Help a fat boy get in shape!

keltoi93

So I've always had a bit of extra weight growing up but I've finally at the age of 20 decided to do something about it. Basically I'll be living on campus at UCD from september which has a free gym (only built last year so I'd imagine its up to date gear wise) and ideally I plan on doing an hours workout everyday during the week (I go home on weekends). Im 6"0 and 18 stone but want to get to around 13 stone although I dont have a set time period for that (I was aiming for a year to turn it around in time for my graduation). So I was wondering if anyone could offer any advice on gym routines as Im obviously clueless in the area.

I dont really have any ambition to bulk up or anything so I was just going to ignore the weights totally and concentrate on loosing weight. Any gym advice and life advice would be appreciated. Food wise Im dont really eat much **** but it's just been the fact I havent exercised regularily in about 4/5 years that I know has taken it's toll. I dont have much food drink habits as such, I tend to drink around 4/5 litres of water per day not really out of thirst but just habit I've no idea if this is a good thing or excessive.

Meals wise I'm pretty bad too, I get up everyday at 6 am for work so I generally skip breakfast altogether while my lunch usually consists of an apple, an orange and a yogurt which I'm aware is pretty bad. Dinner wise I just each regular potatoes and meat type dinner although Im pretty bad with vegetables as I dont eat broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, peppers or any green veg. My veg intake consists of corn, raw carrots, lettuce and jalapenos. I'll also be cooking for myself everyday come september so dinner advice would be good too.

I've been slowly adapting my lifestyle since may by replacing all my drinking habbits, soft drinks, apple juice etc with water. It also act like a hunger suppressant so thats good too. Last weekend I bough new pants and noticed in the last 6 weeks or so I've gone from a 44" to 40" waist. While I know this is still really unhealthy it does give me confidence to carry on.

I also found this site myfitnesspal that helps track your eating habbits so I've started filling that in this week. So far Im eating on average 1500 per day but I need to cut down on my dinner intake which as I said previously I've no control over until september! So essentially I'll try just cut out the snacks (I had a bar of chocolate wednesday and monday) in an attempt to offset any excess on dinner. I think some of you may give out about my food intake during the day but while I know you should be filling up etc Im simply not hunger and fruit and water does me fine.

You can view my food diary here: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/food/diary/keltoi93?date=2013-07-01

So far so good, I feel Im more conscious about what Im eating now I see what each food amounts too which helps tons. I've two months until uni starts so Im hoping to lose 20-28lbs before then. Im already feeling very motivated so I cant wait to hit the gym in september.

I noticed my local gym have a good 3 month deal for students so Im considering joining and doing spinning class on a saturday morning and a personal session on a sunday. I'd do something midweek but Im up at 6am and not home until 7pm so I just dont have the time midweek.

Only thing is I'm going to oxegen next month, its 3 days camping so Im sure it's going to set me back in the calorie department.

If anyone has any advice on my food diary, calorie counting with alcohol and a good solo gym session or anything in general it'd be much appreciated!

EDIT: Could someone explain about calories needed to maintain your current weight? I've used loads of calculators and am getting 2500 per day average but using the one in the sticky here I got 3400? So if I want to lose say 2 lbs a week I need a 7000 calorie deficit from what I've read, so using the 3400 figure from the sticky I need to eat 2400 per day to achieve that weekly goal?

endacl

Well, I'd start with taking control of you dinner now! Why wait till September? I'm sure mammy will be thrilled when you suggest taking over dinner duties once or twice a week. Spend an hour a day walking too. Walking rocks, and its great for clearing the head.

keltoi93

endacl wrote: »

Well, I'd start with taking control of you dinner now! Why wait till September? I'm sure mammy will be thrilled when you suggest taking over dinner duties once or twice a week. Spend an hour a day walking too. Walking rocks, and its great for clearing the head.

Mammy is just one of those good country mothers who love to stuff their kids. I was talking to two of my uncles and they were in the same situation as me with my gran, same height same weight, one got it off one didnt.

To be honest its just I feel like I want to relax after getting home from work and yes I could do a better meal myself but its just nice to be handed a meal after coming in. I will have a word though with her and talk about picking out some good meals. Any good sites/links for some good low card dinners?

