Decent weight loss regime?
Napoleon Plural
LondonPosts: 10,467MI6 Agent
Yeah, I know, this sounds like spam too.... 
Anyway, I've joined a gym trying to lose one stone at least. Thing is, I did a special session with the instructor, but a snag... the guy is muscley but quite short and stocky. He looks, in his clothes, quite fat I guess but I'm sure his fat index is low and everything.
I don't want to look like him, but thanks to his regime I am going that way.
I haven't lost weight so far, yes I look stocky, more toned and more muscley. He's got me doing the treadmill for 20 mins alternating between 12.4km/hr to 14km/hr in one minute burst of each. But it's hard work and I'm not sure it isn't contradicting previous gym advice where you don't push yourself too hard cos it just burns carbs, which you then have an urge to replace with a choccie bar. Okay, he then has me doing 20 mins on the cross trainer so we are moving into fatburning territory.
No mention of diet in any of this.
Previously I understood you could lose it by doing 45 mins of running at a fairly low 10.5km per hour, less strenuous but in truth very boring.
Any thoughts? Any simple diet advice that works? I know we had the Craig regime a while back, but truth is I don't want to look like that much either, just lean, toned and a bit muscley.
Anyway, I've joined a gym trying to lose one stone at least. Thing is, I did a special session with the instructor, but a snag... the guy is muscley but quite short and stocky. He looks, in his clothes, quite fat I guess but I'm sure his fat index is low and everything.
I don't want to look like him, but thanks to his regime I am going that way.
I haven't lost weight so far, yes I look stocky, more toned and more muscley. He's got me doing the treadmill for 20 mins alternating between 12.4km/hr to 14km/hr in one minute burst of each. But it's hard work and I'm not sure it isn't contradicting previous gym advice where you don't push yourself too hard cos it just burns carbs, which you then have an urge to replace with a choccie bar. Okay, he then has me doing 20 mins on the cross trainer so we are moving into fatburning territory.
No mention of diet in any of this.
Previously I understood you could lose it by doing 45 mins of running at a fairly low 10.5km per hour, less strenuous but in truth very boring.
Any thoughts? Any simple diet advice that works? I know we had the Craig regime a while back, but truth is I don't want to look like that much either, just lean, toned and a bit muscley.
"This is where we leave you Mr Bond."
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Comments
A good punchbag routine will shed the pounds too and work most muscles.
http://apbateman.com
TIS - "The moment you think you got it figured - you're wrong"
Formerly known as Teppo
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Stick to intervals - sprint for 30 secs (at your full maximum pace), rest / jog for 30 secs & keep repeating. It's a killer but will help reduce body fat. If it was easy, then we'd all be ripped! You've got to push yourself or it ain't worth bothering.
Set yourself a 30 minute circuit - personally I'd use free weights / barbells, but you can do bodyweight things such as pressups (flat / decline / staggered hands / close hand), pullups, burpees, squats, lunges, box step ups, mountain climbers, planks, star jumps etc etc. Nail as many big compound exercises as possible & cut your rest times.
I'm currently doing the royal marine workout, from this months mens health, it's hard but very rewarding. You just need some determination, and a bit of kit in the home.
"It's not difficult to get a double 0 number if your prepared to kill people"
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
sounds like my reality...except in the academic world instead of the "real world"
I've been taking longer and longer walks every day...already dropped a few pounds due to that and shunning the traditional college apartment dweller diet of top ramen and fast food. salads for me, mostly...and the occasional Micky D's run...should get out on my bike more.
mountainburdphotography.wordpress.com
You're not a dame, Loeffs. Why should he care?
No self-pity; it's the way you wrote 'im.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Honest answer is - EAT LESS ! It works everytime
And for God's sake - don't run ! Do you really want knackered knees when you get older ? The human knee-joint isn't built for road-pounding.
Go to the gym and use small weights but do more reps....and then go for a long swim !
You have me there ;%
And Barbel---you're probably right about the running. When I was in the military, I got to the point where I was running 10K a day*...five days a week, in the Arizona desert! Worked great with the weight; I could eat anything I wanted, and drink all the beer that time and technique would allow, without any care in the world...but my knees started to give me chronic pain. I wonder how much it'll haunt me in my old age, should I get there.
* Early on, I did it with weights on my wrists and ankles!
