In Shape, Out of Shape....

[robr]

You guys have me motivated. I'm looking now to buy a decent quality treadmill to stick in a conference room here (looking at a Smooth 7.1 HR Pro) . I'm much more likely to get a run in if I don't have to leave the building during the day to do it and the equipment is decent. Last treadmill I had was a ProForm and it was a complete piece of junk. My diet still isn't great but I've been thinking more about what I put into my mouth. I haven't been to a Chinese food buffet in over a week .

 

[NSXLuvr]

Great thread. I guess we can all keep each other motivated to lose some weight. I need to lose 6 lbs for my sis- in- law wedding. Not a lot but my problem is that I gain weight then I lose it. Then I lose motivation and gain it back. I hate to keep yo -yoing on my weight. I need to get the discipline to stick to my ideal weight.

 

[Jeff@Carbon6]

In case anyone is interested, I do web developement for a nutritional supplement web site http://www.fitnessone.com the pretty much sell every diet aid and over the counter health products.

 

[90210nsx]

Some say its impossible to gain muscle and lose weight. I disagree, I do believe it is harder for more advanced lifters to do this though. Assuming your a beginner at working out, changes in diet and increasing your workout will yield both results typically, i.e gaining lean muscle mass and dropping fat, if you actually monitor what you eat, i.e. eat 6 meals a day with a close content to macronutrients. If you eat whatever, pizza, hambugers, fast food etc on a regular basis, all bets are off.

Here is some good reading covers most aspects of training.

http://www.cbass.com/index.html

another site

www.brinkzone.com/

With working out besides gentic freaks, usually what you put into it is what you get out of it. I have been on both sides lazy and half a$$ to semi-maniacal, now I am just trying to put my self somewhere in between. As its been stated its harder to be in the gym as much as I used to be with a girlfriend, although the ab workout is coming along:wink:

Thank you very much for the info! I just need to drop the middle weight, and then put on some muscle. Started going to the gym for the last 2 days, and trying to change up the diet. Looking into the 6 meals a day, but wonder if it will actually increase weight instead of dropping it.

 

[robr]

the idea is 6 *SMALL* meals a day. you eat the same amount of calories as if you were dieting and eating 3 meals, just divided up into more meals, ie you're more snacking than you are eating meals. it helps keep your metabolism up.

 

[clr1024]

Thank you very much for the info! I just need to drop the middle weight, and then put on some muscle. Started going to the gym for the last 2 days, and trying to change up the diet. Looking into the 6 meals a day, but wonder if it will actually increase weight instead of dropping it.

We are not talking about your stereotypical american larger breakfast, lunch and dinner portions. As robr said its small meals and probably more appropirately titled snacking.

I work a desk job so I keep apples, oatmeal etc at my desk as well as tuna so when I get hungry I pick from that and not the vending machine. Having small meals is better for your body especially when lifting as it gives your body a more constant supply of the nutrients it needs to, one fuel your workout and two, repair itself after sed workout. The best time to eat after a workout is right after it (some call it the golden hour), preferably with protein that is easily digestible, whey, as well as some carbs and fats(good not bad). As a rule of thumb I would try to keep my diet centered around unprocessed foods, the exception being protein supplements. Typically processed foods, i.e pasta's, breads etc cause an insulin spike in your blood levels which tends to make your body store fat as opposed to burn it, they can be good prior to a workout though, me I eat an apple about an hour before with some protein. Also don't skip breakfast to drop weight, many people do this and it has the negative impact because your body thinks its starving. To me the the two most important meals of the day are breakfast and my post workout meal.

I see most people fail because they think diet and not lifestyle change. Once they hit their target weight they go back to their old lifestyle and yo-yo.

It can be hard work but its worth it, I am actually coming back off a lazy slump, so I am right there with you guys.

 

[90210nsx]

CLR--thanks for the info. Yeah small meals, make sense. Doing the tuna/cottage cheese/oatmeal thing. However the sodium in the tuna/cottage cheese, would you consider that significantly high?

What would you suggest (for post workout meal) that are protein and easist to digest?

