Newbie - Need to drop some fat weight

[cassiegose]

Yup i'm pretty thrilled! I've taken a couple pictures and will probably take more, even though the clothes speak to progress just fine. This weekend I wore slacks that I couldn't even pull all the way up before. Pretty amazing, plus jeans that were a death trap now fit me. As of today I am dangerously close to 13 pounds gone! So a big thank you Cassie and Thank You Shapefit.com!!! I can't wait to report that I've reached goal of 25 pounds off (by Christmas), I'm thinking it's reasonable and probably doable. Even if not, just getting closer and closer every week even 1 pound at a time is enough to keep me on track.

Great job!

I'm very happy to hear that you are having such great success! Its SUCH a great feeling when you go to put on a pair of pants that previously weren't fitting and you find that they fit just right!! So you want to lose 25 MORE pound by Christmas or just a total of 25 pounds? Assuming you're going for a total you only have 12 more pounds to go in 10 weeks. Thats very much possible. To lose 25 MORE pounds by Christmas you would need to be losing over 2.5 pounds a week... that would be pushing it. You really don't want to lose more than 2 lbs a week and I really like to see people losing closer to 1-1.5.

You are doing so great! Keep up the awesome work!

Cassie

[raz7]

25 more pounds by Christmas would be OUTSTANDING but just a total of 25 would be okay and acceptable. In the long run i would like to get down to 188-195 and stay there. Right now i'm 229.8 and i started at 242.6
So we'll see, i know i can reach that final goal i just have to stay focused and hopefully not over do it so i feel like quitting, which hasn't happened yet.

[cassiegose]

Hmmm... I think 25 more by Christmas would really be pushing it. Like you said, you really don't want to push yourself too hard because then you'll be burned out and not make your final goal. At the same time, its important to push yourself hard enough so you do see consistent progress, which will motivate you to keep working hard in order to keep seeing results. There really is such a fine line between pushing yourself too hard, not pushing hard enough, and making steady healthy progress. What if you went for 20 pounds by Christmas? Thats about 2 pounds a week. Totally possible. Then for the next 35 I would shoot for 1-1.5 per week as its most likely going to become harder to lose the weight the longer you go... so maybe for the next 35 lbs make a goal of June-August. The slower you lose it the easier it is to keep off.

[Boss Man]

Keep going, and don't over do it. I agree about the 20lbs loss by Christmas. Trying to lose another 25lbs, could be a little harder on you mentally and emotionally, and really you can be focusing on building yourself up on both fronts, not knocking yourself down. Especially as it's probably getting to the stage now, where you're getting good synchronicity between the mental, emotional and physical aspects of the task in hand.

The stronger you are and more confident in your own ability over the coming weeks, the better it will be, not to let yourself spend 5-7 days over Christmas, having a really big slide, where you potentially don't exercise and indulge too much.

Getting confidence in your ability to choose the right foods is a good thing, because learning to utilise such phrases as no thanks or not for me thanks, are a cornerstone to your success, without which you may succumb too often, and have fall off the wagon periods, lasting a few days sometimes.

So I concur with what Cassie said. Don't overstretch yourself, or aim a little too high, when you don't need to. Patience is the key to things like this and taking another 6-8 weeks than anticipated perhaps in the long-term, is better than forcing the issue and taking even longer, when you're spending too much time recovering from needless screw-ups.

It looks like you're on the right track and that's all that matters, that you be patient with yourself, and don't overstretch or over extend yourself emotionally and mentally with very taxing mini targets. You didn't start out with a really massive weight issue, like 350-400lbs +, judging by what you said, so you're not likely to be overstressing your vital organs right now, at the weight you are, so that's less to worry about too.

Slow and steady always wins the race fella, so keep taking it one day at a time, and no worries okay .

[raz7]

Well this is an amazing experience and I'm very pleased with the results so far. I definitely haven't over worked or tired myself out, mostly the opposite is true because I'm never hungry and don't feel as tired as before. Also I have to report that I am currently at 225.6 pounds and very excited. For a few days I thought i was beginning to plateau but then another pound came off so still doing well. Now i'm pleasantly annoyed that once super tight pants are loose and baggy, LOL.

[cassiegose]

Well this is an amazing experience and I'm very pleased with the results so far. I definitely haven't over worked or tired myself out, mostly the opposite is true because I'm never hungry and don't feel as tired as before. Also I have to report that I am currently at 225.6 pounds and very excited. For a few days I thought i was beginning to plateau but then another pound came off so still doing well. Now i'm pleasantly annoyed that once super tight pants are loose and baggy, LOL.

Isnt the whole pant thing such a giant pain in the a$$?! I totally know what you mean about being pleasantly annoyed... thats a funny way to put it. With that aside, AWESOME job on the weight loss! You're doing so great! How many pounds down are you now?

[cassiegose]

Well this is an amazing experience and I'm very pleased with the results so far. I definitely haven't over worked or tired myself out, mostly the opposite is true because I'm never hungry and don't feel as tired as before. Also I have to report that I am currently at 225.6 pounds and very excited. For a few days I thought i was beginning to plateau but then another pound came off so still doing well. Now i'm pleasantly annoyed that once super tight pants are loose and baggy, LOL.

