Trying to lose weight...

[TechHead87]

Right now, I stand 6' tall, and about 290lbs. I want to get down to at most 250. What is the best way to go about doing this? I've started going to the gym (cardio, plus light weight lifting just to get the heart rate up). I'm not in terrible shape, but most of my weight was gained in high school while playing football.

Could somebody give me some kind of details on a good, regular workout that'd help me lose a good 40lbs?

 

[KillerCharlie]

I lost 30 pounds in about 4 months with no trouble at all... I didn't even notice until I weighed myself one day. I started running about 4-5 miles a day. When I started I could only run about 1 mile total (go half a mile, then walk several, then jog another half mile). I don't have time to jog anymore and I really miss it.

For food, I planned out what I was going to eat and the portions ahead of time. I was surprised how easy it was to well. Basically, just eat a ton of fruit and vegetables, with whole grain bread and low fat meat (chicken).

Just be very consistent in what you do and don't expect results right away. Whenever I tried to lose weight, it never worked. How did I lose weight? I wanted to be healthier so I changed my diet and exercise accordingly, which ended up in me losing weight.

 

[dxkj]

Originally posted by: TechHead87
Right now, I stand 6' tall, and about 290lbs. I want to get down to at most 250. What is the best way to go about doing this? I've started going to the gym (cardio, plus light weight lifting just to get the heart rate up). I'm not in terrible shape, but most of my weight was gained in high school while playing football.

Could somebody give me some kind of details on a good, regular workout that'd help me lose a good 40lbs?

I lost 35 lbs in 2 months exercising and eating healthy.

Run for whatever you can to start out and build up. I used to run 20 mins, then 25, and by the end I was running at 5mph for 1hr each session, that will burn the calories and tone up your legs at the least.

I also like rowing but that is more of an intense workout. Light weights is a good way to tone, but you should do squats, squats work your whole body (your a football player and know this). More muscle mass = more burned calories... Im guessing you kept eating as much as you were while playing football while not exercising and it added a lot of fat and some of your muscle went away... A LOt of post-football people have that problem. It's hard to realize but 1800-2400 calories a day should be plenty if you arent exercising a TON, and it wont put your body into any deficit mode either.

Best of luck www.geekfitness.com is a good place to go for posting/resources/support.


Remember, its as much diet as it is working out

 

[dannybek2]

Hey,

The best way to loose weight is doing cardio and having a diet that will allow you to loose weight. Since you mentioned you are 290Lbs your body calorie intake will be approximately 3480 calories to maintain your current weight ( multiply your weight by 10 and add double your weight). Therefore it is most appropriate to have a diet of only 3000 calories every day. Cardio workouts should be different each day. For example, on Mondays I run three miles 7min/mile pace. Tuesdays 1.5 mile sprint & fartlek. Wednesdays 6mile leisurely pace. Thursdays 3miles 7min/mil pace. Friday Sprints, and so forth. In addition I swim 5 days a week.

I wish you the best on losing your weight.

 

[TechHead87]

Thanks for the advice guys. The Crimson Tide (Alabama) could've used my 290 on their offensive line today.

 

ban this fatass

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: stop banning me
ban this fatass

LOL

 

[GhettoFob]

Originally posted by: stop banning me
ban this fatass

:Q

 

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: stop banning me
ban this fatass

LOL

how dare you lol in the presence of the banninator.

 

[Whitecloak]

Originally posted by: GhettoFob

Originally posted by: stop banning me
ban this fatass

:Q

 

[KoolDrew]

Remember to eat healthy too.

 

[Sam334]

http://www.bodybuildingforums.com

 

[Twista]

Originally posted by: Sam334
http://www.bodybuildingforums.com

no

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/

 

[Sam334]

Originally posted by: Twista

Originally posted by: Sam334
http://www.bodybuildingforums.com

no

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/

erm, that's what I meant

 

[Special K]

Wannabebig Forums

Even better.

 

[ThePresence]

The South Beach Diet. My father lost about 40 lbs. on it, and he's still losing.

