you cannot do 6-8 reps then you are most likely using the proper weight. Perform this 2-3 times a week as time permits. As you progress you will most likely be able to do more than the 6-8 reps so don't stop do them untill you can do 10-12 in all 3 sets, once you can do this increase the weight untill you can only do 6-8 reps again and continue the process, this is known as progressive resistance and is the basis for all lifting, it is how you move forward. Some people will do heavier weight with less reps or lighter weights with more reps depending on their goals ( strength or size) but this is a great starting point.

Once you have done this for a while and become used to lifting you can move on to more advanced routines like the three day split I posted earlier. These are not "fancy" routines but are good solid workouts that will produce results.

Go on youtube and search each exercise so you know how to do them properly, this is extremely important. If you workout at a gym there are usually others around that will be willing to watch you to see if your form is right. Don't ask someone who is clanging weights around and grunting away because they are probably doing it wrong LOL

[BowtieBelle]

Originally Posted by Bonnie

Just be patient and work hard and the weight will fall off, maybe do progress pics every couple of weeks or every month, so you can see how your body has changed, measure inches too!
You go girl! I'm excited for ya!

I gotta start doing this, the measuring and pics.

Originally Posted by CFD

If you don't mind me making a few suggestions. First, right off don't expect to loose large amounts of weight quickly, it doesn't happen like that and if it does there is something wrong IE loosing lean mass not fat.

Where as you don't have your meal plan listed I am only going by what I see and that is you are restricting complex carbs to much and consuming too many simple carbs and this could explain why you're not seeing better results with fat loss.

You say your trying to eat no more than 1400 cals a day which is most likely ok but I don't see how it's possible if you are eating lots of fruits AND the biggest thing the juice. Are you adding what you are drinking to your caloric intake, YOU SHOULD BE, DO NOT DRINK YOUR CALORIES.Juices should for the most part should be avoided

Fruits are considered a healthy food BUT if your goal is fat loss, which I think is why you're here you should limit them to 1-2 pieces a day. Fruits are high in fructose, although it is natural IT IS A SUGAR.

Training 4-5 days a week is normally not to much BUT if you are training the same muscles 4-5 days a week you are not allowing adequate time for recovery, if you are recovering that quickly then you're not training hard enough. Even though your bottom half may be in great shape YOU MUST STILL WORK IT. You do not want to create muscular inbalances and muscle incinerates fat and some of our biggest muscles are in your lower body so working them ramps up fat loss.

The steady HR cardio is ok but no where as effective as HIIT. Basically this is where you will do your cardio for 5-10 min warm-up then increase it to a level where you are pushing hard for a min or 2 depending on your fitness level, then go at a reduced rate for a min or 2 to recouperate and then repeat. In a session of 20-30 min you will burn many more cals than steady HR and the cal burn will extend way past your workout.

If you are going to train 4-5 days a week you may want to try a schedule like this, weightlifting, next day HIIT, then lifting then HIIT. If you find this to much you can throw a rest day in between then resume the schedule When you do your lifting due whole body workouts, this will train every muscle group and still allow for adequate recovery.

I hope this makes sense to you, if anything needs clearification let me know and I will explain.

When I get home later I will post a whole body workout so you will have an idea of how it is structured

When I say lots of fruits... I mean like a banana or apple a day-- I guess I call it lots because besides strawberries I've never really eaten fruit, so going from that to every day seems like a lot.

I am adding in what I drink. Same with juices; I drink a full glass of V8 Splash a day and I've never liked juices before, so again, this is new for me and I say 'a lot.'

I started out doing what you are talking about; running for a couple minutes, then fast walking for a couple minutes, etc-- alternating. The trainer said I just needed to keep my heart rate above 130, so I was trying for a constant HR but I like the other way (your way) better so I will go back to that. I've also been trying to do some lifting on the lower-body machines. I just hate when my legs get too muscled because they bulk up and I don't like the way it looks-- I'm very picky about my legs. Please continue with your thoughts, suggestions and ideas. I love it! Thank you!!!!

Originally Posted by badgebunny

Also Sarah if you have gone from doing nothing to working out it may take a month for your body to really start letting go of the weight. Be patient! Like Bonnie suggested, take pics once a week on the same day. That helped me alot in the past.

I'll do that, starting today!

Originally Posted by Bonnie

Sarah, listen to CFD, he is absolutley right, the man knows his stuff!




On a side note.........

the little Pac-Man Guys are CHOMPING!!!!!

I'm so hungry and I just ate my third meal an 45 min. ago! :(

[bossbunny]

I would probably give a trainer a heart attack. I like to keep my heart rate around 150 -180.