On the walking front it's something I'll try to get into too, for what it's worth I've a 3km round trip walk from bus stop to work everyday, not much but it's a start.

the_syco

keltoi93 wrote: »

Meals wise I'm pretty bad too, I get up everyday at 6 am for work so I generally skip breakfast altogether while my lunch usually consists of an apple, an orange and a yogurt which I'm aware is pretty bad. Dinner wise I just each regular potatoes and meat type dinner although Im pretty bad with vegetables as I dont eat broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, peppers or any green veg. My veg intake consists of corn, raw carrots, lettuce and jalapenos. I'll also be cooking for myself everyday come september so dinner advice would be good too.

Sounds like you're starving yourself, stuffing yourself, and then relaxing.

If stuck for time, try either getting up 15 minutes earlier and having something like Weetabix, or having the banana and orange in the morning, and maybe some sort of meat added to your current lunch, so when you get home, you're not wolfing down the dinner likes someone who has just done a 10 day hunger strike! Wait an hour for the dinner to settle, and walk somewhere. If you find walking boring, listen to music, or get a podcast, and listen to it whilst walking.

Ask your doctor about losing weight, and so if the mammy asks why are you not eating the entire dinner, say that the doctor said that you should cut down on the portions. Most mammies will not question the doctors word.

endacl

keltoi93 wrote: »

Mammy is just one of those good country mothers who love to stuff their kids. I was talking to two of my uncles and they were in the same situation as me with my gran, same height same weight, one got it off one didnt.

To be honest its just I feel like I want to relax after getting home from work and yes I could do a better meal myself but its just nice to be handed a meal after coming in. I will have a word though with her and talk about picking out some good meals. Any good sites/links for some good low card dinners?

On the walking front it's something I'll try to get into too, for what it's worth I've a 3km round trip walk from bus stop to work everyday, not much but it's a start.

Its a great start. Another great start, by the way is porridge and fruit. If you're a snacker, you really won't feel like snacking till lunchtime with a good dollop of oats in you.

I'm familiar with the phenomenon of the country mammy! What you could look at is portion sizes. My rule of thumb is that I should be able to see a third of the plate at the start of the meal. I don't really go in much for counting calories. Others here will advise you better on that. Remember, your empty stomach is about the size of your closed fist. I try to make sure my portions are related to that fact!

Best of luck with it all.

Edit: whoops. Kind of a crosspost. We seem to agree though, so we must be talking sense!

dor843088

keltoi93 wrote: »

So I've always had a bit of extra weight growing up but I've finally at the age of 20 decided to do something about it. Basically I'll be living on campus at UCD from september which has a free gym (only built last year so I'd imagine its up to date gear wise) and ideally I plan on doing an hours workout everyday during the week (I go home on weekends). Im 6"0 and 18 stone but want to get to around 13 stone although I dont have a set time period for that (I was aiming for a year to turn it around in time for my graduation). So I was wondering if anyone could offer any advice on gym routines as Im obviously clueless in the area.

I dont really have any ambition to bulk up or anything so I was just going to ignore the weights totally and concentrate on loosing weight. Any gym advice and life advice would be appreciated. Food wise Im dont really eat much **** but it's just been the fact I havent exercised regularily in about 4/5 years that I know has taken it's toll. I dont have much food drink habits as such, I tend to drink around 4/5 litres of water per day not really out of thirst but just habit I've no idea if this is a good thing or excessive.

Meals wise I'm pretty bad too, I get up everyday at 6 am for work so I generally skip breakfast altogether while my lunch usually consists of an apple, an orange and a yogurt which I'm aware is pretty bad. Dinner wise I just each regular potatoes and meat type dinner although Im pretty bad with vegetables as I dont eat broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, peppers or any green veg. My veg intake consists of corn, raw carrots, lettuce and jalapenos. I'll also be cooking for myself everyday come september so dinner advice would be good too.

I've been slowly adapting my lifestyle since may by replacing all my drinking habbits, soft drinks, apple juice etc with water. It also act like a hunger suppressant so thats good too. Last weekend I bough new pants and noticed in the last 6 weeks or so I've gone from a 44" to 40" waist. While I know this is still really unhealthy it does give me confidence to carry on.

I also found this site myfitnesspal that helps track your eating habbits so I've started filling that in this week. So far Im eating on average 1500 per day but I need to cut down on my dinner intake which as I said previously I've no control over until september! So essentially I'll try just cut out the snacks (I had a bar of chocolate wednesday and monday) in an attempt to offset any excess on dinner. I think some of you may give out about my food intake during the day but while I know you should be filling up etc Im simply not hunger and fruit and water does me fine.