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
One of the probs with doing the muscle thing is that I seem to get less boyish in other words I age a lot, and the waistband is no looser, so you don't really see any great benefit initially. I know more muscle helps to raise metabolism and burn off fat.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Run, pushups, crunches/core. Look here: www.crossfit.com.
Bike if you don't want to run, but you have to do tons more. Skip rope.
It's not about how I look, it's about how I feel.
It's also about can I own the younger guys at the dojo when we spar: so performance.
Cold weather? Meh, man up.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
"It's not difficult to get a double 0 number if your prepared to kill people"
I've noticed some difference, thanks to having a 2 litre bottle of water on my desk at work I'm working through each day. Doing the no carbs after a certain time thing also, I did sort of know that but it helps to be reminded.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
http://apbateman.com
As I said Nap - avoid running
http://apbateman.com
As for me, I've been hard training on running machine alternating speeds as recommended and weights too but after a month while my body fat index is much improved and I'm a better shape, I'm exactly the same weight as before, so what gives. I know it's still good, but you'd think I'd have lost a couple of pounds.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
http://apbateman.com
then we'll have to paint him green and start calling him Bruce...
mountainburdphotography.wordpress.com
Dunno, it's hard work combining it with 9-5 work, get so exhausted and flaked out. Then you need carbs and choccie bars a bit, so it's swings and roundabouts.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Waist-Disposal-Ultimate-Loss-Manual/dp/1848501153/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1289739843&sr=1-1
It's good but says that you won't lose weight by gym stuff, a fat borne out by my being at the gym over a month and still weighing the same. Okay, I'm sure my fat ratio has changed and my stomach has gone down but still. He says reduce carbs, keep to high protein, green tea, Greek-style yoghurt, nuts and berries and fish and eggs. It's sort of Atkins really. I'm onto it, though I still go to the gym as it runs out at the end of the month and I don't want to waist it no pun intended.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
If you're trying to lose fat then you need to replace it with something - muscle sounds a pretty decent replacement to me!
I have not read the whole thread - no time at the mo.
I too an trying to get rid of the belly at the mo. - My intention in the long run IS to beef up, and I want to improve my stamina and general fitness too. Anyone who has sad go running / think army exercise is correct - the only way to loose weight is to burn it off. From what you have said, your gym instructor may be trying to help you build muscle. However, a muscle programme will also make you bulkier / fatter if you don't have enough cardio going on! - My own personal trainer warned me of that before I started my last programme. - Its heavy cardio that gives muscular guys definition. - Otherwise they would look like Sumo wrestlers. That is also why I have switched to a traditional high cardio ratio programme.
To get what you want, how you want, ask for a high ratio cardio programme from your gym. This will invlove machines like a treadmill (avoid if you have knee damage), hill climber, rower, excse bike, treadclimber, in long stints. (I do 20 mins on the treadclimber for example) Lots of crunchies, circuit training sit ups, stretches and other exercises designed to burn off body fat. - There may be some weights, but they will be lightweight with hgih repetitions, purely for keeping the muscles fresh. - Also seriously watch what you eat. Ok, the more you work the better you can burn off the odd chocolate bar or few buscuits. But if you can keep them to a minimum, you will burn off more faster. - Ask a dietician about "Good carbs."
A couple, of weeks ago I was on a 5 day walking holiday across the Lake District in Cumbria. I burnt off over a stone from that alone, eating very little and carrying a heavy rucksack! I was careful to keep up my water levels, but of course a week long holiday like that is not practical the rest of the time.
Don't use magazines internet advice or "wondfer programmes" like the Atkins nonsense. - They may be perfectly sound, but you are simply trying to get into better shape. Face to face medical / fitness advice tailored to you is the way to go. Once you have some experience and have got a routine going, you will start to understand how your body reacts to your training. Then you can start adding tips from the publications. - No two people exercise the exact same way.
Also don't trust the scales - they lie. If you are replacing fat with muscle, far from loosing body weight, you will actually gain. Muscle is heavier than fat. If you fail to burn off the fat first, it can hang around with the developing muscle tissue. - This is especially true of the belly area, where lots of sit ups and crunchies are essential, alongside staying away from the cakes and biccies!!
