Tell me what I already know...
I don't get it- I'm stuck in a rut! My eating is a bit out of control right now. I don't feel great and the scale is going in wrong direction.
I am not a data dork, so even when I am spot on, feeling great, and lean, I have no clue how much protein per kg I am getting or really any other meaningful metric.
When things are clicking, I just "stop being fat". And really I think it's that easy. Burn more than you consume, stay away from ghe shit food, alcohol to a minimum, etc.
What tips can you share to get me back on track?
I was inspired to start this thread after @Sheila Leard wrote in response to another thread:
The athletes I've worked with that have lost weight have the following in common:
These are the bullet points that stuck with me as quick, easy, and an immediate courses of action, to jump start the process
- Created a 10 - 12 hour window from dinner to breakfast
- Got real about not overeating, portion control
- Cut out alcohol except on occasion
- Never allowed themselves to get too hungry
- Increased fiber for satiation
- Fueled all wko's, especially if training twice a day
What else would you add to this list? Let's just spitball her-
All this being said, I went from the before to the after in the pic below on my own. I just decided not to be fat. I went to the gym and stated boxing. I cut down or eliminated all the shit I was eating and cut the alcohol to a minimum. I was eating animal products at the time but 75% (maybe more) of my diet was plant based. If I had a full plate of food only a small portion was meat. It was delicious and extremely manageable.
Help me get back on that path.
Comments
@Patrick Large : Impressive lifestyle change reflected in body comp... congratulations! I am a M60-64 life-long athlete who has fluctuated between 190 and 200 lbs with 10-11% BF since college. I rarely lift weights and am not particularly disciplined with my diet. My previous success as a sprint freestyle swimmer and short course triathlete were largely based on muscle strength. Hand paddles in the pool, big gear/climbing, and hill running make it difficult for me to lose much weight, but optimize my lean body mass and raise my basal metabolic rate at a healthy weight. That is one reason that I swim in the OS. Building functional (not weight room) muscle may be a good focus for a triathlete who has recently lost a lot of weight, and does not know exactly where their optimal muscle mass lies. Every athlete is unique. While w/kg and Vo2 are improved by weight loss, building muscle mass has the additional advantage of stabilizing weight. I climb and run slower, but I am where I am supposed to be. Of course, muscular endurance (efficient use of strength) is a primary limiter for long course athletes, but the race specific plans will take care of that with a touch of VOLUME. Clearly, all calories are not created equal, so healthy eating is essential in its own right, but a focus on optimal body comp as opposed to weight may help jump start your 2020.
@Patrick Large not even the same guy in those pics, you know what your doing right and wrong, whether it’s bad/too much or good/right amount . Add to @Sheila Leard list , weigh yourself daily, track your food for a month to learn and be honest with everything, post your next “A” Race elevation map near the fridge/pantry 😀
@John Culberson I really like what you wrote about functional muscle strength!
@John Culberson thanks so much for the advice. I am focusing on functional strength so I am glad that that you mentioned it. BTW, 200 lbs @ 10% BF, I'd stay there for the rest of my life and be super happy. Problem now is I am 200lbs, but body fat is twice yours. I don't mind the weight as long as it's a lean 200 and not a fat 200.
@tim cronk as always thanks for your comments. Within the EN family you are my north star and voice of reason. Besides all the banter in groupme, you consistently provide practical suggestions that are usually spot on. I will get back to weighing myself daily and will print out my race profile (elevation) for the house. What tracking app have you used? Seems like a pain in the ass, but worth it to see the data. A lot of the backslide for me is not eating enough during the day and then coming home and just cleaning out the fridge at 8:00pm
@John Culberson you've inspired me to document a journey with your post. Last year I did my first official Ultra and documented the process through a thread I called "Road to Zugspitz". After reading your reply to this thread it got me thinking.
Growing up I was always tall and lanky. Up to college I was 6'2" and 160 lbs soaking wet, all skin and bones. When I went to University I discovered the gym and protein. By Junior year I was 225 lbs and roughly 10% body fat. I didn't quite have washboard abs, but I was big and athletic. Fast forward many years and I tipped the scale at 235+, but a FAT soft and fluffy 235. I also remember a fluffy 225.
When you commented earlier and said you were 190-200 lbs 10% BF, I thought to myself "fuck I would die to be there" Right now I am fluffy 200 lbs. at 18.6% fat and BMI 26.8. Those numbers are based on this mornings weigh in, but I think they are very generous. I would guess true BF is 20% or above, but who knows. Anyway, my first ultra this yeah in mid June, and when I start my ultra plan 16-ish weeks out I will again start my thread "Road to Mozart 100", but from now until then, I will start "Road to 15%" Or maybe like "Road to 13%". Either way it's something that I can monitor on a daily bases and then report on on a weekly bases, with data, graphs, charts, etc.
Anyway, thanks for chiming in. I think it the beauty of the team... you never know when your 2 cents will be the catalyst for huge change.
@Patrick Large Your history as a ectomorphic child... and experience building yourself into a mesomorphic athlete as a young adult clearly provides the building blocks to follow the "Road to 13%." I am currently documenting a journey of my own... the "Road to Strength and Flexibility." Once you replace fat tissue with muscle tissue, both speed and endurance performance will improve markedly... but muscles require care besides Swim-Bike-Run. I'm looking forward to your transformation!
@John Culberson
"...but muscles require care besides Swim-Bike-Run..." tell me more about this.
Strength training and stretching are often neglected. While there is a lot of debate regarding the importance of these aspects of a training program, it is pretty clear that anyone over 50yrs is missing out on an opportunity. It just seems that I spend the vast majority of my life sitting, lying (with unloaded muscles) in bed, swimming, biking, and running. Not much variation fo the past 40 years! The muscle imbalances and asymmetrical shortening MUST be costing me significant power and speed... and making me uncomfortable at times each day.