You can view my food diary here: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/food/diary/keltoi93?date=2013-07-01

So far so good, I feel Im more conscious about what Im eating now I see what each food amounts too which helps tons. I've two months until uni starts so Im hoping to lose 20-28lbs before then. Im already feeling very motivated so I cant wait to hit the gym in september.

I noticed my local gym have a good 3 month deal for students so Im considering joining and doing spinning class on a saturday morning and a personal session on a sunday. I'd do something midweek but Im up at 6am and not home until 7pm so I just dont have the time midweek.

Only thing is I'm going to oxegen next month, its 3 days camping so Im sure it's going to set me back in the calorie department.

If anyone has any advice on my food diary, calorie counting with alcohol and a good solo gym session or anything in general it'd be much appreciated!

EDIT: Could someone explain about calories needed to maintain your current weight? I've used loads of calculators and am getting 2500 per day average but using the one in the sticky here I got 3400? So if I want to lose say 2 lbs a week I need a 7000 calorie deficit from what I've read, so using the 3400 figure from the sticky I need to eat 2400 per day to achieve that weekly goal?

Heres what you need to do .

Diet
2500 cals seems like an ok place to start . Use myfitnesspal and adjust the settings to 40% protein 40% carbs 20% fat. Fill it in everyday . Get within 5g of your numbers daily. If you workout whqt hits your numbers then eating the same meals everyday can be helpful but not necessary. Have a decent serving of veg and one of fruit everyday .

Weight training
You need to hit the weights to avoid your body using muscle for fuel when loosing weight and avoid looking skinny fat increase metabolism and generally look a whole lot better. Jump on a 4day split upper lower routine google it and pick one.

Cardio
Cardio is merely a means to creat a calorie defecit. Dont go balls to the wall with cardio to begin with because if you plateaux or stop loosing weight it will be very difficult to increase from an already high volume. Start with 1-2 hours of walking a week and increase as needed.


This should be viewed as a marathon for you not a sprint. If you have 70lbs to lose then a good target would be to loose 2lb a week for 35 weeks . Dont get impatient and stick to your plan . Only increase cardio or drop calories when you are not progressing anymore and do it relatively small increments.
Good luck with it !

cmyk

keltoi93 wrote: »

ideally I plan on doing an hours workout everyday during the week (I go home on weekends). Im 6"0 and 18 stone but want to get to around 13 stone although I dont have a set time period for that (I was aiming for a year to turn it around in time for my graduation). So I was wondering if anyone could offer any advice on gym routines as Im obviously clueless in the area.

That sounds like a good plan, a bodyweight circuit would be a good starting point. A user here called Transform has a beginners bodyweight circuit video. I don't have time to find it now, but someone else might be kind enough to dig it out.

keltoi93 wrote: »

Meals wise I'm pretty bad too, I get up everyday at 6 am for work so I generally skip breakfast altogether while my lunch usually consists of an apple, an orange and a yogurt which I'm aware is pretty bad. Dinner wise I just each regular potatoes and meat type dinner although Im pretty bad with vegetables as I dont eat broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, peppers or any green veg. My veg intake consists of corn, raw carrots, lettuce and jalapenos. I'll also be cooking for myself everyday come september so dinner advice would be good too.

This is what's going to make the biggest difference for you. You need to take some control of this, learn to cook a few meals yourself, get some breakfast. Preparation ahead of time is what's going to make the difference for you. You can make some homemade protein/oat bars to take with you for breakfast. Even a protein shake and a handful of nuts would be a good start...there's zero excuse there, no preparation needed.

keltoi93 wrote: »

I've been slowly adapting my lifestyle since may by replacing all my drinking habbits, soft drinks, apple juice etc with water. It also act like a hunger suppressant so thats good too. Last weekend I bough new pants and noticed in the last 6 weeks or so I've gone from a 44" to 40" waist. While I know this is still really unhealthy it does give me confidence to carry on.

Good work, results are the biggest motivator so keep moving forward.

keltoi93 wrote: »

I also found this site myfitnesspal that helps track your eating habbits so I've started filling that in this week. So far Im eating on average 1500 per day but I need to cut down on my dinner intake which as I said previously I've no control over until september! So essentially I'll try just cut out the snacks (I had a bar of chocolate wednesday and monday) in an attempt to offset any excess on dinner. I think some of you may give out about my food intake during the day but while I know you should be filling up etc Im simply not hunger and fruit and water does me fine.

