Lets Have A Serious Discussion About Weight.

[sarah_ab]

I used to weigh 210lb, I've lost 60lb since then.

You change your way of thinking by acting. There's nothing more to it. I made a decision and I followed through. I told myself that I didn't want to be fat anymore and I changed my habits. You either want to do it or you don't. You have to take charge of each and every moment. The next time you get hungry, drink a glass of water instead. If you are still hungry, walk right out the door, down the street, and away from the refrigerator. It's the same way that you make the decision not to punch somebody in the face when they piss you off or go blow money you don't have on a new car. Think about the consequences of your actions and then work toward the outcome you want to see happen.

wait wait wait wait wait.. now hold on just a minute..... you mean i'm NOT supposed to just punch people in the face and blow all my money?

well i'll be damned!!!!

[RMS401]

I don't have a great deal to add to the conversation, other than to add myself to the list of fat people in diapers. To look at me you might just call me "big," since I'm tall and built like a tank, but I've been thin and I know I'm not supposed to be carrying all this extra weight.

This is the year. After gaining and gaining, I've GOT to stop this.

-RMS

[Jackiewope]

I'm no nutritionist, but I do have one good way to lose weight fast. Take everything you drink that isn't water and stop drinking it. Soda especially. Cuts loads of empty calories without even trying.

[lilJester]

you could try taking some chromium to boost metabolism.... just a thought. I am tryin to lose weight too that i put on by accidentally starving myself. made my metabolism damn near stop, stress is lovely isnt it? lol.

[lilJester]

I'm no nutritionist, but I do have one good way to lose weight fast. Take everything you drink that isn't water and stop drinking it. Soda especially. Cuts loads of empty calories without even trying.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO i will NEVER give up my mountain dew!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Golden Nectre of the gods!!!!!

[spectrumshade]

To be honest I use to be weigh close to 300lbs when I was right around 15. In that summer I managed to lose ~85lbs by swimming(I <3 to do that) a few hundred feet and biking around ~1mile per day. The other thing I did was limit myself on foods, I tried to be very careful about the sweets(things like that). I mean you don't have to follow expensive diets or anything but make sure you eat in somewhat moderate proportions.

[Jackiewope]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO i will NEVER give up my mountain dew!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Golden Nectre of the gods!!!!!

FINE THEN BE A FATTY SEE IF I CARE GOSH

[drynot]

Well I was pleasantly surprised to find I've lost about 5 lbs over the past two weeks.

Subtle changes were made and I've obtained good results.

[PIzzazz]

It's the same way that you make the decision not to punch somebody in the face when they piss you off or go blow money you don't have on a new car. Think about the consequences of your actions and then work toward the outcome you want to see happen.

Thanks for that. Today I almost blew money I didn't have on a car, and instead went and ran on the beach. It helped when I found out the car I wanted to buy had been a rental ('first owner' my ass, mr. salesman).

Back on topic, I've dropped 30 pounds in the past 6 months. The biggest help for me was portion control and healthy snacking. I don't snack throughout the day, but one in the morning and one in the afternoon (apples, string cheese, nuts, yogurt) has helped limit my hunger when I'm not having big meals. Also, there are plenty of healthy, delicious desserts.

[sarah_ab]

another way to get your exercise in, especially if you can't afford to pay for a gym membership....

cleaning..

instead of picking up as much laundry in one armful off the ground, pick each piece up indivudally, doing a full squat each time. when taking it out of the basket to put into the washer, and from the washer to the dryer, do it one piece at a time, and don't go super slow.... make yourself sweat.

scrubbing can be a great arm work out....

when cleaning put some music on, make it fun, incorporate some exercises into the cleaning activbity to keep yourself moving and your heart rate up....

your house gets clean, you burn off some calories at the same time... its win win

[DLDan]

I'm no nutritionist, but I do have one good way to lose weight fast. Take everything you drink that isn't water and stop drinking it. Soda especially. Cuts loads of empty calories without even trying.

