Stu's Struggle

[here2help]

Hey guys, well I WAS looking forward to posting this, but after looking at the pics of my fat ass from 4 days ago, I got extremely discouraged and almost deleted everything. Anyway, here's the info.

About me: I'm 25, have a sedentary job, 5'9" and weighed in at 267lbs (35% BF) on 10/8/06 (4 days ago). I was very active and lifted as a teen, but since moving away from college and getting some very bad habbits, I have gained 10lbs per year for the last 6. Over the last 2 years, I've made a few attemps to lose weight and even got down to 240, however it seems that just as I make some progress, a condition of mine decides to resurface and I end up needing surgery which puts me out of commission for a few months.

Goal: Get down to 200lbs while keeping as much LBM as possible. I'll make a new goal once I get there.

Exercise plan: 5x cardio in the morning before work. So far I've been burning 400cal in 30mins on the elyptical. I'll re-evaluate how this is working after a month or so and see if I want to change it up to 3 days cardio/2 lifting or some other plan.

Diet plan: I have gone 3 days now without soda and have replaced it with green tea. So far it seems to be working well and I haven't been getting my normal headaches. I've also been watching my portion control. I still need more time to recognize where my limits should be, but I'l figure that out as I'm tracking my progress. I also plan on eating healthier foods. I don't necessarily want to track everything that I'm eating....seems like waaay too much work for me at this point.

Suppliments: None currently. I have a multi vitamin, but that's it. Would you guys recommend a protein shake of some kind after a cardio workout?

Anyway, today was day 4 and I've worked out every day this week so far. Since Sunday, I'm already down 4.5lbs and am feeling good so far.

We'll see how far I can go! I know that I'll need a lot of encouragement, so please don't hesitate to give it!

Now onto the starting pics. WARNING: Yes, I'm a fatass, don't click pics unless you want to see something nasty.

Front, not flexing
Front, flexing
Side, not flexing
Side, flexing
[URL=http://myscreamer.com/coppermine/albums/Vacations/Weightloss/normal_backflex.JPG]Back, flexing.

 

[Maffiosa]

1st off welcome to the board bro! Takes a lot of courage expose yourself to strangers and ask for help (i know 1st hand). From your pics it looks like you have a very good solid base, just need to chip away at that BF and lean up some. As far as diet goes i would really encourage you to set up a free account with www.fitday.com! When you are trying to loose weight gotta show some luv to the diet, thats half the battle. Your size is similar to mine, i'm no diet guru but i would recomend taking in 2500-3k cals with the amount of cardio you are doing. I wish i could practice what i preach since i only take in around 2k myself. But play with it and see what works! Here is a list of good cutting foods provided from the boards. Find a low car/cal/fat high protien shake, there are some killer products for loosing weight in the AF store so check em out.

Food List


Originally Posted by ComplimentsOfTheWomen'sFitnessForum
sugar-free low carb protein powder
lean beef
chicken breast
turkey breast
fresh fish
canned tuna
canned salmon
eggs
cottage cheese
hard cheese
sweet potatoes
yams
long grain brown rice
old fashioned oats
steel cut oats
eggplant
squash
romaine lettuce
spinach
asparagus
avocado
broccoli
brussels sprouts
cabbage
cauliflower
cucumbers
celery
peppers (any color)
mushrooms
string beans
zucchini
apples
bananas
fresh or frozen (w/o syrup) berries
peaches
grapefruit
olive oil
safflower oil
flax seed oil
walnut oil
almonds
walnuts
natural sugar-free peanut butter
cashews (raw)
pistachios (raw, insides only)
pears
tomatoes
hard cheese
Chick peas
Sweet Potato
Kidney beans
Almond butter
Mustard greens
Kale
Oranges
Apricots
Ezekiel Bread
Egg Beaters/Liquid egg whites