[CFD]

Originally Posted by Jeffm

Yes that is what i am trying to say, I know it wont be next week and it may not be exactly one hour but i have been able to do it before. Just gonna post a couple from Jan 2010:

01/20/10: duration today 1hr 30mins, 1130 calories burned, Mar HR 172, Avg HR 142. Lots of work today learning to run again, lots of abs, lots of weights, lots of sweat, lots of pain, bring it on.

01/27/10 Went to gym got a late start due to trainer not being able to get there at 1pm. weighed in down to 342 pounds with 8lbs lost since my last official weighin. total of 70lbs lost so far. New Goal of hitting 100 lbs lost by march 30 lbs in 2 months I think i can do it. Thanks for all the support these last few months and please dont stop.

01/28/10: Rode 20 miles today, burned 1125 Calories, Avg HR 128, Max Hr 162. first time to hit 20 miles did it in 1hr 40mins.

This is what i want to get back to, I know some of you are doing this with ease, but i am looking at a long hard row back to doing this.. Thanks again for all your support.

That's what I thought you meant. Here are my views for what they are worth. I am assuming that the cals burned are from a reading on what ever exercise equipment you are using as these are usually high. 1000 cals in an hour is a lot, I am quite fit for a guy of 57 lol and if I perform cardio at a vigourous rate I don't burn that many cals. There are two hormone types usually associated with working out, anabolic hormones (growth hormones and testosterone) and catabolic hormones (one of which is cortisol) Anabolic hormones build muscle, catabolic hormones BREAK DOWN MUSCLE. If you are exercising strenuously, after about an hour your body switches from an anabolic state( muscle building) to a catabolic state, when your body is in a catabolic state high levels of cortisol break down your muscle(not the same as tearing and repairing,which is how muscle gets bigger) and promote fat retention. In a way it is counterproductive. Normally I try to keep workouts from 45-60 min as this is about the limit before you switch from anabolic to catabolic. If I am cutting and doing both cardio and weight lifting in the same day, I do cardio earlier, preferabaly first thing in the am and lifting in the afternoon, this gives me the extra calorie burn but helps prevent me from becoming catabolic. This is also a much better approach as you boost your metabolism like crazy but I don't continue it for lengthy amounts of time as you get burned out after a while. Also doing this I actually increase calorie intake to support the strenuous workouts. You burn fat through exercise and feed your muscles with nutrition. This is why you keep records of what you eat and track your results, that way you can feed your muscles adequately but not excessively so you don't store fat that you worked so hard to get rid of.

[Jeffm]

I work 12 hr shifts so i have to get my workouts at one time. I use a Polar F6 Heart Rat Monitor watch with the strap and seems to be pretty accurate from everything i have read. when i had my dietitian we worked together to try to keep my Calories between 1800 and 2000.

So do you suggest a higher resistance than longer workout?

[CFD]

Originally Posted by BowtieBelle

I gotta start doing this, the measuring and pics.



When I say lots of fruits... I mean like a banana or apple a day-- I guess I call it lots because besides strawberries I've never really eaten fruit, so going from that to every day seems like a lot.

I am adding in what I drink. Same with juices; I drink a full glass of V8 Splash a day and I've never liked juices before, so again, this is new for me and I say 'a lot.'

I started out doing what you are talking about; running for a couple minutes, then fast walking for a couple minutes, etc-- alternating. The trainer said I just needed to keep my heart rate above 130, so I was trying for a constant HR but I like the other way (your way) better so I will go back to that. I've also been trying to do some lifting on the lower-body machines. I just hate when my legs get too muscled because they bulk up and I don't like the way it looks-- I'm very picky about my legs. Please continue with your thoughts, suggestions and ideas. I love it! Thank you!!!!



I'll do that, starting today!

I obviously have different views than your trainer lol. The steady heart rate "in the fat burning zone" is old mentality and it has been proven in countless studies that HIIT burns more cals hands down. When doing long steady cardio you burn x amount of cals while you are performing the exercise but the calorie burn stops when you are done. When performing HIIT you burn more cals during the exercise but it doesn't stop there, you keep burning cals for hours after the workout increasing the cal burn much more. It goes back to the easy sells theory as well, you can jump on an eliptical for an hour in front of your tv and watch your favorite program or hop on it and perform HIIT for 20-30 min burn more cals and get on with your life, the choice is yours.

Don't guess at what you are eating, write down everything you eat and drink and post it up and we can tear it appart LOL.

[CFD]

Originally Posted by Jeffm

I work 12 hr shifts so i have to get my workouts at one time. I use a Polar F6 Heart Rat Monitor watch with the strap and seems to be pretty accurate from everything i have read. when i had my dietitian we worked together to try to keep my Calories between 1800 and 2000.

So do you suggest a higher resistance than longer workout?

