Arkk's Weight Loss Thread

[PerritoBites]

FoH Guide to Weight Loss:

1. Create a caloric deficit in your life. Calorie intake < Caloric Loss = Deficit.
2. Use FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal to track your Caloric intake and pick a reasonable number of calories per day for your body and lifestyle. Try to get 30% protein, 30% fat and 40% carb ratio.
3. Eat 5+ meals a day.
4. Eat your biggest meal in the morning.
5. Eat a small dinner.
6. For your exercise, do some cardio and also do weight lifting. Do the big four exercises: Pullups, pushups/bench press, deadlifts and squats. I typically do 40ish% of my max for as many repetitions as I can. Do more cardio on days you don't lift.
7. Drink lots of water. Keep a large bottle/jug around with you and keep a steady flow of water in your system.

[Laek]

There is a ton of info online about both working our and dieting. Find something that makes sense to you and stick with it. Just following a plan is better then trying to find the perfect one. Almost no one fails because of their plan but because they don't stick with it.

I would sugest a trainer if you can find one. I've been working out with one twice a week for 5 months now and have lost 25lbs. Just haivng someone work with you and make small corrections with your form can make a huge difference in gaining muscle/losing weight.

Diet is about 90% of losing weight. Make sure you are eating enough good foods and work out. The "enough good foods" is the important part, good fats and good carbs help not hurt.

For web info if you are looking more into the muscle side look at t nation and bodybuilder.com

[Brad2770]

I wanted to build a little more muscle and be a little bit more fit before i started the p90x (plus, I wanted to go ahead and buy the DVDs, so trying to find a good deal on craigslist). Anyways, started doing iwantsixpackabs.com

Its free to use and has some good work outs. With the right diet, i am sure this will be good.

HOW TO GET SIX PACK ABS IN 16 WEEKS - Six Pack Abs Workout Routine

[ChewieTobbacca]

You won't even see abs until your body has low enough body fat and size to have their definition show

Gaining muscle and losing weight also tend to be counter productive. If you want to build muscle (be it mass or strength), you'll need to eat more to fuel their growth, which tends to go against losing weight (having a caloric deficit). And of course, eat healthy by eating lean meats, whole grains, etc.

[PerritoBites]

Any other suggestions? I don't think that six pack abs website is what I am looking for, but ill check it out anyways.

[Fungul]

Programs aren't going to set goals for you. That's all on you. Do you want bigger muscles? Better endurance? More muscle definition? Answer these questions first before selecting a program. The most important question is how dedicated are you going to be? There are several great programs out there but no matter what you do in the gym it all starts with your diet. Plain and simple. You can spend hours and hours in the gym, but if you don't eat right you won't get the results.

Eating right isn't as hard as people make it out to be. There are some general rules I go by for my diet.

1. No fried foods. This isn't to say I don't have a "cheat" meal every now and then and sometimes that will include Fish and Chips. But it's all about moderation and using the bad foods as a reward.
2. No processed foods
3. If I look at the ingredients on a box and I don't know what they are I don't eat it
4. Small meals. People have this idea if you eat less and, more importantly, less often they'll lose weight, but that couldn't be more false. If you're constantly eating your body is constantly burning food, which burns calories (fat). When you eat once or twice a day you generally are starving so you over eat. This stretches your stomach, thus giving you the fat belly.

Here are some helpful links to get you started.

Calorie Calculator - Daily Caloric Needs
Nutritious Powerfoods For The Abs Diet - Men's Health
FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal
Clean Eating III - Topic Powered by Eve For Enterprise

After reading I'll help you with exercises, but don't bother going crazy in the gym until you master your life outside of it.

[Jack Burton]

Originally Posted by ChewieTobbacca

Gaining muscle and losing weight also tend to be counter productive. If you want to build muscle (be it mass or strength), you'll need to eat more to fuel their growth, which tends to go against losing weight (having a caloric deficit). And of course, eat healthy by eating lean meats, whole grains, etc.

This is a good realization to have early. Your body will be able to gain muscle and lose weight initially, but you will inevitably have a plateau effect and have to more or less go one way or the other.