FIBROUS VEGETABLES

Alfalfa Sprouts
Artichoke Hearts
Arugula
Asparagus
Bamboo Shoots
Bean Sprouts
Beet Greens
Bock Choy
Broccoli
Brussels Sprouts
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Celery
Celery Root
Chard
Chicory
Chives
Collard Greens
Cucumber
Dandelion Greens
Eggplant
Endive
Escarole
Fennel
Hearts of Palm
Jicama
Kale
Kohlrabi
Leeks
Lettuce
Mache
Millie lettuce
Mushrooms
Okra
Onion
Parsley
Peppers
Pumpkin
Radicchio
Radishes
Rhubarb
Sauerkraut
Scallions
Snow Pea Pods
Sorrel
Spaghetti Squash
Spinach
String beans
Summer Squash
Turnips
Water Chestnuts
Wax beans
Zucchini

As far as the work out goes i would say maybe lift 4 days a week, and work a solid cardio routine in with it. I'm sure you will get some great advice from the bro's! Anyhow good luck and keep us posted daily bro!

~Maffiosa

 

[gettnlarge01]

If you want to lose weight your gonna have to track everything you eat. You may lose weight now but when it stops coming off you need to know exactly what you were eating so changes can be made to the diet that will work. Staying consitent with your diet,training and cardio will make the biggest difference to your body so you have to find a diet and routine that you can do everyday. I f you need help with any of these post back

 

[here2help]

How do you guys know exactly what the calorie content is of foods when you're eating out? I've tried looking up nutritional info online for restaurants I visit but haven't found much. Are they required to have nutritional facts at their location for customers to look at before they order?

 

[Maffiosa]

How do you guys know exactly what the calorie content is of foods when you're eating out? I've tried looking up nutritional info online for restaurants I visit but haven't found much. Are they required to have nutritional facts at their location for customers to look at before they order?

Eating out or hitting up fast food? Most places have nutritonal facts on hand, i always ask when me and my wife go out. I dont mess with fast foods, phucks me up lol!

 

[here2help]

Yeah, not fast food, but rather sit down places. I'll definately have to start asking to see if they have the info on hand.

 

[here2help]

Can anyone also give me some advice on my breakfasts? Keep in mind that I'm lactose intolerant, so any kind of dairy product is out of the question.

This morning when I woke up, I had 1 cup of orange juice about 10 mins before working out. I then did 30mins/400cal on the eliptical.

When I got back, I had 1 english muffin with jelly and water to drink. After getting to work I've had 1 cup of green tea and 1 cup of water.

Yesterday I tried to get some protein after working out and had soy milk and peanut butter on my english muffin, but after having my hot green tea in at work I think it reacted with the milk and my stomach was sick for the entire rest of the day.

Any suggestions?

 

[Maffiosa]

Can anyone also give me some advice on my breakfasts? Keep in mind that I'm lactose intolerant, so any kind of dairy product is out of the question.

This morning when I woke up, I had 1 cup of orange juice about 10 mins before working out. I then did 30mins/400cal on the eliptical.

When I got back, I had 1 english muffin with jelly and water to drink. After getting to work I've had 1 cup of green tea and 1 cup of water.

Yesterday I tried to get some protein after working out and had soy milk and peanut butter on my english muffin, but after having my hot green tea in at work I think it reacted with the milk and my stomach was sick for the entire rest of the day.

Any suggestions?

Eggs/ Egg whites- (ground turkey, some low fat chees, and wheat tortilla make a killer Breakfast burrito)

oats/cream of wheat

whole wheat toast

wheat bagels

turkey bacon

all i can think of right now lol

 

[here2help]

Eggs/ Egg whites- (ground turkey, some low fat chees, and wheat tortilla make a killer Breakfast burrito) Cheese is made from milk =(

oats/cream of wheat I think the last time I looked at the ingredients of Cream of Wheat it had milk in it

whole wheat toast Put anything on it? Butter is made from milk =(

wheat bagels Put anything on it? Butter is made from milk =(

turkey bacon I'll have to look into this one

 

[Maffiosa]

Eggs/ Egg whites- (ground turkey, some low fat chees, and wheat tortilla make a killer Breakfast burrito) Cheese is made from milk =(

oats/cream of wheat I think the last time I looked at the ingredients of Cream of Wheat it had milk in it

whole wheat toast Put anything on it? Butter is made from milk =(

wheat bagels Put anything on it? Butter is made from milk =(

turkey bacon I'll have to look into this one

yea cream of wheat isnt a crowd favorite, i just cant handle oats so i use it instead. Get creative bro, only way to keep the dieting on track