I'm fat

[+ purplekow]

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Last year on this date I saw a picture my grandniece posted of me holding my greatgrandniece. Since I avoid looking in mirrors and at pictures it was quite a shock to see my photo. Damn you Facebook. Anyway, that was the trigger for me to change my eating and exercise and I have been fairly faithful to a healthier lifestyle. I never weighed myself at the onset, though I was weighed by my doctor just days before. I set a goal of losing 30% of my body weight over the next year. I did not weigh myself for the entire year. My thinking is that the vagaries of life would cause my weight to bounce up and down and the ups would be very detrimental to my mental approach to the weight loss. Today was the end of that first year. I did not lose 30% of my body weight. I did lose 18% of my body weight, which is probably a healthier amount to have lost, but still I feel kind of ambivalent about it. I asked the doctor what he felt was a reasonable goal for next year at this time and he said that losing another 14% of my current weight over the next year would be reasonable. I have set my mind to losing the that and perhaps another 10 over the next year, but it is hard to get a positive feel about this because even then, I will still be the size of one of the guys dancing in this video, which is a great take off on Bad but which did not seem at all funny to me today.

I know there are fellow posters out there who have lost significant weight, so do any of you have any tips on how to keep a positive mindset and keep the pounds coming off. I am hoping the summer and the nice weather will stimulate an accelerated response. Thanks for any tips you have.

And to any of those who might feel the urge to say, you are doing great just keep going, I already told myself that and I will, thanks.

[+ WmClarke]

I just started exercising in Dec 27.

 

The results have been good, but I have to remember that it's cyclical. It does go back up a little bit once in a while, but overall there is progress.

 

I view it like a sine curve tilting downward. There are little set backs but nothing major. And overall it's great.

 

And if I gain a pound or two I just tell myself it's water weight and a good piss will take care of it.

 

Slow and steady wins this race. I'm at my lowest weight in 18 years. About 100 pounds to go. If that takes two years, so be it. I'm a patient man--it took over 40 years to get this heavy--if it takes three to get it all off? Not bad at all.

 

And I just made a collage of the worst "fat pix" of me posted on Facebook. I find it inspiring to compare them with a picture taken this weekend!

[+ sam.fitzpatrick]

PK - My weight over the last 10 years has fluctuated as much as 100 lbs a couple of times. My current weight is 40 lbs from my peak, yet only five years ago I was 40 lbs lighter training for my first half marathon.

 

What I've learned about my weight is that I only focus on one or two things at a time. This week it is making sure to drink my 64 ounces of water as I know the work week itself is going to be long and my exercise will be less frequent than I would like. Last week, my focus was making sure to start the day with a healthy breakfast before leaving the office. With these little goals met each week, I'm able to keep a positive mindset.

 

Admittedly my goals are not currently steady weight loss, but rather stablization with an occasional loss. When I really focus on the weight loss, the changes are then less drastic and I'm able to really focus on a week or 10 days to lose more weight followed by a period of stability.

 

Best wishes for success.

[Zman]

I'm at my heaviest weight ever right now. A little bit of it might be muscle since I'm working out a little more. But I've got a gut. I ate pretty well last week but went overboard on the weekend. So it's rough.

 

Congrats on the weight you've lost. That an accomplishment that took a lot of work!

[rguer]

I also lost about 18%, and could stand to lose another 10%. The hard part for me was getting over the idea that I had to accept huge portions and then eat everything on the plate.

 

You might try working on a different goal, such as getting stronger or gaining aerobic capacity, something in which you might see quick improvements and also have the side effect of making you lose weight. That helped me.

[rguer]

And yes, it's really hard and sometimes/often discouraging, so congratulations on doing what you did!

[gallahadesquire]

Rule #1. Fix in stone your WEIGH-IN conditions, and only once a week. Say, Monday Morning after the shower before getting dressed. And compare it to other mondays.

Rule #2. Appreciate the change in body mass content. I've put on probably 10 or 15 pounds of muscle, but my weight came down by 10 pounds.

The odd thing is that my shirts are tighter in the BACK ... great lats! ... but looser in the front, where my Moobs are shrinking.

Rule #3. Find a physician who understands the human body. I have been sorely tempted to fire mine several times because he is clueless as to the mechanisms of the various blood pressure medication's modes of action.

[As an anesthesiologist, I'm pretty good at knowing what works and what doesn't]

[+ ursalex]

I, too, have just finished a year long odyssey. A year ago this week I went on a diet and have lost 85 pounds -- more than a third of my body weight. It took diligence. I eat a diet rich in fruits and vegetables and just enough protein. I also discovered the gym. I had never been in one until last May. Now I am an addict, working out 8 - 10 times a week.