 

[jdiddy]

If your just dieting then you'll put the weight back on. You have to look at this like a lifestyle change. Dedication and don't expect over night results. Eating right and working out. Good luck.

 

[Xyclone]

Originally posted by: Twista

Originally posted by: Sam334
http://www.bodybuildingforums.com

no

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/

Cool site, thanks.

 

[KoolDrew]

Yeah, I was looking at the bodybuilding forums too and it seems very helpful.

 

[quackerww]

Cut out suger almost "all" of it, do not eat any thing with over 3 grams of suger.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

Originally posted by: stop banning me

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: stop banning me
ban this fatass

LOL

how dare you lol in the presence of the banninator.

Woah, teh giant text.

 

[QurazyQuisp]

Eat natural... The less processed the food, the better it is for you. Exercise daily. You'll shed it off sooner or later.

 

[marvdmartian]

And if you can't handle the running, there's plenty of other cardio exercises available. Swimming is actually one of the best cardio exercises out there, low impact & high results.

I can't run anymore due to a bad knee. But I can do limited stairmaster style exercises (can't go full blast, like you're supposed to, but I can do well enough to get my heart rate up), and I picked up a Gazelle recently. Those are nice for me cuz it's all in the hips, and virtually nothing in the knees. You really have to get going on it to get your heartrate up, but when I'm doing it 3-4 times a week, I feel pretty good.

And don't knock good ol' fashioned cardio workouts, like you see the ladies doing at the gym. Shoot, if you have a gym membership, it's a nice workout, and you've got plenty of things to distract you while you're doing it, if ya know what I mean!!

 

[Sphexi]

www.fitday.com

Free and it works very well for keeping track of your intake/burn of calories, vitamins, things like that.

Combine that with simple exercise and in time you'll lose it. My boss at my last job lost over 60lbs in roughly 6 months, which is about as fast as you want to lose it safely and staying healthy. I've dropped about 40lbs or so in the last year or so, maybe a bit more now (I don't have a scale currently), but I've also converted a lot of mass into muscle with my current job, which doesn't really drop weight.

It takes time to do it right, just be patient, and don't be discouraged if you seem to be gaining a little back. It's totally normal to gain a pound or two here and there, but if you keep up your routine you'll see it drop back off plus some a few days later.

 

[BlueHeelers]

I lost over 100 lbs and I'm 5' 10" (was 275, now 165) the safe and healthy way. I lost the first 25lbs over a 4 month period just by not eating out as much (no exercise). I lost the rest with cardio and weights over 9 months.

I dropped down to 1600-1800 calories/day (but with your size, you wouldn't want to go that low). Right now, I am around 2300-2500 calories a day.

Eating
I took almost all of the sugar out of my diet and tried to minimize saturated fats. I would get around 1gram of protein/pound of body weight. Protein is harder for the body to break down (requiring more energy to process than simple carbs like sugars, as well as fats). I would eat every 2-3 hours with each meal being between 250-400 calories.

Cardio
The best cardio for me was using a recumbent bike (like sitting in a chair and peddling, rather than sitting on a tiny seat hovering over the bike). I would just pop a DVD in and 45mins later, I would have burned a lot of calories and enjoyed a good TV show or movie. It is good to vary up your cardio so that your body doesn't get too used to one thing though.

Weights
The more muscle you have, the more calories your body burns. So adding muscle through weight lifting can help increase the calories burned.

A few tips:

• 1g fat = 9 calories while 1g protein or 1g carb = 4 calories. So a meal high in fat can pack on the calories quickly.

• Buy a heart rate monitor and use that when doing cardio. That way you can keep in a target range so that you can go longer than you would by just going all out but for less time

• When going to visit family and friends over the holidays, tell them you are eating healthy and ask for their consideration when they prepare meals

When you take control of your body and your life, you will feel incredible. You will have more energy, higher self confidence (even if self confidence was never a problem), and will live longer.

Good luck and PM me if you need any advice or encouragement.