At 1500cals per day you don't need to cut anything more from your diet, having looked at your food diary, your protein is extremely low. Work on adding more meat/fish/eggs etc into your meals. Work on improving your food quality, by that I mean food that's less processed, preferably foods with just one ingredient.

Saying you have no control over your dinner is just an excuse....take control.

keltoi93 wrote: »

EDIT: Could someone explain about calories needed to maintain your current weight? I've used loads of calculators and am getting 2500 per day average but using the one in the sticky here I got 3400? So if I want to lose say 2 lbs a week I need a 7000 calorie deficit from what I've read, so using the 3400 figure from the sticky I need to eat 2400 per day to achieve that weekly goal?

All that information is in the stickies at the top of the page, give it a read. Don't fret too much about exact calories, stick to good quality foods as much as you can and increase your protein level....best of luck.

atilladehun

First of all best of luck! It'll be very hard work but something you can take a lot of pride in. There's a lot to be learned in the stickies here and a lot of support in this forum and the nutrition forum. By the time you are done you'll transfer the weight into knowledge.

You probably should eat regularly during the day. It speeds up your metabolism. Why don't you learn how to make one healthy meal a week. Pop off to tesco on a Sunday and put it together for lunch on Monday. You can probably buy enough to get you through lunch till Wednesday if your making a chicken salad or turkey pita.

zenno

I used to have the same problem with weight, but one day i just said feck it, i started by changing my diet from processed foods to all healthy foods and cut down from big dinners to half sized ones and walked 4 miles a day.

The key to losing weight in my opinion is a 3/4 mile walk a day and cutting out all luxuries like chocolate and cakes and anything fattening, but walking will remove fat as fast as you can say the word once you stick with it. It's damn hard at the start but after a few weeks it is just like you always done it.

Trying to fit in 3/4 miles a day is easily done if you really want to do it, you have got to stick with it though without fail.

Good luck, i wish you well on your endeavour.

JJayoo

Don't neglect weight training.

Iopu

Calorie calculator's underestimate my maintenance by miles. I lose weight on 3000 calories. But myfitnesspal tells me to eat around 1400. I'd starve on that!
Lifting weights will help you to avoid losing muscle on the diet. My dad has been losing weight recently. He's starting to look way too skinny and scrawny. So that may be something to consider. But don't worry, if it happens you can undo it by eating more!

keltoi93

Wow thanks for all the advice and kind words guys.

As regards meal sizes/qualities I've had a word with the mammy and shes assured me shes going to do her bit on that end

With exercise I currently only walk 3km to from bus stops/work so I'm going to try get more exercise in. I plan on doing a monday and a saturday workout for the until september and hopefully then going to the gym in ucd wont be such a culture shock.

The advice about losing muscle was great actually as I hadnt thought about that, what kind of mix would people recommend? I obviously am focusing on weight/fitness so I was thinking treadmill, rowing machine and bike with some weights on a monday while I can attend a spinning class on saturday morning (Im a bit apprehensive about jumping straight into this however as I'd be so out of my depth fitness wise). When I went to my local gym last (about 2 years ago) weights wise they had free weights and machines you can sit into, I'd probably do the latter as there's big polish guys always using the free weights and I'd be very self conscious considering I'd be on the lower scale of weights.

One final question, I know 3500 cal = 1 lb but what other areas should I keep track of in food? I mean is calories the most important starting off?

Weight'd myself today to get an exact weight and Im 17 st 10 lbs so Im aiming to be 17st 0 lbs by oxegen next month. Again thanks for all the advice and words of encouragement.

keltoi93

the_syco wrote: »

Sounds like you're starving yourself, stuffing yourself, and then relaxing.

If stuck for time, try either getting up 15 minutes earlier and having something like Weetabix, or having the banana and orange in the morning, and maybe some sort of meat added to your current lunch, so when you get home, you're not wolfing down the dinner likes someone who has just done a 10 day hunger strike! Wait an hour for the dinner to settle, and walk somewhere. If you find walking boring, listen to music, or get a podcast, and listen to it whilst walking.

Ask your doctor about losing weight, and so if the mammy asks why are you not eating the entire dinner, say that the doctor said that you should cut down on the portions. Most mammies will not question the doctors word.

Just wanted to respond to this bit, as regards starving myself, I honestly dont feel hungry on it. If you look at my food diary I linked in the OP all the fruit/water I consume are constant throughout the working day not just in one sitting.