I refuse to buy new pants, so about half of mine are two sizes too big, and I have to roll the waistband down to keep them up.

Congratulations! It's a good feeling, eh?

I've had to break down now on two occasions to buy new pants. I've gone from a size 7-8 (pushing 9-10) to a size 3-4, almost 1-2 at this point with dress pants. When mine get too big i go for safety pins... but even those only last you so long before they start to look ridiculous. Losing weight is great but it can be damn expensive! At this point i refuse to buy anything smaller than a 3-4 as i know i'm not going to be this size for very long. Long shirts and sturdy safety pins are a staple in wardrobe right now!

[raz7]

Ya problem is at work i almost always tuck in shirt. Luckily i have so many clothes which have not fit me nor have i even tried on for like 3 years so i've got some stuff to wear as the weight continues to come off. This last weekend i put on a size 38 pant and was comfortable! this is down from 40-42. those 38's i couldn't even pull all the way up not too long ago. I even have a bunch of size 36 pants that are just calling name not too mention tons of shirts that i will hopefully soon be able to wear. the weight gain in the last 4 years has been so annoying that i refused to buy clothes only when i absolutely had to. so, i have more "small" clothes than "big" clothes.

[raz7]

Just wanted to post a quick update:

As of this morning I am weighing in at 206 which is down from 242. It is really amazing and I couldn't be happier. thanks to everyone for their advice.

[fitoverforty]

Congrats on the weight loss! That is awesome!

[cassiegose]

Just wanted to post a quick update:

As of this morning I am weighing in at 206 which is down from 242. It is really amazing and I couldn't be happier. thanks to everyone for their advice.

HOLY COW! Great job man! You're doing SOOOOO AWESOME! Keep it up and thank you for keeping us posted!

[raz7]

Time for some necromancy style thread resurrection.

Some updates:

In early 2010 after all the dieting, mostly planned out and executed based on the posts above I managed to get down to 184 (remember initial weight was high 240's) and was feeling amazing.
Over the course of the following three years into present day, I gained some of the weight back. I am currently sitting at 209. I can honestly say although annoyed, I am pleasantly surprised the weight basically stayed off for this long. I really stopped paying attention to what, when and how I ate (which is why the weight gain) but it didn't happen as fast as I thought it would.
Since then wife and I had another kid and I've been super busy.

Anyway, as of yesterday I starting systematically planning and mapping out diet again. Fingers crossed for some good results this time as well and a decently easy weight loss again.
I'd like to get back down to 180 or so, as this is where I was real comfortable.

I just wanted to say once again, although years later, how thankful I am that I found this website and the people here. If anyone has new tips and tricks, ideas or guidelines, I'm all ears.

Raz


PS. Does anyone know how we can get Shapefit/Fittracker to develop an Android App? I'd be willing to pay for it.

[Boss Man]

Hi Raz, good to speak with you again.

In relation to the app there was and may still be an app. It can be found here Shapefit App

As for the current diet, what times do you eat and what foods do you eat at those times?

[raz7]

The app is only for iphone and ipad. I was hoping for an app compatible with Android devices.

Anyway...
I am currently eating every 2-3 hours and maintaining total calories for the day under 1600.
I wake up around 5 am. Usually have something very small, some grapes, or a rice cake, or granola bar right away.

Then:

This morning I ate 1/4cup oats and drank some whey protein (7am)

A little later I had a raw pear (930am)

Then for lunch: (1130am)
Smoked wild caught salmon on rye bread, with a tsp of mayo and some lemon juice.

Afternoon snack: (2pm)
0% fat Greek yogurt with a dash of almond granola mix and some dried cranberries

For dinner I will have grilled chicken breast with roasted asparagus. (5pm)

Sometime before the end of the day I may have another small snack: (8pm)
Maybe a few cashews or some crackers, something small

I work 10 hours a day at a desk and not doing any exercises.
At most I'll ride a bike trailering two kids around a couple times a week.

[Boss Man]

I wake up around 5 am. Usually have something very small, some grapes, or a rice cake, or granola bar right away.

(Add something else in here like packet turkey, ham, beef or chicken, or scrambled eggs for more protein, or you could have some peanuts as well. If you're concerned about aflatoxins from peanuts, consider western grown versus eastern grown.)

This morning I ate 1/4cup oats and drank some whey protein (7am)

(Fine)

A little later I had a raw pear (930am)

(Use one of the 5am suggestions for protein)

Then for lunch: (1130am)
Smoked wild caught salmon on rye bread, with a tsp of mayo and some lemon juice.

(Fine)

Afternoon snack: (2pm)
0% fat Greek yogurt with a dash of almond granola mix and some dried cranberries

(Fine)

For dinner I will have grilled chicken breast with roasted asparagus. (5pm)

(Fine)

Sometime before the end of the day I may have another small snack: (8pm)
Maybe a few cashews or some crackers, something small

(You could still add some protein in there if you like, which could include the meat options or a small portion of low fat cheese.)