 

I was lucky. The pounds came pouring off and they only stopped recently, when I reached a weight I hadn't seen in over 35 years.

 

Patience and perseverance. It's not a sprint; it's a marathon, hopefully to good health for the rest of your life.

 

I was featured in our local newspaper. And the looks from people who know me but don't recognize the new, slim me is priceless. (And in a couple of weeks I get to cuddle with the one person who makes it all worthwhile.)

[RyanDean]

I'm right there with you, gents.

 

Had a moment of clarity in late October, when I found myself feeling a bit too snug in even my roomiest pants. Couldn't bring myself to go up a waistsize so decided to make a change.

 

And I ended up making three basic changes, which together have made this weight-loss journey feel very different than ones I've taken before.

The first change was logging my food intake with a simple calorie counter & canceling my weightwatchers account.

The second was signing up with a trainer, with whom I do intensive strength training 2x a week.

The third was committing to hitting a certain number of steps & to move (do an exercise routine of some kind) for 20-30mins every day.

 

I don't have a scale at home, so weigh in once a month with my trainer. When I started, I didn't want to know the numbers, mostly because I was looking to make a "lifestyle change" and I've found it useful to not get too focused on "results." That said, I've been dropping weight pretty steadily (1-2lbs a week) and now I've shed I think at least 15%. I've also gained a bit of muscle. (Could barely do 5 modified pushups when I started; yesterday, did 3 sets of 15, holding for a tiny second 2" above the floor on each. I have never been able to do that, at least not before yesterday.)

 

The biggest challenge for me throughout this process has been emotional. I've found that I have to be willing to trudge through the fear, the shame, the uncertainty, the anxiety, the wounded pride, the non-physical pain, and all the other fun stuff that mostly traces back to when I was a chubby/bookish/sissyish kid for whom PE class provided an unending stream of horror and humiliation. I've realized I do have the strength and determination if I don't let my ego get in the way.

 

The biggest immediate hassle has been how dumpy I look. I'm thrilled with my weightloss and my growing sense of physical strength & mobility. But I look sorta terrible, in clothes and out. My clothes are all way too big. Every time I buy a new pair of what I think will be my new skinny pants, they're sliding off within a week or two. This week I realized that even my feet have lost weight. I've become expert in drilling new holes in my belts. This is great, but I don't look good. My body looks terrible. Everything that used to be plump and fluffy is now saggy and droopy. So I'm realizing I'll have to discover another measure of patience as my body & wardrobe survive this awkward phase.

 

I do plan to continue as I've been through midsummer at least, so that by early fall I have a clearer sense of what my new normal is. At that point, I'll buy some new clothes and hope that my aging skin still has some elasticity left.

[+ sync]

Kudos to you PK. I, too, am in the fight for the long haul.

[Rudynate]

I was chubby as a teenager, made many false starts trying to trim down. Then, when I was in my senior year of high school, I got tired of it, started a diet and stuck with it. I lost over 50 lbs in about 6 months. When I began to see visible results - going down a pants size, etc., it all became very easy.

[+ FreshFluff]

PK, if it makes you feel any better, people who lose weight slowly are more likely to keep it off.

 

Psychologically, it might help to buy some attractive clothes in your new size. Don't wait until you've lost all the weight to enjoy your new look.

[Guest countryboywny]

OMG!! I just checked.. I'M FAT TOO!

[BaronArtz]

You have received some great advice here. It all depends on your age, your overall life style and on possible medical conditions. I was a lanky teenager and skinny in my 20s. Then, at 35 years of age my weight kept on creeping up. Now I am in my mid-fifties, 6'1, 165 lbs with 7% body fat. This is down from 178 lbs and 15% body fat 9-12 months ago. Here is what worked:

 

1. Avoid all processed foods. If anything is in a box or in a can, don't eat it.

2. Don't ever eat fried foods, sausages or hot dogs

3. No soda or bottled fruit juices EVER

4. No white bread or anything made from bleached flour

5. Find some physical activity or some sport that you enjoy (other than, of course, fucking). Then join a club.

6. Cross train or work out, in moderation, to support this

7. Don't ever diet. Diets work for a while. Then you wake up in the middle of the night and devour an entire chocolate cake.

 

Once you get the hang of it, speak with a nutritionist. In my case, I was under-consuming proteins and over-consuming carbs for the activity level that I had. Foods are there to be enjoyed. Just make sure you eat the right ones, and in quantities appropriate for your activity level. I assure you, you WILL feel better and you WILL get results! Good luck!

[+ purplekow]

Baron, you sexy thing, I can envision weighing 165, Armageddon, no food on earth. 7% body fat, same scenario. But how do I get to 6'1?