What are your thoughts on bananas?

Also I understand the not eating after 6/7pm. I do that. However, if there are days I go for a late workout (say 9pm), how would a post workout meal affect the "eating at least 3 hours before bedtime" work?

 

[clr1024]

CLR--thanks for the info. Yeah small meals, make sense. Doing the tuna/cottage cheese/oatmeal thing. However the sodium in the tuna/cottage cheese, would you consider that significantly high?

What would you suggest (for post workout meal) that are protein and easist to digest?

What are your thoughts on bananas?

Also I understand the not eating after 6/7pm. I do that. However, if there are days I go for a late workout (say 9pm), how would a post workout meal affect the "eating at least 3 hours before bedtime" work?

I didn't say don't eat after 6 or 7 or 3 hours before bedtime. Some people do say not to eat carbs after 6 or 7 though. If you didn't eat at all after 6pm or 7pm and then went to bed and got up at say 7am or 8am. You have just gone 12 hours without any nutrition, your body is starving.

If I were to have workout late 9ish or so I would probably make my post workout shake the last meal of the day. That being said I would make it a mix of whey and casein proteins. Whey digest fast and caseins digest slowly, which will help give your body nutrients to rebuild during your rest period. As for the carbs, thats a tough one, you may have to play with that one. I would maybe eat an apple or have some oatmeal mixed into your shake. Maybe someone with more nutrition experience here can chime in on the late night carbs.

As for the tuna, you can buy low sodium tuna in cans, also I rinse my tuna in a bit of water which helps alleviate some of the sodium. Regarding tuna, I wouldn't make it your sole source of protein as you have to worry a tad about mercury, mix it up with clean meats like chicken, turkey and some other fish, even lean cuts of beef is fine, key here is prtion control not sure if you like to cook or not. Some people I know choke down boiled chicken...I need some flavor.

As for the banana's probably not a bad carb source to have early in the day. I eat them occasionaly but I guess I just like my apples:smile: Keep in mind that some of this takes figuring out for your body, on the one hand I am a hard gainer of lean muscle mass, but simple carbs make me blow up like a motha. On the other hand I have friends that look at food, anything, junk etc and gain lean muscle mass and no fat. So the worlds not always fair but you make the best of it for you.

For now stick to the basics if you try and get caught up in the microscopic points of nutrition you will get overwhelmed and feel like you are spinning your wheels and getting no where.

So to sum it up, eat breakfast, try to have protein with all your meals, eat the majority of your carbs in the morning and some post workout.

If you only get one kind of protein get whey, 5lbs of whey at dpsnutrtion.com is about $22, GNC is a rip. I like Dymatize brand for taste and ease of mixing, by spoon or shaker. However a blender can be a great thing for a nice treat and can make some really great tasting shakes, like chocolate whey and a spoon of good peanut butter, no trans fats natural etc. Also if you do have a banana one of those taste good in a shake as well. By far the best tasting mix out there is muscle milks brand but they mix in fats(good mcts) with there protein brand so you may not want that to be your sole source of protein mix. sorry this is so long.

 

[Stick-e-rice]

I adopted a few different diets while I was in Thailand and noticed the following. This was mainly what I adopted.

I ate only one meal a day, which was before noon that consisted of solids. I did, however, drank many liquids the entire day.

I tried eating only vegetables, one meal a day, for an entire month.

I tried fasting for 4 days, drinking only liquids that included yogurt drinks, soy milk, fruit juice, and water.

Conclusion:

Your body doesn't really need all that much food and is so much better off eating just vegetables and liquids. The weather in Thailand was extremely hot and I noticed a weird odor that came from my nose as I sweated; eating just vegetables got rid of that odor.

You don't really need to consume 3 times a day. That is what we are accustomed to, but there are people who are more than healthy eating just 1 a day.

It is better to eat healthy then exercise. A lot of us exercise because we eat more than we need to. If we ate healthy all the time, we wouldn't need to exercise in the gym; as our daily chores will already provide all the necessary exercise we need to be healthy.

