im 348 pounds how do i get the weight down steadily!

[OhioBoy1]

hello everyone



Im 28yrs old been big mostly all my teens and 20's i don't want to be like that in my 30's,i have done allot of research on weight loss and its so many different ways to go at it i made several attempts in the past while i managed to make dents in my weight i was never ever to seal the deal. im on my fitnesspal for a week or two know logging my calories eating at their set deficit but im confused on weight training and cardio,when it comes to lifting weight i lift very weak my bench press is around 80 pounds probably 100 for short reps,i dabbled with all pros, SS, strong lifts but never kept up with them it just seemed pointless with such light weights what are the many programs you can run for a weak lifter to get the fat coming off?and when it comes to cardio i have a nice treadmill that i walk on 3-4 days a week at a slow pace for 30-40 minutes but im not sure that is a enough.



when it comes to eating i do good during the day i try to save calories for a big dinner but my hunger causes me to eat just a little more at night after dinner then im supposed to how can i stop this? my calorie goal as of late is 2270 calories for the day would you guys say that is a good number?what lifting should i do how many days a week,and how much cardio and what calorie deficit should i be on i want the weight to come off fast but not to fast just enough to let me know im doing things right?

any plans and info you guys can give me would be great and very helpful!


thanks

[01lowbird]

didnt read
read the stickies. re read the stickies, ask questions bout the stickies, then read stickies again.
get started tomorrow with an weigh in after u get up and pee. take beginning photos. and then start cutting and lifting heavy. its going to be a long road but u can make some serious progress in a years time.

[JoshyCii]

Lift weights, diet well, and watch the transformation..it's that simple, just a matter of manning up and doing it.

[TheGhost9900]

It sounds like you have a decent idea of what you need to do, you just need to find the strength within yourself to stick to it. I like the All pros lifting routine. I've been making some nice progress on it. Everyone has to start somewhere on what they can lift. Don't let it discourage you if you are not lifting big amounts of weight right now. Just focus on proper form and you will gain strength.

Figure out your TDEE and then eat at a calorie deficit. I like using the calculators on the IIFYM website as a good starting point to get my calories / macros figured out. If you can make a decent guess at your bodyfat% then use the lean body mass formula. You are looking for 1 gram protein per pound of LBM and .45 grams fat per pound of BW. Fill in the rest with carbs or however you like.

One thing that has been valuable to me is using myfitnesspal to make myself a variety of meal plans and printing them out. I keep some foods I enjoy (Ice cream and such) in my diet so I don't get burned out. I just work stuff like that into my daily/weekly calories and macros.

Use a digital kitchen scale to weigh out your foods to make sure you are counting accurately.

[Exemer]

Eat chicken that has not extra trimmings besides spices and some vegetables to add flavor. Not to say that eating anything else would be bad but chicken is lean and good protein. I love that i had eaten nothing but chicken for protein source for a week and lost 5 pounds. Greek yogurt will be a perfect staple for breakfast and hunger crusher. As far as sweets, very dark chocolate at 70% is good for you in moderation, as it helps drop fat and increase your health in quite a few areas.

Main thing to understand is protein is your best friend and carbs are like a frienemy. They will give you energy to complete a workout but they will add on the pounds if they are not put to good use. Keep your deficit in the 1800 range if you want to have a fat burning diet- you will have to eat 5-7 meals a day with calories spaced evenly through out unless a meal is close to workout time. Its will be hard to adjust but it will be worth it. Not many things involving cleansing i find helped me out but you could benefit. Tea and coffee help speed up metabolism but not as much as drinking cold water (1 gallon a day).

Supplements like protein powder fill you up and give you what is needed to keep you building and burning. Stick to the basic things for now and gradually move up to the bcaa, creatine and other stuff later on. This stuff is meant to assist but will not do the work for you. Consistency is the main thing that will really make a change. Keep at it and try to make out your own program that works best for your body, not your mood.

[Blix72]

Programs are to be followed, not dabbled with. Believe me, something like Stronglifts does get heavy fast if you do it as it's supposed to be done. Pick one of the programs and do them for real this time, instead of making excuses.

Best of luck! You can do it.

[locoloco22]

lift
eat less, move more and watch them pounds shedding

[crupiea]

sounds like you are on the right path.

just do some workouts that you find fun and want to do. that way you will want to go back to the gym.