As regards the doctor, I mentioned it in passing when I was in a year ago, her advice wasnt really inspiring/revealing. She simply said eat porridge, get more veg and do exercise, all stuff I could've guessed myself.

Stench Blossoms

keltoi93 wrote: »

As regards the doctor, I mentioned it in passing when I was in a year ago, her advice wasnt really inspiring/revealing. She simply said eat porridge, get more veg and do exercise, all stuff I could've guessed myself.

Then why aren't you doing this already?

Mr. CooL ICE

keltoi93 wrote: »

When I went to my local gym last (about 2 years ago) weights wise they had free weights and machines you can sit into, I'd probably do the latter as there's big polish guys always using the free weights and I'd be very self conscious considering I'd be on the lower scale of weights.

Don't think like that. Those big polish guys weren't already muscley before they first went to the gym. They were either scrawny or fat when they started.

Everybody has to start somewhere. The gym is where you go to improve, so no need to feel self conscious. Unless you are eating a big mac on the bike machine, of course

LuckyLloyd

keltoi93 wrote: »

When I went to my local gym last (about 2 years ago) weights wise they had free weights and machines you can sit into, I'd probably do the latter as there's big polish guys always using the free weights and I'd be very self conscious considering I'd be on the lower scale of weights.

You know I'd wager a few quid they wouldn't care whatsoever. You might even find that if you stick at it, learn a few exercises properly and pop your face down there on a regular basis they'd even say hello from time to time.

WrigleysExtra

I only skimmed through the posts but you will be making a massive mistake by not lifting weights. Instead why don't you ditch the cardio or at least limit it to 20 mins per day and then do compound exercises such a the bench squat deadlift and shoulder press and improve your diet. Keep your protein high.

The more muscle you have the more calories you will burn even when you are in a relaxed state.

keltoi93

LordChessington wrote: »

Don't think like that. Those big polish guys weren't already muscley before they first went to the gym. They were either scrawny or fat when they started.

Everybody has to start somewhere. The gym is where you go to improve, so no need to feel self conscious. Unless you are eating a big mac on the bike machine, of course

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

You know I'd wager a few quid they wouldn't care whatsoever. You might even find that if you stick at it, learn a few exercises properly and pop your face down there on a regular basis they'd even say hello from time to time.

Thanks for the encouragement guys, I know Im being stupid but I'll do the free weights once I get to college gym. For the moment I'll just stick to the weight machines you sit in.

WrigleysExtra wrote: »

I only skimmed through the posts but you will be making a massive mistake by not lifting weights. Instead why don't you ditch the cardio or at least limit it to 20 mins per day and then do compound exercises such a the bench squat deadlift and shoulder press and improve your diet. Keep your protein high.

The more muscle you have the more calories you will burn even when you are in a relaxed state.

Yeah I hadnt considered this to be honest but will do some now I know more about the area. I think I'll probably ask one of the gym staff for some recommendations once I'm in there, from what I remember when I went a few years back they were always quite helpful and approachable.

keltoi93

Sorry guys quick question, how important is it to count carbs as opposed to calories?

At the moment Im just doing calories but if the calories are in line with what I need with the carbs just take care of themselves?

JJayoo

At this stage it isn't really that important as overall calorie intake will decide whether or not you lose weight. When you begin a diet/the gym it can be easy to over complicate things. You should however be conscious of the foods you are eating trying to cut down on the processed crap and trying to increase your intake of fruit/veg/lean protein (fish,meat,whey). Your macro breakdown (amount of protein/fat/carbs) will become a bit more important as you lose the weight but you will find that once you are conscious of the foods you are eating you will automatically become more aware of the macros.

Plus Quark eat as much quark as you can nom nom.

Iopu

I like to keep my carb intake high on a diet. I get good results just counting calories. I tried going low carb before, never again, I felt out of it!

keltoi93

Iopu wrote: »

I like to keep my carb intake high on a diet. I get good results just counting calories. I tried going low carb before, never again, I felt out of it!

I was under the impression that carbs were fatty and made you gain weight?

Stench Blossoms

keltoi93 wrote: »

I was under the impression that carbs were fatty and made you gain weight?

Excess calories make you gain weight. Whether they are in carb, protein or fat form it still comes down to excess calories.

JJayoo

keltoi93 wrote: »

I was under the impression that carbs were fatty and made you gain weight?

As mentioned above it's the excess calories that leads to weight gain. Carbs can be tricky for the simple fact that we eat so many carbs and they all add up. Even if you cut out the obviously calorie dense processed carbs like cake, you are prob still wolfing down loads of bread,spuds,milk,pasta.

