insanely overweight noob

[slowpoke]

yep thats right, a system engineer whose job required no physical work at all, sitting in a chair all day long getting fat that combined with a long relationship full of eating out and being "comfortable"

so anyways the point of this post.

july 16 my world was turned upside down, i didnt eat for like 3 days and then when i was hungry again i decide now would be the time to start over. I'm 6"2 and 280 lbs, on july 16 i was 305 lbs. So im on the right track ive lost 25 lbs in the past 3 weeks. However its starting to slow down almost to a standstill.


this is what im doing i need assistance.

everyday :
wake up and drink 1 shake (optimum nutrition) 100% whey.
then a little bit later i eat lunch wich consist of

lunch
low fat wheat bread
low fat ham
low fat turkey
no cheese
no dressing
snack
one granny smith apple
or sometimes i will eat another sandwich if im hungry instead of the apple
dinner
a boneless chicken breast on my trusty george foreman grill
with corn or green beans


now heres the thing, i try to walk 2 miles everyday.
i was doing it in the morning but i havent been having time, so now im eating a little bit later than 8 at night so ive been trying to do my walking after dinner so that i can still keep my metabolism up. And im also drinking 2 gallons of water or more each day.

so thats my diet and my work out plan so far its worked.

i do realize that im fucking up by not eating breakfast, i have bought better than eggs to make egg white ommlettes but i never eat breakfast so its hard to condition myself to eat breakfast.

im not taking any supplements, and from what i have read i shouldnt but i wanted to get your advice.

also i plan to work out 3 nights a week for 1 hour and a half but i have no idea on where to begin, ive talked to some people and they suggested the 3 nights a week, combined with the walking everyday and they told me to work diffrent muscle groups each night. im signing up for a fitness center tommorow. i dont want to throw down the money for a personal trainer to tell me how to work out, i will if its necessary but i would like some imput from you guys on like what do each diffrent day and how many reps and stuff
i plan to use free weights only.


oh yeah i just noticed this also
for the past 3 days in the morning i have weighed at 280
at the end of the night i weigh 283-285 and then in the morning im back down to 200 again. these past 3 days i havent lost any weight. i dont get it.

 

[ROLGOR]

Bro a couple ideas. first ignore the scale or only weigh once a week. You need more intense cardio. You need to consider getting some morning running. a tread mill, elliptical trainner, stationary bike at home or hit the gym early. You have done a great job but you will see big improvement if you do some fast paced cardio. 30-40 min is great but even 15-20 min FAST paced will show you a big improvement Also lift hard. Good luck.

 

[mlomker]

You probably need to eat more, believe it or not. Most of the bodybuilders eat 5 or 6 small meals per day and count the calories so that they add up to a certain number. Go to www.fitday.com and figure out how much maintenance is for you. The healthy diets are about 500 cals below maintenance. It takes time to gain weight and you need to be patient as it comes off. Most quick diets result in gaining it back quickly.

What you need to focus on is a "lifestyle" change. Don't do anything so radical that you couldn't do it for the rest of your life. Cardio 6 days a week and insane diets might work but it isn't anything that you can keep up. Find a healthy balance that will work for you for a long time. The best looking guys in the gym got that way through a few years of consistent training...not through six months at the gym and another six months off! That was my pattern for many years.

Three nights per week of lifting sounds great. Most clubs will give you a free initial consultation with a trainer so take advantage of it if you can. My workout is just a simple 3 day routine:

Mon - Back/biceps
Wed - Chest/triceps
Fri - Legs/shoulders

At this point in your journey it really doesn't matter what exercises that you do. Just get to the gym and do anything for an hour....in a little while you'll come up with a good routine that works for you. Don't sweat the details for now.

 

[Lumberg]

Well I am going to have to agree with some of the advice and disagree with the others.

First of all intense weight training should be your first priority. If you have time left over you can do cardio. I think just walking combined with hitting the weights with regular, high energy workouts you will gain LBM which will in turn burn more calories.

Second of all YES IT DOES MATTER what exercises you do.

On back day you should do deadlifts. On chest day you should do flat barbell bench. On leg day you should squat. All free weights of course.