I also wear a polar (ft7) when I do cardio and they are more accurate that the readouts on machines. Although they are not a true reading of cals burned they sre consistant and great for tracking and comparing results.

I would definately go for more resistance and less time for the reasons I posted above especially where you have limited time exercise should be an important part of your life but shouldn't consume it UNLESS you have goals of competition, modeling or related professions. The other benefits of more resistance is it builds muscle, muscle incinerates fat and looks pretty damn good as well LOL.

Where as you work with a trainer and he/she is aware of your fitness level ask if they would recomend HIIT for you, it is a very effective method of fat loss.

[bossbunny]

Ok. So I worked out with my girlfriend the other day and she said she wasn't sore the day after (I CALL BS BECAUSE I WAS). So I told her today we are going to do a hard workout.

Which do you think is better? Bob Harper's Ripped Core or P90X Plyo? I would torture her with Insanity but I dont want her to get an injury since I haven't had too much time to make sure she is doing moves correctly.

Nvm... She bailed. Looks like me and Skip are going to do some Bob later!

[bossbunny]

Originally Posted by CFD

I obviously have different views than your trainer lol. The steady heart rate "in the fat burning zone" is old mentality and it has been proven in countless studies that HIIT burns more cals hands down. When doing long steady cardio you burn x amount of cals while you are performing the exercise but the calorie burn stops when you are done. When performing HIIT you burn more cals during the exercise but it doesn't stop there, you keep burning cals for hours after the workout increasing the cal burn much more. It goes back to the easy sells theory as well, you can jump on an eliptical for an hour in front of your tv and watch your favorite program or hop on it and perform HIIT for 20-30 min burn more cals and get on with your life, the choice is yours.

Don't guess at what you are eating, write down everything you eat and drink and post it up and we can tear it appart LOL.

I write down everything, even ifs its 2 m&ms or five pecans... EVERYTHING!

[CFD]

Originally Posted by badgebunny

I write down everything, even ifs its 2 m&ms or five pecans... EVERYTHING!

It's the only way to really know how many cals you consume. It's the little piece of this or taste of that or sip of this that destroy most people's diet plan. Also when people prepare meals they add up the main ingredients but the little things often are more calorie dense than the meals, You must add up EVERYTHING!!!!!! We can preach this all day long and most will ignore it and THAT is the difference between mediocre results and great ones or failure and success.

[bossbunny]

Originally Posted by CFD

It's the only way to really know how many cals you consume. It's the little piece of this or taste of that or sip of this that destroy most people's diet plan. Also when people prepare meals they add up the main ingredients but the little things often are more calorie dense than the meals, You must add up EVERYTHING!!!!!! We can preach this all day long and most will ignore it and THAT is the difference between mediocre results and great ones or failure and success.

I know I have a habit of tasting what I cook. I had to really make a point to only taste it once, instead of every 5 minutes hahahaha.

[CFD]

Originally Posted by badgebunny

I know I have a habit of tasting what I cook. I had to really make a point to only taste it once, instead of every 5 minutes hahahaha.

I do the same thing when I cook , the trick is to taste it after it's measured not before.

[bossbunny]

Originally Posted by CFD

I do the same thing when I cook , the trick is to taste it after it's measured not before.

Hahaha. Good idea, that or I have Skip taste it since he can eat a whale and not gain an oz. HAHAHAHA. Oh how I hate him.

[ablackburn99]

Originally Posted by CFD

This is way out of wack. A low carb diet would be more like 20-30% carbs, 50% protein and 20-25% fat. If you are eating 5% carbs 4 days a week and loosing 2-2 1/2 pounds you are most likely loosing muscle not fat.

Please listen to this advice. Start with a moderate carb diet (middle of the road) 40% carbs, 40% protein and 20% fat. Stick with it regardless of if you think it is working or not. Keep accurate food journals of what and when you are eating and keep track of your weight, body fat percentages would be better if you could. Do this for 3-4 weeks. The above ratio's will usually work well for most people. I'm not sure of your stats or exercise level but unless they are to some extreme eat around 1800-2000 cals a day in the above ratios. By doing this you will have a solid base line to work from and adjustments can be made from there.

How much time can you devote to training in a week?

Thanks for the advice!

For now i would only like to lift 2-3 times a week. My goal is to lose fat as fast as possible while maintaining muscle or grow a little. I don't like doing cardio, but i am in construction so some days i think I get more then enough.

Here is my diet so far today (tweaked it some). I still would like cycle my carbs and cal. some so I cant eat more on training days.

Same every 3 hours, 7 meals
Turkey/Whole wheat bread/Flaxseed oil

80 cal. c/100 cal. p/35 cal. f = 215 cal.

Would it be ok to eat more carbs in first 4-5 meals, and have low to no cabs later? I get hungry when I eat carbs.