Even something as simple as swapping bread for cracker bread can make a noticeable difference. Cracker bread is great plus you can load it up with what ever filling you normally put in your sandwiches.

keltoi93

keltoi93 wrote: »

I was under the impression that carbs were fatty and made you gain weight?

Come over to us here in the Nutrition forum and spend a couple of hours reading and taking notes on this thread.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055157091

Firstly, let me try and convince you to remove the bad association that you have with the word 'fat'. Fats that you eat are not related to bodyfat in the way that 99% of people believe. If needs be, consider the use of the term Lipid instead of Fat when talking about food.

Lipids and carbs are fuels for the body. They both have their place in a well balanced diet for a non-sedentary individual. You need to learn and appreciate where and what you should get your Lipids and Carbs from.

Attack the problem from both sides. Train for sanity and also to feel great and sleep well. Train to create a new body shape. Eat properly to accelerate this properly too. The ratio that most people would say isn't far off is approximately 80/20. That is in order to change body composition (lose bodyfat) the battle is 80% diet and 20% training.

At the start, if you are very overweight, starting by getting active in absolutely any manner that you can (walking, cycling, swimming, playing tag rugby, lifting weights) whatever you can do and enjoy will make a huge difference to your ability to be disciplined, to engage in routine, to listen to your body etc.

If at the same time as this you tidy up your diet, get into good habits with eating and understand what your body needs when it's moaning and groaning, you will make massive, massive progress.

You've taken the first step, get educated in how to take the next, and then do your best to stay on track!

keltoi93

Thanks for the long post pal, really appreciate it.

also, an absolutely essential thing to note.

You are not eating enough.

If you do not eat enough calories your energy levels and moods are going to be terrible. Your will will be severely tested.

Aim for an achieveable level of calorie deficit. I would recommend no more than 750kcals per day less than your maintenance level. (And really I'd say 500 is the sweet spot, gives 1lb of weight loss per week, not counting spent exercise calories)

It seems counter intuitive, but not eating enough prevents long term weight loss as people simply can't function on large deficits for a long period of time. They also struggle to train well, and the psychological toll is difficult.

I'd wager that at 6 foot tall and 18 stone, 1500kcals is nowhere near enough energy for you.

(I'm 5'9" and 11 stone, and even when I'm trying to trim bodyfat I will eat more than that!)

keltoi93

I dont feel tired though or particularly hungry and if you knew me you'd know I'm not a moody type of guy.

While Im aware I dont eat enough this will increase once I get to college and get my free gym membership, that way I can offset increased eating with gym work.

keltoi93

Quick update for anyone interested.

I really havent hit the gym at all but have gone on a good few walks (did a 10k one last saturday and sunday).

The eating is going good and Im not seeming to have any trouble sticking to it. Weight wise I'm down to like 16st 10lbs now an overall loss of over a stone and a half since I started (the weight I gave in the OP was one I took early June and hadnt weight myself since). Waist size has also gone from a 44" to a 38" so Im feeling good and motivated

MiskyBoyy

keltoi93 wrote: »

Quick update for anyone interested.

I really havent hit the gym at all but have gone on a good few walks (did a 10k one last saturday and sunday).

The eating is going good and Im not seeming to have any trouble sticking to it. Weight wise I'm down to like 16st 10lbs now an overall loss of over a stone and a half since I started (the weight I gave in the OP was one I took early June and hadnt weight myself since). Waist size has also gone from a 44" to a 38" so Im feeling good and motivated

GOOD stuff man! Keep it up! :cool:

Excellent progress. 2 more weeks of eating well and taking care of yourself and you'll be fully in "habit" mode.

The exercise will come, keep on the clean meals progress and you'll begin to become more motivated to accelerate the composition change.

Keep us up to date too!

keltoi93

DaLad wrote: »

GOOD stuff man! Keep it up! :cool:

Thanks man

keltoi93

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Excellent progress. 2 more weeks of eating well and taking care of yourself and you'll be fully in "habit" mode.

The exercise will come, keep on the clean meals progress and you'll begin to become more motivated to accelerate the composition change.

Keep us up to date too!

Thanks for the reply!

To be honest the exercise thing is more of a money issue than anything, can't wait to get back to ucd with the free gym!

keltoi93

Update and advice need!

