The Scale! Somehow, in the US anyway, we seem preoccupied with the number the scale shows, as if it's some key to unlock the happy curtains of life.
Perhaps it is, to a degree, but I wanted to share what I've learned in the past 4 years of losing weight (I was up to 280#'s) and keeping it off. (I've been varying between 208 and 218 for the past year)
Some of us who were really fat, it wasn't entirely our own fault. Yes, we are the ones who shoveled that food in. But I suspect in many cases, once the food got shoveled in, it was up to our hormones to decide what to do with those sources of energy. For most guys with a fair amount of muscle (if you're heavy, you probably have a fair amount of leg muscle), we can eat a few more carbs/sugars, and they'll get stashed in those muscles for easy use the next time we need it. For the rest of you, well, it's a lot harder. In some cases, the body will stash all that surplus as more fat cells, even though you're really not eating more than the 120#, "skinny" friend you have.
I can't suggest that what worked for me will work for all of you; we're all different. But I don't think it will hurt.
Walking is fairly easy on the feet and legs if you don't do too much in one interval. I broke my walks up into three sessions, sometimes four.
Morning walk - fasted - 5000 steps.
Lunch walk - prior to lunch, so sort of fasted - 2500 steps
Afternoon walk - 5000 steps
Various errands before and after work - parking far away - 2500 steps
On weekends, I'd go for longer walks - 10k or more in the AM and again in the PM.
Once I got down to 240, I started having a bit more energy and started lifting weights and began to incorporate an indoor rower into my routines. I still park far away at the store. I still walk about 2500 to 3000 in the morning and the evening.
But, I have found that rowing is low-impact and burns the same calories in 2/3 the time, sometimes 1/2 depending on how intense I make the workout.
3 rowing sessions a week, where a rowing session will be varied, but will consist of
1 relaxed warm-up for 2-3 minutes
3-4 short sprints, either timed, or by distance
1-2 medium distances, or 4 minutes (about 1000 meters, X 2)
3-4 short sprints (250 meters or 1 minute each
1 long row - 1500 or 2k meters.
In between each part, I'll "rest" - which means I'll do planks or push-ups, or bodyweight squats or sit-ups. Maybe 10 or 15 reps.
This has absolutely made it easy to get from 240 to 215 or so. I eat just about whatever I want - but my tastes have changed. I still love cookies, but I no longer feel the need to eat a dozen. Maybe 1. Maybe 2. But I've noticed that broccoli, brussel sprouts and other veggies seem to fuel my body far better than sugar/processed/refined carbs - like cookies and such.
This may not work for you. But, if you "know" how hard an actual work out is - where your fitbit is showing you've burned 500 to 600 calories in 45 minutes, then if you can force yourself through that pain cave, it won't be that long before you'll lose that weight.
But - the key is, you have to keep moving. Enough with the tv. Got kids? Take them with you. Create a garden. Go outside and if you don't include your kids, they'll likely follow you outside just out of curiosity and want to help. (if they're young enough)
Things that discouraged me:
I'd get down to 215, and I'd have just a small amount of pita chips and hummous. And I'd gain like 4 pounds in one day! It drove me nuts. And then, I figured out why. The sodium! The hummous and pita chips both had a lot of sodium, as did the low calorie salsa which I'd used on some spaghetti squash. Well, with 3 bottles of water consumed during and after dinner, it all stayed with me. I didn't get bloated or anything, but my system kept most of that water, resulting in the gain.
The next two days, I'd dropped 2 pounds a day, despite not really working out that hard.
So - watch out for what you eat! Read those labels. Not saying you can't have sodium, just know why the scale is yelling at you. Then yell back!
Those who have no idea what they are doing genuinely have no idea that they don't know what they're doing. - John Cleese
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