Help me lose (or gain) weight

[Xray the Enforcer]

I would never work out if I had to do it after work. By the time 6pm rolls around, I want to go the heck home, not fart about in a gym for an hour. Therefore, I'm up at 6am or so and I get my workout in before work. (the gym is right across the street from my office, which is a big ol' WIN.)

Next week I jump back into the routine after 1 week of travel and an additional week getting over a headache. It's not going to be pretty, but I gotta start somewhere...

[Stego]

I can't lift in the morning. I always feel weak.

(I do my cardio in the mornings, though.)

[Lord O' Bones]

Huh. Isn't that when your testosterone is highest?

[Angalin]

I am starting the "Body for Life" program on Monday. I have a large shopping list. This is going to serious cost me, but I am worth it. I will make all my breakfasts and lunches in advance. Also, since I have a hard time staying motivated with the afternoon exercises, I will be getting up and doing them at 5am...which means going to bed about 9:30 at night.

Good for you! I am not at all a morning person, so that would be agony for me. The sleep you get before midnight (ie, going to bed at 10pm) is supposed to be better quality than if you went to bed at 2am, but I have no idea why and no recollection of where I read that.

[ztemhead]

habitually I'm a morning gym person. My ideal routine is ~2 hours gym, which includes stretching and showering, then an hour at Whole Foods selecting and eating my post workout protein and fiber.

Which means, basically, being healthy and working a normal full time job are incompatible goals.

[Angalin]

Tris - did you cook them for 20 mins or 30? They should be in for about 40-45 mins in total. Too much lemon juice might tenderize them too much, but as you say that's easy to fix.

What kind of food do you (Triskele and others) find easiest to make? I'm used to cooking from scratch - as in I have bread dough rising in the oven which I'd completely forgotten about and now have to run and do something with :eek: - so I don't think about recipes much, if you know what I mean. Chopping and shoving in a pot is okay, yes?

[Deedles]

Sounds like a nice basic dressing. Glad to hear you've found one that works for you.

I'm off to Bordeaux next week so there will be gluttony on food and wine. I'm going to pay for it the week after next though. Fortunately, I like salad. There will be a lot of it

[Stego]

Huh. Isn't that when your testosterone is highest?

Probably. It's certainly when I am most likely to kill people.

[Lany Freelove Cassandra]

Probably. It's certainly when I am most likely to kill people.

:lol:

I'm like X-Ray. I have tried repeatedly to exercise at night but I am generally too tired or there are too many distractions (my son, mostly)

Even when I sleep in, it's not often past 7, so I don't think this should be too bad.

[lessthanluke]

I'm same as stego. Can't exercise in the morning.

My weight is up to 217lbs. Need to stop eating kebabs while drunk.

[Lord of Oop North]

habitually I'm a morning gym person. My ideal routine is ~2 hours gym, which includes stretching and showering, then an hour at Whole Foods selecting and eating my post workout protein and fiber.

Which means, basically, being healthy and working a normal full time job are incompatible goals.

I have a similar problem. I basically need to be up earlier then six in the morning in order to work, and this doesn't leave any time for hitting the gym. :angry:

[Stego]

Gym should never take longer than an hour. Your post workout chow can be in a convenient shake. You have to take a shower anyway, so that does not add time to your morning prep.

There are ways to do it if you want to do it. Everyone has time to do it.

[Xray the Enforcer]

Sunday is the Day of Food Prep. I'm roasting carrots and later I'll be baking tempeh and making a batch of brown rice. I've already made a huge stew of black-eyed peas with sofrito. So, basically the lunches and dinners for the first part of the week are just about complete.

[Lord of Oop North]

There are ways to do it if you want to do it. Everyone has time to do it.

The way I do it is by going in the evening, but I know I'd be much happier if I could go in the morning.

[ztemhead]

Gym should never take longer than an hour. Your post workout chow can be in a convenient shake. You have to take a shower anyway, so that does not add time to your morning prep.

There are ways to do it if you want to do it. Everyone has time to do it.

eh, I'm talking my ideal workout there. when I have time, that's how long I take. Realistically I shave a half hour off that. 70 mins weights, 10 mins shower, 10 mins faffing about. AKA "dicking around."

thing is I need a little downtime after lifting or else I'm twitchy. (this might be another of those "gee not everyone is built the same" type things) Imagine getting in a cab with a driver who's hands are shaking as he grips the wheel, then tell me if you think it might be valuable for me to chill for half an hour eating some food. Eating, which is by the way, another thing I enjoy.

T minus 4 days to Month of Religion...

[ztemhead]

ztem - I'll join you in your Month of Religion, if I can modify it slightly for the following:

I pledge:

1. No added sugar (no candy, no desserts)

2. No restaurant meals or snacks

3. No alcohol

3. Cardio 3 times a week, no exceptions

Current weight: 114

Goal: 112

I can do it!!!

sounds fab. for me it's no carbs, or < 40 grams a day, dependant on exercise or not. before weightlifting, I must have at least a little sugar/ starch or else the muscles don't work right and it's just torture.

no alcohol. *sigh* but what is a month of privation without that?

no caffeine. this will be the hardest, as it's a true addiction. I have something like 500 mg of caffeine in the morning, and another 400 throughout the day in the form of one 16 oz. diet soda and sometimes but not always another large cup of coffee later in my day/ night cycle.

more cardio, with the goal of overall fat loss for the month in the 8 to 10 lb range.

I'm doing this because I've been stuck at this current weight for a while, (yes, I know why that is) and as a temorary fix, no carbing it works well to kick things back into gear. Four days to get my head straight and stock the fridge, and I"m off and running. (literally)

[lokisnow]

I wrote out a plan for food to eat this week. the key is to do the weekend as well. which is where I tend to not do as well without the structure of work to keep me aright. I either undereat or over eat. Taking the time to write out what I'll eat is something I've not done for a while, but I think it's key to when I've been successful. it should help me control cravings.

I think I'm going to use the weekends for making bigger meals then I can incorporate leftovers into next weeks lunches. this coming saturday I'm going to do a jambalaya with chicken sausage and lots of veggies and not a lot of rice. Sunday I'm thinking a shrimp dish from one of my cookbooks

[Tsavong Lah]

I'm really bad when it comes to food. I've never really learned to cook so I don't find myself working too hard on making healthy food. For lunch I'll normally have some some fresh veggies, a piece of fruit, and a turkey sandwich, which I think is pretty good. Dinner isn't normally as good. And I really try to eat breakfast, because I know it is important for health and weight loss, but I find myself feeling ill if I eat too early. Also, eating breakfast makes me hungrier during the day.

But I make up for my poor food with pretty good dedication to working out. I'd say a normal week sees me running at least 30 and normally more than 40 miles, plus doing about 30 minutes of weights 4-5 days a week. I try to keep it at pretty good intensity. I started at 295 and now I'm down to 269. My goal is 215, as I'm a large guy, but I'll see what I feel like when I hit that weight and reassess my goal then.

[Stego]

5 days of no smoking. It isn't too bad at all.

But what is bad is my munching. Lots of peanuts. Lots of blueberries. Lots of chicken and tuna. I mean...lots.

Ah well, it's worth it.

[Centrist Simon Steele]

When I quit smoking three years ago around the time of my divorce, that is what really fueled what I consider my healthiest time in life. I eventually went from 210 pounds down to 175 and was working out five days a week. That lasted until about a year ago. Funny how quick it all came back on me.

Ever since I quit working out so much I've wanted cigarettes again too.

Damn I got to find a way to lose the weight.