I'm not down to 15st 8 lbs, so around 3 stone overall and I'm pretty delighted with it. Waist is down from 42" orignally to 34/36" (depending on shop) now. Only downside is having to buy new clothes all the time and some of my favourite clothes not fitting anymore!

So I got my gym induction done last week and I can now start using the facilities. I am aiming of doing a 60-90 minute workout 5 days a week but have no clue about what cairdo/weights sets I should be doing so some advice would be great!

Thanks again!

Orlaw3136

Good stuff. I have a very similar story to yourself (bar I'm nearly 15 years older). Lost about a net stone now, although clearly have put on noticeable muscle so the fat loss is more than that, and taken about 4 inches off my waistline.

Best thing I did was get good quality instruction on lifting free weights and that's most of what I do (3 sessions a week, about 45 minutes at a time lifting week) on other days I do 10 minutes of either interval sprints on a rowing machine or 10 minute circuit of burpees, star jumps, pressups and planks, and that's it - good results so far. I don't think you need to spend 90 minutes working out every day just to get and remain in healthy shape.

I think the thing is that if you're coming at weightlifting new you just don't have the knowledge or technique to do it safely and in a way that's going to benefit you. Get some instruction from somebody who knows what they're doing, and ideally get that person to give you a programme to follow and to keep an eye on you to make sure you're doing it right. Gym instructors are usually all too happy to help people out with this kind of thing.

(side note - don't worry about lifting weights that are lighter than others - no one in the gym cares what you're lifting - just lift heavy for you and lift right and you'll get great progress faster than you think)

keltoi93

Another update for those interested, Im now down to 14 stone overall, again the aim is 12-13 stone so Im pretty happy!

The gym has helped a lot in terms of weight loss and I usually go 4 times a week or so for about an hour. I do 20 mins treadmill at 10 km speed, then weights for 25 mins (I use the machines you sit into, 3 sets of 10 reps on each), 5 minute on the rowing machine and then 10-15 mins bike to finish.

Any advice as regards cardio/weight goals would be appreciated. When it comes to the threadmill I usually run for 15-20 minutes at 10km until I hit 3km distance and then do the 5 minute cooldown. What should I be aiming for here? Distance or speed? I want to improve both but Im conscious of the time it takes but I am hoping to do a 5/10k run in the near future.

Weights wise I usually set all the arm machines to 32lbs, is this really low? Any tips on improving it? My upper body strength is pretty shocking to be fair especially on the machine where you lift over your head, I struggle to do 20 reps total even with like 15-20lbs. Legs wise Im much better and use 54lbs weights.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

freddyboiii

If you're not concerned about lifting weights and you have the spare time to do something a bit more fun that going to the gym I'd recommend trying out a sport where you can make friends and really care about what you're doing.

I do bjj, to avoid the bias of me blindly recommending my own club (the nearest one to ucd;)) I'll link this old article by an active member of the Irish bjj community http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=76282713

What are your overall goals that you want from exercise?

What do you enjoy doing?

What is your time freedom like? (How long and how often can you train - routinely?)

Have you any experience lifting weights?

Do you have anyone you can buddy up with?

keltoi93

Deleted User wrote: »

What are your overall goals that you want from exercise?

Just general fitness and toned body, not looking to be a body builder or anything.

What do you enjoy doing?

Sportwise soccer, a bit of gaa. Cant see myself getting involved in them at this point in my life however, I've no idea what the future holds (final year in ucd) or where I'll be living.

What is your time freedom like? (How long and how often can you train - routinely?)

Coming up to exams/essays now Im quite busy. Usually I'm finished my day at 3pm in college.

Have you any experience lifting weights?

Not free weights but I use the machines you sit into in the gym, as I've mentioned previously I really lack upper body strength.

Do you have anyone you can buddy up with?

Well one of my flatmmates goes monday-friday but our schedules rarely if ever match up. I've been getting some advice from him as regards lifting so that helps.

keltoi93

keltoi93 wrote: »

Just general fitness and toned body, not looking to be a body builder or anything.

Sportwise soccer, a bit of gaa. Cant see myself getting involved in them at this point in my life however, I've no idea what the future holds (final year in ucd) or where I'll be living.

Coming up to exams/essays now Im quite busy. Usually I'm finished my day at 3pm in college.

Not free weights but I use the machines you sit into in the gym, as I've mentioned previously I really lack upper body strength.

Well one of my flatmmates goes monday-friday but our schedules rarely if ever match up. I've been getting some advice from him as regards lifting so that helps.