Dieting..........The best way to diet is to drink only liquids and maintain an active lifestyle during that period. All these expensive drugs people purchase to lose weight is because a lot of us are too lazy or aren't strong enough mentally to not consume any solid foods. Consuming only liquid foods is very easy on your digestive system and is a much quicker way to absorb all the nutrients you need. Sugar is something that your body doesn't need at all and you could do without it until the day you die.

I personally don't go to the gym, although I try to involve my freetime into as many productive activities as possible. You can burn calories by cleaning your house, waxing you NSX, steam cleaning your carpet, and mowing your yard.

Being big, is not being healthier. Biggest misconception understood by most.

Your body is the product of your lifestyle and what you consume. Taste is something you enjoy only for a brief period of time feeded even more by your desires prior to the experience. You eat it and it comes out as waste. There is not much difference between a $100 meal or a $5 meal; there is to your mind, but not your body in most cases.

I learned something really cool in Thailand. We had to pray and examine our food before actually eating it. Process took about 15 minutes. Once you realize how much food you are eating; you do consume less. We overstuff ourselves because our mind feeds us with so much desires prior to eating, that when we actually do, we tend to eat more than we need.

Something to think about.

 

[clr1024]

I adopted a few different diets while I was in Thailand and noticed the following. This was mainly what I adopted.

I ate only one meal a day, which was before noon that consisted of solids. I did, however, drank many liquids the entire day.

I tried eating only vegetables, one meal a day, for an entire month.

I tried fasting for 4 days, drinking only liquids that included yogurt drinks, soy milk, fruit juice, and water.

Conclusion:

Your body doesn't really need all that much food and is so much better off eating just vegetables and liquids. The weather in Thailand was extremely hot and I noticed a weird odor that came from my nose as I sweated; eating just vegetables got rid of that odor.

You don't really need to consume 3 times a day. That is what we are accustomed to, but there are people who are more than healthy eating just 1 a day.

It is better to eat healthy then exercise. A lot of us exercise because we eat more than we need to. If we ate healthy all the time, we wouldn't need to exercise in the gym; as our daily chores will already provide all the necessary exercise we need to be healthy.

Dieting..........The best way to diet is to drink only liquids and maintain an active lifestyle during that period. All these expensive drugs people purchase to lose weight is because a lot of us are too lazy or aren't strong enough mentally to not consume any solid foods. Consuming only liquid foods is very easy on your digestive system and is a much quicker way to absorb all the nutrients you need. Sugar is something that your body doesn't need at all and you could do without it until the day you die.

I personally don't go to the gym, although I try to involve my freetime into as many productive activities as possible. You can burn calories by cleaning your house, waxing you NSX, steam cleaning your carpet, and mowing your yard.

Being big, is not being healthier. Biggest misconception understood by most.

Your body is the product of your lifestyle and what you consume. Taste is something you enjoy only for a brief period of time feeded even more by your desires prior to the experience. You eat it and it comes out as waste. There is not much difference between a $100 meal or a $5 meal; there is to your mind, but not your body in most cases.

I learned something really cool in Thailand. We had to pray and examine our food before actually eating it. Process took about 15 minutes. Once you realize how much food you are eating; you do consume less. We overstuff ourselves because our mind feeds us with so much desires prior to eating, that when we actually do, we tend to eat more than we need.

Something to think about.

I think you would have to define what you consider healthy and what your health goals are based on your above statements. Your statement of being healthy seem too general.

Health is not any one thing, i.e cardio, muscular build etc. Its a combination of factors. cardio-respiratory, aerobic endurance; muscular strength; muscular endurance; flexibility; and body composition.

Just as health is not any one thing nor is exercise, to achieve the above different goals requires different types of excercise.

The basis for my above post was the desire of a person to build lean muscle and lose fat naturally as lafun2 was asking about that and training. I try to train for both aerobic and anerobic activity besides just lifting, so you have to think big picture.

