Incredible Shrinking Reaper-ites

[Rastl]

I think I'm pretty good with portions and such. I tend to use the 'salad' plates for meals at home so there's much less room to fill up and I don't go back for seconds.

 

Removing all the easily reachable snackies from work helps tons too.

[SOldcorn]

SOlcdorn -- what is the correct weight range for your body type? Not many people are "healthily" _more_ than 182. What is your % body fat? You probably need to work on maintaining muscle mass. Your physician can determine if steroids or HGH (human growth hormone) are compatible with your illness. Probably not. The object would be to curtail catabolism (muscle wasting).

 

Right now I would be happy with my weight, my problem is it keeps going down by a few pounds a month. I actually feel in pretty good shape but I do need to work on building back muscles as I am definitely weaker than I used to be. Still I have been able to start doing some exercises which make me feel good, but of course burn even more calories. Still I see all my doctors and dietitian etc next week so will see what they suggest.

[Helltown]

Hope it's not too late to jump in on this one, but I could stand to see a little less of me in the mirror. Mostly because my knees would appreciate it if I didn't ask them to haul around so much extra weight. I've lost weight since I've left the Navy, but I can't help but think it was muscle mass.

 

What I need to do is get back in the pool and start swimming again, but I think my former routine of a 100 crunches every morning will be a great start. Look forward to having a lil' support on the weight loss trail from by Reaper buddies :)

[Nanite]

I need to start biking to work too. Or at least Joggin in the morning. I really don't eat that much, but I'm way to sedentary.

 

And for those considering Wii Fit, try this review: http://kotaku.com/5011919/wii-fit-review-an-identity-crisis

 

Sums up a lot of my complaints about the product (not much of an excercise device).

[Dragon Snack]

>So, you know what dog poop tastes like?

 

Its easy to eat less if you eat things you don't like...

Well played...

 

One experiment involved putting endless bowls of hot wings (yes a dream for some) on tables during a sporting game.

Forget this weight loss stuff, where do I sign up!?

[Star Drifter]

I'm down to 221.4 pounds. That's about three pounds from the same time last week.

 

The rest won't come off that easy, but at least I'm off to a good start.

[Flit]

Last night I was browsing my local Barnes & Noble. I was giving the Health and Diet section a quick look for the Mindless Eating book Ron mentioned and generally rolling my eyes at the diet books. Then I saw one that looked kinda interesting so I pulled it down to read the introduction to get the general principle it was based on. The book is The Paleo Diet by Loren Cordain. It was really interesting so I read a bit further. After about 20 pages, I decided to buy the thing and finish reading it on my couch with proper feline supervision. I wound up reading the whole thing. The general principle is that the Agricultural Revolution was the worst thing that ever happened to the health of the human race and that we should eat a diet as close to the paleolithic hunter and gatherers as possible because that is what we are genetically designed to eat. It will result in weight loss, better nutrition, and better all around health. He makes a pretty good case and the info presented jives with what I have read from other sources and personal experiences. The basic diet is eat all the lean meat, fruit, and non-starchy veggies you want. Avoid all grains, legumes, and dairy. There are also alot of really yummy looking recipes.

 

So, I am going to give this Paleo Diet a try. I will be easing myself into it a bit (i.e. eating up some of the "bad" food that I have around the house). I don't think it is really going to be a stretch for me, I just need to get used to eating more meat than I have been for a while.

 

I also weighed myself and took some measurements so I would have something to compare to and measure any weight loss I might accomplish. I had to get the measurements for some sewing projects anyway. They were really scary (which was why I had been putting it off). My waist is 10 inches bigger than when I was in High School

 

Got my fingers crossed that I can bring those measurements down a bit before the next ReaperCon!

[LunchBox]

Something that's important to keep in mind is that "weight" means nothing. Arnold "The Governator" was 300 pounds in his 20's, and by the Dr's charts...he was over 100 pounds over-weight. It's all about appearance, not the numbers on a scale. I haven't worked out much since my son was born 7 months ago, but this summer will see my return back to the gym. My goal is not to lose weight though...I want to get back to my power lifting/body building days in the attempt to again look like a Tre Manor sculpt!

 

Here's a few easy things we used to tell people we trained back in college:

 

*Lay off the Cokes...drink water, and diet when you must have a Coke.

*Cut out mayo...use mustard or ketchup

*Cut the cheese...hehehe...get a hamburger without cheese...or bacon for that matter

*Switch your salad dressing to vinegar (no oil), fat free Italian, or even go without dressing; you'd be surprized how good a salad can actually be when you can taste what you're eating.

*Ditch the ground beef, and buy ground turkey...it's much healthier, tastes better (IMHO), and is cheaper!

*Get rid of butter for the most part...use "Butter Buds", or "Molly McButter"; they taste really good, and they are a little salty, so you don't have to salt your food as much.

*Stop eating fast food...start cooking. Once you wean yourself off fast food, you'll find that most fast food will make you sick; literally.

 

When I lived in St. Louis a few years ago, I was a 300 pound tub of goo. Foloowing these suggestions above, I dropped 50 pounds in about 4 months, and have kept it off for 4 years now.

[Rastl]

I was talking with my neighbor who's a PE instructor for the navy reserves. My diet is just fine, it's my lack of exercise that is killing me.

 

So he's going to help me set up a routine I can follow and extend as I get more fit. He feels that my goal and timeframe are practical, realistic and attainable.

 

I kinda forgot I had that nifty help next door.

[Rodnik]

I've recently started my "routine" again---considering I've gained a considerable amount of weight over the past two or three years.

 

It's pretty simple:

 

Drink more water.

Most of walk around in a constant state of dehydration. The easy way to tell if you're getting enough water---the color of your urine (as disgusting as it sounds)---very light yellow to clear being ideal. If it has a strong color, you're not getting enough water.

 

Cut empty calories and foods with no nutritional value.

The crap that we put into our bodies amazes me. Chips, anything with enriched flour, soda (yes, even diet soda)---

Basically, cut out or (ideally) replace your empty calories with something good. You feel like a snack, eat a carrot, celery, or an apple or something. Be wary of high calorie fruit (like bananas)---just don't eat 'em all the time. Also, the reason for cutting the diet soda----check the sodium content in that junk. It doesn't provide any hydration to speak of--sodium will actually work against your body.....drink water instead.

 

Eat more often.

Take a page from the folks who have sugar problems---controlling your blood sugar level regulates your hunger. Keep it steady all day---and keep your metabolism working. Turn two big meals into 5 or 6 smaller meals. You should be grazing not gorging.

 

Exercise.

Just do something. 30 minutes per day is *easy* to come by even with the busiest of lifestyles. The ideal thing for weight loss is some sort of cardio plan. If you want strength training as well then try a workout that does both---like kettlebells, circuit training, etc...

 

Get more rest.

Most of us go to bed at varying times in the evening. Pick a time that's appropriate and gets you the necessary rest you need. Go to bed at that time. Don't read; don't watch TV----lights out, so to speak. Also, get up at the same time every morning---even on the weekends...8)

 

Supplements--

Take a multivitamin.

 

If you're working out heavy then you might consider some kind of whey protein or amino supplements. I personally prefer the whey.

 

Cheers,

Kev