Im new here. Any advice?

[elgatogrande]

Hey everyone. Let me tell you about me and see what advice anyone has. Particularly for supplements or diet/nutrition.

Im 38yr old and weigh 288. (down from 297 2 months ago.) Im a truck driver and up until recently have lived a very sedentary lifestyle. Ive worked out a little in the past but never for more than a couple months at a time. I had pretty good success with a low carb diet a couple of years ago where I got down to 270+/-. I just wanna be healthier. Ive totally quit fast food. Im eating much better but not great. Im also working out 3-4 times a week. I walk the treadmill for 30-40 minutes keeping HR between 125 to 150. I also do some weight training. (chest,back,shoulders,abs,tris,biceps) Im starting to work in an alternating day where I do lower body. Im also focusing on stretching muscles, particularly right after an execise while theyre warm. ( hamstrings are tighter than piano wires) Im starting to notice very subtle changes everywhere but giant . Id like to get some better faster results than 9lbs in 2 months. When I did the low carb dieting the weight just melted off, but Id like to find a healthier way than that. (I know there are no shortcuts) Does anyone have any suggestions.

[Boss Man]

Try this.

40% Protein, 45% Carbs, 15% Fats.

Keep it like that every meal, and see if that helps at all for a few days.

[sameey70]

Hey everyone. Let me tell you about me and see what advice anyone has. Particularly for supplements or diet/nutrition.

Im 38yr old and weigh 288. (down from 297 2 months ago.) Im a truck driver and up until recently have lived a very sedentary lifestyle. Ive worked out a little in the past but never for more than a couple months at a time. I had pretty good success with a low carb diet a couple of years ago where I got down to 270+/-. I just wanna be healthier. Ive totally quit fast food. Im eating much better but not great. Im also working out 3-4 times a week. I walk the treadmill for 30-40 minutes keeping HR between 125 to 150. I also do some weight training. (chest,back,shoulders,abs,tris,biceps) Im starting to work in an alternating day where I do lower body. Im also focusing on stretching muscles, particularly right after an execise while theyre warm. ( hamstrings are tighter than piano wires) Im starting to notice very subtle changes everywhere but giant . Id like to get some better faster results than 9lbs in 2 months. When I did the low carb dieting the weight just melted off, but Id like to find a healthier way than that. (I know there are no shortcuts) Does anyone have any suggestions.

Congratulations on your weight loss and new lifestyle. Cardio is great for burning fat as well as heart healthy. Keep in mind that fat is lost over the entire body, not just a particular area. What is your intensity on the treadmill? You may want to increase the time you spend on the treadmill or up the intensity (grade or speed) if you've been doing the same regimen for a while. This will boost the metabolism a bit.

As far as diet, I would suggest a high carbohydrate (50-55% of total calories), protein (15%), and low fat (around 30%). Having adequate carbohydrate consumption, which the body prefers to use as fuel along with fat, spares protein from being used for energy which lowers the metabolism. The bottom line is creating a calorie deficit.....eating less calories than you burn.

[swanso5]

i wouldn't go that high with carbs myself...i'd go more with 40% protein, and 30% carbs and fats...you should see better losses when your lower body sessions take off...they're 5 times better than upper body workouts conditioning wise...as sammey said, higher int cardio will yeild quicker results...for wts i would do 3 x full body wotkouts a week with short to moderate rest and as heavy as you can go for sets of 8 - 12 reps...there are no short cuts, be patuient, build some consistency and than it will happen

[sameey70]

But think about it. The body relies on carbohydrate (glycogen) predominately for high intensity cardio. By eating less carbs, the body is going to rely more on protein for energy because glycogen is depleted. The body prefers carbs for energy for aerobic and anaerobic exercise and is also protein sparing (prevents loss of lean muscle tissue). Why eat more protein just so it will be used for energy and not used for muscle building and repair?

[swanso5]

i probnably could have been more specific...not really the amount i would be worried about but the meal timing...if youre total calorie intake is 2500 that would be 1250cals or 312 grams of carbs a day which i think is a lot...if you would have 250grams straight after your workout i wouldn't wiorry but if your only having 100g than your probably having too much at other meals for liking

[elgatogrande]

Thanks for the advice guys. When I said I didnt want to do the low carb dieting again I meant not as strict as I did before. I had read the Atkins book and loosely followed it. I virtually eliminated carbs for a couple weeks to jump start weight loss then limited self to less that 50grams a day. I was quite successful but its not really a sustainable diet. I suppose thats the difference between a diet and a lifestyle change. I still watch carbs. I use low carb pasta and bread. I probably keep carbs under 150 grams a day. Its the fat I need to eliminate more. I do stay away from red meat, and am focusing on eliminating trans fats. I also need to work an portion control and try that 6 small meal thing everyone here talks about.