Good stuff

Be warned, body change can be kind of addictive! If you make significant progress and get into good routines you may look back in 2/3 years and say the opposite!

So you need exercise that isn't gym specific if it all possible? Have you heard of Calisthenics - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calisthenics. Basically doing exercise hanging from things etc. Really very good for upper body strength, absolutely excellent to use in association with gym/free weights if you can do both. Lots of videos on youtube. A lot of the exercises are really very tough for beginners though, so don't lose faith if you're barely managing a single rep.

If you can find 1.5 hours of time 3 days a week then you have more than enough time in a week to train. Ideally you'd have rest days in between - Monday/Weds/Fri etc.

I'd personally advise one of the good linear programmes (Strong lifts5x5 or Starting Strength) on the proviso that you are getting your form absolutely spot on. Spend some time learning the lifts before you attempt to load the weight. This will mean some sessions with empty bars, it will mean sessions where the bar has 'silly' looking weights on it, but everyone is a beginner at some stage, so don't worry about this.

If at all possible, try to buddy up with someone. The routine, competition and bravado and also the need for both of you to be "half arsed" before a session is skipped instead of just one can make a world of difference in terms of consistency and progression. Get a friend interested, or try to swing a session or two around with your flatmate if possible. It's something small, but I personally found it extremely useful.

Sorry, one more question I forgot to ask. How is the €€ situation? If I were to recommend you to get a couple of weightlifting lessons 1-on-1 would that be an issue? For me form is king. I couldn't advise any beginner to start without learning properly. That doesn't always need to be from a 1-on-1 course, some people can use Youtube and videos to teach themselves, but I don't know if you'd be comfortable with that?

keltoi93

Deleted User wrote: »

Good stuff

Be warned, body change can be kind of addictive! If you make significant progress and get into good routines you may look back in 2/3 years and say the opposite!

So you need exercise that isn't gym specific if it all possible? Have you heard of Calisthenics - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calisthenics. Basically doing exercise hanging from things etc. Really very good for upper body strength, absolutely excellent to use in association with gym/free weights if you can do both. Lots of videos on youtube. A lot of the exercises are really very tough for beginners though, so don't lose faith if you're barely managing a single rep.

If you can find 1.5 hours of time 3 days a week then you have more than enough time in a week to train. Ideally you'd have rest days in between - Monday/Weds/Fri etc.

I'd personally advise one of the good linear programmes (Strong lifts5x5 or Starting Strength) on the proviso that you are getting your form absolutely spot on. Spend some time learning the lifts before you attempt to load the weight. This will mean some sessions with empty bars, it will mean sessions where the bar has 'silly' looking weights on it, but everyone is a beginner at some stage, so don't worry about this.

If at all possible, try to buddy up with someone. The routine, competition and bravado and also the need for both of you to be "half arsed" before a session is skipped instead of just one can make a world of difference in terms of consistency and progression. Get a friend interested, or try to swing a session or two around with your flatmate if possible. It's something small, but I personally found it extremely useful.

Sorry, one more question I forgot to ask. How is the €€ situation? If I were to recommend you to get a couple of weightlifting lessons 1-on-1 would that be an issue? For me form is king. I couldn't advise any beginner to start without learning properly. That doesn't always need to be from a 1-on-1 course, some people can use Youtube and videos to teach themselves, but I don't know if you'd be comfortable with that?

Thanks for all the advise!

As for the money situation I'm a student so as you'd imagine it's week on week! (trying to save for a masters too). As regards one on one I think thats a good idea, college is fairly hectic now with exams and assignments due but after christmas I'll get down and get an assessment done and they'll make a plan out. I couldve got this done previously and it may sound stupid in hindsight but I want to imagine my fitness/weight situation before do it so I didnt look totally lost! In a sense it worked as I went from barely able to do 2km in late september to starting every session with a 5km run.

I think you've started really really well, first piece of advice I gave was to just do anything, anything at all that you could stick to doing. Getting into a routine was the key. Keeping interested and motivated would do that.

You've now reached a stage where it's time to hone your training. Not many people get to that stage, you should mark it as a major milestone in your body transformation tbh.

In the meantime (until you get barbell lessons/spotting) I'd advise doing some bodyweight exercises alongside your running. Press ups, pull ups (use an assistance machine if you need to), bodyweight squats, and also take a look at trying to asses and improve your flexibility (will really help you learn to lift and progress much more easily).