I have a friend who is very serious about weights and here is a line up he formerly used. Pick and choose at your leisure and probably google the exercises you don't recognize (could be many of them if you are just learning your way around the gym). If you really want to put on size/strength, doing one intensive workout for one muscle group on one day is a great strategy. I would not recommend starting this way though...build up to it.




Good luck. Working out can definitely be something you can enjoy; don't kill yourself so much that you start to resent it.

[Fungul]

Originally Posted by Jack Burton

This is a good realization to have early. Your body will be able to gain muscle and lose weight initially, but you will inevitably have a plateau effect and have to more or less go one way or the other.

I have a friend who is very serious about weights and here is a line up he formerly used. Pick and choose at your leisure and probably google the exercises you don't recognize (could be many of them if you are just learning your way around the gym). If you really want to put on size/strength, doing one intensive workout for one muscle group on one day is a great strategy. I would not recommend starting this way though...build up to it.




Good luck. Working out can definitely be something you can enjoy; don't kill yourself so much that you start to resent it.

Did he make that routine up on his own? Hopefully he doesn't hurt his body from it. Arms on their own day is overkill. You are working your arms intensely when doing chest/shoulders/back. Also, while your core is being worked during exercises it's good to have routines focusing specifically on abs. Some great articles he might want to read are below.

T-Nation.com | Program Design 101
T-Nation.com | Game Plan

However everyone is different. If your friend is getting the results he wants that's great.

[Eomer]

Well, one good piece of advice apparently is to not take Hydroxycut.

U.S. announces recall of diet pill Hydroxycut

[PerritoBites]

I am not going to take any pills haha

I am not going to work out intensively 5 days a week. Maximum 4, more likely 3 and can do just cardio other days. I am looking for a program that helps me set goals according to my weight and gives me a set of instructions to follow. I am not looking to set my own workout routines up because I don't know if I can put together a thing that is good for me. I know that if I want to loose weight the important thing is to keep track of calories, but that is not what I am looking for. (I can do that already)

I don't know if I should lose weight first, then build muscles, do both at the same time, or build muscle then lose weight.

[Fungul]

Originally Posted by PerritoBites

I am looking for a program that helps me set goals according to my weight...

Programs don't do that. They will give you instructions, but they won't set goals. Answer the questions I asked you earlier. What is your weight and height?

[PerritoBites]

I don't think you asked that earlier, and if you did I missed it :/
I am 245lbs / 6 in tall.

I know that programs do help you set goals. Unless you are not talking about the same kind of goals I am talking. Even if they don't point you directly into the goal, at least they point you in the right direction.

[Fungul]

Originally Posted by PerritoBites

I don't think you asked that earlier, and if you did I missed it :/

"Do you want bigger muscles? Better endurance? More muscle definition? Answer these questions first before selecting a program." This comes from the 1st post. Did you look at the links?

Based on your height and weight your goal should be to lose weight and get cut. I'm 6' 178lbs 9-10% BF. I have a very lean look (soccer/tennis player my whole life) but you have the opporutnity to come out of this looking jacked. Your target weight should be 190-200 depending how "big" you want to look.

The general rule is you gain mass (exceed daily calorie intake) and then cut. However in your case you want to get cut while keeping your muscles. Before going any further tell me your typical daily diet.

[PerritoBites]

I change my diet very often. Last week I started eating at least 1 salad a day (olive oil, vinegar, and lime as dressing) with either tuna, chicken breast or eggs as protein.

For the second meal it varies a lot... Usually half a cup of rice, with some meat and veggies. I usually split that meal in two so I don't get hungry later on. I eat strawberries as snacks throught the day and sometimes fat free yogurt.

Bfast is either - Banana shake, cereal or eggs with veggies.

Before this I didn't really have a set diet... it was pretty bad... But then again... I usually have 2 months of bad diet, then 2 months of good diet :/

[Brad2770]

Originally Posted by PerritoBites

Any other suggestions? I don't think that six pack abs website is what I am looking for, but ill check it out anyways.

I was linking it, not for you to build a six pack, but exercise is exercise. Especially since 90% of his things listed can be done at home with little or no money invested.

Plus, his routines are set up so that you do it one day, then go ride a bike or jog or play a sport the next. I like how he has it set up and it fits easy with my schedule.