Those three exercises should be the foundation of your training for the next year or more. Once you have become expert at them you can try variations such as inclines. Go to the training board for ideas for other exercises on the various days. Concentrate on free weights and only use machines for targeting certain muscles (which you won't have to worry about until you can see them). Get the staff at the gym to show you the exercises but take waht so-called fitness pros tell you with a grain of salt. For example, go as low as possible on squats, not just parallel. Never use a Smith machine if you can help it.

The previously mentioned split is good but here's another one if you prefer:

M: Legs (squat), obliques, abs

W:Chest (bench), shoulders, tris (pushing types of exercises)

F:Back (deadlifts, pulldowns until you can do pullups, shrugs), bis (pulling types of exercises), abs

In general, you should always be sore in one part of your body or another. If you aren't you need to work out harder.

Third of all, you are not eating enough fats.

It's true. Your body can survive without carbs but you will get sick if you do not eat enough fats.

The best kinds of fats to consume are Omega-3 fatty acids, but you should get at least a little bit of all the other types (like Omega 6s and 9s, saturated (from beef and other animals) and monounsaturated.

STAY AWAY FROM ANY AND ALL "HYDROGENATED" FATS AND OILS.

I strongly suggest you research flax seed oil on here--do a search. I have just recently started supplementing with it and the results are amazing.

It does look like you could stand to eat more in general too.

As far as the weight thing, there is nothing wrong with weighing yourself very day, just keep in mind it's the big picture.

The weight fluctuations are due to water. You are gaining 3-5 # of water weight every day and then in the morning after not eating or taking any fluids in for 8 hours you are less hydrated. Weigh yourself once a day at the exact same time (I do it in the evening right before showering every night). That way you can have a more accurate measure.

That is a good start for now but if you have more time and energy research pre- and post-workout supplementation to optimize your strength gains and fat loss.

And finally, read, read, read. Do searches and watch the forums and you will find all kinds of fascinating and helpful information.

Good luck and feel free to PM with more questions.

JC

 

[LaviathanX]

Damn good post, JC. And yes, your weight will fluctuate throughout the day. I'm on a CKD diet (no-carb variation of the Atkins diet) and I weighed myself one day and I was 181, then weighed myself the next and was 189 (carb-up weekend). It's mind boggling. Try tracking your weight using an Excel spreadsheet and make a line graph out of it. Take notes on which days/weeks you added a day of cardio, shifted your diet, etc. Correspond that with the graph to see if your weight dropped/increased in the days following.

If you are working out and still gaining weight, it very well may be that you are packing on muscle, not gaining fat. The scale is a useful tool, but don't let it fool you.

Keep posting and reading. Good luck!

 

[hesselite]

3 words... body for life.

hit up barnes&noble or borders and pick it up. i think half.com has it for about $10. the guy knows what he's talking about. this guy deals with people who were overweight and wanted to change their lives, and they did.

you're going to get a LOT of information from these forums, and it can be too much at one time. the best usage for these forums is direct questions... like "is AM cardio better than PM cardio?" or "what is a good back routine?" etc. don't ask a question like "hey... how can i get ripped/cut?"

the only advice i have with regard to your progress (aside from the 2 things mentioned above) is LEARN. look before you leap. don't starve yourself... don't go to the gym and work every machine/lift possible. figure out what you need, and how you can get it... don't assume.

glad to have you aboard.

--Hess

 

[slowpoke]

i tried atkins

yes i tried atkins,
that was a diet thats not realistic for me, the diet that i have made is working , i lost 25 lbs in 3 weeks. i just want to goto the next level. i did atkins and i failed miserably, im doing this and i have messed up yet. i really have changed the way i eat. its really cool, and i can still go out to eat with my freinds and just order a salad with no dressing and stuff. i know i would do better by adding some workout time, and cardio to this plan. Right now im laid off so its not like i have a whole lot to do anyways, school isnt starting for another 2 weeks so its the right time for me to get in a good routine. Also my car, im building a race car, and because im fat im .2 tenths of a second slower than my freind who is really skinny. soo i gotta be able to lose this weight =) call it the performance car diet.