I also read another thing about carbs that you guys can confrim as truth or myth. If you eat carbs before doing cardio your body will use those carbs for fuel before going to the bodies other energy stores (fat). Thats why its recommended to do well over 20 minutes of cardio because those first 20 minutes are just using ready available carbs from your system. Wouldnt it then make sense to do your cardio with almost no (or very high glycemic index) carbs in your system so your body burns fat faster?

As far as weight training sets and such. I was trying the low volume high intensity plan from the ExRX website. Its basically one warm up set of 50-60% of your max followed by just 1 set of high intensity. Advancing the weight when you can do 12 reps. I added a 3rd set back at the lesser weight to exhaustion just to lengthen workout for the added cardio. Will this give me good results? Im thinking of switching to 1 warm up then very high intensity where I can only do 3-4 reps but doing several sets . I think I read somewhere here that that will help gain mass and strength quicker.

Just for added info routine is as follows. Bench press (machine), Flys (machine), Reverse flys? (same machine as flys but backwards for your lats. I dont know the proper term) Lat pull down. Military press (machine), Lateral raise (machine), Triceps then Biceps which I use several different exercises for them that I mix up. I also use the crunch machine and a machine they have for the lower back. The last 2 I use light weight but high reps (3X25). I do all this after 30-45 minutes on the treadmill. I know you guys dont recommend doing both cardio and lifting in the same session but I dont seem to have a problem with fatigue. Maybe Im not doing it right?

Lastly do you guys have any specific advice pertaining to age or current size. Im 38 and feel every bit of it. Im 6ft 288 and have been big whole life. I think at 13 I was 5'11" and 180. By the end of HS I was 230 and maintained that until 28 or so where it all went to crap. Id be pretty happy just being back there again. I have hyper tension which is controlled with medication and cholesterol/yriglycerides are also controlled with medication. Id love to be able to run but am leery of subjecting knees to any high impact exercising.

Holy cow I didnt mean to write a novel Thanks again for any input.

[sameey70]

i probnably could have been more specific...not really the amount i would be worried about but the meal timing...if youre total calorie intake is 2500 that would be 1250cals or 312 grams of carbs a day which i think is a lot...if you would have 250grams straight after your workout i wouldn't wiorry but if your only having 100g than your probably having too much at other meals for liking

312 grams of carbs actually is not a lot considering the calorie level and the amount of physical activity. For the life of me, I just don't understand why people are afraid of carbs. The body and brain in particular will not function efficiently without them. If weight management is the issue, reduce the amount of total calories. Excess calories, whether from carbohydrate, protein, or dietary fat will be stored as body fat.

[sameey70]

Thanks for the advice guys. When I said I didnt want to do the low carb dieting again I meant not as strict as I did before. I had read the Atkins book and loosely followed it. I virtually eliminated carbs for a couple weeks to jump start weight loss then limited self to less that 50grams a day. I was quite successful but its not really a sustainable diet. I suppose thats the difference between a diet and a lifestyle change. I still watch carbs. I use low carb pasta and bread. I probably keep carbs under 150 grams a day. Its the fat I need to eliminate more. I do stay away from red meat, and am focusing on eliminating trans fats. I also need to work an portion control and try that 6 small meal thing everyone here talks about.

I also read another thing about carbs that you guys can confrim as truth or myth. If you eat carbs before doing cardio your body will use those carbs for fuel before going to the bodies other energy stores (fat). Thats why its recommended to do well over 20 minutes of cardio because those first 20 minutes are just using ready available carbs from your system. Wouldnt it then make sense to do your cardio with almost no (or very high glycemic index) carbs in your system so your body burns fat faster?

As far as weight training sets and such. I was trying the low volume high intensity plan from the ExRX website. Its basically one warm up set of 50-60% of your max followed by just 1 set of high intensity. Advancing the weight when you can do 12 reps. I added a 3rd set back at the lesser weight to exhaustion just to lengthen workout for the added cardio. Will this give me good results? Im thinking of switching to 1 warm up then very high intensity where I can only do 3-4 reps but doing several sets . I think I read somewhere here that that will help gain mass and strength quicker.

Just for added info routine is as follows. Bench press (machine), Flys (machine), Reverse flys? (same machine as flys but backwards for your lats. I dont know the proper term) Lat pull down. Military press (machine), Lateral raise (machine), Triceps then Biceps which I use several different exercises for them that I mix up. I also use the crunch machine and a machine they have for the lower back. The last 2 I use light weight but high reps (3X25). I do all this after 30-45 minutes on the treadmill. I know you guys dont recommend doing both cardio and lifting in the same session but I dont seem to have a problem with fatigue. Maybe Im not doing it right?

