Weight Loss Thread

My first day at the gym yesterday, I must say, I was operating at a high level of excellence.

Well I'm about one week into my diet. I already lost 5 lbs by making small changes. Instead of getting a bacon egg and cheese mcdonalds sandwich and a hash brown for breakfast I've been having a protein shake and a mcdonalds fruit and maple baked oatmeal. Shit like that. I do realize that 5 lbs isnt a big deal since I'm sure i could fluctuate 5 lbs just from water weight and/or taking a big shit, but still I feel good about it.

Five pounds doesn't mean much, no, for the reasons you listed, but the important thing is you're eliminating bad habits.

Then again, I've adopted IIFYM "dieting," so food to me is just numbers now, basically. I've been eating like shit this weekend tho, and my macros are aaaaaallllllll fucked up.

Figured I would stop in with another update. This is more of a review of a couple of things that I have been trying lately. Overall, I have dropped 33 lbs. so far with 49 left to go. I have graduated to XL shirts and 36 inch waist (almost, they are a little tight!). I am trying to hold off with new wardrobe items until I am back in large shirts and comfortably fit in 36 inch pants.

I am starting week 6 of DDPYOGA. I am following the beginner program to get things started. For most of the 20 - 25 minute session it keeps my heart rate in the 135 - 155 range depending on what is happening. It starts with just a simple workout (that still kicked my ass) which stresses the whole 'dynamic resistance', breathing, and engaging all parts of the body principles that guide the workouts.

For the first 4 weeks, it was focused on only a single work out (Energy!) three times a week. There is a lot of holding positions, namely lunges that just kill the legs when you start. Getting balance and basic strength in order to complete this first workout is the name of the game in the beginning. I am at about 90 - 95% in terms of completion without needing to pause for 10 - 15 seconds.

Week 5 started to integrate the second workout, Fat Burner. It is largely the same as the first workout. The primary difference is that certain positions have increased complexity. For example, the first workout would have you plank for 9 seconds, lower to 3 inches above the floor for 3 seconds, hold there for 3 seconds. The second workout is 3 second lower, 3 second hold, 3 second raise, 3 second hold, 3 second lower, 3 second hold. Not earth moving at all, but gradual increase in difficulty. It keeps my heart rate in the 140 - 160 range for most of the workout.

All in all, I am enjoying this workout. DDP is still amusing in general and I am getting some flexibility back. The program is going to up things to 4 workouts a week starting this week. Eventually I think it is 5 or 6 times towards the end of this program.

My intro session at The Academy in MN to explore some of the combat sports options is scheduled for next week. I told myself I would subscribe to a combat sport once I was under 250, so here we go. I was leaning BJJ, but they advertise a muay thai program that can really help in the weight loss department so I may try that first. I will report back on the success or failure of this plan.

The second thing I have been experimenting with is Ketostix. Supposed to give you an indicator of if you have ketones in your body / in ketosis. I have only been testing levels for a week or so. Working on interpreting the results is interesting. Levels appear to be low in the morning and higher in the afternoon / after working out which makes sense.

I did try to intentionally break ketosis last Saturday. Had a gigantic sweet potato, half a pineapple or so, and a couple of bites of my wife's blizzard. What was more surprising is the next day my readings were very similar to any other day, lower in the morning, higher in the afternoon. I will have to keep playing with carbs to see how to effectively break ketosis, may need to do two days in a row or something. It could be that the strips aren't terribly accurate either I suppose.

The diet has largely stayed the same, still doing low carb high fat 6 days a week. I do slightly higher carb days once a week. Still doing my crazy coffee for breakfast, the recipe I have worked on is delicious (below if interested). I did find that my body does not like MCT oil so I switched to plain coconut oil as a portion of the fats.

Morning Coffee

2 - 3 tbsp kerrygold unsalted butter
0 - 2 tbsp heavy whipping cream (this has been recent, it is pretty good)
1 - 2 tbsp coconut oil
1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa (special dark!)
.5 - 1 tbsp some extract (orange / almond have been awesome)
Stevia to taste
Coffee to taste (generally make a travel mug full)

This will hit me up with 400 - 500 calories, 40+ grams of fat and 1g of net carbs to start the day with. Staves off hunger until 11:30 - 12:30 or so.

McCheese's morbid obesity posts are the only reason I view this thread anymore. I've never had the urge or willpower to power down 90 pizza rolls in one sitting, but if I did I would never imagine myself drinking a half gallon of milk with it. Additionally, I wouldn't crack open the bag and eat them like potato chips.

We can use your anecdotes as motivation. Can you start telling us about other crazy food binges? I can't imagine your diet consisted of just pizza rolls dipped in milk.

Tarrant_sl said:

Well he did say he will take bagle bites and then use them to make sandwiches with pizza rolls in the middle. So he does branch out a little bit.

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Fair enough. That does sound delicious though, everything else sounded disgusting.

Ossoi_sl said:

Also, what's the benefit to "trying to break ketosis". Unless you're lifting weights you shouldn't need a carb refeed.

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Only one real reason, which was to see how many carbs I could eat without breaking it. I don't really think I am skirting the edges of carb intake, but if I can down a sweet potato or some other delicious carbs without breaking ketosis that would allow me to add some things to back to my diet that I have been limiting.

On a side note, I thought you were supposed to re-carb every so often to reset leptin levels. That could purely be hearsay though so I haven't given it much thought.

Lyle McDonald and others recommend full diet breaks after a while and carb refeeds.

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat...iet-break.html

Isn't McCheese the same guy that was eating polonium in Russia for a while? His stomach can handle anything.

The real question is would McCheese drink the garlic dipping sauce from papa johns?

Noodleface_sl said:

The real question is would McCheese drink the garlic dipping sauce from papa johns?

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Out of a goddamn champagne glass I'm willing to bet.

God, I ate that shit in Santiago Chile right before getting on a 12 hour plane ride. It was not a pleasant plane ride.

Kuriin_sl said:

Back on subject though: I've gone from 160lbs to 153lbs in about a week of just doing Spartacus workout. Finally losing my gut (again), but, I don't feel I've lost a lot of strength.

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Started this today.. Only did 1 set but man my legs are killing.. I plan to build up to the 3 sets over 3 weeks since I lift after it. This workout is really good.

Kind bars are so kind.. yum!

I eat carbs all fucking day. More than anything.

I'm also not obese, so maybe I don't belong in this convo.

I dropped a total of 15lbs on my diet, which im still on. But I gained 2 lbs after starting to lift light weights.