[lee__d]

hello everyone



Im 28yrs old been big mostly all my teens and 20's i don't want to be like that in my 30's,i have done allot of research on weight loss and its so many different ways to go at it i made several attempts in the past while i managed to make dents in my weight i was never ever to seal the deal. im on my fitnesspal for a week or two know logging my calories eating at their set deficit but im confused on weight training and cardio,when it comes to lifting weight i lift very weak my bench press is around 80 pounds probably 100 for short reps,i dabbled with all pros, SS, strong lifts but never kept up with them it just seemed pointless with such light weights what are the many programs you can run for a weak lifter to get the fat coming off?and when it comes to cardio i have a nice treadmill that i walk on 3-4 days a week at a slow pace for 30-40 minutes but im not sure that is a enough.
it's not pointless because, at your weight, you can lose weight AND get stronger quite easily with something like All Pros (or any resistance program really). Lifting will also help you retain the lean body mass you have. I don't know how mobile you are, but if you're fine with lifting and can safely lift, then you should do it 2-3x weekly. Lifting is primarily a tool to retain and gain muscle, and while you do burn calories lifting, THAT SHOULD NOT BE THE MAIN FOCUS (leave this to your diet and any cardio you may do).Any activity is fine, just be somewhat active.



when it comes to eating i do good during the day i try to save calories for a big dinner but my hunger causes me to eat just a little more at night after dinner then im supposed to how can i stop this? my calorie goal as of late is 2270 calories for the day would you guys say that is a good number?what lifting should i do how many days a week,and how much cardio and what calorie deficit should i be on i want the weight to come off fast but not to fast just enough to let me know im doing things right?
2270 is probably leaving you in a large deficit, but large folks can handle a big deficit. How much weight are you losing weekly? After dinner when you get the urge to eat I would make a cup of coffee or tea (count the milk and/or sugar if you use it) and leave the kitchen and surf the web or something. They are hot drinks that should take a while to drink, so hopefully they will do the job of keeping your mind off food.


any plans and info you guys can give me would be great and very helpful!



thanks

bold

[mjf100215]

i dabbled with all pros, SS, strong lifts but never kept up with them it just seemed pointless with such light weights what are the many programs you can run for a weak lifter to get the fat coming off?

Pick one of those programs and do it for a year straight. Do not dabble. That's why it didn't work. You are no weaker than any of the people in this forum on their first day of lifting. Just do what weights you can and you'll see progression. Follow the programs.

[cmoss76]

When I started I was at 370, I dropped my calories to 2200 and started walking every morning for a month or 2 until my body was used to being more active. After that I started lifting, when I started lifting I really started to notice the fat coming off and lifts got better pretty quick. I was lifting 3 - 4 days a week while doing cardio 2 days a week. The thing that you have to do is make sure you are weighing and measuring everything, what you think is a half a cup of something could very easily be 3/4 - 1 cup. A way that I kept the foraging in the kitchen down to a minimum was making sure everything that I had in there was something that tasted alright to me but not something that would draw me back for more, those 100 calorie snack packs are a great snack but not if you are eating 5 of them. I always kept some of the light yogurts in the fridge so when I get a craving for something sweet and cold I just grabbed one of those bad boys to suppress the craving. Also water drink lots of water, I try to get a gallon a day, it helps curb the hunger. Once you get to a lower weight and the lbs aren't coming off at at least a lb a week re assess the calories you are bringing in and drop a couple hundred. I had to do this when I got to around 320, I'm currently at 275 and am now between 1800 - 2000.

[MrM27]

Eat chicken that has not extra trimmings besides spices and some vegetables to add flavor. Not to say that eating anything else would be bad but chicken is lean and good protein. I love that i had eaten nothing but chicken for protein source for a week and lost 5 pounds. Greek yogurt will be a perfect staple for breakfast and hunger crusher. As far as sweets, very dark chocolate at 70% is good for you in moderation, as it helps drop fat and increase your health in quite a few areas.

Main thing to understand is protein is your best friend and carbs are like a frienemy. They will give you energy to complete a workout but they will add on the pounds if they are not put to good use. Keep your deficit in the 1800 range if you want to have a fat burning diet- you will have to eat 5-7 meals a day with calories spaced evenly through out unless a meal is close to workout time. Its will be hard to adjust but it will be worth it. Not many things involving cleansing i find helped me out but you could benefit. Tea and coffee help speed up metabolism but not as much as drinking cold water (1 gallon a day).

Supplements like protein powder fill you up and give you what is needed to keep you building and burning. Stick to the basic things for now and gradually move up to the bcaa, creatine and other stuff later on. This stuff is meant to assist but will not do the work for you. Consistency is the main thing that will really make a change. Keep at it and try to make out your own program that works best for your body, not your mood.