Lastly do you guys have any specific advice pertaining to age or current size. Im 38 and feel every bit of it. Im 6ft 288 and have been big whole life. I think at 13 I was 5'11" and 180. By the end of HS I was 230 and maintained that until 28 or so where it all went to crap. Id be pretty happy just being back there again. I have hyper tension which is controlled with medication and cholesterol/yriglycerides are also controlled with medication. Id love to be able to run but am leery of subjecting knees to any high impact exercising.

Holy cow I didnt mean to write a novel Thanks again for any input.

Your are correct in that the Atkins diet is not sustainable. Your question regarding carbs and exercise: Eating carbs before cardio and resistance exercise for that matter helps to replenish your carbohydrate stores. At the start of cardio, the body initially burns energy anaerobically and as it adjusts to the exercise begins to use energy aerobically for the most part. The body uses carbohydrate and fat concurrently well before 20min. Remember carbohydrate is the limiting factor in exercise, when it runs low, the body turns to burning protein (lean muscle), not predominately fat.

Did you visit your doctor before starting your exercise program with regards to your hypertension? Be careful with resistance training as it may aggravate your high blood pressure.

[swanso5]

If you eat carbs before doing cardio your body will use those carbs for fuel before going to the bodies other energy stores (fat).

i think when this was brought up initially in the day it may have been on regular steady state low intensity, long duration type cardio exercises such as jogging (don't quote me on that this is just a theory)...it may well be true then but that's why i advocate intervals as you can do it all and burn both carbs (during) and fats (after - epoc) all within 10mins not 45 - 60mins

As far as weight training sets and such. I was trying the low volume high intensity plan from the ExRX website.

your carbs will need to be higher if doing this ecsepcially to display a max effort on each exercise each time you do it instead going hard on 3 - 4 than the last few are only half efforts because of fatigue

Just for added info routine is as follows. Bench press (machine), Flys (machine), Reverse flys? (same machine as flys but backwards for your lats. I dont know the proper term) Lat pull down. Military press (machine), Lateral raise (machine), Triceps then Biceps which I use several different exercises for them that I mix up. I also use the crunch machine and a machine they have for the lower back. The last 2 I use light weight but high reps (3X25). I do all this after 30-45 minutes on the treadmill. I know you guys dont recommend doing both cardio and lifting in the same session but I dont seem to have a problem with fatigue. Maybe Im not doing it right?

if doing the HIT approach only use compounds and use free wt versions. such as squats alternated each session with deadlifts, seated row, bench press, pull up, shoulder press and maybe arms if you have enough in you...you really have to manage fatigue on these programs though so if you don't feel your best before the workout, it would be wise to take the day off and come back fresh the next day...this is an indication of overtraining and once you overtrain a little and continue training you increase it...so sticking to your scheduale you'll dig that hole deeper and waste weeks of training time

[elgatogrande]

Thanks for the quick replies. I dont quite understand your last recommendation swanso.

By alternating deadlifts and squats do you mean to do only 1 exercise per muscle group? Im also leery of both of those exercises because lower back and core are weaker than the rest of me and I fear injury. I know form is particularly important in those 2 specific exercises.

Why is it preferable to use compunds (which I dont know what they are) or free weights over nautilus machines? I know that you use more stabilizer muscles with free weights, but arent the machines safer and help isolate batter? Also max is still quite low. Will it make that much difference at this stage?

[elgatogrande]

I did speak with Dr who was fully behind it. hyper tension is very mild but I still stay concious of heart rate. It amazed me how fast and high it spikes during heavy lifting.

Also to expand on the fatigue question that swanso posed. If I feel before I start that its a slow day for me I will do a minimum of cardio (just 5-10 min to warm up) than do weights while I still am fresh and alert, then go back to cardio afterwards. Which Ive noticed that doing it that way I can carry the higher HR from the weigt trining much longer through cardio. Perhaps I should do it this way all the time?

[swanso5]

By alternating deadlifts and squats do you mean to do only 1 exercise per muscle group? Im also leery of both of those exercises because lower back and core are weaker than the rest of me and I fear injury. I know form is particularly important in those 2 specific exercises.

do squats 1 day then deadlifts the other...if your core's weak thenstart off light...there's no point strengthening your external muscles if your internal muscles are weak (think of building pillars, if they're weak than the building falls over)

Why is it preferable to use compunds (which I dont know what they are) or free weights over nautilus machines? I know that you use more stabilizer muscles with free weights, but arent the machines safer and help isolate batter? Also max is still quite low. Will it make that much difference at this stage?

compounds are multi joint exercises (squats, deads etc), isolation are single joint exercises (side raises, curls, ext etc)...compounds allow for heavier wt which is how you grow muscles not doing 10pd side raises or 20pd curls...if your max wt is low for deads than it will be 805 lower for curls so work on your weak compound exercises and you'll see changes quickly