Must agree with that, especially Beer. The solution to, and cause of all of life's problems! Sooo many carbs! Although if you like beer as much as I do, try brewing your own- you burn heaps of calories washing the bottles if you do it like i do- ineffectively...

[Infernus]

I too have a weight problem, and a bit of an obcession.

I have an over-active metabolism

IM 5ft 10 and for years i was around 147 pounds, i always got teased as the skinny guy, and it used to annoy me.

just before my 21st birthday, i started a new diet and started working out. 4-5 days a week (for around 30-60 mins of pure weights, i play soccer twice a week for my cardio)

Anyway in the first 6 months id gained 10 pounds of pure muscle, and from then until now, ive slowly lifted my weight further to 163.

Its alot of hard work, but i deffinatly feel better, my eating habits are alot healthier too, ive cut out most of the crap.

bottom line is

If you are unhappy and you can do something about it, do it.

oh and one final thing

I hate gyms with a passion, ive never been succesful at a gym, all my progress is at home, set up in the garage.

[Diapered Jason]

I think it is important to find a physical activity that you enjoy so you don't have to work up the courage to go work out at a gym. Later though you will find out if I go to the gym, that will supplement my physical activity I enjoy. I think a great example is racquetball. Many gyms have racquetball courts making it fun to go to the gym. I guess I will let you guys know a little secret of mine. I hardly ever use the cardio machines during my workout. They are too boring.

As for dieting, no body mentioned high fructose corn syrup. This is most likely one of the major causes of obesity and diabetes in the US. As it turns out, our body can not process that amount of fructose and as a result is stored as fat. Just about 1/2 or even 3/4 of the things you can buy at a grocery store contain this ingredient. That goes for most sodas. Avoid it like the plague.

One way the nutritional labels on foods trick you is the amount of trans fat that is in the food. If the trans fat per serving is below 0.5 g per serving, it is rounded down to zero. Foods like chips are loaded with this fat even though the label says 0% DV for transfat. It is important to check the ingredients list of hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils. There are also other tricks food manufacturers use. If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is.

You should be able to tell which foods are good and which are bad by how you feel during your workout. If you feel as though you have no energy during your workout, you might have had a bad lunch like a burger. If you had no choice but to eat a horrible meal, eat some fruit. Fruit goes a long ways.

All the other advices given here except fasting are useful. Calorie counting works if you commit to it, but it is painful.

[sarah_ab]

i get wicked bored on cardio equipment atthe gym too!!!!!

i usually swim for my work out as there are so many different things you can do to keep from being bored ... also all classes at my gym are included in my membership so i can take all sorts of fun cardio classes

i have no idea how to play raquetball other than you hit the ball against the wall but it always looks fun and like id enjoy it.... ill have to ask if one of my personal training sessions can be a raquet ball lesson

[Diapers4Me]

I allowed myself to slowly climb up into the low 200's, and was comfortable with this as I knew I could always lose the weight if i wanted to....but never did! This changed when I developed sleep apnea and my health was at risk. I immediately followed the weight watchers program my wife was on, and began working out. I dropped 30-40lbs and my sleep apnea is no more.

Weight loss is pretty simple....burn more calories than you take in. There is no way you cannot lose weight if you do this....it is simple.

I hated working out until I joined Audible and just listened to good books while working out....the minutes flew by. Also, when you work out, be sure you work out as hard as you can. I always chuckle at the people who get on the elliptical and leave the resistance at 1, and their legs are flying.....makes it seem like they are working hard. Try doing at at a setting of 14! You'll burn a ton more that way. My buddy uses a Precor at 20 (max setting) and stays on for 1 hour (try 20 for 1 minutes...I dare you) - you have to hold the hand rails to get enough push on the feet to make them move!

Bottom line....you can lose weight, but you REALLY have to want to.

[drynot]

I hated working out until I joined Audible and just listened to good books while working out....the minutes flew by. Also, when you work out, be sure you work out as hard as you can. I always chuckle at the people who get on the elliptical and leave the resistance at 1, and their legs are flying.....makes it seem like they are working hard. Try doing at at a setting of 14! You'll burn a ton more that way. My buddy uses a Precor at 20 (max setting) and stays on for 1 hour (try 20 for 1 minutes...I dare you) - you have to hold the hand rails to get enough push on the feet to make them move!