I know some guys that look like they are very healthy 8% bodyfat or less and in some ways are, but if they tried to run a mile they would die. Another thing I think is weird is that I see people go to the gym but right after they get done they smoke a cigarette, got me Its your body and I guess everyone has got a vice. Your defintion of health based on your statement of being large, not being healthy is that being muscular is healthy. Being muscular, to a degree is healthy, steroids obviously not good for you. A good example of a person who had outstanding health and was not large as you put it was Bruce Lee. Other examples of people that I think have amazing health are gymnasts, decathaletes too.

As for most people over eating, people usually over eat because there is a 10 to 15 minute delay between your stomach telling your brain its full/satiated at which point you stop eating, because of the delay you have actually overeaten. Good reason to drink a large glass of water before a meal.

 

[redshift]

If you wouldn't mind, would you share your daily diet with us, for some us that are trying to hit the gym and eat healthy? Thanks!

Sure, but it's kind of embarrassing due to my lack of culinary prowess.

A typical maintenance day for me:

6:00AM - drink a whey protein shake with skim milk (60 grams protein) and eat 1.5 cups of oatmeal. I make an egg sandwich (4 egg whites - 1 full egg) on whole wheat bread with low fat mayo.

10:00AM - eat half of my egg sandwich

1:00PM - eat the other half of my egg sandwich

4:00PM - eat a high protein bar (has simple carbs)

4:30PM - go to the gym

~5:30PM - home from the gym, drink a whey protein shake with skim milk (60 grams protein) within 10 minutes of my workout

7:00PM - eat 1 to 1.5 chicken breast(s)

9:45PM - drink a casein protein shake with water (35 grams)


A typical day for me is about 2500 to 2700 calories. With this intake, I will neither gain muscle nor loose fat. When I'm trying to pack on the muscle, I go up in calories about 800 - 1000. In contrast, while shedding fat, I move down about 200 - 300 calories/day.


Disclaimer: I do not recommend this diet to anybody. This is my diet and it works well for me.

 

[SaberX]

Dieting..........The best way to diet is to drink only liquids and maintain an active lifestyle during that period.

I have to disagree with this on so many levels. Think about the fact that our whole digestive system has evolved from the eating of solid foods. There are not many forms of "liquid nutrients" available in the natural world in a non-processed state. Milk, honey, maybe some fruits or nuts with milk inside. I would competely agree that we over-eat and highly processed foods are not good. But a balanced diet leaning towards the natural side is really the most healthy and easiest way to stay healthy and lose weight.

 

[90210nsx]

Redshift thank you for that. What protein bars, whey protein shakes are you taking?

I was looking at ISOPURE, seems like 50g of protein per serving!

 

[redshift]

Redshift thank you for that. What protein bars, whey protein shakes are you taking?

I was looking at ISOPURE, seems like 50g of protein per serving!

I just use my local COSTCO brand for the bars and whey. I've never experienced a noticeable difference in the way I feel or in my hard won results when switching between different brands. As for casein, I use the EAS stuff.

I have tried ISOPURE, I liked the taste.

 

[90210nsx]

Thanks Red. I will look at costco for the whey and casein shakes.

Thanks!

 

[PAL]

that's a pretty lame diet there, redshift. is that a total of what, 100 carbs? you must be a pretty small dude if you are working out and not losing weight eating like that. i can consume 300 carbs no problem 200 protein and not lose weight when working out and i am not big.

i believe a person can only digest approx 30 grams of protein at a time and a recommended 'high protein' meal consists of 30-40 gram protein every 3-4 hours

 

[PAL]

nm bro I read your previous posts and agree with your knowledge. just what works for you I guess as you said everyone is different.

true what you said about the overtraining(length of sessions)

later.

 

[Ski_Banker]

that's a pretty lame diet there, redshift. is that a total of what, 100 carbs? you must be a pretty small dude if you are working out and not losing weight eating like that. i can consume 300 carbs no problem 200 protein and not lose weight when working out and i am not big.

i believe a person can only digest approx 30 grams of protein at a time and a recommended 'high protein' meal consists of 30-40 gram protein every 3-4 hours

Umm...apparently you haven't seen some of Redshift's "other" threads. He could eat 8000 calories/day and still be lean n mean. :wink: I feel sorry for you though, buddy, those Turkish chicks are all man-faced, big jawed, deep voiced dogs. I'd rather be in a gym too, if that was my alternative.