No, just no. Basically everything you said is just NO.

Protein is your frienimy? What?
Chicken. With no trimmings?
5-7 meals a day?
Has to be spread out evenly?
Chocolate helps you lose weight?
Supplements are needed and keep you full?
Speeding up metabolism?
1800 for fat burning diet?

[Hasan666]

Keep it simple seriously, just eat less portions and start with light cardio.

[NorthernMusicia]

You don't stop it. You hold back some of your big meal calories for an evening snack. That's how I'd do it. Our culture is too geared toward feeling stuffed. You have to get past that. By trying to maintain a huge meal in your diet, you're approach it as most people do... lose the weight and then go back to eating the way you used to. That's a prescription for failure. Prescription is the right word too. You need to approach food as a medicine. It's more powerful over your lifetime when it comes to health than any medication you will ever take. Over 50% of medicines that are prescribed in north america are to fix the consequences of too much, and the wrong foods.

[Exemer]

No, carbs are frienemy not protein. I followed this for 3 months and lost 30 pounds. Then i made adjustments. Very dark chocolate has a good effect on prevention of fat that i read in mens health and it did help me stay off the binge. Supplements like protein powder and skim milk kept me feeling full. Trimmings like honey mustard sauce, fried, instant potato sides, what not. As far as the caloric intake, that is all i could really eat because i couldn't eat 2200 because it was tough to eat that much for me (stomach shrank).

[NorthernMusicia]

The best way to be 'steady' in your loss is to figure out your calorie deficit, get a scale and be systematic and vigilant in weighing your food. No cheating.

[MrM27]

No, carbs are frienemy not protein. I followed this for 3 months and lost 30 pounds. Then i made adjustments. Very dark chocolate has a good effect on prevention of fat that i read in mens health and it did help me stay off the binge. Supplements like protein powder and skim milk kept me feeling full. Trimmings like honey mustard sauce, fried, instant potato sides, what not. As far as the caloric intake, that is all i could really eat because i couldn't eat 2200 because it was tough to eat that much for me (stomach shrank).

So wait. We can't have BBQ sauce, ketchup, pizza, ice cream, French fries, milk chocolate, brownies etc????? Damn, I did it wrong.

Men's health is not a reliable, quotable source.

[Exemer]

Lmao, dude being over dramatic about what im saying. Just common sense is what im going about. As far as mens health goes, yea that have dropped the ball quite a few times but on the usuall they do have good info on things. You get my drift?

[NorthernMusicia]

Lmao, dude being over dramatic about what im saying. Just common sense is what im going about. As far as mens health goes, yea that have dropped the ball quite a few times but on the usuall they do have good info on things. You get my drift?

I quite like 'Men's Health'. Every weak {sic} they have a new miracle workout, a way to pick up girls, and a new diet to try. Consistency is everything, and they're consistently inconsistent.

[MrM27]

Lmao, dude being over dramatic about what im saying. Just common sense is what im going about. As far as mens health goes, yea that have dropped the ball quite a few times but on the usuall they do have good info on things. You get my drift?

Sorry but what you are saying is not common sense. It's bro-science.

[jsmoor09]

1. I think as far as programs go, Starting Strength or 5x5 are the best possible things you can do. Start as light as you need to. Progress as you can. Going to the gym is an absolute chore when you first start. Remind yourself why you're going. Once you've been at it for 2-3 weeks, it becomes addicting. You WANT to be there.

2. I think it's insane to cut out honey mustard, BBQ, whatever. To me, if I'm eating 12 oz of grilled chicken a day, I'm putting something delicious on it. Hit your protein and fat macros, use the rest as you like. You need the sauce to make the chicken work. Food isn't just fuel. It's a pleasurable part of life. Letting yourself have some things that you like keep you from going insane. The whole "be strong minded, don't eat condiments" is ridiculous. You're going to lose weight if you're at a deficit. The hardest part is making yourself stick with it. And getting to eat things you enjoy helps.

[jsmoor09]

Lmao, dude being over dramatic about what im saying. Just common sense is what im going about. As far as mens health goes, yea that have dropped the ball quite a few times but on the usuall they do have good info on things. You get my drift?

I think if you do what men's health says--you'll be in good shape. The basic premise is eat protein, lift weights, eat more or less cals depending on where you want to go. EVERYONE believes that.
Men's health brings in a bunch of added stuff that just doesn't really make a difference. In theory, it's all well and good. But if it doesn't make a difference, then it just doesn't. If you cut out potatoes, and that works--great. But, the lack of potatoes wasn't the driving force. It's the calorie deficit.