Bottom line....you can lose weight, but you REALLY have to want to.

While hopping on an eliptical and throwing it on the max setting might sound like a good idea, how long do you think someone who is just starting out is going to stick to that level of intensity? Not long I tell you....

[Diaper Mike 05]

One factor that affects some people's ability to lose or maintain weight is stress. I work in a stressful position (there is no real need for it except the people I work for wanted to make it that way and won't take the necessary steps to fix the issues I have brought up to them - and no, I can't give up my job as much as it would help) and during times of low or normal levels of stress, my weight stays or goes down. When things are a total mess at work, I can't do anything to even maintain my weight level (mostly because of the exhaustion that comes with it - and no, going to the gym while exhausted is NOT a good idea, no matter what "experts" say), let alone lose anything.

And D4M, working out as hard as you can becomes counter-productive at a point. You work too hard, you're naturally going to want to eat. I have heard a good rule of thumb is your appetite - the proper work out will make you feel it and sweat, but your appetite will not increase by much, or not at all afterward. If you're really hungry afterward, or need to eat a lot more after you workout to feel normal, it's too hard.

[lilJester]

FINE THEN BE A FATTY SEE IF I CARE GOSH

Remember, the fatter I am the more it will hurt you when I decide to use you as a seat

But in honesty I have tried to cut down. I normally cut back on soda's when it warms up and swap to water, right now mostly its sprite and water and gatorade. Plus I am taking stacker 3 and man....oooooooohhhhhhh whaaaat aaaaaaa ruuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuush!

[lilJester]

Diaper Mike, I second what you say about stress. Stress from teh job had put me to a point to where I actually stopped eating regularly and at all from time to time which made my body store any and all fats, and it's been a struggle to get that back down. Still fighting it, within one year i gained around 60 pounds. Havent been able to lose mroe than a couple pounds at a time, but like I said, I am slowly going back to water over the summer and working out a little more. Hopefully that will get rid of the fatty tissues and build some more muscle...not that i really need more... not really big on well being big muscle wise, but like having enough to pull my own weight.

[Ozzyfan4077]

As a former Pro Wrestler, I have seen people of all shapes and sizes in the ring and in the gym. I have several friends who work as personal trainers as their full time job, and "Moonlight" as Wrestlers. With that being said, when I was a wrestler, nutrition was an important part of my lifestyle, knowing what to eat to hit certain weight goals, and etc. For me, I'm a shorter than average guy, standing at only 5'7", with a higher than normal metablolism, which meant when I started in wrestling and started working out regularily, I lost all my water weight and went from 160.Lbs to 145.Lbs inside a two month span. I couldn't keep weight on, I was the only trainee in the school that the trainer didn't have any dietary restrictions on, his instructions to me were to eat everything I could to pack on the pounds to convert to muscle. I couldn't eat enough, and I couldn't afford to eat that much. So I had the problem of continually falling underweight. Since leaving Wrestling, I still work out, albeit very little by comparison to what I used to do, but I put on my water weight again and hit just a little over 160.Lbs. What's my point? Well, while I struggled to gain pounds, we had guys who stuggled to lose, they had next to no metabolism, so that's a big part of it. Another fact, after thirty five the metabolism takes a huge dive making it harder again to lose weight and making diet all that more important. That's why you have a lot of guys over 40 who don't drink that often but still look like they have beer bellies, they never adapted their diet to their falling metabolism level and what used to not stick to them before, sticks like glue now. The best advice I can give is to seek counseling from a personal trainer, and you don't even have to go into a gym to do that, you can get personal trainers who do one on one sessions in the comfort of your own home, or a small, private studio. They have the education and the skills to determine what your metabolic and dietary needs are and help you set a main goal and many smaller stepping stone goals to get to a weight ideal for you. Diets are not a "one size fits all" thing, everyone needs a customized plan just for them.