Before you get all snooty muslim: 1) yes I have and 2) no I'd rather not again.

 

[gheba_nsx]

I feel sorry for you though, buddy, those Turkish chicks are all man-faced, big jawed, deep voiced dogs.

I am not sure if it is funny or simply racist ... but you may be quite wrong on this, there are quite some beauties down there. In my company the most beautiful girl we all drool over at lunch is from Turkey

Anyway also a recent Miss World is

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azra_Akın

 

[Ski_Banker]

I am not sure if it is funny or simply racist ... but you may be quite wrong on this, there are quite some beauties down there. In my company the most beautiful girl we all drool over at lunch is from Turkey

Anyway also a recent Miss World is

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azra_Akın

Not racist at all! Just my observations. NYC banking seems to be quite popular for intelligent turkish girls.

 

[gheba_nsx]

Not racist at all! Just my observations. NYC banking seems to be quite popular for intelligent turkish girls.

That is probably the problem: "intelligent". :wink:

If I check the intelligent(=in a professional way, with top education etc) they mostly look very average from all countries...

 

[|Adeel]

I'm very slim and trying to gain weight, I'm taking carbohydrates (21% proteins and 61% carbohydrates in one portion) milkshakes (with a small meal, 4-5 times a day).
I see results, and that keeps me motivated. But all the carbohydrates are gaining me a big stomach too :frown:

 

[gheba_nsx]

I'm very slim and trying to gain weight, I'm taking carbohydrates (21% proteins and 61% carbohydrates in one portion) milkshakes (with a small meal, 4-5 times a day).
I see results, and that keeps me motivated. But all the carbohydrates are gaining me a big stomach too :frown:

Then go down in carbos (or may be change them with lower GI ones to keep insuline and fat production within limits...) and add protein to keep the targeted calories.

http://www.mendosa.com/gilists.htm

 

[nsxtasy]

What this discussion seems to confirm is my previously-stated view that there are many different ways to lose weight, and you need to choose the one that works for you. Six small meals, one meal, no meals, breakfast eating, nighttime eating, etc - lots of different approaches. I've tried most of them, and what works for me is pretty similar to what Stick-e-rice describes (maybe it's because I love Thai food - my freezer is stocked with tom kha gai from one of our local places ). I realize that what I am doing - lots of non-nutritional liquids*, lots of skipped meals, eating only in the early evening - may not be theoretically optimal, but on a practical level, it works for me. If you use a different approach and it works for you, that's great too.

As for most people over eating, people usually over eat because there is a 10 to 15 minute delay between your stomach telling your brain its full/satiated at which point you stop eating, because of the delay you have actually overeaten.

Actually, I think most people overeat - at least, I do (or did) - more so because we are accustomed to eating until we are full/satiated. The 2000-2500 calorie daily intake that maintains weight never makes me feel full/satiated. Not after 10-15 minutes, not with a glass of water before the meal. Never. I've realized I need to decide to stop eating when I have eaten a proper amount, not continuing until my body tells me to stop. An occasional splurge meal may be an exception, but I'm realizing that for me, the idea of leaving the dinner table every day feeling full is something I need to give up.

* I drink 3-4 cans of diet soda a day, and have done so for my entire adult life, even when I have not been watching my weight. However, on days when I skip all meals - and there are some (like I said, do what works for you) - I try to drink a nutritional weight-control shake. As previously mentioned, beware a lot of these products, as many of them are labeled "low calorie" but have a lot of carbs, and others are labeled "low carb" but have a lot of calories. I prefer the "AdvantEdge Carb Control" shake made by EAS, which has 15 g of protein, but only 100 calories and only 1 g of impact carbs (2 g of carbs but 1 of which is fiber).

 

[clr1024]

i believe a person can only digest approx 30 grams of protein at a time and a recommended 'high protein' meal consists of 30-40 gram protein every 3-4 hours

That's a myth. As for redshifts diet, it was what he said works for him. No two bodies are alike the same goes for the dietary needs and goals