(Boring disclaimer) As always, before staritng any form of exercise or diet programme, check with your doctor forst, to make sure you don't do yourself a mischief.
Phew! I hope some of this helps!
I just don't know at the moment. The programme I was given at the gym had plenty of cardio, but it felt like I was burning up carbs and at high intensity rather than gentler running for say 45 minutes which gets you in the fat burning area. I felt knackered out really and then I'd want more food...
I had a bad discovery yesterday. Measured my waist in inches around the belly button - 38in! Eh? I mean, my trousers are 32-34in. What gives, other than the elastic? I know you can say that they make the sizes smaller to flatter us into buying them and so on, but not that much surely? I certainly don't look obese, just have a bit of a belly y'know? It looks flatter, really rather good after a workout, but maybe that means the flab is just standing to attention.
That's what bugs me about this programme I've been on. For the effort I've put in, yeah sure some of it's muscle, but I haven't moved up one notch on my belt and I'm sure not all that stuff on my stomach is muscle, y'know? I didn't want to replace the fat with muscle. I wanted to lose the fat. That's like you getting me to sell your car to give you space in the garage, only I say, 'Well, I sold it but replaced it with this really cool car with all the mod cons...' Yeah, but that's not what I want....
Ah well....
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Does the treadmill have a heart monitor, and if so are there any charts on the wall that tell you where your heart rate should be for fat loss? That's what you should be basing it on, not speed.
I do weight training a couple of times a week as well, nothing heavy, nothing too taxing, just to keep it all toned. You'll know muscle weighs heavier than fat, and the more you beef up, the more you've got to maintain it as it turns back to fat with some rapidity.
Circuit training is a good combination of high-intensity aerobics and resistance training designed to be easy to follow, give you a great workout, and target fat loss, muscle building and heart-lung fitness, see if there are any classes on at the gym. You are definitely running too fast though, and the cross-trainer and step machines are also good, but go by heart rate and keep in the fat burning zone. My running buddy weighed 17st two years ago, lost 5st and recently finished the Great Scottish Run in 1h37m - but that was built up over two years.
Also, try not to be in the gym for any longer than an hour (you might be laughing thinking "I'm out in 30 minutes!") but you will get subconsciously bored and not perform as well as you think.
Can't comment on swimming because I hate deep water and I hate those breeding grounds for bacteria that are otherwise known as municipal swimming baths...
The most effective way is slowly - over a long period of time. It should be a lifestyle choice - rather than a quick fix.
Carb reduction is by far the most effective way of loosing weight - especially if you're getting rid of the high calorie, low nutritional types - such as white bread, white pasta, sugary foods etc. However, cutting out ALL carbs is a mistake, and not sustainable, so the complex types - whole grains, whole wheat variety is much better for you. Try and eat these throughout the day though, rather than late at night.
Muscle DOES NOT weigh heavier than fat. A pound of muscle, weighs the same as a pound of fat.... it's just that a pound of muscle takes up less space than a pound of fat - hence why jeans will feel looser, even if the scales stay the same.
Drink plenty of water - aim for 2lt a day if you can.
Cut out bad fat - but don't give up good fats (like fish oils, and good quality olive oil) but do limit cheese, full fat milk - and anything fried. However I do believe in treating yourself every now and again - life is far too short
Alcohol should be limited - if not cut out altogether - however, like I said, life is too short - so it's up to you. But beer and white wine (and any alco pops) are the worst offenders. Clean spirits like Vodka and whisky are better (calorie wise per unit of alcohol, and how the body breaks it down.... less sugar too!
Exercise of course is important - but it takes dedication to maintain a rigid routine. 3 times a week, 40 mins at least, will help.
I studied fitness and nutrition at college - and I've lost many stone (both successfully and unsuccessfully, as in I gained it again
It is true that men loose weight quicker than us girlies.....not fair I know, BUT it's because muscle at rest burns more calories than fat. And generally men have a higher muscle ratio than us ladies.... that's why if you can build muscle - all helps in the maintaining of your long term weight loss.
Also, if you up your protein, it helps with making you feel fuller - low fat yoghurt, or low fat cottage cheese are a great mid afternoon snack, even if it does feel rather clichéd.... also nuts and seeds can help too (but not the processed dry roasted variety, try and go for the raw type - almonds in particular....)
crikey, I should write a book