[KittenAB]

"We have survived as a species because we can eat and fuck." Sorry for the "bad" word, it's a quote from Penn and wanted to keep it pure but since this is an adult site I hope there's no problem with it.

But it comes from their fat episode of Bullshit, a great show for a reason, they prove things using real demonstrations and not just numbers cooked up in a lab. For one thing, the worrying about being "over" weight is another of the major lies. Here's the thing, true health cannot be measured by weight, nor is weight a sign one way or the other. Eat right (fat is an important part of the human diet as it's what powers our muscles) and get enough exercise to make you feel sleepy at the end of the day, whatever weight you are at is what you are suppose to be. This focus on appearance is really bad, and that's all it is. Most people who have serious medical issues are thin, not heavy, contrary to what the media and diet companies tell you. Gallstones, for instance, are often associated as a "fat" people's health concern, yet it targets thin people like me who don't eat enough fats. My favourite foods are all low fat, and that's what caused the gallstones (according to the doctors) because my body didn't have any to process so my gallbladder wasn't spasming enough to prevent the build up. Diabetes is an issue .. but only if you intake too much sugar, not fat. But here's what they don't tell you as well, fat is the building material of your body, if your DNA says you need this much tissue and you don't give it enough fat to supply it, then it will use other more essential nutrients as a source of energy unbalancing your physiology worse. Also, the 2000 calorie intake is an "average", not intended to work for everyone, and should be adjusted based on your activity level. If you're lazy then less will be needed, if you are active though you will need more, much more. If a doctor says "you're too fat" and sends you to a dietician, ask to see the blood results. If your chemicals are all at the correct levels tell them to go to ... you know where ... that's the important thing. If not, then you can just Google the foods you need to balance those chemicals, you don't need to see someone who will likely try to sell you expensive products that will more likely cause worse issues than you already have.

[drynot]

I admit that appearance has huge bearing on my desire to get into better shape....however one of the biggest reasons I'd like to be in better shape is that I can barely make it up a flight of stairs or walk half a block before I am winded and need to sit down.....

I am lucky I guess that I carry my weight well. I've seen lots of people who are lighter than me who are in constant pain from the excess weight they are putting on their joints and back muscles. I don't have those issues...YET and I'd like to avoid them if possible.....

[sarah_ab]

if you can only do one flight of stairs or one block before being winded... then you aren't carrying the weight well...

i'm just saying, one fat person to another.... you can't say you carry it well if you are clearly having physical effects from it......

[KittenAB]

I admit that appearance has huge bearing on my desire to get into better shape....however one of the biggest reasons I'd like to be in better shape is that I can barely make it up a flight of stairs or walk half a block before I am winded and need to sit down.....

I am lucky I guess that I carry my weight well. I've seen lots of people who are lighter than me who are in constant pain from the excess weight they are putting on their joints and back muscles. I don't have those issues...YET and I'd like to avoid them if possible.....

As long as you are doing it because you want to and not because someone tells you to, there is nothing wrong with altering your appearance, nor is there anything wrong with improving your physical capabilities, just don't expect the two to coincide all the time. Basically, don't buy into the diet fad, it's more dangerous than beneficial.

[drynot]

if you can only do one flight of stairs or one block before being winded... then you aren't carrying the weight well...

i'm just saying, one fat person to another.... you can't say you carry it well if you are clearly having physical effects from it......

I was mostly referring to the lack of joint issues and back pain. Sometimes, when watching those weight loss shows, I see folks who are at my weight. I am amazed to see just how difficult it is for them to get around. One poor guy was lighter than I am and didn't even have a job because he couldn't get out of bed....

I keep thinking that perhaps I should get the surgery....but, you know, that downright scares the heck out of me. I worry about complications and possibly being worse off than I am now.......

Right now...today I feel OK. I know I need to lose more weight and exercise more often.....I'm not one of those folks who blames external sources for my weight. I'm big because I like the taste of food and I eat too much without exercise. Period.